When the weather outside is frightful, hygge can be delightful.

Hygge (hoo-guh) is a Danish word for creating coziness and comfort during the harsh winters of the far north.

“Hygge embodies a feeling of comfort, contentment, and well-being through simple and everyday experiences, according to the Scandinavia Standard. “It encompasses a range of feelings and experiences related to coziness, togetherness, and an appreciation for life’s small pleasures.”

Other ways to hygge, according to the Standard, are to play relaxing music, cozy up with a cup of tea under a soft blanket, read a good book, or relish in quiet company or tranquil solitude.

“But hygge isn’t just a word; it’s a concept, and as such, there’s really no direct translation,” according to the publication.

It involves friendship, laughter and security, as well as warmth and light, and food and drink. All Mainers may not know the word, but we know the practice. A pot of tea, a pan of hot chocolate, candles, a wood fire, warm socks, toddies, and of course, cats.

Lewiston native Robert Marcous knows better than most. He lived for more than 30 years in Scandinavia, mostly in Denmark, first as a professional hockey player and then as a coach.

Hygge essentially means “let’s be comfortable,” and is practiced in all Germanic countries, though pronounced a little differently in each, Marcous said in a recent interview.

It’s a way of maintaining physical and emotional well-being, practiced most often in winter.

“You can’t translate it directly because it’s a frame of mind and a custom, to be comfortable with family and friends, invite them over to sit and talk about the day’s events while enjoying warm drinks, cookies, toast and Danish pastries,” he said.

Other times you might watch a favorite TV show, sip aquavit (a distilled liquor popular in Scandinavia), and sometimes even sing and dance.

“It’s to get through the winter,” Marcous said.

Winter in Copenhagen, where he spent most of his time in Europe, is rainy and windy, with as little as two to five hours of light per day from November to April, he said. “It’s miserable, especially in December, January and February.”

Hygge was his favorite thing about living in Denmark, he said.

“I love beautiful Denmark and the laid-back Danish people. The hygge was a large factor in my living in Denmark for 20 years to coach hockey after my playing days.”

Marcous retired and moved back to Lewiston in 2013 with his partner, Rachel Quinlan, also a Lewiston native. He met Quinlan in England where she was working as a nurse.

“We returned with the concept of hygge,” Marcous said.

We do the same thing in some ways,” he said, “mostly just Rachel and I. We’re both retired now. Basically, in the evening we have hot tea and a nice dessert, discuss the day’s events and maybe watch a show on PBS or Britbox, get cozy and relaxed and enjoy each other’s company.”

HEALTH AND HAPPINESS

“Hygge” derives from a 16th-century Norwegian term, hugga, meaning “to comfort” or “to console,” which is related to the English word “hug,” according to an article published in The New Yorker magazine in 2016.

“Associated with relaxation, indulgence, and gratitude, hygge has long been considered a part of the Danish national character,” according to writer Anna Altman.

She wrote that winter is the most hygge time of year. “It is candles, nubby woolens, shearling slippers, woven textiles, pastries, blond wood, sheepskin rugs, lattes with milk-foam hearts, and a warm fireplace.

“It’s wholesome and nourishing, like porridge; Danish doctors recommend tea and hygge as a cure for the common cold. It’s possible to hygge alone, wrapped in a flannel blanket with a cup of tea, but the true expression of hygge is joining with loved ones in a relaxed and intimate atmosphere.”

According to everydayhealth.com, winter is the time to adopt this trend.

The publication quotes Meik Wiking, CEO of the Copenhagen-based Happiness Research Institute: “It’s not so much an activity you might choose to do or not do; hygge is more a way of life, one that makes ordinary moments feel special, pleasurable, and meaningful.”

Wiking, author of “The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living,” said hygge is “about who you choose to surround yourself with and what you choose to spend your time doing.

“It is about being with the people we love; a feeling that we are safe, that we are shielded from the world and are allowing ourselves to let our guard down.”

Hygge may be one reason Denmark consistently ranks among the happiest countries on the planet, alongside Finland, Norway, and Switzerland, according to everydayhealth.com. (The rankings come from the annual World Happiness Report.)

“Experiencing hygge reportedly reduces stress and improves emotional well-being, though there isn’t any scientific research examining the perks of the practice as a whole,” the website states.

The journal Annual Review of Psychology reported in 2018 that evidence shows having nurturing social connections (another component of hygge — spending time with friends and family) is beneficial for physical and emotional health.

Research has also shown that when premenopausal women get more frequent hugs from their partners, they have higher levels of oxytocin (often called the “love hormone” or the “cuddle hormone”) as well as lower blood pressure and heart rate.

And science has shown, according to everydayhealth.com, that being around certain scents (yes, aromatherapy counts) can induce relaxation: A study from Japan found that when women were exposed for 90 seconds to air infused with the scent of rose or orange essential oil, it induced physiological relaxation in their brains and led to an increase in “comfortable” and “relaxed” feelings.

These potential benefits of practicing hygge explain why and how it can be a method of self-care, with positive mental health implications. These include less stress, reduced anxiety, and a better mood overall.

According to psychologist Holly Schiff, mindfulness and gratitude are key components of hygge.

“Turn off your phone and other digital devices and focus on the present moment. Listen to music that soothes your heart and soul. Light a candle and treat yourself to good scents that have a calming effect (lavender, rose, jasmine, or bergamot). Read an enjoyable book or play a fun board game with friends or family.

Hygge is about giving the responsible, stressed-out, perhaps overachieving part of yourself a break, said Wiking, of the Happiness Research Institute.

“It’s about joy and contentment. It is about experiencing happiness in simple pleasures and knowing that everything is going to be OK.”

MAINE HYGGE: CATS, COOKING AND CANDLES

Kirsten and Grady Burns of Lewiston find simple pleasure and comfort with their feline pets.

“There is nothing more hygge than cats and a real wood-burning fireplace,” Kirsten wrote in an email.

“My favorite time to hygge is when we are snowed in,” she said. “My husband builds a fire (essential for the vibes) and we’ll often play a board game together, taking turns stopping the cats from stealing the pieces. (The best way to do this is to give them the game’s box to sit in. It turns them into quiet observers.) If we aren’t in the mood for a game, we watch a movie or show together, and I’ll crochet (also a challenge with cats!)”

The Burnses also love to “do our own thing together,” meaning they’ll both be in the living room enjoying the fire and the comfort of each others’ presence, but he’ll play a video game with one cat (Olive) lying on his shoulder while she reads a book with a second cat (Pimento) on her lap. Cat No. 3 (Goose) is usually sprawled out between them, she said.

Kirsten said that when the couple moved from a one-bedroom apartment to a three-bedroom house, she lamented, “’We’re never going to see the cats. They’ll have so many places to hang out!’”

“Three years later, I’m happy to report that I was wrong, and they continue to prefer hanging out wherever we happen to be!”

Cooking is another way to hygge, according to Wiking.

“Few things contribute more to the hygge factor than the smell of fresh baked goods,” he said. “Remember: Hygge food may be comfort food, but hygge food is also very much slow food.” Part of the magic is in its preparation.

This is true for Karen Vasil-Busch of Buckfield, whose husband, now retired, built fireplaces and bake ovens made of soapstone for a Finnish company.

“This form of heat is soft, and comfortable,” she said.

And the oven is ideal for making pizza.

“Over the years we have held many pizza parties with our bake oven in the winter,” she said. “When our children were younger, they would invite their friends to see the pizza baking in the fire. To this day, we usually have a pizza feast for the new year.”

Vasil-Busch believes we need more hygge. She has brought the concept into her yoga class during the winter.

“Weighted blankets and soft warm rice bags have become part of my massage practice, too,” she said. She recommended Wiking’s “The Little Book of Hygge,” saying it “reads like the Mr. Rogers of comfort.”

She and her husband find comfort in watching their fires burn in the dead of winter, she said. “Sometimes we have a two-fire night, meaning the bake oven and fireplace are both running.”

The view of the fires, seen through the windows of both oven and fireplace, “is unlike anything you see with a conventional fireplace because the burn temperature is so high, the combustion gases change colors, golden yellow, blue and green, sort of like witnessing the northern lights inside your home,” she said.

The right lighting is essential to a good hygge experience, according to the Scandinavia Standard: When it’s dark and cold outside, there’s nothing more hygge than dotting your home with candles, according to the publication.

“Dim the lights and light some candles. Or make a fire in the fireplace if you can do so safely. Or buy warm amber bulbs for your lamps and light fixtures.”

This is the way Raymond Parlin of Farmington gets cozy in winter.

“I like lighting candles at night along with my electric fireplace,” he said. “I have a candle in each window at night until bedtime. The old tale is that placing a lit candle in a window is a sign to travelers that the place is a safe haven to get out of the cold.”

That’s so hygge.

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