The people of Iceland truly believe in the existence of the so-called "hidden people". Polls show that more than half of Icelanders believe in gnomes, trolls, fairies and elves. Many also talk about their meetings with representatives of the parallel world. One famous Icelandic politician even told about one such meeting in his autobiography.
In European folklore, references to gnomes, trolls, fairies and elves are often found. Most people take this as folk belief. But not the inhabitants of Iceland. Icelanders believe that the Huldufolk, the Hidden People, live next to them. Researcher Magnus Skarfedinsson has collected over 700 records of meetings with his representatives.
According to Skarfedinsson, there are only 13 types of elves, 4 types of gnomes, 2 types of trolls and 3 types of fairies, described in the medieval Icelandic sagas. "They're like ghosts - you don't need to see them to believe," says an expert on beings from parallel dimensions.
Skarfedinsson has been doing his research for 30 years. In 2006, he conducted a poll that showed that 56 percent of Icelanders believe in the existence of the Hidden People. Many members of the local population even consider it necessary to follow certain rules to help maintain good relations with the elves and gnomes. So, it is believed that in no case should they cross the road. If you see a freestanding boulder, this is an elf's home and should not be touched. For example, in the city of Kopavogur, the motorway in one place is deliberately narrowed to leave aside a huge boulder - the "house of elves". During the construction of another highway, the work had to be suspended until the "dwelling of the elves" was neatly moved to another location. And in one of the hotels in Reykjavik, stones lying on the road were built right into the walls of the building - apparently,to lure "otherworldly" guests for good luck.
This is what happened to a farmer. When he was building his chicken farm, he heard the voice of an elf, who asked him not to touch a large stone on his territory, since "hidden people" live there. The farmer obeyed and did not touch the stone. However, later he decided to sell the farm, and the new owners moved the stone - and their chickens stopped laying eggs. There is now a local school car park on the site of the farm, but the stone is still there. Nobody dares to remove it or at least disturb it, and even no cars are parked near it - everyone knows that this is the "house of elves".
In rural areas, you can find small wooden houses installed in the yards of private farms. They are not used - they are intended for "neighbors" from another reality.
According to eyewitnesses, these creatures look like ordinary people, but in old-fashioned clothes. In everyday life, they also use antiques and tools.
Some of the evidence does not raise doubts about their authenticity. Thus, the founder of the Communist Party of Iceland T. Emilsson in his autobiography describes an incident that happened to him at the age of 14. Then he went to a distant pasture to drive the sheep. One of the lambs fell into the crevice, the teenager tried to pull him out, but he got stuck …
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There was nowhere to wait for help in the near future. The boy understood that no one would bother until morning, but meanwhile it was getting dark and getting cold … And suddenly an unfamiliar girl's face bent over him. Before Emilsson was surprised, he miraculously found himself upstairs …
The girl said that she lives on the Litenshtammer farm, and pointed to a house standing nearby on a hill. Emilsson was surprised that he had not seen people living here before. And then his new friend told that she was … from another world. “We are one of those whom you call 'hidden people',” the girl said. Then a man's voice from the side of the farm called her by name: "Katerina!" "I have to go!" - the girl caught herself and walked up the hill with quick steps.
After that Emilsson came to this place more than once, hoping to meet Katerina, but he never saw her or the mysterious house again …
The story of Torlakur Steffansson from Skagfjordur is also curious. He lost his way in the forest in winter, froze and was already in complete despair when he suddenly saw a light behind the trees. Soon he went out to the farmhouse. The owners let him in. Steffansson asked what kind of farm it was, they told him the name - Heggstatir. The man was surprised - he had never heard that there was such a farm in the vicinity. “We are what you call 'hidden',” he replied. "We are always here, but you do not see us."
Steffansson spent the night at the farm, and the next morning set off. After moving about three hundred meters from the house, he looked around - and found that there was no farm there! Then he decided to return there on his own tracks. But it turned out that his tracks just break off in the snow …
Hundreds of such evidence have already accumulated, says Magnus Skarfedinsson. He even founded the School of Elves in Reykjavik, where those who wish can study these mysterious creatures and even receive a diploma in "elf studies."
TRINITY MARGARITA