(

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

: , "strength"),Lindow (2001:291). sometimes anglicized as Thrúd or Thrud, is a daughter of the major

god In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing ...

and the goddess Sif in

Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern peri ...

. Þrúðr is also the name of one of the valkyries who serve ale to the einherjar in Valhalla (''

Grímnismál ''Grímnismál'' (Old Norse: ; 'The Lay of Grímnir') is one of the mythological poems of the '' Poetic Edda''. It is preserved in the Codex Regius manuscript and the AM 748 I 4to fragment. It is spoken through the voice of ''Grímnir'', one o ...

'', stanza 36). The two may or may not be the same figure.

Attestations

Þrúðr is attested in the following sources: Hild, Thrud and Hløkk by Frølich

''Poetic Edda''

The '' Poetic Edda'' poem '' Alvíssmál'', in which a dwarf, Alvíss, claims to be engaged to Thor's daughter, may be about Þrúðr, but the daughter is not named.

''Prose Edda''

The '' Prose Edda'' book ''

Skáldskaparmál ''Skáldskaparmál'' (Old Norse: 'The Language of Poetry'; c. 50,000 words; ; ) is the second part of the '' Prose Edda''. The section consists of a dialogue between Ægir, the divine personification of the sea, and Bragi, the god of poetry, ...

'' (4) tells that Thor can be referred to by the

kenning A kenning ( Icelandic: ) is a figure of speech in the type of circumlocution, a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun. Kennings are strongly associated with Old Norse-Icelandic and Old English ...

"father of Þrúðr" (''faðir Þrúðar''). Eysteinn Valdason uses it in his poem about Thor (2). The ''Skáldskaparmál'' (21) adds that her mother is Sif. In Bragi Boddason's '' Ragnarsdrápa'', the jötunn

Hrungnir Hrungnir (Old Norse: , 'brawler') is a jötunn in Norse mythology. He is described as made of stone and is ultimately killed in a duel with the thunder god Thor. Prior to his demise, Hrungnir engaged in a wager with Odin in which Odin stakes h ...

is called "thief of Þrúðr" (''Þrúðar þjófr''). But there is no direct reference to this myth in any other source. ''Skáldskaparmál'' (17), in which Snorri relates the fight between Thor and Hrungnir, mentions a very different cause, and Þjóðólfr of Hvinir's ''

Haustlöng ''Haustlǫng'' (Old Norse: 'Autumn-long'; anglicized as ''Haustlöng'') is a skaldic poem composed around the beginning of the 10th century by the Norwegian skald Þjóðólfr of Hvinir. The poem has been preserved in the 13th-century '' Prose ...

'' only describes the fight without giving the reason for it. This poem depicts two mythological scenes painted on a shield, the first being Iðunn's abduction by the giant Þjazi. Margaret Clunies Ross suggested that the two episodes might be complementary, both dealing with the abduction of a goddess by a giant, its failure and the death of the abductor.Clunies Ross 1994, p. 114. Another kenning may allude to this myth: in Eilífr Goðrúnarson's '' Þórsdrápa'' (18), Thor is called "he who longs fiercely for Þrúðr" (''þrámóðnir Þrúðar'').

Karlevi Runestone

Þrúðr is mentioned on the 10th-century Karlevi runestone on the island of

Öland Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area ...

, Sweden, where a chieftain is referred to as the "tree of Þrúðr".Entry Öl 1 in Rundata 2.0 for Windows.

Kennings

The name Þrúðr could be used in kennings for chieftains, as exemplified on the Karlevi Runestone. The name is also used in kennings for women. For instance, Ormr Steinþórsson in his poem about a woman (4) uses the kenning ''hrosta lúðrs gæi-Þrúðr'', which, according to Anthony Faulkes, can be rendered "keeper of the malt-box (mash-tub) or ale-vessel".Faulkes 1998, p. 297.

Notes

References

* Clunies Ross, Margaret (1994). ''Prolonged Echoes. Old Norse Myths in medieval Northern Society. Vol. 1: The myths.'' Odense: Odense University Press. The Viking Collection; vol. 7. . * Faulkes, Anthony (1998), edition of: Snorri Sturluson. ''Edda. Skáldskaparmál. 2. Glossary and Index of Names.'' London: Viking Society for Northern Research. . * Lindow, John (2001).
Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs
'.

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

. . * Rundata 2.0 for Windows. * Simek, Rudolf (1987). ''Dictionary of Northern Mythology''. Translated by Angela Hall. Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 1996. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Thrudr Valkyries Ásynjur