The original tales of Norwegian trolls are stories of giant beings that roam the mountains and forests and spend their days hiding from the sunlight. What happens when the sunlight hits them? They turn to stone! Maybe that’s why they are often connected with the cold winter months and the holiday season, so they can… More The Trouble with Trolls
This month’s folktales come from the book By the Fire – Sami Folktales and Legends collected and illustrated by Emilie Demant Hatt, translated, and with an Afterword, by Barbara Sjoholm. In the book Demant Hatt explains: This small book is called “by the fire” because everything here was told around the campfire. Fire is, after the… More Scandinavian Folklore and Folktales #4: Sami Folktales
This is a folktale called “The Pancake” or “The Runaway Pancake.” The story is most likely Russian or Scandinavian in origin, and was first written down in Norway in the mid nineteenth century. In Russia, the pancake is a kind of doughy cake called Kolobok. There are versions recorded at around the same time in… More Scandinavian Folklore and Folktales #3: The Runaway Pancake