In Iceland there are 13 Santa Clauses or Yule Lads. They live nearby Reykjavik in a mountain called Esjan with their troll mother Gryla and father Leppaludi. Their cat is called Jolakotturinn or The Christmas Cat.
13 nights before Christmas the Yule Lads start descending from the mountain to town one by one.
On the night of December 11th children put their shoe in the window in hope that they will find a nice small gift from the Yule Lad when they wake up. The Yule Lads know if you have been good or bad and if the children have been good, they get something nice, if on the other hand they have been bad, they will get an old potato, and nobody likes that. This tradition keeps on going for those 13 nights before Christmas, so it can be a nice time for the parents when all kids behave.
Each and every Yule Lad has a name and it´s own character.
The first one is called Stekkjastaur or Sheep-Cote Clod. He harasses sheep, but is impaired by his stiff peg legs. He arrives the 12th of December.
The Second one is Giljagaur or Gully Gawk. He hides in gullies, waiting for an opportunity to sneak into the cowshed and steal milk.
The third one is Stufur or Stubby. He is abnormally short and he steals pans to eat the crust left on them.
The fourth one is Þvörusleikir or Spoon-Licker. He steals Þvörur (a type of a wooden spoon with a long handle) to lick. He is extremely thin due to malnutrition.
The fifth one is Pottaskefill or Pot-Licker. He steals leftovers from pots.
The sixth one is Askasleikir or Bowl-Licker. He hides under beds waiting for someone to put down their ‘askur’ (a type of bowl with a lid used instead of dishes in the old days), which he then steals.
The seventh one is Hurðaskellir or Door-Slammer. He likes to slam doors, especially during the night.
The eight one is Skyrgámur or Skyr-Gobbler. A Yule Lad with an affinity for skyr, an Icelandic dairy product.
The ninth one is Bjúgnakrækir or Sausage-Swiper. He would hide in the rafters and snatch sausages that were being smoked.
The tenth one is Gluggagægir or Window-Peeper. A voyeur who would look through windows in search of things to steal.
The eleventh one is Gáttaþefur or Doorway-Sniffer. Has an abnormally large nose and an acute sense of smell which he uses to locate laufabrauð, an Icelandic deep fried bread.
The twelfth one is Kjötkrókur or Meat-Hook. Uses a hook to steal meat.
The thirteen and the last one is Kertasníkir or Candle-Stealer. Follows children in order to steal their candles (which in those days were made of tallow and thus edible).
Gryla their mother is a scary and not very good-looking troll lady. Some say she has a big wart on her extremely big nose. She is said to spank her Yule Lads when they misbehave. Children in Iceland fear Gryla like hot lava because she is said to take children who don’t behave and put them in her big brown bag and bring them to her mountain.
Leppaludi their father is supposedly Gryla´s third husband. He is considered to be very lazy and an unpleasant man.
The Christmas cat is a giant black cat that lives with this unordinary family in the mountain. It is said that if you don’t get a new piece of clothing before Christmas the Christmas Cat will eat you. But don’t worry, there are no reports of that happening yet. Just make sure you at least buy a pair of new socks to prevent him coming for you if you ever spend Christmas in Iceland.
Originally Yule lads were for scaring children the days before Christmas, they were troll like and looked nothing like the traditional international Santa claus we know today. They were portrayed as being mischievous thieves. Today they have become to be more like the one we know, both in looks and behavior.
[…] The role of Santa Claus is different in Iceland than for example in the US. He’s not the one who brings the presents and puts them under the tree, that is the parent’s job and all kids know that. You can read more about the Icelandic Santa clauses here. […]