Study: Vikings May Have Taken a Native American to Iceland - TIME

Study: Vikings May Have Taken a Native American to Iceland - TIME

Runes

Want to learn more about Norse Vikings? We provide information and insight for people interested in Viking Age Scandinavia. The present web site is a dynamic resource that treats on current and past issues related to Norse cultural heritage. The Viking Rune offers unique online features: free Rune Converter and Motto Generator. We are committed to greater access to knowledge about the Vikings, which is the only way to dispel the myth about Norse warriors as cruel and bloodthirsty raiders who did nothing but kill, pillage and rape. The Viking Rune is always up-to-date with the latest developments in North Germanic studies, including hot archeological finds in Scandinavia and elsewhere.

Runes Runestones of the Viking Age July 8, 2010 Rune Stones Runestones are stones with runic inscriptions. The eldest runestones, inscribed with Elder Futhark inscriptions, date from the 4th century. However, the most of the runestones were created during the late Viking Age and thus inscribed with the Younger Futhark runes. The runestones were usually erected to commemorate one or several deceased kinsmen, and in most [...]
Read the full article → Germanic Names in the Eldest Runic Inscriptions July 6, 2010 Elder Futhark Male Names Ado – Gammertingen (Baden-Württemberg, Germany), ivory box. Adujislu – Westeremden A (Groningen, Netherlands), weaving-slay of yew-wood. Meaning: ādu- < *auda, ‘wealth’ and -jīslu < *gīsalaz, ‘hostage’ or ‘offspring’. Aebi – Schwangau (Bayern, Germany), gilt-silver buckle. Æko – Chessel Down II (Isle of Wight), silver plate. Æniwulufu – Folkestone (Kent, England), gold tremissis. Meaning: [...]
Read the full article →. Norse Rune Symbols and the Third Reich July 31, 2009 Runes Meaning Some of the symbols treated in this article may be interpreted as pointing to Nazi ideology in certain contexts. Their use in the present article has nothing to do with it. Any such connotations are a recent development as compared to the long history of the most of these signs. Below both their original meaning [...]
Read the full article → Rune Stone Used as Parking Lot Border May 20, 2009 Rune Stones Last fall an area near a church outside Stockholm, Sweden was excavated in order to lay some cables. The workers dug out some rocks, which were left on the plot. One of these rocks covered with mud and earth was thought to be quite fitting for use as a church parking lot border. Week after [...]
Read the full article →. Jelling Rune Stones Remain Outdoors March 29, 2009 Rune Stones The Jelling stones are two massive runestones standing in a churchyard in Jelling, Denmark, between two large mounds. Both date to the 10th century. The older and the smaller of the two was erected by Gorm the Old in memory of his wife Thyra. The Larger stone was erected by Harald Bluetooth in memory of [...]
Read the full article → The Rune Converter March 26, 2009 Old Norse Just added a page with a new feature: the Rune Converter. One can input a word or phrase, press the “convert” button and get the same sequence of signs in runes. So the converter transforms the letters of the Roman alphabet into runic writing. What distinguishes it among similar scripts is its extended functionality: there [...]
Read the full article →. Norse Viking Symbol – Horn Triskelion January 27, 2009 Norse Mythology Three interlocked drinking horns is an important Norse Viking symbol. It seems to be closely related the Valknut and Triquetra and is often referred to as the Horn Triskelion. A triskelion (or triskele) is a symbol with threefold rotational symmetry (such symmetry means that a figure, which has it, looks the same after a certain [...]
Read the full article → Elder Futhark – Inner Structure December 17, 2008 Elder Futhark Countless “introductions to runes” each represent the Germanic Elder Futhark in a standardized form, both as for the appearance of the individual runes and the order in which they are arranged (my earlier post on the Elder Futhark is no exception). However, we should be aware of the fact that getting the real picture implies [...]
Read the full article →. Magic Runes December 13, 2008 Elder Futhark Among the most ancient Elder Futhark inscriptions there are a few words that appear pretty often, but what they actually mean is unclear. According to a subtle remark by R. I. Page, in runology, like in too many other knowledge areas, the following principle has been extensively used as a guideline: “Whatever cannot be readily [...]
Read the full article → Runic Love Quotes December 1, 2008 Medieval Runes The fire of 1955 destroyed part of Bryggen, the old quarter of Bergen (Norway). This made possible large scale excavations of a medieval town. Archeologists brought to light over 550 objects with runic inscriptions, dating to 1150-1350. The most of them are on wooden sticks with flattened sides. At a time when everyone had a [...]
Read the full article →. Younger Futhark Runes And Later Developments November 29, 2008 Medieval Runes At the end of the 8th century an unknown rune-master reformed the Elder Futhark having reduced it to 16 runes. By the 10th century the new form of writing was accepted in the whole of Scandinavia. This variant of runic alphabet is known as the Younger Futhark. It is this set of runes that may [...]
Read the full article → Elder Futhark Runic Alphabet November 16, 2008 Elder Futhark The elder Futhark is the most ancient Germanic runic alphabet. The word futhark is formed after the first six runes in it, the same way as the Greek word alphabet is formed after the first two Greek letters, Alpha and Beta. See below which signs represented which sounds: The order of the runes has nothing [...]
Read the full article →. Viking Runes on the Piraeus Lion in Venice November 9, 2008 Runic Inscriptions The Venetian Arsenal is guarded by four statues of lions. One of them, a nine feet high marble beast, bears on its mighty shoulders two lengthy runic inscriptions. These are carved within the intricate ornaments that represent writhing lindworms, characteristic for classical runestone design. The holy patron of Venice is St. Mark; the vicissitudes of [...]
Read the full article →

The Ancient Celts

The Ancient Celts What is surprising to most modern readers is just how widespread across Europe the Celts once were. The Celts have been called the "Fathers of Europe," that is north of the Greco-Roman Mediterranean. Long before the Germanic invasions of the 400s A.D., the Romans considered the Celts as the principal barbarians [9] north of the Alps.
The Celts had no written language, [10] so we must depend on archeology, Greek and Roman writers from antiquity, and early Irish monks to tell us the story of the primeval Celts. But these ancient historians and figures from antiquity did write quite a lot about the Celts. Among those who helped chronicle the Celts were Herodotus (c. 440 B.C.), Xenophon, Aristotle, Strabo, Virgil, Tacitus, Livy, Polybius, Pliny the Elder, Plutarch, Julius Caesar, and many other classical writers.
The Greeks called the Celts by two names--the Keltoi and the Galatai. The Romans modified this a tad, and called the Celts-- the Celtae and the Galli. We can easily see how history developed the modern words Celtic and Gaelic from these earlier roots.
CelticaOne ancient Greek writer called the land of the Celts, "Celtica." [11] Some modern writers have even called it an ancient "Celtic Empire" across Europe.
But, it was not an empire in the same sense as the Roman Empire. On the mainland of Europe, there was no Celtic capital city (in fact virtually no Celtic cities at all). There was no Celtic emperor or single common leader. There was no Celtic centralized administration, no sophisticated form of government, or written code of law. There was no unified army of all the Celts.
Rather, the Celts consisted of dozens, and dozens, and dozens of individual Celtic tribes, [12] each acting independently and on their own. Sometimes these tribes would join together against a common enemy, as when the Celtic chieftain Vercingetorix was pitted against the Roman legions of Julius Caesar in Gaul. And combined Celtic tribes could field an army of 100,000 warriors (Dottin, pg. 19).
(An important distinction should be made here, between the Celts of Ireland and their Celtic cousins on the mainland of Europe, the latter whom we shall call the "continental Celts." The Celts of Ireland were able to form kingships and kingdoms, and had a stronger sense of Celtic unity that has lasted.)
In terms of a starting point, the Celts probably had their birthplace in the Alsace-Lorraine region of eastern France in the years between 1500-1000 B.C. [13] This is roughly the time when Moses and King David were said to be active in Judea. The Celts of this period were a Bronze Age people, although before long they became the first people north of the Mediterranean civilizations to use iron, giving the Celts a superior position in weapons and tools in their geographic region.
Between 800-400 B.C., a period called the Hallstatt [14] Celtic civilization, the various Celtic tribes began to dominate what is now France (called Gaul then), southern Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, western Hungary, and excursions into Great Britain. This period corresponds to the high point of Greek civilization, from Homer to the building of the Parthenon.
From about 400-100 B.C., a period called the La Tene [15] Celtic civilization, the Celtic tribes expanded their dominance into Ireland, northern Italy, parts of Spain, parts of Belgium, Bosnia in the Balkans, and had some presence in southern Scandinavia. [16] This time period is when the Romans began to be a powerhouse in the Mediterranean world.
A couple of Celtic military campaigns are worthy of note. In 390 B.C., invading Celtic armies sacked Rome and held it for seven days. These Celts later marauded down the Italian peninsula as far as Sicily, but were driven back.
The Celts also invaded the region around Greece in circa 285 B.C. They raided Thrace (now in Bulgaria), Macedonia, Illyria, and Thessaly (in northern Greece). A coalition of Greeks finally drove the Celts back after the latter had sacked Delphi (in the center of Greece) in 279 B.C.
At about this time, three tribes of Celts crossed the Dardanelles into Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and established the region of Galatia. [17] St. Paul's epistle to the Galatians was a letter to the descendants of these Celtic peoples.
(Note the similarity of area names derived from the Gaelic root word: Gaul in modern France, Galicia in Spain, Galatia in present-day Turkey--all dominated at one time by Celtic peoples.)
Ancient Celtic Culture[18] The Celts on the main continent were largely ruled by the chieftain of their individual tribe--some chieftains were elected by the free men of the tribe for a limited term of office.
Here are some of the names of ancient Celtic chieftains, to get an idea of what the old Celtic names sounded like: Orgetorix, Sinorix, Dunmorix, Cartismandua (a woman), Prasutagus, Amborix, Clondicus, Luernios, Ariamnes, Adiatorix. (The "rix" ending to the Celtic name signified that the person was a supreme chieftain, perhaps over more than one tribe or over a large land area). Because there was no written Celtic language there, these types of personal names and the names of the tribes themselves are our best idea of what old Celtic words on the mainland of Europe sounded like. The great names of the Gaulish chieftain Vercingetorix and of Boadicea, the female chieftain of Celtic Briton, will come up later in our story.
Classical writers said that the Celts were taller than the Romans, more muscular, had fair skin, and blonde hair was common. [19] The Celts were known for their hospitality, but could be boastful and irritable. They were fond of feasting, were high-spirited, and in general liked excitement. Yet, in Rome, culturally sophisticated Cicero was able to become friends with a Celtic druid from Gaul named Diviciacus, and Cicero said that a Celtic leader from Galatia named Dejotarus was "gentle and honest." The ancients said that the Celts liked to speak in riddles, and loved to exaggerate. Some Celtic tribes had a sense of wanderlust and were nomadic (often in response to threats from the outside), while others stayed put in farming communities.
The ancient Celts lived in scattered villages without fortified walls. In wartime, they would build hill forts for protection. Their homes were circular and made of wood with thatched domelike roofs. They had little furniture, and ate and drank out of earthen dishes and goblets. They slept on beds of straw.
Agriculture was a major activity of the Celts of old, with many of them owning private farmlands. They produced mostly wheat for bread. In fact, the ancient writers said that this was the main difference between the Celts and the Germanic tribes of the day, [20] the latter of whom did little farming and consumed mostly meat and milk. Whereas the Celts grew crops, the Germanic barbarians then did little of this. The Celts were also large swinehearders (most of the meat they ate was ham and pork), and cattle was common for dairy products. They brewed beer, which they called "cervesia," and added honey and cumin to beer, which they called "corma." The Celts also appreciated wine and mead.
In terms of clothing, the Celtic women wore a simple long garment with a cloak. The men wore trousers (sometimes knee length), [21] a sleeved tunic reaching the thigh, a cloak, and sandals or boots. A metal piece of jewelry for around the neck called a torc (torques) was quite popular. Clothing dyed in bright colors was common. Men wore droopy moustaches, sometimes beards, and often long hair, all of this in contrast to the contemporary Romans. Women enjoyed painting their bodies, and some tribes of Celtic warriors went into battle stark naked and painted all over in bright blue.
The basic social structure was threefold: the chieftain, the warrior aristocracy, and the freeman farmers. Woman had a lower place, but some women were able to attain the position of chieftain, which was unknown in other cultures of the period. Slavery was accepted, largely conquered peoples. Three other roles in Celtic society were quite important: the druid, the bard, and the artisan.
The bard was the chief poet of a clan or extended family. He was the keeper of the family or tribal oral history and entertained gatherings with epic tales of Celtic gods and heroes. [22] He was a storyteller and a man of rhymes--a wordsmith. The Celtic bard, as did the Bard of Elizabethan times, tried the best he could to portray his benefactors as well as possible in laudable terms. Bards often sang their verse while playing a lyre (which in Ireland was eventually replaced by the harp). The artisan, who is often overlooked in books about the Celts, made all the wonderful metalwork, carvings, and tools for the tribe. The works of the ancient Celtic artisans exist today in museums all over Europe.
Druids and the Celtic Deities [23]The primeval Celts believed in the immortality of the soul, and had a host of divinities they gave homage to--over 370 such gods and goddesses have been documented. The Celts viewed gods as being territorial, and would give homage to the gods of whatever lands they conquered. Among the Celtic gods of mainland Europe were Cernunnos, Smeros, Morrigan, Brigindo, Anvola, and Alisanos. There was a water deity named Sequana and another deity named Dirona. (The pagan gods of Celtic Ireland will be mentioned later). Most of the Celtic deities had a connection with nature or the processes of living, for example, fertility and healing.
The druids were the high priests of the Celtic pagan religion. They led the pagan rituals and ceremonies, offered sacrifices, engaged in fortune-telling, performed magical deeds, were Celtic arbiters of faith and morals, and generally were depended on to make things good with the gods. The druids built a philosophy of the natural world, interpreting the forces of nature. [24] They were called "the men of the oaks" and were thought to speak "the language of the gods." According to the ancient Greek writer Diogenes Laertius, the druid maxim was to "honor the gods, do no evil, and be brave."
The oak tree was sacred to the druids, and rituals were often performed in oak groves. Mistletoe from oaks as well as hawthorne were thought to have magical powers. Sacred springs and wells were another pagan gathering place for Celts, as were certain rivers where wood-carved votive offerings were placed. Celtic worship included incantations, dancing, libations, and sacrifices.
The Celts followed a lunar calendar and the full moon had importance. The bull was a sacred animal, as were the boar, crane, and horse. Throughout the year there were eight pagan festivals, each celebration roughly six weeks apart. One major Celtic festival was Beltaine on May 1 (May Day), which celebrated crop planting and fertility. At the end of October was Samhain, a harvest festival, when the underworld of the dead supposedly opened up and ghoulies walked the Earth. This was an early form of Halloween, and the Celts used to carve faces in large turnips to scare away the evil spirits. Samhain was the night before the Celtic new year, and druids built enormous bonfires for the occasion.
The Decline of the Continental CeltsBy 100 B.C. two things were happening on mainland Europe that were very important to the Celts there. First, the Romans were beginning to look northward, hungry for conquest. Second, the Germanic tribes to the far north were looking southward and westward, also hungry for conquest. The continental Celts were sandwiched in between by hostile invaders and were being squeezed out. By circa 60 B.C. the Germanic barbarians controlled the territories west to the River Rhine and south to the River Danube. And about this time Julius Caesar decided he wanted Gaul for Rome.
History students are taught that Caesar conquered Gaul in the Gallic Wars, but it usually isn't made clear that the people he conquered there were Celts. The military campaign in Gaul (now France) began in 58 B.C., and within a year Julius Caesar had ten Roman legions at his command (including legions 7 through 14 as well as others); this amounting to over 40,000 infantrymen, and 4,000 cavalrymen. [25] The forced takeover of Gaul from the Celts went quite well; Caesar won many battles; they fought only during the summer, and Caesar returned to Rome to politic during the winter.
Then a military genius almost equal to Caesar arose among the Celts. His name was Vercingetorix, a chieftain from the Arvernian tribe. He united the Celtic tribes of Gaul, proved to be a skillful tactician, "and if followed wholeheartedly, might have driven the Romans from Gaul."
Vercingetorix beat Caesar at Gergovia, but then lost decisively to the well-organized Roman legions at Alesia in 52 B.C. Vercingetorix surrendered, was taken back to Rome, where he was paraded before and mocked by the crowds of the victorious nation. There he was executed. Julius Caesar subjugated Gaul and turned it into a Roman province, exacting an enormous annual monetary tribute, becoming personally wealthy. (A consolation: French emperor Napoleon III erected a large statue of Vercingetorix near Alesia in the 1860s.)
As Rome became an empire, the Celts of mainland Europe lost their autonomy, and over the centuries they assimilated into the cultural groups that gained control in the various territories. There is a Celtic presence today in Brittany, France, though this came as the Celtic Britons migrated there after the Anglo-Saxon invasions of Britain in the 400s A.D. Happily, we can know that Celts and celticisms still exist in Ireland and parts of Great Britain, surviving what invaders could not take away.


Part I: Who are the Celts?
Part III: The Celts in Galicia, Spain

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

8. This sketch of the ancient Celts was pieced together from a number of sources: the BBC series on The Celts; Georges Dottin, The Civilization of the Celts, (New York: Crescent Books, 1970); the Encyclopedia Britannica article "Celt"; and the World Book Encyclopedia article "Celts" (1982 edition--all future references from the this encyclopedia are from the 1982 edition, unless otherwise noted). Additional references on specific topics listed below. Statements that the Celts were the "Fathers of Europe" and the "principal barbarians north of the Alps" were from the BBC series The Celts. Georges Dottin (op. cit.) provides a broad representation of what the different classical authors had to say about the Celts, quoting the writers directly in many instances.

9. It can't be argued, the ancient Celts were barbarians. Because this paper is intended for gentle reading, I haven't emphasized many of the unsavory aspects of the ancient Celts. For instance, they practiced human sacrifice to their gods, slavery, and head de-capitation of their enemies (and made a big deal about it). Celtic men had an annoying habit of clanking their weapons instead of applauding when they approved of things they heard in assembly (Dottin, pg. 82). Among of the good things the Romans did when they conquered Gaul and other lands of the Celts, is they stopped human sacrifice, and they stopped the cult of severed heads. St. Patrick and the Celtic church stopped these things in Ireland, as well as slavery.
The Romans also brought cities to the Celtic areas they dominated, and cities (the Latin civitas), and civil behavior there, was a main root to civilization. Nevertheless, I agree with the experts who maintain that the Celts had their own brand of civilization. Perhaps it was less sophisticated and less orderly than the Romans, but it did produce wonderful art and literature, and made room for the free-spirits of society.
Note: From early times, the ancient Celts traded with the civilized cultures of the Greeks and Etruscans (pre-Roman peoples in Italy). There were other types of interaction--for instance, Cleopatra had a Celtic contingent in her army guard (Dottin, pg. 96). In 335 B.C., Alexander the Great received a delegation of Celts living in the Adriatic area. Pliny reported that the Celts in Gaul invented soap made from tallow and ash. (Dottin, pg. 33).

10. In Ireland, the Celts did invent a very simple writing form called Ogham (or Ogam), formed by strokes or notches on a line. It was cumbersome, and only a few words could easily be formed with it at a time. It was often used to write down personal names. More than 400 ancient ogham inscriptions exist today in Ireland. The alphabet consisted of about 19 of the letters in the current European alphabet; five more letters were added in modern times.
--partly from Encyclopedia Britannica article on "Ogham Writing"
11. The reference to "Celtica" was made by the ancient Denys of Halicarnassus.
--from Dottin (op. cit.), pg. 165. The reference to a "Celtic Empire" was from the BBC, The Celts.
12. Some of these Celtic tribes were named the Bituriges, the Arverni, the Aedui, the Senones, the Boii, the Insubres, the Lingones, and there were many more. The Helvetti were a Celtic tribe that settled in Switzerland; to this day the official name of Switzerland is Helvetia or Confederatio Helvetica.
13. This date and geographic placement for the beginning of the Celts is from Robert MacNeil et al, The Story of English (New York: Viking, 1986). One might argue that the further roots of the Celts go back to 3500-2500 B.C., when the Indo-European language community first began, perhaps north of the Black Sea or south of the Baltic Sea. (MacNeil, pgs. 54-55)
14. The Hallstatt area is in the Austrian Alps near Salzburg; it is the site of a major archeological dig, the earliest such evidence of a Celtic community--dating back to 700 B.C. The Celts mined salt there, and left a huge burial area of about 2,500 skeletons. As it turns out, the burial practices of the ancient Celts were pretty uniform across Europe, as discovered in research digs. Archeological work in Hallstatt began in 1843 through the efforts of a curious mining engineer in the salt mines. It has since become a major reference word used by people describing the central and western European cultures of antiquity.
15. La Tene is the name of an area near Lake Neuchatel in western Switzerland; in the latter half of the 19th century an important archeological dig was begun there, and it continues today. The La Tene culture was a Celtic people, later and more advanced than Hallstatt. The Celtic patterned art that many people in the modern world love is called the La Tene Celtic art-style. This La Tene art also included highly stylized animal portrayals.
16. This idea that the Celts had a presence in southern Scandinavia is mentioned in Dottin (op. cit.) pg. 169. This notion is supported with the fact that the Gundestrup Cauldron, a famous work of Celtic art, was discovered in a swamp in Denmark.
17. The Celtic region of Galatia was in the center of what is now Turkey. About 20,000 Celts first entered what became Galatia in 278 B.C., under the pretense and invitation of one area king at war with another. The early presence of the Celtic "horde" in this region has been characterized as marauding and given to plunder. Eventually they settled down and built fortified villages, and aligned themselves with local kings. They became a Roman protectorate in 85 B.C., and there was a line of Celtic kings of Galatia. The Celtic Galatians ruled as a military aristocracy over the indigenous peoples. For centuries the Celts there kept their own language and customs, but by the 2nd century A.D. they were quickly assimilating into the predominate Greek culture of the area.
--from the Encyclopedia Britannica article on "Galatia"
My speculation is that due to St. Paul's epistle to the Galatians, and his missionary work with them, the Galatians were the first Celtic Christians in the world.

18. This summary description of the ancient Celt culture is full of generalizations, and as in most generalizations, there were exceptions. There were many Celtic tribes, and many variations in cultural development. For instance, in Austria there are archeological remains of Celtic villages consisting of rectangular log cabins. In Ireland, the Celts did build lasting fort complexes--made of wood.
--from BBC, The Celts.
19. Reports were that blonde hair was common among the ancient Celts. However, they also put lime in their hair to appear blonde.
20. The author of the Encyclopedia Britannica article on "Celtic Languages" says that the ancient Celts had a higher degree of social organization than the Germanic tribes. Poseidonius (considered the most learned man of his day, and tutor to Cicero) said the Germanic tribes were somewhat less civilized than the Celts (1). Julius Caesar said the Celts of Gaul had superior valor in comparison to the German tribes (2). Some experts express the idea that in more modern times the Germanic peoples adopted the order and regimentation of the Roman organizational systems more readily than the Celtic peoples have.
SUBNOTES: (1) from Encyclopedia Britannica article on "Druidism"; (2) from Dottin, pg. 162

21. In Irish myth, Celtic heroes are often depicted as wearing kilts.
22. In Ireland the bards were wandering poets and minstrels (with harps). There was another class of hereditary poets and storytellers called the filid, who also preserved Irish oral tradition.
--from World Book Encyclopedia article on "Irish Literature"
23. nformation related to the number of Celtic gods, their territorial nature, and the Celtic festivals is from interview with Gordon Ireland, June 25, 1999. Much of the information is also from sources cited earlier, particularly the BBC series, The Celts.
24. According to Dottin, in Civilization of the Celts, Diogenes Laertius claimed that the first philosophers were barbarians, from four areas: 1) the druids of the Celts; 2) the Persian magi in Babylon, 3) the Chaldeans in Assyria; and 4) the Gymnosophites in India. Diogenes Laertius is also the source of the quoted "druid maxim." Living in the 3rd century A.D., Diogenes Laertius wrote Life of the Philosophers, an early history of Greek philosophy.
--from Dottin (op. cit.) pgs. 132 and 143; and the Encyclopedia Britannica, article on "Diogenes Laertius"
25. Sources about Julius Caesar's campaign in Gaul, and about Vercingetorix are from Encyclopedia Britannica articles "Caesar, Gaius Julius," "Gaul," "Alesia," " Vercingetorix," and "Arverni"; also Dottin (op. cit.) and BBC, The Celts. It might also be mentioned that Julius Caesar characterized Vercingetorix as "a man of inexhaustible energy." The Romans held him captive for six years before strangling him to death in 45 B.C. As for the Celtic Gauls, they slowly became Romanized as they appreciated the benefits of Roman civilization; there was the Vindex uprising of the Celts in 68 A.D., but that was quelled, and Celtic identity disappeared in Gaul over the years.
Military historians point to Caesar's campaign in Gaul as an early example of how a well-organized army of soldiers can defeat a force of warriors with superior numbers who lack good organization. Caesar felt that the Celtic Gauls were very powerful in the initial push of battle, but lacked staying power in long-term fighting action. The Celts were renowned for their fearsome battle cry, and were said to have a distinctive victory yell in battles they won.

26. Material on Galicia, Spain from BBC, The Celts, and articles entitled "Spain" in the Encyclopedia Britannica and the World Book Encyclopedia. Claims of Irish Celt origins from Spain found in Thomas Cahill, How the Irish Saved Civilization (New York: Doubleday, 1995), pg. 79. Cahill believes that the Celts of Spain had a different language type than that of Celtic Britain, which explains how Irish Gaelic differs from the Brythonic Celtic languages of Great Britain.

Related web ResourcesIRISH LITERATURE, MYTHOLOGY, FOLKLORE, AND DRAMAWebsite for Irish and Celtic literature, mythology, and folklore, including Fairy tales, mythological hero tales, and study resources.www.luminarium.orgFantasy-Ireland's Irish Celtic Symbols GuideWhat is the symbol of Ireland to you? There are plenty of Irish Celtic symbols that represent the forty shades of the Emerald Isle, and then some!www.fantasy-ireland.comIrish & Celtic Music PodcastIn every episode of the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast, I ask you to vote for your favorite song in that podcast. The most-popular song is then featured at ...www.celticmusicpodcast.comCeltic Jewelry and Irish Jewelry - Celtic Wedding Rings and Irish ...Celtic jewelry and Irish jewelry in silver and gold all made in ireland. Celtic Wedding Rings, Irish Wedding Rings, Irish Crosses we have a huge range of ...www.123celtic-irish-jewelry.comIrish Gifts - Celtic Jewelry and GiftsIrish gift shop and online Irish catalog featuring gifts from Ireland. Find claddagh rings, Belleek Parian China, Galway crystal, celtic cross jewelry, ...www.celticshamrock.com Related pdf ResourcesPROPERTY RIGHTS IN CELTIC IRISH LAW*PROPERTY RIGHTS IN CELTIC IRISH LAW*. JOSEPH R. PEDEN. Department of History, Baruch College of the City University of New York. "The laws which the Irish ...mises.orgCeltic Football Club and Irish IdentityCeltic Supporters Clubs, and the author of Celtic F.C The Irish Connection, .... G.A.A., Celtic and Irish nationalism as he sees it: ...www.ul.ieThe Irish social partnership and the “celtic tiger” phenomenon00 41 22 / 799 6128. Fax. 00 41 22 / 799 8542. E-mail: inst@ilo.org http://www. ilo.org/inst. The Irish social partnership and the. “celtic tiger” phenomenon ...www.ilo.orgIrish, Scottish and Celtic Festivals in Massachusetts, 2010 ...Cape Cod Irish SummerFest. Cape Cod Melody Tent, Hyannis, MA. July 17. Blackstone Valley Celtic Festival. Indian Ranch Performance Center. Webster, MA ...www.massvacation.comControl of modern dinoúagellate cyst distribution in the Irish and ...the Irish and Celtic seas by seasonal stratiócation dynamics ... Celtic and Irish seas have been analysed for their dinoflagellate cyst assemblages and ...ww2.coastal.edu Article topicsCeltic & Irish
History & Anthropology
Saga of Times Past
Related articlesStory of the Celts: The Ancient Celts
Story of the Celts: The Celts Today
Celtic Gods and Heroes: The Gods of Ancient Ireland
Story of the Celts: The Celts in Britain
Origins of the Celts
Related searchesTOURMALINE
milford
Naoise
On
hexes
eolh
shushmushti
Related booksA grammar of the Iberno-Celtic, or Irish language: By Major Charles ...Complete Book of Irish & Celtic 5-String BanjoLord of the DanceThe Irish mythological cycle and Celtic mythologyA Book of Irish Verse

Confirm the ad shows on your site - AdSense Help

Confirm the ad shows on your site - AdSense Help

SEARCH BOX CODE (PASTE IN PAGE WHERE YOU’D LIKE YOUR SEARCH BOX TO APPEAR)

Custom Search

Good bye guns...

Folks

Whether you are a democrat or a republican this is a scary message and maybe the beginning of a police state. Read it carefully call your representative and your congressman and you and your family vote your conscience on Nov. 2.


Subject: FW: GUN REGISTRATION---LIKELY CONFISCATION




________________________________________

I checked this on the web also and you can check also.

Foks --- if you've ever thought about or fantacized about having a gun in the house as civil institutions continue to shrivel, THIS IS IMPORTANT!

I've thought long and hard on the notion BUT THIS DEFINITELY kills the possibility for me, as well as putting a lot of gun shops and their people on the edge of oblivion.

Our "governmental process" is in the toilet!!! November 2nd may be the last chance to pull the FLUSH lever. Good luck to us all!



GOOD MORNING America!!! Are you STILL NOT AWAKE?
WELL,YOU WILL BE AWAKE BEFORE TOO LONG!!!
JUST KEEP SNOOZING WHILE OBAMA 'CHANGES' THINGS!!!
No Guns ..No Protection..No Freedom
Please Read This One ! ! ! If this doesn't scare you about what's happening in Washington DC nothing will ! ! !

Verified true on Snopes http://www.snopes.com/politics/guns/blairholt.asp
Gun owners.... Look what's on the 2010 tax return....

If you have a gun, I hope it isn't registered!

It begins... More Freedom gone.... The right to protect yourself and your family gone! Now ALL GUNSmust be listed on your next (2010) tax return!




Senate Bill SB-2099 will require us to put on our 2009 1040 federal tax form all guns that you have or own. It will require fingerprints and a tax of $50 per gun. This bill was introduced on February 24, 2009, by the Obama staff. BUT, this bill will only become public knowledge 30 days after the new law becomes effective! This is an amendment to the Internal Revenue Act of 1986. This means that the Finance Committee has passed this without the Senate voting on it at all. Trust Obama? You must be kidding!

The full text of the IRS amendment is on the U.S. Senate homepage: www.senate.gov. You can find the bill by doing a search by the bill number, SB-2099. You know who to call; I strongly suggest you do.

Please send a copy of this e-mail to every gun owner you know.
Text of H.R.45 as Introduced in House: Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009: www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h45/text
Obama's Congress is now starting on the firearms confiscation bill. If it passes, gun owners will become criminals if you don't fully comply.

It has begun... Whatever Obama's "Secret Master Plan" is... This is just the 'tip of the iceberg!'

Very Important for you to be aware of a new bill HR 45 introduced into the House. This is the Blair Holt Firearm Licensing & Record of Sale Act of 2009.
Even gun shop owners didn't know about this because the government is trying to fly it under the radar as a 'minor' IRS revision, and, as usual, the 'political' lawmakers did not read this bill before signing and approving it!

To find out about this - go to any government website and type in HR 45 or Google HR 45 Blair Holt Firearm Licensing & Record of Sales Act of 2009. You will get all the information.

Basically this would make it illegal to own a firearm - any rifle with a clip or ANY pistol unless: 1) It is registered 2) You are fingerprinted 3) You supply a current Driver's License 4) You supply your Social Security number 5) You will submit to a physical & mental evaluation at any time of their choosing. Each update change or ownership through private or public sale must be reported and costs $25. Failure to do so you automatically lose the right to own a firearm and are subject up to a year in jail.
There is a child provision clause on page 16 section 305 stating a child-access provision. Gun must be locked and inaccessible to any child under 18. They would have the right to come and inspect that you are storing your gun safely away from accessibility to children and fine is punishable for up to 5 years in prison.

If you think this is a joke - go to the website and take your pick of many options to read this.. It is long and lengthy. But, more and more people are becoming aware of this. Pass the word along. Any hunters in your family pass this along. This is just a "termite" approach to complete confiscation of guns and disarming of our society to the point we have no defense - chip away a little here and there until the goal is accomplished before anyone realizes it.

This is one to act on whether you own a gun or not..

:





Please..... Copy and send this out to EVERYONE in the USA , whether you support the Right to Bear Arms or are for gun control.. We all should have the RIGHT TO CHOOSE!

Norse Holidays

SNOWMOON/JANUARY


Snowmoon 3, Charming of the Plow: This is the date of an agricultural ritual performed in Northern Europe from ancient times. Grains and cakes were offered for the soil’s fertility, and the Sky Father and Earth Mother were invoked to that end. Meditate upon your dependence on the soil, and crumble upon the earth a piece of bread as you call upon Odin, Frigga and the Land Spirits to heal the Earth and keep it from harm.

Snowmoon 9, Day of Remembrance for Raud the Strong: Raud was a landowner in Norway who was put to death by (St.) Olaf Tryggvason for his loyalty to Asatru by having a snake forced down his throat. Rauds lands were then confiscated in the name of the king and his monks. Raise a horn in honor of Raud and all of his kinsmen who gave their lives, rather then submit to the enforced love of the kristjan empire.

Snowmoon 14, Thorrablot: This holiday began the Old Norse month of Snorri. It is still observed in Iceland with parties and a mid-winter feast. It is of course sacred to Thorr and the ancient Icelandic Winter Spirit of Thorri. On this day we should perform blot to Thorr and invite the mighty Asaman to the feast.



HORNING/FEBRUARY


Horning 2, Barri: This is the day we celebrate the wooing by Ingvi Freyr of the maiden Gerd, a symbolic marriage of the Vanir God of Fertility with the Mother Earth. It is a festival of fertility, the planted seed and the plowed furrow. For those of you who garden, this is the time to plant seeds indoors, to later be transplanted in the summer garden.

Horning 9, Day of Remembrance for Eyvind Kinnrifi: Olaf tortured him to death by placing a bowl of red-hot embers on his stomach until his body burst open. Eyvind’s crime was a steadfast loyalty to the Old Gods. A good day to reflect on kristjan kindness.

Horning 14, Feast of Vali: This feast originally celebrated the death of Hothr at the hands of Vali. This late winter festival relates to the triumphant return of the light of the sun over the dark days of winter. Today it is traditional celebration of the family. A time for the customary exchange of cards and gifts with loved ones. It is also a time for the renewal of marriage vows and an occasion for marriages.



LENTING/MARCH


Lenting 9, Day of Remembrance for Oliver the Martyr: He was an adherent of Asatru who persisted in organizing underground sacrifices to the Gods and Goddesses despite decrees by St Olaf the Lawbreaker forbidding such activities. Betrayed by an informer, he was killed by Olaf’s men while preparing for the Spring sacrifice in the village of Maerin Norway. Many other men whose names are lost to us were also killed, mutilated, or exiled for taking part in such sacrifices.

Lenting 15, High Feast of Ostara: This is the Spring Equinox. The end of Winter and the beginning of the season of rebirth. Today we honor Frigga, Freya and Nerthus with blot and feast. Pour a libation of mead onto the Earth; celebrate the rebirth of nature, Asatru, and the new hopes of our Folk.

Lenting 28, Ragnar Lodbrok Day: Ragnar was one of the legends most famous Vikings. On this day in Runic Year 1145 he raided Paris. It just happened to be Easter Sunday. Today toast Ragnar and read from his Saga.



OSTARA/APRIL


Ostara 9, Day of Remembrance for Jarl Hakon of Norway: As ruler of the western part of the realm, Hakon restored the worship of the Old Gods and cast out the alien religion. In the process, the common folk regained political liberties which were erased under the kristjan yoke, and the flame of our Troth burned brighter in an era of gathering gloom. It may be that Hakon’s defense of our ancestral ways helped encourage the survival of our traditions in Iceland, where they eventually became the seeds of modern day Asatru. On this day reflect on how the actions of the individual can impact world events and the future of Odinn’s Nation.

Ostara 15, Sigrblot/Sumarsdag: Today we celebrate the first day of Summer in the Old Icelandic calendar. In Iceland it had strong agricultural overtones, but elsewhere in the Nordic world, it was a time to sacrifice to Odinn for victory in the summer voyages and battles.

Ostara 22, Yggdrasil Day: On this day we realize the great significance that the World Tree plays in our culture, heritage, and native spirituality. It is from the World Tree that we came, and it shelters and nurtures the Asatru today, and will offer refuge to the Folk come Ragnarok. Trees are the lungs as well as the soul of Midgard. Plant a tree today, nurture it, and protect it. In this act the Folk must abide.

Ostara 30, Walburg: this is better known as Walpurgisnacht or May Eve. Walberg is a goddess of our folk combining some of the traits of Her better-known peers. Reflect on this day on Freya, Hel, and Frigga as the repository of the glorious dead, and you will have an idea of Wulburg’s nature. On this day pour a horn of mead upon the earth in memory of our heroes.



MERRYMOON/MAY


Merrymoon 1, May Day: The first of May is a time of great celebration all across Europe, as the fields get greener and the flowers decorate the landscape with colorful confusion. Freya turns her kindly face to us after the night of Walburg. Celebrate the birth of Spring and the gifts of Freya on this day.

Merrymoon 9, Day of Remembrance for Guthroth: One of the upland minor kings. Guthroth had to the audacity to make a speech opposing the policies of Olaf Tryggvason, who at the time was busy killing people who did not want to become kristjans. For exercising his Gods given rights to worship his tribal Gods, Guthroth was captured and his tongue was cut out. Use your tongue for the Gods today! Sing their praises and recite some heroic poetry, tell someone of the Gods glory, and call a kinsman to keep in touch.

Merrymoon 20, Frigga Blot: Today we rejoice in the warmth and splendor of Spring. A traditional time for a Kindred campout, perform blot to honor the AllMother and thank Her for the health and vitality of the Family, Kindred and Tribe.



MIDYEAR/JUNE


Midyear 8, Lindisfarne Day: On this day in the year 1043 Runic Era (793 CE) three Viking ships raided the Isle of Lindisfarne, officially opening what is the Viking Age. Toast these brave warriors who began the noble resistance of the alien invasion of the Northlands and sought rightful revenge for the slaughter of the Saxons by Charlamange.

Midyear 9, Day of Remembrance for Sigurd the Volsung: He is the model Germanic hero. His wooing of the Valkyrie Brynhild, the winning of the treasure of the Nibelungs, and the constant theme of Odinic initiation that weaves itself throughout his story are priceless parts of our Asatru heritage, that provide endless material for contemplation and inspiration for action.

Midyear 19, Asatru Alliance Founding Day: On this date 2238 R.E. seven Kindreds of the former Asatru Free Assembly joined together by ratifying a set of By Laws to preserve and continue to promote the cause of the AFA and Asatru in Vinland. On this day reflect on just what YOU can do to preserve our Folk Ways.

Midyear 21, Midsummer: This is the longest day and the shortest night of the year: Now Sunna begins its ling decline, sliding into the darkness which will culminate six months from now at Yule. Identifying the sun with the brightness of Baldur, we celebrate in honor of both. Hold blot to Baldur and High Feast. This was the traditional time for holding the AlThing in ancient times.



HAYMOON/JULY


Haymoon 4, Founder’s Day: On this day we honor the unselfish personal sacrifice and unswerving dedication to our Folk exemplified by the founders of modern era Asatru, H. Rud Mills of Australia, Sveinbjorn Beinteinsson and Thorsteinn Guthjonson of Iceland. On this day reflect on just what YOU can do to promote the growth of our ancestral religion and protect our sacred heritage and traditions.

Haymoon 9 - Day of Remembrance for Unn the Deep Minded: Unn was a powerful figure from the Laxdaela Saga who emigrated to Scotland to avoid the hostility of King Harald Finehair. She established dynasties in the Orkney and Faroe Islands by carefully marrying off her grand daughters. As a settler in Iceland she continued to exhibit all those traits which were her hallmark-strong will, a determination to control, dignity, and a noble character. In the last days of her life, she established a mighty line choosing one of her grandsons as her heir. She died during his wedding celebration, presumable accomplishing her goals and worked out her orlog here in Midgard. She received a typical Nordic ship burial, surrounded by her treasure and her reputation for great deeds.

Haymoon 29 - Stikklestad Day: Olaf the Lawbreaker (“St. Olaf”) was killed at the battle of Stikklestad on this date in the year 1280 R.E. Olaf acquired a reputation for killing, maiming, and exiling his fellow Norwegians who would not convert to Christianity, and for carrying an army with him in violation of the law to help him accomplish his oppression. Today honor the Asatru martyrs who died rather then submit to gray slavery. Also honor the warriors who brought justice to the Lawbreaker.



HARVEST/AUGUST


Harvest 9 - Day of Remembrance for Radbod: On this date we honor Radbod a king of Frisia what was an early target kristjan missionaries. Just before his baptism ceremony, he asked the clergy what fate his befallen ancestors who died loyal to Asatru. The missionaries replied that Radbod’s Heathen ancestors were burning in Hell-to which the king replied: “Then I will rather live there with my ancestors than go to heaven with a parcel of beggars.” The baptism was cancelled, the aliens expelled, and Frisia remained free. Drink a horn this day in memory of Radbod.

Harvest 19 - Freyfaxi: Freyfaxi marked the time of the harvest in ancient Iceland. Today the Asatru observe this date as a celebration of their harvest with blot to Freyr and a grand Feast from the gardens and the fields..



SHEDDING/SEPTEMBER


Shedding 9 - Day of Remembrance for Herman of the Cherusci: Few mortals have privileged to serve our Folk as did Herman, a leader of the tribe called the Cherusci. We he defeated Varus’ three Roman Legions in 9 C.E. he blocked our amalgamation into the Mediterranean morass. Herman was very aware of his duties not only as a member of his tribe but also as an Asaman - indeed the two were probably inseparable with him. Shedding is the ideal time to give him praise, because the crucial battle for which he is remembered was fought during this month.

Shedding 23 - Winter Finding: The Fall Equinox; Summer and Winter balance for a moment and the cold, old man wins - for now. Brace yourself for longer nights and the onset, eventually, of the cold and darkness of Winter. Do blot to Odin for inspiration to get through your personal lean times, whenever they may strike. This is the traditional time for Fall Fest and the Second Harvest Feast.



HUNTING/OCTOBER


Hunting 8 - Day of Remembrance for Erik the Red: Praise the stalwart founder of Greenland, and father of Leif, the founder of Vinland. Erik remained loyal to Thor even when his wife left the Gods and refused to sleep with her Heathen husband. Pause in memory of Erik today; drink a toast to his honor. No doubt he gets enough warmth in Har’s Hall to make up for his wife’s coldness.

Hunting 9 - Day of Remembrance for Leif Erikson: this is a day that even the U.S. Government admits who should dedicate to the man who beat Columbus to the shores of Vinland by over 500 years. Don’t let it slide quietly - write your local newspapers and share the word of the Norse colonies with neighbors and friends.

Hunting 14 - Winter Nights/Vetrablot: In the Old Icelandic Calendar, winter begins on the Satyrday between Hunting 11th and 17th. Winter Nights celebrates the bounty of the harvest and honors Freya and the fertility and protective spirits called Disir, that She leads (often the Disir are seen as our female ancestors). Give glory to Freya and pour a libation of ale, milk, or mead into the soil an offering to the Disir and the Earth itself.



FOGMOON/NOVEMBER


Fogmoon 9 - Day of Remembrance for Queen Sigrith of Sweden: When Olaf the Lawbreaker had been king of Norway for three years, he asked Queen Sigrith of Sweden to marry him. She agreed, but when he insisted that she give up her ancestral Gods Sigrith replied, “I do not mean to abandon the faith I have led, and my kinsmen before me. Nor shall I object to your belief in the god you prefer.” As usual Heathen tolerance was met with kristjan imprecations and a blow to the face. The wedding was off - depriving Olaf of political power that could have sped the christianization of Scandinavia. As it were, history tells us that the Heathens held on for over 300 more years in the Northlands. Hail Sigrith, defender of Asatru, and women of stubborn virtue!

Fogmoon 11 - Feast of the Einherjar: The chosen heroes who sit in Odin’s Hall are the Einherjar. Today we honor those dead kin who gave their lives for Family and Folk. If you have friends or family who died in battle, visit their graves today, if that is not possible, drink a libation in their memory.

Fogmoon 23 - Feast of Ullr: The Feast of Ullr is to celebrate the Hunt and to gain personal luck needed for success. Weapons are dedicated on this day to Ullr, God of the Bow. If your hunting arms were blessed by the luck of the God of the Hunt, your family and tribe shared the bounty with a Blot and Feast to Ullr.



YULE/DECEMBER


Yule 9 - Day of Remembrance for Egil Skallagrimsson: Odin was his God, and the blood of berserks and shape-shifters ran in his family. His lust for gold and for fames was insatiable. Yet the same man was passionately moved by the love of his friends and generously opened handed to those who found his favor. The same brain that seethed with war-fury also composed skaldic poetry capable of calming angry kings. Can it be by accident that Egil worshipped Odin, the great solver of paradoxes and riddles? Indeed all Asafolk - but especially those who follow the one-eyed God of battle and magic - can learn much from the life of this amazing man.

Yule 21 - Mother Night: As the night before the Winter Solstice, this is the time when the New Year is born. We honor the beginning of Sunnas return and the breaking of Winter’s spell. This is a time to honor Thor and Freyr, celebrate by Blot, Sumbel, and High Feast. Burn a Yule Log and jump the flames for luck and purification.

Yule 22 - High Feast of Yule - Beginning of Runic Year - Sacred to Thorr and Freyr

Yule 31 - Twelfth Night: This culminates the traditional twelve days of Yule. Each day of which is a month of the preceding year in miniature. Reflect on the past year. Take stock and lay a course for the future. Make New Years resolutions in the old way by swearing your oath on Freyr’s boar or on your Hammer.

Voluspa

VOLUSPO

The Wise-Woman's Prophecy

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

At the beginning of the collection in the Codex Regius stands the Voluspo, the most famous and important, as it is likewise the most debated, of all the Eddic poems. Another version of it is found in a huge miscellaneous compilation of about the year 1300, the Hauksbok, and many stanzas are included in the Prose Edda of Snorri Sturluson. The order of the stanzas in the Hauksbok version differs materially from that in the Codex Regius, and in the published editions many experiments have been attempted in further rearrangements. On the whole, how ever, and allowing for certain interpolations, the order of the stanzas in the Codex Regius seems more logical than any of the wholesale "improvements" which have been undertaken.

The general plan of the Voluspo is fairly clear. Othin, chief of the gods, always conscious of impending disaster and eager for knowledge, calls on a certain "Volva," or wise-woman, presumably bidding her rise from the grave. She first tells him of the past, of the creation of the world, the beginning of years, the origin of the dwarfs (at this point there is a clearly interpolated catalogue of dwarfs' names, stanzas 10-16), of the first man and woman, of the world-ash Yggdrasil, and of the first war, between the gods and the Vanir, or, in Anglicized form, the Wanes. Then, in stanzas 27-29, as a further proof of her wisdom, she discloses some of Othin's own secrets and the details of his search for knowledge. Rewarded by Othin for what she has thus far told (stanza 30), she then turns to the real prophesy, the disclosure of the final destruction of the gods. This final battle, in which fire and flood overwhelm heaven and earth as the gods fight with their enemies, is the great fact in Norse mythology; the phrase describing it, ragna rök, "the fate of the gods," has become familiar, by confusion with the word rökkr, "twilight," in the German Göterdämmerung. The wise-woman tells of the Valkyries who bring the slain warriors to support Othin and the other gods in the battle, of the slaying of Baldr, best and fairest of the gods, through the wiles of Loki, of the enemies of the gods, of the summons to battle on both sides, and of the mighty struggle, till Othin is slain, and "fire leaps high

p. 2

about heaven itself" (stanzas 31-58). But this is not all. A new and beautiful world is to rise on the ruins of the old; Baldr comes back, and "fields unsowed bear ripened fruit" (stanzas 59-66).

This final passage, in particular, has caused wide differences of opinion as to the date and character of the poem. That the poet was heathen and not Christian seems almost beyond dispute; there is an intensity and vividness in almost every stanza which no archaizing Christian could possibly have achieved. On the other hand, the evidences of Christian influence are sufficiently striking to outweigh the arguments of Finnur Jonsson, Müllenhoff and others who maintain that the Voluspo is purely a product of heathendom. The roving Norsemen of the tenth century, very few of whom had as yet accepted Christianity, were nevertheless in close contact with Celtic races which had already been converted, and in many ways the Celtic influence was strongly felt. It seems likely, then, that the Voluspo was the work of a poet living chiefly in Iceland, though possibly in the "Western Isles," in the middle of the tenth century, a vigorous believer in the old gods, and yet with an imagination active enough to be touched by the vague tales of a different religion emanating from his neighbor Celts.

How much the poem was altered during the two hundred years between its composition and its first being committed to writing is largely a matter of guesswork, but, allowing for such an obvious interpolation as the catalogue of dwarfs, and for occasional lesser errors, it seems quite needless to assume such great changes as many editors do. The poem was certainly not composed to tell a story with which its early hearers were quite familiar; the lack of continuity which baffles modern readers presumably did not trouble them in the least. It is, in effect, a series of gigantic pictures, put into words with a directness and sureness which bespeak the poet of genius. It is only after the reader, with the help of the many notes, has--familiarized him self with the names and incidents involved that he can begin to understand the effect which this magnificent poem must have produced on those who not only understood but believed it.

p. 3

1. Hearing I ask | from the holy races,
From Heimdall's sons, | both high and low;
Thou wilt, Valfather, | that well I relate
Old tales I remember | of men long ago.

2. I remember yet | the giants of yore,
Who gave me bread | in the days gone by;
Nine worlds I knew, | the nine in the tree
With mighty roots | beneath the mold.

[1. A few editors, following Bugge, in an effort to clarify the poem, place stanzas 22, 28 and 30 before stanzas 1-20, but the arrangement in both manuscripts, followed here, seems logical. In stanza I the Volva, or wise-woman, called upon by Othin, answers him and demands a hearing. Evidently she be longs to the race of the giants (cf. stanza 2), and thus speaks to Othin unwillingly, being compelled to do so by his magic power. Holy: omitted in Regius; the phrase "holy races" probably means little more than mankind in general. Heimdall: the watchman of the gods; cf. stanza 46 and note. Why mankind should be referred to as Heimdall's sons is uncertain, and the phrase has caused much perplexity. Heimdall seems to have had various at tributes, and in the Rigsthula, wherein a certain Rig appears as the ancestor of the three great classes of men, a fourteenth century annotator identifies Rig with Heimdall, on what authority we do not know, for the Rig of the poem seems much more like Othin (cf. Rigsthula, introductory prose and note). Valfather ("Father of the Slain"): Othin, chief of the gods, so called because the slain warriors were brought to him at Valhall ("Hall of the Slain") by the Valkyries ("Choosers of the Slain").

2. Nine worlds: the worlds of the gods (Asgarth), of the Wanes (Vanaheim, cf. stanza 21 and note), of the elves (Alfheim), of men (Mithgarth), of the giants (Jotunheim), of fire (Muspellsheim, cf. stanza 47 and note), of the dark elves (Svartalfaheim), of the dead (Niflheim), and presumably of the dwarfs (perhaps Nithavellir, cf. stanza 37 and note, but the ninth world is uncertain). The tree: the world-ash Yggdrasil, [fp. 4] symbolizing the universe; cf. Grimnismol, 29-35 and notes, wherein Yggdrasil is described at length.]

p. 4

3. Of old was the age | when Ymir lived;
Sea nor cool waves | nor sand there were;
Earth had not been, | nor heaven above,
But a yawning gap, | and grass nowhere.

4. Then Bur's sons lifted | the level land,
Mithgarth the mighty | there they made;
The sun from the south | warmed the stones of earth,
And green was the ground | with growing leeks.

5. The sun, the sister | of the moon, from the south
Her right hand cast | over heaven's rim;
No knowledge she had | where her home should be,
The moon knew not | what might was his,
The stars knew not | where their stations were.

[3. Ymir: the giant out of whose body the gods made the world; cf. Vafthruthnismol, 21. in this stanza as quoted in Snorri's Edda the first line runs: "Of old was the age ere aught there was." Yawning gap: this phrase, "Ginnunga-gap," is sometimes used as a proper name.

4. Bur's sons: Othin, Vili, and Ve. Of Bur we know only that his wife was Bestla, daughter of Bolthorn; cf. Hovamol, 141. Vili and Ve are mentioned by name in the Eddic poems only in Lokasenna, 26. Mithgarth ("Middle Dwelling"): the world of men. Leeks: the leek was often used as the symbol of fine growth (cf. Guthrunarkvitha I, 17), and it was also supposed to have magic power (cf. Sigrdrifumol, 7).

5. Various editors have regarded this stanza as interpolated; Hoffory thinks it describes the northern summer night in which the sun does not set. Lines 3-5 are quoted by Snorri. In the manuscripts line 4 follows line 5. Regarding the sun and moon [fp. 5] as daughter and son of Mundilferi, cf. Vafthruthnismol, 23 and note, and Grimnismol, 37 and note.]

p. 5

6. Then sought the gods | their assembly-seats,
The holy ones, | and council held;
Names then gave they | to noon and twilight,
Morning they named, | and the waning moon,
Night and evening, | the years to number.

7. At Ithavoll met | the mighty gods,
Shrines and temples | they timbered high;
Forges they set, and | they smithied ore,
Tongs they wrought, | and tools they fashioned.

8. In their dwellings at peace | they played at tables,
Of gold no lack | did the gods then know,--
Till thither came | up giant-maids three,
Huge of might, | out of Jotunheim.

[6. Possibly an interpolation, but there seems no strong reason for assuming this. Lines 1-2 are identical with lines 1-2 of stanza 9, and line 2 may have been inserted here from that later stanza.

7. Ithavoll ("Field of Deeds"?): mentioned only here and in stanza 60 as the meeting-place of the gods; it appears in no other connection.

8. Tables: the exact nature of this game, and whether it more closely resembled chess or checkers, has been made the subject of a 400-page treatise, Willard Fiske's "Chess in Iceland." Giant-maids: perhaps the three great Norns, corresponding to the three fates; cf. stanza 20, and note. Possibly, however, something has been lost after this stanza, and the missing passage, replaced by the catalogue of the dwarfs (stanzas 9-16), may have explained the "giant-maids" otherwise than as Norns. In Vafthruthnismol, 49, the Norms (this time "three throngs" in stead of simply "three") are spoken of as giant-maidens; [fp. 6] Fafnismol, 13, indicates the existence of many lesser Norns, belonging to various races. Jotunheim: the world of the giants.]

p. 6

9. Then sought the gods | their assembly-seats,
The holy ones, | and council held,
To find who should raise | the race of dwarfs
Out of Brimir's blood | and the legs of Blain.

10. There was Motsognir | the mightiest made
Of all the dwarfs, | and Durin next;
Many a likeness | of men they made,
The dwarfs in the earth, | as Durin said.

11. Nyi and Nithi, | Northri and Suthri,
Austri and Vestri, | Althjof, Dvalin,
Nar and Nain, | Niping, Dain,
Bifur, Bofur, | Bombur, Nori,
An and Onar, | Ai, Mjothvitnir.

[9. Here apparently begins the interpolated catalogue of the dwarfs, running through stanza 16; possibly, however, the interpolated section does not begin before stanza 11. Snorri quotes practically the entire section, the names appearing in a some what changed order. Brimir and Blain: nothing is known of these two giants, and it has been suggested that both are names for Ymir (cf. stanza 3). Brimir, however, appears in stanza 37 in connection with the home of the dwarfs. Some editors treat the words as common rather than proper nouns, Brimir meaning "the bloody moisture" and Blain being of uncertain significance.

10. Very few of the dwarfs named in this and the following stanzas are mentioned elsewhere. It is not clear why Durin should have been singled out as authority for the list. The occasional repetitions suggest that not all the stanzas of the catalogue came from the same source. Most of the names presumably had some definite significance, as Northri, Suthri, Austri, and Vestri ("North," "South", "East," and "West"), [fp. 7] Althjof ("Mighty Thief'), Mjothvitnir ("Mead-Wolf"), Gandalf ("Magic Elf'), Vindalf ("Wind Elf'), Rathwith ("Swift in Counsel"), Eikinskjaldi ("Oak Shield"), etc., but in many cases the interpretations are sheer guesswork.]

p. 7

12. Vigg and Gandalf) | Vindalf, Thrain,
Thekk and Thorin, | Thror, Vit and Lit,
Nyr and Nyrath,-- | now have I told--
Regin and Rathsvith-- | the list aright.

13. Fili, Kili, | Fundin, Nali,
Heptifili, | Hannar, Sviur,
Frar, Hornbori, | Fræg and Loni,
Aurvang, Jari, | Eikinskjaldi.

14. The race of the dwarfs | in Dvalin's throng
Down to Lofar | the list must I tell;
The rocks they left, | and through wet lands
They sought a home | in the fields of sand.

15. There were Draupnir | and Dolgthrasir,
Hor, Haugspori, | Hlevang, Gloin,

[12. The order of the lines in this and the succeeding four stanzas varies greatly in the manuscripts and editions, and the names likewise appear in many forms. Regin: probably not identical with Regin the son of Hreithmar, who plays an important part in the Reginsmol and Fafnismol, but cf. note on Reginsmol, introductory prose.

14. Dvalin: in Hovamol, 144, Dvalin seems to have given magic runes to the dwarfs, probably accounting for their skill in craftsmanship, while in Fafnismol, 13, he is mentioned as the father of some of the lesser Norns. The story that some of the dwarfs left the rocks and mountains to find a new home on the sands is mentioned, but unexplained, in Snorri's Edda; of Lofar we know only that he was descended from these wanderers.]

p. 8

Dori, Ori, | Duf, Andvari,
Skirfir, Virfir, | Skafith, Ai.

16. Alf and Yngvi, | Eikinskjaldi,
Fjalar and Frosti, | Fith and Ginnar;
So for all time | shall the tale be known,
The list of all | the forbears of Lofar.

17. Then from the throng | did three come forth,
From the home of the gods, | the mighty and gracious;
Two without fate | on the land they found,
Ask and Embla, | empty of might.

18. Soul they had not, | sense they had not,
Heat nor motion, | nor goodly hue;
Soul gave Othin, | sense gave Hönir,
Heat gave Lothur | and goodly hue.

[15. Andvari: this dwarf appears prominently in the Reginsmol, which tells how the god Loki treacherously robbed him of his wealth; the curse which he laid on his treasure brought about the deaths of Sigurth, Gunnar, Atli, and many others.

17. Here the poem resumes its course after the interpolated section. Probably, however, something has been lost, for there is no apparent connection between the three giant-maids of stanza 8 and the three gods, Othin, Hönir and Lothur, who in stanza 17 go forth to create man and woman. The word "three" in stanzas 9 and 17 very likely confused some early reciter, or perhaps the compiler himself. Ask and Embla: ash and elm; Snorri gives them simply as the names of the first man and woman, but says that the gods made this pair out of trees.

18. Hönir: little is known of this god, save that he occasion ally appears in the poems in company with Othin and Loki, and [fp. 9] that he survives the destruction, assuming in the new age the gift of prophesy (cf. stanza 63). He was given by the gods as a hostage to the Wanes after their war, in exchange for Njorth (cf. stanza 21 and note). Lothur: apparently an older name for Loki, the treacherous but ingenious son of Laufey, whose divinity Snorri regards as somewhat doubtful. He was adopted by Othin, who subsequently had good reason to regret it. Loki probably represents the blending of two originally distinct figures, one of them an old fire-god, hence his gift of heat to the newly created pair.]

p. 9

19. An ash I know, | Yggdrasil its name,
With water white | is the great tree wet;
Thence come the dews | that fall in the dales,
Green by Urth's well | does it ever grow.

20. Thence come the maidens | mighty in wisdom,
Three from the dwelling | down 'neath the tree;
Urth is one named, | Verthandi the next,--
On the wood they scored,-- | and Skuld the third.
Laws they made there, and life allotted
To the sons of men, and set their fates.

[19. Yggdrasil: cf. stanza 2 and note, and Grimnismol, 29-35 and notes. Urth ("The Past"): one of the three great Norns. The world-ash is kept green by being sprinkled with the marvelous healing water from her well.

20. The maidens: the three Norns; possibly this stanza should follow stanza 8. Dwelling: Regius has "sæ" (sea) instead of "sal" (hall, home), and many editors have followed this reading, although Snorri's prose paraphrase indicates "sal." Urth, Verthandi and Skuld: "Past," "Present" and "Future." Wood, etc.: the magic signs (runes) controlling the destinies of men were cut on pieces of wood. Lines 3-4 are probably interpolations from some other account of the Norns.]

p. 10

21. The war I remember, | the first in the world,
When the gods with spears | had smitten Gollveig,
And in the hall | of Hor had burned her,
Three times burned, | and three times born,
Oft and again, | yet ever she lives.

22. Heith they named her | who sought their home,
The wide-seeing witch, | in magic wise;
Minds she bewitched | that were moved by her magic,
To evil women | a joy she was.

[21. This follows stanza 20 in Regius; in the Hauksbok version stanzas 25, 26, 27, 40, and 41 come between stanzas 20 and 21. Editors have attempted all sorts of rearrangements. The war: the first war was that between the gods and the Wanes. The cult of the Wanes (Vanir) seems to have originated among the seafaring folk of the Baltic and the southern shores of the North Sea, and to have spread thence into Norway in opposition to the worship of the older gods; hence the "war." Finally the two types of divinities were worshipped in common; hence the treaty which ended the war with the exchange of hostages. Chief among the Wanes were Njorth and his children, Freyr and Freyja, all of whom became conspicuous among the gods. Beyond this we know little of the Wanes, who seem originally to have been water-deities. I remember: the manuscripts have "she remembers," but the Volva is apparently still speaking of her own memories, as in stanza 2. Gollveig ("Gold-Might"): apparently the first of the Wanes to come among the gods, her ill treatment being the immediate cause of the war. Müllenhoff maintains that Gollveig is another name for Freyja. Lines 5-6, one or both of them probably interpolated, seem to symbolize the refining of gold by fire. Hor ("The High One"): Othin.

22. Heith ("Shining One"?): a name often applied to wise women and prophetesses. The application of this stanza to Gollveig is far from clear, though the reference may be to the [fp. 11] magic and destructive power of gold. It is also possible that the stanza is an interpolation. Bugge maintains that it applies to the Volva who is reciting the poem, and makes it the opening stanza, following it with stanzas 28 and 30, and then going on with stanzas I ff. The text of line 2 is obscure, and has been variously emended.]

p. 11

23. On the host his spear | did Othin hurl,
Then in the world | did war first come;
The wall that girdled | the gods was broken,
And the field by the warlike | Wanes was trodden.

24. Then sought the gods | their assembly-seats,
The holy ones, | and council held,
Whether the gods | should tribute give,
Or to all alike | should worship belong.

25. Then sought the gods | their assembly-seats,
The holy ones, | and council held,
To find who with venom | the air had filled,
Or had given Oth's bride | to the giants' brood.

[23. This stanza and stanza 24 have been transposed from the order in the manuscripts, for the former describes the battle and the victory of the Wanes, after which the gods took council, debating whether to pay tribute to the victors, or to admit them, as was finally done, to equal rights of worship.

25. Possibly, as Finn Magnusen long ago suggested, there is something lost after stanza 24, but it was not the custom of the Eddic poets to supply transitions which their hearers could generally be counted on to understand. The story referred to in stanzas 25-26 (both quoted by Snorri) is that of the rebuilding of Asgarth after its destruction by the Wanes. The gods employed a giant as builder, who demanded as his reward the sun and moon, and the goddess Freyja for his wife. The gods, terrified by the rapid progress of the work, forced Loki, who had advised the bargain, to delay the giant by a trick, so that the [fp. 12] work was not finished in the stipulated time (cf. Grimnismol, 44, note). The enraged giant then threatened the gods, whereupon Thor slew him. Oth's bride: Freyja; of Oth little is known beyond the fact that Snorri refers to him as a man who "went away on long journeys."]

p. 12

26. In swelling rage | then rose up Thor,--
Seldom he sits | when he such things hears,--
And the oaths were broken, | the words and bonds,
The mighty pledges | between them made.

27. I know of the horn | of Heimdall, hidden
Under the high-reaching | holy tree;
On it there pours | from Valfather's pledge
A mighty stream: | would you know yet more?

[26. Thor: the thunder-god, son of Othin and Jorth (Earth) cf. particularly Harbarthsljoth and Thrymskvitha, passim. Oaths, etc.: the gods, by violating their oaths to the giant who rebuilt Asgarth, aroused the undying hatred of the giants' race, and thus the giants were among their enemies in the final battle.

27. Here the Volva turns from her memories of the past to a statement of some of Othin's own secrets in his eternal search for knowledge (stanzas 27-29). Bugge puts this stanza after stanza 29. The horn of Heimdall: the Gjallarhorn ("Shrieking Horn"), with which Heimdall, watchman of the gods, will summon them to the last battle. Till that time the horn is buried under Yggdrasil. Valfather's pledge: Othin's eye (the sun?), which he gave to the water-spirit Mimir (or Mim) in exchange for the latter's wisdom. It appears here and in stanza 29 as a drinking-vessel, from which Mimir drinks the magic mead, and from which he pours water on the ash Yggdrasil. Othin's sacrifice of his eye in order to gain knowledge of his final doom is one of the series of disasters leading up to the destruction of the gods. There were several differing versions of the story of Othin's relations with Mimir; another one, quite incompatible with this, appears in stanza 47. In the manuscripts I know and I see appear as "she knows" and "she sees" (cf. note on 21).]

p. 13

28. Alone I sat | when the Old One sought me,
The terror of gods, | and gazed in mine eyes:
"What hast thou to ask? | why comest thou hither?
Othin, I know | where thine eye is hidden."

29. I know where Othin's | eye is hidden,
Deep in the wide-famed | well of Mimir;
Mead from the pledge | of Othin each mom
Does Mimir drink: | would you know yet more?

30. Necklaces had I | and rings from Heerfather,
Wise was my speech | and my magic wisdom;
. . . . . . . . . .
Widely I saw | over all the worlds.

[28. The Hauksbok version omits all of stanzas 28-34, stanza 27 being there followed by stanzas 40 and 41. Regius indicates stanzas 28 and 29 as a single stanza. Bugge puts stanza 28 after stanza 22, as the second stanza of his reconstructed poem. The Volva here addresses Othin directly, intimating that, although he has not told her, she knows why he has come to her, and what he has already suffered in his search for knowledge regarding his doom. Her reiterated "would you know yet more?" seems to mean: "I have proved my wisdom by telling of the past and of your own secrets; is it your will that I tell likewise of the fate in store for you?" The Old One: Othin.

29. The first line, not in either manuscript, is a conjectural emendation based on Snorri's paraphrase. Bugge puts this stanza after stanza 20.

30. This is apparently the transitional stanza, in which the Volva, rewarded by Othin for her knowledge of the past (stanzas 1-29), is induced to proceed with her real prophecy (stanzas 31-66). Some editors turn the stanza into the third person, making it a narrative link. Bugge, on the other hand, puts it [fp. 14] after stanza 28 as the third stanza of the poem. No lacuna is indicated in the manuscripts, and editors have attempted various emendations. Heerfather ("Father of the Host"): Othin.]

p. 14

31. On all sides saw I | Valkyries assemble,
Ready to ride | to the ranks of the gods;
Skuld bore the shield, | and Skogul rode next,
Guth, Hild, Gondul, | and Geirskogul.
Of Herjan's maidens | the list have ye heard,
Valkyries ready | to ride o'er the earth.

32. I saw for Baldr, | the bleeding god,
The son of Othin, | his destiny set:

[31. Valkyries: these "Choosers of the Slain" (cf. stanza I, note) bring the bravest warriors killed in battle to Valhall, in order to re-enforce the gods for their final struggle. They are also called "Wish-Maidens," as the fulfillers of Othin's wishes. The conception of the supernatural warrior-maiden was presumably brought to Scandinavia in very early times from the South-Germanic races, and later it was interwoven with the likewise South-Germanic tradition of the swan-maiden. A third complication developed when the originally quite human women of the hero-legends were endowed with the qualities of both Valkyries and swan-maidens, as in the cases of Brynhild (cf. Gripisspo, introductory note), Svava (cf. Helgakvitha Hjorvarthssonar, prose after stanza 5 and note) and Sigrun (cf. Helgakvitha Hundingsbana I, 17 and note). The list of names here given may be an interpolation; a quite different list is given in Grimnismol, 36. Ranks of the gods: some editors regard the word thus translated as a specific place name. Herjan ("Leader of Hosts"): Othin. It is worth noting that the name Hild ("Warrior") is the basis of Bryn-hild ("Warrior in Mail Coat").

32. Baldr: The death of Baldr, the son of Othin and Frigg, was the first of the great disasters to the gods. The story is fully told by Snorri. Frigg had demanded of all created things, saving only the mistletoe, which she thought too weak to be worth troubling [fp. 15] about, an oath that they would not harm Baldr. Thus it came to he a sport for the gods to hurl weapons at Baldr, who, of course, was totally unharmed thereby. Loki, the trouble-maker, brought the mistletoe to Baldr's blind brother, Hoth, and guided his hand in hurling the twig. Baldr was slain, and grief came upon all the gods. Cf. Baldrs Draumar.]

p. 15

Famous and fair | in the lofty fields,
Full grown in strength | the mistletoe stood.

33. From the branch which seemed | so slender and fair
Came a harmful shaft | that Hoth should hurl;
But the brother of Baldr | was born ere long,
And one night old | fought Othin's son.
34. His hands he washed not, | his hair he combed not,
Till he bore to the bale-blaze | Baldr's foe.
But in Fensalir | did Frigg weep sore
For Valhall's need: | would you know yet more?

35. One did I see | in the wet woods bound,
A lover of ill, | and to Loki like;

[33. The lines in this and the following stanza have been combined in various ways by editors, lacunae having been freely conjectured, but the manuscript version seems clear enough. The brother of Baldr: Vali, whom Othin begot expressly to avenge Baldr's death. The day after his birth he fought and slew Hoth.

34. Frigg: Othin's wife. Some scholars have regarded her as a solar myth, calling her the sun-goddess, and pointing out that her home in Fensalir ("the sea-halls") symbolizes the daily setting of the sun beneath the ocean horizon.

35. The translation here follows the Regius version. The Hauksbok has the same final two lines, but in place of the first [fp. 16] pair has, "I know that Vali | his brother gnawed, / With his bowels then | was Loki bound." Many editors have followed this version of the whole stanza or have included these two lines, often marking them as doubtful, with the four from Regius. After the murder of Baldr, the gods took Loki and bound him to a rock with the bowels of his son Narfi, who had just been torn to pieces by Loki's other son, Vali. A serpent was fastened above Loki's head, and the venom fell upon his face. Loki's wife, Sigyn, sat by him with a basin to catch the venom, but whenever the basin was full, and she went away to empty it, then the venom fell on Loki again, till the earth shook with his struggles. "And there he lies bound till the end." Cf. Lokasenna, concluding prose.]

p. 16

By his side does Sigyn | sit, nor is glad
To see her mate: | would you know yet more?

36. From the east there pours | through poisoned vales
With swords and daggers | the river Slith.
. . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . .

37. Northward a hall | in Nithavellir
Of gold there rose | for Sindri's race;
And in Okolnir | another stood,
Where the giant Brimir | his beer-hall had.

[36. Stanzas 36-39 describe the homes of the enemies of the gods: the giants (36), the dwarfs (37), and the dead in the land of the goddess Hel (38-39). The Hauksbok version omits stanzas 36 and 37. Regius unites 36 with 37, but most editors have assumed a lacuna. Slith ("the Fearful"): a river in the giants' home. The "swords and daggers" may represent the icy cold.

37. Nithavellir ("the Dark Fields"): a home of the dwarfs. Perhaps the word should be "Nithafjoll" ("the Dark Crags"). Sindri: the great worker in gold among the dwarfs. Okolnir [fp. 17] ("the Not Cold"): possibly a volcano. Brimir: the giant (possibly Ymir) out of whose blood, according to stanza 9, the dwarfs were made; the name here appears to mean simply the leader of the dwarfs.]

p. 17

38. A hall I saw, | far from the sun,
On Nastrond it stands, | and the doors face north,
Venom drops | through the smoke-vent down,
For around the walls | do serpents wind.

39. I saw there wading | through rivers wild
Treacherous men | and murderers too,
And workers of ill | with the wives of men;
There Nithhogg sucked | the blood of the slain,
And the wolf tore men; | would you know yet more?

[38. Stanzas 38 and 39 follow stanza 43 in the Hauksbok version. Snorri quotes stanzas 39, 39, 40 and 41, though not consecutively. Nastrond ("Corpse-Strand"): the land of the dead, ruled by the goddess Hel. Here the wicked undergo tortures. Smoke vent: the phrase gives a picture of the Icelandic house, with its opening in the roof serving instead of a chimney.

39. The stanza is almost certainly in corrupt form. The third line is presumably an interpolation, and is lacking in most of the late, paper manuscripts. Some editors, however, have called lines 1-3 the remains of a full. stanza, with the fourth line lacking, and lines 4-5 the remains of another. The stanza depicts the torments of the two worst classes of criminals known to Old Norse morality--oath-breakers and murderers. Nithhogg ("the Dread Biter"): the dragon that lies beneath the ash Yggdrasil and gnaws at its roots, thus symbolizing the destructive elements in the universe; cf. Grimnismol, 32, 35. The wolf: presumably the wolf Fenrir, one of the children of Loki and the giantess Angrbotha (the others being Mithgarthsorm and the goddess Hel), who was chained by the gods with the marvelous chain Gleipnir, fashioned by a dwarf "out of six things: the [fp. 18] noise of a cat's step, the beards of women, the roots of mountains, the nerves of bears, the breath of fishes, and the spittle of birds." The chaining of Fenrir cost the god Tyr his right hand; cf. stanza 44.]

p. 18

40. The giantess old | in Ironwood sat,
In the east, and bore | the brood of Fenrir;
Among these one | in monster's guise
Was soon to steal | the sun from the sky.

41. There feeds he full | on the flesh of the dead,
And the home of the gods | he reddens with gore;
Dark grows the sun, | and in summer soon
Come mighty storms: | would you know yet more?

42. On a hill there sat, | and smote on his harp,
Eggther the joyous, | the giants' warder;
Above him the cock | in the bird-wood crowed,
Fair and red | did Fjalar stand.

[40. The Hauksbok version inserts after stanza 39 the refrain stanza (44), and puts stanzas 40 and 41 between 27 and 21. With this stanza begins the account of the final struggle itself. The giantess: her name is nowhere stated, and the only other reference to Ironwood is in Grimnismol, 39, in this same connection. The children of this giantess and the wolf Fenrir are the wolves Skoll and Hati, the first of whom steals the sun, the second the moon. Some scholars naturally see here an eclipse myth.

41. In the third line many editors omit the comma after "sun," and put one after "soon," making the two lines run: "Dark grows the sun | in summer soon, / Mighty storms--" etc. Either phenomenon in summer would be sufficiently striking.

42. In the Hauksbok version stanzas 42 and 43 stand between stanzas 44 and 38. Eggther: this giant, who seems to be the watchman of the giants, as Heimdall is that of the gods and Surt of the dwellers in the fire-world, is not mentioned elsewhere in [fp. 19] the poems. Fjalar, the cock whose crowing wakes the giants for the final struggle.]

p. 19

43. Then to the gods | crowed Gollinkambi,
He wakes the heroes | in Othin's hall;
And beneath the earth | does another crow,
The rust-red bird | at the bars of Hel.

44. Now Garm howls loud | before Gnipahellir,
The fetters will burst, | and the wolf run free;
Much do I know, | and more can see
Of the fate of the gods, | the mighty in fight.

45. Brothers shall fight | and fell each other,
And sisters' sons | shall kinship stain;

[43. Gollinkambi ("Gold-Comb"): the cock who wakes the gods and heroes, as Fjalar does the giants. The rust-red bird: the name of this bird, who wakes the people of Hel's domain, is nowhere stated.

44. This is a refrain-stanza. In Regius it appears in full only at this point, but is repeated in abbreviated form before stanzas 50 and 59. In the Hauksbok version the full stanza comes first between stanzas 35 and 42, then, in abbreviated form, it occurs four times: before stanzas 45, 50, 55, and 59. In the Hauksbok line 3 runs: "Farther I see and more can say." Garm: the dog who guards the gates of Hel's kingdom; cf. Baldrs Draumar, 2 ff., and Grimnismol, 44. Gniparhellir ("the Cliff-Cave"): the entrance to the world of the dead. The wolf: Fenrir; cf. stanza 39 and note.

45. From this point on through stanza 57 the poem is quoted by Snorri, stanza 49 alone being omitted. There has been much discussion as to the status of stanza 45. Lines 4 and 5 look like an interpolation. After line 5 the Hauksbok has a line running: "The world resounds, the witch is flying." Editors have arranged these seven lines in various ways, with lacunae freely indicated. Sisters' sons: in all Germanic countries the relations between uncle and nephew were felt to be particularly close.]

p. 20

Hard is it on earth, | with mighty whoredom;
Axe-time, sword-time, | shields are sundered,
Wind-time, wolf-time, | ere the world falls;
Nor ever shall men | each other spare.

46. Fast move the sons | of Mim, and fate
Is heard in the note | of the Gjallarhorn;
Loud blows Heimdall, | the horn is aloft,
In fear quake all | who on Hel-roads are.

47. Yggdrasil shakes, | and shiver on high
The ancient limbs, | and the giant is loose;
To the head of Mim | does Othin give heed,
But the kinsman of Surt | shall slay him soon.

[46. Regius combines the first three lines of this stanza with lines 3, 2, and I of stanza 47 as a single stanza. Line 4, not found in Regius, is introduced from the Hauksbok version, where it follows line 2 of stanza 47. The sons of Mim: the spirits of the water. On Mini (or Mimir) cf. stanza 27 and note. Gjallarhorn: the "Shrieking Horn" with which Heimdall, the watchman of the gods, calls them to the last battle.

47. In Regius lines 3, 2, and I, in that order, follow stanza 46 without separation. Line 4 is not found in Regius, but is introduced from the Hauksbok version. Yggdrasil: cf. stanza 19 and note, and Grimnismol, 29-35. The giant: Fenrir. The head of Mim: various myths were current about Mimir. This stanza refers to the story that he was sent by the gods with Hönir as a hostage to the Wanes after their war (cf. stanza 21 and note), and that the Wanes cut off his head and returned it to the gods. Othin embalmed the head, and by magic gave it the power of speech, thus making Mimir's noted wisdom always available. of course this story does not fit with that underlying the references to Mimir in stanzas 27 and 29. The kinsman of Surt: the wolf [fp. 21] Fenrir, who slays Othin in the final struggle; cf. stanza 53. Surt is the giant who rules the fire-world, Muspellsheim; cf. stanza 52.]

p. 21

48. How fare the gods? | how fare the elves?
All Jotunheim groans, | the gods are at council;
Loud roar the dwarfs | by the doors of stone,
The masters of the rocks: | would you know yet more?

49. Now Garm howls loud | before Gnipahellir,
The fetters will burst, | and the wolf run free
Much do I know, | and more can see
Of the fate of the gods, | the mighty in fight.

50. From the east comes Hrym | with shield held high;
In giant-wrath | does the serpent writhe;
O'er the waves he twists, | and the tawny eagle
Gnaws corpses screaming; | Naglfar is loose.

[48. This stanza in Regius follows stanza 51; in the Hauksbok it stands, as here, after 47. Jotunheim: the land of the giants.

49. Identical with stanza 44. In the manuscripts it is here abbreviated.

50. Hrym: the leader of the giants, who comes as the helmsman of the ship Naglfar (line 4). The serpent: Mithgarthsorm, one of the children of Loki and Angrbotha (cf. stanza 39, note). The serpent was cast into the sea, where he completely encircles the land; cf. especially Hymiskvitha, passim. The eagle: the giant Hræsvelg, who sits at the edge of heaven in the form of an eagle, and makes the winds with his wings; cf. Vafthruthnismol, 37, and Skirnismol, 27. Naglfar: the ship which was made out of dead men's nails to carry the giants to battle.]

p. 22

51. O'er the sea from the north | there sails a ship
With the people of Hel, | at the helm stands Loki;
After the wolf | do wild men follow,
And with them the brother | of Byleist goes.

52. Surt fares from the south | with the scourge of branches,
The sun of the battle-gods | shone from his sword;
The crags are sundered, | the giant-women sink,
The dead throng Hel-way, | and heaven is cloven.

53. Now comes to Hlin | yet another hurt,
When Othin fares | to fight with the wolf,
And Beli's fair slayer | seeks out Surt,
For there must fall | the joy of Frigg.

[51. North: a guess; the manuscripts have "east," but there seems to be a confusion with stanza 50, line 1. People of Hel: the manuscripts have "people of Muspell," but these came over the bridge Bifrost (the rainbow), which broke beneath them, whereas the people of Hel came in a ship steered by Loki. The wolf: Fenrir. The brother of Byleist: Loki. Of Byleist (or Byleipt) no more is known.

52. Surt: the ruler of the fire-world. The scourge of branches: fire. This is one of the relatively rare instances in the Eddic poems of the type of poetic diction which characterizes the skaldic verse.

53. Hlin: apparently another name for Frigg, Othin's wife. After losing her son Baldr, she is fated now to see Othin slain by the wolf Fenrir. Beli's slayer: the god Freyr, who killed the giant Beli with his fist; cf. Skirnismol, 16 and note. On Freyr, who belonged to the race of the Wanes, and was the brother of Freyja, see especially Skirnismol, passim. The Joy of Frigg: Othin.]

p. 23

54. Then comes Sigfather's | mighty son,
Vithar, to fight | with the foaming wolf;
In the giant's son | does he thrust his sword
Full to the heart: | his father is avenged.

55. Hither there comes | the son of Hlothyn,
The bright snake gapes | to heaven above;
. . . . . . . . . .
Against the serpent | goes Othin's son.

56. In anger smites | the warder of earth,--
Forth from their homes | must all men flee;-
Nine paces fares | the son of Fjorgyn,
And, slain by the serpent, | fearless he sinks.

[54. As quoted by Snorri the first line of this stanza runs: "Fares Othin's son | to fight with the wolf." Sigfather ("Father of Victory"): Othin. His son, Vithar, is the silent god, famed chiefly for his great shield, and his strength, which is little less than Thor's. He survives the destruction. The giant's son: Fenrir.

55. This and the following stanza are clearly in bad shape. In Regius only lines I and 4 are found, combined with stanza 56 as a single stanza. Line I does not appear in the Hauksbok version, the stanza there beginning with line 2. Snorri, in quoting these two stanzas, omits 55, 2-4, and 56, 3, making a single stanza out of 55, I, and 56, 4, 2, I, in that order. Moreover, the Hauksbok manuscript at this point is practically illegible. The lacuna (line 3) is, of course, purely conjectural, and all sorts of arrangements of the lines have been attempted by editors, Hlothyn: another name for Jorth ("Earth"), Thor's mother; his father was Othin. The snake: Mithgarthsorm; cf. stanza 5c and note. Othin's son: Thor. The fourth line in Regius reads "against the wolf," but if this line refers to Thor at all, and not to Vithar, the Hauksbok reading, "serpent," is correct.

56. The warder of earth: Thor. The son of Fjorgyn: again [fp. 24] Thor, who, after slaying the serpent, is overcome by his venomous breath, and dies. Fjorgyn appears in both a masculine and a feminine form. in the masculine 1t is a name for Othin; in the feminine, as here and in Harbarthsljoth, 56, it apparently refers to Jorth.]

p. 24

57. The sun turns black, | earth sinks in the sea,
The hot stars down | from heaven are whirled;
Fierce grows the steam | and the life-feeding flame,
Till fire leaps high | about heaven itself.

58. Now Garm howls loud | before Gnipahellir,
The fetters will burst, | and the wolf run free;
Much do I know, | and more can see
Of the fate of the gods, | the mighty in fight.

59. Now do I see | the earth anew
Rise all green | from the waves again;
The cataracts fall, | and the eagle flies,
And fish he catches | beneath the cliffs.

60. The gods in Ithavoll | meet together,
Of the terrible girdler | of earth they talk,

[57. With this stanza ends the account of the destruction.

58. Again the refrain-stanza (cf. stanza 44 and note), abbreviated in both manuscripts, as in the case of stanza 49. It is probably misplaced here.

59. Here begins the description of the new world which is to rise out of the wreck of the old one. It is on this passage that a few critics have sought to base their argument that the poem is later than the introduction of Christianity (circa 1000), but this theory has never seemed convincing (cf. introductory note).

60. The third line of this stanza is not found in Regius. Ithavoll: cf. stanza 7 and note. The girdler of earth: Mithgarthsorm: [fp. 25], who, lying in the sea, surrounded the land. The Ruler of Gods: Othin. The runes were both magic signs, generally carved on wood, and sung or spoken charms.]

p. 25

And the mighty past | they call to mind,
And the ancient runes | of the Ruler of Gods.

61. In wondrous beauty | once again
Shall the golden tables | stand mid the grass,
Which the gods had owned | in the days of old,
. . . . . . . . . .

62. Then fields unsowed | bear ripened fruit,
All ills grow better, | and Baldr comes back;
Baldr and Hoth dwell | in Hropt's battle-hall,
And the mighty gods: | would you know yet more?

63. Then Hönir wins | the prophetic wand,
. . . . . . . . . .
And the sons of the brothers | of Tveggi abide
In Vindheim now: | would you know yet more?

[61. The Hauksbok version of the first two lines runs:

"The gods shall find there, | wondrous fair,
The golden tables | amid the grass."

No lacuna (line 4) is indicated in the manuscripts. Golden tables: cf. stanza 8 and note.

62. Baldr: cf. stanza 32 and note. Baldr and his brother, Hoth, who unwittingly slew him at Loki's instigation, return together, their union being a symbol of the new age of peace. Hropt: another name for Othin. His "battle-hall" is Valhall.

63. No lacuna (line 2) indicated in the manuscripts. Hönir: cf. stanza 18 and note. In this new age he has the gift of foretelling the future. Tveggi ("The Twofold"): another name for [fp. 26] Othin. His brothers are Vili and Ve (cf. Lokasenna, 26, and note). Little is known of them, and nothing, beyond this reference, of their sons. Vindheim ("Home of the Wind"): heaven.]

p. 26 p. 27

64. More fair than the sun, | a hall I see,
Roofed with gold, | on Gimle it stands;
There shall the righteous | rulers dwell,
And happiness ever | there shall they have.

65. There comes on high, | all power to hold,
A mighty lord, | all lands he rules.
. . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . .

66. From below the dragon | dark comes forth,
Nithhogg flying | from Nithafjoll;
The bodies of men on | his wings he bears,
The serpent bright: | but now must I sink.

[64. This stanza is quoted by Snorri. Gimle: Snorri makes this the name of the hall itself, while here it appears to refer to a mountain on which the hall stands. It is the home of the happy, as opposed to another hall, not here mentioned, for the dead. Snorri's description of this second hall is based on Voluspo, 38, which he quotes, and perhaps that stanza properly belongs after 64.

65. This stanza is not found in Regius, and is probably spurious. No lacuna is indicated in the Hauksbok version, but late paper manuscripts add two lines, running:

"Rule he orders, | and rights he fixes,
Laws he ordains | that ever shall live."

The name of this new ruler is nowhere given, and of course the suggestion of Christianity is unavoidable. It is not certain, how ever, that even this stanza refers to Christianity, and if it does, it may have been interpolated long after the rest of the poem was composed.

66. This stanza, which fits so badly with the preceding ones, [fp. 27] may well have been interpolated. It has been suggested that the dragon, making a last attempt to rise, is destroyed, this event marking the end of evil in the world. But in both manuscripts the final half-line does not refer to the dragon, but, as the gender shows, to the Volva herself, who sinks into the earth; a sort of conclusion to the entire prophecy. Presumably the stanza (barring the last half-line, which was probably intended as the conclusion of the poem) belongs somewhere in the description of the great struggle. Nithhogg: the dragon at the roots of Yggdrasil; cf. stanza 39 and note. Nithafjoll ("the Dark Crags"); nowhere else mentioned. Must I: the manuscripts have "must she."]