Talk:Hulder

Hollow

Well! I had no idea that I had my own article on Wikipedia! Wow! -however, I would like to point out that it is filled with mistakes! I have never heard that "seen from the back, she is hollow like an old tree-trunk". Lies! (..and it doesn´t match my picture, does it?) Soooooo, show some respect here, or else.......... And some of the other things you write about me.... <blush> Vicious slander and lies, all of it! Hmmmphr. I`m not the least ashamed of my tail... That´s pure slander!

I thought of editing the article, but it seems, well, so uncool (a very non-Huldra word, that). As if I was like one of the Bogdanov brothers or something. Hmmmphr. Btw: the most important thing about me (for me!) the article doesn´t mention: I´m soooo good in dealing with Trolls...... Regards, Huldra 01:32, 19 November 2005 (UTC)

According to some legends, the Huldra is supposed to have a "hollow" which to me means something like a depression. Green Herring 01:55, 11 June 2006 (UTC)

I have changed the part about being "hollow like an old tree-trunk". The hulder isn't known for being depressed or having the backside of a tree trunk. I also miss a part about the hulder singing and luring men into the underworld or the woods, never to be seen again, which is a quite common factor in all hulder stories. ~Nini — Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.200.29.30 (talk) 20:44, 8 August 2007 (UTC)

Yes, they are. I have read books of swedish folklore (Svenska Folksagor 1-4) where they are described like that. 213.21.74.119 (talk) 22:13, 30 November 2008 (UTC)

I can also confirm that they are many times described as "hollow like an old tree-trunk". ~~Kagu — Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.252.90.19 (talk) 23:58, 17 December 2012 (UTC)

I believe that two separate descriptions are in order. I'll have a go at looking up Norwegian folklore and see what comes up. The "hollow" part doesn't sit well with descriptions I've heard before. Victor Sunbay (talk) 08:05, 23 July 2013 (UTC)

I agree with several posts above, the text need a bit of a revision. What Green Herring said is correct, in some books the back is said to be 'hollow' as is the Hulder was part of a tree - and missing a part. Victor Sunbay said many years ago that he intended to look this up. I hope he did, the variety of the mythos is found one some regions. I cannot vouch how common it is, but since it is found, I suggest that paragraph stands, even though it does not fit with most stories.

This make the Hulder related to a dryad, and this could be mentioned.

The most common story is however that the back of the Huldra indeed got the bark of a tree.

The most common variety of the story she sometime got a tail. This make her similar to the Japanese Kistume woman. Google Huldra and you will see that nearly all images show a woman with a tail.

What Nini say is correct, the Hulder or Huldra try to lure men away is the most common variety of the story in Southern Scandinavia. In this area the Hulder is considered to be dangerous.

The text mention there's a whole people of Hulder. This is correct if Hulder is the same as Vittra and the two mythologies might have merged in the northern half of Scandinavia. Especially since any supernatural being is called Vittra in some nothern dialects. (Please do not compare with Astrid Lindgren book where the use the word for something like a Valkyria) Vittra is a whole secret people supposed to live in the forest.

Last I have never encountered the idea that a Hulder / Huldra man was supposed to be hideous or have a long nose. This might be a recent addition to the mythos. In traditional storytelling the Hulder / Huldra man is very good looking. Sometimes well dressed, some stories tell he lure women in the same manner as the female variety. Some have suggested Näcken is the male counterpart to the Huldra. This could be mentioned in the text. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 31.208.186.22 (talk) 15:30, 30 October 2020 (UTC)

I did an image search for Huldra and Hulder while doing the post. But I had a second look after and did run into a reference for that see. https://1d4chan.org/wiki/Huldra That page mention Skogsrå, a similar or perhaps identical being which also could be included in the text. 31.208.186.22 (talk) 15:42, 30 October 2020 (UTC)

Dancing Huldra at Kjosfossen

Quotes:

...meet "Huldra", a female creature from the underworld, starring in a summer attraction performance at Kjosfossen waterfall, based upon Norwegian folklore.

The highlight of the journey is the Kjosfossen waterfall, haunted in local legend by Huldra, a woman whose red dress concealed a cow's tail, which she could only shed by snaring a husband.

It's not real, if you get me here; and that was never the intention either. When you see a witch on Halloween, is she real or something (this does not apply to Wiccan/Pagan of course).

--Shandris^{the azylean} 22:08, 13 July 2006 (UTC)

There was no explanation or context for the image. Following your comments I've added this explanation. It's a good image. Imagine, say, in the Leprachaun article someone adds a photograph of a man wearing a tall green hat with a shamrock on it, labelled "A leprechaun in Ireland". This would only be confusing to readers. If the caption explained that leprachaun enactments were common during St Patrick's day celebrations it would make a lot more sense. (I'm making this up about leprechaun enactments). Anyway, the image looks good now. Fuzzypeg☻ 00:47, 14 July 2006 (UTC)

Thanks Fuzzypeg, you're awesome! =) Shandris^{the azylean} 01:07, 14 July 2006 (UTC)

Skogsrå

"In Norwegian folklore, she is known as the skogsrå or skogsfru/skovfrue (meaning "Lady (read, counterpart of a Lord) of the forest"). She is known as Tallemaja (pine tree Mary) in Swedish folklore, and Ulda in Sámi folklore."

Skogsrå is not Norwegian, it is Swedish, and it doe not mean Sgosfru/Sogens fru (also Swedish)(Sogsfru translates more literally to Forest wife, not Lady of the forest). Sogsrå is a combination of the word Skog (forest) and rå/råda/rår (old Swedish word meaning to take care of, or to guard/protect something), and is translated to something closer to Forest Guardian /Forest Guard. The name Tallemaja is extremely rare, and I am to believe that most people nowadays don't even know what it is. But I have no actual reference for a such statement. I strongly believe that most swedish people know pretty well what Skogsrået is.

I usually am not active in Wikipedia editing.. so I have no login. Hope someone sees this and can take care of correcting the information in the article. ~~Kagu — Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.252.90.19 (talk) 23:58, 17 December 2012 (UTC)

Skogsrå is Norwegian too. Furthermore, "fru" or "frue" was the traditional formal title for Norwegian nobility. I think the similarities in the languages is causing a slight confusion. Victor Sunbay (talk) 07:59, 23 July 2013 (UTC)

Sources

American Gods really shouldn't be used as a source. Instead find the sources Gaiman used for the sections of interest, and use those. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 93.97.215.102 (talk) 12:01, 16 April 2013 (UTC)

I agree and will remove it.

--Óli Gneisti (talk) 09:48, 9 October 2021 (UTC)

Title

Is it right to use the word "huldra" for the title, since it means "the hulder"? I think it would be better to use the form "hulder". Also in the article, it makes more sense to call one of them a "hulder" and to use "huldrer" for the plural. In my opinion it's all right to say (in English) "the hulder" or "the huldrer". Even in Norwegian one can use the definite article "den" instead of the suffix (like "huldra") when there is an adjective between the two. Eric Kvaalen (talk) 06:05, 26 June 2014 (UTC)

Copied from "Huldra" article

I have copied the contents of the article "Huldra" to here, because for reasons I give on the talk page of that article I believe "hulder" is the more appropriate title. I had to copy and paste because I could not "move" that article to here. Eric Kvaalen (talk) 11:31, 30 June 2014 (UTC)

Removed section that referenced an Icelandic tale

I thought the story about the woman and her unclean children suspiciously similar to an Icelandic tale. I first looked up the K.M. Briggs source but that referred to an older book by Thomas Keightley. In Keightley it is clear that he is talking about the Icelandic tale and not a story about Hulder. I removed the section. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Óli Gneisti (talk • contribs) 09:40, 9 October 2021 (UTC)