The Wight of Drangey Island

Drangey Island, North Iceland

The island of Drangey, where outlaw Grettir Ásmundarson hid for three years before his murder, is haunted by the wight he named Glámr — the undead farmhand whose curse blighted Grettir's entire life.

Grettir Ásmundarson is the anti-hero of one of the greatest Icelandic sagas — a man of extraordinary physical strength and terrible luck, outlawed for his first killing at nineteen and hunted for the remainder of his life. The pivot of his story is Glámr: a Swedish farmhand hired by a farmer in North Iceland who proved uncomfortable to live with from the beginning and who, after his death on Christmas Eve (when he walked out into the dark against advice), returned as one of the most powerful aptrganga in Icelandic tradition. Glámr's revenant form devastated the farm, killing livestock and threatening people. Grettir was hired to deal with him. The wrestling match that followed — in which Grettir ultimately won by cutting off Glámr's head and burning the body — is one of the great physical confrontations in saga literature. But in his moment of defeat, Glámr cursed Grettir: he would never be stronger than on this night, and he would forever after fear the dark. Glámr's eyes in death were so terrible that Grettir could never again be alone in darkness without terror. Grettir eventually took refuge on Drangey Island — an almost unclimbable rock stack in a fjord of North Iceland — with his brother. He was killed there when his enemies sent a witch to weaken him. Drangey itself is said to retain Glámr's influence: the darkness on the island is described by those who have stayed overnight as having a weight and a presence unusual even for Iceland.

Folklore Disclaimer: These accounts are drawn from local tradition, oral history, and community memory. They are not presented as factual claims.

Location accuracy: Approximate. Coordinates indicate the general area.