Grýla

In seventeenth-century poems about Grýla, she is generally represented as a hideous and greedy troll-like crone who wanders between human settlements and demands charity from those she encounters, often asking for naughty children.

The name Grýla appears in a list of heiti for troll-women in the Prose Edda, composed in the 13th century by Icelandic skald Snorri Sturluson.

Terry Gunnell hypothesizes that Grýla may once have been associated with similar disguise traditions in Iceland, although such practices have not survived to the present day.

[6] In 2024, Grýla appears as a key character in the Amazon produced movie Red One (a 2024 Christmas action adventure comedy film from Warner Bros. Pictures), portrayed by Kiernan Shipka.

In the Netflix show Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Grýla is a reoccurring character, appearing at first to collect her children who are invisible but causing havoc.