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I thought I understood the nine realms until recently.

I know of Asgard, Midgard, Jotunheim, Muspelheim, Nifelheim, and Vanaheim though I am unsure of Alfheim, Helheim, Nidavellir, and Svartalfheim.

I heard that Nidavellir is the same as Svartalfheim, different from Svartalfheim, a part of Svartalfheim, and even as mountain range in Nifelheim. So, which is it? Did Snorri make up any of this? Another dwarven hall was mentioned in the same stanza as the mentioning of Nidavellir. And are "Black Elves just dwarves?"

On Alfheim: I've heard it as a part of Asgard but also that when it was mentioned in Asgard, it was referring to the "Elves" and not the realm itself.

On Hel/Helheim, is it a location in Nifelheim or a different realm? And where is Nifelhel, in Hel(heim) or Nifelheim?

And as a final note, does any of you guys know the position of the realms in relation to each other or Midgard? And which realms touched?

Long story short, I was talking about Smite and someone called Skadi a frost giant. It felt weird but I didn’t say anything since she was indeed a jotunn associated with winter

It got me wondering, are all jotunn associated with the cold, or does the term frost giant not apply to all of them?

Side note: I am aware that the term frost giant is bad regardless because jotunn can range in height from normal human to their gloves can be used as a building

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Please ask questions regarding translations of Old Norse, runes, tattoos of runes etc. here. Or do you have a really simple question that you didn't want to create an entire thread for it? Or did you want to ask something, but were afraid to do it because it seemed silly to you? This is the thread for you!

Did you know?

We have a large collection of free resources on language, runes, history and religion here.

Posts regarding translations outside of this thread will be removed.

https://www.brutenorse.com/blog/2017/12/norse-yuletide-sacrifices-had-almost.html

Could Freya make someone fall in love, like Cupid does?

I'm playing Mount & Blade Viking Conquest (which is honestly the best viking representation I've seen in fiction) and I see this guy called Gudrod Ragnarsson, King of Laithlind. I looked up the supposed sons of Ragnar before and they did not include any Gudrod so I thought to myself it was one of the characters they made up to fill the lack of historical characters and our knowledge of them. I then look up the guy and see the name Gofraid of Lochlann. I read about him and see he is the son of "Ragnall son of Gothfraid". That is awful similar to Ragnar but Ragnar's father, as named in the legends, was named Sigurd Ring. But then I looked him up some more and found some websites mentioning that Gudrod may be the same guy as Gofraid.

So if Gudrod is a Ragnarsson, why isn't he mentioned? He isn't mentioned in the Great Heathen army or in Wikipedia as a son of Ragnar. Gofraid did exist but was he in any way related to or was he Gudrod himself? If Gudrod isn't real then where did his existence even come from? I could just barely find anything about Gudrod but Gofraid was more plentiful, however no single article mentioned both of them in it.

Hello! I've been interested in researching all things old Norse lately, and considering many things related have gotten muddied and buried by misinformation online, I figured books would be the way to go.

I'm looking for essentially everything you could think of, Norse paganism, history, language, culture, traditions, war, clothing, runes, music; the whole shebang. Anything specifically relating to Sweden would be especially helpful, thank you!

I am analyzing this illustration of John Bauer. I believe it was first presented in an illustrated edition of Viktor Rydberg's Fädernas gudasaga. I read through a scanned version of the book (see link in comment), but it does not include the illustrations. I think it goes with the chapter "Od-Svipdag och Fröja", which must be based on the poem Svipdagsmál.

I wonder if someone can elaborate on why Freya acts the way she does in the story? My Swedish Isn't that great, but I understand that she refuses to look at Svipdag after being rescued? Is she shy? Is she playing hard to get?

And why did they sleep with a sword between them? Was that the best way of ensuring Freya returned untouched to Asgard? And what happened after she returned to Asgard? Did they marry but not stay together?

https://preview.redd.it/t6gh4clv4c3e1.jpg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cb8d23a754381d3d83ba515ddb9ea8403a26a5a7

Hi there, I'm new to this sub reddit and was wondering if anyone had more info on Andhrímnir? From a quick search he was the cook of the gods and served up a boar that was resurrected and killed daily.

Question more or less in the title. Does anyone have a historic example of a norse benediction, prayer or rune inscription that could be fitting for a firefighter? We’re planning on a farewell gift for a colleague whom really is into Viking stuff, and it should have a bit more meaning than „I thought it looked neat“.

If one has already read the Eddic literature, would it be necessary to read the Saga of the Volsungs? Or would that publication be considered a companion piece?

ALBUM REVIEW: Step into the enthralling Ambient Nordic Folk of Forndom with my review of the upcoming album Moþir. https://www.hotelhobbies.com/post/album-review-forndom-moþir-nordvis-records-2024

I'm reading Njál's Saga right now and I'm blown away (and confused) by the complexity of the Icelandic legal system circa 1000CE. For starters, the fines are fascinating--that families would be compensated for the loss of parents, slaves, etc. I would love to see a list of all fines and fine amounts mentioned in the sagas. Similarly, a list of acceptable punishments for various things. For instance, it's apparently completely legal to kill a man who has sufficiently offended one's masculinity. The significance than "manliness" and dignity played back then is itself fascinating--how even did they define "masculinity"?

What about non-legal social norms/values? For instance, it is clear from the sagas that brides did not legally have to be consulted in marriage agreements, however every time the bride is not consulted, things go very wrong. This feels like an oft-repeated cautionary tale among early Icelanders, suggesting that Icelanders (the saga authors at least) did in fact think the bride's opinion should be valued, at least as a norm.

How much did consequentialism, virtue ethics, and Deontology (unconsciously) shape their legal system and cultural norms? I can see hints of all three just in Njáls Saga but I would love to see a more comprehensive list of examples.

I know this is a big ask, so any and all info (especially sources) would be appreciated.

Thanks!

What are some inaccuracies about the Vikings tv show? Was it as simple as “look new place, let’s rob them!” Or was there more complexity to what initiated raiding? Were the raids motivated by pure greed? Or was the difference in religion and attacks by Christians on Scandinavian lands and the destruction of sacred Pagan sites a big factor also?

This is kind of a late response but here goes: I don’t know why you guys are so married to the idea that the Vikings were nothing more than thieves and murderers. The only sources we have are from people being raided. I don’t see any reason why the proposal that the Vikings could possibly have attacked for more reasons than to get booty is outlandish. It is a possibility that the Vikings-who were way more aware of what was happening in the world than what most are lead to believe (they did a lot of trading and exploring)-were concerned with the growing Christian empire and the conquest over their southern pagan neighbors. Yall weird for gettin aggressive about me presenting that possibility and not only me but other scholars as well. No need to be snarky and I’d say yall have absolutely no right to be so darn sure of yourselves with the amount of data and what kind of data we’re presented with in regards to the subject. If Vikings were just some marauding bandits, then why would they be engaging in peaceful trade with various other peoples. Smh let’s all admit that WE DONT KNOW ANYTHING FOR CERTAIN-but it’s fun to theorize and think about. Btw this is not targeted to the humble and the helpful. I appreciate the responses. Am definitely confused why I got downvoted so much 🤷‍♂️.

For all yall who don’t understand what I mean by persecution of Pagans: The Massacre of Verden was an event during the Saxon Wars where the Frankish king Charlemagne ordered the death of 4,500 Saxons in October 782. Charlemagne claimed suzerainty over Saxony and in 772 destroyed the Irminsul, an important object in Saxon paganism, during his intermittent thirty-year campaign to Christianize the Saxons. The massacre occurred in Verden in what is now Lower Saxony, Germany. The event is attested in contemporary Frankish sources, including the Royal Frankish Annals.

Hi, everyone.
I'm writing a historical-fantasy were a norse warrior was "cursed" by a fairy (the fairy was in love with him, he says "you can have my soul for what I care but I will never love you" and she made him immortal by removing its soul). In the story, he had two childhood friends and the three of them (The protagonist and the two friends) wanted to be together. I know, is a fantasy, but I want it to be as accurate as possible, and so my question is: is there some info about a polygamy marriage? And if yes, was it only about a husband and two wives or there are some cases where it was two husbands and one wife?

Curious, I know part of it definitely was and most scholars interpret it as being golden, but what do the eddas say?

Attempt at recreating the yarm helmet from England as a 3d model

https://preview.redd.it/ozma6f4lro1e1.png?width=1570&format=png&auto=webp&s=f82f2f2c8c6e8fea5ced2b0762266154666a42d3

https://preview.redd.it/agm41bsfro1e1.png?width=2000&format=png&auto=webp&s=1a67b82c67a6dc2c794b1483024af32da71bd049