Encounter Atlas
The tomte (Swedish) or nisse (Danish and Norwegian) is a small household spirit of the Nordic farm. He is described as about the size of a child, with an old man's face, a red cap and grey woollen clothes. He lives under the floorboards or in the barn, looks after the animals and the farm at night, and is attached to the place rather than the family.
A tomte is a good friend but a dangerous enemy. He is strong for his size and hates swearing, laziness, carelessness and change. His yearly wage is a bowl of Christmas porridge with a pat of butter on top. In a much-told tale, a farmer hid the butter at the bottom; the furious tomte killed the cow, then found the butter and went off in shame to find a replacement.
In the 19th century the farm spirit turned into the Christmas gift-bringer. Danish artists drew julenisser in the 1840s, and Jenny Nyström's pictures for Viktor Rydberg's 1881 poem 'Tomten' shaped the Swedish jultomte. Garden gnomes are still called trädgårdstomte in Swedish and havenisse in Danish.
What witnesses report
- A small grey figure in a red cap near the barn
- A horse groomed overnight
- Braided manes (nisse-plaits)
- Milk spilled or animals upset after a slight
Famous cases
Seen the Tomte?
Tell us what happened. Every report is read by a person before it goes on the map, and you can stay anonymous.
