Plants of Iceland: Traditional Uses and Folklore

by Guðrún Bjarnadóttir, Jóhann Óli Hilmarsson

This book discusses a few species which have been used in Iceland through the ages as food, dye, for building and for medicinal purposes.

Various folk beliefs developed around some plants, as people had no understanding of the chemical properties of the plants and attributed their efficacy to superstition and magic.

This book describes the folk beliefs and stories associated with the plants.

130 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Heather Forensky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this in Iceland when I was there for my honeymoon. Iceland isn't usually a popular honeymoon destination for most couples. But since we were together for 7 years before marriage, my husband understands and knows that I am not a fan of hot places. We live in Florida, that's enough tolerance.

I found this book quite interesting and useful, most of the yarn we found in the box kits were actually based on this woman's findings who wrote the small book. It was also her thesis for her degree. I even enjoyed the tidbits about some of the healing and folklore myths surrounding the harvesting of some of these herbs.