New Years Eve
- Bryndís Viglundsdóttir
- Jan 3
- 5 min read
By Bryndís Víglundsóttir
Jól have been celebrated in Iceland as long as people have lived here. Our ancestors, the early immigrants to Iceland celebrated the returning of the sun at winter solstice, around December 20th (jólmánuður/ mörsugur). It is simply not possible for people of the present generation to imagine or understand what the dark season of this region was like. People had to continue doing their daily chores, coping with the darkness and all the creatures the eye could not see but you knew were certainly there. The older people of each family were usually the ones who would look after the young children, often humming rhymes and telling stories as the young children sat on their knees. Many of these rhymes are about the blessed sun that will be returning and the sweet, long summer days!
Bráðum kemur betri tíð Soon the weather will be better
Með blóm í haga and flowers blooming in the field
Sæta, langa sumardaga. Sweet, long summer days. (HKL)
It was a custom to leave a lit candle somewhere in the house on New Year's Eve. It was considered a friendly gesture to the elves and hidden people if they should come by.
In the beginning of habitation in Iceland there was the jóla blót (Christmas festivities) that would last for a few days. As it is now the jól celebration begins on December 24 th, we continue with celebrations on Christmas day, the 25th and the second Christmas day, December 26th. The days until the Old Year's Evening ( December 31st ) are “normal” days, some people even go to work! But on that day the country is really on fire in the best of ways!
On New Year's Eve families and friends will gather and enjoy a festive meal together and then people begin to shoot fireworks into the sky and firecrackers are thrown around. Our children simply love this ! And then there are the bonfires. The different communities are responsible for the bonfires, pile up the wood to be burned and control the fire.
New Year’s Eve is the evening when huldufólk (the hidden people) move homes if they decide to move. It is good to have a lot ot fires, light to help them see where they are going. We know they will come to the bonfires to enjoy the light with us but we will only see them if they allow us to do so. In some communities people will put on extra colorful clothes as we all know huldufólk wear and then arrive to the bonfire riding their horses, preferably white. They will participate in the singing and making merry. People representing the elves will also show up.
When the fires have burned people return home to celebrate the arrival of the New Year and all the promises it brings.
Since the huldufólk may be changing living places addressing them is an old custom that goes like this: One person of the family will light a torch and walk three times around the family house, saying while walking: “Come those who want to come, move those who want to move, stay those who want to stay doing no harm to me and my kin”.
One of the miracles of New Year's Eve happened in the cow shed because at midnight that evening. The cows could and would speak. Humans must not sneak into the shed to listen. Across from our house on Laugavegur (which now is a main street in Reykjavík) there was a cow shed sheltering eight cows. I had been pestering my parents for permission to stand outside the shed at midnight to listen to the cows. My parents allowed me to stay up until the cows would begin talking, I would have to be at the window facing the shed, the window would simply be open and thus I would be able to hear the cows. I was only 6 years old and guess the day had been quite exhausting so I fell asleep before midnight. My parents said I should try again next year as the cows would be speaking again.
In this year of 2025 customs and beliefs are certainly changing in Iceland. The “world” with all its customs and lights has permanently visited our country. So it is fair to ask if all these beliefs and customs are still alive or if they have disappeared.
Selfoss is a village in southern Iceland, built on the banks of the river Ölfusá. The bridge over the river is not considered safe anymore and a new bridge must be built. Highly educated engineers were hired to plan and oversee the project. They decided where the new bridge should be placed. The banks on both sides were good and although the river is wide at that location there is a good-sized island, Efri-Laugardælaeyja in the middle of it, ideal for the center pillars for the bridge to rest on.
When everything was in order to begin the work a farmer from the region asked to talk to the engineers. He told them there were ghosts on the island and the people, both elves and huldufólk were not happy with the idea of tearing up their environment, bringing heavy machinery to their island and blasting holes in the cliffs to put in some pillars for the bridge to rest on. Their whole community where generations had lived in peace would simply be destroyed.
A wise woman living in Ölfus offered to try to meet with the huldufólk and talk to them. She was ferried out to the island and left there. At a given time when she was picked up again she told the engineers and the officials that she had met with the leaders of the huldufólk, First of all there were no ghosts on the island but the leaders there were quite concerned and unhappy about the idea of building the bridge in their community. The woman explained to them how very important this bridge was for the human community and why this was such a good place for it. The huldufólk decided they would allow the bridge to be bujlt on their land but put forth certain conditions on how they should and must leave the surroundings when the project was done.
These two engineers were asked by a reporter from our television (RUV) how they felt about this- asking the huldufólk for permission to build the bridge as they saw fit. Well, they said, there is much in this world that we don´t understand. Who are we to oppose the opinion and wishes of the huldufólk and elves? We are pleased that their wishes and conditions will be met. (RUV, October 12th, 2025)
This evening (December 8th, 2025) there was an item on the RUV news announcing the publication of a map, showing places where elves and huldufólk reside within the city boundaries of Reykjavík. The map will be on sale in bookstores.
I hope you all have a wonderful New Year's Eve with your family, friends and such huldufólk as you choose to mingle with.
Gleðilegt nýtt ár! Happy New Year!
Bryndís Víglundsóttir
