Icelandic ghost stories have been told over the centuries and there is one in particular that I am sharing in this episode. “Deacon of Dark River” or Djákninn á Myrká is a spooky story that involves love, Christmas and the undead. Over the last couple of years, Halloween has become more popular in Iceland, even though there is another holiday (Öskudagur), where kids dress up and sing for candy. However, that holiday happens on Ash Wednesday and not much happens during this time of the year, so it makes sense that Icelanders are gravitating towards celebrating Halloween.
Random Fact of the Episode
“Trolls in the Knolls: 35 Icelandic Folk & Fairy Tales ” is the book I referenced in the episode. It has some fun stories that are a mix of bizarre, fascinating and a little scary.
Icelandic Phrase of the Episode
Gleðilega Hrekkjavöku – Happy Halloween
Join the All Things Iceland Community on Patreon
Some of you might be aware that one of my goals for the podcast is to travel around Iceland more to interview different people in each region. In July, I set up the All Things Iceland community on Patreon. It’s a membership platform that was founded in 2013. It allows for creators like me to provide exclusive content to listeners like you in exchange for a monthly subscription.
Each month I am doing Ask Me Anything videos, Live Chats, and Folklore Friday each week. Sometimes I do updates about my life in Iceland. I do not share this content on any other channel. The support from my patrons on the All Things Iceland community on Patreon will help to evolve All Things Iceland. There are several membership tiers to choose from and each tier has a variety of benefits.
If you would like to join the community, go to patreon.com/allthingsiceland. I look forward to having you join.
Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta (og að lesa) og Gleðilega Hrekkjavöku!
Thank you kindly for listening (and reading) and Happy Halloween!
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