Bragi (
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 ...
) is the
skald
A skald, or skáld (Old Norse: ; , meaning "poet"), is one of the often named poets who composed skaldic poetry, one of the two kinds of Old Norse poetry in alliterative verse, the other being Eddic poetry. Skaldic poems were traditionally compo ...
ic
god
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
of
poetry
Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...
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 ...
.
Etymology
The
theonym
A theonym (from Greek (), 'god', attached to (), ) is a proper name of a deity.
Theonymy, the study of divine proper names, is a branch of onomastics, the study of the etymology, history, and use of proper names. Theonymy helps develop an und ...
Bragi probably stems from the masculine noun ''bragr'', which can be translated in
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 ...
as 'poetry' (cf.
Icelandic ''bragur'' 'poem, melody, wise') or as 'the first, noblest' (cf. poetic Old Norse ''bragnar'' 'chiefs, men', ''bragningr'' 'king'). It is unclear whether the theonym
semantically
Semantics is the study of linguistic meaning. It examines what meaning is, how words get their meaning, and how the meaning of a complex expression depends on its parts. Part of this process involves the distinction between sense and reference ...
derives from the first meaning or the second.
A connection has been also suggested with the Old Norse ''
bragarfull'', the cup drunk in solemn occasions with the taking of vows. The word is usually taken to semantically derive from the second meaning of ''bragr'' ('first one, noblest'). A relation with the
Old English
Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
term ''brego'' ('lord, prince') remains uncertain.
''Bragi'' regularly appears as a personal name in Old Norse and Old Swedish sources, which according to linguist
Jan de Vries might indicate the secondary character of the god's name.
Attestations
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 th ...
writes in the ''
Gylfaginning
''Gylfaginning'' (Old Norse: 'The Beguiling of Gylfi' or 'The Deluding of Gylfi'; 13th century Old Norse pronunciation ) is the first main part of the 13th century ''Prose Edda'', after the initial Prologue. The ''Gylfaginning'' takes the form of ...
'' after describing
Odin
Odin (; from ) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Em ...
,
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 ...
, and
Baldr
Baldr (Old Norse also Balder, Baldur) is a god in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, he is a son of the god Odin and the goddess Frigg, and has numerous brothers, such as Thor and Váli. In wider Germanic mythology, the god was known in ...
:
In ''
Skáldskaparmál
''Skáldskaparmál'' (Old Norse: 'Poetic Diction' or 'The Language of Poetry'; ; ) is the second part of the ''Prose Edda'', compiled by Snorri Sturluson. It consists of a dialogue between Ægir, the divine personification of the sea, and Bra ...
'' Snorri writes:
That Bragi is Odin's son is clearly mentioned only here and in some versions of a list of the sons of Odin (see
Sons of Odin
Various gods and men appear as sons of Odin (, ) in Old Norse and Old English texts.
Thor, Baldr, VÃðarr and Váli
Four gods, Thor, Baldr, VÃðarr and Váli, are explicitly identified as sons of Odin in the Eddic poems, in the skaldic ...
). But "wish-son" in stanza 16 of the ''
Lokasenna
''Lokasenna'' (Old Norse: 'The Flyting of Loki', or 'Loki's Verbal Duel') is one of the poems of the ''Poetic Edda''. The poem presents flyting between the gods and Loki. It is written in the ljóðaháttr metre, typical for wisdom verse. ''L ...
'' could mean "Odin's son" and is translated by Hollander as ''Odin's kin''. Bragi's mother is possibly
Frigg
Frigg (; Old Norse: ) is a goddess, one of the Æsir, in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about her, she is associated with marriage, prophecy, clairvoyance and motherhood, and dwells in the wetl ...
.
In that poem Bragi at first forbids Loki to enter the hall but is overruled by Odin. Loki then gives a greeting to all gods and goddesses who are in the hall save to Bragi. Bragi generously offers his sword, horse, and an arm ring as peace gift but Loki only responds by accusing Bragi of cowardice, of being the most afraid to fight of any of the
Æsir
Æsir (Old Norse; singular: ) or ēse (Old English; singular: ) are deities, gods in Germanic paganism. In Old Nordic religion and Nordic mythology, mythology, the precise meaning of the term "" is debated, as it can refer either to the gods i ...
and
Elves
An elf (: elves) is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology, being mentioned in the Icelandic ''Poetic Edda'' and the ''Prose Edda''.
In medieval Germanic-speakin ...
within the hall. Bragi responds that if they were outside the hall, he would have Loki's head, but Loki only repeats the accusation. When Bragi's wife Iðunn attempts to calm Bragi, Loki accuses her of embracing her brother's slayer, a reference to matters that have not survived. It may be that Bragi had slain Iðunn's brother.
A passage in the ''Poetic Edda'' poem ''
SigrdrÃfumál
(also known as ) is the conventional title given to a section of the ''Poetic Edda'' text in .
It follows without interruption, and it relates the meeting of Sigurðr with the valkyrie Brynhildr, here identified as ("driver to victory").
...
'' describes runes being graven on the sun, on the ear of one of the sun-horses and on the hoofs of the other, on
Sleipnir
In Norse mythology, Sleipnir (Old Norse: "slippy"Orchard (1997:151). or "the slipper"Kermode (1904:6).) is an eight-legged horse ridden by Odin. Sleipnir is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'', compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional ...
's teeth, on bear's paw, on eagle's beak, on wolf's claw, and on several other things including on Bragi's tongue. Then the runes are shaved off and the shavings are mixed with mead and sent abroad so that Æsir have some, Elves have some,
Vanir
In Norse mythology, the Vanir (; Old Norse:, singular Vanr) are a group of gods associated with fertility, wisdom, and the ability to see the future. The Vanir are one of two groups of gods (the other being the Æsir) and are the namesake of the ...
have some, and Men have some, these being speech runes and birth runes, ale runes, and magic runes. The meaning of this is obscure.
The first part of Snorri Sturluson's ''
Skáldskaparmál
''Skáldskaparmál'' (Old Norse: 'Poetic Diction' or 'The Language of Poetry'; ; ) is the second part of the ''Prose Edda'', compiled by Snorri Sturluson. It consists of a dialogue between Ægir, the divine personification of the sea, and Bra ...
'' is a dialogue between
Ægir
Ægir (anglicised as Aegir; Old Norse 'sea'), Hlér (Old Norse 'sea'), or Gymir (Old Norse less clearly 'sea, engulfer'), is a jötunn and a anthropomorphism, personification of the sea in Norse mythology. In the Old Norse record, Ægir hosts the ...
and Bragi about the nature of poetry, particularly skaldic poetry. Bragi tells the origin of the mead of poetry from the blood of
Kvasir
In Norse mythology, Kvasir (Old Norse: ) was a being born of the saliva of the Æsir and the Vanir, two groups of gods. Extremely wise, Kvasir traveled far and wide, teaching and spreading knowledge. This continued until the dwarfs Fjalar and Gal ...
and how Odin obtained this mead. He then goes on to discuss various poetic metaphors known as ''
kenning
A kenning ( Icelandic: ) is a figure of speech, a figuratively-phrased compound term that is used in place of a simple single-word noun. For instance, the Old English kenning () means , as does ().
A kenning has two parts: a base-word (a ...
s''.
Snorri Sturluson clearly distinguishes the god Bragi from the mortal skald
Bragi Boddason
Bragi Boddason, known as Bragi the Old (Old Norse language, Old Norse: ''Bragi hinn gamli'') was a Norwegian skald active in the first half of the 9th century in poetry, 9th century, the earliest known skald from whom verses have survived. Portio ...
, whom he often mentions separately. The appearance of Bragi in the ''Lokasenna'' indicates that if these two Bragis were originally the same, they have become separated for that author also, or that chronology has become very muddled and Bragi Boddason has been relocated to mythological time. Compare the appearance of the
Welsh Taliesin
Taliesin ( , ; 6th century AD) was an early Britons (Celtic people), Brittonic poet of Sub-Roman Britain whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the ''Book of Taliesin''. Taliesin was a renowned bard who is believed to ...
in the second branch of the
Mabinogi
The ''Mabinogion'' () is a collection of the earliest Welsh prose stories, compiled in Middle Welsh in the 12th–13th centuries from earlier oral traditions. There are two main source manuscripts, created –1410, as well as a few earlier frag ...
. Legendary chronology sometimes does become muddled. Whether Bragi the god originally arose as a deified version of Bragi Boddason was much debated in the 19th century, especially by the scholars
Eugen Mogk
Eugen Mogk (19 July 1854 – 4 May 1939) was a German academic specialising in Old Norse literature and Germanic mythology. He held a professorship at the University of Leipzig.
Life and career
Mogk was born in Döbeln. He studied Germanic st ...
and
Sophus Bugge
Elseus Sophus Bugge (5 January 1833 – 8 July 1907) was a Norwegian philologist and linguist. His scholarly work was directed to the study of runic inscriptions and Norse philology. Bugge is best known for his theories and his work on the runi ...
. The debate remains undecided.
In the poem ''
EirÃksmál EirÃksmál is a Skaldic poetry, skaldic poem composed c. 954 at the behest of the Norway, Norwegian queen Gunnhild, Mother of Kings, Gunnhild
in honour of her slain consort Erik Bloodaxe. Only the beginning of the poem is extant.
According to Rog ...
'' Odin, in
Valhalla
In Norse mythology, Valhalla ( , ; , )Orchard (1997:171–172) is described as a majestic hall located in Asgard and presided over by the god Odin. There were five possible realms the soul could travel to after death. The first was Fólkvang ...
, hears the coming of the dead
Norwegian king
Eric Bloodaxe
Eric Haraldsson ( , ; c.930−954), nicknamed Bloodaxe ( , ) and Brother-Slayer (), was a Norwegians#Viking Age, Norwegian king. He ruled as List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 932 to 934, and twice as List of monarchs of Northumbr ...
and his host, and bids the heroes
Sigmund
In Germanic mythology, Sigmund ( , ) is a hero whose story is told in the Völsunga saga. He and his sister, Signý, are the children of Völsung and his wife Hljod. Sigmund is best known as the father of Sigurð the dragon-slayer, though Sigu ...
and
Sinfjötli
Sinfjötli ( ) or Fitela (in Old English) in Norse mythology was born out of the incestuous relationship between Sigmund and his sister Signy. He had the half-brothers Sigurd, Helgi Hundingsbane and Hamund.
Etymology and orthography
''Sinfj� ...
rise to greet him. Bragi is then mentioned, questioning how Odin knows that it is Eric and why Odin has let such a king die. In the poem ''
Hákonarmál
''Hákonarmál'' (Old Norse: 'The Song of Hákon') is a skaldic poem which the skald Eyvindr skáldaspillir composed about the fall of the Norwegian king Hákon the Good at the battle of Fitjar and his reception in Valhalla. This poem emulates ...
'', Hákon the Good is taken to Valhalla by the
valkyrie
In Norse mythology, a valkyrie ( or ; from ) is one of a host of female figures who guide souls of the dead to the god Odin's hall Valhalla. There, the deceased warriors become ('single fighters' or 'once fighters').Orchard (1997:36) and Li ...
Göndul
In Norse mythology, Göndul (Old Norse: ''Gǫndul'', "wand-wielder"Orchard (1997:194).) is a valkyrie. Göndul is attested in ''Heimskringla'', ''Sörla þáttr'', and a 14th-century Norwegian charm. In addition, Göndul appears within the valkyrie ...
and Odin sends
Hermóðr
Hermóðr (Old Norse: , " war- spirit";Orchard (1997:83). anglicized as Hermod) is a figure in Norse mythology, a son of the god Odin and brother of Baldr.
Attestations
''Prose Edda''
Hermóðr appears distinctly in section 49 of the '' Prose ...
and Bragi to greet him. In these poems Bragi could be either a god or a dead hero in Valhalla. Attempting to decide is further confused because ''Hermóðr'' also seems to be sometimes the name of a god and sometimes the name of a hero. That Bragi was also the first to speak to Loki in the ''Lokasenna'' as Loki attempted to enter the hall might be a parallel. It might have been useful and customary that a man of great eloquence and versed in poetry should greet those entering a hall. He is also depicted in tenth-century court poetry of helping to prepare Valhalla for new arrivals and welcoming the kings who have been slain in battle to the hall of Odin.
Skalds named Bragi
Bragi Boddason
In the ''Prose Edda'' Snorri Sturluson quotes many stanzas attributed to Bragi Boddason the old (''Bragi Boddason inn gamli''), a Norwegian court poet who served several Swedish kings,
Ragnar Lodbrok
Ragnar Lodbrok (Old Norse: ''Ragnarr loðbrók'', ), according to legends, was a Viking hero and a Legendary Kings of Sweden, Swedish and Legendary kings of Denmark, Danish king.[Östen Beli
Eysteinn Beli or ''Eysteinn hinn illráði'', Swedish language, Swedish: ''Östen Illråde'' (ill-ruler) or ''Östen Beli'', was a semi-legendary king of Sweden who would have ruled in the late 8th century.
''Krákumál''
According to ''Krákumál ...]
and
Björn at Hauge
Bjorn, Bjorne (English, Dutch), Björn (Swedish, Icelandic, Dutch, and German), Bjørn (Danish, Faroese and Norwegian), Beorn (Old English) or, rarely, Bjôrn, Biorn, or Latinized Biornus, Brum (Portuguese), is a Scandinavian male given name, or ...
who reigned in the first half of the 9th century. This Bragi was reckoned as the first skaldic poet, and was certainly the earliest skaldic poet then remembered by name whose verse survived in memory.
Snorri especially quotes passages from Bragi's ''
Ragnarsdrápa
Ragnarsdrápa (Old Norse: ‘Drápa about Ragnarr’)Clunies Ross, p. 27. https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=1130&v=intro. is a skaldic poem attributed to the oldest known skald, Bragi inn gamli (‘the old’) Boddason, who lived in the 9th cent ...
'', a poem supposedly composed in honor of the famous legendary Viking Ragnar Lodbrok ('Hairy-breeches') describing the images on a decorated shield which Ragnar had given to Bragi. The images included Thor's fishing for
Jörmungandr
In Norse mythology, Jörmungandr (, see Etymology), also known as the Midgard Serpent or World Serpent (, "worm of Midgard"), is an unfathomably large and monstrous sea serpent or worm who dwells in the world sea, encircling the Earth ( Midga ...
,
Gefjun's ploughing of
Zealand
Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 Januar ...
from the soil of Sweden, the attack of
Hamdir and Sorli against King
Jörmunrekk, and the never-ending battle between
Hedin and Högni Hedin may refer to
* Hedin (surname)
* Hedin (crater) on the Moon
*Sven Hedin Glacier in Canada
*A legendary figure in Nordic mythology, see Hedin and Högni
*Hedin, a dwarf character from the ''Inheritance'' series by Christopher Paolini
Chr ...
.
Bragi son of Hálfdan the Old
Bragi son of Hálfdan the Old is mentioned only in the ''Skjáldskaparmál''. This Bragi is the sixth of the second of two groups of nine sons fathered by King Hálfdan the Old on Alvig the Wise, daughter of King Eymund of
Hólmgard. This second group of sons are all eponymous ancestors of legendary families of the north. Snorri says:
Bragi, from whom the Bragnings are sprung (that is the race of Hálfdan the Generous).
Of the Bragnings as a race and of Hálfdan the Generous nothing else is known. However, ''Bragning'' is often, like some others of these dynastic names, used in poetry as a general word for 'king' or 'ruler'.
Bragi Högnason
In the eddic poem ''
Helgakviða Hundingsbana II
"Völsungakviða in forna" or "Helgakviða Hundingsbana II" ("The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane") is an Old Norse poem found in the ''Poetic Edda''. It constitutes one of the Helgi lays together with '' Helgakviða Hundingsbana I'' and ''Helgak ...
'', Bragi Högnason, his brother Dag, and his sister Sigrún were children of
Högne
Högne was a king of Östergötland who appears in sources of Norse mythology.
''Heimskringla''
Snorri Sturluson wrote that he was the king of Östergötland and that he had a son named Hildur and daughter Hilda who was married to Granmar, the ...
, the king of
East Götaland
East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth.
Etymology
As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that eas ...
. The poem relates how
Sigmund
In Germanic mythology, Sigmund ( , ) is a hero whose story is told in the Völsunga saga. He and his sister, Signý, are the children of Völsung and his wife Hljod. Sigmund is best known as the father of Sigurð the dragon-slayer, though Sigu ...
's son
Helgi Hundingsbane
Helgi Hundingsbane is a hero in Norse sagas. Helgi appears in '' Volsunga saga'' and in two lays in the ''Poetic Edda'' named '' Helgakviða Hundingsbana I'' and '' Helgakviða Hundingsbana II''. The ''Poetic Edda'' relates that Helgi and his mist ...
agreed to take Sigrún daughter of Högni as his wife against her unwilling betrothal to Hodbrodd son of
Granmar the king of
Södermanland
Södermanland ( ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latinisation of names, Latinized form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a Provinces of Sweden, historical province (or ) on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Österg� ...
. In the subsequent battle of Frekastein (probably one of the 300
hill fort
A hillfort is a type of fortification, fortified refuge or defended settlement located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typical of the late Bronze Age Europe, European Bronze Age and Iron Age Europe, Iron Age. So ...
s of Södermanland, as ''stein'' meant "hill fort") against Högni and Granmar, all the chieftains on Granmar's side are slain, including Bragi, except for Bragi's brother Dag.
In popular culture
In the 2002
Ensemble Studios
Ensemble Studios was an American video game developer. It was founded by Tony Goodman in 1994 and incorporated the following year. It borrowed the name of Ensemble Corporation, a consulting firm founded by Goodman in 1990. It was acquired by ...
game ''
Age of Mythology
''Age of Mythology'' is a real-time strategy video game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. It was released on October 31, 2002 in North America and on November 14, 2002 in Europe.
A spin-off from the ''A ...
'', Bragi is one of nine minor gods Norse players can worship.
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
Further reading
* DuBois, Thomas A. ''Nordic Religions in the Viking Age''. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999. .
* Dumézil, Georges. ''Gods of the Ancient Northmen''. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1973. .
* Munch, P. A. ''Norse Mythology: Legends of Gods and Heroes''. London: H. Milford, Oxford University Press, 1926.
*
External links
*
{{Norse mythology
Æsir
Knowledge gods
Norse gods
Arts gods