And now it's time for who's smarted.
Psst. Hey, smarty pants, right now I'm visiting one of the coolest places in the world!
And by coolest, I mean awesomest, but it also gets quite cold here.
See if you can guess where I am.
First clue, it's a land of opposites.
Second, it's covered in glaciers and volcanoes.
Third, during summertime, there's almost no darkness.
And in the winter, there's almost no daylight.
And, although it's a European country, it's not actually in Europe.
Any guesses where I am?
If you said Sakhakis, New Jersey, you're wrong.
But if you guessed Iceland, you're right.
And the reason I'm in Iceland is to do an episode on elves.
I can't wait to see an elf, trusty.
Me, too, Espin! Smarty pants, I brought my smarty friend Espin with me.
Now you're probably wondering, what does Iceland have to do with elves?
Hello, welcome to Iceland.
Whoa, smarty pants, I've just encountered my first elf.
Ah, I'm not an elf, I'm an icelander.
Oh, my bad. Sorry, mister.
Gunnar, Gunnar Gararsan, and no apologies necessary.
In fact, I'll take it as a compliment.
Icelanders love elves.
Me, too, especially elves who make cookies.
Um, I don't think we have any cookie making elves here.
But you do have elves here, right?
That's what they say.
Great! Then we're in the right place to learn all about elves.
Things like, what exactly are elves?
Are there different types?
And, most importantly, are elves real?
It's time for another whiff of science and history on...
Is it me? Is it science or history?
Listen up! Everyone, we make smarty lots of fun on who's smart, and...
Psst. Hey, smarty pants.
If you love solving brain -teasing riddles, puzzles, and problems, have I got something fun for you.
The secret order of problem solvers from the podcast mysteries about true histories is actively recruiting new members to help stop the troublemaking trolls.
If you think you're up to the challenge and have what it takes to be a problem solver, too, then check out our riddles, puzzles, and problems.
Riddles, puzzles, and problems are mini episodes that play in the same podcast feed as mysteries about true histories, with new episodes every Tuesday for you to play along with.
That's double the adventure, fun, and problem solving each week with new episodes of riddles, puzzles, and problems on Tuesday, and mysteries about true histories on Thursdays.
Just search mysteries about true histories on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Okay, Gunner, let's start with what exactly are elves?
Elves are basically human -like creatures thought to have magical powers that they can use for good or bad, and almost all elves come from Germanic folklore.
Germanic? Is that like, German?
Well, Germany is a part of it, but Germanic languages and people include everyone from the British Isles to the Netherlands to Germany and across all of Scandinavia.
And all of them mention elves in their folklore.
Hey, smartypants, do you know what folklore is?
Do you think it's A, a big book of stories?
B, the beliefs, customs, or stories from a particular culture?
C, an old -fashioned string instrument?
Or D, my second favorite Taylor Swift album?
If you said B and or D, you're right!
But in this context, I was mostly leaning towards B.
Let me tell you, trusty, the Germanic peoples have a very rich folklore, most of which were passed on orally or through the spoken word.
Elves, of course, are my favorite part of it.
Mine, too! Gunner, before you mentioned elves can use powers for good or evil?
Absolutely. It's believed elves live among us, invisibly, and they make themselves known when they want to.
Hello. Sometimes they help humans, and sometimes they can be not so cool.
So if you encounter an elf, it's best to be nice to them.
They can be a little unpredictable.
Gotcha. I gotta ask.
What are some of the not -so -nice -things elves might do?
Well, in Medieval England, for example, most mentions of elves actually appeared in medical texts, because people thought elves would use their magic to make humans sick.
That doesn't sound fun.
Of course, this was well before the scientific revolution, so people didn't know that it was really germs that was making them sick.
Another thing people accused elves of is stealing a child and replacing it with a changeling.
Yikes! What's a changeling?
A changeling is like a child, but looks a little odd.
And isn't quite human.
Or it could look just like a child, but act strangely.
Basically, it's an elf version of a human child.
Creepy! Very creepy!
No offense, but you're kind of freaking everyone out, Gunner.
Sorry, sorry. Like I said, only some elves are bad.
A lot of elves are good.
Why, right here in Iceland, there's stories of people almost getting into accidents, but being saved at the last minute by elves.
Yay, elves to the rescue!
Ah, that's much better.
Saving people from accidents good.
Switching babies for creepy elf children.
Bad. But here's the thing about the elves.
While some are good and others bad, most elves fall somewhere in between.
In between good and bad?
That's right. In many cultures, elves are kind of mischievous.
Do you ever hear of pixies and goblins?
I have! What about you, smarty pants?
Have you heard of pixies and goblins?
What about you, Espen?
I've heard of the green goblin from Spider -Man.
It's Spider -Man! Well, pixies and goblins are just elves by another name.
Same goes for fairies.
In fact, by the end of the medieval period, most people started calling elves fairies.
Interesting. So what kind of mischief are we talking about?
Well, pixies, which originate in the southwest of England, are known for dancing by the light of the moon and leading people astray and making them get lost on purpose.
That's not very nice.
I'm glad I have GPS now.
And what about goblins?
What's their deal? Goblins are known for causing trouble inside your house.
It's said they like to bang pots and pans, move furniture around, and even take the covers off of people while they sleep.
Hey, maybe that's why my covers always wind up on the floor.
Yikes! I'll be sure to lock my bedroom door.
On the flip sides, there's another type of elf, also known for hanging out in their house, that might be more to your liking.
Go on. They're called brownies, and they're basically the nice guy version of goblins.
Brownies come from Scottish folklore, and they come out at night while the owners of the house are asleep.
Mm. They sweep and do chores and might even help farm your land.
Cool. Wow, that would be amazing, especially since I don't have land to farm.
The owner of the house is supposed to leave out milk or cream for the brownie, but if you do anything to upset or offend them, they may leave and never come back.
There goes my free housekeeping.
Siri, remind me to buy more milk.
Mjölk. I beg your pardon?
That's how you say mjölk in Icelandic.
Mjölk. Mjölk? That's fun to say.
Smarty pants. Got mjölk?
You try. Mjölk. Nice.
Now, Gunnar, I gotta know, what do elves look like?
Are they tiny little people like Santa's elves?
Do all elves look alike?
Do they dress the same?
Well, all evidence of elven appearance is strictly anecdotal, of course, and in the case of goblins and brownies, they may indeed be small and odd -looking.
But across Scandinavia, there's a general belief that elves are quite beautiful, and even very tall.
Some of our folklore tells us elves are always female.
Whoa. Double whoa. So, they're not like Santa's elves at all, which is what I'm sure a lot of smarty pants were picturing.
Quite different indeed.
Of course, in some accounts, they look translucent or sittu.
There's a few famous paintings by 19th -century Scandinavian artists that depict ghosts like elves.
One is called Engsalfor, which means meadow elves, and the other is called Elvellek, which means elf play.
Wow. They look really cool.
Smarty pants, you can find links to them in the show notes if you want to see paintings of elves for yourself.
Of course, the big question on everyone's mind is, are elves real?
Yeah, especially the elves who make cookies.
Yep, I was waiting for you to ask me that.
And I'll be waiting for you to answer it until after this quick break.
How would you like to give an affordable holiday gift that will actually transform someone's life in less than a month?
This holiday season, give yourself or a loved one the gift of communication with Babbel, the revolutionary language learning app that gets you talking in just three weeks.
Babbel's quick 10 -minute lessons crafted by over 200 language experts fit seamlessly into your busy schedule.
Look, I'll be honest, I am not great at learning new languages, but with Babbel, I was able to get ready for my trip to Germany in just weeks.
Honestly, I learned more from Babbel in less than a month than I did from months and months and months of language lessons.
Babbel is like having a personal language tutor in your pocket.
Here's a special holiday deal for you, our listener.
Right now, get up to 60 % off your Babbel subscription, but only for our listeners at babbel .com slash smarted.
Get up to 60 % off at babbel .com slash smarted.
Spelled B -A -B -B -E -L dot com slash smarted.
Rules and restrictions may apply.
Hey there, smarty parents.
Our show is being brought to you by Squarespace, the all -in -one website platform that will help you succeed online.
As a content creator, I need a stunning website that truly represents my brand.
That's where Squarespace's Design Intelligence comes in.
By combining expert design with cutting -edge AI, you'll be able to build a beautiful personalized website specifically tailored to your unique needs.
But that's not all.
Squarespace also lets you sell products, accept payments, and connect all your social media and multimedia accounts to your website in just a few clicks.
Plus, with Squarespace Payments, you can manage everything all in one place and offer popular payment options like Apple Pay and Afterpay.
Whether you're selling merchandise, starting a blog, raising donations, or offering online courses, Squarespace provides all the tools you need to succeed.
Head to squarespace .com slash smarted for a free trial and use code SMARTED to save 10 % off your first purchase of a website or domain.
Hey, smarty parents.
I know the struggle of wanting to create the best future for the children in your life.
That's why I'm thrilled to share my experience with IXL Learning.
Recently, the eight -year -old child of one of our main Who Smarted writers started struggling with math.
They tried everything and felt helpless.
Then I told them about our partner, IXL, and it changed everything.
IXL is an online learning program that covers math, language arts, science, and social studies from pre -K to 12th grade.
What sets it apart is how it adapts to each child's needs.
His daughter loves the positive feedback and fun challenges.
And the best part, IXL's research -backed approach has made a world of difference in her confidence and her grades.
It's like having a personal tutor but at a fraction of the cost.
A month of IXL costs less than one hour with a tutor even before our smarty family 20 % discount.
Don't let your child fall behind.
Join the millions of families benefiting from IXL.
Visit ixl .com slash smarted and get 20 % off your membership.
That's ixl .com slash smarted for 20 % off.
Give your child the gift of learning with IXL.
Now back to Who Smarted.
I'm here with my smarty friend Espin and Gunnar, an Icelander who knows a lot about elves.
Earlier, you said Icelanders love elves, so what's up with that?
Well, elves make up a big part of our nation's folklore.
So much so, even today, 54 % of Icelanders believe elves might exist.
Really? That's more than half the country.
What do you think, smartypants?
Do you believe in elves?
I believe trusty. In Iceland, we have a very special name for our elves.
We call them Hildefolk, which means the hidden people.
Is that because they're hiding all the time?
Well, yes and no. Remember, we believe elves live among us, but we can't see them because they're invisible.
But all over Iceland, we have what we call Algebilitur, which means enchanted spots.
For generations, people have claimed these enchanted spots are magical places where elves can be found.
These stories, passed on through word of mouth, are known by all and we all respect these places.
Folklore in action.
No, not that folklore.
Also, what do these enchanted spots look like?
An enchanted spot could be anything from a large rock to some hills covered in ancient moss.
Anything in nature that has a long reputation for being the home of the hidden people.
Gotcha. So if, say, a rock is their home, are they just chilling out there, invisible to humans?
Precisely. In fact, Icelanders take elf folklore so seriously.
Quite often, construction projects need to be altered so as not to disturb the home of the elves.
Whoa. For example, there's a town just out of Reykjavík, Iceland's capital city, where there's a particularly famous elf stone.
Since the 1930s, there have been attempts to flatten the stone or move it so a road could be built.
But every time someone tries, something strange happens.
It's the elves. Mystery of the elves.
Now you're catching on.
Whether it's construction equipment mysteriously breaking down, or workers getting sick, things just happen to prevent the removal of the stone.
In fact, TV cameras stopped working just trying to film the stone.
Spooky. Very spooky.
So what happened? They decided not to upset the elves and simply built the road around the huge rock.
I've heard of a fork in the road but not an elf.
And that's just one example.
When big construction projects happen in Iceland, it's not uncommon for mediums or clairvoyance, people who believe they can communicate with elves, to be hired just to make sure the area is okay to be built on.
Wow. You sure take elves seriously around here.
Which leads back to the biggest question of all.
Are elves real? And not just in your minds.
Is there any proof of their existence?
Well, for hundreds of years, there have been people claiming to have seen, encountered, and had good or bad fortune before them because of elves.
But proof? Sadly, we have no proof.
Though I think not knowing for sure is what makes elves so magical.
Smarty Pants, I'm going to leave you with one last question.
True or false? If you want to learn more about elves, you can just sign up for a class at Iceland's official elf school.
Believe it or not, the answer is true.
Yep, Iceland does have a school where you can learn all about elves.
It's in the nation's capital, and there are classes every Friday.
Oh, can we go there?
Sure, Espin. But there's no books because they only have elves on the shelves.
Right, just like there's good and bad elves, there are also good and bad elf jokes.
A triple -decker shout out to Finn, Ronan, and Mara in Dallas, Texas, who love the sound effects and new episodes every week.
Why, thank you. Me and everyone here at Who Smarted is happy to have you laughing and learning with us.
Keep on smarting, you three.
This episode, Elves, was written by Phil, Elf on the Shelf Jeremy, and voiced by Teya, the Goblin, Garland, Espin Ginsburg, and Jerry Colburn.
Technical direction and sound designed by Josh, Hobgoblin, Han.
Who Smarted is recorded and mixed at the Religroom Studios.
Our associate producer is Max Kiebler -Komaski.
The theme song is by Brian Rumpelstiltskin Suarez with lyrics written and performed by Adam Pixiedust Davis.
Who Smarted was created and produced by Adam Tex Davis and Jerry Colburn.
This has been an atomic entertainment production.
If you would like to be on Who Smarted like my friend Espin, go to WhoSmarted .com and subscribe to Be on Who Smarted.
Hey there, smarty parents.
Our show is being brought to you by Squarespace, the all -in -one website platform that will help you succeed online.
As a content creator, I need a stunning website that truly represents my brand.
That's where Squarespace's Design Intelligence comes in.
By combining expert design with cutting -edge AI, you'll be able to build a beautiful, personalized website specifically tailored to your unique needs.
But that's not all.
Squarespace also lets you sell products, accept payments, and connect all your social media and multimedia accounts to your website in just a few clicks.
Plus, with Squarespace payments, you can manage everything all in one place and offer popular payment options like Apple Pay and Afterpay.
Whether you're selling merchandise, starting a blog, raising donations, or offering online courses, Squarespace provides all the tools you need to succeed.
Head to Squarespace .com slash smarted for a free trial and use code smarted to save 10 % off your first purchase of a website or domain.
