Long ago, when the mountains still sang with ice, a young farmer named Erik of Sognefjord lived by the sea. He was handsome, strong, and—like many young men—too bold for his own good.
One night after a harvest feast, Erik boasted, “No woman in the village is fair enough for me. I would sooner wed a mountain spirit than a mortal maid.”
The old folk gasped. “Mind your tongue,” warned the village matron. “The trolls of the fjord have ears sharper than knives.”
But Erik only laughed.
That very night, as he walked home beneath the northern lights, a soft voice called his name.
He turned—and saw a woman standing by the cliff’s edge. Her hair shone like wet moonlight, her eyes deep as mossy pools.
“Do I not please you, mortal?” she asked. “You wished for a bride fairer than any human.”
Erik stared, entranced. “If this be a dream, let me never wake.”
The woman smiled, took his hand, and led him deep into the mountain. There, in vast halls lit by glowing stones, the troll folk feasted and sang. Their queen crowned Erik’s head with silver. “You shall wed my daughter and live forever beneath the earth.”
Erik agreed without thought.
Years passed—or so it seemed. The trolls treated him kindly. He grew used to their ways, though he never saw the sun again. One day, his troll bride whispered, “You look toward the mountain mouth. Do you long for the sky?”
“I dream of the dawn,” he said softly. “Just once, to see it again.”
She touched his cheek. “If you leave before sunrise, you may never return. But if you stay past it, you will turn to stone.”
Erik promised he would only look. That night, while the trolls slept, he climbed to the cave’s mouth and gazed out. The fjord glimmered silver under the moon.
Then came the first light of dawn.
He stepped forward, his heart aching with beauty—and froze where he stood. The sun touched him, and his skin turned to rock.
When the trolls awoke, his bride found him standing at the cliff, tears of stone on his face.
Every spring, when the snow melts, his outline appears in the mist above Sognefjord—a man carved from dawnlight, facing the sunrise he loved too much.
Moral of the Story
Desire without wisdom brings sorrow. Even beauty has a price when we forget gratitude.
Knowledge Check
- Where did the story take place?
By the fjords of Norway, near Sognefjord. - Who was Erik?
A boastful young farmer who desired a supernatural bride. - Who heard his boast?
The trolls of the mountain. - What warning did his troll bride give?
That if he stayed past sunrise, he would turn to stone. - What did Erik do?
He disobeyed and was turned to stone at dawn. - What does his statue symbolize?
Longing that forgets its place among mortal hearts.
Origin: Norwegian folktale (Sognefjord region)
