Troll Hjem

God Jul

The start of the Christmas preparation in Norway is in late autumn when the best wheat is gathered and saved until Christmas. Then it is put on poles. These make nice perches for the birds. If many birds are eating, it means a good year for growing crops. On Christmas Day, many families go to church and then spend a quiet day together. This time is given to remembering the reason for Christmas warmth and joy, the birth of Jesus.

Norway is thought of as a Christmas land, perhaps because we associate Christmas with cold, frost, and splendid winter scenes. Norway has all this, but above all it has traditions. Its Christmas traditions, including foods, are many and have deep roots, some dating as far back as the Viking period.

Leaving no corner dark …

And so it is today that candles - glowing from wall sconces and chandeliers, on mantles and in windowsills - bring back the traditional atmosphere in the home. In ages past, candles were the only light, and making them was an important part of the Christmas preparations. Typically, tallow from recently slaughtered animals was used. Only the thickest and best candles would do for Christmas. One candle was left to burn throughout the Christmas Eve night, and someone had to watch it, because if the candle died out before morning, someone in the household would die in the coming year.

The early tree functioned as a "gift tree," holding edibles that the children harvested. It was festooned with gingerbread figures, apples, and oranges, among other treats. Early Norwegian trees also featured Christmas baskets shaped like cones and hearts to hold hard candies and raisins. Though now entirely decorative, the julekurv woven, heart-shaped baskets have not only remained popular, they have come to symbolize Christmas throughout Scandinavia. In Norwegian homes they provide a constructive activity to keep young hands busy during the final days and hours before Christmas.

Straw bent and sewn in various configurations for Christmas tree ornaments is a tradition. The association between straw and Christmas goes back to a time when the holiday held more fear and dread than glad tidings of joy. To protect themselves from terrifying spirits, all the farm's inhabitants gathered in the main dwelling house Christmas Eve to sleep together on the floor, which had been covered with straw. Straw not only furnished insulation and protection from the cold earthen floor, but could, according to widespread European folk belief, actually help ward off evil. Rather than opposing a well-established yuletide practice, the Christian Church promoted the custom of sleeping on straw to commemorate the stable in which Christ was born. This interpretation helped preserve the tradition after fear of the supernatural had ceased to motivate it.

Warm homes and increased education finally made the custom of sleeping on the straw-strewn floor obsolete. Straw ornaments, as well as flag garlands, and julekurv still appear each Christmas. to represent Norway's spirit of national pride and generous hospitality and joy. God Jul!