NORSE MYTHOLOGY

Norse mythology • The religion of the Scandinavian regions, pre-Christianity.

These tales are important, as they come from the Anglo-Saxons, the originators of the English language. Their stories followed them to England.

• There are nine separate worlds, each one being the home of a different race: the gods’ home Asgard, the humans’ home Midgard, the giants’ home Jötunheimr, etc.

• (The races and many of

the terms used in Lord of

the Rings come from Norse

mythology.)

Yggsdrasil – the World Tree

The nine realms are:Humans – Midgard

Asgardian Gods – Asgard

Vanir Gods – Vanaheim

Ice Giants – Jotunheim

Elves – Alfheim

Dark Elves – Svartalfheim

Dwarves – Nidavellir

Demons – Muspelheim

the Dead – Hel

Odin• Chief of the gods

• Father of Thor, Balder, and other gods

• Odin pierces himself with a spear and hangs on Yggdrasil for 9 days and nights to learn the secret knowledge of runes

• Has one eye because he traded it for a drink from the spring of ALL KNOWING

His two ravens are called Huginn and Muninn (Thought and Memory)

Valkyries and Valhalla• Valkyries are female spirit

warriors who ride the battlefields and find worthy slain warriors to take to Valhalla where they will train until Ragnarok.

• The northern lights are light shining off of their shields

• Valhalla is the Hall of the Slain. It exists in Asgard, and every night all these heroes gather together to drink and make merriment.

Thor• God of thunder and lightning

• Mjolnir (the destroyer) – an ax-hammer that can destroy giants and mountains in a single blow

• Has a chariot pulled by two goats. He can kill these goats and eat them and they will come back to life.

• Is constantly fighting the World Serpent – Jormungand

• He is capable of drinking an ocean

Balder

• “The Beautiful”

and“The Fair”

• All objects on Earth have

sworn not to hurt him

• Primarily known for his death and resurrection – his

death is the first event that leads to Ragnarok

• The favorite child of the Asgardians

Frigga

• Mother Goddess

• Wife of Odin

• Weaves clouds

• She knows events in the present and future, but is powerless to change them

Loki• God of mischief and fire

• Trickster - can shape-change and do magic

• Giants for parents – sometimes he helps Thor and the other Asgardians, sometimes he’s their enemy.

• Responsible for Balder’s death and severely punished for it

• Jormungand (World Serpent), Hel (Ruler of the Underworld), and Fenrir (Massive Wolf) are his children

• Will begin Ragnorak

…and he gives birth to an eight-legged horse.

Freyr and Freyja• Twins

• God and Goddess of fertility

• Gods who reign in Midgard (on Earth with mankind)

• She leads the Valkyries, he has a sword that can fight on its own.

Heimdall

• “World Brightener”

• God of the dawn

• Great hearing (can hear grass grow) and eyesight

• Is the look out on Bifrost (the rainbow bridge to Asgard)

Hel• Daughter of Loki

• Giantess

• Goddess of death and the underworld

• Half black/ half white

• Her face and body are human but the legs are of a corpse

• Spread the plague with a rake or a broom