Gillingr (
Old Norse
Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was 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 ...
: ; also Gilling) is a
jötunn
A (also jotun; plural ; in the normalised scholarly spelling of Old Norse, ; or, in Old English, , plural ) is a type of being in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, are often contrasted with gods (the Æsir and Vanir) and with other no ...
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 as the Nordic folklore of the modern period. The ...
, and the father of
Suttungr. Gillingr and, later, his wife are murdered by the dwarfs
Fjalar and Galar. In revenge, his son Suttungr tortures the dwarfs into giving him the
mead of poetry
In Norse mythology, the Poetic Mead or Mead of Poetry, also known as Mead of Suttungr, is a mythical beverage that whoever "drinks becomes a skald or scholar" able to recite any information and solve any question. This myth was reported by Snorri ...
.
Name
The
Old Norse
Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was 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 ...
name ''Gillingr'' has been translated as 'screamer'. It is a related to the Old Norse verb ''gjalla'' ('to scream, yell'; compare with
Icelandic ''gjalla'',
Norwegian ''gjella'', or
Swedish ''gälla'').
Attestations
Prose Edda
In ''
Skáldskaparmál
''Skáldskaparmál'' (Old Norse: 'Poetic Diction' or 'The Language of Poetry'; ; ) is the second part of the ''Prose Edda'', compiled by Snorri Sturluson. It consists of a dialogue between Ægir, the divine personification of the sea, and Bra ...
'' (The Language of Poetry), the dwarfs
Fjalar and Galar kill Gillingr by overturning his boat. When his wife hears of the news, she is "greatly distressed" and "weeps loudly" and the dwarf Galar, "weary of her howling", eventually kills her by dropping a millstone on her head.
Viking Age
Gillingr is mentioned in a skaldic verse by
Eyvindr skáldaspillir (10th c. AD), who portrays the mead of poetry as "Gilling’s compensation".
Legacy
Gillingr is also a surname, although not very common.
References
Bibliography
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{{Norse mythology
Jötnar