AlvÃss (
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 ...
: ; "All-Wise") was a
dwarf
Dwarf, dwarfs or dwarves may refer to:
Common uses
*Dwarf (folklore), a supernatural being from Germanic folklore
* Dwarf, a human or animal with dwarfism
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities
* Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a sh ...
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 as the Nordic folklore of the modern period. The ...
.
In the "
AlvÃssmál
AlvÃssmál (Old Norse: 'The Song of All-wise' or 'The Words of All-wise') is a poem collected in the ''Poetic Edda'', probably dating to the 12th century, that describes how the god Thor outwits a dwarf called AlvÃss ("All-Wise") who seeks to ...
" poem within the 12th century ''
Poetic Edda
The ''Poetic Edda'' is the modern name for an untitled collection of Old Norse anonymous narrative poems in alliterative verse. It is distinct from the closely related ''Prose Edda'', although both works are seminal to the study of Old Norse ...
'',
Thor
Thor (from ) is a prominent list of thunder gods, god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding æsir, god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology, sacred g ...
's daughter,
Þrúðr, was promised in marriage to AlvÃss. Thor was unhappy with the match, however, so he devised a plan: Thor told AlvÃss that, because of his small height, he had to prove his wisdom. AlvÃss agreed, but Thor made his tests last until dawn, when Alviss, because he was a dwarf, was
petrified on being exposed to the sunlight.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alviss
Norse dwarves
sv:Dvärg (mytologi)#Dvärgar med mindre roller