Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.12.2014, Qupperneq 53

Why do we love having them dress up
like a couple of Santas and then have
them pose for photos, and then put-
ting those photos on our magazine
covers? Because they are very won-
derful people who have actively en-
riched Icelandic culture for decades,
that’s why. Plus, they both sport great
beards. And a Santa needs a beard.
We asked the two to relay a few
childhood Christmas memories to
mark their appearance on our cover.
Goddur
(b. 1955)
My most vivid memory of Christmas
as a child is when my father would
bring home a case of apples, which
were a rare treat at the time.
My parents weren’t very religious.
Like most Icelanders, they would
sort of pay lip service to Christian-
ity. Regardless, it should be clear
that Christmas was a solemn, even
sacred, time. We would listen to the
Christmas mass on the radio before
dining on Christmas Eve—and play-
ing games was strictly forbidden until
the second day of Christmas.
Thinking back, I am only now
realizing that in post-war Iceland,
Christmas had already become fully
Americanized. The Yule Lads had
morphed into imitations of the Coca
Cola Claus, while retaining their tra-
ditional names—Stúfur, Kjötkrókur,
et cetera—and their background.
Jörmundur Ingi
(b. 1940)
My fondest memories of Christmas
are from the time when the whole
family would get together at my
grandparents. You'd anxiously wait
for grandpa to read the labels on the
presents and see what books you got
for Christmas. The extended family
would be there, and you'd get to sit
with the grownups if you knew your
manners and how to eat with a knife
and fork. Grandpa was in charge, like
a general, which was only appropriate
as he was of Prussian lineage.
Skírnismál, one of the Old Norse
Poetic Edda chapters, talks about
the love between the gods Freyr and
Gerður, and is a symbolic way to talk
about the renewal of the sun around
Christmas, and it's one of my favou-
rite Christmas plays. In it, the char-
acter Skírnir plays the role of Santa
Claus, and I will never stop believing
in him and the sun.
The merry Christmas men that are plastered all over the
Grapevine this issue just happen to be veritable legends in
their own right. Guðmundur Oddur Magnússon, Goddur,
(left) is Professor of Graphic Design at the Icelandic Acade-
my of the Arts, while Jörmundur Ingi (right) served for years
as Allsherjargoði (Head Goði) of the Ásatrú Association (he
is currently Reykjavík Chieftain for the Pagan Association,
which he founded in 2007).
The Reykjavík
Grapevine's
Xmas Special
Spectacular
Photo by Baldur Kristjáns