While touring alongside Iceland’s South Coast, our group stumbled on a rocky outcrop on the aspect of the highway. “Over there is where the elves live,” stated our information and driver Stefan Arngrímsson, pointing to the trio of huge boulders. We all seemed to the place Arngrímsson had motioned however didn’t discover something out of the atypical. “Most of you won’t be able to see them,” he continued, “because they’re what we call Huldufólk, or ‘Hidden People.’”Arngrímsson then instructed us a story that dates all the best way again to the creation story of Adam and Eve. According to Icelandic folklore, Eve was in the course of bathing a few of her kids when God stopped by. Rather than having the Supreme Being see them whereas they had been nonetheless soiled, Eve hid them. But being all-knowing, God stated to her, “What man hides from God, God will hide from man.” That’s the second when Iceland’s Hidden People originated
Although estimates differ, it’s stated that a minimum of a 3rd of Icelanders consider in Huldufólk, whereas a big portion of others aren’t keen to disclaim their existence. It’s the age-old adage, higher protected than sorry. You see, Iceland’s elves are intricately linked with the nation’s pure panorama, and disturbing their supposed house may wreak havoc on the native surrounds. And they’re not Iceland’s solely legendary creatures. Trolls, dwarves, Nykur (a water horse), and the Lagarfljót Worm, which is taken into account the nation’s “very own Loch Ness Monster” are all part of the native lexicon.
Basalt columns at Svartifoss Waterfall © Lianne Thompson
The cause is evident: as a Nordic island nation made up of deep fjords, gushing waterfalls, and spouting volcanoes; a spot the place the Northern Lights erupt in iridescent colours on a transparent evening’s sky and basalt columns butt up in opposition to black sand seashores; and a small and remoted nation the place the winters are lengthy, darkish and chilly, a convention of wealthy and fantasmical storytelling has emerged. These allegorical tales have been crafted over time with influences from their Norse and Celtic-speaking ancestors, in addition to Christianity, changing into an important a part of their nationwide id. They’re as a lot part of this Land of Fire and Ice as sheep and horses, and a staple of on a regular basis life.
Here are a few of Iceland’s most outstanding legendary creatures, and the perfect locations for recognizing them countrywide.
Elves
A row of Elf homes
Elves, or Huldufólk (hidden individuals), are supernatural beings that arrange their houses in unassuming locations, like Iceland’s many rocks and cliffs. They’re a lot part of Icelandic tradition that there’s even an Elf School in Reykjavik, the nation’s capital metropolis. Here, guests and locals alike can study elf conduct and listen to associated testimonies from the various Icelanders who’ve had private contact with the elves, in addition to embark on post-session strolling excursions to certainly one of Reykjavik’s most important elf hubs.
As Arngrímsson identified, elves aren’t seen by everybody, regardless of dwelling lives which can be similar to that of native people. They elevate sheep, decide wild bilberries and crowberries, and sleep and eat. Keep an eye fixed out for álfhól, the small picket homes that Icelanders construct for the elves, usually alongside roadsides, tucked inside gardens, or by the trunk of a tree. But regardless of these tiny digs, many of the nation’s elves (there are considered a minimum of 13 forms of elves in Iceland) are human-size, like those showing in Director Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings. They additionally are typically extra engaging than us common people.
Respecting the houses of elves is crucial to the pure steadiness of Icelandic dwelling—in any other case, dangerous issues can occur. For instance, in 2013 the Reykjavík suburb of Gálgahraun, development staff needed to halt work on a highway via an area lava area as a result of Ófeigskirkja, a big rock believed to be an “elf church,” stood proper in its pathway. The years-long dispute resulted in a settlement that appeased each the elves and the people alike. Then there’s the city of Kópavogur, south of Reykjavík, the place a rock often called Elfhill led to so many gear breakdowns and accidents, laborers had been compelled to construct their highway round it.
Icelandic horse rests beside enchanting turf buildings
To indulge within the notion of Elfin life, hassle-free, swing by Hafnarfjördur, a port city nested in a lava area about six miles south of Reykjavik. Many Icelanders think about Hafnarfjördur to be the nation’s unofficial elf capital. You may even decide up a map on the native vacationer workplace of the locations on the town that elves are thought to stay. One such spot is Hellisgerði Lava Park, a public park in Hafnarfjördur’s heart that’s identified for its moss-blanketed lava formations—a haven for each elves and dwarfs.
In the nation’s northeast, you’ll discover Ásbyrgi, a horseshoe-shaped canyon that’s house to streams, caves, and the small Botnstjörn Lake. It additionally occurs to be the capital metropolis of Iceland’s elves, together with a cease on North Iceland’s 155-mile Diamond Circle driving tour.
Elf Holidays
Your greatest probability for recognizing elves in Iceland is on certainly one of 4 annual holidays: New Year’s Eve, Twelfth Night (January 6), Midsummer in June or Christmas evening. It’s stated that the Hidden People like to alter areas on New Year’s Eve, so Icelanders put out candles to assist information their approach. On January 6, which in Iceland is known as Þrettándinn or “The Thirteenth,” native residents gentle álfabrennur, or elf bonfires. Even for those who don’t see the Huldufólk themselves, you’re certain to see some people dressed as them and participating within the accompanying merriment, which generally contains singing, dancing, and even folktales.
Trolls
Reynisdrangar Trolls
They’re large, moody, and never the brightest of the bunch. Trolls rule over Icelandic folklore, popping out at evening to lure people into their caves and eat them. Turns out they’re particularly a fan of misbehaving children. But don’t fear an excessive amount of. Once an Icelandic troll encounters daylight, it should flip to stone. In Iceland’s present retailers and storefronts, troll dolls usually characteristic massive ears, bulbous noses, and droopy shoulders, however the trolls you’ll see in nature are those which have already been petrified.
These embody triangular-shaped Skessuhorn (Troll Woman’s Peak) in West Iceland, which the story goes was as soon as a feminine troll who used to take a seat upon what’s now this fairly spectacular 3,173ft tall peak—nicknamed the “Matterhorn of Iceland”—sussing out individuals to catch and devour. There’s additionally Tröllaskarð (Troll’s Pass) within the north, the place a troll would sit watch and survey those that handed by; and Hvítserkur, a nearly-50-foot-tall sea stack in northwest Iceland which is believed to be a troll that was busy tearing down the bells of the previous Þingeyraklaustur monastery when he turned to stone.
On Iceland’s South Coast stand the trolls of Reynisfjara Beach, three ocean rocks which can be the petrified stays of a trio of trolls who had been attempting to tug a three-masted ship to land, earlier than getting hit by the morning solar. The seashore itself is famend for its sneaker waves (don’t flip your again on them!) and black sands, in addition to its mountain of hexagonal basalt columns.
Christmas Folklore
Reykjavik
No dialogue of Iceland’s legendary creatures can be full with out the 13 Yule Lads, a baker’s dozen of mischievous brothers who mark the Christmas holidays with their arrival. These pranksters-turned-holiday helpers are stated to reside at Dimmuborgir, a collection of big lava pillars scattered throughout an space in north Iceland, with their ogre dad and mom, the giantess Grýla and her second or third husband, Leppalúði. Their pet, Yule Cat, likes to roam the countryside searching for kids that haven’t gotten any new garments that vacation season, after which in true legendary creature type, consuming them.
The Yule Lads arrive individually over the vacation season, delivering a small present at a time over 13 days. Rotten potatoes are par for the course for many who’ve misbehaved. The lads embody Skyrgámur, the eighth Yule Lad who’s obsessive about the Icelandic yogurt, Skyr, and Ketkrókur, the twelfth Yule Lad who makes use of a hook to steal meat.
To really delve into this magical world of creatures, don’t miss Nat Hab Adventures’ 11-day Iceland: Circling the Land of Fire & Ice.
© Lianne Thompson