History
The Yule Goats origins might go as far back as to pre-Christian days. A popular theory is that the celebration of the goat is in connection to to the Norse god Thor, who rode the sky in a chariot drawn by two goats, Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr. It is also known that in old agricultural Scandinavia, the last sheaf of corn bundled in the harvest was credited with magical properties as the spirit of the harvest and saved for the Yule celebrations, called among other things "julbocken" (the Yule Goat). A man-sized goat figure is known from 11th century celebrations of Childermas, where it was lead by a man dressed as Saint Nicholas, symbolising his control over the Devil.
The function of the Yule Goat has differed throughout the ages. In a Scandinavian tradition similar to wassailing, held at either Christmas or Epiphany, young men in costumes would walk between houses singing songs, acting out plays and playing pranks. This tradition is known from the 17th century and continued in places into the early 20th century. The group of Christmas characters would often include the Yule Goat, a rowdy and sometimes scary creature demanding gifts.
Other traditions are possibly related to the sheaf of corn called the Yule Goat. In Sweden, people thought of the Yule Goat as an invisible spirit that would appear some time before Christmas to make sure that the Yule preparations were done right. Objects made out of straw or or roughly-hewn wood could also be called the Yule Goat, and in older Scandinavian society a popular Christmas prank was to place this Yule Goat in a neighbour's house without them noticing; the family successfully pranked had to get rid of it in the same way.
During the 19th century the Yule Goat's role all over Scandinavia shifted towards becoming the giver of Christmas gifts, with one of the men in the family dressing up as the Yule Goat. In this, there might be a relation to Santa Claus and the Yule Goat's origin in the medieval celebrations of Saint Nicholas. The goat was then replaced by the jultomte or julenisse (Father Christmas/Santa Claus) at the end of the century, although he is still called the Yule Goat (Joulupukki) in Finland, and the tradition of the man-sized goat disappeared.
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