In Scandinavian folklore, Huldra is a stunningly beautiful, sometimes naked forest creature with long hair; though from behind she is hollow like an old tree trunk, and has an animal’s tail. She has often been described as a typical dairymaid, wearing the clothes of a regular farm girl, although somewhat more dazzling or prettier than most girls. The huldre are closely related to man since they are very human-like in appearance. They were often mistaken for man and there were often intermarriages. Huldra lures men into the forest in order to seduce them or sometimes to suck the life out of a man. One of her methods is to appear suddenly out of the rain and mist, friendly and enticing to the point that no man can resist her charm. She then ties her long cow’s tail under her skirt in order to hide it from men. Tales tell that if she can manage to get married in a church, her tail falls off and she becomes human. She will then turn into an ugly woman, but in return she will gain the strength of ten men if not more.
