The Jul Goat In Folklore

Source:Pinterest

The Jul goat is a Scandinavian and Northern European Jul and Christmas symbol and tradition.

Its origin may be Germanic pagan but unfortunately lost in the mists of time, though it likely dates back at least one thousand years, when it was associated with Thor´s goats Tanngrisnir (Gap-tooth) and Tanngnjóstr (Tooth-grinder), who pulled Thor’s chariot over the sky.

Thor frequently slaughtered and ate his goats Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr, knowing they’d be returned to life the following morning.

In Sweden, as part of an ancient midwinter celebration called the Juleoffer or Julsacrifice , where a man dressed in goatskins and carrying a goat-head portrayed one of Thor’s goats. He was symbolically killed but returned to life exactly as the sun does at Jul.

Early Christians back in time were not pleased with this pagan ritual of course and proclaimed the Julbock a demon or the devil himself.

In many ancient agricultural communities the last sheaf of grain bundled in the harvest was credited with magical properties as the spirit of the harvest and saved for the Jul celebrations, called among other things Jul goat (Julbokken).

This connects to ancient Slavic beliefs as well where the Koliada (Jul) festival honors the god of the fertile sun and the harvest.

This god, Devac or Dazbog, was represented by a white goat, consequently the Koliada festivals always had a person dressed as a goat, often demanding offerings in the form of presents.

Source:Pinterest

Other traditions are possibly related to the sheaf of corn called the Jul goat. In Sweden, people regarded the Jule goat also as an invisible spirit that would appear some time before Christmas to make sure that the Jul preparations were done right. 

The function of the Jul goat has differed throughout the ages.

In the 17th century Swedish records tell us that the dark and scary demonic Julbock roamed the countryside on the night of December 25, demanding food and frightening Christians.

In time the role of holiday gift giving passed to little gnomelike, goat-riding Jul or Christmas elves called Tomten (Sweden) or Nissen (Norway), and Tonttu (Finland), who delivered gifts to sleeping children like Santa Claus does today.