Louis Huard - Giant Suttung and the Dwarfs

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 ...

, Suttungr ( ;

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 ...

: ) was a ''

jötunn A (also jotun; in the normalised scholarly spelling of Old Norse, ; ; plural / ) or, in Old English, (plural ) is a type of supernatural being in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, they are often contrasted with gods (Æsir and Vanir) ...

'' and the son of

Gilling Gillingr (Old Norse: ; also Gilling) is a jötunn in Norse mythology, and the father of Suttungr. Gillingr and, later, his wife are murdered by the dwarfs Fjalar and Galar. In revenge, his son Suttungr tortures the dwarfs into giving him the mea ...

Mythology

Suttungr searched for his parents and threatened the dwarven brothers

Fjalar and Galar In Nordic mythology, Fjalar ( non, Fjalarr ) and his brother Galar ( non, Galarr ), were wicked dwarfs who killed Kvasir and turned his blood into the mead of poetry, which inspired poets. They appear in ''Skáldskaparmál''. Myth Fjalar and G ...

who had killed them, tying them and some other dwarves who killed Gilling to a rock that would be submerged by the rising tide. The dwarves begged for Suttungr to spare their life and offered him the magical

mead of poetry In Norse mythology, the Poetic Mead or Mead of Poetry, also known as Mead of Suttungr, is a mythical beverage that whoever "drinks becomes a skald or scholar" able to recite any information and solve any question. This myth was reported by Snorri ...

. Suttungr took it and hid it in the center of the mountain

Hnitbjorg In Norse mythology, Hnitbjörg is the mountain abode of the giant Suttungr, where he placed the mead of poetry for safekeeping under the guardianship of his daughter Gunnlodr. Odin, with the help of Suttungr's brother Baugi, drilled a hole into t ...

, with his daughter

Gunnlöð Gunnlǫð (Old Norse: ; also Gunnlöd) is a jötunn in Norse mythology. She is the daughter of Suttungr, for whom she guards the mead of poetry. Saturn's moon Gunnlod is named after her. Name The Old Norse name has been translated as 'war ...

standing guard, whom he turned into a

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

in order to guard it.

Odin Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered Æsir, 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, v ...

eventually decided to obtain the mead. He worked for

Baugi Baugi (Old Norse: ; "ring-shaped") is a jötunn in Norse mythology. He is brother of Suttungr, the giant from whom Odin obtained the mead of poetry. Name The Old Norse name ''Baugi'' has been translated as 'ring-shaped'. Attestations The n ...

, Suttungr's brother, a

farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mig ...

, for an entire

summer Summer is the hottest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, the earliest sunrise and latest sunset occurs, daylight hours are longest and dark hours are shortest, wit ...

, then asked for a small sip of the

mead Mead () is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%. The defining character ...

, which Suttungr refused. Baugi drilled into the mountain and Odin changed into a snake and slithered inside. Inside,

was on guard but he persuaded her to give him three sips in exchange for three nights of sex. Odin proceeded to drink all the mead in the three containers, changed into an eagle and escaped. Suttungr chased him in the shape of an eagle, but Odin was able to escape him and returned to Asgard.Suttung
Gunnlöð later bore Odin a son,

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, wis ...

Notes

{{Norse mythology Jötnar