Q 01/05

The giant Yule goat that arsonists have burned most years in Gävle, Sweden, is built from which material?

A) Straw

B) Wicker

C) Birch bark

D) Driftwood

Answer · why

A) Straw

Straw makes the goat easy prey: it has been burned to the ground most years since 1966, despite guards and a fire station close by.

Q 02/05

In Iceland, the thirteen Yule Lads leave what in the shoes of children who have misbehaved?

A) A lump of coal

B) A rotten potato

C) A bundle of twigs

D) A fish head

Answer · why

B) A rotten potato

A rotten potato waits for disobedient children, while good ones find a small gift in the shoe they leave on the windowsill each night.

Q 03/05

In Norse myth, the god Baldr is killed by a weapon made from which evergreen plant, now a Yuletide decoration?

A) Holly

B) Juniper

C) Mistletoe

D) Scots pine

Answer · why

C) Mistletoe

Mistletoe was the one thing Frigg never asked to spare her son, so Loki guided the blind god Höðr into firing the fatal shot.

Q 04/05

In which Harry Potter novel does Hogwarts hold the Yule Ball as part of the Triwizard Tournament?

A) Chamber of Secrets

B) Prisoner of Azkaban

C) Half-Blood Prince

D) Goblet of Fire

Answer · why

D) Goblet of Fire

Goblet of Fire, the fourth in the series, sends Harry to the dance with Parvati Patil after Cho Chang turns him down for Cedric Diggory.

Q 05/05

In Icelandic folklore, the giant Yule Cat eats people who fail to receive what before Christmas Eve?

A) New clothes

B) A hot meal

C) A blessing

D) A gold coin

Answer · why

A) New clothes

New clothes were the reward for farm workers who finished processing the autumn wool in time, so the monster served as a threat to slackers.