|
Onela
Onela was according to ''Beowulf'' a Swedish king, the son of Ongentheow and the brother of Ohthere. He usurped the Swedish throne, but was killed by his nephew Eadgils, who won by hiring foreign assistance. In Scandinavian sagas a Norwegian king by the same name exists, Áli (the Old Norse form of ''Onela'', also rendered as ''Ole'', ''Åle'' or ''Ale''), who had the cognomen ("from Oppland"). Etymology The name stems from the Proto-Norse *''Anula'' (diminutive with l-suffix to a name starting with *''Anu-'', or directly of an appellative , "ancestor").(Lexicon of nordic personal names before the 8th century) Beowulf In the Anglo-Saxon poem ''Beowulf'', Onela plays a central part in the Swedish-Geatish wars. Onela and his brother Ohthere were the sons of the Swedish king Ongenþeow. When the Geatish king Hreðel died, Onela and Ohthere saw the opportunity to pillage in Geatland starting the Swedish-Geatish wars: The war ended with Ongenþeow's death. It is implied ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eadgils
Eadgils, ''Adils'', ''Aðils'', ''Adillus'', ''Aðísl at Uppsölum'', ''Athisl'', ''Athislus'' or ''Adhel'' was a semi-legendary king of Sweden, who is estimated to have lived during the 6th century. ''Beowulf'' and Old Norse sources present him as the son of Ohthere and as belonging to the ruling Yngling (Scylfing) dynasty. These sources also deal with his war against Onela, which he won with foreign assistance: in ''Beowulf'' he gained the throne of Sweden by defeating his uncle Onela with Geatish help, and in two Scandinavian sources (''Skáldskaparmál'' and ''Skjöldunga saga''), he is also helped to defeat Onela in the Battle on the Ice of Lake Vänern, but with Danish help. However, Scandinavian sources mostly deal with his interaction with the legendary Danish king Hrólfr Kraki (Hroðulf), and Eadgils is mostly presented in a negative light as a rich and greedy king. Snorri Sturluson, who documented many of the Scandinavian traditions, reported that the Swedes called hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Weohstan
Weohstan, Wēohstān or Wīhstān (Proto-Norse *'' Wīha stainaz'', meaning "sacred stone", non, Vésteinn and ''Wǣstēn'') is a legendary character who appears in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem ''Beowulf'' and scholars have pointed out that he also appears to be present in the Norse ''Kálfsvísa''. In both ''Beowulf'' and ''Kálfsvísa'', Weohstan (''Vésteinn'') fought for his king Onela (''Áli'') against Eadgils (''Aðils''). ''Beowulf'' According to ''Beowulf'', Weohstan is the father of Wiglaf, and he belongs to a clan called the '' Wægmundings''. Ecgþeow, the father of Beowulf, also belonged to this clan, so Weohstan is in some degree related to Beowulf. Thus he counts Weohstan's son Wiglaf as his kinsman. Weohstan is said to have died of old age before the action of the later part of the poem. Weohstan is first mentioned at line 2602. We learn that he had held a Geatland estate and rights in common land which Beowulf gave to him. When the Scylfing prince Eanmund rebel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ohthere
Ohthere (also ''Ohtere''), Old Norse ''Óttarr vendilkráka'' (''Vendelcrow''; in Modern Swedish ''Ottar Vendelkråka'') was a semi-legendary king of Sweden of the house of Scylfings, who is said to have lived during the Germanic Heroic Age, possibly during the early 6th century (fl. c. 515 – c. 530"Ottar" Encyclopedia Nordisk familjebok). His name can be reconstructed as *''Ōhta-harjaz'' or *''Ōhtu-harjaz''. The '' harjaz'' element is common in and has a meaning of "warrior, army" (whence Engli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eanmund
Eanmund was a Swedish prince of the Scylfing dynasty, whose existence is alleged in ''Beowulf''.''Beowulf'', lines 2612-2615. Life according to ''Beowulf'' Unlike his relatives, Eanmund is only mentioned in Beowulf. Eanmund was the son of Ohthere, and was the brother of Eadgils. If he existed in real life, his real name was probably Proto-Norse *''Aiwamunduz'' (Old East Norse ''Ēmund'') or ''Āmunduz'' (Old East Norse ''Āmund''). Ohthere died, and Ohthere's younger brother Onela, usurped the Swedish throne. Since their uncle had seized power, Eanmund and Eadgils sought refuge among the Geats. This caused Onela to attack the Geats, an attack which was also motivated by the fact that the Geatish king Heardred's father had killed Onela's father Ongentheow. During the battle, Eanmund was killed by Onela's champion Weohstan and Heardred was killed as well. Eadgils, however, survived and according to the poem Beowulf later helped him avenge Eanmund and Ohthere by slaying Onela, an event ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Healfdene
Halfdan (, ang, Healfdene, Medieval : "half Dane") was a late 5th and early 6th century legendary Danish king of the Scylding (Skjöldung) lineage, the son of king named Fróði in many accounts, noted mainly as the father to the two kings who succeeded him in the rule of Denmark, kings named Hroðgar and Halga in the Old English poem ''Beowulf'' and named Hróar and Helgi in Old Norse accounts. Various accounts According to the ''Chronicon Lethrense'' and Saxo Grammaticus' ''Gesta Danorum'' (Book 2), Halfdan had two brothers named Ro and Skat who also sought the throne. Both were killed by Halfdan. Saxo adds that his brothers' supporters were hanged and that Halfdan continued to reign with great cruelty, but that he reigned long and died peaceably in extreme old age. The ''Ynglinga saga'' gives Halfdan (in this work also son of a king named Fróði) a brother named Fridleif and says both were great warriors but that Halfdan was the better of the two. This might have been a le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beowulf (hero)
Beowulf (; ang, Bēowulf ) is a legendary Geatish hero in the eponymous epic poem, one of the oldest surviving pieces of English literature. Etymology and origins of the character A number of origins have been proposed for the name ''Beowulf''. Beowulf Henry Sweet, a philologist and linguist specializing in Germanic languages, proposed that the name ''Bēowulf'' literally means in Old English "bee-wolf" or "bee-hunter" and that it is a kenning for "bear".Sweet, Henry. (1884) ''Anglo-Saxon Reader in Prose and Verse'' The Clarendon Press, p. 202. Recorded instances of similar names mirror this etymology. The AD 1031 ''Liber Vitae'' records the name ''Biuuuwulf''. The name is attested to a monk from Durham and means ''bee wolf'' in the Old Northumbrian dialect.Chadwick, Hector Munro (1983) ''The Origin of the English Nation'', p. 294. The 11th century English ''Domesday Book'' contains a recorded instance of the name ''Beulf''. The scholar suggested that the name ''Beowulf'' de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heardred
Heardred (Proto-Norse *''Harðurāðaz''), died c. 530, is the son of Hygelac, king of the Geats, and his queen Hygd, in ''Beowulf''. After Hygelac's death, in Frisia, Hygd wants to make Hygelac's nephew Beowulf, king of Geatland, as she fears that the young Heardred won't be able to defend his people. Beowulf, however, declares his trust in the young man and Heardred is proclaimed king. However, further north in Sweden (then restricted to Svealand), the Swedish king Ohthere dies and is succeeded by his younger brother Onela. Ohthere's sons Eadgils and Eanmund flee to the Geats and are received by Heardred. This makes Onela attack the Geats to neutralize his nephews, and to avenge his father Ongentheow, who had been killed by the Geats. During the battle Heardred is killed. Eanmund is slain by his kinsman Weohstan.''Beowulf'' lines 2370–2391 Heardred is succeeded by his cousin Beowulf, who avenges Eanmund by helping Eadgils kill Onela Onela was according to ''Beowulf'' a Swe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beowulf
''Beowulf'' (; ang, Bēowulf ) is an Old English epic poem in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and most often translated works of Old English literature. The date of composition is a matter of contention among scholars; the only certain dating is for the manuscript, which was produced between 975 and 1025. Scholars call the anonymous author the "''Beowulf'' poet". The story is set in pagan Scandinavia in the 6th century. Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, the king of the Danes, whose mead hall in Heorot has been under attack by the monster Grendel. After Beowulf slays him, Grendel's mother attacks the hall and is then defeated. Victorious, Beowulf goes home to Geatland and becomes king of the Geats. Fifty years later, Beowulf defeats a dragon, but is mortally wounded in the battle. After his death, his attendants cremate his body and erect a tower on a headland in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Suiones
The Swedes ( sv, svear; Old Norse: ''svíar'') (probably from the PIE reflexive pronominal root * s(w)e, "one's own ribesmen/kinsmen;Bandle, Oskar. 2002. The Nordic languages: an international handbook of the history of the North Germanic languages. 2002. P.391 ang, Swēon) were a North Germanic tribe who inhabited Svealand ("land of the Swedes") in central Sweden and one of the progenitor groups of modern Swedes, along with Geats and Gutes. They had their tribal centre in Gamla Uppsala. The first author who wrote about the tribe is Tacitus, who in his ''Germania'' from 98 CE mentions the ''Suiones''. They are possibly first mentioned locally by the Kylver Stone in the 4th century. Jordanes, in the 6th century, mentions ''Suehans'' and ''Suetidi''. ''Beowulf'' mentions the Swedes around 1000 A.D. According to early sources such as the sagas, especially ''Heimskringla'', the Swedes were a powerful tribe whose kings claimed descendence from the god Freyr. During the Viking Age t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Skaldic Poem
A skald, or skáld (Old Norse: , later ; , meaning "poet"), is one of the often named poets who composed skaldic poetry, one of the two kinds of Old Norse poetry, the other being Eddic poetry, which is anonymous. Skaldic poems were traditionally composed on one occasion, sometimes extempore, and include both extended works and single verses ('' lausavísur''). They are characteristically more ornate in form and diction than eddic poems, employing many kennings and heiti, more interlacing of sentence elements, and the complex ''dróttkvætt'' metre. More than 5,500 skaldic verses have survived, preserved in more than 700 manuscripts, including in several sagas and in Snorri Sturluson's ''Prose Edda'', a handbook of skaldic composition that led to a revival of the art. Many of these verses are fragments of originally longer works, and the authorship of many is unknown. The earliest known skald from whom verses survive is Bragi Boddason, known as Bragi the Old, a Norwegian skald of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freyr
Freyr (Old Norse: 'Lord'), sometimes anglicized as Frey, is a widely attested god in Norse mythology, associated with kingship, fertility, peace, and weather. Freyr, sometimes referred to as Yngvi-Freyr, was especially associated with Sweden and seen as an ancestor of the Swedish royal house. According to Adam of Bremen, Freyr was associated with peace and pleasure, and was represented with a phallic statue in the Temple at Uppsala. According to Snorri Sturluson, Freyr was "the most renowned of the æsir", and was venerated for good harvest and peace. In the mythological stories in the Icelandic books the ''Poetic Edda'' and the ''Prose Edda'', Freyr is presented as one of the Vanir, the son of the god Njörðr and his sister-wife, as well as the twin brother of the goddess Freyja. The gods gave him Álfheimr, the realm of the Elves, as a teething present. He rides the shining dwarf-made boar Gullinbursti and possesses the ship Skíðblaðnir which always has a favorable ... [...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] |
