In Nordic folklore, including the Northern Isles, hidden-folk (Faroese and Icelandic: ; Norwegian: ), mound-folk (, ), mountain-folk (, ; ), subterraneans (, ; Gutnish: di sma undar jordi, "the small underground"; , roughly "grounders"), among other names (, Insular Scots: trow, drow), are collective names for a loose race or conglomeration of elves, wights, brownies (Nordic: nisse), trolls, and thereof. They are supernatural beings that live in nature. They look and behave similarly to humans, but live in a parallel world. They can make themselves visible at will. cites a 19th-century Icelandic source claiming that the only visible difference between normal people and outwardly human-appearing is, the latter have a convex rather than concave philtrum () below their noses. An analog myth are the trolls being discerned by their large noses.
In Faroese folk tales,See:
hidden people are said to be "large in build, their clothes are all grey, and their hair black (the same description is also given for draugrs in Faroese folklore). Their dwellings are in mounds, and they are also called Elves." Some Icelandic folk tales caution against throwing stones, as it may hit the hidden people.
The term was taken as a synonym of (elves) in 19th-century Icelandic folklore. Jón Árnason found that the terms are synonymous, except is a pejorative term. contends that originates as a euphemism to avoid calling the by their real name.
There is, however, some evidence that the two terms have come to be taken as referring to two distinct sets of supernatural beings in contemporary Iceland. Katrin Sontag found that some people do not differentiate elves from hidden people, while others do. A 2006 survey found that "54% of respondents did not distinguish between elves and hidden people, 20% did and 26% said they were not sure."
Etymology There are countless names for the phenomenon around the Nordics and beyond, most of which are purely descriptive at their core. A modern example can be found in the children's book character Plupp, by Swedish author Inga Borg, who according to the author is an "invisibling" (, ).
Hidden folk Icelandic and Faroese , as well as , means "hidden-folk", compounding ("pertaining to secrecy"), and ("people, folk"). The fore element stems from , past participle of ("to hide, cover"). Beings within huldufólk may be called "hulder" , or "huldra" , etc.
Related terms includes hulder, a related entity, and in Old Norse poetry, related forms can also be found in (, ) and , "hat-" and "helmet of invisibility" respectively. In Huldar saga, Huldr is the name of a witch.
Finnic names
In Finnish, hidden folk are called (plural: ), compounding ("ground, land"), with the suffix , which forms nouns or adjectives of belonging to or possessing a particular quality. If a maahinen is in a forest, it could be called instead, and if in water, . The Tornedalian form is .
Many terms are based around the term väki, such as ("underworld folk, graveyard folk"), ("ground folk"), ("underground folk"), ("world folk"?), ("folk of the forrest"), ("folk of the mountain"), and ("folk of the water). In Northern Finland, the terms ("old folk") and ("the old ones") have been used, and for Forest Finns, the term ("keepers of the land").
Some terms also compound hiisi, such as ("forrest being") and ("water being"), or simply the word hiisi can refer to maahiset as well.
Origins Terry Gunnell writes: "different beliefs could have lived side by side in multicultural settlement Iceland before they gradually blended into the latter-day Icelandic and ." He also writes: " and undoubtedly arose from the same need. The Norse settlers had the , the Irish slaves had the hill fairies or the Good People. Over time, they became two different beings, but really they are two different sets of folklore that mean the same thing."
Precursors to elves/hidden people can be found in the writings of and in skaldic verse. Elves were also mentioned in Poetic Edda, and appear to be connected to fertility.
The Christianization of Iceland in the 11th century brought with it new religious concepts. According to one Christian folk tale, the origins of the hidden people can be traced to Adam and Eve. Eve hid her dirty, unwashed children from God, and lied about their existence. God then declared: "What man hides from God, God will hide from man." Other Christian folktales claim that hidden people originate from Lilith, or are fallen angels condemned to live between heaven and hell.
In succession of Christianization, official opposition to dancing may have begun in Iceland as early as the 12th century, and the association of dancing with elves can be seen as early as the 15th century. One folktale shows the elves siding with the common people and taking revenge on a sheriff who banned dance parties. concludes that these legends "show that Icelanders missed dancing".
In the 13th and 14th centuries, books from mainland Europe reached Iceland, and may have influenced folktales about elves.
writes: "Round about 1600 sources for hidden folk become so voluminous that we can readily define the beliefs and legends about them, and after that there is one source after another about them right down into the twentieth century." According to Árni Björnsson, belief in hidden people grew during the 17th and 18th centuries when Iceland was facing tough times.
According to Davide Finco Genoa, elves have existed in religious context as far back as the Stone age. He uses Swedish elf offering cups, known as "alvkvarnar," as an example.
Holidays There are four Icelandic holidays considered to have a special connection with hidden people: New Year's Eve, Thirteenth Night (January 6), Midsummer Night and Christmas night. Elf bonfires () are a common part of the holiday festivities on Twelfth Night (January 6). There are many Icelandic folktales about elves and hidden people invading Icelandic farmhouses during Christmas and holding wild parties. It is customary in Iceland to clean the house before Christmas, and to leave food for the on Christmas. On New Year's Eve, it is believed that the elves move to new locations, and Icelanders leave candles to help them find their way. On Midsummer Night, folklore states that if you sit at a crossroads, elves will attempt to seduce you with food and gifts; there are grave consequences for being seduced by their offers, but great rewards for resisting.
Icelandic and Faroese folklore
Several scholars have commented on the connections between hidden people and the Icelandic natural environment. B.S. Benedikz, in his discussion of Jón Árnason's grouping of folktales about elves, water-dwellers, and trolls together, writes: "The reason is of course perfectly clear. When one's life is conditioned by a landscape dominated by rocks twisted by volcanic action, wind and water into ferocious and alarming shapes ... the imagination fastens on these natural phenomena."
Ólina Thorvarðardóttir writes: "Oral tales concerning Icelandic elves and trolls no doubt served as warning fables. They prevented many children from wandering away from human habitations, taught Iceland's topographical history, and instilled fear and respect for the harsh powers of nature."
Michael Strmiska writes: "The are ... not so much supernatural as ultranatural, representing not an overcoming of nature in the hope of a better deal beyond but a deep reverence for the land and the mysterious powers able to cause fertility or famine." claims that in a landscape filled with earthquakes, avalanches, and volcanoes, "it is no wonder that the native people have assigned some secret life to the landscape. There had to be some unseen powers behind such unpredictability, such cruelty." Alan Boucher writes: "Thus the Icelander's ambivalent attitude towards nature, the enemy and the provider, is clearly expressed in these stories, which preserve a good deal of popular – and in some cases probably pre-christian – belief."
Robert Anderson writes that syncretism "is active in Iceland where Christianity, spiritism, and Icelandic elf lore have syncretized in at least a couple instances."
Terry Gunnell notes that hidden people legends recorded in the 18th and 19th centuries showed them to be "near mirror-images of those humans who told stories about them – except they were beautiful, powerful, alluring, and free from care, while the Icelanders were often starving and struggling for existence. The seem in many ways to represent the Icelander's dreams of a more perfect and happy existence." Anthropologist claimed that hidden people tales told by 19th century Icelandic women were a reflection of how only 47% of women were married, and "sisters often found themselves relegated to very different functions and levels of status in society ... the vast majority of Icelandic girls were shunted into supporting roles in the household." He goes on to say that these stories justified the differences in role and status between sisters, and "inculcated in young girls the ... stoic adage never to despair, which was a psychological preparedness many would need as they found themselves reduced in status and denied the proper outlet for their sexuality in marriage, thereby sometimes having to rely on infanticide to take care of the unsolicited and insupportable effects of their occasional amours, an element ... related in stories."
contends that the hidden people symbolize idealized Icelandic identity and society, the key elements of which are seeing the "past as a source of pride and nature as unique and pure."
Hidden people often appear in the dreams of Icelanders. They are usually described as wearing 19th century Icelandic clothing, and are often described as wearing green.
In one version of modern Faroese folklore, the hidden people vanished in the 1950s when electricity was brought to the island.
"The Elf Maiden" is a Norse folklore about a young man who marries an elf woman. As their marriage progresses, the elf maiden begins to periodically, miraculously disappear from his sight. The elf maiden finally tells her husband that she will eventually disappear, permanently, and that the only way to prevent it is by hammering a nail into a threshold
According to Scandinavian Author Ármann Jakobsson, "In the Eyrbyggja saga", we find the familiar idea that people are expected to relieve themselves at a safe distance from a sacred spot, and the word used (dlfrek) indicates that the alfar be expected to get angry."
In her book, Icelandic Folktales and Legends, Jacqueline Simpson provides two origins stories for the Huldufolk: The first story says the Huldufolk are some of the children of Adam and Eve. These children were not washed and therefore Eve avoided presenting them to God. In return, God said; "That which had to be hidden from Me, shall also be hidden from man," thus creating the "hidden people" / huldufolk / elves, out of the children and their offspring. The second folktale describing the origin of Huldufolk says that when the devil raised a revolt in heaven, the inhabitants who did not side with him, but also were not against him, were sent down to Earth. They would live in, "knowles, hills, and rocks" and "cannot live with other people." These people are the Huldifolk or Elves.
Contemporary Iceland A survey of Icelanders born between 1870 and 1920 found that people did not generally believe in hidden people and that when they had learned about supernatural beings in their youth, those lessons had mostly been made for amusement. About 10% seemed to actually believe in hidden people. A survey from 1974 showed that among those born between 1904 and 1944, 7% were certain of the existence of hidden people.
Several modern surveys have been made showing a surprising number of believers. Around 7–8% claim to be certain that elves exist, and around 45% claim it is likely or possible.