Before the Yule Lads Evolved Into Icelandic Versions of Santa Claus, They Terrorized Children Into Following the Rules

In Icelandic folklore, 13 merry but mischievous brothers known as the Yule Lads take turns visiting children on the 13 nights leading up to Christmas Day. On each of these nights, youngsters place their shoes on a windowsill in hopes of finding a treat the following morning. Good boys and girls wake up to candy, while children who have misbehaved are met with a rotting potato.

Today, the Yule Lads are often depicted as benign, Santa Claus-like figures clad in red-and-white clothing. But the brothers—referred to as jolasveinar in Icelandic—used to be far more sinister creatures. First mentioned in the 17th century, the Yule Lads were initially portrayed as “gigantic, lumbering trolls,” writes Tanya Gulevich in the Encyclopedia of Christmas and New Year’s Celebrations.

The siblings’ mother, Grýla, was an ogre who was said to descend from her mountain home on Christmas in search of poorly behaved children to stuff into a sack—and perhaps even eat. The family pet, an enormous cat named Jólakötturinn, prowled the country on Christmas Eve, eating kids who weren’t wearing at least one new item of clothing.

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“Grýla is the archetypal villain, and the fact that she’s a matriarch makes her somehow more frightening,” Brian Pilkington, an illustrator who has drawn some of the definitive depictions of Grýla and the Yule Lads, told Smithsonian magazine in 2017. “If I draw Grýla, then two or three terrified children have to leave the room, because it’s too strong for them. This is living folklore.”

At first, adults invoked the Yule Lads to frighten the young into following their rules. The warnings worked a little too well, so in 1746, the Icelandic government issued a public decree prohibiting parents from using the brothers and similarly scary stories to frighten their children into submission.

By the 19th century, the Yule Lads had evolved into “oafish” thieves who “stole sausages, candles and the family’s best grain,” Gulevich writes. “One might leave a room neat and clean only to find it askew upon returning.” In the 20th century, the brothers lost even more of their bite, falling under the influence of congenial characters like Santa Claus and Danish Christmas gnomes. They developed “an unprecedented kindness toward children,” per the National Museum of Iceland.

From the land of ice and fire, I present you,…

‘The Yule Lads’

The Yule Lads are the sons of Grýla and Leppalúði. They are a group of 13 mischievous pranksters who steal from or harass the population, and all have descriptive names that convey their favorite way of harassing.… pic.twitter.com/bYUbqC1Rnw

— Alice Nebularis (@AliceNebularis) December 19, 2024

Each of the 13 Yule Lads has his own distinct personality. The brothers’ names, however, remained a point of much interpretation and debate until 1932, when a popular poem by Jóhannes úr Kötlum cemented a specific version of their personas in the Icelandic imagination.

According to the National Museum, the first Yule Lad, Sheep-Cote Clod, unsuccessfully tries to suckle farmers’ sheep, while the second, Gully Gawk, slurps foam off the top of buckets of cow’s milk. A diminutive Yule Lad named Stubby steals food from frying pans; Skyr Gobbler gorges himself on Icelandic yogurt.

Most of the other brothers’ favored activities are directly referenced in their names: for example, Spoon Licker, Pot Scraper (or Pot Licker), Bowl Licker, Door Slammer, Sausage Swiper, Window Peeper and Door Sniffer. But a few require additional explanation. Meat Hook, the 12th Yule Lad, lowers a stick or a hook down houses’ chimneys to snatch up smoked lamb, a traditional Icelandic Christmas treat, as it hangs from the rafters. Finally, Candle Beggar, the 13th Yule Lad, covets candles for the bright light they emit. As the 1932 poem states, “He trailed after the little ones / who, like happy sprites, / ran about the farm with / their fine tallow lights.”

Rachel Nuwer | | READ MORE

Rachel Nuwer is a freelance science writer based in Brooklyn.

Meilan Solly | | READ MORE

Meilan Solly is Smithsonian magazine's senior associate digital editor, history.