A (, ), tomte (), , or () is a

mythological Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

creature from

Nordic folklore Nordic folklore is the folklore of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and the Faroe Islands. It has common roots with, and has been mutually influenced by, folklore in England, Germany, the Low Countries, the Baltic countries, Finland and Sapmi. ...

today typically associated with the

winter solstice The winter solstice, also called the hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere ( Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the winte ...

and the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

season. They are generally described as being short, having a long white beard, and wearing a conical or knit cap in gray, red or some other bright colour. They often have an appearance somewhat similar to that of a

garden gnome Garden gnomes (german: links=no, Gartenzwerge, lit=garden dwarfs) are lawn ornament figurines of small humanoid creatures based on the mythological creature and diminutive spirit which occur in Renaissance magic and alchemy, known as gnomes. Th ...

. The nisse is one of the most familiar creatures of Scandinavian folklore, and he has appeared in many works of

Scandinavian literature Scandinavian literature or Nordic literature is the literature in the languages of the Nordic countries of Northern Europe. The Nordic countries include Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway (including Svalbard), Sweden, and Scandinavia's associate ...

. With the romanticisation and collection of

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

during the 19th century, the nisse gained popularity.

Terminology

The word ''nisse'' is a pan-Scandinavian term. Its current use in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

into the 19th century is evidenced in Asbjørnsen's collection. The Norwegian is also equated to ''nisse'' or ''tomte''.

English translations

While the term ''nisse'' in the native Norwegian is retained in Pat Shaw Iversen's English translation (1960), appended with the parenthetical remark that it is a

household spirit A household deity is a deity or spirit that protects the home, looking after the entire household or certain key members. It has been a common belief in paganism as well as in folklore across many parts of the world. Household deities fit into ...

, H. L. Braekstad (1881) chose to substitute ''nisse'' with " brownie". Brynildsen's dictionary (1927) glossed ''nisse'' as '

goblin A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances depending on t ...

' or '

hobgoblin A hobgoblin is a household spirit, typically appearing in folklore, once considered helpful, but which since the spread of Christianity has often been considered mischievous. Shakespeare identifies the character of Puck in his ''A Midsummer Nigh ...

'. In the English editions of the

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisti ...

's fairy tales the

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

word has been translated as 'goblin', for example, in the tale " The Goblin at the Grocer's".

Dialects

Forms such as have been seen as

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of Linguistics, linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety (linguisti ...

. Aasen noted the variant form to be prevalent in the

Nordland Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, N ...

and

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

areas of Norway, and the tale "Tuftefolket på Sandflesa" published by Asbjørnsen is localized in

Træna Træna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the island/village of Husøya. Other population centres include Selvær and Sanna. Fishing i ...

in Nordland. Another synonym is ''tunkall'' ("yard fellow") also found in the north and west. Thus ostensibly prevails in eastern Norway (and adjoining Sweden), although there are caveats attached to such over-generalizations by linguist . It might also be conceded that is more a Swedish term than Norwegian. In Scania, Halland and Blekinge ist the Nisse also known as goanisse (Godnisse, Goenisse≈the good Nisse).

Reidar Thoralf Christiansen Reidar Thoralf Christiansen (27 January 1886 – 22 July 1971) was a Norwegian folklorist, archivist of the Norwegian Folklore Collection (NFS) and professor of folkloristics at the University of Oslo. Biography Christiansen studied theology du ...

remarked that the "belief in the is confined to the south and east" of Norway, and theorized the ''nisse'' was introduced to Norway (from

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

) in the 17th century, but there is already mention of "Nisse pugen" in a Norwegian legal tract c. 1600 or earlier, and (1938) believed the introduction to be as early as 13 to 14c. The ''

Norsk Allkunnebok ''Norsk Allkunnebok'' is a Norwegian encyclopedia published in ten volumes in Nynorsk language Nynorsk () () is one of the two written standards of the Norwegian language, the other being Bokmål. From 12 May 1885, it became the state-sanctio ...

'' encyclopedia was of the view that ''nisse'' was introduced from Denmark relatively late, and that native names found in

such as ''tomte'', , tufte, tuftekall, , etc., date much older.

Etymology

The term ''nisse'' may be derived from

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

, meaning "dear little relative". Another explanation is that it is a corruption of Nils, the Scandinavian form of Nicholas. A conjecture has also been advanced that ''nisse'' might be related to the " nixie", but this is a water-sprite and the proper cognate is the ''

nøkk The Nixie, Nixy, Nix, Näcken, Nicor, Nøkk, or Nøkken (german: Nixe; nl, nikker, ; da, nøkke; Norwegian nb, nøkk; nn, nykk; sv, näck; fo, nykur; fi, näkki; is, nykur; et, näkk; ang, nicor; eng, neck or ) are humanoid, ...

'', not the ''nisse''. The ("homestead man"), ("farm guardian"), and ("yard fellow") bear names that associated them with the

farmstead A homestead is an isolated dwelling, especially a farmhouse, and adjacent outbuildings, typically on a large agricultural holding such as a ranch or station. In North America the word "homestead" historically referred to land claimed by a settle ...

. The

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

is also derived from the term for a place of residence and area of influence: the house lot, (Finnish).

Additional synonyms

Norwegian is a synonym for ''nisse'',). or has become conflated ("mixed up") with it. Likewise is a synonym. ;Near synonyms According to Oddrun Grønvik, the ''nisse'' has a distinct connotation and is not synonymous with the or (from the

'mound'), although the latter has become indistinguishable with ', as evident from the form '.

History and cultural relevance

According to tradition, the nisse lives in the houses and

barns A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Allen G. N ...

of the farmstead, and secretly acts as their guardian. If treated well, they protect the family and animals from evil and misfortune, and may also aid the chores and farm work. However, they are known to be short tempered, especially when offended. Once insulted, they will usually play tricks, steal items and even maim or kill

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...

Appearance

The nisse/tomte was often imagined as a small, elderly man (size varies from a few inches to about half the height of an adult man), often with a full beard; dressed in the traditional farmer garb, consisting of a pull-over

woolen Woolen (American English) or woollen (Commonwealth English) is a type of yarn made from carded wool. Woolen yarn is soft, light, stretchy, and full of air. It is thus a good insulator, and makes a good knitting yarn. Woolen yarn is in contrast t ...

tunic A tunic is a garment for the body, usually simple in style, reaching from the shoulders to a length somewhere between the hips and the knees. The name derives from the Latin ''tunica'', the basic garment worn by both men and women in Ancient Rome ...

belted at the waist and knee

breeches Breeches ( ) are an article of clothing covering the body from the waist down, with separate coverings for each human leg, leg, usually stopping just below the knee, though in some cases reaching to the ankles. Formerly a standard item of Weste ...

with

stockings Stockings (also known as hose, especially in a historical context) are close-fitting, variously elastic garments covering the leg from the foot up to the knee or possibly part or all of the thigh. Stockings vary in color, design, and transparen ...

. This was still the common male dress in rural Scandinavia in the 17th century, giving an indication of when the idea of the nisse spread. However, there are also folktales where he is believed to be a

shapeshifter In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shape-shifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through an inherently superhuman ability, divine intervention, demonic manipulation, sorcery, spells or having inherited the ...

able to take a shape far larger than an adult man, and other tales where the nisse is believed to have a single,

Cyclopean Cyclopean masonry is a type of stonework found in Mycenaean architecture, built with massive limestone boulders, roughly fitted together with minimal clearance between adjacent stones and with clay mortar or no use of mortar. The boulders typic ...

eye. In modern Denmark, nisser are often seen as beardless, wearing grey and red woolens with a red cap. Since nisser are thought to be skilled in illusions and sometimes able to make themselves invisible, one was unlikely to get more than brief glimpses of him no matter what he looked like. Norwegian folklore states that he has four fingers, and sometimes with pointed ears and eyes reflecting light in the dark, like those of a

cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...

Height

The ''tomte''s height is anywhere from to no taller than according to one Swedish-American source, whereas the ''tomte'' (pl. ''tomtarna'') were just 1 ''

aln Aluminium nitride ( Al N) is a solid nitride of aluminium. It has a high thermal conductivity of up to 321 W/(m·K) and is an electrical insulator. Its wurtzite phase (w-AlN) has a band gap of ~6 eV at room temperature and has a potent ...

'' tall (an ''aln'' or Swedish ell being just shy of 60 cm or 2 ft), according to one local Swedish tradition.

Temperament

Despite his small size, nisse possess immense strength. They are easily offended by carelessness, lack of proper respect, and lazy farmers. As the protector of the farm and caretaker of livestock, their retributions for bad practices range from small pranks like a hard strike to the ear to more severe punishment like killing of livestock or ruining of the farm's fortune. Observance of traditions is thought to be important to the nisse, as they do not like changes in the way things are done at their farms. They are also easily offended by rudeness; farm workers swearing, urinating in the barns, or not treating the creatures well can frequently lead to a sound thrashing by the tomte/nisse. If anyone spills something on the floor in the nisse‘s house, it is considered proper to shout a warning to the tomte below. One is also expected to please nisse with gifts (see ) – a traditional gift is a bowl of porridge on

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...

. If the tomte is not given his gift, he might leave the farm or house or engage in mischief such as tying the cows' tails together in the barn, turning objects upside-down, and breaking things (like a

troll A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human bei ...

). The nisse likes his

porridge Porridge is a food made by heating or boiling ground, crushed or chopped starchy plants, typically grain, in milk or water. It is often cooked or served with added flavourings such as sugar, honey, (dried) fruit or syrup to make a sweet cereal, ...

with a pat of

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condiment ...

on the top. In an often retold story, a farmer put the butter ''underneath'' the porridge. When the nisse of his farmstead found that the butter was missing, he was filled with rage and killed the cow resting in the barn. But, as he thus became hungry, he went back to his porridge (ricepudding) and ate it, and so found the butter at the bottom of the bowl. Full of grief, he then hurried to search the lands to find another farmer with an identical cow, and replaced the former with the latter. In another tale a Norwegian maid decided to eat the porridge herself, and ended up severely beaten by the nisse. The being swore: "Have you eaten the porridge for the nisse, you have to dance with him!". The farmer found her nearly lifeless the morning after. The nisse is connected to farm animals in general, but his most treasured animal is the horse. Belief has it that one could see which horse was the tomte's favourite as it will be especially healthy and well taken care of. Sometimes the tomte will even braid its hair and tail. Undoing these braids without permission can mean misfortune or angering the tomte. Some stories tell how the nisse could drive people mad or bite them. The bite from a nisse is poisonous, and otherworldly healing is usually required. As the story goes, a girl who was bitten withered and died before help arrived. An angry tomte is featured in the popular children's book by Swedish author , (''The Wonderful Adventures of Nils''). The tomte turns the naughty boy Nils into a pixie in the beginning of the book, and Nils then travels across Sweden on the back of a goose.

After Christianization

The nisse or tomte was in ancient times believed to be the "soul" of the first inhabitor of the farm; he who cleared the (house lot). He had his dwellings in the

burial mounds A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a ...

on the farm, hence the now somewhat archaic Swedish names and , the Swedish and Norwegian and ("tomte farmer"), Danish ("house nisse"), the Norwegian ("mound man"), and the Finnish (lit. "house lot man"). The nisse was not always a popular figure, particularly during and after the Christianization of Scandinavia. Like most creatures of folklore he would be seen as heathen (pre-Christian) and be demonized and connected to the

Devil A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...

. Farmers believing in the house tomte could be seen as worshipping false gods or demons; in a famous 14th century decree

Saint Birgitta Bridget of Sweden (c. 1303 – 23 July 1373) born as Birgitta Birgersdotter, also Birgitta of Vadstena, or Saint Birgitta ( sv, heliga Birgitta), was a mystic and a saint, and she was also the founder of the Bridgettines nuns and monks after ...

warns against the worship of , "tomte gods" (, book VI, ch. 78). Folklore added other negative beliefs about the tomte, such as that having a tomte on the farm meant you put the fate of your soul at risk, or that you had to perform various non-Christian rites to lure a tomte to your farm. The belief in a nisse's tendency to bring riches to the farm by his unseen work could also be dragged into the conflicts between neighbours. If one farmer was doing far better for himself than the others, someone might say that it was because he had a nisse on the farm, doing "ungodly" work and stealing from the neighbours. These rumours could be very damaging for the farmer who found himself accused, much like accusations of

witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

during the

Inquisitions The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

Similar folklore

The nisse shares many aspects with other Scandinavian

wights A wight (Old English: ''wiht'') is a mythical sentient being, often undead. In its original use the word ''wight'' described a living human being, but has come to be used in fictional works in the fantasy genre to describe certain immortal bei ...

such as the Swedish (from the Old Norse ), Danish , Norwegian or . These beings are social, however, whereas the nisse is always solitary (though he is now often pictured with other nisser). Synonyms of includes ("(farm)yard-dweller"), ("yard-warden", see ) in all Scandinavian languages, and ("good farmer"), ("yard-spirit") in Swedish and Norwegian and ("barn gnome") in Norwegian. The tomte could also take a ship for his home, and was then known as a or . In

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, the

sauna A sauna (, ), or sudatory, is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a ...

has a ''saunatonttu''. Also related is the Nis Puk, which is widespread in the area of

Southern Jutland Southern Jutland ( da, Sønderjylland; German: Südjütland) is the name for the region south of the Kongeå in Jutland, Denmark and north of the Eider (river) in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. The region north of the Kongeå is called da, Nørr ...

Schleswig The Duchy of Schleswig ( da, Hertugdømmet Slesvig; german: Herzogtum Schleswig; nds, Hartogdom Sleswig; frr, Härtochduum Slaswik) was a duchy in Southern Jutland () covering the area between about 60 km (35 miles) north and 70 km ...

, in the Danish-German border area. In other European folklore, there are many beings similar to the nisse, such as the Scots and English '' brownie'',

Northumbria la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria , common_name = Northumbria , status = State , status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...

n English '' hob'',

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Gloucesters ...

pixie A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas arou ...

'', the German , the Dutch or the Slavic . Usage in folklore in expressions such as Nisse god dräng ("Nisse good lad") is suggestive of

Robin Goodfellow In English folklore, Puck (), sometimes known as Robin Goodfellow, is a domestic and nature sprite, demon, or fairy. Origins and comparative folklore Etymology The etymology of ''puck'' is uncertain. The modern English word is attested alre ...

Modern Nisse

The tradition of nisse/tomte is also associated with Christmas ( sv, Jultomten, da,

Julemanden ( fo, Jólamaður, kl, Juulimaaq) is the Christmas gift-bringer in modern Danish culture, the equivalent of Father Christmas or Santa Claus. can be directly translated as "The Yule-Man" or "The Christmas-man". is often illustrated as a short ...

, , no, Julenissen or fi, Joulutonttu.) The tomte is accompanied by another mythological creature: the Yule goat (). The pair appear on

, knocking on the doors of people's homes, handing out presents. The nisse will deliver gifts at the door, in accordance with the modern-day tradition of the visiting

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

, enters homes to hand out presents. The tomte/nisse is also commonly seen with a pig, another popular

symbol in

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

, probably related to fertility and their role as guardians of the farmstead. It is customary to leave behind a bowl of

with butter for the tomte/nisse, in gratitude for the services rendered. Julemotiv tegnet av Jenny Nystrøm (24207693358)

In the 1840s the farm's became the bearer of Christmas presents in Denmark, and was then called (Yule Nisse). In 1881, the Swedish magazine published

Viktor Rydberg Abraham Viktor Rydberg (; 18 December 182821 September 1895) was a Swedish writer and a member of the Swedish Academy, 1877–1895. "Primarily a classical idealist", Viktor Rydberg has been described as "Sweden's last Romantic" and by 1859 was ...

's poem "Tomten", where the tomte is alone awake in the cold Christmas night, pondering the mysteries of life and death. This poem featured the first painting by

Jenny Nyström Jenny Eugenia Nyström (13 or 15 June 1854 in Kalmar, Sweden – 17 January 1946 in Stockholm) was a painter and illustrator mainly known as the creator of the Swedish image of the '' jultomte'' on Christmas cards and magazine covers, thu ...

of this traditional Swedish mythical character which she turned into the white-bearded, red-capped friendly figure associated with Christmas ever since. Shortly afterwards, and obviously influenced by the emerging

Father Christmas Father Christmas is the traditional English name for the personification of Christmas. Although now known as a Christmas gift-bringer, and typically considered to be synonymous with Santa Claus, he was originally part of a much older and unrel ...

traditions as well as the new Danish tradition, a variant of the nisse/tomte, called the in Sweden and in Norway, started bringing the Christmas presents in Sweden and Norway, instead of the traditional ( Yule Goat). Gradually, commercialism has made him look more and more like the American

, but the Swedish , the Norwegian , the Danish and the Finnish (in Finland he is still called the ''Yule Goat'', although his animal features have disappeared) still has features and traditions that are rooted in the local culture. He doesn't live on the North Pole, but perhaps in a forest nearby, or in Denmark he lives on

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

, and in Finland he lives in Lapland; he doesn't come down the chimney at night, but through the front door, delivering the presents directly to the children, just like the Yule Goat did; he is not overweight; and even if he nowadays sometimes rides in a sleigh drawn by reindeer, instead of just walking around with his sack, his reindeer don't fly — and in Sweden, Denmark and Norway some still put out a bowl of porridge for him on Christmas Eve. He is still often pictured on Christmas cards and house and garden decorations as the little man of Jenny Nyström's imagination, often with a horse or cat, or riding on a goat or in a sled pulled by a goat, and for many people the idea of the farm tomte still lives on, if only in the imagination and literature. The use of the word in Swedish is now somewhat ambiguous, but often when one speaks of (definite article) or (definite article) one is referring to the more modern version, while if one speaks of (plural) or (plural, definite article) one could also likely be referring to the more traditional . The traditional word tomte lives on in an idiom, referring to the human caretaker of a property (), as well as referring to someone in one's building who mysteriously does someone a favour, such as hanging up one's laundry. A person might also wish for a little to tidy up for them. A tomte stars in one of author Jan Brett's children's stories, ''Hedgie's Surprise''.Brett, Jan (2000). ''Hedgie's Surprise''. G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers. When adapting the mainly English-language concept of having helpers (sometimes in a

workshop Beginning with the Industrial Revolution era, a workshop may be a room, rooms or building which provides both the area and tools (or machinery) that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods. Workshops were the only ...

), can also correspond to the

Christmas elf In English-speaking cultures, a Christmas elf is a diminutive elf that lives with Santa Claus at the North Pole and acts as his helper. Christmas elves are usually depicted as green- or red-clad, with large, pointy ears and wearing pointy hats. T ...

, either replacing it completely, or simply lending its name to the elf-like depictions in the case of translations. Nisser/tomte often appear in Christmas calendar TV series and other modern fiction. In some versions the tomte are portrayed as very small; in others they are human-sized. The nisse usually exist hidden from humans and are often able to use

magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

Garden gnome

The appearance traditionally ascribed to a nisse or tomte resembles that of the

figurine for outdoors, which are in turn, also called in Swedish, in Danish, in Norwegian and in Finnish.

Explanatory notes

References

Citations

General bibliography

* * *
Nasjonalbiblioteket copy
* * * * * * *
pdf text
via Academia.edu * *

External links

"Tomten"
poem in Swedish by

{{Scandinavian folklore Christmas characters Christmas gift-bringers Danish folklore Gnomes Holiday characters Household deities Norwegian folklore Scandinavian legendary creatures Swedish folklore Tutelary deities