|
Einherjar
In Norse mythology, the einherjar (singular einheri; literally "army of one", "those who fight alone")Simek, Rudolf (1993). ''Dictionary of Northern Mythology''. Translated by Angela Hall. p. 71.Orchard (1997:36) and Lindow (2001:104). are those who have died in battle and are brought to Valhalla by valkyries. In Valhalla, the einherjar eat their fill of the nightly resurrecting beast Sæhrímnir, and valkyries bring them mead from the udder of the goat Heiðrún. The einherjar prepare daily for the events of Ragnarök, when they will advance for an immense battle at the field of Vígríðr. The einherjar are attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, the ''Prose Edda'', written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson, the poem '' Hákonarmál'' (by the 10th century skald Eyvindr skáldaspillir) as collected in '' Heimskringla'', and a stanza of an anonymous 10th century poem commemorating the death of Eric Bloodaxe known as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valkyrie
In Norse mythology, a valkyrie ( or ; from ) is one of a host of female figures who guide souls of the dead to the god Odin's hall Valhalla. There, the deceased warriors become ('single fighters' or 'once fighters').Orchard (1997:36) and Lindow (2001:104). When the are not preparing for the cataclysmic events of Ragnarök, the valkyries bear them mead. Valkyries also appear as lovers of heroes and other mortals, where they are sometimes described as the daughters of royalty, sometimes accompanied by ravens and sometimes connected to swans or horses. Valkyries are attested in the ''Poetic Edda'' (a book of poems compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources), the ''Prose Edda'', the (both by Snorri Sturluson) and the (one of the Sagas of Icelanders), all written—or compiled—in the 13th century. They appear throughout the poetry of skalds, in a 14th-century magical formula, charm, and in various runic inscriptions. The Old English cognate term appears ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harii
The Harii (West Germanic "warriors")Simek (2007:132). were, according to a single brief remark by the 1st century CE Roman historian Tacitus, a Germanic people; the most powerful of the Lugian group of states ('' civitates''), who in turn dominated a large part of the Suebian part of Germania in an area north of the Sudeten and Carpathian Mountains, in the region of present day Poland and eastern Germany. In his work ''Germania'', Tacitus says the Harii used black shields and painted their bodies black (''nigra scuta, tincta corpora''), attacking at night as a shadowy army, much to the terror of their opponents. Theories have been proposed connecting the Harii to the einherjar, ghostly warriors in service to the god Odin, attested much later among the North Germanic peoples by way of Norse mythology, and to the tradition of the Wild Hunt, a procession of the dead through the winter night sky sometimes led by Odin. ''Germania'' Regarding the Harii, Tacitus writes in ''Germania' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sæhrímnir
In Norse mythology, Sæhrímnir is the creature killed and eaten every night by the Æsir and einherjar. The cook of the gods, Andhrímnir, is responsible for the slaughter of Sæhrímnir and its preparation in the cauldron Eldhrímnir. After Sæhrímnir is eaten, the beast is brought back to life again to provide sustenance for the following day. Sæhrímnir is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material, and the ''Prose Edda'', written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. The enthroned figure of High quotes this stanza in the ''Prose Edda'' book ''Gylfaginning'' and specifically states that Sæhrímnir is a boar. However, some scholars have translated the ''Poetic Edda'' attestation, which the ''Prose Edda'' attestation quotes, as not referring to the creature as any specific type. Those scholars who recognize a difference in the taxonomy of the creature between the two sources have commented on the matter, further issues ... [...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] |
Heiðrún
Heiðrún or Heidrun is a nanny goat in Norse mythology, that consumes the foliage of the tree Læraðr and produces mead from her udders for the einherjar. She is described in the ''Poetic Edda'' and ''Prose Edda''. Etymology The etymology of ''Heiðrún'' remains debatable.Liberman (2016:337–346). Anatoly Liberman suggests that ''Heiðþyrnir'', the name of the lowest heaven in Scandinavian mythology (from ''heið'' "bright sky"), was cut into two, and on the basis of those halves the names the heavenly goat ''Heiðrún'' and of the heavenly stag Eikþyrnir were formed (the element ''rún ~ run'' concealed several puns, but it is a common suffix of female names).Liberman (2016:345). The etymology of the New High German name ''Heidrun'' is also debatable. Heiðrún's name is sometimes anglicized ''Heidrun'', ''Heidhrun'', ''Heithrun'', ''Heidrún'', ''Heithrún'' or ''Heidhrún''. ''Prose Edda'' ''Poetic Edda'' In the ''Poetic Edda'' Heiðrún is mentioned twice. She ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valhalla
In Norse mythology, Valhalla ( , ; , )Orchard (1997:171–172) is described as a majestic hall located in Asgard and presided over by the god Odin. There were five possible realms the soul could travel to after death. The first was Fólkvangr, ruled by the goddess Freyja. The second was Hel, ruled by Hel, Loki's daughter. The third was that of the goddess Rán. The fourth was the Burial Mound where the dead could live. The fifth and last realm was Valhalla, ruled by Odin and was called the Hall of Heroes. The masses of those killed in combat (known as the einherjar), along with various legendary Germanic heroes and kings, live in Valhalla until Ragnarök, when they will march out of its many doors to fight in aid of Odin against the jötnar. Valhalla was idealized in Viking culture and gave the Scandinavians a widespread cultural belief that there is nothing more glorious than death in battle. The belief in a Viking paradise and eternal life in Valhalla with Odin may hav ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vígríðr
In Norse mythology, Vígríðr or Óskópnir is a large field foretold to host a battle between the forces of the Æsir, gods and the forces of Surtr as part of the events of Ragnarök. The field is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material, and in the ''Prose Edda'', written by Snorri Sturluson in the 13th century. The ''Poetic Edda'' briefly mentions the field as where the two forces will battle, whereas the ''Prose Edda'' features a fuller account, foretelling that it is the location of the future death of several deities (and their enemies) before the world is engulfed in flames and reborn. Etymology The Old Norse place name ''Vígríðr'' means "battle-surge" or "place on which battle surges".For "battle-surge", see Orchard (1997:175). For "place on which battle surges", see Simek (2007:361). The name ''Vígríðr'' is sometimes modernly anglicized as Vigrid, Vigrith,For ''Vigrid'', see Orchard (1997:175). For ''Vigrith'', ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Germanic People
The Germanic peoples were tribal groups who lived in Northern Europe in Classical antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. In modern scholarship, they typically include not only the Roman-era ''Germani'' who lived in both ''Germania'' and parts of the Roman Empire, but also all Germanic speaking peoples from this era, irrespective of where they lived, most notably the Goths. Another term, ancient Germans, is considered problematic by many scholars since it suggests identity with present-day Germans. Although the first Roman descriptions of ''Germani'' involved tribes west of the Rhine, their homeland of ''Germania'' was portrayed as stretching east of the Rhine, to southern Scandinavia and the Vistula in the east, and to the upper Danube in the south. Other Germanic speakers, such as the Bastarnae and Goths, lived further east in what is now Moldova and Ukraine. The term ''Germani ''is generally only used to refer to historical peoples from the 1st to 4th centuries CE. Different ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hjaðningavíg
Hjaðningavíg (the 'battle of the Heodenings'), the ''legend of Heðinn and Hǫgni'' or the ''Saga of Hild'' is a Germanic heroic legend about a never-ending battle which is documented in ''Sörla þáttr'', ''Ragnarsdrápa'', ''Gesta Danorum'', ''Skíðaríma'' and in ''Skáldskaparmál''. It is also held to appear on the image stone at Stora Hammar on Gotland (see illustration). Moreover, it is alluded to in the Old English poems ''Deor'' and ''Widsið'', and in the Old Norse ''Háttalykill inn forni'', and a version of it survived down to the 18th century in the traditional Norn language ballad "Hildina". An altered version of the saga is found in the Middle High German poem ''Kudrun'', as a prologue to the story of Kudrun herself. Yet another version is found in the Old Yiddish ''Dukus Horant''. Like the names ''Heðinn'' (Old English language, O.E. ''Heoden'') and ''Haguna, Hǫgni'' (O.E. ''Hagena''), the legend is believed to have continental Germanic origins. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
