NORSE MYTHOLOGY Tales of the North Men

WHO WERE THE NORSEMEN?

• “NORSE”: “North men” who were farmers & fisherman

of Scandinavia (Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden)

and Iceland who were also:

• fierce warriors

• expert sailors & navigators

• pirates

• “BERSERKERS”: animal pelt-wearing warriors who

fought with a crazy fury (imagined to be the “spirit of

Odin”)

• Historians believe berserkers consumed drugged foods to inspire their frenzy

• origin of the word berserk

8TH – 11TH CENTURY NORSE RAIDS & SETTLEMENTS

• Overpopulation & frigid, cruel living

conditions prompted some

Norsemen to conduct raids of the

other European countries

• “VIKINGS”: Norse (Scandinavian)

raiders who eventually settled in the

countries of Germany, France,

England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland,

Greenland, Russia, and Canada

NORSE CULTURE

• Practiced both animal & human sacrifice on

occasion but no effort was made to understand

the meaning of such ceremonies

• “The Thing” local gatherings where laws were

passed & disputes settled

• Gender Roles between the sexes were very

distinct

• BUT, Norse legends were filled with stories of

shield-maidens (women who fought alongside

their men)

NORSE BELIEFS

• Wyrd: “FATE” ruled your life The one

pure, unsullied good that men could

hope to attain was HEROISM (which

depended on lost causes)

• The power of good was shown not by

triumph but by continuing to resist evil

while facing certain defeat (i.e. a heroic

death IS a triumph)

• Wergild: “man-price” a payment of

money to the kinsmen of the man slain

RUNIC ALPHABET

• Norse History, Culture, & Myths passed orally from

one generation to the next for centuries before they

were written down

• RUNES: (magic symbols) earliest Norse form of

writing

• Most modern knowledge of the Norse came from

unfavorable Roman accounts of their encounters

with them

OR by the writings of

• Icelander Snorri Sturlusson in the 12th century AD,

after Iceland had become Christian (which probably

influenced how Snorri told the ancient sagas—

much like the writer of Beowulf!)

NORSE COSMOLOGY Creation, Yggdrasil, & Ragnarok

NORSE CREATION

• Pre-existing:

• Niflheim (place of ice and snow)

• Muspell (place of flames and fire)

• Ginnungagap (great emptiness that separated them)

• 11 rivers (flowed from Niflheim into Ginnungagapwhere they froze)

• Ice spread & melted as it neared Muspell

• 2 Creatures formed from melting drops: Ymir (1st

frost giant) & Audumla (huge cow)

• Audumla

• “nourisher”

• Survived by licking the salty ice

• Licked ice for 3 days & revealed BURI (man-shaped supernatural being), grandfather of the gods (Odin & his brothers Vili & Ve)

NORSE CREATION

• Ymir

• Lived by drinking Audumla’s milk

• More frost giants came from his sweat as he slept

• Brutal and evil (like all frost giants) & eventually killed by Odin & his brothers (Vili & Ve)

• His blood flowed out in torrents which swept away all the frost giant except one husband & wife pair

• Ymir’s dead body became the earth

• flesh became the earth

• bones & teeth became mountains & rocks

• blood filled the rivers & seas

• skull made the dome of the sky

• brains were tossed into the air as clouds

• Dwarves created by the gods from maggots crawling on his flesh (4 dwarves hold up sky)

YGGDRASIL• The World Tree: the axis mundi of the Norse

Cosmos

• A giant ash with three roots that connects the

Nine Worlds, which are divided onto three

levels, & holds the Nine Worlds firmly in place

• An eagle perches at its top

• Nidhogg: serpent that chews at a tree root

• Ratatosk: “Discord” squirrel that runs up and

down the trunk carrying insults between the

eagle and Nidhogg

• Four deer chew on its branches & leaves

• Leaves dripped a sweet dew that bees used to

make honey

THE NINE WORLDS OF THE NORSE COSMOS

• The Norse believed that there were nine

worlds supported by the World Tree,

Yggdrasil

• The lowest level: Niflheim (Hel or the Land

of the Dead) and Muspell (Land of Fire)

• The middle level: Midgard, Jotunheim,

Nidavellir, and Svartalfheim

• The highest level: Asgard, Vanaheim, and

Alfheim

LOWEST LEVEL OF THE NINE WORLDS

Muspell

The Land of Fire

Guarded by Surt & his flaming sword who was waiting to lead the fiery creatures of Muspellagainst the gods when the time of their Doom came

Niflheim

The Land of the Dead

Gloomy place of ice, snow, & eternal darkness and ruled by Hel (a)

Gate guarded by Garm, a ghastly dog with a bloodstained breast

Spring of Hvergelmir

Located in Niflheim

Into which one of Yggdrasil’s roots descended

Guarded by a vile dragon, Nidhogg, who tried to destroy it by gnawing at the root

MIDDLE LEVEL OF THE NINE WORLDS

•Midgard

•World of humans “Middle Earth”

• “battlefield of men”

• Surrounded by the ocean in which lurked Jormungand, the World-Serpent

• Fountain of Mimir

• Its water is source of all wisdom jealousy guarded by Mimir

• Located in Midgard

• Into which one of Yggdrasil’s roots descended

•Jotenheim

• Land of the Giants

• Barren mountain range

•Utgard: giant stronghold

•Svartalfheim

• Land of the Dark Elves (Dwarves)

•Nidavellir:

• an area of caves & holes belonging to the Dwarves

HIGHEST LEVEL OF THE NINE WORLDS

•Asgard

•Home of the Aesir (warrior gods)

•Bifrost

•Rainbow bridge connecting Asgard to Midgard

•Guarded by Heimdall, watchman of the gods

•Well of Urd

• Located in Asgard & tended by the 3 Norns(who also tended Yggdrasil)

•Vanaheim

•Home of the Vanir (fertility gods)

•Alfheilm

•Home of the Light Elves

RAGNAROK

• The Day of Doom that will destroy Gods

and the entire Earth

• The Gods know this day is coming & do

everything they can to postpone it as long

as possible

• Loki, his children, & the giants will

overrun the Aesir

• Yggdrasil, the World Tree will burn

• Mani (moon) and Sol (sun) will be devoured

by the wolves of darkness that chase them

• From the ashes a new world will be born,

built by new gods

THE AESIR Warrior gods worshipped by

warriors & kings

ODIN• Chief of the Norse gods:

• known as “ALL-FATHER” & “Mankind’s Benefactor”

• God of Battle, Poetry, Wisdom, & the Dead

• Also known as “Woden” -- Wednesday is named for him

(Woden’s day)

• Valhalla: “Hall of the Slain”

• Odin’s hall in Asgard for brave warriors slain in battle

• Valkyries were his maiden attendants

• Walls made of golden spears, roof of golden shields

• 540 doors big enough to allow 800 armed men through, side-by-side

• Valaskjalf: “Shelf of the Slain”

• Odin’s other hall in Asgard where his throne Hlidskjalfstood

• Two wolves (Geri & Freki) sit at his feet & Two ravens Hugin (Thought) & Munin (Memory) perch on his shoulders & bring him news from around the world

ODIN (CONT’D.)• Married to Frigg(a), queen of Asgard

• Gave Runes (symbolic writing) to mankind which he

won by sacrificing himself to himself

• Traded an eye for wisdom when he drank from the

Mimir’s Well of Wisdom

• Took Skaldic Mead (which made anyone who tasted it

a poet) from the giants

• Wore a blue (-grey) cloak & a wide-brimmed hat &

used the name “Vegtam the Wanderer” when he

traveled Midgard and “Harbard” when disguised as

a ferryman

• Possessed:

• Sleipnir: an eight-legged horse

• Gungnir: magic, dwarf-made spear that never misses

• Draupnir: Gold arm-ring, dwarf-made

THOR• God of the Sky & Thunder: associated with weather,

crops, & warriors

• God of Law & Order & “Keeper of the Oaths” (copies

of his arm-ring were kept in temples & Norse swore

oaths on them)

• Strongest of the Aesir & “Defender of the Gods”

• Son of Odin and Jord (Jorth/Fjorgyn which means

“Earth”)

• Described as having fiery eyes, red hair, & a red beard

• Wears a magic girdle that doubled his strength

• Mjollnir: his magic hammer forged by dwarves

• Married to Sif of the Golden Hair, goddess of

fruitfulness & plenty

• Bilskirnir “Lightning” Thor & Sif’s hall in Asgard

• Rides a chariot pulled by his 2 goats, Tanngrisnir and

Tanngnjostr (Toothgnasher & Toothgrinder)

• Thursday is named for him (Thor’s day)

FRIGG(A)

• Queen of Asgard & Odin’s wife

• Goddess of Sky, Marriage, Childbirth, &

Motherhood

• Married to Odin; Mother of Balder, Hoder, Tyr,

Bragi, & Hermod

• The only diety, besides Odin himself, allowed to

sit on Odin’s throne Hlidskjalf

• Very wise and silent

• Sits at her spinning wheel, day after day,

where the thread she spins are made of gold

• Tries to save Balder from his fate of death

• Friday may be named for her (or Freya)

TYR

• God of War (Single Combat), Justice, Law & Order

• “Bravest of the gods” & “One-Handed”

• Son of Odin & Frigg(a)

• His name was used to guarantee contracts,

promises, & pledges

• Patron of “the Thing” gathering where Norsemen

passed laws & settles disputes

• Lost one of his hands to Fenrir, the giant wolf (son

of Loki & the giantess witch Angrboda)

• Tuesday was named for him (Tyr’s day)

BRAGI

• God of Poetry, Eloquence, & Music

• Son of Odin & Frigg(a)

• Married to Iduna, the Goddess of Fertility,

Spring, & Rebirth

• Greets new arrivals in Valhalla & sings

songs celebrating their deeds

BALDER

• God of light, purity, beauty, & happiness

• “Most Beloved” of the Gods

• “Holy One” & “God of Goodness” – a Christ-like figure

• Fair-haired & handsome with glowing face

• Son of Odin & Frigg(a); twin brother of Hoder; father of Forseti (god of justice)

• As the Sun God he represents the spring sun

• His death is the first disaster that befalls the gods & signals the beginning of Ragnarok

• Breidablik: Balder & Nanna’s hall in Asgard

• Married to Nanna, whose heart broke upon seeing Balder upon his pyre on a great ship & died—her body was placed beside his before the fire was kindled & ship pushed out to sea

• His resurrection will signal the new world after Ragnarok

HODER

• Blind brother of Balder

• Son of Odin & Frigg(a)

• Accidentally kills him with

mistletoe caused by the

deception of LOKI

HEIMDALL

• Had Nine mothers (possibly the nine daughters of

the sea god Aegir & his wife Ran)

• Watchman of the gods

• Supernatural senses--has such acute hearing that

he can hear a blade of grass grow

• Guardian of Bifrost, the Rainbow Bridge that

connects Asgard to Midgard

• Responsible for the classes of humans: serfs, farm

owners, & nobles

• His horn Gjall will sound the beginning of

Ragnarok, the Day of Doom

• The rooster is his symbol

THE VANIR Fertility gods worshipped by

farmers

FREY(J)A

• Goddess of Love, Beauty, Fertility, War

• Also known as a battle goddess who rides a giant

boar (her symbol) Hildisvini into battle

• Half of those slain in battle were hers, which she

took to Sessrumnir, her hall in Asgard

• Twin of Freyr; daughter of Njord

• Her chariot is pulled by 2 grey or black cats

• Wears Brisingamen, the necklace made by the

Dwarves

• Possesses a falcon cloak that allows flight

• Friday was named for her, Frigga, or both as some

believe they are counterparts of each other

FREYR

• God of Fertility & Prosperity

• Symbol is the Boar

• Twin of Freyja, son of Njord

• Married to Gerd (giantess)

Possessed:

• Magic sword that moved through the air of

its own accord

• Skidbladnir (magic golden ship made by

dwarves)

• Gullinbursti (magic golden boar that

pulled his chariot into battle)

NJORD

• Sea god of wealth and fertility

• Father of twins Frey(r) & Frey(j)a

• Married to Skadi (a giantess)

OTHER SUPERNATURALS in the Norse Cosmos

VALKYRIES

• Odin’s battle maidens who determine

the outcome of battles

• “Chooser’s of the Slain”

• Their chief duty was to go to the

battlefield & carry the chosen brave

dead to Valhalla

• In Valhalla, they wait upon Odin, the

gods, and the warrior dead

NORNS

• Three female creatures who control the fate of

all races

• Urda sees the past, Verdandi sees the present,

& Skuld sees the future

• Sit at the Well of Urd (well of white water) at

the base of Yggdrasil

GIANTS

• Enormous brutes who are the enemies

of the Aesir

• Continually plotting to destroy the gods

through tricks & traps

• Not all Giants are evil, but majority are

• Thor is the god whom they hate the

most

DWARVES

• Short, hairy creatures that live in

Svartalfheim

• Created by gods from maggots crawling in

the flesh of Ymir

• Greedy, cunning, sometimes downright evil

• Master craftsmen who work underground

forging the treasures of the world

• They are the makers of:

• Mjolnir & Gungnir

• Brisingamen & Draupnir

• Skidbladnir & Gullinbursti

• Sif’s golden hair

LOKI

• Trickster god & shapeshifter

• God of Fire; Known as the “Doer of Good & the

Doer of Evil”

• Part Aesir and part giant

• Birthed Sleipnir (Odin’s 8-legged horse) when he

changed himself into a pink mare to save

Asgard & the Aesir

• Married to Siguna (goddess of the Aesir)

• Fathered children Hel(a), Jormungand, & Fenrir

with his mistress Angrboda (giantess witch of

the Iron Wood of Jotenheim)

ANGRBODA

• “Distress-Bringer”

• Giantess-witch who lived in the Iron

Wood of Jotunheim

• Loki’s mistress and mother of his 3

children:

• Hel(a)

• Jormungand

• Fenrir

SLEIPNIR

• Odin’s 8-legged horse

• Son of Loki (in pink mare

form) & Svadilfari,

a giant horse

HEL(A)

• Daughter of Loki & the evil witch-giantess,

Angrboda

• Banished by Odin to Niflheim -- becomes Ruler of

the Dead (who did NOT die in battle)

• Horrifically deformed -- one half of her was living

flesh, the other half of her was a rotting corpse

• Represents death and decay

JORMUNGAND(R)

• Eldest son of Loki & the evil witch-

giantess, Angrboda

• Also called the “World Serpent” & the

“Midgard Serpent” for he grows to

encircle the world, even taking his own

tail into his mouth (Ouroboros)

• Represents Evil –evil that will consume

the world

• Thor’s mortal enemy; Thor will

eventually kill & be killed by him

FENRIR

• Youngest son of Loki & the evil

witch-giantess, Angrboda

• Represents ravenous greed

• bit off Tyr’s arm

• will eventually kill Odin in

Ragnarok