What are the origins of this fun-filled festive custom?
Askja Volcano is an active volcano situated in a remote part of the central highlands of Iceland. Askja last erupted in 1961. The moonlike region was used by NASA during training for the Apollo program to prepare astronauts for the lunar missions.
In January 1973, Eldfell on Heimaey Island erupted without warning. Lava flow and ash destroyed much of the town of Vestmannaeyjar. One life was lost, a man who was suffocated by toxic fumes.
The town of Grindavik in the Southern Peninsula district of Iceland is still under threat from a volcanic eruption that began in December 2023. Advancing magma spewing out of the Sundhnúkur crater prompted the evacuation of Grindavik residents, and the town is currently abandoned.
No volcanic eruption had occurred on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula for 815 years until March 2021, when Fagradalsfjall awoke from its long slumber. Fagradalsfjall's proximity to Reykjavik attracted local people and foreign visitors to its display of smoke and fire.
The uninhabited volcanic island of Surtsey was created in November 1963 after a volcanic eruption began 430 feet (130 m) below sea level and reached the surface. It's located in the Vestmannaeyjar archipelago off the southern coast of Iceland.
Eldey Island is a small uninhabited island anchored off the coast of the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwest Iceland. Eldey represents the top of a historic volcano in the Eldey and Geirfuglasker volcanic systems. Its sheer cliffs are home to large numbers of birds, including one of the largest northern gannet colonies in the world.
Looming large in the Caucasus Mountains is Mount Elbrus, the highest mountain in Russia and Europe. A dormant volcano, Elbrus rises 18,510 feet (5,642 m) above sea level. It last erupted around 50 CE.
Mount Teide, an active volcano on the Canary island of Tenerife, last erupted in November 1909. Summiting at 12,188 ft (3,715 m), Teide is the highest point in Spain and the highest point above sea level in the islands of the Atlantic.
Mount Etna on Sicily is one of Europe's most dramatic active volcanoes. Located on the island's east coast between the cities of Messina and Catania, Etna has been blowing its top since antiquity. It last erupted as recently as November 2023.
The highest mountain in Portugal, at 7,713 feet (2,351 m) above sea level, Mount Pico is one of the great natural wonders of the mid-Atlantic Azores archipelago. A dormant stratovolcano, Pico last vented anger in 1720.
A small uninhabited Greek island of volcanic origin located in the Aegean Sea, Nea Kameni lies within the huge, flooded Santorini caldera. It's technically a lava dome and features an active sulfur vent. The last eruption of sorts was in 1950 and involved further lava dome extrusion.
Remote Beerenberg is the world's northernmost active volcano and the only active volcano in Norway. Set on the island of Jan Mayen, Beerenberg last erupted in 1985.
After lying dormant for over 300 years, Öræfajökull reminded Iceland of its presence with a series of seismic and geothermal activity that began in August 2017. Öræfajökull is the country's largest active volcano and its highest peak, summiting at 6,920 feet (2,110 m).
Bárðarbunga is an active stratovolcano located under Vatnajökull, Iceland's most extensive glacier. Bárðarbunga last erupted in 2014, when the region was rocked by hundreds of tremors daily, prompting fears the volcano could explode.
Cumbre Vieja on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands rumbled into life in September 2021 to threaten several neighborhoods with voluminous lava flows. In fact, thousands of buildings were destroyed by red hot magma and the airport was forced to close twice due to volcanic ash.
The Cantal mountains in the mid-west of the Massif Central in France are made up of the remnants of the largest stratovolcano of Europe. This verdant rolling landscape is today a hiker's paradise. Twenty million years ago, however, it comprised a 10,000-ft (3,000-m) monster belching out viscous lavas spouted from numerous vents.
One of the most iconic volcanic features of the Massif Central is Puy de Dôme. A trachytic lava dome, it is also one of the youngest volcanoes in the Puys chain, formed about 11,000 years ago.
Amiata is an impressive lava dome located in the southern Tuscany region of Italy. Scientists estimate that Amiata last erupted 180,000 years ago. The volcano today is considered extinct.
The violent eruption of the Grímsvötn Volcano in May 2011 sent thousands of tonnes of volcanic ash into the sky above Iceland. The eruption disrupted air travel in the country, as well as in Greenland and across parts of northern Europe.
Volcanic Eifel refers to a region in the Eifel Mountains in Germany very much sculptured by its volcanic geological history. For hundreds of thousands of years volcanic forces raged here, shaping and reshaping the landscape before finally running out of steam. Or have they? In 2013, the deepest quakes ever measured in Germany were recorded in the Eifel. The tremors caused a sensation and had scientists wondering whether they were dealing with an awaking volcano.
Mount Stromboli is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. An island in the Tyrrhenian Sea, off the north coast of Sicily, Stromboli has been in almost continuous eruption for the past 2,000–5,000 years. The last eruption occurred on August 28, 2019.
The aptly named Vulcano Island is a small volcanic island also set in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The last major eruption took place in 1888. The island, however, is subject to regular volcanic activity, including dangerous gas emissions.
The Colli Albani (Alban Hills) are the caldera remains of a dormant volcanic complex near Rome. Two of the calderas contain the picturesque lakes Albano and Nemi. While the last eruption took place 7,000 years ago, the area still emits noxious gases, levels of which are monitored carefully.
Among the most famous volcanoes in the world, Vesuvius is relatively young, having been formed around 200,000 years ago. Worryingly active, the last major eruption took place in March 1944 (pictured). But Vesuvius is, of course, known for causing one of the most devastating events in world history: the destruction of Pompeii.
In 79 CE, Vesuvius erupted in one of the most catastrophic eruptions of all time. The Roman cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis, Stabiae, and several other settlements were obliterated in minutes. Rapid-moving lava flows incinerated everything in their path, while volcanic ash buried people where they stood or crouched. Vesuvius is today regarded as one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world because three million people live near enough to be affected by an eruption.
Ciomad in Romania is a bucolic picture of peace and tranquility. And while the last eruption was recorded 7,000 years ago, this volcano is still regarded as dormant. But seismic activity is frequently recorded, and the release of carbon dioxide from bubbling pools and bogs is a common occurrence.
The Italian countryside in the province of Potenza is dominated by Monte Vulture, an extinct volcano that serves as an impressive backdrop to numerous towns and villages, including hilltop Ripacandida (pictured). Vulture last erupted 40,000 years ago.
Sources: (European Catalogue of Volcanoes) (Smithsonian Institution) (Science Struck) (Explore Volcanoes) (Euronews) (National Geographic Society) (Britannica) (DW)
See also: How to live near an active volcano
Hekla in the south of Iceland was known during the Middle Ages as the "Gateway to Hell." And it maintained its reputation throughout the medieval era and beyond: Hekla is one of Iceland's most active volcanoes, erupting as recently as 2000.
When it last erupted in 2010, Eyjafjallajökull predictably caused enormous disruption to air travel across northern and western Europe. The volcano has erupted relatively frequently since the Last Glacial Period, and is another one of Iceland's powerful and unpredictable forces of nature.
Europe is not necessarily regarded as a world volcano hotspot. Millions of years ago, however, much of the continent was shaped by violent volcanic and seismic events. The reason behind Europe’s volcanic activity is because it is located between the Eurasian Plate and the African Plate, a prime area for volcanism. For its part, Iceland is a huge hotspot, sitting as it does on a rift between the Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate. And Europe's islands, the Canaries for example, and those in the Mediterranean, have long suffered the consequences of frequent, often lethal volcanic eruptions.
According to the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program, a volcano is called "active" when it has erupted within the last 10,000 years. So, how many active volcanoes are there in Europe, and are those classified as dormant likely to vent their anger any time soon?
Click through and discover Europe's most volcanic areas.
Are you in one of the most dangerous volcanic areas in Europe?
To what extent is volcanic activity present on the continent? causing volcanism at plate boundaries and hotspots
LIFESTYLE Environment
Europe is not necessarily regarded as a world volcano hotspot. Millions of years ago, however, much of the continent was shaped by violent volcanic and seismic events. The reason behind Europe’s volcanic activity is because it is located between the Eurasian Plate and the African Plate, a prime area for volcanism. For its part, Iceland is a huge hotspot, sitting as it does on a rift between the Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate. And Europe's islands, the Canaries for example, and those in the Mediterranean, have long suffered the consequences of frequent, often lethal volcanic eruptions.
According to the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program, a volcano is called "active" when it has erupted within the last 10,000 years. So, how many active volcanoes are there in Europe, and are those classified as dormant likely to vent their anger any time soon?
Click through and discover Europe's most volcanic areas.