In
Norse mythology
Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...
, Gjallarhorn (
Old Norse: ; "hollering horn"
[Orchard (1997:57).] or "the loud sounding horn"
[Simek (2007:110).]) is a
horn associated with the god
Heimdallr
In Norse mythology, Heimdall (from Old Norse Heimdallr) is a god who keeps watch for invaders and the onset of Ragnarök from his dwelling Himinbjörg, where the burning rainbow bridge Bifröst meets the sky. He is attested as possessing forekno ...
and the wise being
Mímir. The sound of
Heimdallr
In Norse mythology, Heimdall (from Old Norse Heimdallr) is a god who keeps watch for invaders and the onset of Ragnarök from his dwelling Himinbjörg, where the burning rainbow bridge Bifröst meets the sky. He is attested as possessing forekno ...
's horn will herald the beginning of
Ragnarök
In Norse mythology, (; non, Ragnarǫk) is a series of events, including a great battle, foretelling the death of numerous great figures (including the gods Odin, Thor, Týr, Freyr, Heimdallr, and Loki), natural disasters, and the submers ...
, the sound of which will be heard in all corners of the world. Gjallarhorn is attested in the ''
Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material, and the ''
Prose Edda'', written in the 13th century by
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 the ...
.
Attestations
Gjallarhorn is attested once by name in the ''
Poetic Edda'' while it receives three mentions in the ''
Prose Edda'':
''Prose Edda''
In the ''Prose Edda'', Gjallarhorn is mentioned three times, all mentions occurring in ''
Gylfaginning''.
In chapter 15, the enthroned figure
Just-As-High tells the disguised
Gangleri about the cosmological tree
Yggdrasil. Just-As-High says that one of the three roots of Yggdrasil reaches to the well
Mímisbrunnr, which belongs to Mímir, and contains much wisdom and intelligence. Using Gjallarhorn, Heimdallr drinks from the well and thus is himself wise.
[Faulkes (1995:17).]
In chapter 25 of ''Gylfaginning'',
High
High may refer to:
Science and technology
* Height
* High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area
* High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory
* High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift ...
tells Gangleri about Heimdallr. High mentions that Heimdallr is the owner of the "
trumpet" (see footnote) Gjallarhorn and that "its blast can be heard in
all worlds".
[Faulkes (1995:25). Lindow (2002:143) comments that the Old Norse term employed for the instrument refers to "a long ]brass instrument
A brass instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips. Brass instruments are also called labrosones or labrophones, from Latin a ...
that would answer today to an unvalved trumpet".
In chapter 51, High foretells the events of
Ragnarök
In Norse mythology, (; non, Ragnarǫk) is a series of events, including a great battle, foretelling the death of numerous great figures (including the gods Odin, Thor, Týr, Freyr, Heimdallr, and Loki), natural disasters, and the submers ...
. After the enemies of the gods will gather at the plain
Vígríðr, Heimdallr will stand and mightily blow into Gjallarhorn. The gods will awake and assemble together at the
thing.
[Faulkes (1995:54).]
Archaeological record
A figure holding a large horn to his lips and clasping a sword on his hip appears on a stone cross from the
Isle of Man. Some scholars have theorized that this figure is a depiction of Heimdallr with Gjallarhorn.
[Lindow (2002:168).]
A 9th or 10th century
Gosforth Cross in
Cumbria,
England depicts a figure holding a horn and a sword standing defiantly before two open-mouthed beasts. This figure has been oft theorized as depicting Heimdallr with Gjallarhorn.
[Bailey (1996:86-90).]
Theories and interpretations
Scholar
Rudolf Simek comments that the use of a horn as both a musical instrument and a drinking vessel is not particularly odd, and that the concept is also employed with tales of the legendary
Old French hero
Roland
Roland (; frk, *Hrōþiland; lat-med, Hruodlandus or ''Rotholandus''; it, Orlando or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the ...
's horn,
Olifant. Simek notes that the horn is among the most ancient of Germanic musical instruments, along with
lurs, and, citing archaeological finds (such as the 5th century
Golden Horns of Gallehus from
Denmark), comments that there appears to have been sacral horns kept purely for religious purposes among the Germanic people; understood as earthly versions of Heimdallr's Gjallarhorn, reaching back to the early
Germanic Iron Age.
[Simek (2007:110—111).]
See also
*The
Snoldelev Stone, a 9th-century runestone featuring a unique three-horned symbol.
*The
Minnesota Vikings, an
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
American Football team based in
Minneapolis, use a large horn called the Gjallarhorn during home games at the
U.S. Bank Stadium. It is blown during the opening ceremony alongside the
Skol, Vikings
"Skol, Vikings" (IPA: , ) is the fight song of the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League. It was introduced around the time the team was founded in 1961. The words and music are attributed to James "Red" McLeod, a composer from Edina, ...
fight song.
Notes
References
*
Bellows, Henry Adams (1923). ''The Poetic Edda''.
American-Scandinavian Foundation.
*
Faulkes, Anthony (Trans.) (1995). ''Edda''.
Everyman.
*
*
Larrington, Carolyne (Trans.) (1999). ''The Poetic Edda''.
Oxford University Press.
*
Lindow, John (2002). ''Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs''.
Oxford University Press.
*
Orchard, Andy (1997).
Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend'.
Cassell.
*
Thorpe, Benjamin (Trans.) (1866) ''The Elder Edda of Saemund Sigfusson''.
Norrœna Society
The Norrœna Society was an organization dedicated to Northern European culture, that published sets of reprints of classic 19th-century editions, mostly translations, of Old Norse literary and historical works, Northern European folklore, and medi ...
.
* Schach, Paul (1985). "Some Thoughts on ''Völuspá''" as collected in Glendinning, R. J. Bessason, Heraldur (Editors).
Edda: a Collection of Essays''
University of Manitoba Press
The University of Manitoba Press (UMP) is an academic publishing house based at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg. Founded in 1967, the UMP is the first university press in western Canada.
Publishing 12 to 14 books a year, UMP is regarded as ...
.
*
Simek, Rudolf (2007) translated by Angela Hall.
Dictionary of Northern Mythology'.
D.S. Brewer
Boydell & Brewer is an academic press based in Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, that specializes in publishing historical and critical works. In addition to British and general history, the company publishes three series devoted to studies, edition ...
*
Zoëga, Geir (1910). ''A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic''.
Oxford University Press.
{{norsemythology
Artifacts in Norse mythology
Eschatology in Norse mythology
Mythological musical instruments
Horns