Quote:
Originally Posted by Lalaith
The supernatural people of Iceland were traditionally not "little" - they were "hidden" (huldufolk - hidden people). They are as big as humans, possibly bigger, and more beautiful. So elves, not hobbits.
Leif was named Lucky not because he found America, nor because he lost it again. (I think I've told this joke before...) He was called lucky because he rescued people from a shipwreck.
This is revealing of the Norse view of luck. To have good fortune has a moral dimension which is quite hard to explain.
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I thought he only rescued one person. . .I suppose today we would have named the survivor "the lucky"
Anyways In Danish he is known as Leif den Lykkelige. . . and Lykkelig is now used to descripe the highest form of Happiness. The word must have changed meaning and hence caused a lot of confusion, I for one did not understand what he was so happy about.