How many Yule Lads visit Icelandic children in the days before Christmas? Thirteen Yule Lads visit Icelandic children.
The Yule Lads are mischievous figures from Icelandic Christmas folklore and are traditionally described as the sons of the ogress Grýla and her husband, Leppalúði. One arrives each night from 12 December through Christmas Eve, creating a countdown of 13 visitors.
Modern Icelandic tradition gives each Lad a distinctive prank or habit, such as stealing sausages, licking spoons, or slamming doors. Children place a shoe on a windowsill, and a well-behaved child may find a small gift; a misbehaving child traditionally receives a potato instead.
The number can cause confusion because older regional stories varied. Some earlier versions described fewer Yule Lads, including traditions featuring nine. The familiar standardized group of 13 became especially influential through 20th-century Icelandic retellings. After Christmas, the Lads depart one by one, with the last leaving around Epiphany on 6 January.