Baugi ( Old Norse: ; "ring-shaped") is a jötunn 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 period ...

. He is brother of

Suttungr In Norse mythology, Suttungr ( ; Old Norse: ) was a ''jötunn'' and the son of Gilling. Mythology Suttungr searched for his parents and threatened the dwarven brothers Fjalar and Galar who had killed them, tying them and some other dwarves wh ...

, the giant from whom

Odin Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered Æsir, god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, v ...

obtained the mead of poetry.

Name

The Old Norse name ''Baugi'' has been translated as 'ring-shaped'.

Attestations

The name of the jötunn Baugi is only mentioned in '' Skáldskaparmál'' (The Language of Poetry) and in the '' þulur'', and is not attested in other poetic texts. It is notably absent from '' Hávamál'' (Words of the High One), which

Snorri Sturluson Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of the ...

used as a source for the story of the mead of poetry. Some scholars have argued that Baugi may have been an invention or a misunderstanding of ''Hávamál'' by Snorri.

Mead of poetry

In '' Skáldskaparmál'',

causes Baugi's nine slaves to kill each other in his quest to obtain the mead of poetry, possessed at that time by Baugi's brother,

. Calling himself

Bölverk Odin (Old Norse Óðinn) is a widely attested god in Germanic mythology. The god is referred to by numerous names and kenningar, particularly in the Old Norse record. List In Old English, Odin was known as ; in Old Saxon, as ; and in Old High ...

('Evil-deed' or 'Evil worker'), Odin then offers to do the labour of all nine men for Baugi as a reparation for his wrongdoings, in exchange of a wage of one drink of the mead of poetry. Baugi accepts to help him acquire it from his brother. After the summer of work is over, Bölverk (Odin) asks for his payment, but Suttungr refuses to give him a single drop of the mead. Bölverk then enlists Baugi's help to dig a hole into the Hnitbjörg mountain with Baugi's drill,

Rati Rati ( sa, रति, ) is the Hinduism, Hindu Devi, goddess of List of love and lust deities, love, carnal desire, lust, passion, and sexual pleasure. Usually described as the daughter of ''Prajapati'' Daksha, Rati is the female counterpart, th ...

, in order to reach the chamber where the mead was kept and watched over by Gunnlöð, Suttung’s daughter. When Baugi announces to him that the tunnel is finished, Bölverk blows into the hole but realizes that the other end is still blocked. As he understands that Baugi is trying to deceive him, Bölverk turns himself into a snake and slips into the hole. Baugi tries to strike at him with his auger but misses.

References

Bibliography

* * {{Norse mythology Jötnar