Norse Mythology Flashcards
Use this deck to get acquainted with the study of myths told in medieval Scandinavia. Although much of Nordic folklore comes from pre-Christian times, many aspects have survived to the present. Know your Vikings.
What is the Poetic Edda?
A collection of Old Norse poems
- One of the two major sources of Norse mythology
- Preserved in a medieval manuscript called Codex Regius
- Written earlier than the Prose Edda, but discovered later
What is the Prose Edda?
A collection of writings authored and/or compiled by Snorri Sturluson around 1220 A.D.
- One of the two major sources of Norse mythology
- Quotes the Poetic Edda, which was discovered later
Who are the Aesir?
The main group of gods in Norse mythology
- Usually associated with themes of power and war
- Waged a war with the Vanir
Who are the Vanir?
A less important group of gods in Norse mythology
- Less commonly discussed and worshipped than the Aesir, but still important
- Usually associated with agriculture and fertility
- Waged a war with the Aesir
Who are the jotnar?
The race of giants in Norse mythology
- Singular: jotunn
- Often enemies of the Aesir and Vanir, but not always
- Their homeworld is Jotunheim
- The very first being created, Ymir, was a jotunn
Briefly outline the Norse creation myth.
- In the beginning, there was only the land of ice (Niflheim) and the land of fire (Muspelheim)
- Between them, a frost giant named Ymir was born
- Ymir gave rise to more giants, all of whom were nursed by the giant cow Audumbla
- Audumbla fed herself on the frost and salt from the ice
- From her giant salt link emerged the first god, Buri
- The gods killed the giants and used their bodies to create the world, filling the space between Niflheim and Muspelheim
What is Asgard?
The homeworld of the Aesir
What is Vanaheimr?
The home world of the Vanir
Who is Odin?
The chief god of the Norse pantheon and the ruler of Asgard
- God of battle, victory, magic, wisdom, poetry
- Married to Frigg (a.k.a. Frigga)
- Father of Baldur, Hod, Thor, and Vidar, among others
- Has only one eye
- Rides an eight-legged horse, Sleipnir
- Sometimes portrayed with a wide-brimmed hat, a cloak, and a wooden staff
What is Valhalla?
Odin’s hall in Asgard
- The afterlife destination of half the heroes who die on the battlefield (the other half go to Folkvangr)
- Here they are trained for the final battle at Ragnarok
Who is Freyja?
Goddess of love, beauty, and fertility
- One of the Vanir
- Has a cloak of falcon feathers and a chariot pulled by two cats
- Resides over the afterlife land of Folkvangr
- Sister of Freyr
What is Folkvangr?
A meadow ruled over by Freyja
- The afterlife destination of half the heroes who die on the battlefield (the other half go to Valhalla)
- Here they are trained for the final battle at Ragnarok
What is Ragnarok?
A series of events that will occur at the end of the world, including a great battle
- Two great wolves will devour the sun and moon
- The gods and jotnar will battle each other, and Odin will be eaten by the wolf Fenrir
- Finally, all nine worlds will collapse in a series of natural disasters
- A new, harmonious world will follow
What is Yggdrasil?
A giant ash tree that connects the nine worlds of Norse cosmology
- These include Asgard, Midgard (the human world), Vanaheimr, Jotunheim, and Hel
- The dragon Nidhoggr gnaws at the roots
- The squirrel Ratatoskr carries messages up and down the tree
- Four deer run across its branches
Who is Frigg/Frigga?
Chief goddess of the Aesir
- Wife of Odin
- Goddess of married women and childbirth
- Mother of Baldr
- Has the power of prophecy, but never reveals what she knows
Who is Thor?
God of thunderstorms, strength, healing, destruction
- Wields the hammer Mjolnir, which has become a symbol of pagan pride
- Red hair and beard
- Battles the Midgard Serpent at Ragnarok
Who is Loki?
The trickster god
- He is a jotunn but is sometimes considered one of the Aesir
- Crafty and malicious
- Often shapeshifts in order to fool others
- Father of Hel, Fenrir, and the Midgard Serpent
Who is Freyr?
God of fertility
- One of the Vanir
- Considered to be the ancestor of the Swedish royal house
- Brother of Freyja
- Rides a boar
Who is Hel?
Goddess who resides over the underworld, which shares her name
- Daughter of Loki
- Appointed by Odin to be ruler of the domain
What is the Midgard Serpent?
A giant sea serpent that encircles the earth
- Also called Jormungandr
- Offspring of Loki
- Odin threw him into the ocean that encircles Midgard (the Earth)
- The serpent then grew big enough to encircle the entire planet and bite his own tail
- Jormungandr and Thor will kill each other at Ragnarok
Who is Fenrir?
A giant wolf
- Offspring of Loki
- Bound by the Aesir with a powerful ribbon
- Will devour Odin at Ragnarok
Who are the Norns?
Female deities who determine the course of events
- The three most important Norns are Urdr, Verdandi, and Skuldr
- However, there are many other unnamed Norns
- Comparable to the Fates in Greco-Roman mythology
