Grla

Icelandic Christmas Monster

Michelle Casey

What is Grla?

Ogress/Giantess/Troll

Lives in the mountains in the Dimmuborgir lava fields

Every Christmas she finds the bad children of Iceland, kidnaps them, and
eats them

Horrible temperament because she is constantly hungry

Actually has a family- more on that later!

History of Grla

Said to be the oldest creature of Icelandic folklore

13th century, possibly earlier
Came about as a way of coercing children to be good all year round
15th century: 15 tails, 100 bags per tail, 20 children per bag- thats 30,000
kids!
1746: Icelandic government bans the use of Grla as a threat to children in
the home

Physical Appearance

Varies throughout the centuries

Long, wart-covered nose
13 tails
Hooves for feet- part animal?
Scarf over head
Very big!
Sack in hand

Background Story and Family

Used to beg to support her first 2 husbands, Boli and Gustur

Decided eating children is a better option
Puts children in sack to take home and boil; must release them if they
repent
On her 3rd husband, Leppalui (also lazy and bad-tempered)
72 children???
Most well known: the Yule/Christmas Lads
Yule/Christmas Cat

Yule Lads

Bringers of mischief/strange desires

The 13 Yule Lads:

Sheep Cote Clog (Stekkjastaur)

Gully Gawk (Giljagaur)

Stubby (Stfer)

Spoon Licker (vrusleikir)

Pot Scraper (Potasleiki)

Bowl Licker (Askasleikir)

Door Slammer (Huraskellir)

Skyr Gobbler (Skyrgmur)

Sausage Swiper (Bjgnakrkir)

Window Peeper (Gluggaggir)

Yule Lads cont.

Mostly pester farmers

Modern interpretations have turned them into bringers of gifts for children
who put their shoes on windowsills

Yule Cat

Called Jlaktturinn in Icelandic

Large and black
Eats everyone on Christmas night- unless they received new clothes for
Christmas
Meant to encourage people to work hard before Christmas so they can give
each other good gifts- ultimate survivors guilt!
Very young creature of folklore- earliest writings date back to 19 th century

Grla as a Folkloric Motif

C20: Calling on an ogre or destructive animal

R0-R50: Captivity, Abduction, Places of Captivity, Conditions of Captivity
G100: Giant Ogre
G120: Physical Characteristics of Giant Ogres
G360: Ogres with Monstrous Features

Grla in the future

Definitely will be around for a while- common household name in Iceland

Still seen around Iceland

Clearly no one believes in Grla anymore, but she is an

important part of Icelandic culture
Lost her believability when her name was banned

Grla-additional odd facts

2010: The Onion wrote an article blaming Grla for the eruptions of
Eyjafjallajkull
Children were told to carry sharp objects with them to cut themselves out of
Grlas sack if they were caught- doesnt seem very safe
Stories say she ate her first two husbands because they bored her- talk
about being bored to death!
There are some stories and songs of Grla which result in her dying at the
end

References

"Gryla." Christmas Characters. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Feb. 2016.

"Gryla the Child Eater: Troll Mother of the Yule Lads."The Icelandic Yule
Lads. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Feb. 2016.
"Gryla- Responsible for the Year's Biggest Volcanic Eruption."The Onion.
N.p., 13 Dec. 2010. Web. 5 Feb. 2016.
Proctor, Lucy. "Bogeyman: Five Scary Visitors in the Night."BBC News. N.p.,
24 Dec. 2012. Web. 5 Feb. 2016.
Weber, Stephanie. "In Iceland, You Feed the Christmas Yule Cat or It Will
Feed on You."Modern Notion. N.p., 18 Dec. 2014. Web. 5 Feb. 2016.