Valkyries (Norse)

Valkyries

Maidens who chose which warriors on a battlefield would be slain. They also served mead in Valhalla.

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Brynhild
Geironul
Geirskogul
Goll
Gondul
Gunn
Guth
Herfjotur
Hervor [Warder of the Host]
Hild [Battle]
Hlathguth [Necklace-Adorned Warrior-Maiden]
Hlokk
Hrist
Mist
Olrun [One Knowing Ale Rune]
Randgrith
Rathgrith
Reginleif
Sigrdrifa
Sigrun
Skeggjold
Skogul
Skuld [Necessity]
Svava
Thruth

Tyr (Norse)

Tyr

Alternative names: Týr

Tyr (pronounced /ˈtɪər/; Old Norse: Týr [tyːr]) is the god of single combat, war, victory and heroic glory in Norse mythology, portrayed as a one-handed man. Corresponding names in other Germanic languages are Gothic Teiws, Old English Tīw and Old High German Ziu, all from Proto-Germanic *Tîwaz (*Tē₂waz).

In the late Icelandic Eddas, Tyr is portrayed, alternately, as the son of Odin (Prose Edda) or of Hymir (Poetic Edda), while the origins of his name and his possible relationship to Tuisto (see Tacitus' Germania) suggest he was once considered the father of the gods and head of the pantheon, since his name is ultimately cognate to that of *Dyeus (cf. Dyaus), the reconstructed chief deity in Indo-European religion. It is assumed that Tîwaz was overtaken in popularity and in authority by both Odin and Thor at some point during the Migration Age.

He was the only god who is brave enough to put his hand in Fenris' mouth so the gods could bind it. Fenris, a wolf bit off his right hand. There is much debate about his left handedness. In the Norse culture the right hand was given for a pledge, which could be why the right hand was placed in the wolf's mouth. It has also been noted, however, that the offering of the right hand is to show that it is free of weapons. A left handed person was sometimes considered evil because he could use a weapon with his left hand even though he shook with his right hand.

Tuesday is named for Tyr who was known as Tiw, or Tiu, by the Anglo-Saxons. He must have been an important god in the pantheon prior to the mythology we were handed down in the eddas to have one of the days of the week named after him.

Since Tuesday is the English name given in place of the name of the day of the week sacred to Mars for the Romans, we know that the old English men thought of Tyr as being smiliar to Mars.

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Name

Proto-Germanic *Tē₂waz continues Proto-Indo-European, *deywos "celestial being, god" (whence also Latin deus and Sanskrit deva). The oldest records of the word in Germanic are Gothic *teiws (/tiːws/), attested as tyz (as the name of the Gothic letter ��), in the 9th century Codex Vindobonensis 795 and Old High German *ziu, attested as cyo- in the A Wessobrunn prayer ms. of 814. The Negau helmet inscription (2nd century BC) may actually record the Proto-Germanic form, as teiva, but this interpretation is uncertain.

The Old Norse name Tyr in origin was a generic noun meaning "god" (cf. Hangatyr, the "god of the hanged" as one of Odin's names; probably inherited from Tyr in his role as judge).

The Old Norse name became Norwegian Ty, Swedish Tyr, Danish Tyr, while it remains Týr in Modern Icelandic and Faroese.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyr
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:T%C3%BDr

Ull (Norse)

Ull, god of archery

Old Norse Ullr

A god of archery and the hunt, according to some he was a god of winter, skiers and the snowshoe. His weapon was a longbow made out of Yew and he lived in Ydal [Yew Dales]. He was called upon for help in duels. He was the son (or step-son) of Thor and Sif (or Ovandrill, depending on the source). His name, which means glorious, is a part of many place names, therefore, he is considered to be an ancient god who was widely worshipped. It is believed that at one time he was one of the highest gods.

Urðr (Norse)

Urðr

In Norse mythology, Urðr (Old Norse "fate",) is a Norn. Along with Verðandi (possibly "happening" or "present") and Skuld (possibly "debt" or "future"), Urðr makes up a trio of Norns that are described as deciding the fates of people. Urðr is attested in stanza 20 of the Poetic Edda poem Völuspá and the Prose Edda book Gylfaginning.

Urðr is sometimes anglicised as Urd or Urth. In some English translations her name is glossed with the Old English form of urðr; Wyrd.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ur%C3%B0r

A poster for the Norwegian women's magazine Urd. The magazine was published between 1897 and 1958.

Latest 1917, the year of Bloch's death, though considering it was in the Jugendstil exhibition, 1900-1905 is a fair guess. The Norwegian National Library says the poster is undated.

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Anime and Manga

Oh My Goddess!, Ah! My Goddess : Urd

Urd (ウルド Urudo) is a character in the popular Oh My Goddess! manga and anime, voiced by Toma Yumi (冬馬由美). In the series, her character is only loosely based on the deity Urðr from Norse mythology. Visually, her character design shows influences from shoujo and art nouveau.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urd_(Oh_My_Goddess!)

Time and fate goddesses | Norse deities | Norse mythology stubs | Oh My Goddess!

Eir (Norse)

Eir

[Norse] A goddess of healing, considered the best doctor. She taught her art to women who were the only physicians in ancient Scandinavia.

Thor (Norse)

Thor

The son of Odin and a member of the Aesir, he was the god of thunder and the main enemy of the giants. He would smash their heads with his mighty hammer Mjollnir. To wield this awesome weapon he needed iron gloves and a belt of strength. Mjollnir would return to Thor's hand after being thrown and was symbolic of lightning. Thor would ride around middle-earth in his wagon drawn by two goats, His abode was Thruthheim [Land of Strength] and his hall, Bilskinir. His wife was Sif.

He was foremost of the gods to the common man, who would call on him to ensure fertility, and widely worshiped. Hammer shaped amulets, a symbol of Thor because it was his weapon, were worn about the neck well into the christianization of Scandinavia. There are molds from that time which contain both cross and hammer shapes, side by side. His name occurs in numerous place names, and it was his statue which was central in the great temple at Uppsala.

Thursday is named for him and he was associated by the Romans with Jupiter, therefore also parallel to Zeus. They were all the wielder of ligtning bolts. Some claim that Odin is the Norse equivalent to Jupiter / Zeus, however, one needs look not much further than the name given to the fourth day of the week by the Romans and then to its English equivalent to see that the ancients equated Odin with Mercury / Hermes.

Donar was an early version of Thor among the Germans and the anglo-saxons worshiped a thunder god named Thunor.

Syn (Norse)

Syn

A goddess who was invoked by defendents at a trial. She was another attendant of Frigg and guarded the door of Frigg's palace.

Snotra (Norse)

Snotra

A wise and gentle goddess. Guerber calls her the goddess of virtue and master of all knowledge. She knew the value of self-discipline.

Skuld (Norse)

Skuld

Skuld (possibly "debt" or "future") is a Norn in Norse mythology. Along with Urðr (Old Norse "fate") and Verðandi (possibly "happening" or "present"), Skuld makes up a trio of Norns that are described as deciding the fates of people. Skuld appears in at least two poems as a Valkyrie.

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Poetic Edda

Skuld is mentioned in Völuspá, a poem collected in the 13th century Poetic Edda:

Sá hon valkyrjur
vítt um komnar,
görvar at ríða
til Goðþjóðar.
Skuld helt skildi,
en Skögul önnur,
Gunnr, Hildr, Göndul
ok Geirskögul.

She saw valkyries
come from far and wide,
ready to ride
to Goðþjóð.
Skuld held a shield,
and Skögul was another,
Gunnr, Hildr, Göndul
and Geirskögul.

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Prose Edda

Gylfaginning

In the Prose Edda book Gylfaginning, Snorri informs the reader that the youngest Norn, Skuld, is in effect also a valkyrie, taking part in the selection of warriors from the slain:

These are called Valkyrs: them Odin sends to every battle; they determine men's feyness and award victory. Gudr and Róta and the youngest Norn, she who is called Skuld, ride ever to take the slain and decide fights."

Nafnaþulur

In the Nafnaþulur addition to Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda the following sections reference Skuld:

Mank valkyrjur
Viðris nefna.
Hrist, Mist, Herja,
Hlökk, Geiravör,
Göll, Hjörþrimul,
Gunnr, Herfjötur,
Skuld, Geirönul,
Skögul ok Randgníð.
Ráðgríðr, Göndul,
Svipul, Geirskögul,
Hildr ok Skeggöld,
Hrund, Geirdriful,
Randgríðr ok Þrúðr,
Reginleif ok Sveið,
Þögn, Hjalmþrimul,
Þrima ok Skalmöld.

I will recite the names
of the valkyries of Viðrir (Odin).
Hrist, Mist, Herja,
Hlökk, Geiravör
Göll, Hjörþrimul
Gunnr, Herfjötur
Skuld, Geirönul
Skögul and Randgníð.
Ráðgríðr, Göndul,
Svipul, Geirskögul,
Hildr and Skeggöld,
Hrund, Geirdriful,
Randgríðr and Þrúðr,
Reginleif and Sveið,
Þögn, Hjalmþrimul,
Þrima and Skalmöld.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skuld

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Anime and Manga

Oh My Goddess!, Ah! My Goddess : Skuld

Skuld (スクルド, Sukurudo) is a character in the anime/manga Oh My Goddess! and is the younger sister of Belldandy. Her character design shows influences from shoujo and art noveau.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skuld_(Oh_My_Goddess!)

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Time and fate goddesses | Norse deities | Valkyries

Sif (Norse)

Sif

A goddess of crops and fertility, married to Thor. At one point, Loki stole her hair and had to replace it. He went to the dwarves and had them make her a new set of hair out of gold. An interesting thing to note is that short hair was a sign of a whore or a slave.

Delling (Norse)

Delling

Alternative Names:
Dellingr

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Delling (Dellingr, Old Norse possibly "the dayspring" or "shining one") is a god of dawn in Norse mythology. Dellingr is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and in the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In both sources, Dellingr is described as the father of Dagr, the personified day. The Prose Edda adds that he is the third husband of Nótt, the personified night. Dellingr is also attested in the legendary saga Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks. Scholars have proposed that Dellingr is the personified dawn, and his name may appear both in an English surname and place name.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delling

Sataere (Norse)

Sataere


Some books list Sataere as a Germanic god of agriculture and suggest that the name is another name for Loki. Guerbers' Myths of the Norsemen is one of these books, stating:

Loki was confounded with Saturn, who had also been shorn of his divine attributes, and both were considered the prototypes of Satan. The last day of the week, which was held sacred to Loki, was known in the Norse as Laugardag, or wash-day, but in English it was changed to Saturday, and was said to owe its name not to Saturn but to Sataere, the thief in ambush, and the Teutonic god of agriculture, who is supposed to be merely another personification of Loki.

Of course, Guerber does not provide us with a source. If we look at the Norse sources there are no references to Sataere or Saturn. Jan De Vries lists the Old English word Sataere as being derived from the word Saturn, thus not a separate diety, and it seems that Njord not Loki is the Norse god that more closely resembles Saturn. Could an association between Njord and Saturn be the cause of Scandinavians using Laugurdag -- bath or wash day -- in place of Saturday?

Grimm in his Teutonic Mythology reasons that Saturn was originally a Germanic deity and this is probably Guerber's source. Prof. E.G. Stanley in The Search for Anglo-Saxon Paganism states that Saturn is erroneously included among the gods of the Anglo-Saxons by some scholars (Grimm included) because of his appearence in an early Old English poem Solomon and Saturn. Moreover, Stanley relates the opinion of other scholars that the Saturn appearing in the poem represents the Chaldean god Saturn and not some Germanic deity.

Saga (Norse)

Saga

Goddess who drinks with Odin in her hall Sokkvabekk. Her name means "seeress" and is connected with the norse word for history -- thus, some call her the goddess of history. Some consider her just an aspect of Frigg.

Ran (Norse)

Ran

The wife of Aegir, she was the sea goddess of storms. She collects drowned people in her net

Búri (Norse Myth)

Buri (Búri)

[Norse]Búri was the first god in Norse mythology. He was formed by the cow Auðumbla (Audhumla), after emerging from the primordial frost, licking the salty ice of Ginnungagap. Day by day, as she licked, the god emerged from the ice. He was the father of Borr (Bor) and grandfather of Odin. The only extant source of this myth is Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda.

Hon sleikti hrímsteinana er saltir váru. Ok hinn fyrsta er hon sleikti steina, kom ór steininum at kveldi manns hár, annan dag manns höfuð, þriðja dag var þar allr maðr. Sá er nefndr Búri. Hann var fagr álitum, mikill ok máttugr. Hann gat son þann er Borr hét.
– Normalized text of R

She licked the ice-blocks, which were salty; and the first day that she licked the blocks, there came forth from the blocks in the evening a man's hair; the second day, a man's head; the third day the whole man was there. He is named Búri: he was fair of feature, great and mighty. He begat a son called Borr.
– Brodeur's translation

Búri is mentioned nowhere in the Poetic Edda and only once in the skaldic corpus. In Skáldskaparmál Snorri Sturluson quotes the following verse by the 12th century skald Þórvaldr blönduskáld.

Nú hefk mart
í miði greipat
burar Bors,
Búra arfa.
– Finnur Jónsson's edition

Now have I snatched
much of the mead [made a lot of poetry]
of Buri's heir
Bor's son [Odin].
– Faulkes' translation

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Búri's name

The length of the u in the name is not explicitly marked in the manuscripts but it is traditionally assumed to be long because of its metrical position in Þórvaldr's stanza. However, the metrical structure of fornyrðislag is hardly strict enough for definite conclusions to be reached from a single occurrence - especially when the imperfect oral and manuscript traditions are taken into account. It is thus entirely possible that the original form was Buri.

The meaning of either Búri or Buri is not known. The first could be related to búr meaning "storage room" and the second could be related to burr meaning "son." "Buri" may mean "producer."

In any case the form Buri is often used in an ASCII context or as an anglicization of Búri. In the mainland Scandinavian languages Bure is used as a familiar form.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%BAri
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Norse_deities

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Norse mythology | Norse deities

Bragi (Norse)

Bragi

[Norse] God of poetry, son of Odin and the giantess Gunlod. He was the chief poet of Odin and said to be very wise. He was married to Idun and he had runes cut on his tounge.

In The Lay of Hakon, Bragi is in Valhalla with Odin who tells Bragi to go out and greet Hakon as he arrives. Bragi is also in Valhalla alongside Odin in The Lay of Eirik, and Odin refers to Bragi as one who "knowest everything well". During the feast in Asgard attended by Aegir, it is Bragi who relates to Aegir the tales of the gods.
There was a 9th century skald named Bragi Boddason and some believe he may have been raised to a god by later writers. Others believe Bragi was an aspect of Odin.

Bragi from Norse mythology with a commons:Harp.

Artwork by Carl Wahlbom (1810-1858).

Borr (Norse Myth)

Borr

Borr or Burr (sometimes anglicized Bor or Bur) was the son of Búri (Buri) and the father of Odin, Vili, and Ve in Norse mythology. His wife was Bestla, daughter of the frost giant Bolthorn. He is mentioned in the Gylfaginning part of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda.

[Búri] gat son þann er Borr er nefndr. Hann fekk þeirar konu er Bestla er nefnd, dóttir Bölþorns jötuns, ok gátu þau þrjá sonu. Hét einn Óðinn, annarr Vili, þriði Vé.

Normalized Text of W

[Búri] begat a son called Borr, who wedded the woman named Bestla, daughter of Bölthorn the giant; and they had three sons: one was Odin, the second Vili, the third Vé.

Brodeur's translation

Borr is not mentioned again in the Prose Edda. In skaldic and eddaic poetry Odin is occasionally referred to as Borr's son but no further information on Borr is given. Other sources are silent.

The role of Borr in the mythology is unclear and there is no indication that he was worshiped in Norse paganism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borr

Norse deities | Jötnar

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This page was last modified on 24 April 2010 at 21:35.

Bil (Norse Myth)

Bil


[Norse]Listed by Snorri as one of the goddesses. Snorri tells the story of two children, Bil and Hjuki, who were taken from the earth by Moon, to accompany him. Their father was Vidfinn.

Bil is also called the goddess of weaving by Gisli in Gisla saga Surssonar. After Gisli has a prophetic dream regarding his death, he speaks the verse containing the reference to Bil. The tone makes it seem that weaving refers to weaving destiny.

Balder (Norse)

Balder

Alternative Names(異名):
Baldr, 발드르, Balder, 발데르

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[Norse] One of the Aesir, his name means "The Glorious". He was also called the "god of tears" and the "white as". Balder, the son of Odin and Frigg, was described as a very handsome and wise god. Some consider him to be a god of light since he was so bright, light shined from him.

Balder's wife was Nanna and they had a son named Forseti. Balder and Nanna lived in Breidablik [The Broad-Gleaming], where nothing unclean could be and there were "fewest baneful runes". Breidablik had a silver roof on golden pillars.

At one point Balder had a foreboding dream. Odin rode to Hel's realm to wake a volva from the dead to find out the meaning of Balder's dream. She foretold Balder's death by Hod (Hodur), his fraternal twin. Frigg asked all things to swear not to hurt Balder but didn't ask the mistletoe because it was so young. Loki, diguised as an old woman, visited Frigg and found out Balder was invunerable to everything but mistletoe. Loki made a dart out of mistletoe and tricked the blind god Hod into throwing it at Balder -- all the other gods were playing games by throwing various items at Balder --, thus killing him. Hermod rode to Hel's realm and got her to agree to let Balder return to the living if all things would weep for him. One giantess named Thokk, Loki in disguise, refused to weep for Balder, so he remained dead and was cremated on his funeral boat, hringhorni. He is supposed to come back to life after the Ragnarok. A more complete retelling of Snorri's account of Balder's death is available online.

Snorri and Saxo Grammaticus give very different views of Balder and his death. In Saxo's version of this story, Hod (Hother) is alone responsible for Balder's death. Balder's name rarely occurs in place names, therefore, it is thought that not many people worshipped him. It has been suggested that Balder was an ancient hero who was elevated to divinity. The poets used his name to mean warrior.

Balder is also mentioned in the Merseburg charm.

Balder belurer Nanna

Author: Louis Moe (1857-1945)

The scene is described in Gesta Danorum in the following way:

"Now it befell that Balder the son of Odin was troubled at the sight of Nanna bathing, and was seized with boundless love. He was kindled by her fair and lustrous body, and his heart was set on fire by her manifest beauty; for nothing exciteth passion like comeliness."Elton's translation

Verðandi (Norse)

Verðandi

In Norse mythology, Verðandi (Old Norse, meaning possibly "happening" or "present"), sometimes anglicized as Verdandi or Verthandi, is a norn. Along with Urðr (Old Norse "fate") and Skuld (possibly "debt" or "future"), Verðandi makes up a trio of Norns that are described as deciding the fates (wyrd) of people.

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Etymology

Verðandi is literally the present tense of the Old Norse verb "verða", "to become", and is commonly translated as "in the making" or "that which is happening/becoming"; it is related to the Dutch word worden and the German word werden, both meaning "to become".

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Attestation

Völuspá

She appears in the following verse from the Poetic Edda poem Völuspá, along with Urðr and Skuld:

Þaðan koma meyjar
margs vitandi
þrjár, ór þeim sal
er und þolli stendr;
Urð hétu eina,
aðra Verðandi,
skáru á skíði,
Skuld ina þriðju;
þær lög lögðu,
þær líf kuru
alda börnum,
örlög seggja.

Thence come maidens
much knowing
three from the hall
which under that tree stands;
Urd hight the one,
the second Verdandi,
on a tablet they graved,
Skuld the third;
Laws they established,
life allotted
to the sons of men,
destinies pronounced.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ver%C3%B0andi

The norns of Norse mythology.

By J.L. Lund (1777-1867)

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Anime and Manga

Oh My Goddess!, Ah! My Goddess : Belldandy

Belldandy (ベルダンディー Berudandī) is a character in the popular manga Oh My Goddess! (OMG) and in the anime Ah! My Goddess. She was created by Kosuke Fujishima as one of three Goddesses who come to Earth to reside with Keiichi Morisato, and she serves as his love interest. She is depicted as a beautiful and powerful young woman, with strong nurturing tendencies, a trusting and innocent character, and an extremely kind heart. Belldandy is accidentally summoned from heaven by Keiichi in order to grant him a wish and stays when Keiichi wishes for "a goddess like you to be by my side forever". The stories follow Belldandy as she builds a relationship with Keiichi, using her powers (which include teleportation, telekinesis and levitation) to help both Keiichi and his friends while keeping her true identity a secret.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belldandy