Where did the Norse come from?
 Nordic Mythology is actually part of oral tradition
stemming from Denmark, Sweden, Norway and
Iceland.
 The Norse invaded the British Isles in the form of the
Vikings, powerful warriors who sailed out of Norway.
 The Vikings came to Britain roughly 793 C.E.
 When the Vikings came to Europe, the roamed the
countryside raping, pillaging and burning.
 Their culture is one of war and destruction, and their
gods reflect this.
The Basics of Nordic Mythology
 All Norse mythology is contained in a series of books
called the EDDAS.
 The Poetic, or Elder, Edda was written between 1000 and
1100 CE
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This work contains the tales of Sigurd and the Creation and
Destruction myths
 The Prose, or Younger, Edda was transcribed in the
1200’s by Snorri Sturluson

It contains information about the Norse deities as well as
instructions on how to become a poet
In the beginning…
 According to the Eddas, two places existed before the
creation of life: Muspelheim, or “World’s End,” and
Niflheim, or “Dark World.”
 Muspelheim was a fiery region to the south
 Niflheim was an arctic region to the north
 Between Muspelheim and Niflheim was a void called
Ginnungagap, where Muspelheim and Niflheim
collide, congeal, and create life.
 The first being created was a frost giant named Ymir,
who was joined by a cow named Audhumla.
And then…
 From Ymir’s armpits are born three beings, and then
the giant Buri is released from Niflheim after
Audhumla licks him free.
 Buri creates two giants, Bor and Bestla, who give birth to
Odin, Ve and Vili
 Odin grows to manhood and slays Ymir and becomes
father of the gods, and creates the earth from Ymir’s
body and the sky from his skull.
 Odin then creates the first humans from logs he finds on
the beach, and names them Ask (ash) and Embla (elm)
The Norse
World
 A giant tree supports the entire
Norse world. It is called
Yggdrasil.
 It has 3 roots:
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One grows to Niflheim
One grows to Asgard, where the
gods live
And one goes to Jotunheim, the
land of the giants.
 The 3 Norn sisters live at the base
of the tree and control past,
present and future
 The Midgard Serpent circles the
base of the tree, gnawing at its
root in the hope it can bring the
tree down.
And in the end…
 The Norse believed the end of the world would come when
the giants decide to attack the gods.
 This great battle would be known as Ragnarok.
 To prepare for Ragnarok, the Valkyries, lead by the goddess
Freya, train the souls of the dead for battle.
 The training is done in a remote location known as Valhalla.
 Ragnarok is the only complete destruction myth. It tells
how the majority of the gods and goddesses will be
destroyed, and the earth itself consumed in flame. One
man and one woman will be saved within Yggdrasil to
restart the human race.
Valhalla
 Hall of the Slain
 A majestic, enormous hall located in Asgard
 Ruled over by Odin
 Half of the dead warriors travel here to prepare to
assist Odin in Ragnarok
 Heaven of the Vikings
 Wounds healed quickly
and meat was readily
available
Gods and Lesser Deities
 In addition to the main
gods, there were two
other major players
within Nordic
mythology:
 The dwarves. They
lived beneath the
mountains and were
skilled craftsmen.
 The Vanir. These were
demi-gods who
controlled the elements
and assisted the
primary gods.
Odin
 Had his palace in Asgard, where
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he kept watch over all the
doings of both god and Man
His two ravens, Hugin and
Munin (thought and memory)
served as his messengers.
Odin’s preferred beverage of
choice was wine, which was
both food and drink.
He is the god of Death, Poetry
and Wisdom
His wife is Frigg.
He lost his eye when he traded it
for a drink from the spring of
clairvoyance.
Germanic spelling of his name
is “Woden” from which we get
“Wednesday.”
Thor
 Tall, strong, red-bearded, good
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natured god
Thor’s hammer had the ability
to be thrown and then come
back to him like a boomerang.
He is Odin’s oldest son.
He is the god of thunder,
lightening and agriculture.
He is the most popular Norse
god.
His name is where “Thursday”
comes from.
Frigg
 Is the Mother-Goddess, and
ruler of the sky and clouds
 She does not live with her
husband, Odin. She lives in
a home of her own where
she weaves the clouds.
 Frigg’s tears are said to be
the berries of the mistletoe,
which killed her son Balder
– When he is restored to
life, she hangs mistletoe and
promises to kiss all who
walk beneath it.
 Her name is the source of
“Friday.”
Freya
 She is a lesser goddess, but her
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importance comes from her
responsibility to train warriors
for Ragnarok.
She is the leader of the
Valkyries.
She is the most beautiful of the
goddesses.
Before the advent of
Christianity, she was known as
the goddess of sexual freedom,
fertility and love.
Has an amber necklace which
grants love to the wearer.
Loki
 Known as the supreme
trickster.
 He causes problems among
the gods, and then takes
delight in being the one who
resolves them.
 He will be the one to trigger
Ragnarok because he is tired
of being mistreated by the
other gods.
 He causes the death of Balder,
which causes the initial fight
between Loki and the rest of
the gods.
Hel
 Hel is Loki’s daughter and
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goddess of the underworld
Odin is the one who puts her
there, and says she will be the
one who presides over those
who die from sickness and
old age.
Norse hell is a freezing river
filled with blocks of ice and
weapons.
She is depicted as half living
and half dead.
It is from her name that the
modern word “hell” comes.
Fenrir
 Will be responsible for the death
of Odin during Ragnarok.
 Is the youngest son of Loki, and
the only one not banished by
Odin.
 He bites off the hand of the god
Tyr when the other gods attempt
to bind him.
 The chain which binds Fenrir is
said to be made from:
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The sound of a cat's footfall
The beard of a woman
The roots of a mountain
The sinews of a bear
The breath of a fish
The spittle of a bird
 Which is why these things no
longer exist!
Works Cited
 Branston, Brian. Gods of the North. New York: Thames
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and Hudson, 1955.
Davis, Kenneth C. Don’t Know Much About Mythology.
New York: Harper Press, 2005.
Hosford, Dorothy. Thunder of the Gods. New York:
Holt, Reinhardt and Winston, 1968.
Polome, Edgar. Germanic Religion and Mythology.
Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. 2009.
<www.history.com>.
“Prinicple Gods of Norse Mythology.” Encyclopedia
Mythica. 24 January 2008.