Christmas - "The Strong and Powerful Days”

 Written by Vigdis Bjerboude, and 'freely translated" by Tore Bråstad, Toten Ecomuseum.

 When you start searching for information about Christmas and its traditions, there are a few things that soon come to your mind: Firstly, it is it not difficult to find written material about this theme. But a strange thing is that when you compare old and new Christmas traditions, you soon feel how little you understand of what Christmas meant to people living in the old days.

Christmas was powerful, very powerful for our ancestors and by that is meant both in the pre-Christian and the Christian Christmas celebrations. It is not so easy to say where to draw the line between the different ways in celebrating Christmas, but Christianity gave another meaning to it. Christmas night was the birthday for Jesus Christ, and the night where the connection between God and humanity were re-established. But still, many of the old customs and traditions were kept; customs so old that their original meanings disappear when we try to trace them back in the shadows of history.

One such example is the word "jul" (Norwegian for Christmas). The exact meaning is not known, but both Gothic and Anglo-Saxon people used this word to describe a period of two months.

The Gothic people spoke about first and second Christmas month. Our Norse ancestors used the word "ylir" in an Icelandic document from approx. 1250 AD for the period from about 15th November - 15th December.

In our oldest laws from pre-Christian time, you may find orders and regulations in connection with Christmas. Beer should be brewed and consumed "til års och fridar" (for a good year and peace). This has to be seen in connection with a living fertility culture. This was not meant to be a party only! They meant that getting drunk gave connection to the gods, and this gave promises of better crops, animal health and people in the year to come.

Darkness and light. The meaning of solstice

You have to try to think that how the people acted in the old days has to be seen in connection with their lack of knowledge of how the world around them worked. They could not even be sure that the darkness turned to light again, that the sun turned and became stronger. What they did see was that the sun became lower and lower over the hills, mountains or the ocean. What should they believe in, in such a dangerous world? There were lots of things to have an eye on; to be in balance with, if you were to survive.

An invisible world around the human beings, with gods for vegetation and fertility that for instance gave better crops had to be a natural thought. The same with the believing in ghosts, - that the dead lived somewhere and were present as a part of the human’s daily life. From burial findings both in Norway and in other countries we know that they thought like this. We also know that the time we now are going to enter, Christmas, and during Midsummer, this invisible world were closer and more dangerous than the rest of the year.

From Valdres e.g. we have a saying that Christmas was "the strong and powerful days". Everything could happen. The door to the supernatural was completely open. You may talk about a yearly drama.

One of the examples of these ideas was the believing of "Åsgårdsreia" or "Julercia" or "Lussireia", several words meaning the same. This is both in connection with Christmas Night (the night to the 25th December) and the "Lussinatta" (Lucia Night - the 13th December) because until the 18th century they believed that this was the longest night during the year. All evil was out, a long parade traveling up in the sky. Dead people were with them. They strike wherever they wanted, and took both people staying outdoors, animals indoors and destroyed everything. To protect the animals they painted tar crosses over the doors. Maybe this fear was the reason why people were staying together this night. They spread straw on the floor inside the house, and everyone on the farm, landlord and servant alike, slept there on the floor in the "julehalm" (Christmas straw).

People also expected other invisible visitors this night, more peaceful ones. The ancestor(s) who first lived on the farm and who were buried on a hill not far from the homes came back on inspections to be sure that their descendants kept the farm in good  shape. A common custom was to leave the food on the table after the evening meal, so the "gardvor" (a kind type of ghost) could see that he was very welcome in his old home.

Some places they have kept this custom until recently, but the reason why is forgotten. This is just one example of a tradition that has lost its original meaning, but is kept because it is a tradition.

About "reading warnings"

It was of great importance to use this time to see "varsler", warnings, and in that way find how the oncoming year should be. The feeling of a connection with the invisible world was stronger than ever. For instance, if you walked to a road crossing and looked back, then you could see the person you were going to marry.

You could also read weather forecasts, and, you could throw a shoe towards the door and see if you were going to die soon. If the front of the shoe was pointing towards the door, you were going to pass away before the next year ended. In coastal regions they used to blow in a barrel of water with the name of fishing places written on the barrel’s sides. Where the bubbles were, was were there were fish to catch.

The Christmas sheaf, “julenek”, originally meant more than just giving food to the birds. The sheaf (made from oats) had to be bound to the end of a long pole to get over the roof. You could see next year's crops by which birds ate from it. It should also be made of the last oats to be harvested. This was one of the magic ideas of how to secure the most important: food for people and animals.

Food and drink

Christmas was the end of the productive year. After working to secure food for everyone through the long and cold winter, they could now take a rest. What they ate and drink during the solstice and later Christmas celebration, were the best of what they had. Many books and articles are written about this tradition (just think about lefse, lutefisk and so on).

A special Christmas cake was baked, with figures on it taken from their supernatural believing. The flour used in this cake should be from the last grain harvested--Again a magic symbol.

What about gifts, Christmas tree and Santa Claus?

These three elements in our Christmas celebration are quite new. Christmas gifts started as giving away useful things like clothes to children and servants.

The Christmas tree was imported from Germany about 100 years ago, first as a new custom in upper class homes, then in public schools and only later did it became usual in almost every home.

"Julenissen", the Norwegian version of Santa Claus is coming with gifts to children on Christmas Evening. He is wearing a red coat and white hair and beard. "Julenissen" is a mix between the English/American Santa Claus, the catholic Saint Nicholas and the Old Norwegian "fjøsnisse" (a kind of a leprechaun), who is still keeping an eye on animals and people.

Christmas as a festival for light and joy

With Christianity, Christmas turned in to a festival for light and joy. The church celebrated Christmas with masses and glory. Light, incense, procession and song were part of the Catholic celebration. At the same time there came laws to secure human welfare. One was not allowed to sue anyone or do any sort of revenge during Christmas. Everyone should live in peace and rest, so no sort of work was allowed. The church understood that they could not forbid the old celebration of the solstice. Instead they tried to fill it with their own new customs, while the old thoughts that did not belong to Christianity could continue as a tradition, long after they lost their original meaning. But the Christian festival to celebrate the birth of Jesus "Nativitas domini" onwards merged with the old solstice celebration, and the name then symbolized the Christian festival.

“Åsgårdsreien” on Christmas Night, drawing by Ingvar Heggsum, 1978.