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The 13 Yule Lads Before & During Christmas In Iceland

Posted by Anna H. on December 22, 2015 at 2:25 AM




How's it going my gumdrops? Happy Yule/Winter Solstice to all my Pagan friends and subscribers! Sorry there wasn't a Song Saturday or Cartoon Sunday for last weekend.


I have been extremely busy this month both on and offline with family, friends, helping them, and others who have been in need of help this month. During the month of December, I am usually not this busy.


Honestly, I CANNOT believe how fast this December has gone. It was just December 1st. Now, it's December 22nd (Winter Solstice). In 3 more days, it will be Christmas. Yay!


Since it's Yule/Winter Solstice, I thought I would discuss the 13 Yule Lads. The 13 Yule Lads are a part of the Icelandic folklore. An Icelandic poet named Jóhannes úr Kötlum published a poem in 1932 called "Jólasveinarnir." The Icelandic society in Iceland was reintroduced to the Yuletide folklore by the poem, "Jólasveinarnir."


During the last 13 nights before Christmas, the 13 Yule Lads, which were normally depicted as being mischievous and criminal pranksters, love to wreak havoc. They wreak havoc by supposedly coming from the mountains to scare naughty Icelandic children before Christmas.


The 13 Yule Lads are similar to Saint Nicholas and his evil sidekick, Krampus. The 13 Yule Lads either reward good children like Saint Nicholas, or PUNISH naughty children like Krampus.


Nearly a decade ago, I learned a little about the 13 Yule Lads, while watching IMF. The network's abbreviation stood for International Music Feed. I enjoyed watching that music channel a lot more than MTV, MTV2, and VH-1 at the time.


IMF exposed its viewers to both mainstream and underground music videos from around the world. A favorite show of mine, that aired on IMF was Hello World.


Hello World helped to educate viewers about other countries and random facts about them. This was along with learning about entertainers from those countries.


Not only did the network air Hello World, but there were also brief segments during commercial breaks on IMF, which helped viewers to learn more about other ancient folklores. Had it not been for International Music Feed, I would've NEVER discovered the 13 Yule Lads.


During the last 13 nights before Christmas, each Yule Lad arrives and departs on certain dates.


The 13 Yule Lads:


1) Stekkjarstaur (Sheep-Cote Clod)- During December 12th-25th, this stiff and peg-legged Yule Lad harasses sheep.


2) Giljagaur (Gully Gawk)- During December 13th-26th, he hides in gullies, while waiting for an opportunity to sneak into the cowshed and steal milk.


3) Stúfur (Stubby)- During December 14th-27th, this abnormally short Yule Lad steals pans to eat the crust left on them.


4) Þvörusleikir (Spoon-Licker)- During December 15th-28th, this malnourished lad steals Þvörur to lick. Þvörur is a type of a wooden spoon, that has a long handle.


5) Pottaskefill (Pot-Scraper)- During December 16th-29th, he steals leftovers from pots.


6) Askasleikir (Bowl-Licker)- During December 17th-30th, he hides under beds and waits for someone to put down their 'askur' (a type of bowl with a lid used rather than dishes). Then, he steals it.


7) Hurðaskellir (Door-Slammer)- During December 18th-31st, he loves to slam doors, especially during the night.


8 ) Skyrgámur (Skyr-Gobbler)- During December 19th-January 1st, this Yule Lad has an affinity for skyr, which is like an Icelandic strained yogurt.


9) Bjúgnakrækir (Sausage-Swiper)- During December 20th-January 2nd, he hides in the rafters and grabs sausages, that are being smoked.


10) Gluggagægir (Window-Peeper)- During December 21st-January 3rd, this voyeuristic Yule Lad looks through windows in search of things to steal.


11) Gáttaþefur (Doorway-Sniffer)- During December 22nd-January 4th, this lad with an abnormally large nose and an acute sense of smell, sniffs for laufabrauð or an Icelandic bread, which is normally eaten around the time of Christmas.


12) Ketkrókur (Meat-Hook)- During December 23rd-January 5th, he uses a hook to steal meat.


13) Kertasníkir (Candle-Stealer)- During December 24th-January 6th, this last Yule Lad follows children, in order to steal their candles. In the old days, candles were made of tallow (fat from cattle and sheep), which made them edible.


Since we're on the topic of the 13 Yule Lads and because there wasn't a Song Saturday last weekend, it's only appropriate to have a festive song by the Icelandic singer, Björk.


Björk "Jólasveinar" How The Juice Stole Christmas (1995)


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Thank you my gumdrops! Don't forget to like, subscribe, share, +1 on Google Plus, and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

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6 Comments

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Reply [email protected]
9:42 AM on December 22, 2015 
Oh cripes, when I saw the title I thought you were going to write something about a bakers dozen of little homo boys and their yule logs. Then again, with all those gobblers, lickers and sniffers in there, who knows hehe. I love Bjork. I think it's interesting that their mischief revolves around food so much. I'm thinking that before people had all this stuff, food was the most important thing around. Merry Christmas.
Reply Jesse
5:02 PM on December 22, 2015 
Merry Christmas Anna (for friday) and a Happy new year for 2016 :)
Reply Anna H.
3:14 AM on December 23, 2015 
LOL! Sorry about not responding to you much, sooner. Yesterday became much busier than I expected. I meant to sign online last night, but things became chaotic. So many last minute things to do sprang up in such a short amount of time.

I'm glad you enjoy listening to Bjork. She always had a unique sound and an eccentric personality. Then again, she's a singer from Iceland so she's bound to be different from what everyone else is used to. I hope you learned something about the 13 Yule Lads! :)
Reply Anna H.
3:16 AM on December 23, 2015 
Thank you, Jesse! I really appreciate it. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you as well! :)
Reply Danni
11:40 AM on December 23, 2015 
Neat! Learn something new everyday.
Reply Anna H.
7:05 PM on December 23, 2015 
I'm so glad you learned something new, Danni! :)

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