{"id":3816,"date":"2014-12-11T11:46:04","date_gmt":"2014-12-11T11:46:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/?p=3816"},"modified":"2014-12-23T23:27:23","modified_gmt":"2014-12-23T23:27:23","slug":"icelandic-christmas-calendar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/2014\/12\/11\/icelandic-christmas-calendar\/","title":{"rendered":"Icelandic Christmas calendar"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

A Yule troll abode I found downtown. Thankfully no one was home.<\/p><\/div>\n

Welcome to count the days with the Icelandic blog, dear readers – I’m\u00a0going to follow the\u00a0Icelandic tradition of Christmas calendar in which the count-down\u00a0does not begin on the 1st Dec but\u00a0the night before the 12th. \u00a0There will be a new part added to this post every day, so stay tuned!<\/p>\n

Today it’s…<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"24\"<\/a>Kertasn\u00edkir<\/em> (= Candle-Stealer) is the last one to arrive. He steals candles and eats them, and is possibly aided by a lesser-known brother Lampaskuggi<\/em> (= Lamp-Shadow) who loves to suddenly put out all the lights!<\/p>\n

What else is going on here? The volcano – still erupting. Weather – surprisingly good. The Christmas presents that went missing – owners have been found (link<\/a>). Those that love Christmas lights are having a great time (link<\/a>). On the 23rd was the day of saint \u00deorl\u00e1kur (link<\/a>),\u00a0the patron saint of Iceland and the only canonized one we have, and the whole city smelled of fish and occasionally ammonia as well. There was also a candle parade\u00a0downtown (link<\/a>).<\/p>\n

The Icelandic Christmas Calendar has come to an end, I hope you’ve enjoyed it! Remember that giving clothes as presents could save lives (link<\/a>)! \ud83d\ude00<\/p>\n

\"jol1357\"<\/a>

V\u00e6ttur = a spirit, or semi-god-type of a creature. Gr\u00fdla and Leppalu\u00f0i in the middle and some of their children around them. The picture is missing about half of them – maybe those had already left home and were bothering people already?<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

\"jol1365\"<\/a>The amount of J\u00f3lasveinar<\/em>\u00a0currently bothering people: 13\/13.<\/strong><\/p>\n

11.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The first J\u00f3lasveinn<\/em> (= Yule lad)\u00a0is already wearing\u00a0his traveling\u00a0coat\u00a0and it’s high time to get prepared for what’s to come. Children are putting\u00a0their shoes on the window sill in hopes that there’ll be candy in them if they’ve been nice. If they’ve been bad they’ll get a potato, a threat only overcome\u00a0by a friend of mine who absolutely loved potatoes as a child. \ud83d\ude00<\/p>\n

Nowadays the J\u00f3lasveinar are harmless, but at their origin they were actually quite scary. Their mother Gr\u00fdla is an ogress who likes to steal children for her dinner, naughty or nice has no effect on her appetite\u00a0and she has eaten at least one of her previous husbands as well. Some old stories portray the J\u00f3lasveinar as being her accomplishes, helping her find out where the children live while also damaging the farms and their livestock. In the year 1746 people were banned from scaring their children with Gr\u00fdla and her family. There’s been some attempts at her life but even after being declared dead a few times she’s somehow still around…<\/p>\n

No doubt there’ll be curious foot prints in the fresh snow under the windows very shortly if the storms don’t wipe them away too soon. Have a look at pleasant Icelandic December breeze\u00a0here<\/a> and here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

12.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Good morning, hopefully you slept well! Last night Stekkjarstaur<\/em> (= Sheep-Cote Clod) was moving around and you can expect him to keep going for the following 13 days. He’s said to harass sheep, wishing to drink their milk, but that his two peg-legs make moving difficult for him and therefore he has trouble catching the animals.<\/p>\n

Not scary? Well, consider this: in old Icelandic houses the sheep pens could be connected to the main house<\/a>*… so you wake up at night to a weird, rhythmic knocking sound and your pets are going absolutely mad, as if they’re afraid of whatever’s making the sound. Get’s you into the holiday mood right away! \ud83d\ude00<\/p>\n

Stekkjarstaur is one of the oldest known Yule Lads. At his origin he was simply mentioned as being “einn af Gr\u00fdlu hyski og grimmur vi\u00f0 unga sveina” <\/em>(= one of Gr\u00fdla’s family and cruel to\u00a0small\u00a0children) though, not just a sheep-bullying troll son.<\/p>\n

* you’ll see a corridor leading to the sheep pens in this entry and also how dark it used to be in the turf houses, which no doubt gave some edge to all scary Christmas stories!<\/em><\/p>\n

13.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the night of the 13th arrives\u00a0the second J\u00f3lasveinn Giljagaur<\/em>. His name is usually translated as Gully Gawk, and along with Stekkjarstaur he’s one of the two oldest known J\u00f3lasveinar. Originally he wasn’t Gr\u00fdla’s child at all but her brother, so we can probably assume his bad behaviour has since toned down a bit. Gr\u00fdla herself may also be somewhat older than she seems: this<\/a> article compares her to the Scottish\u00a0Cail\u00adleach Beur and the Irish Cail\u00adleach Bh\u00e9\u00adara.<\/p>\n

As for Giljagaur, just like his name suggests he likes to hide in gullies in hopes to steal milk, if a way to the cows is clear for even a moment. Nowadays as cows are harder to come by he might be raiding the fridge instead!<\/p>\n

14.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The third to arrive is called St\u00fafur<\/em>, Stubby. As his name suggests he’s really short, and his preferred thing to steal are pots and pans with\u00a0food burned to the bottom that\u00a0have not been washed in time.<\/p>\n

There are actually more than just 13 J\u00f3lasveinar. Most of them are so local that even Icelanders haven’t heard of them all, and in some areas like the east coast they don’t come from the mountains but from the sea. There are even some female ones such as Flotn\u00f6s<\/em> (= Fat Nose) and Flotsokka<\/em> (= Fat Sock); the first\u00a0steals fat to stuff her nose with it (I have no idea why) the second\u00a0takes socks that have not been finished by Christmas\u00a0and\u00a0rubs grease on them.<\/p>\n

\"jol1371\"<\/a>Some jokes don’t translate all that well. \ud83d\ude00 The Icelandic one goes “What’s St\u00fafur’s favourite neighbourhood? Sm\u00e1\u00edb\u00fa\u00f0ahverfi\u00f0 (a real neighbourhood in Reykjav\u00edk, but the name can also be read as ‘small apartment area’)”<\/em><\/p>\n

15.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00dev\u00f6rusleikir<\/em> (= Spoon licker) is here! The English translation to his name is a little bit misleading – he doesn’t steal just any spoons, he wants those old fashioned, large,\u00a0wooden ones used to stir a pot, but he does lick them. This seems to be his only source of food so he’s usually shown as being very thin and malnourished.<\/p>\n

As a funny piece of news, one of the J\u00f3lasveinar got fined yesterday (link<\/a>)! It naturally made some headlines, although no one seems to know which one of them it was. Maybe it’s a whole new Yule Lad who specializes in parking illegally?<\/p>\n

16.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00deottaskefill<\/em> (= Pot-scraper) follows his older brother, but instead of spoons he wants any pots or pans that have food burned to the bottom and have not been washed. He’s occasionally known by the name Pottasleikir<\/em> (= Pot-licker) as well.<\/p>\n

Among the lesser-known J\u00f3lasveinar there are some that are far worse than these food thieves though – imagine Lungnaslettir<\/em>, if you like. His name means Lung Splatter and his description sounds like something straight out of a horror movie: his chest is open and the lungs are outside. His little Christmas joke? Trying to catch children and beat them with his lungs!<\/p>\n

17.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yesterday’s Yule Lad brought us quite a storm (link<\/a>)! Let’s hope Askasleikir<\/em> (= Bowl-Licker) arrives with better weather.<\/p>\n

I’ve always found Askasleikir among the creepiest J\u00f3lasveinar. He hides under beds and waits for someone to put down their askur, a lidded bowl for food (link<\/a>)*, and steals it in a flash. This is probably a cautionary part because\u00a0putting the bowl on the floor instead of\u00a0a\u00a0shelf was bad manners, yet there’s something very upsettling at the thought of something under my bed keeping an eye on me, ready to jump any moment…<\/p>\n

*For the reader who was interested in these bowls: I tried to see if it were possible to buy askar, but alas they’re so old fashioned that the only way of getting one is by commission. Small, souvenir type of toys do exist (link<\/a>).<\/em><\/p>\n

18.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Now we’re getting to the other scary ones: Hur\u00f0askellir<\/em> (= Door-Slammer) is guaranteed to give you a jump or two in the following days by suddenly slamming any doors that are left open. Some say he’ll not only do this to open doors but to closed ones as well, and that his favourite time for mischief is at\u00a0night after everyone’s gone to bed.<\/p>\n

Another, lesser known J\u00f3lasveinn is Reykjarsvelgur<\/em> (= Smoke-Swallower). He sits on top of houses and gulps down the smoke coming out, especially if meat is being smoked. Then he goes to catch a passer-by and burps the smoke in their face. \ud83d\ude00<\/p>\n

19.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Skyr<\/em> is delicious, and alas the next J\u00f3lasveinn is very aware of this: Skyrg\u00e1mur<\/em> (= Skyr-Gobbler) loves to eat skyr and tries to steal all he can.<\/p>\n

Among the lesser-known J\u00f3lasveinar there are some really curious names that I’ve not managed to get a proper explanation for, such as Litlipungur<\/em> (= Small Testicles), Fl\u00f3rsleikir<\/em> (= Dung channel licker) and Baggal\u00fatur<\/em> (= Small boy). The last one is also a name of a band by the way, you can find\u00a0their Christmas songs here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

20.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bj\u00fagnakr\u00e6kir<\/em> (= Sausage-Swiper) arrived last night. Now’s the time to keep an eye on the ceiling and any possible sausages around, especially the smoked kind because those are his favourite. Bj\u00fagnakr\u00e6kir likes to hide in the rafters, so now you can expect food thieves literally from floor to ceiling. Askasleikir will be under the bed, St\u00fafur, \u00dev\u00f6rusleikir, Pottaskefill and Skyrg\u00e1mur are sneaking around the kitchen, and now the danger’s also above.<\/p>\n

Last week the newspapers have occasionally posted a very specific type of news: lost Christmas presents. Here<\/a> the University of Iceland is trying to find an owner to a parcel simply titled “til m\u00f6mmu<\/em>” (= to mum).<\/p>\n

21.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gluggag\u00e6gir<\/em> (= Window-Peeper) is again one of the scary type of J\u00f3lasveinar. In old pictures he’s often seen peeping through a window while children inside the room cower in fear, trying to hide from him. The lore says he’s looking for things to steal but never explains exactly what it is that he’d take if he gets a chance. I guess it’s good to keep in mind that at his\u00a0origin he, too, was a troll-son of a child-eating mother.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"jol1370\"<\/a>

Gr\u00fdla herself and her third husband Leppal\u00fa\u00f0i. He seems quite useless and only waits for her to return from her hunting trips, but at least she’s not eaten him yet (as she did with at least one previous husband).<\/p><\/div>\n

22.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

G\u00e1tta\u00feefur<\/em> (= Doorway-Sniffer) is easy to tell apart from the other J\u00f3lasveinar: he likes to sniff at doors for possible laufabrau\u00f0<\/em> that he could steal and his nose is huge! His sense of smell is said to be very good in general, even if he’s sniffing for something else than his favourite treat.<\/p>\n

Some of the old, lesser-known J\u00f3lasveinar actually had to make way for newer ones. For example Hur\u00f0askellir took the place of Faldafeykir<\/em> (= Skirt-Sweeper), a troll who harassed women by sweeping their hats off and skirts up and behaved in a most offensive way around them. Good riddance…<\/p>\n

23.12.<\/strong><\/p>\n

We’re almost at the last one now. After today only one more J\u00f3lasveinn is missing, and today’s second-last one is called Ketkr\u00f3kur<\/em> (= Meat-Hook). He climbs onto roofs and tries to steal meat that’s hung from the rafters with a long hook.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_1367\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Gr\u00fdla is also tied to the formation of ice. The joke is hard to translate, but originally it says “what excites Gr\u00fdla the most”. That’s a pun, since the verb kveikja<\/em> can also mean “to light”, and the answer’s also a pun – “Gr\u00fdla’s candle”, a synonym for an icicle.<\/p>\n

\n

\"jol1360\"<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Welcome to count the days with the Icelandic blog, dear readers – I’m\u00a0going to follow the\u00a0Icelandic tradition of Christmas calendar in which the count-down\u00a0does not begin on the 1st Dec but\u00a0the night before the 12th. \u00a0There will be a new part added to this post every day, so stay tuned! Today it’s… Kertasn\u00edkir (= Candle-Stealer)…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":3882,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[90791,91379,91060],"tags":[3,1065,178,7,91391,91396,6977],"class_list":["post-3816","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-icelandic-culture","category-icelandic-customs","category-icelandic-history","tag-culture","tag-festival","tag-history","tag-holidays","tag-living-in-iceland-info","tag-so-icelandic","tag-supernatural"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3816"}],"version-history":[{"count":31,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3816\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3884,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3816\/revisions\/3884"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/icelandic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}