With Christmas quickly approaching, I decided to visit the old folktales of Grýla and Leppalúði that harkens from the frozen lands of Iceland.  Here in the States, naughty children receive the threat of coal from Santa, but in Iceland, naughty children might be used as the main ingredient in a winter soup! If you are still unafraid after reading this, you can visit Grýla and Leppalúði in person on the streets of Akureyri in northern Iceland.  But for now, read along to learn about Grýla, Leppalúði, their Yule cat, and the Yule Lads.

Grýla, the Christmas Witch

What better way to get your children to behave all year then to tell them that they might be eaten by a wicked monster come Christmas time?  Grýla is Iceland’s Christmas witch, troll, or monster, depending on the story.  Every year, she keeps track of bad children all year round.  Then, at Christmas time, she descends from her cave to search for those naughty children on her list to eat.  She eats children of all ages but prefers those under 6 years of age.  Children are obviously her favorite food and she likes to eat them in a nice, hot stew.

Grýla is married to Leppalúði, who is also her third husband.  Together, they reside in her cave in the Dimmuborgir lava fields of Iceland along with their vicious pet, the Yule Cat.

Yule Cat

The jólaköttur, or the Yule Cat, is a large and ferocious (though probably fuzzy) black cat that belongs to Grýla.  The Yule Cat, as his owner, descends out of his cave during Christmas time looking for people to eat.  He’s not picky, and will eat both children and adults alike who are unlucky enough to not have any new clothes to wear.  This lore was created by the locals as an incentive to finish up the processing of wool before the winter months set in.

The Yule Lads

Grýla has many sons who are known as the jólasveinar, or the Yule Lads. The number has ranged over time to as many as 50, but the current view is that there are 13, each with their own character traits.  Historically, they were tricksters and were unfriendly to children with bad behavior.  Over time, the stories got progressively darker and more bloody.  In 1746, when Iceland was still part of the Danish kingdom, Denmark banned the telling of stories that were meant to scare children into good behavior.  Since then, the Yule Lads have grown friendly.  Today, the Yule Lads are akin to Santa Claus. Beginning on December 11, each child in Iceland leaves out one of their shoes overnight for the Yule Lads.  One of the Yule Lads will visit and leave a present in the shoe; a toy if you were good and a potato if you were naughty.  A different Yule Lad comes on each day. 

Oral Folktales

There are many stories of Grýla and her sons that have been passed down from generations to generations.  The earliest account dates to the 13th century when she was mentioned in the Sverris Saga, one of the Kings’ sagas from Norway, this one about King Sverre Sigurdsson who reigned from 1177 to 1202.  In fact, Grýla is the name given to the first section of the book.  Grýla was also mentioned in Snorra-Edda, one of the Icelandic Sagas written by Snorri Sturluson.

Where is Grýla located?

You can visit Grýla and Leppalúði in person along Hafnarstraeti in Akureyri, Iceland.  They are located right in the middle of the street, between a pedestrian walkway and the automobile travel lane near street number 108 and the Apotek Guesthouse.