13 Yule Lads, a terrifying troll mother, a giant Christmas cat… and potatoes in shoes.

Welcome to Christmas in Iceland

Christmas in Iceland is a little different. Forget about just one Santa Claus coming down the chimney. Iceland has 13 Yule Lads, each with his own name, personality and very specific bad habit.

And they don’t come alone. There is their terrifying mother Grýla, their lazy father Leppalúði, and a gigantic Christmas cat called Jólakötturinn.

MEET THE ICELANDIC YULE LADS

The Icelandic Yule Lads — Jólasveinarnir — are 13 brothers from Icelandic folklore. According to tradition, they live in the mountains with their mother Grýla, their father Leppalúði and the Yule Cat. Beginning 13 days before Christmas, they come down from the mountains one by one. A new Yule Lad arrives every night until the last one appears on December 24. But don’t expect 13 identical Santas. Each brother has his own peculiar obsession — stealing sausages, licking spoons, slamming doors, eating skyr or peeking through windows.

THE 13 BROTHERS

Stekkjastaur · Sheep-Cote Clod

December 12
He sneaks into sheep pens and tries to bother the sheep. Unfortunately for him, his stiff wooden legs make the whole operation rather difficult.

Giljagaur · Gully Gawk

December 13
He hides in gullies and waits for the perfect opportunity to sneak into the cowshed and steal milk.

Stúfur · Stubby

December 14
The shortest of the brothers. His favourite activity is stealing dirty pans so he can eat whatever delicious bits have been left behind.

Þvörusleikir · Spoon-Licker

December 15
Exactly what the name suggests. He steals wooden spoons and licks them clean.

Pottaskefill · Pot-Scraper

December 16
Leave a pot unattended and Pottaskefill will happily scrape out every last bit of food.

Askasleikir · Bowl-Licker

December 17
He hides under beds waiting for someone to put down their askur, a traditional Icelandic bowl. Then he grabs it and licks it clean.

Hurðaskellir · Door-Slammer

December 18
His great contribution to Christmas? Slamming doors. Preferably at night. Preferably while everyone is trying to sleep.

Skyrgámur · Skyr-Gobbler

December 19
He absolutely loves skyr, Iceland’s famous cultured dairy product. And apparently, there is no such thing as too much skyr.

Bjúgnakrækir · Sausage-Swiper

December 20
He hides in the rafters and waits for his chance to steal smoked sausages.

Gluggagægir · Window-Peeper

December 21
He peers through windows looking for interesting things that he might be able to steal.

Gáttaþefur · Doorway-Sniffer

December 22
Thanks to his enormous nose, he can smell delicious Christmas baking from far away.

Ketkrókur · Meat-Hook

December 23
Armed with a long hook, he tries to steal pieces of meat whenever he gets the chance.

Kertasníkir · Candle-Stealer

December 24
The last brother arrives on Christmas Eve. Traditionally, he followed children around hoping to steal their candles — which were once made from edible tallow.

And once Christmas has arrived? They don’t disappear all at once. Beginning with Stekkjastaur, the brothers return to the mountains one by one, in the same order in which they arrived. The last Yule Lad finally leaves on January 6.

MEET THE FAMILY

You might be wondering what kind of parents could possibly raise 13 spoon-licking, sausage-stealing, door-slamming trolls.

Well…

GRÝLA

The mother. And definitely not someone you want to meet in the mountains.

Grýla is one of Iceland’s most famous folklore figures: a giant troll woman who lives in the mountains and comes looking for badly behaved children. And unlike today’s cheerful Christmas characters, old stories about Grýla were genuinely frightening. According to folklore, she carried naughty children away in her sack and took them back to her cave to eat them.

Suddenly getting coal for Christmas doesn’t sound so bad.

LEPPALÚÐI

The father of the Yule Lads.

Leppalúði is Grýla’s husband and the father of the 13 brothers.

Compared with the rest of the family, he has a rather less impressive reputation. He is usually portrayed as lazy, weak and perfectly happy to stay at home while Grýla does the terrifying.

JÓLAKÖTTURINN – The Yule Cat

And then there is the cat. Jólakötturinn is no ordinary house cat. He is an enormous and frightening creature associated with Icelandic Christmas folklore. Tradition says that the Yule Cat prowls around at Christmas looking for people who have not received new clothes.

Why clothes?

Historically, finishing the processing of wool before Christmas was important work. Those who completed their tasks could receive a new piece of clothing as a reward.

So if you want to survive an Icelandic Christmas, perhaps add some socks to your wish list. Just in case.

PUT YOUR SHOE IN THE WINDOW

Fortunately, the modern Yule Lads are considerably friendlier than their ancestors. For the 13 nights before Christmas, Icelandic children place a shoe on their bedroom windowsill before going to sleep. During the night, the Yule Lad visiting that day may leave something inside. If you’ve been good, you might wake up to find a small present or treat. If you’ve been naughty? You might find a potato.

And because there are 13 Yule Lads, this happens night after night until Christmas Eve.

Gleðileg jól! — Merry Christmas!