The history of giving books as gifts at Christmas
In the land of the Sagas, Christmas is synonymous with a flood of books
under the tree, literally. The Jolabokaflod, or ‘Christmas Book Flood’, is a
much-loved tradition in Iceland.
On
Christmas Eve, Icelanders traditionally exchange books and spend the evening
reading — perhaps curling up by the fireside with the latest crime novel — two
thirds of all books in Iceland are published in the months of November and
December.
“Literature is very important in Iceland and it is, I guess, the art form that
is something the whole public can relate to,” artist and mother-oftwo Sigrun
Hrolfsdottir, who lives in Seltjarnarnes near Reykjavik, said. Her daughter and
son, Duna and Gudmundur, have already picked the books they want out of the
‘Bokatidindi’, an 80-page catalogue of novels, poetry and children’s books
distributed free of charge to all households. The 2019 catalogue features 842
new titles. And they are all likely to find takers; seven out of 10 Icelanders
say they will buy at least one book as a Christmas gift.
The write stuff
Iceland’s literary tradition was
born about 900 years ago with the Sagas, widely seen as a gem in world
literature and still studied in school by Icelandic children today. The Sagas,
written in the 13th century, focus on history, especially genealogical and
family history, reflecting the settlers’ struggles and conflicts.
Jolabokaflod
dates to the end of World War II, when Iceland, a poor country, imposed strict
currency restrictions that limited imports. But paper remained affordable, so
books became the Christmas gift of choice.
The
custom has “something to do with the importance of literature during the
Icelandic fight for independence and the Icelandic search for identity: Part of
being an Icelander was to read books”, said author and publisher Halldor
Gudmundsson.
Getting booked
Iceland may be the most sparsely
populated country in Europe, but only Britain publishes more titles per capita.
Around one in 10 Icelanders publishes a book in their lifetime.
In
particular, the country has a thriving appetite for crime fiction and boasts a
host of crime writers, who, over the past couple of decades, have placed it on
the world map of detective novels. “You can’t buy books all year because you
would just go broke,” says Brynjolfur Thorsteinsson, a sales assistant at one
of Iceland’s oldest surviving bookshops.
In
fact, to support the publishing industry, the government too is reimbursing 25
per cent of the production costs for books published in Icelandic
Source |
Economic Times | 18th December 2019
Regards
Mr.
Pralhad Jadhav
Master of
Library & Information Science (NET Qualified)
Senior
Manager @ Knowledge Repository
Khaitan
& Co
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