Great post from MonkeyFilter about the surprisingly widespread Icelandic belief in "hidden folk."

According to surveys, 10 percent of Icelanders believe in elves. Another staggering 80 percent will not say they exactly believe, but neither are they willing to totally rule out their existence.

Another link from Monkeyfilter puts the elf-belief number near 70%, and still others talk about the various road-building and home-buying procedures necessary to appease the hidden folk. Great stuff.

And don't get smug, Americans -- after all, 34% of us believe in ghosts, 24% in witches, and a whopping 78% of us believe in angels.

Elsewhere on the site, Monkeyfilter is leading the world in discussion about gay penguins.