The text is Icelandic which is close enough to old Norwegian :-) The bearded guy is a "nisse", a popular character in Nordic folklore, and I don't know if there is an English name for him. I looked it up and some that were suggested were: goblin, brownie and gnome. He lives on farms in the barn and this time of year the farmer has to bring him porridge or else he can get quite disagreeable.... :-)
