In
Norse cosmology
Norse cosmology is the account of the universe and its laws by the ancient North Germanic peoples. The topic encompasses concepts from Norse mythology and Old Norse religion such as notations of time and space, cosmogony, personifications, anthr ...
, Álfheimr (
Old Norse
Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
: , "Land of the
Elves
An elf (: elves) is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology, being mentioned in the Icelandic ''Poetic Edda'' and the ''Prose Edda''.
In medieval Germanic-speakin ...
" or "Elfland"; anglicized as Alfheim), also called "Ljósálfheimr" ( , "home of the
Light Elves"), is home of the Light Elves.
Attestations
Álfheim as an abode of the Elves is mentioned only twice in
Old Norse
Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
texts.
Grímnismál
The
Eddic poem ''
Grímnismál
''Grímnismál'' (Old Norse: ; 'The Lay of Grímnir') is one of the mythological poems of the '' Poetic Edda''. It is preserved in the Codex Regius manuscript and the AM 748 I 4to fragment. It is spoken through the voice of ''Grímnir'', one ...
'' describes twelve divine dwellings beginning the stanza 5 with:
A tooth-gift is a gift given to an
infant
In common terminology, a baby is the very young offspring of adult human beings, while infant (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'baby' or 'child') is a formal or specialised synonym. The terms may also be used to refer to juveniles of ...
on the cutting of the first tooth.
Gylfaginning
In the 12th century Eddic prose ''
Gylfaginning
''Gylfaginning'' (Old Norse: 'The Beguiling of Gylfi' or 'The Deluding of Gylfi'; 13th century Old Norse pronunciation ) is the first main part of the 13th century ''Prose Edda'', after the initial Prologue. The ''Gylfaginning'' takes the form of ...
'',
Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of th ...
relates it in the stanza 17 as the first of a series of abodes in heaven:
Later in the section, in speaking of a hall in the Highest Heaven called
Gimlé that shall survive when heaven and earth have died, explains:
See also
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Álfheimr (region)
Alfheim (, "elf home" or "land between the rivers") is an ancient name for an area corresponding to the modern Swedish province of Bohuslän.
About the region and its folk
The Ynglinga saga, when relating the events of the reign of King Gudr ...
*
Alfheimbjerg
*
Fairyland
Fairyland (Early Modern English: ''Faerie''; ( Scottish mythology; cf. (Norse mythology)) in English and Scottish folklore is the fabulous land or abode of fairies or ''fays''. Old French
Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of ...
, a folkloric location sometimes referred to as Elfame
*
Svartálfaheimr
*
Svartálfar (black elves)
Citations
Bibliography
Primary
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Alfheim
Places in Norse mythology
Saga locations
Elves
Freyr