The Yule Boar & The Christmas Ham Traditionally in many Scandinavian countries it is traditional to kill and consume a boar during Yule. Oaths are then sworn while touching the Boars bristles. The Pig is often seen by some as representative of Freyr and/or Freya though others point to Gullinbursti as a possible symbol of the sun, or Sæhrímnir the pig who feeds the Einherjar in Valhalla, and everytime he is consumed he rises again, as a never ending form of nourishment. This tradition of the Boar and of taking Oaths eventually gave way to our modern traditions of a Christmas Ham and New Years Resolutions. As to why a boar? Well Ham is delicious and winter is slaughter season, but one could also say that the Boar given its associations in lore could symbolize a connection to the dead via the Einherjar and Freyr (King of Elves) and the Yule Pig is often depicted alongside Tomte (Ancestral house Gods).-TLK