TTStoryTime! #4: Mythical Beings of Iceland

In the far north of the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by cold and mysterious depths of unexplored waters, sits the striking land of fire and ice. I could spend hours and days reading stories about this country without remembering that I am in survival mode.  And Iceland has so many of those stories that I don't even know where to start.

Elves, trolls, ghosts,... You name it. The majority of Icelanders believe in, or at least refuse to deny their existence. For centuries, Icelanders developed a rich storytelling tradition about these magical creatures, yet still part of their heritage nowadays.

1. 'Respect the Elves – or Else!'

Recently, I watched a movie named Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. I was excited by the fact that more than half of the population of Iceland believes in Elves. I mean, not only children but also adults believe in them.

In a scene from Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga - Sigrit offers the Elves whiskey and homemade biscuits for a wish.

Elves are known as the Huldufólk (Huldu=secrecy; Fólk=people), or “Hidden People” in English. But ever wonder why are they called Hidden People? I will tell you a story about it.

Once upon a time, Adam and Eve were living a happy life with many children in the Garden of Eden. One day, God came to visit unexpectedly and requested to meet their children. Eve was bathing them, but unfortunately, at the time she wasn't able to finish cleaning them all. 

Ashamed to show God the dirty ones, she only showed him the children who were clean. God knew that she was hiding some of her children, but he still gave her the chance, to tell the truth. However, she lied to him and said all her children were standing there in front of him. To punish her disobedience, God declared strongly that the children she hid from him, would be hidden from all mankind. 

These cursed-to-be-hidden children became the first Huldufólk.

You see, that Icelandic elves aren’t so different from humans, well… just that they are a bit more magical. They remain hidden in enchanted caves and rocks as their home. Basically, the Huldufólk have a life similar to humans: holding livestock, cutting hay, rowing fishing boats, picking berries, etc… 

Despite these resemblances with us, they don’t like to be disturbed and they live in their own corner. They always remain invisible, only allowing themselves to be seen in particular situations and at specific times, like New Year’s Eve and Midsummer’s Night. Only a lucky few may spot them wandering around the crossroads or moving their house.

Did I say “lucky”? Well, it depends.

On Midsummer night, if you are approached by the Hidden People who offer you gold and jewels, beware!

If you resist the temptation to accept, your wishes will come true, however, if you don’t you will be driven mad for the rest of your life.

Key takeaways about Huldufólk in Iceland:

• You should never throw rocks in Iceland, because of the chance you may accidentally hit one of the elves. 
• There are countless stories of roads and building projects being stopped by the elves when they intersect with their territory. According to Icelanders, machines mysteriously stop working or some workers may get hurt, break a leg or sprain an ankle are signs that they are working where elves are living.
• Denying the existence of elves is believed to bring about a lifetime of extremely bad luck.

2. 'Trolls or be Trolled’

While Elves stay invisible to others, Trolls can only go out at night when the sky is pitch-black. Everywhere you look in Iceland, evidence of trolls can be found.

Iceland is home to several volcanic lava spread beaches, but the one that stands out is the Reynisfjara beach. With its own black sand looking like from another planet this place also witnessed the existence of the trolls.

A long long time ago, in a land far far away, there were some sailors on their journey to the sea. Their ship was damaged by a storm so they brought it to shore near Vik. 

One night, appeared a troll, asking for companionship on the journey, but soon was rejected as it sailed away. The troll then had its friend join to steal the ship, which soon succeeded, and they started pulling it back to the shore.

Alas! The night wasn’t long at that time, it was a slow maneuver and the trolls soon lost track of time. Just as they were near Reynisdrangar shore, the Sun rose up and cast its rays on the trolls, instantly turning them and the ship into stone for eternity.

Until today, it is believed that if you are nearby the cliffs you can hear their wails, as they yearn for their home in the mountains.

Key takeaways about Trolls in Iceland:

• Trolls can only survive in the darkness of night - So you are most likely safe in the summer if you don’t accidentally visit their homes.
• If something seems extremely unique—or like it couldn’t possibly be carved by nature itself - there’s a high chance that a troll had something to do with it.

3. Haunted by the Ghost of a Murdered Child

While safe and legal abortion is a relatively recent addition to our society, back then, as you may know, it was not an option as the untrained mothers-to-be performed them at significant risk. In rural areas of Iceland, the most common way of this was to carry the newborn out into the wilderness and leave it to its fate: either die of exposure to harsh Iceland weather or under predators’ claws.

The story tells the origin of Útburðir - a sad fate of a baby that had been exposed at birth and “secretly buried in the unhallowed ground”. The shape of Útburðir is like a raven, and the color of their fur depends on the color of the rag that was wrapped around them.

A long time ago, there was a young lady who lived on a farm and became pregnant. After giving birth to the baby, she carried it to the deep forest and set it to die under the unforgiving Icelandic winter. 

One day, she was invited to a dancing party but did not have any good clothes to wear, so she stayed home in a sour mood.
That night, while milking the ewes in the field, she complained out loud about not having a glamourous dress for going to the party. She then heard the whispering in her ear the following chanting:

“Mother mine, in the fold, fold

You need not be so sad, sad.

You can wear my castoff rags,

So you can dance,

And dance.”

The young lady who cruelly left her child to die of exposure recognized its voice. The poor woman was so frightened that she lost her mind and remained insane for the rest of her life.

It was said that Útburðir can be identified by the way they crawl as they use only one of their knees and elbows to move. They also give off a chilling howl when the mood strikes them.

Just by imagining, it gives you a chill, right?

Ending

There are many, many more mythical beings in Iceland besides these three stories but you’ll have to come over here and visit this amazing land yourself your self to really understand where these legends come from!

Let us know if you spot some of the Elves this Midsummer! :)

If you are looking for some new ideas to travel to Iceland, feel free to check out our itinerary here!