The kick off to this series was yesterday, so check out that if you want a primer on who the Yules Lads are and a bit about their family. One thing to keep in mind is that the Yule Lads travel in the evening/early morning, so they can get into town before children wake up. Tonight, the first Yule Lad, Stekkjastaur, is making his way to town. Below is the Icelandic and English version of the poem by Jóhannes úr Kötlum.
Icelandic Version of the Poem about Stekkjastaur
Stekkjastaur kom fyrstur,
stinnur eins og tré.
Hann laumaðist í fjárhúsin
og lék á bóndans fé.
Hann vildi sjúga ærnar,
-þá varð þeim ekki um sel,
því greyið hafði staurfætur,
-það gekk nú ekki vel.
English Version of the Poem about Stekkjastaur
The first of them was Sheep-Cote Clod.
He came stiff as wood,
to pray upon the farmer’s
sheep as far as he could.
He wished to suck the ewes,
but it was no accident
he couldn’t; he had stiff knees –
not too convenient.
Icelandic Christmas Tradition
Kids put a shoe in the window in Iceland. Back in the day, Icelandic Yule Lads were not bearers of gifts but the image of them has softened over time. This has resulted in them being associated with bringing either a gift that they left in your shoe if you were good or a potato, if you were bad.
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