|
Fjörgyn And Fjörgynn
Fjörgyn (or Jörð; Old Norse 'earth') is a personification of earth in Norse mythology, and the mother of the thunder god Thor, the son of Odin. The masculine form Fjörgynn is portrayed as the father of the goddess Frigg, the wife of Odin. Both names appear in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and in the ''Prose Edda'', written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. A number of theories surround the names and they have been the subject of scholarly discourse. Name Etymology The Old Norse name ''Fjörgyn'' is used as a poetic synonym for 'land' or 'the earth' in skaldic poems. It stems from Proto-Germanic ''*fergunja'', meaning 'mountain', perhaps 'mountainous forest', which may ultimately derive from Proto-Indo-European ''*per-kwun-iyā'' ('the realm of Perkwunos'; i.e., the wooden mountains). ''Fjörgyn'' is cognate with the Gothic ''fairguni'' (𐍆𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌲𐌿𐌽𐌹), the Old English ''firgen'', both meaning ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jörð
Jörð ( non, Jǫrð, lit=earth) is the personification of earth and a goddess in Norse mythology. She is the mother of the thunder god Thor and a sexual partner of Odin. Jörð is attested in Danish historian ''Gesta Danorum'', composed in the 12th century by Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus; the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century by an unknown individual or individuals; and the ''Prose Edda'', also composed in the 13th century. Her name is often employed in skaldic poetry and kennings as a poetic term for land or earth. Name Etymology Old Norse means 'earth, land', serving both as a common noun ('earth') and as a theonymic incarnation of the noun ('Earth-goddess'). It stems from Proto-Germanic ''*erþō''- ('earth, soil, land'), as evidenced by the Gothic , Old English , Old Saxon , or Old High German (OHG) . The Ancient Greek word (; 'earth') is also possibly related. The word is most likely cognate with Proto-Germanic ''*erwa'' or ''erwōn-'', meaning ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old High German
Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050. There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old High German is an umbrella term for the group of continental West Germanic dialects which underwent the set of consonantal changes called the Second Sound Shift. At the start of this period, the main dialect areas belonged to largely independent tribal kingdoms, but by 788 the conquests of Charlemagne had brought all OHG dialect areas into a single polity. The period also saw the development of a stable linguistic border between German and Gallo-Romance, later French. The surviving OHG texts were all written in monastic scriptoria and, as a result, the overwhelming majority of them are religious in nature or, when secular, belong to the Latinate literary culture of Christianity. The earliest written texts in Old High German, glosses and i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ullr
In Norse mythology, Ullr (Old Norse: ) is a god associated with archery. Although literary attestations of Ullr are sparse, evidence including relatively ancient place-name evidence from Scandinavia suggests that he was a major god in earlier Germanic paganism. Proto-Germanic *''wulþuz'' (' glory') appears to have been an important concept of which his name is a reflex. The word appears as ''owlþu-'' on the 3rd-century Thorsberg chape. Name and origin The Old Norse theonym ''Ullr'' derives from a Proto-Germanic (PGmc) form reconstructed as ''*Wulþuz'' ('Glory'), which is attested in the compound ''owlþu-þewaz'' (ᛟᚹᛚᚦᚢᚦᛖᚹᚨᛉ), meaning either 'servant of ''Owlþuz''' (if interpreted as a theonym), or 'who has glorious servants' (if interpreted as an adjective), found on the Thorsberg chape (3rd c. AD). It is a cognate (linguistic sibling from the same origin) of the Gothic noun ''wulþus'' ('glory, wealth'). They ultimately derive from the Proto-Indo-Euro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hilda Ellis Davidson
Hilda Roderick Ellis Davidson (born Hilda Roderick Ellis; 1 October 1914 – 12 January 2006) was an English folklorist. She was a scholar at the University of Cambridge and The Folklore Society, and specialized in the study of Celtic and Germanic religion and folklore. A graduate of Newnham College, Cambridge, Davidson was a Fellow at Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge, throughout much of her career. She specialized in the interdisciplinary study of Celtic, Anglo-Saxon and Old Norse religion and folklore, on which she was the author of numerous influential works. Davidson was a prominent member of The Folklore Society, and played an active role in the growth of folklore studies as a scientific discipline. Throughout her career, Davidson tutored a significant number of aspiring scholars in her fields of study, and was particularly interested in encouraging gifted women to pursue scholarly careers. Early life Hilda Ellis Davidson was born in Bebington, Cheshire, England, on 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flyting
Flyting or fliting is a contest consisting of the exchange of insults between two parties, often conducted in verse. Etymology The word ''flyting'' comes from the Old English verb meaning 'to quarrel', made into a noun with the suffix -''ing''. Attested from around 1200 in the general sense of a verbal quarrel, it is first found as a technical literary term in Scotland in the sixteenth century. The first written Scots example is William Dunbar, ''The Flyting of Dunbar and Kennedie'', written in the late fifteenth century. Description Flyting is a ritual, poetic exchange of insults practiced mainly between the 5th and 16th centuries. Examples of flyting are found throughout Scots, Ancient, Medieval and Modern Celtic, Old English, Middle English and Norse literature involving both historical and mythological figures. The exchanges would become extremely provocative, often involving accusations of cowardice or sexual perversion. Norse literature contains stories of the gods ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lokasenna
''Lokasenna'' (Old Norse: 'The Flyting of Loki', or 'Loki's Verbal Duel') is one of the poems of the ''Poetic Edda''. The poem presents flyting between the gods and Loki. It is written in the ljóðaháttr metre, typical for wisdom verse. ''Lokasenna'' is believed to be a 10th-century poem. Loki, amongst other things, accuses the gods of moralistic sexual impropriety, the practice of '' seiðr'' (sorcery), and bias. Not ostensibly the most serious of allegations, these elements are, however, said ultimately to lead to the onset of Ragnarök in the Eddic poem ''Völuspá''. However, ''Lokasenna'' does not ''directly'' state that Loki's binding is as a consequence of the killing of Baldr. This is explicitly stated only in Snorri Sturluson's ''Prose Edda''. Lee M. Hollander, in his introduction to his translation of the poem, claims that it was in no sense a popular lay and suggests we should not necessarily believe that the accusations of the "sly god" were an accepted part o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Skáldskaparmál
''Skáldskaparmál'' (Old Norse: 'The Language of Poetry'; c. 50,000 words; ; ) is the second part of the ''Prose Edda''. The section consists of a dialogue between Ægir, the divine personification of the sea, and Bragi, the god of poetry, in which both Norse mythology and discourse on the nature of poetry are intertwined. The origin of a number of ''kennings'' is given; then Bragi delivers a systematic list of ''kennings'' for various people, places and things. He then goes on to discuss poetic language in some detail, in particular ''heiti'', the concept of poetical words which are non-periphrastic (like ''steed'' for ''horse''), and again systematises these. This in a way forms an early form of poetic thesaurus. References Bibliography * Further reading * Anthony Faulkes"The sources of ''Skáldskaparmál'': Snorri’s intellectual background" in: Alois Wolf (ed.), ''Snorri Sturluson'', Volume 51 of ScriptOralia, Gunter Narr Verlag (1993), 59–76. External ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gylfaginning
''Gylfaginning'' (Old Norse: 'The Beguiling of Gylfi' or 'The Deluding of Gylfi'; c. 20,000 words; 13th century Old Norse pronunciation ) is the first part of the 13th century ''Prose Edda'' after the Prologue. The ''Gylfaginning'' deals with the creation and destruction of the world of the Æsir and many other aspects of Norse mythology. The second part of the Prose Edda is called the ''Skáldskaparmál'' and the third '' Háttatal''. Summary The ''Gylfaginning'' tells the story of Gylfi, a king of "the land that men now call Sweden", who, after being tricked by one of the goddesses of the Æsir, wonders if all Æsir use magic and tricks for their will to be done. This is why he journeys to Asgard, but on the way he is tricked by the gods and arrives in some other place, where he finds a great palace. Inside the palace he encounters a man who asks Gylfi's name and so King Gylfi introduces himself as Gangleri. Gangleri then is taken to the king of the palace and comes upon thre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Lindow
John Frederick Lindow (born July 23, 1946) is an American philologist who is Professor Emeritus of Old Norse and Folklore at University of California, Berkeley. He is a well known authority on Old Norse religion and literature. Biography John Lindow was born in Washington, D.C. on July 23, 1946, the son of Wesley Lindow and Eleanor Niemetta. His father was a banker and his mother was a teacher. John Lindow received his undergraduate degree at Harvard University, where he gained a A.B. magna cum laude in 1968, and a PhD in 1972, both in Germanic Languages and Literatures. After gaining his Ph.D, Lindow joined the faculty at University of California, Berkeley, serving as Acting Assistant Professor (1972-1974), Assistant Professor (1974-1977), Associate Professor (1977-1983), and Professor of Scandinavian (1983-?). He was since retired as Professor Emeritus of Old Norse and Folklore. In 1977, Lindow was elected as a corresponding member of the Royal Gustavus Adolphus Academy. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hárbarðsljóð
''Hárbarðsljóð'' (Old Norse: 'The Lay of Hárbarðr') is one of the poems of the ''Poetic Edda'', found in the Codex Regius and AM 748 I 4to manuscripts. It is a flyting poem with figures from Norse Paganism. ''Hárbarðsljóð'' was first written down in the late 11th century but may have had an older history as an oral poem. Synopsis In this poem, the ferryman Harbard and the god Thor compete in a flyting or verbal contest with one other. The ferryman Hárbarðr (''Greybeard'') is rude and obnoxious towards Thor who is returning to Asgard after a journey in Jötunheimr, the land of the jötnar. Hárbarðr obstructs his way and refuses him passage across a swollen river. He begins by saying that Thor dresses poorly (in a beggars clothes, without pants) and that his mother is dead. In the course of the poem, Harbard boasts of his sexual prowess, his magical and tactical abilities, asking Thor about his. Thor responds, telling how he defeated Giants. Ultimately, after mocking hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kenning
A kenning ( Icelandic: ) is a figure of speech in the type of circumlocution, a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun. Kennings are strongly associated with Old Norse-Icelandic and Old English poetry. They continued to be a feature of Icelandic poetry (including ''rímur'') for centuries, together with the closely related heiti. A kenning has two parts: a base-word (also known as a head-word) and a determinant. For example, the base-word of the kenning "íss rauðra randa" ('icicle of red shields' WORD Einarr Skúlason: ''Øxarflokkr'' 9) is ''íss'' ('ice, icicle') and the determinant is ''rǫnd'' ('rim, shield-rim, shield'). The thing, person, place or being to which the kenning refers is known as its referent (in this case a sword). Although kennings are sometimes hyphenated in English translation, Old Norse poetry did not require kennings to be in normal word order, nor do the parts of the kenning need to be side-by-side. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Old High German")
