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Yule Lads Nights
"Let me tell the story
of the lads of few charms,
who once upon a time
used to visit our farms.
Thirteen altogether,
these gents in their prime
didn´t want to irk people
all at one time."
~ “Jólasveinarnir” by Jóhannes úr Kötlum (1899-1972), English translation by Hallberg Hallmundsson
From Icelandic Christmas folklore, the Yule Lads are gnome-like figures who arrive during the last 13 nights before Christmas, beginning the 12th of December, delivering gifts to children and playing pranks. In the past, similar to the European Krampus, the more sinister aspect of these figures were used to frighten children into good behavior. The 13 Yule Lads include the Stekkjarstaur the Sheep-Cote Clod (who harasses sheep, but is impaired from doing this well by his peg legs); Bjúgnakrækir the Sausage-Swiper (who hides in the rafters and snatches sausages that are being smoked); and Gáttaþefur the Doorway Sniffer (who has an abnormally large nose and an acute sense of smell which he uses to locate leaf bread)! Still, it's best not to be naughty, because the Yule Lads' mother, Grýla, is an ogress with an appetite for the flesh of mischievous children, whom she abducts and cooks in a large pot!
Icelandic Christmas folklore depicts mountain-dwelling characters and monsters who come to town during Christmas. The stories are directed at children and are used to scare them into good behaviour. The folklore includes both mischievous pranksters who leave gifts during the night and monsters who eat disobedient children!
The figures are depicted as living together as a family in a cave and include:
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Gryla and Leppaludi – Gryla is a giantess with an appetite for the flesh of mischievous children, who she cooks in a large pot. Her husband, Leppaludi, is lazy and mostly stays at home in their cave.
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The Yule Cat is a huge and vicious cat who lurks about the snowy countryside during Christmas time (Yule) and eats people who have not received any new clothes to wear before Christmas Eve.
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The Yule Lads are the sons of Gryla and Leppaludi. They are a group of 13 mischievous pranksters who steal from or harass the population and all have descriptive names that convey their favorite way of harassing. They come to town one by one during the last 13 nights before Christmas. They leave small gifts in shoes that children have placed on window sills, but if the child has been disobedient they instead leave a potato in the shoe.
These Christmas-related folk tales first appear around the 17th century and display some variation based on region and age. In modern times these characters have taken on a slightly more benevolent role.
Not only are there the 13 Santa Claus-like visits, but Icelandic Christmas folklore also describes the visitation of Grýla who comes down from the mountains on Christmas and boils naughty children alive as well as the giant, blood-thirsty Christmas Cat that prowls around the country on Christmas Eve and eats anyone who's not wearing at least one new piece of clothing.
In 1746 parents were officially banned from tormenting their kids with monster stories about those particular creatures. Today, the stories have evolved the monsters into benign beings, who only play harmless tricks. mostly benign--save for the harmless tricks they like to play.
Each of the Yule Lads has his own distinct personality. Their names, however, remained a point of much interpretation and debate until recently. As the National Museum of Iceland describes:
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Stekkjarstaur - Sheep-Cote Clod - Harasses sheep, but is impaired by his stiff peg-legs. 12 December- 25 December
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GiljagaurGully- Gawk- Hides in gullies, waiting for an opportunity to sneak into the cowshed and steal milk.13 December- 26 December
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StúfurStubby- Abnormally short - Steals pans to eat the crust left on them.14 December- 27 December
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Þvörusleikir- Spoon-Licker- Steals and licks wooden spoons. Is extremely thin due to malnutrition.15 December-28 December
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Pottaskefill- Pot-Scraper- Steals leftovers from pots.16 December-29 December
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Askasleikir- Bowl-Licker- Hides under beds waiting for someone to put down their "askur" (a type of bowl with a lid used instead of dishes), which he then steals.17 December-30 December
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Hurðaskellir-Door-Slammer- Likes to slam doors, especially during the night, waking people up.18 December-31 December
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Skyrgámur - Skyr-Gobbler- A Yule Lad with a great affinity for skyr (similar to yogurt).19 December- 1 January
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Bjúgnakrækir- Sausage-Swiper- Hides in the rafters and snatches sausages that are being smoked. 20 December - 2 January
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Gluggagægir- Window-Peeper- A snoop who looks through windows in search of things to steal. 21 December- 3 January
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Gáttaþefur - Doorway-Sniffer - Has an abnormally large nose and an acute sense of smell which he uses to locate leaf bread (laufabrauð). 22 December- 4 January
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Ketkrókur- Meat-Hook - Uses a hook to steal meat. 23 December- 5 January
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Kertasníkir- Candle-Stealer - Follows children in order to steal and eat their candles. 24 December- 6 January
Dozens of different names for the Yule Lads appear in different folk tales and stories. A popular poem about the Yule Lads by the late Jóhannes úr Kötlum, which first appeared in the book Jólin koma (Christmas is Coming) in 1932, served to make their names and number much better known. The names of the 13 Yule Lads that most Icelanders know today are all derived from this poem.
For more on the Yule Lads, click the picture!