Hulder

"Huldra's Nymphs" (1909) byBernard Evans Ward
Grouping	Legendary creature
Sub grouping	Humanoid
Country	Scandinavia
Region	Europe

Ahulder (orhuldra) is a seductive forest creature found inScandinavian folklore. Her name derives from a root meaning "covered" or "secret".^[1] In Norwegian folklore, she is known ashuldra ("the [archetypal] hulder", though folklore presupposes that there is an entire Hulder race and not just a single individual). She is known as theskogsrå "forest spirit" orTallemaja "pine tree Mary" in Swedish folklore, andulda inSámi folklore. Her name suggests that she is originally the same being as thevölva divine figureHuld and the GermanHolda.^[2]

The word hulder is only used of a female; a "male hulder" is called ahuldrekall and also appears in Norwegian folklore. This being is closely related to other underground dwellers, usually calledtusser (sg.,tusse).

Though described as beautiful, the huldra is noted for having a distinctive inhuman feature—an animal's tail (usually a cow's or a fox's) and/or a back resembling a hollowed-out tree.

Folklore

The hulder is one of severalrå (keeper, warden), including the aquaticsjörå orhavsfru, later identified with amermaid, and thebergsrå in caves and mines who made life tough for the poor miners.^{[citation needed]}

More information can be found in the collected Norwegian folktales ofPeter Christen Asbjørnsen andJørgen Moe.

Relations with humans

A hulder is talking with a charcoal burner. She looks like a young farmer woman, but her tail is peeking out under her skirt. FromSvenska folksägner (1882).

The hulders were held to be kind to charcoal burners, watching their charcoal kilns while they rested. Knowing that she would wake them if there were any problems, they were able to sleep, and in exchange they left provisions for her in a special place. A tale fromNärke illustrates further how kind a hulder could be, especially if treated with respect (Hellström 1985:15).

Toponyms

A multitude of places in Scandinavia are named after the Hulders, often places by legend associated with the presence of the "hidden folk". Here are some examples showing the wide distribution of Hulder-related toponyms between the northern and southern reaches of Scandinavia, and the terms usage in different language groups' toponyms.

Danish

• Huldremose (Hulder Bog) is a bog onDjursland,Denmark famous for the discovery of theHuldremose Woman, a bog body from 55BC.

Norwegian

• Hulderheim is southeast on the islandKarlsøya, Troms,Norway. The name means "Home of the Hulder".
• Hulderhusan is an area on the southwest of Norway's largest islandHinnøya, whose name means "Houses of the Hulders".

Sámi

• Ulddaidvárri inKvænangen,Troms (Norway) means "Mountain of the Hulders" inNorth Sámi.
• Ulddašvággi is a valley southwest ofAlta inFinnmark, Norway. The name means "Hulder Valley" in North Sámi. The peak guarding the pass over from the valley to the mountains above has a similar name, Ruollačohkka, meaning "Troll Mountain"—and the large mountain presiding over the valley on its northern side is called Háldi, which is a term similar to the above-mentioned Norwegian rå, that is a spirit or local deity which rules a specific area.

Parallels

The hulder may be connected with the Germanholda.

In Popular Culture

In the mobile gameYear Walk, one of the Watchers is a Huldra.

They are mentioned in Seanan MacGuire's October Daye series in the book "A red-rose chain".

In the subsequentYear Walk: Bedtime Stories for Awful Children, the first chapter is devoted to the Huldra.^[3]

See also

References

• CS1: Julian–Gregorian uncertainty
• CS1 Swedish-language sources (sv)
• Articles with short description
• Short description with empty Wikidata description
• Use dmy dates from July 2022
• Articles with text in Sami languages
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from October 2011
• Scandinavian legendary creatures
• Germanic paganism
• German folklore
• Norwegian folklore
• Scandinavian folklore
• Swedish folklore
• Mythic humanoids
• Nature spirits
• Female legendary creatures