Gunnr (alternatively ''Guðr'') is one of the named

Valkyries 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 ...

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 ...

, specifically referenced in the ''

Völuspá ''Völuspá'' (also ''Vǫluspá'', ''Vǫlospá'', or ''Vǫluspǫ́''; Old Norse: 'Prophecy of the völva, a seeress') is the best known poem of the ''Poetic Edda''. It dates back to the tenth century and tells the story from Norse Mythology of ...

'' (st. 30/7; NK, p. 7),

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 ...

(st. 7/4; NK, p. 152), and the ''

Prose Edda The ''Prose Edda'', also known as the ''Younger Edda'', ''Snorri's Edda'' () or, historically, simply as ''Edda'', is an Old Norse textbook written in Iceland during the early 13th century. The work is often considered to have been to some exten ...

.'' Her name is an

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 ...

term that translates to "battle". The Valkyries Gunnr, Rota, and the young norn

Skuld Skuld ("debt" or "obligation"; sharing etymology with the English "should") is a Norn in Norse mythology. Along with Urðr (Old Norse "fate"Orchard (1997:169).) and Verðandi (possibly "happening" or "present"Orchard (1997:174).), Skuld makes ...

were said to decide the outcome of battles, and, at its conclusion, would ride out to take the slain. Gunnr was also a feminine given name among

Norsemen The Norsemen (or Northmen) were a cultural group in the Early Middle Ages, originating among speakers of Old Norse in Scandinavia. During the late eighth century, Scandinavians embarked on a Viking expansion, large-scale expansion in all direc ...

. The modern forms ''Gun'' and ''Gunn'' remain in use as a feminine given name in Scandinavia. The word is from

Proto-Germanic Proto-Germanic (abbreviated PGmc; also called Common Germanic) is the linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed proto-language of the Germanic languages, Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages. Proto-Germanic eventually developed from ...

'' *gunþiz'', a common element of Northern and Western

Germanic name Germanic given names are traditionally dithematic; that is, they are formed from two elements ( stems), by joining a prefix and a suffix. For example, King Æþelred's name was derived from ', meaning "noble", and ', meaning "counsel". The i ...

s. It is often used as the second element in feminine names (as in Hildegund), and as the first element in masculine names (as in

Gunther Gundaharius or Gundahar (died 437), better known by his legendary names Gunther () or Gunnar (), was a historical King of the Burgundians in the early 5th century. Gundahar is attested as ruling his people shortly after they crossed the Rhine ...

). The earliest attestation of the name is on the

Rök Stone Rök is a parish located in Östergötland, Sweden. It is mostly known for being the location where the Rök runestone The Rök runestone (; Rundata, Ög 136) is one of the most famous runestones, featuring the longest known runic alphabet, run ...

where it occurs as part of a

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 ...

for

wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, includin ...

: :Þat sagum tvalfta, hvar hæstʀ se Gunnaʀ etu vettvangi a, kunungaʀ tvaiʀ tigiʀ svað a liggia. :"I say this the twelfth, where the horse of Gunnr sees fodder on the battlefield, where twenty kings lie."

Valkyrie

Gunnr is mentioned in the ''

'' in a list of valkyries, ''Gunnr,

Hildr In Norse mythology, Hildr (Old Norse "battle"Orchard (1997:192).) is a valkyrie. Hildr is attested in the ''Prose Edda'' as Högni's daughter and Hedin's wife in the ''Hjaðningavíg''. She had the power to revive the dead in battlefields and u ...

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 ...

/ ok Geirskögul''. The ''

Darraðarljóð __NOTOC__ ''Darraðarljóð'' is a skaldic poem in Old Norse found in chapter 157 of ''Njáls saga''. It consists of 11 stanzas recounting the vision of a man named Dörruð, in which twelve valkyries weave and choose who is to be slain at the Bat ...

'' gives ''Guðr'' as one of six names of valkyries. In the ''

'' Gunnr is singled out along with

Róta In Norse mythology, Róta is a valkyrie. Róta is attested in chapter 36 of the ''Prose Edda'' book ''Gylfaginning'', where she is mentioned alongside the valkyries Gunnr and Skuld, and the three are described as "always idingto choose who shall ...

and

as one of the valkyries who always ride out to decide battles and take the slain. Another mention of Gunnr specifically states that those named are "Odin's Valkyries": :''Guðr ok Róta ok norn in yngsta, er Skuld heitir, ríða jafnan at kjósa val ok ráða vígum.'' :"Gunnr and Róta and the youngest Norn, she who is called Skuld, ride ever to take the slain and decide fights." : :''Ek man nefna valkyrjur Viðris: Hrist, Mist, Herja, Hlǫkk, Geiravǫr, Gǫll, Hjǫrþrimul, Guðr, Herfjǫtur, Skuld, Geirǫnul, Skǫgul ok Randgnið.'' :"I can name Viðrir’s <= Óðinn’s> valkyries: Hrist, Mist, Herja, Hlǫkk, Geiravǫr, Gǫll, Hjǫrþrimul, Gunnr, Herfjǫtur, Skuld, Geirǫnul, Skǫgul and Randgnið." : :'' klauf með sverði sunnr; hann gekk reiðr of skeiðar. Gramr kunni sarka at gunni; lá of hǫggvinn jarnmunnum.'' :" ULERsplit EAD ARRIORSwith a sword in the south; he went angry through the warships. The prince knew how to redden AIL-SHIRT > SWORDin battle; ATTLES > WARRIORlay chopped down by iron mouths."

References

{{Valkyries Valkyries