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 ...

, Garmr or Garm (

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is 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 of Scandinavia and t ...

: ; "rag") is a wolf or dog associated with both Hel and Ragnarök, and described as a blood-stained guardian of Hel's gate.

Name

The Old Norse name ''Garmr'' has been interpreted as meaning "rag." The etymology of the name remains uncertain.

Bruce Lincoln Bruce Lincoln (born 1948) is Caroline E. Haskell Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of the History of Religions in the Divinity School of the University of Chicago, where he also holds positions in the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Co ...

brings together Garmr and the

Greek mythological A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities of d ...

dog

Cerberus In Greek mythology, Cerberus (; grc-gre, Κέρβερος ''Kérberos'' ), often referred to as the hound of Hades, is a multi-headed dog that guards the gates of the Underworld to prevent the dead from leaving. He was the offspring of the ...

, relating both names to a Proto-Indo-European root ''*ger-'' "to growl" (perhaps with the suffixes ''-*m/*b'' and ''-*r''). However, Daniel Ogden notes that this analysis actually requires ''Cerberus'' and ''Garmr'' to be derived from two ''different'' Indo-European roots (*''ger-'' and *''gher-'' respectively), and in this opinion does not establish a relationship between the two names.

Attestations

''Poetic Edda''

The ''

Poetic Edda The ''Poetic Edda'' is the modern name for an untitled collection of Old Norse anonymous narrative poems, which is distinct from the ''Prose Edda'' written by Snorri Sturluson. Several versions exist, all primarily of text from the Icelandic me ...

'' 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 of ...

'' mentions Garmr:

The best of trees , must
Yggdrasil Yggdrasil (from Old Norse ), in Norse cosmology, is an immense and central sacred tree. Around it exists all else, including the Nine Worlds. Yggdrasil is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'' compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional ...
be,
Skíðblaðnir ''Skíðblaðnir'' (Old Norse: , 'assembled from thin pieces of wood'Simek (2007:289).), sometimes anglicized as ''Skidbladnir'' or ''Skithblathnir'', is the best of ships in Norse mythology. It is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in th ...
best of boats; Of all the gods , is
Óðinn Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, victory, ...
the greatest, And Sleipnir the best of steeds; Bifröst of bridges, ,
Bragi Bragi (; Old Norse: ) is the skaldic god of poetry in Norse mythology. Etymology The theonym Bragi probably stems from the masculine noun ''bragr'', which can be translated in Old Norse as 'poetry' (cf. Icelandic ''bragur'' 'poem, melody, wise ...
of
skalds 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 ...
, Hábrók of hawks, , and Garm of hounds.Bellows (1923.)
/ref>

One of the refrains of ''

Völuspá ''Vǫluspá'' (also ''Völuspá'', ''Vǫlospá'' or ''Vǫluspǫ́''; Old Norse: 'Prophecy of the völva, a seeress'; reconstructed Old Norse: ) is the best known poem of the ''Poetic Edda''. It tells the story of the creation of the world and ...

'' uses Garmr's howling to herald the coming of Ragnarök:

Now Garm howls loud , before
Gnipahellir Gnipahellir (''Gnipa cave'') is a cave in Norse mythology. Gnipahellir is the home of Garmr, the hellhound who guards the gates of Hel, the Norse realm of the dead. Garmr is often featured chained here until the onset of Ragnarök, at which time ...
, The fetters will burst, , and the wolf run free; Much do I know, , and more can see Of the fate of the gods, , the mighty in fight.Bellows (1923).
/ref>

After the first occurrence of this refrain the

Fimbulvetr In Norse mythology, (commonly rendered in English as Fimbulwinter), is the immediate prelude to the events of Ragnarök. It means 'great winter'. Summary is the harsh winter that precedes the end of the world and puts an end to all life on E ...

is related; the second occurrence is succeeded by the invasion the world of gods by jötnar; after the last occurrence, the rise of a new and better world is described. ''

Baldrs draumar ''Baldrs draumar'' (Old Norse: 'Baldr's dreams') or ''Vegtamskviða'' is an Eddic poem which appears in the manuscript AM 748 I 4to. It describes the myth of Baldr's death consistently with ''Gylfaginning''. Bellows suggest that the poem was c ...

'' describes a journey which Odin makes to Hel. Along the way he meets a dog.

Then Óðinn rose, , the enchanter old, And the saddle he laid , on Sleipnir's back; Thence rode he down , to
Niflhel Niflhel ("Misty Hel"; ''Nifel'' meaning ''fog'') is a location in Norse mythology which appears in the eddic poems ''Vafþrúðnismál'' and '' Baldrs draumar'', and also in Snorri Sturluson's ''Gylfaginning''. According to Snorri Sturluson's wor ...
deep, And the hound he met , that came from hell. Bloody he was , on his breast before, At the father of magic , he howled from afar; Forward rode Óðinn, , the earth resounded Till the house so high , of Hel he reached.Bellows (1923).
/ref>

Although unnamed, this dog is normally assumed to be Garmr. Alternatively, Garmr is sometimes assumed to be identical to

Fenrir Fenrir (Old Norse: ; "fen-dweller")Orchard (1997:42). or Fenrisúlfr (O.N.: ; "Fenrir's wolf", often translated "Fenris-wolf"),Simek (2007:81). also referred to as Hróðvitnir (O.N.: ; "fame-wolf")Simek (2007:160). and Vánagandr (O.N.: ; " ...

. Garmr is sometimes seen as a

hellhound A hellhound is a mythological hound that embodies a guardian or a servant of hell, the devil, or the underworld. Hellhounds occur in mythologies around the world, with the best known examples being Cerberus from Greek mythology, Garmr from N ...

, comparable to

''Prose Edda''

The ''

Prose Edda The ''Prose Edda'', also known as the ''Younger Edda'', ''Snorri's Edda'' ( is, Snorra Edda) or, historically, simply as ''Edda'', is an Old Norse textbook written in Iceland during the early 13th century. The work is often assumed to have been t ...

'' book ''

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 t ...

'' assigns him a role in Ragnarök: :Then shall the dog Garmr be loosed, which is bound before

Gnipahellir Gnipahellir (''Gnipa cave'') is a cave in Norse mythology. Gnipahellir is the home of Garmr, the hellhound who guards the gates of Hel, the Norse realm of the dead. Garmr is often featured chained here until the onset of Ragnarök, at which time ...

: he shall do battle with

Týr (; Old Norse: , ) is a god in Germanic mythology, a valorous and powerful member of the and patron of warriors and mythological heroes. In Norse mythology, which provides most of the surviving narratives about gods among the Germanic people ...

, and each become the other's slayer.Brodeur (1916).
/ref>

In popular culture

Garm appears as a boss in ''

God of War Ragnarök ''God of War Ragnarök'' is an action-adventure game developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It was released worldwide on November 9, 2022, for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, marking the first cros ...

''.

Notes

References

* Bellows, Henry Adams (trans.). 1923. ''The Poetic Edda''. New York:

The American-Scandinavian Foundation The American-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF) is an American non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting international understanding through educational and cultural exchange between the United States and Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Swede ...

. * Brodeur, Arthur Gilchrist (trans.). 1916.
Snorri Sturluson: The Prose Edda
'. New York:

. * * * *

External links

* {{commons category-inline, Garmr Creatures in Norse mythology Mythological dogs Norse underworld Wolves in Norse mythology