Lögberg-Heimskringla - 25.02.1994, Blaðsíða 1

eimskringla
The lcelandic Weekly
Lögberg Stofnaö 14. janúar 1888
Heimskringla Stofnað 9. september 1886
1108. Árgangur
108th Year
Publications Mail Registration No. 1667
Föstudagur 25. febrúar 1994
Friday, 25 February 1994
Inside this week:
All the world loves valentines......3
Lost stories retrieved.............4
One stop shopping...................6
Strong man becomes boxer............6
Upcoming events....................7
Númer 6
Number 6
é
lcelandic
News
Þorrablót’s Story
Bargain basement prices
■ lcelanders are buying Canadian
trawlers at what can only be called dump-
•ng prices.
The vessels, going for a fraction of
their worth, are older ships in good con-
dition and well equipped. The buyers
intend to use these ships for deep sea
fishing in the area between Norway and
Spitsbergen called Smugan and also
south west of lceland on the North
Atlantic Ridge. These ships are unlikely to
be registered in lceland due to their age
and will sail under a flag of convenience.
Not everyone is pleased with this
development and fear that adding
trawlers to the area north of Norway,
even though they fly a different flag, will
further deepen the differences between
lceland and Norway over lceland's right
to fish in this area that lcelanders look
upon as internationa! waters. A meeting
recently held between the fisheries minis-
ters of the two countries held in early
February ended without resolving the dis-
pute which hopefully does not have to go
to an international courtfor ruling.
Above is a photo of a Canadian
trawler of the same type as lcelanders are
buying from Canada at low-low prices.
Floodlights given
■ On February 1st lceland's 90 year
anniversary of home rule was celebrat-
ed. On that occa-
sion Reykjavík
Hydro donated
floodlights which
have been placed
at the statue of
iceland's first gov-
ernment minister,
Hannes Hafstein.
GUNNUR ISFELD
Strong earthquake
® An earthquake measuring 5.5 on the
^ichter scale woke people in northern
jfeland up at around 3:30 a.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 8. The quake had its ori-
Qin approximately 40 km north west of
Si9iufjörður and was described as hav-
>ng been felt both on land and at sea. A
tew after-shocks have been felt, the
strongest around 4 on the Richter scale.
I 0 ctamage is reported and it is unlike-
v that there were any as houses are
uilt to withstand fairly strong earth-
Jjuakes. In comparison the earthquake
hat hit Los Angeles in January mea-
sured 6.3 on the Richter scale.
V BIRGIR brynjólfsson
By Shirley McCreedy
Public Relations,
Frón Chapter, Wpg.
Once again it is that
season of the year
when Icelandic
clubs world-wide are cele-
brating Þorrablót according
to the individual tradition
in each community. But the
story behind the celebration
is not always told on the
occasion of the local
Þorrablót. And so, it is well
to review the background of
this most popular feast.
“Þorri” is actually the
fourth winter month, begin-
ning on Friday in the 13th
week of winter.
The name first occurred
in the 13th century in the
annals of Icelandic history,
but it was mentioned in
Snorri’s (Prose) Edda.
Apparently, it had been an
age-old custom to have a
celebration in the home on
the first day of Þorri in
order to greet it with proper
respect. The farmer would
welcome Þorri by rising ear-
lier than anyone else on the
farm the first moming, and
go out clad only in a shirt,
barefoot and partly bare-
legged. The farmer would
wear only one leg of his
underpants, while the other
was to be dragged behind.
He would hop on one foot
all around the farmhouse,
still dragging his underpants
on the other foot in order to
welcome Þorri to his home.
Following tradition, the
farmer then made a banquet
inviting others in the vicini-
ty to attend.
Evidently, there had not
been complete agreement as
to whether the husband or
the wife should greet the
month of Þorri and which
one the month of Goa,
since in some parts of
Iceland the practice was the
reverse, with the wife greet-
ing Þorri and the husband
Goa. Whatever the case,
because wintertime in
Iceland often depresses
people severely, the lady of
the house would go outside
on the eve of Þorri’s arrival
Akureyri in the late 19th century
when the ancient custom of Þorrabiót was revived in lceland’s north country.
The celebrations have continued. In the upcoming events in this issue of L-H,
five celebrations are listed, and these are only the ones we have been informed about.
and invite it in with warm
words, just like any other
good and respected guest,
so that it might be mild and
harmless to her and hers.
Goa, then, should be simi-
larly greeted by the hus-
band. Either way, celebra-
tions on the first day of
Thorri were still called
Þorrablót.
The Flateyjarbók (late
14th century) tells how the
old King Thorri, who was a
great one for sacrifices,
made a Þorrablót every year
in the middle of winter.
King Þorri’s daughter was
named Goa. This was some-
how an allegory of the ele-
ments. Therefore it seems
logical to look upon Thorri
as some kind of winter spirit
or weather god. Never-
theless, the very existence of
the word Þorrablót indicat-
ed that some ceremony was
customary at some time, but
that by the time the
Flateyjarbók was written,
the original reason had been
long forgotten and the alle-
gory had taken its place.
And if Þorrablót was a fact
of ancient life, the natural
purpose of it was presum-
ably the same as that of any
sacrifice: to win the favour
of the power to whom the
idea of making Þorrablót
according to the ancient
custom was revived. The
first Þorrablót known to
have taken place in modem
times was held in Copen-
hagen on January 24, 1873,
initiated by Icelandic stu-
dents who were actively
involved in the indepen-
dence movement while
studying there.
The next to adopt the
custom were the citizens of
Akureyri in the millennial
year of 1874 (the l,000th
anniversary of the settle-
ment of Iceland), and they
have observed it ever since.
It was not until 1880 that a
Þorrablót was held in
Reykjavik, but its obser-
vance was not as continu-
ous as in Akureyri.
In reviving the Þorrablót,
halls were suitably decorat-
ed according to ancient tra-
dition. Toasts were made,
sanctified, and drunk to the
old gods and goddesses, as
well as to the mother coun-
try and to prominent citi-
zens. Most particularly, Þor,
the thundergod, seems to
have been honoured, proba-
bly because it was a popular
explanation that the name
Thorri was a diminutive of
Þor.
Þorrablót were resumed
in tiie East of Iceland short-
ly before the tum of the cen-
tury. The custom gradually
spread throughout the
country, though it was not
necessarily observed every
year. During the 1940s some
regional societies in Reykja-
vik began to hold Þorrablót,
but it was only around 1960
that it became a celebration
in every district and town.
Now, it seems that Þorra-
blót celebrations are held
every year by the majority of
Icelandic associations in
Europe and North America.
Quite likely it is one of the
most popular annual events
for Icelanders everywhere.
Best wishes for a “Happy
Þorrablót 1994” with “Good
Þorrafood” for the occasion.
Take note of the time and
date of your local Þorrablót
and attend. Have fun!