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Norse mythology

January 09, 2023

For the historical religious tradition belonging to the North Germanic peoples, see Old Norse religion. For the book by Neil Gaiman, see Norse Mythology (book).

Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period. The northernmost extension of Germanic mythology and stemming from Proto-Germanic folklore, Norse mythology consists of tales of various deities, beings, and heroes derived from numerous sources from both before and after the pagan period, including medieval manuscripts, archaeological representations, and folk tradition. The source texts mention numerous gods such as the thunder-god Thor, the raven-flanked god Odin, the goddess Freyja, and numerous other deities.

The Tjängvide image stone with illustrations from Norse mythology.

Most of the surviving mythology centers on the plights of the gods and their interaction with several other beings, such as humanity and the jötnar, beings who may be friends, lovers, foes, or family members of the gods. The cosmos in Norse mythology consists of Nine Worlds that flank a central sacred tree, Yggdrasil. Units of time and elements of the cosmology are personified as deities or beings. Various forms of a creation myth are recounted, where the world is created from the flesh of the primordial being Ymir, and the first two humans are Ask and Embla. These worlds are foretold to be reborn after the events of Ragnarök when an immense battle occurs between the gods and their enemies, and the world is enveloped in flames, only to be reborn anew. There the surviving gods will meet, and the land will be fertile and green, and two humans will repopulate the world.

Norse mythology has been the subject of scholarly discourse since the 17th century when key texts attracted the attention of the intellectual circles of Europe. By way of comparative mythology and historical linguistics, scholars have identified elements of Germanic mythology reaching as far back as Proto-Indo-European mythology. During the modern period, the Romanticist Viking revival re-awoke an interest in the subject matter, and references to Norse mythology may now be found throughout modern popular culture. The myths have further been revived in a religious context among adherents of Germanic Neopaganism.

Terminology

The historical religion of the Norse people is commonly referred to as Norse mythology. Other terms are Scandinavian mythology,[1][2][3] North Germanic mythology[4] or Nordic mythology.[5]

Sources

 
The Rök runestone (Ög 136), located in Rök, Sweden, features a Younger Futhark runic inscription that makes various references to Norse mythology.

Norse mythology is primarily attested in dialects of Old Norse, a North Germanic language spoken by the Scandinavian people during the European Middle Ages and the ancestor of modern Scandinavian languages. The majority of these Old Norse texts were created in Iceland, where the oral tradition stemming from the pre-Christian inhabitants of the island was collected and recorded in manuscripts. This occurred primarily in the 13th century. These texts include the Prose Edda, composed in the 13th century by the Icelandic scholar, lawspeaker, and historian Snorri Sturluson, and the Poetic Edda, a collection of poems from earlier traditional material anonymously compiled in the 13th century.[6]

The Prose Edda was composed as a prose manual for producing skaldic poetry—traditional Old Norse poetry composed by skalds. Originally composed and transmitted orally, skaldic poetry utilizes alliterative verse, kennings, and several metrical forms. The Prose Edda presents numerous examples of works by various skalds from before and after the Christianization process and also frequently refers back to the poems found in the Poetic Edda. The Poetic Edda consists almost entirely of poems, with some prose narrative added, and this poetry—Eddic poetry—utilizes fewer kennings. In comparison to skaldic poetry, Eddic poetry is relatively unadorned.[6]

 
Title page of a late manuscript of the Prose Edda written by Snorri Sturluson (13th century), showing the Ancient Norse Gods Odin, Heimdallr, Sleipnir, and other figures from Norse mythology.

The Prose Edda features layers of euhemerization, a process in which deities and supernatural beings are presented as having been either actual, magic-wielding human beings who have been deified in time or beings demonized by way of Christian mythology.[7] Texts such as Heimskringla, composed in the 13th century by Snorri and Gesta Danorum, composed in Latin by Saxo Grammaticus in Denmark in the 12th century, are the results of heavy amounts of euhemerization.[8]

Numerous additional texts, such as the sagas, provide further information. The saga corpus consists of thousands of tales recorded in Old Norse ranging from Icelandic family histories (Sagas of Icelanders) to Migration period tales mentioning historic figures such as Attila the Hun (legendary sagas). Objects and monuments such as the Rök runestone and the Kvinneby amulet feature runic inscriptions—texts written in the runic alphabet, the indigenous alphabet of the Germanic peoples—that mention figures and events from Norse mythology.[9]

Objects from the archaeological record may also be interpreted as depictions of subjects from Norse mythology, such as amulets of the god Thor's hammer Mjölnir found among pagan burials and small silver female figures interpreted as valkyries or dísir, beings associated with war, fate or ancestor cults.[10] By way of historical linguistics and comparative mythology, comparisons to other attested branches of Germanic mythology (such as the Old High German Merseburg Incantations) may also lend insight.[11] Wider comparisons to the mythology of other Indo-European peoples by scholars has resulted in the potential reconstruction of far earlier myths.[12][13]

Only a tiny amount of poems and tales survive of the many mythical tales and poems that are presumed to have existed during the Middle Ages, Viking Age, Migration Period, and before.[14] Later sources reaching into the modern period, such as a medieval charm recorded as used by the Norwegian woman Ragnhild Tregagås—convicted of witchcraft in Norway in the 14th century—and spells found in the 17th century Icelandic Galdrabók grimoire also sometimes make references to Norse mythology.[15] Other traces, such as place names bearing the names of gods may provide further information about deities, such as a potential association between deities based on the placement of locations bearing their names, their local popularity, and associations with geological features.[16] One of the surviving poems is the Old English manuscript Beowulf.[17]

Mythology

Gods and other beings

Main articles: Æsir, Vanir, and Jötnar
See also: List of Norse gods and goddesses
 
The god Thor wades through a river, while the Æsir ride across the bridge, Bifröst, in an illustration by Lorenz Frølich (1895).

Central to accounts of Norse mythology are the plights of the gods and their interaction with various other beings, such as with the jötnar, who may be friends, lovers, foes, or family members of the gods. Numerous gods are mentioned in the source texts. As evidenced by records of personal names and place names, the most popular god among the Scandinavians during the Viking Age was Thor the thunder god, who is portrayed as unrelentingly pursuing his foes, his mountain-crushing, thunderous hammer Mjölnir in hand. In the mythology, Thor lays waste to numerous jötnar who are foes to the gods or humanity, and is wed to the beautiful, golden-haired goddess Sif.[18]

The god Odin is also frequently mentioned in surviving texts. One-eyed, wolf- and raven-flanked, with a spear in hand, Odin pursues knowledge throughout the nine realms. In an act of self-sacrifice, Odin is described as having hanged himself upside-down for nine days and nights on the cosmological tree Yggdrasil to gain knowledge of the runic alphabet, which he passed on to humanity, and is associated closely with death, wisdom, and poetry. Odin is portrayed as the ruler of Asgard, and leader of the Aesir. Odin's wife is the powerful goddess Frigg who can see the future but tells no one, and together they have a beloved son, Baldr. After a series of dreams had by Baldr of his impending death, his death is engineered by Loki, and Baldr thereafter resides in Hel, a realm ruled over by an entity of the same name.[19]

Odin must share half of his share of the dead with a powerful goddess, Freyja. She is beautiful, sensual, wears a feathered cloak, and practices seiðr. She rides to battle to choose among the slain and brings her chosen to her afterlife field Fólkvangr. Freyja weeps for her missing husband Óðr and seeks after him in faraway lands.[20] Freyja's brother, the god Freyr, is also frequently mentioned in surviving texts, and in his association with the weather, royalty, human sexuality, and agriculture brings peace and pleasure to humanity. Deeply lovesick after catching sight of the beautiful jötunn Gerðr, Freyr seeks and wins her love, yet at the price of his future doom.[21] Their father is the powerful god Njörðr. Njörðr is strongly associated with ships and seafaring, and so also wealth and prosperity. Freyja and Freyr's mother is Njörðr's unnamed sister (her name is unprovided in the source material). However, there is more information about his pairing with the skiing and hunting goddess Skaði. Their relationship is ill-fated, as Skaði cannot stand to be away from her beloved mountains, nor Njörðr from the seashore.[22] Together, Freyja, Freyr, and Njörðr form a portion of gods known as the Vanir. While the Aesir and the Vanir retain distinct identification, they came together as the result of the Aesir–Vanir War.[23]

While they receive less mention, numerous other gods and goddesses appear in the source material. (For a list of these deities, see List of Germanic deities.) Some of the gods heard less of include the apple-bearing goddess Iðunn and her husband, the skaldic god Bragi; the gold-toothed god Heimdallr, born of nine mothers; the ancient god Týr, who lost his right hand while binding the great wolf Fenrir; and the goddess Gefjon, who formed modern-day Zealand, Denmark.[24]

Various beings outside of the gods are mentioned. Elves and dwarfs are commonly mentioned and appear to be connected, but their attributes are vague and the relation between the two is ambiguous. Elves are described as radiant and beautiful, whereas dwarfs often act as earthen smiths.[25] A group of beings variously described as jötnar, thursar, and trolls (in English these are all often glossed as "giants") frequently appear. These beings may either aid, deter, or take their place among the gods.[26] The Norns, dísir, and aforementioned valkyries also receive frequent mention. While their functions and roles may overlap and differ, all are collective female beings associated with fate.[27]

Cosmology

 
The cosmological, central tree Yggdrasil is depicted in The Ash Yggdrasil by Friedrich Wilhelm Heine (1886)
 
Sól, the Sun, and Máni, the Moon, are chased by the wolves Sköll and Háti in The Wolves Pursuing Sol and Mani by J. C. Dollman (1909)

In Norse cosmology, all beings live in Nine Worlds that center around the cosmological tree Yggdrasil. The gods inhabit the heavenly realm of Asgard whereas humanity inhabits Midgard, a region in the center of the cosmos. Outside of the gods, humanity, and the jötnar, these Nine Worlds are inhabited by beings, such as elves and dwarfs. Travel between the worlds is frequently recounted in the myths, where the gods and other beings may interact directly with humanity. Numerous creatures live on Yggdrasil, such as the insulting messenger squirrel Ratatoskr and the perching hawk Veðrfölnir. The tree itself has three major roots, and at the base of one of these roots live the Norns, female entities associated with fate.[28] Elements of the cosmos are personified, such as the Sun (Sól, a goddess), the Moon (Máni, a god), and Earth (Jörð, a goddess), as well as units of time, such as day (Dagr, a god) and night (Nótt, a jötunn).[29]

The afterlife is a complex matter in Norse mythology. The dead may go to the murky realm of Hel—a realm ruled over by a female being of the same name, may be ferried away by valkyries to Odin's martial hall Valhalla, or may be chosen by the goddess Freyja to dwell in her field Fólkvangr.[30] The goddess Rán may claim those that die at sea, and the goddess Gefjon is said to be attended by virgins upon their death.[31] Texts also make reference to reincarnation.[32] Time itself is presented between cyclic and linear, and some scholars have argued that cyclic time was the original format for the mythology.[33] Various forms of a cosmological creation story are provided in Icelandic sources, and references to a future destruction and rebirth of the world—Ragnarok—are frequently mentioned in some texts.[34]

Humanity

According to the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda poem, Völuspá, the first human couple consisted of Ask and Embla; driftwood found by a trio of gods and imbued with life in the form of three gifts. After the cataclysm of Ragnarok, this process is mirrored in the survival of two humans from a wood; Líf and Lífþrasir. From these two humankind is foretold to repopulate the new and green earth.[35]

Influence on popular culture

Main article: Norse mythology in popular culture
See also: Germanic mythology and Germanic neopaganism

With the widespread publication of translations of Old Norse texts that recount the mythology of the North Germanic peoples, references to the Norse gods and heroes spread into European literary culture, especially in Scandinavia, Germany, and Britain. During the later 20th century, references to Norse mythology became common in science fiction and fantasy literature, role-playing games, and eventually other cultural products such as comic books and Japanese animation. Traces of the mythology can also be found in music and has its own genre, viking metal. Bands such as Amon Amarth, Bathory, Burzum and Månegarm have written songs about Norse mythology. Norse mythology is prevalent in the children's book series, Magnus Chase, by Rick Riordan.

See also

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Norse mythology.

References

  1. ^ Rooth, Anna Birgitta (1961). Loki in Scandinavian Mythology. C. W. K. Gleerup.
  2. ^ Lindow, John (1997). Murder and vengeance among the gods: Baldr in Scandinavian mythology, Edition 262. Suomalainen tiedeakatemia. ISBN 9514108094.
  3. ^ Lindow, John (1988). Scandinavian Mythology: An Annotated Bibliography. Garland Pub. ISBN 0824091736.
  4. ^ Murdoch, Brian; Hardin, James N.; Read, Malcolm Kevin (2004). Early Germanic Literature and Culture. Boydell & Brewer. pp. 98–99. ISBN 157113199X. Of even more importance is Snorri Sturluson, the Icelandic scholar and politician, who did our knowledge of heathen religion such good service... he offers a scholarly portrayal of Old Norse mythology, which is admittedly heavily influenced by his Christian education and classical education, but remains nonetheless our most important medieval source for North Germanic mythology.
  5. ^ Colum, Padraic (2012). Nordic Gods and Heroes. Courier Corporation. ISBN 9780486119359.
  6. ^ a b Faulkes (1995), pp. vi–xxi, and Turville-Petre (1964), pp. 1–34.
  7. ^ Faulkes (1995), pp. xvi–xviii.
  8. ^ Turville-Petre (1964), pp. 27–34.
  9. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 11–12, Turville-Petre (1964), pp. 17–21, and MacLeod & Mees (2006), pp. 27–28, 216.
  10. ^ Regarding the dísir, valkyries, and figurines (with images), see Lindow (2001), pp. 95–97. For hammers, see Simek (2007), pp. 218–19, and Lindow (2001), pp. 288–89.
  11. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 29–30, 227–28, and Simek (2007), pp. 84, 278.
  12. ^ Puhvel (1989), pp. 189–221
  13. ^ Mallory (2005), pp. 128–42
  14. ^ Turville-Petre (1964), p. 13.
  15. ^ Regarding Ragnhild Tregagås, see MacLeod & Mees (2006), p. 37. For Galdrabók, see Flowers (1989), p. 29.
  16. ^ Turville-Petre (1964), pp. 2–3, 178.
  17. ^ beowulf
  18. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 287–91.
  19. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 128–29, 247–52.
  20. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 118, 126–28.
  21. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 121–22.
  22. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 241–43.
  23. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 311–12.
  24. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 86–88, 135–37, 168–72, 198–99, 297–99.
  25. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 99–102, 109–10, and Simek (2007), pp. 67–69, 73–74.
  26. ^ Simek (2007), pp. 108–09, 180, 333, 335.
  27. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 95–97, 243–46. Simek (2007), pp. 62–62, 236–37, 349.
  28. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 319–32. Simek (2007), pp. 375–76.
  29. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 91–92, 205–06, 222–23, 278–80.
  30. ^ For Hel, see Lindow (2001), p. 172, and Orchard (1997), p. 79. For Valhalla, see Lindow (2001), pp. 308–09, and Orchard (1997), pp. 171–72. For Fólkvangr, see Lindow (2001), p. 118, and Orchard (1997), p. 45.
  31. ^ For Rán, see Lindow (2001), pp. 258–59, and Orchard (1997), p. 129. For Gefjon, see Orchard (1997), p. 52.
  32. ^ Orchard (1997), p. 131.
  33. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 42–43.
  34. ^ Lindow (2001), pp. 1–2, 40, 254–58.
  35. ^ Simek (2007), p. 189.

General sources

Further reading

General secondary works

Romanticism

  • Anderson, Rasmus (1875). Norse Mythology, or, The Religion of Our Forefathers. Chicago: S.C. Griggs.
  • Guerber, H. A. (1909). Myths of the Norsemen: From the Eddas and Sagas. London: George G. Harrap. Reprinted 1992, Mineola, NY: Dover. ISBN 0-486-27348-2.
  • Keary, A & E (1909), The Heroes of Asgard. New York: Macmillan Company. Reprinted 1982 by Smithmark Pub. ISBN 0-8317-4475-8. Reprinted 1979 by Pan Macmillan ISBN 0-333-07802-0.
  • Mable, Hamilton Wright (1901). Norse Stories Retold from the Eddas. Mead and Company. Reprinted 1999, New York: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-7818-0770-0.
  • Mackenzie, Donald A (1912). Teutonic Myth and Legend. New York: W H Wise & Co. 1934. Reprinted 2003 by University Press of the Pacific. ISBN 1-4102-0740-4.
  • Rydberg, Viktor (1889). Teutonic Mythology, trans. Rasmus B. Anderson. London: Swan Sonnenschein & Co. Reprinted 2001, Elibron Classics. ISBN 1-4021-9391-2. Reprinted 2004, Kessinger Publishing Company. ISBN 0-7661-8891-4.

Modern retellings

External links

  Media related to Norse mythology at Wikimedia Commons

January 09, 2023
norse, mythology, historical, religious, tradition, belonging, north, germanic, peoples, norse, religion, book, neil, gaiman, norse, mythology, book, norse, nordic, scandinavian, mythology, body, myths, belonging, north, germanic, peoples, stemming, from, nors. For the historical religious tradition belonging to the North Germanic peoples see Old Norse religion For the book by Neil Gaiman see Norse Mythology book Norse Nordic or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period The northernmost extension of Germanic mythology and stemming from Proto Germanic folklore Norse mythology consists of tales of various deities beings and heroes derived from numerous sources from both before and after the pagan period including medieval manuscripts archaeological representations and folk tradition The source texts mention numerous gods such as the thunder god Thor the raven flanked god Odin the goddess Freyja and numerous other deities The Tjangvide image stone with illustrations from Norse mythology Most of the surviving mythology centers on the plights of the gods and their interaction with several other beings such as humanity and the jotnar beings who may be friends lovers foes or family members of the gods The cosmos in Norse mythology consists of Nine Worlds that flank a central sacred tree Yggdrasil Units of time and elements of the cosmology are personified as deities or beings Various forms of a creation myth are recounted where the world is created from the flesh of the primordial being Ymir and the first two humans are Ask and Embla These worlds are foretold to be reborn after the events of Ragnarok when an immense battle occurs between the gods and their enemies and the world is enveloped in flames only to be reborn anew There the surviving gods will meet and the land will be fertile and green and two humans will repopulate the world Norse mythology has been the subject of scholarly discourse since the 17th century when key texts attracted the attention of the intellectual circles of Europe By way of comparative mythology and historical linguistics scholars have identified elements of Germanic mythology reaching as far back as Proto Indo European mythology During the modern period the Romanticist Viking revival re awoke an interest in the subject matter and references to Norse mythology may now be found throughout modern popular culture The myths have further been revived in a religious context among adherents of Germanic Neopaganism Contents 1 Terminology 2 Sources 3 Mythology 3 1 Gods and other beings 3 2 Cosmology 3 3 Humanity 3 4 Influence on popular culture 4 See also 5 References 5 1 General sources 6 Further reading 6 1 General secondary works 6 2 Romanticism 6 3 Modern retellings 7 External linksTerminology EditThe historical religion of the Norse people is commonly referred to as Norse mythology Other terms are Scandinavian mythology 1 2 3 North Germanic mythology 4 or Nordic mythology 5 Sources Edit The Rok runestone Og 136 located in Rok Sweden features a Younger Futhark runic inscription that makes various references to Norse mythology Norse mythology is primarily attested in dialects of Old Norse a North Germanic language spoken by the Scandinavian people during the European Middle Ages and the ancestor of modern Scandinavian languages The majority of these Old Norse texts were created in Iceland where the oral tradition stemming from the pre Christian inhabitants of the island was collected and recorded in manuscripts This occurred primarily in the 13th century These texts include the Prose Edda composed in the 13th century by the Icelandic scholar lawspeaker and historian Snorri Sturluson and the Poetic Edda a collection of poems from earlier traditional material anonymously compiled in the 13th century 6 The Prose Edda was composed as a prose manual for producing skaldic poetry traditional Old Norse poetry composed by skalds Originally composed and transmitted orally skaldic poetry utilizes alliterative verse kennings and several metrical forms The Prose Edda presents numerous examples of works by various skalds from before and after the Christianization process and also frequently refers back to the poems found in the Poetic Edda The Poetic Edda consists almost entirely of poems with some prose narrative added and this poetry Eddic poetry utilizes fewer kennings In comparison to skaldic poetry Eddic poetry is relatively unadorned 6 Title page of a late manuscript of the Prose Edda written by Snorri Sturluson 13th century showing the Ancient Norse Gods Odin Heimdallr Sleipnir and other figures from Norse mythology The Prose Edda features layers of euhemerization a process in which deities and supernatural beings are presented as having been either actual magic wielding human beings who have been deified in time or beings demonized by way of Christian mythology 7 Texts such as Heimskringla composed in the 13th century by Snorri and Gesta Danorum composed in Latin by Saxo Grammaticus in Denmark in the 12th century are the results of heavy amounts of euhemerization 8 Numerous additional texts such as the sagas provide further information The saga corpus consists of thousands of tales recorded in Old Norse ranging from Icelandic family histories Sagas of Icelanders to Migration period tales mentioning historic figures such as Attila the Hun legendary sagas Objects and monuments such as the Rok runestone and the Kvinneby amulet feature runic inscriptions texts written in the runic alphabet the indigenous alphabet of the Germanic peoples that mention figures and events from Norse mythology 9 Objects from the archaeological record may also be interpreted as depictions of subjects from Norse mythology such as amulets of the god Thor s hammer Mjolnir found among pagan burials and small silver female figures interpreted as valkyries or disir beings associated with war fate or ancestor cults 10 By way of historical linguistics and comparative mythology comparisons to other attested branches of Germanic mythology such as the Old High German Merseburg Incantations may also lend insight 11 Wider comparisons to the mythology of other Indo European peoples by scholars has resulted in the potential reconstruction of far earlier myths 12 13 Only a tiny amount of poems and tales survive of the many mythical tales and poems that are presumed to have existed during the Middle Ages Viking Age Migration Period and before 14 Later sources reaching into the modern period such as a medieval charm recorded as used by the Norwegian woman Ragnhild Tregagas convicted of witchcraft in Norway in the 14th century and spells found in the 17th century Icelandic Galdrabok grimoire also sometimes make references to Norse mythology 15 Other traces such as place names bearing the names of gods may provide further information about deities such as a potential association between deities based on the placement of locations bearing their names their local popularity and associations with geological features 16 One of the surviving poems is the Old English manuscript Beowulf 17 Mythology EditGods and other beings Edit Main articles AEsir Vanir and Jotnar See also List of Norse gods and goddesses The god Thor wades through a river while the AEsir ride across the bridge Bifrost in an illustration by Lorenz Frolich 1895 Central to accounts of Norse mythology are the plights of the gods and their interaction with various other beings such as with the jotnar who may be friends lovers foes or family members of the gods Numerous gods are mentioned in the source texts As evidenced by records of personal names and place names the most popular god among the Scandinavians during the Viking Age was Thor the thunder god who is portrayed as unrelentingly pursuing his foes his mountain crushing thunderous hammer Mjolnir in hand In the mythology Thor lays waste to numerous jotnar who are foes to the gods or humanity and is wed to the beautiful golden haired goddess Sif 18 The god Odin is also frequently mentioned in surviving texts One eyed wolf and raven flanked with a spear in hand Odin pursues knowledge throughout the nine realms In an act of self sacrifice Odin is described as having hanged himself upside down for nine days and nights on the cosmological tree Yggdrasil to gain knowledge of the runic alphabet which he passed on to humanity and is associated closely with death wisdom and poetry Odin is portrayed as the ruler of Asgard and leader of the Aesir Odin s wife is the powerful goddess Frigg who can see the future but tells no one and together they have a beloved son Baldr After a series of dreams had by Baldr of his impending death his death is engineered by Loki and Baldr thereafter resides in Hel a realm ruled over by an entity of the same name 19 Odin must share half of his share of the dead with a powerful goddess Freyja She is beautiful sensual wears a feathered cloak and practices seidr She rides to battle to choose among the slain and brings her chosen to her afterlife field Folkvangr Freyja weeps for her missing husband odr and seeks after him in faraway lands 20 Freyja s brother the god Freyr is also frequently mentioned in surviving texts and in his association with the weather royalty human sexuality and agriculture brings peace and pleasure to humanity Deeply lovesick after catching sight of the beautiful jotunn Gerdr Freyr seeks and wins her love yet at the price of his future doom 21 Their father is the powerful god Njordr Njordr is strongly associated with ships and seafaring and so also wealth and prosperity Freyja and Freyr s mother is Njordr s unnamed sister her name is unprovided in the source material However there is more information about his pairing with the skiing and hunting goddess Skadi Their relationship is ill fated as Skadi cannot stand to be away from her beloved mountains nor Njordr from the seashore 22 Together Freyja Freyr and Njordr form a portion of gods known as the Vanir While the Aesir and the Vanir retain distinct identification they came together as the result of the Aesir Vanir War 23 While they receive less mention numerous other gods and goddesses appear in the source material For a list of these deities see List of Germanic deities Some of the gods heard less of include the apple bearing goddess Idunn and her husband the skaldic god Bragi the gold toothed god Heimdallr born of nine mothers the ancient god Tyr who lost his right hand while binding the great wolf Fenrir and the goddess Gefjon who formed modern day Zealand Denmark 24 Various beings outside of the gods are mentioned Elves and dwarfs are commonly mentioned and appear to be connected but their attributes are vague and the relation between the two is ambiguous Elves are described as radiant and beautiful whereas dwarfs often act as earthen smiths 25 A group of beings variously described as jotnar thursar and trolls in English these are all often glossed as giants frequently appear These beings may either aid deter or take their place among the gods 26 The Norns disir and aforementioned valkyries also receive frequent mention While their functions and roles may overlap and differ all are collective female beings associated with fate 27 Cosmology Edit The cosmological central tree Yggdrasil is depicted in The Ash Yggdrasil by Friedrich Wilhelm Heine 1886 Sol the Sun and Mani the Moon are chased by the wolves Skoll and Hati in The Wolves Pursuing Sol and Mani by J C Dollman 1909 In Norse cosmology all beings live in Nine Worlds that center around the cosmological tree Yggdrasil The gods inhabit the heavenly realm of Asgard whereas humanity inhabits Midgard a region in the center of the cosmos Outside of the gods humanity and the jotnar these Nine Worlds are inhabited by beings such as elves and dwarfs Travel between the worlds is frequently recounted in the myths where the gods and other beings may interact directly with humanity Numerous creatures live on Yggdrasil such as the insulting messenger squirrel Ratatoskr and the perching hawk Vedrfolnir The tree itself has three major roots and at the base of one of these roots live the Norns female entities associated with fate 28 Elements of the cosmos are personified such as the Sun Sol a goddess the Moon Mani a god and Earth Jord a goddess as well as units of time such as day Dagr a god and night Nott a jotunn 29 The afterlife is a complex matter in Norse mythology The dead may go to the murky realm of Hel a realm ruled over by a female being of the same name may be ferried away by valkyries to Odin s martial hall Valhalla or may be chosen by the goddess Freyja to dwell in her field Folkvangr 30 The goddess Ran may claim those that die at sea and the goddess Gefjon is said to be attended by virgins upon their death 31 Texts also make reference to reincarnation 32 Time itself is presented between cyclic and linear and some scholars have argued that cyclic time was the original format for the mythology 33 Various forms of a cosmological creation story are provided in Icelandic sources and references to a future destruction and rebirth of the world Ragnarok are frequently mentioned in some texts 34 Humanity Edit According to the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda poem Voluspa the first human couple consisted of Ask and Embla driftwood found by a trio of gods and imbued with life in the form of three gifts After the cataclysm of Ragnarok this process is mirrored in the survival of two humans from a wood Lif and Lifthrasir From these two humankind is foretold to repopulate the new and green earth 35 Influence on popular culture Edit Main article Norse mythology in popular culture See also Germanic mythology and Germanic neopaganism With the widespread publication of translations of Old Norse texts that recount the mythology of the North Germanic peoples references to the Norse gods and heroes spread into European literary culture especially in Scandinavia Germany and Britain During the later 20th century references to Norse mythology became common in science fiction and fantasy literature role playing games and eventually other cultural products such as comic books and Japanese animation Traces of the mythology can also be found in music and has its own genre viking metal Bands such as Amon Amarth Bathory Burzum and Manegarm have written songs about Norse mythology Norse mythology is prevalent in the children s book series Magnus Chase by Rick Riordan See also Edit Mythology portal Wikimedia Commons has media related to Norse mythology Alliterative verse Family tree of the Norse gods Project Runeberg List of Germanic deities List of valkyrie names in Norse mythology Greek mythology Roman mythologyReferences Edit Rooth Anna Birgitta 1961 Loki in Scandinavian Mythology C W K Gleerup Lindow John 1997 Murder and vengeance among the gods Baldr in Scandinavian mythology Edition 262 Suomalainen tiedeakatemia ISBN 9514108094 Lindow John 1988 Scandinavian Mythology An Annotated Bibliography Garland Pub ISBN 0824091736 Murdoch Brian Hardin James N Read Malcolm Kevin 2004 Early Germanic Literature and Culture Boydell amp Brewer pp 98 99 ISBN 157113199X Of even more importance is Snorri Sturluson the Icelandic scholar and politician who did our knowledge of heathen religion such good service he offers a scholarly portrayal of Old Norse mythology which is admittedly heavily influenced by his Christian education and classical education but remains nonetheless our most important medieval source for North Germanic mythology Colum Padraic 2012 Nordic Gods and Heroes Courier Corporation ISBN 9780486119359 a b Faulkes 1995 pp vi xxiharvp error no target CITEREFFaulkes1995 help and Turville Petre 1964 pp 1 34 Faulkes 1995 pp xvi xviii sfnp error no target CITEREFFaulkes1995 help Turville Petre 1964 pp 27 34 Lindow 2001 pp 11 12 Turville Petre 1964 pp 17 21 and MacLeod amp Mees 2006 pp 27 28 216 Regarding the disir valkyries and figurines with images see Lindow 2001 pp 95 97 For hammers see Simek 2007 pp 218 19 and Lindow 2001 pp 288 89 Lindow 2001 pp 29 30 227 28 and Simek 2007 pp 84 278 Puhvel 1989 pp 189 221 Mallory 2005 pp 128 42 Turville Petre 1964 p 13 Regarding Ragnhild Tregagas see MacLeod amp Mees 2006 p 37 For Galdrabok see Flowers 1989 p 29 Turville Petre 1964 pp 2 3 178 beowulf Lindow 2001 pp 287 91 Lindow 2001 pp 128 29 247 52 Lindow 2001 pp 118 126 28 Lindow 2001 pp 121 22 Lindow 2001 pp 241 43 Lindow 2001 pp 311 12 Lindow 2001 pp 86 88 135 37 168 72 198 99 297 99 Lindow 2001 pp 99 102 109 10 and Simek 2007 pp 67 69 73 74 Simek 2007 pp 108 09 180 333 335 Lindow 2001 pp 95 97 243 46 Simek 2007 pp 62 62 236 37 349 Lindow 2001 pp 319 32 Simek 2007 pp 375 76 Lindow 2001 pp 91 92 205 06 222 23 278 80 For Hel see Lindow 2001 p 172 and Orchard 1997 p 79 For Valhalla see Lindow 2001 pp 308 09 and Orchard 1997 pp 171 72 For Folkvangr see Lindow 2001 p 118 and Orchard 1997 p 45 For Ran see Lindow 2001 pp 258 59 and Orchard 1997 p 129 For Gefjon see Orchard 1997 p 52 Orchard 1997 p 131 Lindow 2001 pp 42 43 Lindow 2001 pp 1 2 40 254 58 Simek 2007 p 189 General sources Edit Edda Translated by Faulkes Anthony Everyman 1995 ISBN 0 460 87616 3 Flowers Stephen 1989 The Galdrabok An Icelandic Grimoire ISBN 0 87728 685 X Lindow John 2001 Norse Mythology A Guide to the Gods Heroes Rituals and Beliefs Oxford University Press ISBN 0 19 515382 0 MacLeod Mindy Mees Bernard 2006 Runic Amulets and Magic Objects Boydell Press ISBN 1 84383 205 4 Mallory J P 2005 In Search of the Indo Europeans Language Archaeology and Myth Thames amp Hudson ISBN 0 500 27616 1 Orchard Andy 1997 Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend Cassell ISBN 0 304 34520 2 Puhvel Jaan 1989 Comparative Mythology Johns Hopkins University Press ISBN 0 8018 3938 6 Turville Petre E O G 1964 Myth and Religion of the North The Religion of Ancient Scandinavia Holt Rinehart and Winston Simek Rudolf 2007 Dictionary of Northern Mythology Translated by Hall Angela D S Brewer ISBN 978 0 85991 513 7 Further reading EditGeneral secondary works Edit Abram Christopher 2011 Myths of the Pagan North the Gods of the Norsemen London Continuum ISBN 978 1 84725 247 0 Adalsteinsson Jon Hnefill 1998 A Piece of Horse Liver Myth Ritual and Folklore in Old Icelandic Sources translated by Terry Gunnell amp Joan Turville Petre Reykjavik Felagsvisindastofnun ISBN 9979 54 264 0 Andren Anders Jennbert Kristina Raudvere Catharina editors 2006 Old Norse Religion in Long Term Perspectives Origins Changes and Interactions Lund Nordic Academic Press ISBN 91 89116 81 X Branston Brian 1980 Gods of the North London Thames and Hudson Revised from an earlier hardback edition of 1955 ISBN 0 500 27177 1 Christiansen Eric 2002 The Norsemen in the Viking Age Malden Mass Blackwell ISBN 1 4051 4964 7 Clunies Ross Margaret 1994 Prolonged Echoes Old Norse Myths in Medieval Northern Society vol 1 The Myths Odense Odense Univ Press ISBN 87 7838 008 1 Davidson H R Ellis 1964 Gods and Myths of Northern Europe Baltimore Penguin New edition 1990 by Penguin Books ISBN 0 14 013627 4 Several runestones Davidson H R Ellis 1969 Scandinavian Mythology London amp New York Hamlyn ISBN 0 87226 041 0 Reissued 1996 as Viking and Norse Mythology New York Barnes and Noble Davidson H R Ellis 1988 Myths and Symbols in Pagan Europe Syracuse NY Syracuse Univ Press ISBN 0 8156 2438 7 Davidson H R Ellis 1993 The Lost Beliefs of Northern Europe London amp New York Routledge ISBN 0 415 04937 7 de Vries Jan Altgermanische Religionsgeschichte 2 vols 2nd ed Grundriss der germanischen Philologie 12 13 Berlin W de Gruyter DuBois Thomas A 1999 Nordic Religions in the Viking Age Philadelphia Univ Pennsylvania Press ISBN 0 8122 1714 4 Dumezil Georges 1973 Gods of the Ancient Northmen Ed amp trans Einar Haugen Berkeley University of California Press ISBN 0 520 03507 0 Grimm Jacob 1888 Teutonic Mythology 4 vols Trans S Stallybras London Reprinted 2003 by Kessinger ISBN 0 7661 7742 4 ISBN 0 7661 7743 2 ISBN 0 7661 7744 0 ISBN 0 7661 7745 9 Reprinted 2004 Dover Publications ISBN 0 486 43615 2 4 vols ISBN 0 486 43546 6 ISBN 0 486 43547 4 ISBN 0 486 43548 2 ISBN 0 486 43549 0 Lindow John 1988 Scandinavian Mythology An Annotated Bibliography Garland Folklore Bibliographies 13 New York Garland ISBN 0 8240 9173 6 Lindow John 2001 Norse Mythology A Guide to the Gods Heroes Rituals and Beliefs Oxford Oxford University Press ISBN 0 19 515382 0 A dictionary of Norse mythology Mirachandra 2006 Treasure of Norse Mythology Volume I ISBN 978 3 922800 99 6 Motz Lotte 1996 The King the Champion and the Sorcerer A Study in Germanic Myth Wien Fassbaender ISBN 3 900538 57 3 O Donoghue Heather 2007 From Asgard to Valhalla the remarkable history of the Norse myths London I B Tauris ISBN 1 84511 357 8 Orchard Andy 1997 Cassell s Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend London Cassell ISBN 0 304 36385 5 Page R I 1990 Norse Myths The Legendary Past London British Museum and Austin University of Texas Press ISBN 0 292 75546 5 Price Neil S 2002 The Viking Way Religion and War in Late Iron Age Scandinavia Uppsala Dissertation Dept Archaeology amp Ancient History ISBN 91 506 1626 9 Simek Rudolf 1993 Dictionary of Northern Mythology Trans Angela Hall Cambridge D S Brewer ISBN 0 85991 369 4 New edition 2000 ISBN 0 85991 513 1 Simrock Karl Joseph 1853 1855 Handbuch der deutschen Mythologie Svanberg Fredrik 2003 Decolonizing the Viking Age Stockholm Almqvist amp Wiksell ISBN 9122020063 v 1 ISBN 9122020071 v 2 Turville Petre E O Gabriel 1964 Myth and Religion of the North The Religion of Ancient Scandinavia London Weidenfeld amp Nicolson Reprinted 1975 Westport CN Greenwood Press ISBN 0 8371 7420 1 Romanticism Edit Anderson Rasmus 1875 Norse Mythology or The Religion of Our Forefathers Chicago S C Griggs Guerber H A 1909 Myths of the Norsemen From the Eddas and Sagas London George G Harrap Reprinted 1992 Mineola NY Dover ISBN 0 486 27348 2 Keary A amp E 1909 The Heroes of Asgard New York Macmillan Company Reprinted 1982 by Smithmark Pub ISBN 0 8317 4475 8 Reprinted 1979 by Pan Macmillan ISBN 0 333 07802 0 Mable Hamilton Wright 1901 Norse Stories Retold from the Eddas Mead and Company Reprinted 1999 New York Hippocrene Books ISBN 0 7818 0770 0 Mackenzie Donald A 1912 Teutonic Myth and Legend New York W H Wise amp Co 1934 Reprinted 2003 by University Press of the Pacific ISBN 1 4102 0740 4 Rydberg Viktor 1889 Teutonic Mythology trans Rasmus B Anderson London Swan Sonnenschein amp Co Reprinted 2001 Elibron Classics ISBN 1 4021 9391 2 Reprinted 2004 Kessinger Publishing Company ISBN 0 7661 8891 4 Modern retellings Edit Bradish Sarah Powers 1900 Old Norse stories New York American Book Company Internet Archive Colum Padraic 1920 The Children of Odin The Book of Northern Myths illustrated by Willy Pogany New York Macmillan Reprinted 2004 by Aladdin ISBN 0 689 86885 5 Crossley Holland Kevin 1981 The Norse Myths New York Pantheon Books ISBN 0 394 74846 8 Also released as The Penguin Book of Norse Myths Gods of the Vikings Harmondsworth Penguin ISBN 0 14 025869 8 d Aulaire Ingri and Edgar 1967 d Aulaire s Book of Norse Myths New York New York Review of Books Munch Peter Andreas 1927 Norse Mythology Legends of Gods and Heroes Scandinavian Classics Trans Sigurd Bernhard Hustvedt 1963 New York American Scandinavian Foundation ISBN 0 404 04538 3 Gaiman Neil 2017 Norse Mythology W W Norton amp Company ISBN 0 393 60909 X Syran Nora Louise 2000 Einar s RagnarokExternal links Edit Media related to Norse mythology at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Norse mythology amp oldid 1127600325, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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