All Things Iceland

This is episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a Folklore story every Friday in 2024. To hear other stories, I have shared so far, check them out on my website All Things Iceland. 

Many years ago, there was a farmer living in Vogar, famous for being the best fisherman around. No one could match his skill, and his farm flourished because of it. One day, while he was out on the water, something strange happened. He cast his line into the sea like usual, but when he tried to reel it in, it felt impossibly heavy, as if he had snagged a massive catch.

To his surprise, when he finally pulled it up, it wasn’t just a fish—he’d caught a strange creature with the body of a man!

Startled, the fisherman blurted out, “What in the world are you?”

The creature responded calmly, “I am a merman from the deep sea.”

Curious, the farmer asked, “What were you doing when my hook got you?”

The merman replied, “I was adjusting the chimney cowl on my mother’s house to make it face the wind. Now, let me go!”

But the farmer wasn’t ready to release him just yet. “Not so fast,” he said. “You’ll have to serve me for a bit first.”

Without further discussion, the fisherman dragged the merman into his boat and rowed back to shore.

When they reached land, the fisherman’s loyal dog ran up to greet him, barking happily and wagging its tail. But in a foul mood, the farmer struck the dog for being too excited. At this, the merman chuckled softly but didn’t explain why.

As the fisherman headed toward his house, pulling the merman behind him, he stumbled over a small hill. Annoyed, he cursed at it. The merman laughed again, louder this time.

Finally, when they arrived at the house, the fisherman’s wife rushed out to greet him, wrapping her arms around him affectionately. Pleased with her welcome, he smiled—only to hear the merman laugh a third time.
The farmer, now curious, asked, “You’ve laughed three times. Why?”

“I’ll only tell you,” said the merman, “if you promise to take me back to the sea and let me go.”
The fisherman agreed, eager to hear the reasons.

The merman began, “I laughed the first time when you hit your dog, who was only showing you honest joy. The second time, I laughed because you cursed the hill—yet beneath it lies a fortune in gold. The third time, I laughed because your wife’s embrace, though it pleased you, was hollow. She is unfaithful to you.”

Shocked, the farmer said, “I’ll believe you if I find gold in that hill. The rest, we’ll see.”

He immediately went to the hill and dug it up. Sure enough, he found a treasure of golden coins buried there, just as the merman had said.

Keeping his word, the farmer took the merman back to the sea. Before diving back into the depths, the merman said, “You’ve kept your promise, so I will reward you. Soon, you will come across something valuable. Be ready to claim it.”

Not long after, seven sea-grey cows appeared on the beach near the farmer’s land. They were wild and untamable, but the farmer noticed something unusual—they each had a small bladder attached to their noses. Remembering the merman’s words, the farmer chased after them, managing to burst the bladder on one of the cows. Immediately, the cow became calm, allowing the farmer to lead her home. The rest of the cows fled back into the sea.

That one grey cow turned out to be an incredible gift, giving more milk than any other cow in the land. She became the ancestor of a prized breed of grey cows, famous throughout Iceland.

The farmer grew rich and lived a prosperous life, but he never caught another merman. And as for his wife, well, nothing more was said about her after that, so we can only guess how that part of the story ended.

Stories of Mermen often depict them as being very ugly with hands and feet. While they might not be pleasant to look like, mermen are not described as harmful to people and they are not evil.

Marbendill – Merman who is the male counterpart of the mythical female mermaid, is a legendary creature which is human from the waist up and fish-like from the waist down, but may assume normal human shape.

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

This is episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a Folklore story every Friday in 2024. To hear other stories, I have shared so far, check them out on my website All Things Iceland. 

Imagine making a pact with your best friend—if one of you dies, the other gets to use the body for something truly bizarre: making a pair of magical pants. These aren’t just any pants though. They’re called Necropants, and they’re made from human skin, specifically from the waist down.

So, when one friend dies, the surviving one digs up the body, carefully peels off the skin from the legs (without making any holes, of course), and puts them on right away. Sounds grim, right? But here’s the catch—the pants don’t just sit on you like a creepy costume. They actually fuse to your body, becoming a part of you. You can wear them as long as you like, but eventually, you’ll have to pass them on to someone else if you want to keep the magic going.

But wait, what magic, you ask? Just wearing the pants isn’t enough to unlock the wealth. For that, you need to perform a twisted ritual. First, you must steal a coin from a desperately poor widow, and the timing is key—it has to be done during a church service, right between specific readings on Christmas, Easter, or Whit Sunday.

You then place this stolen coin into the “pocket” of the Necropants. And here’s where things get even stranger: that “pocket” is more like the, ahem, scrotum area of the pants. Once the coin is in, the pants magically start producing more coins. Free money, but with a dark price.

But these aren’t your average enchanted pants. If you remove the original stolen coin, the magic stops working. And then there’s the even darker part—when you’re ready to pass the pants to someone else, you can’t just hand them over. There’s a strict process.

You have to remove the pants one leg at a time. First, the right leg comes off, and the new wearer has to immediately put on that same leg. Once they’re in, there’s no turning back. Even if they try to stop, they’re cursed to wear the full pants, like it or not.
If you fail to pass them on properly, your soul could be in danger, and your body, once you’re dead, will be consumed by vermin. Some say these

Necropants are a gift from the devil himself, a symbol of the pact made with dark forces in exchange for earthly riches. But no matter how much wealth you gather, wearing them comes with a heavy cost.

A replica of what these pants are supposed to look like are in the Icelandic Museum of Sorcery and Witchcraft in Hólmavík in the Westfjords region of the country.

 Nábrók – necropants

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

This is episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a Folklore story every Friday in 2024.

In the heart of Icelandic folklore, there exists a strange and eerie creature known as the *tilberi* in the north and the *snakkur* in the south and west.

This mystical being is said to be the creation of witches, conjured specifically to steal milk from the farms of others. Only women have the knowledge and ability to summon and control this creature, using it to enrich their own dairy supplies.

Though the origins of the tilberi stretch back into the misty past, tales of it weren’t written down until the 17th century. Yet, one account from that time recalls a witch being punished in the year 1500 for possessing one. 

The ritual to create a tilberi is both chilling and secretive. At dawn on Whitsunday, a woman must steal a rib from a freshly buried body. She then wraps this rib in grey wool—wool that must also be stolen, plucked from a widow’s sheep just after it has been sheared.

For the next three Sundays, at the communion table, she spits sanctified wine onto the bundle, slowly bringing it to life with each ritual. Finally, to complete the creature’s birth, she lets it suckle from the inside of her thigh, leaving a wart-like mark as a permanent reminder of the dark deed.

Once created, the tilberi becomes an insatiable thief. The witch can send it out to steal milk from the cows and ewes of neighboring farms. 

The creature, able to stretch itself, leaps onto the back of its target, wrapping itself around the animal to suck from one or even two teats at once. When it returns to its mistress, it perches at her dairy window and cries out, “Full belly, Mummy!” or “Churn lid off, Mummy!” before vomiting the stolen milk into her butter churn. 

However, milk stolen by a tilberi bears a curse of its own. When churned, the butter forms curdled clumps or even melts into foam if a cross is made over it or a magical symbol, called the smjörhnútur (butterknot), is drawn into the mixture.

Farmers, plagued by udder infections and other signs of a tilberi’s presence, would protect their animals by making the sign of the cross beneath the cow’s udder or laying a Psalter on its spine. Though the tilberi was lightning-fast, if caught or pursued, it would flee back to its witch, hiding beneath her skirts.

But there was a way to stop the creature and its master. A brave soul could sew shut the petticoat of the witch, trapping both her and her creation. Then, they would meet a grim fate, either burned or drowned together, ending the dark magic for good.

This legend serves as a chilling reminder of the power of superstition and the mysterious bond between the witches of old and their strange creations.

If the woman who created the creature has a child of her own, a nightmare scenario unfolds. Should the tilberi, always hungry for milk, find its way to her breast, the consequences are dire—it may suck her dry, leading to her death.

Ridding oneself of this creature, however, comes with its own perilous ritual. To banish a *tilberi*, the woman must send it on an impossible task. She orders the creature to climb the mountain and gather every lamb’s dropping from the vast common pastures. In some versions of the tale, the tilberi is told to sort them into three piles, or collect all the droppings from three separate fields.

But the number three is the tilberi’s undoing. Being an evil creature, it cannot endure the power of this sacred number. As it toils endlessly, trying to complete the task, it either works itself to death or succumbs to the mystical force of three. In the end, only the human bone that gave it life remains, lying abandoned in the pasture, marking the creature’s demise and freeing its maker from a dark and deadly bond.

I will have some images of a Tilberi in the notes of this episode on All Things Iceland. If you want to see a model of one in person then I recommend visiting the Sorcery and Witchcraft Museum in Hólmavík in the Westfjords. 

Tilberi – carrier 

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

Learn about cycling culture, different routes, races, and more from Búi Aðalsteinsson, an Icelandic cycling enthusiast and podcast host.

Búi Aðalsteinsson is a designer and has run the design studio Grallaragerðin since 2016, alongside various other jobs, he currently works at the Department of Service and Innovation at the City of Reykjavík.

Búi’s work emphasizes community and environmental aspects. His experience includes developing creative projects within Icelandic prisons, mapping the arrival of refugee children to Iceland, improving connections with plants, enhancing the utilization of by-products from vegetable farming in Iceland, and incorporating insects into food products. 

Búi was nominated for the Icelandic Design Awards in 2019, and in 2016, he won the Grapevine Design Award for Project of the Year, which focused on using insects in food production.

Recently, Búi has developed a remarkably strong interest in cycling and has started a podcast, Hjólavarpið, covering everything related to bicycles, both in terms of transportation and competitive cycling.

Hjólavarpið is the name of the cycling podcast that Búi hosts.

Búi

Hjólavarpið

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

This episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a folklore story every Friday in 2024.

Centuries ago, in the wild and rugged land of Iceland, three mischievous trolls hatched a plan to reshape the landscape forever. Their goal? To sever the Westfjords from the rest of the island by digging a massive channel between Húnaflói Bay and Breiðafjörður Bay.

These trolls loved a good challenge, so they added a competitive twist: as they dug, they would turn the earth they dug into islands.Deep in their task, the trolls were so focused on their wicked work that they failed to notice the sky brightening—the worst mistake a troll could make, for sunlight spells doom to such creatures

In the west, where two trolls toiled tirelessly, hundreds of small islands began to speckle the shallow waters of Breiðafjörður. But in the east, where one lone troll struggled with the deeper, harsher waters of Húnaflói, only a few meager mounds rose from the sea.

As the first light of dawn began to creep across the horizon, panic set in. The two trolls in the west abandoned their work and sprinted northeast, hoping to escape the deadly sunlight. But they were too late. The rays of the morning sun caught them in Kollafjörður, instantly turning them into stone, where they stand to this day.

Their frenzied digging left behind the Gilsfjörður and Bitrufjörður fjords—mere hours more and they might have succeeded in turning the Westfjords into an island.

Meanwhile, the third troll in the east, furious at her lack of progress, slammed her shovel into the ground in frustration. With a crack, a piece of earth broke free, forming what we now know as Grimsey Island. But before she could celebrate, the rising sun caught her as well, turning her to stone.

Today, her petrified form remains in the village of Drangsnes, known as the Kerling rock formation—a reminder of the trolls’ ill-fated quest to reshape Iceland’s coasts.

The Westfjords is one of the oldest parts of Iceland. The ancient basaltic lava flows date back to the Tertiary period, which is around 7 to 16 million years ago.

Tröll – troll

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

This episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a folklore story every Friday in 2024.

In Icelandic Legends and Fairy Tales, 1862-64, Jón Árnason (1819–1888) added more details to the story of Þrasi Þórólfsson in Skógar. It is said that Þrasi buried a chest full of gold and treasures beneath the Skógafoss waterfall, and in olden times, part of this chest was visible.

An old rhyme goes:

Jón also recounts that around the year 1600, three men attempted to retrieve the chest. However, they were distracted when they thought their farmhouse was on fire. Rushing back, they found no fire. When they returned to the waterfall, they managed to hook a ring attached to the chest.

As they tried to pull it out, the ring broke off. It is said that this very ring is now affixed to the door of the church in Skógar.

There are many more waterfalls behind Skogafoss waterfall. This path is part of the Fimmmvöruháls trail.

Go Car Rental Iceland

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I personally use them for when I go on adventures, and I’m so glad to hear that many of my listeners and subscribers are also having a great experience with them. I mentioned in a previous episode that one of my listeners switched to Go Car Rental Iceland from one of the internationally known rental car companies here and she saved $400! That was for a rental during the summer when prices can sometimes double due to demand.

Go Campers – Camper Van Rental in Iceland

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Íslenzkar þjóðsögur og ævintýri – Icelandic Legends and Fairy Tales

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

This episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a folklore story every Friday in 2024.

When a plague ravaged Iceland in the 15th century, eighteen sorcerers formed a desperate alliance, fleeing to the remote Vestmannaeyjar Islands (Westman Islands) to escape its deadly grip. They hoped to wait out the plague, but as it finally began to subside, they grew curious. Did anyone still live on the mainland?

They chose one among them, neither the strongest nor the weakest, to go ashore and find out. But they warned him—if he didn’t return by Christmas, they would send a deadly zombie to kill him.

The man wandered through the desolate land, finding only abandoned farms and scattered corpses. Hope seemed lost until, at last, he came upon a closed farmhouse. When he knocked, a beautiful young woman answered.

Overcome with relief, she embraced him, believing she was the last living soul. She pleaded with him to stay, and though he was bound by his promise to return, her loneliness moved him. He stayed with her, but as Christmas approached, he knew he had to leave.

On Christmas Eve, as he prepared to go, the woman begged him to stay, warning that his journey back would be futile. Time was short, and he realized he wouldn’t make it. Resigned to his fate, he decided to wait for death by her side.

As the night deepened, the man grew sleepy while the woman remained watchful. She kept waking him, asking where the zombie was. But as it drew nearer, his sleep became more profound. Finally, he announced that the zombie had reached the farm and then fell into an unbreakable slumber.

The woman, however, was ready. As a rust-brown vapor, the zombie seeped into the farmhouse and took human form. When it demanded she move so it could reach its target, she challenged it instead. “Show me how big you can become,” she said. The zombie expanded until it filled the room. Then she asked, “Now, how small can you get?”

The zombie boasted it could shrink to a fly, and as it did, she quickly trapped it in a sheep’s leg bone. When she woke the man, he was astonished to be alive. The woman revealed her cunning trap, mocking the supposed power of the island wizards. They celebrated together, but soon, the man grew anxious again. The wizards, he feared, would create an even stronger zombie to finish him off by New Year’s Eve.

On the eve of the new year, the woman led him to a hidden vault beneath a bush. Inside, they found a terrifying figure—her foster father—lying in a dark chamber lit only by a candle in a skull.

After hearing their tale, the foster father took the sheep’s leg, freed the trapped zombie, and ordered it to devour all the wizards’ zombies. The zombie-turned-fly obeyed, growing immense and consuming every undead creature sent from the islands.

With the threat vanquished, the man and the woman returned to her farm. They fell in love, stayed together, and their descendants multiplied, filling the earth with life once more.

The Black Death, which devastated much of Europe in the 14th century, somehow spared Iceland. The plague never became a constant presence on the island, unlike in neighboring countries. However, Iceland wasn’t entirely untouched by this deadly disease.

In the 15th century, two severe plague epidemics did hit the country. The first outbreak arrived in 1402 and caused widespread devastation until early spring 1404. Nearly a century later, the second epidemic struck during the winter of 1494-95, once again leaving its mark on Iceland’s history.

Uppvakningur – zombie

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fjótlega.

Recently a horrific accident in an ice cave resulted in a tragedy that has rocked the Icelandic tourism industry. After international news sources picked up this incident, many potential visitors have expressed worry about whether they should ever go into an ice cave.

I’m going to share what has been reported in Iceland, action being taken to prevent potential ice cave tragedies, and when it is safest to go on an ice cave tour.

Before I dive in though, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the family of the person who lost their life.

On Sunday, August 26th, 2024 rescue crews in Southeast Iceland searched for two missing tourists after an ice cave partially collapsed on the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier. The collapse occurred while a group of tourists was inside the cave. One tourist, a US national, was pronounced dead at the scene, while another, his pregnant wife, sustained serious injuries and was flown to a hospital in Reykjavík.

Following the collapse, around 50-60 rescue workers were deployed to the site, working in rotating shifts to clear away ice by hand due to the inability to bring heavy equipment to the site. Although weather conditions were favorable, the difficult glacier environment posed challenges to the rescue efforts.

Authorities as well as Search & Rescue teams had initially been told that 25 tourists were on the tour but only 23 were accounted for. The assumption was that two people were buried under the ice or stuck in the cave.

After a day of Search & Rescue workers digging in the ice in three groups doing one-hour shifts at each time, the search was called off for the two missing people because they never went on the tour. So basically, the tour company only had 23 people on the tour but initially thought there was 25. 

The incident has sparked criticism from experts and officials regarding the safety practices of tour companies offering ice cave tours on Breiðamerkurjökull glacier. Experienced glacier guides had previously raised concerns about the dangers of operating such tours outside the safer winter months (December to March).

A 2017 risk assessment report had already warned against summer ice cave tours due to increased risks, yet tour companies continued these excursions year-round, driven by the growing tourism market.

In response to the accident, Vatnajökull National Park temporarily suspended all ice cave tours within its boundaries. The park authorities, along with government officials, expressed deep regret over the incident and acknowledged the failure to enforce earlier safety warnings. A government task force has been established to investigate why these warnings were not heeded and to ensure stricter regulations moving forward.

The conduct of the tour company involved, Ice Pic Journeys, has been criticized, particularly for its marketing practices. Officials are now calling for a reassessment of the regulatory framework governing ice cave tours, with potential new regulations to prohibit such tours during unsafe periods.

The Icelandic Tourist Board is also considering expanding its oversight to require all tour operators to submit safety plans, rather than relying on a sample. One other important finding is that the area where the accident took place had been advised against going to because of recent glacial movements over that summer that could make dangerous conditions.

Our current Prime Minister and other government officials have emphasized the need to understand the regulatory failures that led to the tragedy.

Iceland’s Prime Minister as reported by Iceland Review

The government is focusing on ensuring that appropriate safety measures are in place to prevent similar incidents in the future. The task force’s findings and recommendations are expected to influence new regulations, likely leading to the suspension of summer ice cave tours permanently.

The Safest time to go on an Ice Cave tour is from December to March, which is winter in Iceland and the ice caves are much more stable. It is important to remember that conditions can change, and it is possible for tours to be cancelled due to various reasons, like weather or the cave changing a lot. I know some people are wondering about other ice caves in places other than Vatnajökull in southeast. Katla Ice Cave and Into the Glacier come to mind.

Honestly, that is a tough one for me to answer because this incident made me question if those are ok as well. I am not saying they are not ok. However, I think it is normal to have some questions about what is being done differently than in this situation to prevent a tragic accident. Because I am not a glacier guide, I rely on expert guides to know the conditions of the glaciers.

If you are planning to take an ice cave tour outside of the winter season, I highly recommend asking the tour company about the safety plans they have in place and if the conditions are ok for this type of tour.

Glacier hikes are normally done all year long. Walking on a glacier as opposed to going inside of an ice cave that is located on a glacier are different experiences. They both have risks and require a glacier guide but glacier hikes are safe to do all year long.

There is a man-made ice cave in Perlan, a museum and exhibition space in Reykjavík, that you can visit anytime of the year if you want to experience an ice cave safely in the off season for natural ice caves.

Íshellir – Ice cave

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

This episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a folklore story every Friday in 2024.

Kolugljúfur Canyon gets its name from the legendary giantess Kola, who made her home on a ledge within the gorge. According to local folklore, Kola was quite resourceful, often catching salmon straight from the river with her bare hands for breakfast.

On occasion, she would cook her catch in the Koluketill Kettle, a nearby natural hot spring, to enjoy a warm meal later in the day. Kola’s connection to this place was deeply practical—she appreciated the abundant salmon and the convenient hot spring rather than the scenic beauty that draws visitors today.

Kolugljúfur Canyon, located in the north of Iceland, is a hidden gem that showcases the raw beauty of Icelandic nature. This stunning canyon, approximately one kilometer long and up to 50 meters deep, was carved out by the Víðidalsá River over millennia. It is home to the spectacular Kolufossar Waterfalls, a series of cascades that tumble through the gorge, creating a breathtaking natural spectacle.

Despite its beauty, Kolugljúfur remains off the beaten path, offering visitors a peaceful and uncrowded experience. Two main hiking trails allow for exploration of the canyon’s depths or a more leisurely stroll along the rim, providing stunning views at every turn. The area is also rich in birdlife and other fauna, adding to its appeal as a destination for nature enthusiasts.

I want to give a shout-out to our amazing sponsors, Go Car Rental Iceland and Go Campers.

I actually use their cars and campers when I travel around Iceland, and I’ve partnered with them for over 4 years now. The main reasons? Their customer service is amazing, and they have a wide range of vehicles to choose from.

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And just so you know, using my link gives me a small commission at no extra cost to you. It’s one of the ways you’re supporting All Things Iceland and the content I create. Thank you in advance for that.

Kolugljúfur is broken down into two words. Kola is the name of the giantess and means coal. While gljúfur means canyon.

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.

This episode is part of my Folklore Friday series where I am sharing a folklore story every Friday in 2024.

The Saga of Örvar-Oddur from the 13th or 14th century mentions the Lyngbakur. In part of the saga, Oddur is seeing vengeance against Ögmundur Flóki (sometimes referred to as Ögmundur Eyþjófsbani or “Eythjof’s-killer”) for the murder of his blood-brother Þórður.

To make it safely to Ögmundr Flóki’s location, Oddur was guided by his half-giant son, Vignir. Oddur and his crew set sail towards a fjord in Helluland where Ögmundur was rumored to be hiding. Along the way, they encountered two enormous sea creatures that were so large they appeared as islands.

In the saga, Vignir said, “These were two sea monsters, one called Hafgúfa and the other Lyngbakur. Hafgúfa is the largest creature in the entire ocean. It devours men, ships, whales, and anything else nearby. It stays submerged for days before surfacing, and when it does, it remains on the surface for at least one tide.”

Five men had mistakenly disembarked on what they believed was an island, only to be dragged into the sea when Lyngbakur dove beneath the waves, leading to their deaths. Despite this, the group managed to navigate through the jaws of Hafgúfa, the other monster that Ögmundur had magically summoned to stop them.

The book “Meeting with the Monsters” is a wonderful resource if you want to learn more about sea monsters in Iceland.

The lyngbakur is said to eat every three years when it swallows everything in its path, including birds, fish and any other life in the sea.

Lyngbakur – Heather back

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Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta og sjáumst fljótlega.