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Nothung
In Germanic mythology, Gram in Norse legend (, "Wrath"), or Balmung in the Middle High German epic poem ''Nibelungenlied'', is a magical godlike sword, specifically the sword that the hero Sigurd used to kill the dragon Fafnir. It is primarily used by the Völsungs in the ''Völsung Cycle'', however, it is also seen in other legends, such as the '' Thidrekssaga'' in which it is wielded by Hildebrand. The myth of Gram may be related to the british myth of "the sword in the stone", Excalibur, as Gram is thrusted into a tree, for which only the hero Sigmund can pull it out, much like how Excalibur only can be pulled out by the true king of England, King Arthur. The myth of Gram being broken and then reforged was also the inspiration of Tolkien's sword Narsil. In Richard Wagner's work, ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (''The Ring of the Nibelung''), it is referred to as Nothung (, "child of need"). Description Nowhere in the ''Völsunga saga'' is a clear description of Gram given ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Regin
In Norse mythology, Reginn (; often anglicized as Regin or Regan) is a son of Hreiðmarr and the foster father of Sigurð. His brothers are Fáfnir and Ótr. Attestations Völsunga saga When Loki mistakenly kills Ótr, Hreiðmarr demands to be repaid with the amount of gold it takes to fill Ótr's skin and cover the outside. Loki takes this gold from the dwarf Andvari, who curses it and especially the ring Andvaranaut. Fáfnir kills his father for this gold, but eventually becomes a greedy Germanic dragon, worm or dragon. Reginn gets none of the gold, but he becomes smith to the king and foster father to Sigurð, teaching him many languages as well as sports, chess, and runes. Reginn had all wisdom and deftness of hand. Of his two brothers, he has the ability to work iron as well as silver and gold and he makes many beautiful and useful things. While Sigurð is living with Reginn, Reginn challenges Sigurð's respect in the kingdom. He tells Sigurð to ask for a horse. Sigurð ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barnstokkr
In Norse mythology, Barnstokkr (Old Norse, literally "child- trunk"Byock (1990:113).) is a tree that stands in the center of King Völsung's hall. Barnstokkr is attested in chapters 2 and 3 of the ''Völsunga saga'', written in the 13th century from earlier tradition, partially based on events from the 5th century and the 6th century, where, during a banquet, a one-eyed, very tall man appears and thrusts a sword into the tree which only Sigmund is able to pull free. Scholarly theories have been put forth about the implications of Barnstokkr and its relation to other trees in Germanic paganism. ''Völsunga saga'' Barnstokkr is introduced in chapter 2 of ''Völsunga saga'' where King Völsung is described as having "had an excellent palace built in this fashion: a huge tree stood with its trunk in the hall and its branches, with fair blossoms, stretched out through the roof. They called the tree Barnstokk .Byock (1990:37). In chapter 3, King Völsung is holding a marriage feast ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Der Ring Des Nibelungen
(''The Ring of the Nibelung''), WWV 86, is a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner. The works are based loosely on characters from Germanic heroic legend, namely Norse legendary sagas and the . The composer termed the cycle a "" (stage festival play), structured in three days preceded by a ("preliminary evening"). It is often referred to as the ''Ring'' cycle, Wagner's ''Ring'', or simply ''The Ring''. Wagner wrote the libretto and music over the course of about twenty-six years, from 1848 to 1874. The four parts that constitute the ''Ring'' cycle are, in sequence: * '' Das Rheingold'' (''The Rhinegold'') * '' Die Walküre'' (''The Valkyrie'') * '' Siegfried'' * ''Götterdämmerung'' (''Twilight of the Gods'') Individual works of the sequence are often performed separately, and indeed the operas contain dialogues that mention events in the previous operas, so that a viewer could watch any of them without having watched the previous parts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sigmund
In Germanic mythology, Sigmund ( , ) is a hero whose story is told in the Völsunga saga. He and his sister, Signý, are the children of Völsung and his wife Hljod. Sigmund is best known as the father of Sigurð the dragon-slayer, though Sigurð's tale has almost no connections to the Völsung cycle except that he was a dragonslayer. ''Völsunga saga'' In the ''Völsunga saga'', Signý marries Siggeir, the king of Gautland (modern Västergötland). Völsung and Sigmund are attending the wedding feast (which lasted for some time before and after the marriage), when Odin, disguised as a beggar, plunges a sword (Gram) into the living tree Barnstokk ("offspring-trunk"Orchard (1997:14).) around which Völsung's hall is built. The disguised Odin announces that the man who can remove the sword will have it as a gift. Only Sigmund is able to free the sword from the tree. Siggeir is smitten with envy and desire for the sword. He tries to buy it but Sigmund refuses. Siggeir invites ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garmr
In Norse mythology, Garmr or Garm (Old Norse: ) is a wolf or dog associated with both Hel (being), Hel and Ragnarök, and described as a blood-stained guardian of Hel (location), Hel's gate. Name The etymology of the name ''Garmr'' remains uncertain. Bruce Lincoln brings together Garmr and the Greek mythology, Greek mythological dog Cerberus, relating both names to a Proto-Indo-European root ''*ger-'' "to growl" (perhaps with the suffixes ''-*m/*b'' and ''-*r''). However, Daniel Ogden notes that this analysis actually requires ''Cerberus'' and ''Garmr'' to be derived from two ''different'' Indo-European roots (*''ger-'' and *''gher-'' respectively), and in this opinion does not establish a relationship between the two names. Attestations ''Poetic Edda'' The ''Poetic Edda'' poem ''Grímnismál'' mentions Garmr: The best of trees , must Yggdrasil be, Skíðblaðnir best of boats; Of all the gods , is Odin, Óðinn the greatest, And Sleipnir the best of steeds; Bifröst of brid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Narsil
The weapons and armour of Middle-earth are all those mentioned J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy writings, such as ''The Hobbit'', ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Silmarillion''. Tolkien modelled his fictional warfare on the Ancient and Early Medieval periods of history. His depiction of weapons and armour particularly reflect Northern European culture as seen in ''Beowulf'' and the Norse sagas. Tolkien established this relationship in '' The Fall of Gondolin'', the first story in '' his legendarium'' to be written. In this story, the Elves of Gondolin use the mail armour, swords, shields, spears, axes and bows of Northern European warfare. In Tolkien's writings, such Medieval weapons and armour are used by his fictional races, including Elves, Dwarves, Men, Hobbits, and Orcs. As in his sources, Tolkien's characters often gave names to their weapons, sometimes with runic inscriptions to show they are magical and have their own history and power. Terminology ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fáfnir
In Germanic heroic legend and Germanic folklore, folklore, Fáfnir is a Germanic dragon, worm or dragon slain by a member of the Völsung family, typically Sigurð. In Nordic mythology, he is the son of Hreiðmarr, and brother of Regin and Ótr and is attested throughout the Völsung Cycle, where, Fáfnir slays his father out of greed, taking the Andvaranaut, ring and hoard of the Dwarf (folklore), dwarf Andvari and becoming a worm or dragon. Fáfnir's brother Regin later assisted Sigurð in obtaining the sword Gram (mythology), Gram, by which Fáfnir is killed. He has been identified with an unnamed dragon killed by a Völsung in other Germanic works including Beowulf, the Nibelunglied and a number of skaldic poems. Fáfnir and his killing by Sigurð are further represented in numerous medieval carvings from the British Isles and Scandinavia, and a single axe head in a Scandinavian style found in Russia. The story of Fáfnir has continued to have influence in the modern period, s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hjördís
Hjördís or Hiordis in Norse mythology is the wife of Sigmund, and the mother of Sigurd. Her father was a king named Eylimi. She is mentioned in the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda The ''Prose Edda'', also known as the ''Younger Edda'', ''Snorri's Edda'' () or, historically, simply as ''Edda'', is an Old Norse textbook written in Iceland during the early 13th century. The work is often considered to have been to some exten .... It is also a female given name in Scandinavia, as Hjördis in Sweden and Iceland, and Hjørdis in Denmark and Norway, but has recently gained popularity as a female given name in Germany as Jördis. As a given name * Hjördis Piuva Andersson, Swedish-Tornedalian painter and writer * Hjördis "Disa" Eythorsdottir, Iceland-born American bridge player * Hjørdis Høsøien, Norwegian handball player * Hjördis Levin (born 1930), Swedish historian and author * Hjördis Nordin, Swedish gymnast and Olympic champion * Hjördis Petterson, Swedish actress ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinfjötli
Sinfjötli ( ) or Fitela (in Old English) in Norse mythology was born out of the incestuous relationship between Sigmund and his sister Signy. He had the half-brothers Sigurd, Helgi Hundingsbane and Hamund. Etymology and orthography ''Sinfjǫtli'' is formed from two parts, ''sin-'', and ''fjǫtli''. The latter is cognate with the Old English ''Fitela''. In the standardized Old Norse orthography, the name is spelled ''Sinfjǫtli'', but the letter ' ǫ' is frequently replaced with the Modern Icelandic ö for reasons of familiarity or technical expediency. Life In ''Beowulf'', Fitela is the nephew of Sigmund, whereas the ''Völsunga saga'' describes him as both Sigmund's son and nephew due to incest. In the ''Völsunga saga'', Sinfjǫtli is the grandson of King Völsung. Signý, King Völsung's daughter, despises her husband King Siggeir, and begs "that she may not be made to return to King Siggeir." Völsung denies her request to leave, reminding her of the commitment thei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siggeir
Siggeir is the king of Gautland (i.e. Götaland/Geatland, but in some translations also rendered as ''Gothland''), in the ''Völsunga saga''. In ''Skáldskaparmál'' he is given as a Sikling and a relative of Sigar who killed the hero Hagbard. '' Hversu Noregr byggðist'' specifies that the last Sigar was Siggeir's nephew. According to the ''Völsunga saga'', Siggeir married Signy, the sister of Sigmund and the daughter of King Völsung. Although Völsung agreed to the marriage, Signy herself was unwilling. At the banquet Odin appears in disguise wearing a cape and a hood and sticks a sword in the tree Branstock. Then he said that whoever managed to pull the sword out could keep it. Siggeir and everyone else tried but only Sigmund succeeded. Siggeir generously offered three times the sword's value, but Sigmund mockingly refused. Siggeir was offended and went home the next day thinking of revenge. Siggeir invites Sigmund, his father Völsung and Sigmund's nine brothers to a visi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Odin
Odin (; from ) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Empire's partial occupation of Germania ( BCE), the Migration Period (4th–6th centuries CE) and the Viking Age (8th–11th centuries CE). Consequently, Odin has hundreds of names and titles. Several of these stem from the reconstructed Proto-Germanic theonym ''Wōðanaz'', meaning "lord of frenzy" or "leader of the possessed", which may relate to the god's strong association with poetry. Most mythological stories about Odin survive from the 13th-century ''Prose Edda'' and an earlier collection of Old Norse poems, the ''Poetic Edda'', along with other Old Norse items like '' Ynglinga saga''. The ''Prose Edda'' and other sources depict Odin as the head of the pantheon, sometimes called the Æsir, and bearing a spear and a ring. Wid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Signy
Signy or Signe (, sometimes known as ) is the name of two heroines in two connected legends from Norse mythology which were very popular in medieval Scandinavia. Both appear in the Völsunga saga, which was adapted into other works such as Wagner's 'Ring' cycle, including its famous opera ''Die Walküre''. Signy is also the name of two characters in several other sagas. The first Signy is the daughter of King Völsung. She was married to the villainous Geatish king Siggeir who has her whole family treacherously murdered, except for her brother Sigmund. She saves her brother, has an incestuous affair with him and bears the son Sinfjötli. She burnt herself to death with her hated husband. The second Signy is the daughter of King Siggeir's nephew Sigar. She fell in love with the Sea-King Hagbard, and promised him that she would not live if he died. They were discovered and Hagbard was sentenced to be hanged. Hagbard managed to signal this to Signy who set her house on fire a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
