In Sweden, what is the straw Christmas goat called?

In Sweden, the straw Christmas goat is called the Julbock.

The Julbock is a Scandinavian Yule symbol, now most familiar as a small straw goat tied with red ribbons and displayed under or beside a Christmas tree. Its deeper history is complex. One popular interpretation connects the goat with Thor’s goats in Norse mythology, while another links it to the last sheaf of grain from the harvest, believed to carry the spirit of the fields into the Yule season.

Earlier Swedish traditions treated the goat as more than decoration. It could appear as an invisible household spirit checking that Christmas preparations were being done properly, or as a costumed figure in groups that visited homes, sang, performed plays and played pranks. In the 19th century, the Julbock also became associated with delivering presents before the modern Santa-like jultomte took over that role.

The famous Gävle Goat is a gigantic modern version of the same figure. It has been erected in Gävle every Christmas since 1966 and became notorious for repeated vandalism and arson. Julbock should not be confused with Sweden’s tomte, the household or Christmas gift-bringing figure.