Episode 38 - Christmas Legends

Many people may or may not know that Christmas has a lot of its roots in pagan traditions, not Christianity. Long before Christmas, the winter solstice was celebrated by pagans and those of other various religions, many places knew it as Yule. In various European countries, pagan and Christian traditions/legends blended together to provide some frightful stories past down for centuries. Today, we go into Christmas week by telling you some great legends from Iceland, Germany and other European countries. 

Link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3itdXit4M5BZHpmPAlHJbt?si=jBYB6CwUQt2lXDw-aq7FEQ

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_Christmas_folklore

• https://www.themonastery.org/blog/yule-want-to-read-this-the-pagan-origins-of-christmas

• https://www.thevintagenews.com/2019/12/01/iceland-christmas-witch/

• https://guidetoiceland.is/history-culture/the-icelandic-yule-lads-and-gryla

• https://www.iceland.is/the-big-picture/news/celebrating-christmas-with-13-trolls/7916/

• https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-the-thirteen-yule-lads-icelands-own-mischievous-santa-clauses-180948162/

• https://throughthetwistedwoods.wordpress.com/2019/12/09/creepmas-yule-monsters-gryla/

• https://hornet.com/stories/christmas-monsters-list/

• https://www.routesnorth.com/iceland/the-yule-lads-all-you-need-to-know-about-icelands-version-of-santa/

• https://dustyoldthing.com/iceland-christmas-witch/

• https://freaked.com/scary-christmas-legends/#:~:text=5%20Little%20Known%20Terrifyingly%20Scary%20Christmas%20Legends%201,are%20aware%20of%20Belsnickel.%20...%205%20Perchta.%20

• https://www.fodors.com/news/photos/7-spooky-christmas-legends-from-around-the-world

• https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/dec/18/the-seven-most-terrifying-christmas-traditions-around-the-world

• https://www.theodysseyonline.com/creepiest-christmas-legends

• https://www.ranker.com/list/the-10-most-terrifying-christmas-figures/molly-mahan