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Níðhöggr
(, , , "Malice Biter/Striker"?), often anglicized Nidhogg, is a Germanic dragon in Norse mythology who is said to gnaw at the roots of the world tree, Yggdrasil, and is likewise associated with the dead in Hel and Niflheim. Etymology While the suffix of the name, ''-höggr'', literally "hewer", clearly means "biter, striker", etc, the prefix is not as clear. In particular, the length of the first vowel is not determined in the original sources. Some scholars prefer the reading "Striker in the Dark". In historical Viking society, níð was a term for a social stigma, implying the loss of honor and the status of a villain. Thus, its name might refer to its role as a horrific monster in its action of chewing the corpses of the inhabitants of Niflheim: those guilty of murder, adultery, and oath-breaking, thus something akin to "Malice Biter". Orthography In the standardized Old Norse orthography, the name is spelled ', but the letter ' is frequently replaced with the Mod ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yggdrasil
Yggdrasil () is an immense and central sacred tree in Norse cosmology. Around it exists all else, including the Nine Worlds. Yggdrasil is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'' compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and in the ''Prose Edda'' compiled in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In both sources, Yggdrasil is an immense ash tree that is central to the cosmos and considered very holy. The gods go to Yggdrasil daily to assemble at their traditional governing assemblies. The branches of Yggdrasil extend far into the heavens, and the tree is supported by three roots that extend far away into other locations; one to the well Urðarbrunnr in the heavens, one to the spring Hvergelmir, and another to the well Mímisbrunnr. Creatures live within Yggdrasil, including the dragon Níðhöggr, the squirrel Ratatoskr, the hawk Veðrfölnir, and the stags Dáinn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Duraþrór. Scholars generally consider '' Hoddmímis holt'', '' Mímam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Germanic Dragon
Worm, wurm or wyrm (, , ''ormr'', ), meaning serpent, are archaic terms for dragons (, , ) in the wider Germanic mythology and folklore, in which they are often portrayed as large venomous snakes and hoarders of gold. Especially in later tales, however, they share many common features with other dragons in European mythology, such as having wings. Prominent worms attested in medieval Germanic works include the dragon that killed Beowulf, the central dragon in the Völsung Cycle – Fáfnir, Níðhöggr, and the great sea serpent, Jǫrmungandr, including subcategories such as lindworms and sea serpents. Origin, appearance and terminology Etymology In early depictions, as with dragons in other cultures, the distinction between Germanic dragons and regular snakes is blurred, with both being referred to as: "worm" (, , , ), "snake" (, , , ), "adder" (, , ), and more, in writing; all being old Germanic synonyms for serpent and thereof (compare the English names for the co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ratatoskr
In Norse mythology, Ratatoskr (Old Norse, generally considered to mean "drill-tooth"Orchard (1997:129), Simek (2007:261), and Byock (2005:173). or "bore-tooth"Lindow (2001:259).) is a squirrel who runs up and down the world tree Yggdrasil to carry messages between the eagles perched atop it and the serpent Níðhöggr who dwells beneath one of the three roots of the tree. Ratatoskr is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the ''Prose Edda'', written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. Etymology The name ''Ratatoskr'' contains two elements: ''rata-'' and ''-toskr''. The element ''toskr'' is generally held to mean "tusk". Guðbrandur Vigfússon theorized that the ''rati-'' element means "the traveller". He says that the name of the legendary drill Rati may feature the same term. According to Vigfússon, ''Ratatoskr'' means "tusk the traveller" or "the climber tusk."Guðbrandur (1874:483). Sophus Bugge theorized t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Náströnd
In Norse mythology, Náströnd ("Corpse Shore") is a place in Hel where Níðhöggr devours the dead souls of the dishonorable. It is the afterlife for those guilty of murder, and severe oath-breaking. Orthography In the standardized Old Norse orthography, the name was spelled ''Nástrǫnd'', which in 11th century Old West Norse was pronounced . In Modern Icelandic the letter ' ǫ' is replaced by ö, and Náströnd is pronounced . ''Poetic Edda'' The ''Völuspá'' says: ''Prose Edda'' Snorri Sturluson quotes this part of Völuspá in the ''Gylfaginning'' section of his Prose Edda. He uses the plural of the word: Nástrandir (''Corpse Shores''). See also *Hel (being) *Hel (realm) *Niflheim * Niflhel * Niðafjöll References * Brodeur, Arthur Gilchrist (transl.) (1916). ''The Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson''. New York: The American-Scandinavian Foundation The American-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF) is an American non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting internatio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Veðrfölnir And Eagle
In Norse mythology, Veðrfölnir (Old Norse "storm pale",Lindow (2001:312). "wind bleached",Byock (2005:26). or "wind-witherer"Orchard (1997:174).) is a hawk sitting between the eyes of an unnamed eagle that is perched on top of the world tree Yggdrasil. ''Veðrfölnir'' is sometimes modernly Anglicisation (linguistics), anglicized as Vedrfolnir, Vedurfolnir or Vetrfolnir. The unnamed eagle is attested in both the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the ''Prose Edda'', written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson, while Veðrfölnir is solely attested in the ''Prose Edda''. In both the ''Poetic Edda'' and the ''Prose Edda'', the squirrel Ratatoskr carries messages between the unnamed eagle and Nidhöggr, the Germanic dragon, worm that resides below the world tree. Scholars have proposed theories about the implications of the birds. Attestations In the ''Poetic Edda'' poem ''Grímnismál'', the god Odin (disguised as ''List of nam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Niflheimr
In Norse cosmology, Niflheim or Niflheimr (Old Norse: ; "World of Mist", literally "Home of Mist") is a location which sometimes overlaps with the notions of Niflhel and Hel (location), Hel. The name ''Niflheimr'' appears only in two extant sources: ''Gylfaginning'' and the much-debated ''Hrafnagaldr Óðins''. Niflheim was primarily a realm of primordial ice and cold, with the frozen rivers of Élivágar and the well of Hvergelmir, from which come all the rivers. According to ''Gylfaginning'', Niflheim was the first of the two primordial realms to emanate out of Ginnungagap, the other one being Muspelheim, the realm of fire. Between these two realms of cold and heat, creation began when its waters mixed with the heat of Muspelheim to form a "creating steam". Later, it became the abode of Hel (being), Hel, a goddess daughter of Loki, and the afterlife for her subjects, those who did not die a heroic or notable death. Etymology ''Nifl'' ("mist"; whence the Icelandic language, I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Niflheim
In Norse cosmology, Niflheim or Niflheimr (Old Norse: ; "World of Mist", literally "Home of Mist") is a location which sometimes overlaps with the notions of Niflhel and Hel. The name ''Niflheimr'' appears only in two extant sources: ''Gylfaginning'' and the much-debated ''Hrafnagaldr Óðins''. Niflheim was primarily a realm of primordial ice and cold, with the frozen rivers of Élivágar and the well of Hvergelmir, from which come all the rivers. According to ''Gylfaginning'', Niflheim was the first of the two primordial realms to emanate out of Ginnungagap, the other one being Muspelheim, the realm of fire. Between these two realms of cold and heat, creation began when its waters mixed with the heat of Muspelheim to form a "creating steam". Later, it became the abode of Hel, a goddess daughter of Loki, and the afterlife for her subjects, those who did not die a heroic or notable death. Etymology ''Nifl'' ("mist"; whence the Icelandic '' nifl'') is a cognate to the O ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old Norse Orthography
The orthography of the Old Norse language was diverse, being written in both Runes, Runic and Latin alphabet, Latin alphabets, with many spelling conventions, variant letterforms, and unique letters and signs. In modern times, scholars established a standardized spelling for the language. When Old Norse names are used in texts in other languages, modifications to this spelling are often made. In particular, the names of Norse mythology, Old Norse mythological figures often have several different spellings. The first appearance of an ancestral stage of Old Norse in a written runic form dates back to (with the Øvre Stabu spearhead traditionally dated to the late 2nd century), at this time still showing an archaic language form (similar to reconstructed Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic) termed Proto-Norse language, Proto-Norse. Old Norse proper appears by . While there are remains of Viking runestones from the Viking Age, today they are rare, and vary in the use of orthograph ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 extent written, or at least compiled, by the Icelandic scholar, lawspeaker, and historian Snorri Sturluson 1220. It is considered the fullest and most detailed source for modern knowledge of Norse mythology, the body of myths of the North Germanic peoples, and draws from a wide variety of sources, including versions of poems that survive into today in a collection known as the ''Poetic Edda''. The ''Prose Edda'' consists of four sections: The Prologue (Prose Edda), Prologue, a euhemerism, euhemerized account of the Norse gods; ''Gylfaginning'', which provides a question and answer format that details aspects of Norse mythology (consisting of approximately 20,000 words), ''Skáldskaparmál'', which continues this format before providing lists o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eddic Poem
The ''Poetic Edda'' is the modern name for an untitled collection of Old Norse anonymous narrative poems in alliterative verse. It is distinct from the closely related ''Prose Edda'', although both works are seminal to the study of Old Norse poetry. Several versions of the ''Poetic Edda'' exist; especially notable is the medieval Icelandic manuscript ''Codex Regius'', which contains 31 poems. Composition The ''Eddic poems'' are composed in alliterative verse. Most are in ''fornyrðislag'' ("old story metre"), while ''málaháttr'' ("speech form") is a common variation. The rest, about a quarter, are composed in ''ljóðaháttr'' ("song form"). The language of the poems is usually clear and relatively unadorned. Kennings are often employed, though they do not arise as frequently, nor are they as complex, as those found in typical skaldic poetry. Authorship Like most early poetry, the Eddic poems were minstrel poems, passed orally from singer to singer and from poet to poet for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
