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 per ...

, a (

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlement ...

: , pl. or — "

warden A warden is a custodian, defender, or guardian. Warden is often used in the sense of a watchman or guardian, as in a prison warden. It can also refer to a chief or head official, as in the Warden of the Mint. ''Warden'' is etymologically identic ...

," "watcher" or "caretaker") is a warden spirit, believed to follow from birth to death the soul (') of every person.

History

Old Swedish Old Swedish (Modern Swedish: ) is the name for two distinct stages of the Swedish language that were spoken in the Middle Ages: Early Old Swedish (), spoken from about 1225 until about 1375, and Late Old Swedish (), spoken from about 1375 unti ...

, the corresponding word is '; in modern Swedish '. The belief in this type of guardian spirits remained strong in

Scandinavian folklore Nordic folklore is the folklore of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and the Faroe Islands. It has common roots with, and has been mutually influenced by, folklore in England, Germany, the Low Countries, the Baltic countries, Finland an ...

up until the last centuries and continues to be found in northern faith based religions today. The English word '" wraith" is derived from ', while "

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

" and "

" are

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical ef ...

s. At times, the warden could reveal itself as a small light or as the shape (') of the person. The perception of another person's warden could cause a physical sensation such as an itching hand or nose, as a foreboding or an apparition. The warden could arrive before the actual person, which someone endowed with fine senses might perceive. The warden of a dead person could also become a

revenant In folklore, a revenant is an animated corpse that is believed to have been revived from death to haunt the living. The word ''revenant'' is derived from the Old French word, ''revenant'', the "returning" (see also the related French verb ''reve ...

, haunting particular spots or individuals. In this case, the revenant warden was always distinct from more conscious undeads, such as the '. Under the influence of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...

, the belief in wardens changed. Some view the spirit as being more akin to the Christian concept of a good and a bad conscience, while others view them as guardian angels.

Warden trees

A very old tree (often a linden,

ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non-gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

or elm) growing on the farm lot could be dubbed a "warden tree" ( sv, vårdträd), or tuntre and was believed to defend it from bad luck. Breaking a leaf or twig from the warden tree was considered a serious offence. The respect for the tree was so great that the family housing it could adopt a surname related to it, such as ''Linnæus'', ''Lindelius'' and ''Almén''. It was often believed that the wights (Swedish ') of the yard lived under the roots of the warden tree, and to them, one sacrificed treats to be freed from disease or bad luck. The Guardian trees were said to have been taken from sacred groves as saplings by pre Christian Germanic peoples, though today can be planted from anywhere.

References

External links

Vård
Nordisk familjebok {{DEFAULTSORT:Vordr Scandinavian folklore Norwegian folklore Swedish folklore Scandinavian legendary creatures Creatures in Norse mythology

History

Warden trees

See also

References

External links