I think every country has its myths and legends, we in Scotland have lots, including the Loch Ness monster, mind you over the years some very serious and normally sensible people have sworn they’ve seen the monster. Kelpies are water spirits in the shape of horses. There are selkies and I recently saw a poster in a shop which proclaimed that their haggis was freshly caught in Forfar! But in Norway it’s Trolls that are legendary beings, supposed to live near water and the tourist shops are full of wee troll figurines in various designs. I managed to avoid buying any when we were in Norway. You can read more about trolls in folk tales and myths here.
However I was amused by a cute troll house that had been built at the bottom of a hill in Olden, the trolls were lurking nearby.
You get all sorts of different types of trolls apparently. The Swedish Moomintrolls of the Tove Jansson books fame are very different, to me they look more like cartoon baby hippos.
I just bought and started reading Neil Gaiman’s book Norse Myths. I’ve heard about Odin and Thor and some others for ages, but I really don’t know much about them. In his introduction, Gaiman says that many of the myths have been lost and that they influenced the myths in other countries. I’m eager to see if there are trolls in that book!
Joan,
I want to find out if trolls are in myths or just folk tales. I don’t know that much about Norse myths myself although I’m fairly sure I have a book – somewhere! I’ve never read anything by Gaiman.
I’ve never been able to “connect” with Norse mythology.
I expect I’m not putting this very well, but I suppose the myths and figures have their origin in the landscape, and perhaps the mythology of Britain has evolved from a gentler terrain and climate. That is not to say, of course, that all British mythic figures are benign.
Trolls, mythic or ornamental, have always given me the creeps!
A fascinating topic, regardless.
PS Keep warm đŸ™‚
Valerie,
I don’t know a lot about Norse mythology, I think I learned some bits of it in primary school and I have it in my mind that it’s quite Germanic – or maybe the Germans nicked Norse legends from them. I think the Nazis were keen on such things and that’s a bit off-putting.
How sweet! Does anything happen in the troll house? Is it like a summer house or something similar? My daughter loved the Moomins as a girl and I agree about the hippo look. Odd that I’ve never connected them with Trolls before despite their name! When I think of trolls I think of the chapter in the Hobbit (or was it Lord of the Rings?) and also those funny little plastic versions which were all the rage in the early 70s. Smiley faces with long brightly-coloured hair!
Sandra,
I have no idea if anything happens in the troll house although it does have a chimney sort of thing so it looks like one of those Scandi saunas that some people here have in their garden. I only got as far as The Hobbit and that was enough for me! I well remember my mother being disgusted with me when I spent my pocket money on buying a gonk/troll with bright green hair around 1970-ish though.