Yule Goats - Scandinavia's Christmas Tradition

The Gävle Goat, a traditional Christmas/Yule display at Slottstorget (Castle Square) in central Gävle, Sweden

The Yule Goat - Scandinavia's Christmas Tradition

Just under two hours drive from Sweden's capital Stockholm, lies the city of Gävle. In Gävle, nothing says Christmas like the proud display of a four tonne, straw goat that overlooks the city square. Unfortunately, this goat is prone to being lit up like a Christmas tree, as hooligans set light to it every year. The people of Gävle know all too well that no goat is hooligan proof. It is illegal to burn the goat, and according to the Court of Appeal for Northern Norrland it can land you a three month prison sentence, as of 2019 the Goat has been burned a total of 37 times throughout its history. However, as a result of this and improved security, the last three Gävle Goats have survived! The tradition of erecting the goat started back in 1966 and has become the town's most notable seasonal tradition. It is erected each year by local community groups at the beginning of Advent, which usually takes two days to complete. As the tradition has grown over time, the town have been constructing and erecting two Yule Goats in Gävle since 1986. The Gävle Goat by the Southern Merchants and the Yule Goat built by the Natural Science Club of the School of Vasa.

History & Traditions

Whilst in modern times the Yule Goat is a traditional Nordic Christmas ornament, made of straw and tied together with a red ribbon, which are usually placed on Christmas trees. Like Gävle, large versions of the Yule Goat are frequently erected in towns at Christmas time. However, the image of the goat goes back much further, and is often tied to pagan festivals. One popular theory and Indo-European belief, would suggest that the image is linked to the Norse thunder god Thor, who rode across the sky in a chariot pulled by the goats Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr. Another theory would be related to the harvest, as the last sheaf of grain bundled in the harvest was credited with magical properties. Considering that the spirit of the harvest is saved until Christmas/Yule time, it was called the Julbocken or Yule Goat. This connects the goat to ancient proto-Slavic beliefs, where the Koliada festival celebrates and honours the god of the harvest and fertile sun. Incidentally, this god is known Devac (also known as Dazbog or Dažbog) is represented as a white goat. 

There are many traditions and beliefs linked with the Yule Goat across Scandinavia, for example, in Sweden, people have regarded the Yule goat as an invisible spirit. The spirit would appear some time before Christmas/Yule, to cast an eye over the Yule preparations and make sure that they were done right. According to the tradition, any objects made out of straw or wood could also be classified as the Yule goat. In older Scandinavian tradition this would then be used to prank unsuspecting neighbours. The person would have to place the goat in the neighbours house without them noticing, the successfully pranked family would then have to rid themselves of the goat in the same way. 

The function of the goat has differed throughout the ages, but can be linked to a Scandinavian custom Julebukking, which is not that dissimilar from the English tradition of wassailing and the Welsh tradition of the Mari Lwyd. Young men would dress up in costumes and walk between houses singing songs, enacting plays and performing pranks. This Scandinavian version of this tradition can be dated back to the 17th century, the group of characters would often include the Yule Goat and a rowdy, sometimes scary creature demanding gifts. Which is similar to the Koliada festivals, in which a person dressed as a goat, often went round demanding offerings in the form of presents.

From the 19th century onwards, the Yule Goat's role shifted towards becoming a gift giver, where a male member of the family would dress up as the Yule Goat. It could be argued that there might be a relation between the origins of Santa Claus and the Yule Goat, dating back to the medieval era and the celebrations of St. Nicholas. Since the late 19th century and early 20th century the goat has been replaced by the Jultomte (Father Christmas/Santa Claus) or Julenisse. Whilst it is still called Joulupukki (Yule goat) in Finland, the tradition of dressing like a Yule Goat has all but disappeared. 

My Own Yule Goats - The Start Of A New Tradition

I definitely subscribe to the theory that the goat represents Thor's chariot pulling goats Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr. The imagery of him riding across the rainbow bridge Bifrost into Jötunheimr is to epic to ignore. It's even more interesting that Mari Lwyd and the Julebukking tradition are similar. It feels like two ancient worlds colliding the Celtic and the Norse, despite the Mari Lwyd is a much longer tradition, first recorded in the 1800s. Maybe the Mari Lwyd has roots in modern paganism and Scandinavian tradition? Even so, the symbol of the Yule Goat is always one that will personally appeal to me. 

This year I thought I would partake in this Scandinavian tradition as part of my own research. I bought the ornaments pictured on the left from Grimfrost, a Swedish company that specialises in authentic Norse/Nordic historical items. They have instantly made my room look festive, and there is something wholesome about having them take pride of place on my windowsill. As someone who is more spiritually inclined, there is a tangible connection between me and an ancient tradition which is what I absolutely love. If you fancy browsing some authentic viking products for inspiration then I thoroughly recommend checking out Grimfrost, and you may bag some Yule Goats for yourself!