Norse Goddesses

[wicked_faery]

Sol



In Norse mythology, Sól is the goddess of the Sun, a daughter of Mundilfari and Glaur and the wife of Glen, and the name of the Younger Futhark s rune.
The corresponding Old English name is Siȝel (/ˈsɪ jel/), continuing Proto-Germanic *Sôwilô or *Saewelô.
The Old High German Sun goddess is Sunna, sister of Sinhtgunt (Merseburg Incantations).
Etymology
The Germanic words for "Sun" have the peculiarity of alternating between -l- and -n- stems, Proto-Germanic *sunnon (Old English sunne, Old Norse, Old Saxon and Old High German sunna) vs. *saewel- (Old English Siȝel, Old Norse sol, Gothic sauil). This contines a PIE alternation *suwen- vs. *sewol- (Avestan xweng vs. Latin sol, Greek helios, Sanskrit surya, Welsh haul, Breton heol, Old Irish suil "eye"), a remnant of an archaic, so-called "heteroclitic", declination pattern that remained productive only in the Anatolian languages.
The Goddess
The Trundholm sun chariot pulled by a horse is believed to represent SólEvery day, Sól rode through the sky on her chariot, pulled by two horses named Arvak ("Early Walker") and Alsvid ("Very Fast"). She was chased during the day by Skoll, a wolf that wanted to devour her. Solar eclipses signified that Skoll had almost caught up to her. It is fated that Skoll will eventually catch Sol and eat her, though she would then be replaced by her daughter. The earth was protected from the full heat of the sun by Svalin, who stood between the earth and Sol. In Norse belief, the sun did not give light; this was caused by the manes of Alsvid and Arvak.
Sól was also called Sunna, Sunne and Frau Sunne, from which the words sun and Sunday derive. The sun was also called Alfrodull, meaning "glory of elves".
Sól rune

Elder Futhark Sowilo rune, earlier ("Σ") variant.

Elder Futhark Sowilo rune, later ("S") variant.

Anglo-Saxon Sigel / Younger Futhark Sol rune.

oblique Sig Rune as used in Nazi mysticism.

Elder Futhark
The Elder Futhark s rune (reconstructed name *Sowilo) is attested in two variants, a Σ shape (four strokes), more prevalent in earlier (3rd to 5th century) inscriptions (e.g. Kylver stone), and an S shape (three strokes), more prevalent in later (5th to 7th century) inscriptions (e.g. Golden horns of Gallehus, Seeland-II-C).
Coincidentially, the Proto-Canaanite letter šin from which the Old Italic s letter ancestral to the rune was derived was itself named after the Sun, shamash, based on the Egyptian uraeus hieroglyph.
Younger Futhark and Anglo-Saxon Futhorc
The Younger Futhark Sol and the Anglo-Saxon Futhorc Sigel runes are identical in shape, a rotated version of the later Elder Futhark rune, with the middle stroke slanting upwards, and the initial and final strokes vertical. Anglo-Saxon sigel (siȝel) is phonologically sījel /si:jel/ (from *sæwel), the yogh being only orthographical.
The Anglo-Saxon rune poem:
semannum symble biþ on hihte, ðonne hi hine feriaþ ofer fisces beþ, / oþ hi brimhengest bringeþ to lande.
"The Sun is ever a joy in the hopes of seafarers / when they journey away over the fishes' bath, / until the courser of the deep bears them to land."
The Icelandic rune poem:
er skýja skjöldr / ok skínandi röðull / ok ísa aldrtregi. / rota siklingr.
"Sun is shield of the clouds / and shining ray /and destroyer of ice."
The Norwegian rune poem:
er landa ljóme / lúti ek helgum dóme.
"Sun is the light of the world / I bow to the divine decree."
Modern usage
Armanen Runes
Main article: Sig Rune
The Sig rune in Guido von List's Armanen Futharkh were very loosely based on the Younger Futhark Sigel, thus changing the concept associated with it from "Sun" to "victory" (German Sieg), arriving at a sequence "Sig", "Týr" in his row, yielding Sigtýr, a name of Ódin.
Nazi usage
Schutzstaffel badge with two sig runes.List's runes were later adopted and modified by Karl Maria Wiligut who was responsible for their adoptions by the NSDAP and subsequently used widely on insignia and literature during the Third Reich most strikingly as the insignia of the Schutzstaffel (SS).
Germanic neopaganism
The Sowilo rune is commonly used by Germanic neopagans, often without political implications.

 

[wicked_faery]

Syn ("Truth")



Goddess of Denial and prowerful defender of the acused at trial. Guardian Goddess of doorways and of love. An attendant of Frigga, Syn guarded the door of Frigga's palace, refusing to open it to those who were not allowed to come in. When she had once shut the door upon a would-be intruder no appeal would prevail to change her decision. She therefore presided over all tribunals and trials, and whenever a thing was to be vetoed the usual formula was to declare that Syn was against it. Her name means "Refusal" or "Denial." She is invoked by defendants during trials.

In Norse mythology, Syn is an Ásynja, or goddess, who according to Gylfaginning "guards the doors of the hall and shuts them against those who are not to enter". She is also invoked by defendants in trials and assemblies. In Skáldskaparmál her name is used in a kenning for "woman".

 

[wicked_faery]

Var



Goddess of oath-keeping and punisher of those who break promises. Her name means an oath or pledge. Goddess of awareness. Var personifies an idealized concept of truth and honesty. Var and Vor were handmaidens of Frigga with Eir, and are invoked to witness oaths and to punish oathbreakers. Goddess of love-vows, she listens to (and punishes those who break) agreements between men and women. Newly married couples say her name when they take each other's hands.

Vár (probably from Old Norse várar : "pledges") is a goddess in Norse Mythology.
Snorri Sturluson writes in his Gylfaginning that:
she harkens to the oaths and compacts made between men and women; wherefore such covenants are called 'vows' [várar]. She also takes vengeance on those who perjure themselves.
—Gylfaginning (35), Brodeur's translation
She is invoked during the wedding of the giant Þrymr and his "bride" (in fact Thor):
Then loud spake Thrym,
the giants' leader:
"Bring in the hammer
to hallow the bride;
On the maiden's knees
let Mjollnir lie,
That us both the hand
of Vor may bless."
—Thrymskvitha (30), Bellows' translation
But, as Andy Orchard states, "the antiquity of such a ritual is far from clear".
Britt-Mari Näsström argues that, like many other minor goddesses, Vár was originally one of Freyja's names, "later apprehended as independent goddesses".

 

[wicked_faery]

Vor



One of the handmaidens of Frigga, with Var and Eir. Var and Vor are invoked to witness oaths and to punish oathbreakers. Vor is wise and inquiring. A wise, watchful, careful goddess about whom little is known. She investigates things deeply, and nothing can remain hidden from her, nothing can be concealed from her.

Vör is one of the Ásynjur according to the Prose Edda.
Tíunda Vör, hon er ok vitr ok spurul svá at engi hlut má hana leyna. Þat er orðtak at kona verði vör þess er hon verðr vís.
"The tenth is Vör: she is wise and of searching spirit, so that none can conceal anything from her; it is a saying, that a woman becomes 'ware' of that of which she is informed."
Apart from this pithy quote the goddess is essentially unknown.

 

[wicked_faery]

Thrud ("Power" or "Strength")



A Valkyrie who serves ale to the Einheriar in Valhalla. Thrud is Thor and Sif's very strong daughter. The Dwarf Alvis demanded to marry her, but Thor tricked him.

In Norse mythology Þrúðr (anglicized as Thrúd or Thrud) is the daughter of the god Thor. Thor's daughter.
In Skáldskaparmál (4), Snorri Sturluson tells that Thor can be referred to by the kenning "father of Þrúðr" ("faðir Þrúðar"). Eysteinn Valdason uses it in his poem about Thor (2). The Skáldskaparmál (21) adds that her mother is Sif.
In Bragi Boddason's Ragnarsdrápa, the giant Hrungnir is called "thief of Þrúðr" (Þrúðar þjófr). But there is no direct reference to this myth in any other source. The Skáldskaparmál (17), in which Snorri relates the fight between Thor and Hrungnir, mentions a very different cause, and Þjóðólfr of Hvinir's Haustlöng only describes the fight without giving the reason for it. This poem depicts two mythological scenes painted on a shield, the first being Iðunn's abduction by the giant Þjazi. Margaret Clunies Ross suggested that the two episodes might be complementary, both dealing with the abduction of a goddess by a giant, its failure and the death of the abductor. Another kenning may allude to this myth: in Eilífr Goðrúnarson's Þórsdrápa (1), Thor is called "he who longs fiercely for Þrúðr" (þrámóðnir Þrúðar).
Even if her name is not given, the Eddic poem Alvíssmál, in which Thor's daughter is engaged to a dwarf, Alvíss, may also be related to Þrúðr.
Other mentions
Þrúðr is the name of one of the valkyries who serve ale to the einherjar in Valhalla (Grímnismál, 36). It is not certain that this Þrúðr is the same as Thor's daughter.
Her name could be used in kennings for chieftains as exemplified on the Karlevi Runestone. The name is also used in kennings for women. Ormr Steinþórsson for instance uses in his poem about a woman (4) the kenning "hrosta lúðrs gæi-Þrúðr", which, according to Anthony Faulkes, can be rendered into "keeper of the malt-box (mash-tub) or ale-vessel".
Modern references
Thrud appears as a major character in the Danish young adult fantasy novel Erik Menneskesøn by Lars-Henrik Olsen.

 

[wicked_faery]

Freyja



Freyja (sometimes anglicized as Freya) is a major goddess in Norse Paganism, a subset of Germanic Paganism. Because the documented source of this religious tradition, the Norse Mythology, was transmitted and altered by Christian medieval historians, the actual role, heathen practices and worship of the goddess are uncertain.
In the Eddas, Freyja is portrayed as a goddess of love, beauty, and fertility. Blonde, blue-eyed, and beautiful, Freyja is described as the fairest of all goddesses, and people prayed to her for happiness in love. She was also called on to assist childbirths and prayed to for good seasons.
Freyja was also associated with war, battle, death, magic, prophecy, and wealth. She is cited as receiving half of the dead lost in battle in her hall Fólkvangr, whereas Odin would receive the other half at Valhalla. And the origin of Seid was ascribed to Freyja.
Frigg and Freyja are the two principal goddesses in Norse religion, and described as the highest amongst the Asynjur. Freyja is the goddess most honoured after or along with Frigg, and her worship seems to have been even the more prevalent and important of the two. In the Droplaugarsona Saga, it is described that in a temple at Ölvusvatn, Iceland, statues of Frigg and Freyja have been seated upon higher thrones opposite those of Thor and Freyr. These statues were arrayed in drapery and ornaments of gold and silver.
In Heimskringla, Freyja is also presented as a mythological Princess of Sweden. Her father Njörðr is seen as the second mythological King of Sweden, and her brother Freyr is the third. Freyr and Freyja's mother is Njörðr's sister (who has been often linked to the ancient Germanic goddess Nerthus, as it is a custom of the Vanir and allowed by their laws.
Further in Heimskringla, it is written that many temples and statues of native pagan gods and goddesses were raided and destroyed by Olaf Tryggvason and Saint Olaf during the gradual and violent process of the Christianization of Scandinavia. During and after the extent that the process of Christianization was complete, Freyja and many things associated with her were demonized by the growing influence of Christian missionaries. After Christian influence was cemented in law, traces of belief went increasingly underground into mainly rural areas, surviving into modern times in Germanic folklore and most recently reconstructed to varying degrees in Germanic neopaganism.
Etymology
The names Freyr and Freyja come from Germanic words meaning "the Lord" and "the Lady" respectively (Germanic cognates include Gothic Fráuja "lord, master", Fráujo "lady, mistress", Old Norse Frú "mistress, lady, woman", Danish Frue, Swedish Fru, German Frau "miss, woman, wife", Old High German Frouwa, Anglo-Saxon Freo, Frea). Like the French word "Dame" (from Latin "domina"), whose masculine form (Latin "dominus") had perished, the meaning of "Lord" is also no longer in use, while the title "Frau" still survives today in Germanic languages.
Freyja's name, however, is potentially related to Frigg's name (which came from fri "to love"), because "woman" and "love" are ultimately related, and Freyja and Frigg are often thought to be avatars of each other (cf. Frige, Friia, Frija, Frea).
Potential continental Germanic Sources
Recorded during the 9th or 10th Century, though dating to an unknown earlier time, one of the two Merseburg Incantations, from Merseburg, Germany mentions a figure named Frîia or Frûa (Frôwa), who places an enchantment on the wounded horse of Balder and Wodan (Odin). This figure has been theorized as Freyja and as Frigg.
More to this confusion, the Origo Gentis Langobardorum (Origin of the Lombards, written in the 7th Century) mentions Frea, a goddess of love; and Historia Langobardorum (History of the Lombards, written in the 8th Century) also mentions the story of Frea (Freja) and how she gave the Lombards their name. But this goddess is described as the wife of Godan (Odin), which in Norse accounts is Frigg. On the other hand, it is Freyja, not Frigg, who is the goddess of love in Norse accounts.
Tacitus in his work Germania (1st Century) briefly mentioned the worship of a mother goddess, a female Freyr, that is Freyja. Tacitus also mentioned the goddess Nerthus, whom has been linked to Njörðr, Freyja, and Freyr.
Elsewhere, in Adam of Bremen' accounts, Freyja's brother, Freyr, is called Fricco or Frikko, thus Freyja can be called Fricca, which is very similar to Frikka (Frigg's name in Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen).
Prose Edda
The Prose Edda, a large collection of Norse tales and pagan lore written down by Icelandic historian Snorri Sturluson around 1220, contains numerous references to Freyja. Snorri quotes many Skaldic poems rooted in much older oral tradition as basis.
Gylfaginning
In Gylfaginning, the first book of the Prose Edda after the prologue, Freyja is introduced as follows:
Njörðr í Nóatúnum gat síðan tvau börn, hét sonr Freyr en dóttir Freyja. Þau váru fögr álitum ok máttug. Freyja er ágætust af ásynjum, hon á þann bœ á himni er Fólkvangar heita, ok hvar sem hon ríðr til vígs, þá á hon hálfan val, en hálfan Óðinn.
Salr hennar, Sessrýmnir, hann er mikill ok fagr. En er hon ferr, þá ekr hon köttum tveim ok sitr í reið. Hon er nákvæmust mönnum til á at heita, ok af hennar nafni er þat tignarnafn er ríkiskonur eru kallaðar fróvur. Henni líkaði vel mansöngr. Á hana er gott at heita til ásta.
Gylfaginning, (Björnsson's Edition) Njördr in Nóatún begot afterward children: the son was called Freyr, and the daughter Freyja; they were fair of face and mighty. Freyja is the most renowned of the goddesses; she has in heaven the dwelling called Fólkvangr, and where so ever she rides to the strife, she has one-half of the kill, and Odin half.
Her hall Sessrúmnir is great and fair. When she goes forth, she drives her cats and sits in a chariot; she is most conformable to man's prayers, and from her name comes the name of honor, Frú, by which noblewomen are called. Songs of love are well-pleasing to her; it is good to call on her for furtherance in love.
Gylfaginning, (Brodeur's Translation)
Freyja er tignust með Frigg. Hon giftist þeim manni, er Óðr heitir. Dóttir þeira er Hnoss. Hon er svá fögr, at af hennar nafni eru hnossir kallaðar, þat er fagrt er ok gersimligt. Óðr fór í braut langar leiðir, en Freyja grætr eftir, en tár hennar er gull rautt. Freyja á mörg nöfn, en sú er sök til þess, at hon gaf sér ýmis heiti, er hon fór með ókunnum þjóðum at leita Óðs. Hon heitir Mardöll ok Hörn, Gefn, Sýr. Freyja átti Brísingamen. Hon er ok kölluð Vanadís.
Gylfaginning, (Björnsson's Edition) Freyja is most gently born (together with Frigg): she is wedded to the man named Óðr. Their daughter is Hnoss: she is so fair, that those things which are fair and precious are called hnossir. Óðr went away on long journeys, and Freyja weeps for him, and her tears are red gold. Freyja has many names, and this is the cause thereof: that she gave herself sundry names, when she went out among unknown peoples seeking Óðr: she is called Mardöll and Hörn, Gefn, Sýr. Freyja had the necklace Brísingamen. She is also called Lady of the Vanir.
Gylfaginning, (Brodeur's Translation)
The three minor goddesses mentioned immediately after Freyja in Gylfaginning (section 35) are often regarded as her attendants: Sjöfn (a goddess of love), Lofn (a goddess of marriage), and Vár (a goddess of oaths between men and women).
Skáldskaparmál
In Skáldskaparmál, various informative kennings are written for Freyja: "How should one periphrase Freyja? Thus: by calling her Daughter of Njörðr, Sister of Freyr, Wife of Óðr, Mother of Hnoss, Possessor of the Slain, of Sessrúmnir, of the Gib-Cats, and of Brísingamen; Goddess of the Vanir, Lady of the Vanir, Goddess Beautiful in Tears, Goddess of Love." (Skáldskaparmál)
Further, in Skáldskaparmál, various kennings for Freyja focus on the tears she weeps, which are made of red gold: "How should gold be periphrased? Thus: by calling it Ægir's Fire, and Needles of Glasir, Hair of Sif, Snood of Fulla, Freyja's Tears, Rain or Shower of Draupnfir, or of Freyja's Eyes" (Skáldskaparmál)
"Gold is called Freyja's Tears, as was said before. So sang Skúli Þórsteinsson:
Many a fearless swordsman
Received the Tears of Freyja
The more the morn when foemen
We murdered; we were present.
And as Einarr Skúlason sang:
Where, mounted 'twixt the carvings,
The Tear of Mardöll lieth,
We bear the axe shield-splitting,
Swollen with Serpent's lair-gold." (Skáldskaparmál)
Appearances in Myths
Freyja appears in many myths recorded in the Prose Edda.
Divine twins born after the war of the gods: The war between the Æsir and the Vanir was ignited by the ill treatments of the Æsir to Gullveig, as written in Völuspá. The war ended in a peace treaty, and both sides exchanged hostages. Njörðr was chosen by the Vanir, and sent from Vanaheim to Asgard where he later begot two fair children, as written in Gylfaginning (23 & 24):
Hinn þriði áss er sá er kallaðr er Njörðr, hann býr á himni þar sem heitir Nóatún. Hann ræðr fyrir göngu vinds ok stillir sjá ok eld. Á hann skal heita til sæfara ok til veiða. Hann er svá auðigr ok fésæll at hann má gefa þeim auð landa eða lausafjár er á hann heita til þess. Eigi er Njörðr ása ættar. Hann var upp fœddr í Vanaheimum, en vanir gísluðu hann goðunum ok tóku í mót at ása gísli gu þann er Hœnir heitir. Hann varð at sætt með goðunum ok vönum. Njörðr í Nóatúnum gat síðan tvau börn, hét sonr Freyr en dóttir Freyja... The third among the Æsir is Njörðr: he dwells in heaven, in the abode called Nóatún. He rules the course of the wind, and stills sea and fire; on him shall men call for voyages and for hunting. He is so prosperous and abounding in wealth, that he may give them great plenty of lands or of gear; and him shall men invoke for such things. Njörðr is not of the race of the Æsir: he was reared in Vanaheim, but the Vanir delivered him as hostage to the gods, and took for hostage in exchange him that men call Hœnir; he became an atonement between the gods and the Vanir. Njörðr in Nóatún begot afterward two children: the son was called Freyr, and the daughter Freyja...
The feast of the Æsir: When Ægir came to Asgard, the Æsir invited him in to their banquet. Many gods and goddesses are mentioned here: "And in the high-seats sat them down those twelve Æsir who were appointed to be judges; these were their names: Thor, Njörðr, Freyr, Týr, Heimdallr, Bragi, Vidar, Váli, Ullr, Hœnir, Forseti, Loki; and in like manner the Asynjur: Frigg, Freyja, Gefjun, Iðunn, Gerd, Sigyn, Fulla, Nanna... The man seated next to Ægir was Bragi, and they took part together in drinking and in converse: Bragi told Ægir of many things which had come to pass among the Æsir." (Skáldskaparmál)
"Heimdallr returns the necklace Brísingamen to Freyja" by Swedish painter Nils Blommér.The robbery of Brísingamen: The giant Loki once stole the necklace Brísingamen as one of his pranks, and Freyja had to enlist the help of Heimdallr. Heimdallr won the fight with Loki and brought the necklace back to Freyja. Therefore Heimdallr is called "Seeker of Brísingamen" and Loki is called "Thief of Brísingamen": "How should one periphrase Heimdallr? By calling him Son of Nine Mothers, or Watchman of the Gods or White God, Foe of Loki, Seeker of Freyja's Necklace Heimdallr is the Possessor of Gulltoppr; he is also Frequenter of Vágasker and Singasteinn, where he contended with Loki for the Necklace Brísingamen, he is also called Vindlér." (Skáldskaparmál) "How should one periphrase Loki? Thief of the Giants, of the Goat, of Brísingamen, and of Iðunn's Apples, Kinsman of Sleipnir, Husband of Sigyn, Foe of the Gods, Harmer of Sif's Hair, Forger of Evil, the Sly God." (Skáldskaparmál)
The owner of Svadilfari: This giant came to offer to build a citidel for the gods in three seasons. He demanded to marry fair Freyja, also the sun and the moon as his rewards. Following Loki's ill advice, the gods accepted the deal, but they later urged Loki to deceive the giant to protect Freyja. Loki turned into a mare and seduced Svadilfari, the huge steed of the giant. Without his horse, the giant could not complete his job, he was enraged, insulted the gods, and eventually got slain by Thor before the deal was completed. Loki's prank ultimately backfired on him, and he bore the son of the horse Svadilfari, Sleipnir. (Gylfaginning)
The abduction of Iðunn: The giant Thjazi captured Loki and forced him to lure Iðunn out to kidnap her along with the golden apples. Without the apples of youth, the gods grew old and they soon found out that Iðunn was missing. She was last seen going with Loki, so they cornered the giant and threathened to slay him. Loki had to borrow the hawk's plumage of Freyja to go and free Iðunn. Thjazi chased after them in eagle form, but he was roasted by the gods' fire. Thjazi is father of Skaði, who later became Freyr and Freyja's stepmother. Skaði's march to Asgard for vengeance ended in a marriage with Njörðr. (Skáldskaparmál)
Thor's duel: After his race with Odin, which he lost, the champion of the giants, Hrungnir, came to Asgard. Thor is absent, so he boasted that he would destroy Valhalla, slay all the gods, and take Freyja and Sif home with him. Of all goddesses, Freyja alone was brave enough to stand and pour ale for the giant to waste time while Thor is summoned. The god of thunder, with the help of his clever servant Þjálfi, later slew Hrungnir in a duel, but Thor himself was struck by the giant's horn and also wounded. This is one of the reasons why the Hill Giants are amongst the gods' enemies at the final battle. (Skáldskaparmál)
Baldur's funeral: Baldur, the best of the Æsir, can not be harmed by anything. Loki turned himself into a woman to trick Frigg into revealing that Baldur can only be hurt by the mistletoes. Loki then tricked the blind god Hödr to shoot his brother with a mistletoe twig, thus Baldur was murdered by the evil giant Loki's trickery. "People of many races visited this burning. First is to be told of Odin, how Frigg and the Valkyries went with him, and his ravens; but Freyr drove in his chariot with the boar called Gold-Mane, or Fearful-Tusk, and Heimdallr rode the horse called Gold-Top, and Freyja drove in her chariot drawn by cats..." (Gylfaginning)
Poetic Edda
Freyja appears in various poems of the Poetic Edda, a compilation of poems composed around the 9th to the 11th century rooted in Skaldic poetry from much oral tradition.
Grímnismál
Grímnismál ("The Sayings of Grímnir") features stanzas devoted to describing the realms of major Norse deities. Fólkvangr, Freyja's dwelling, is among the twelve abodes of the gods mentioned in the poem:
"Fólkvangr is the ninth,
there Freyja directs
the sittings in the hall.
She half the fallen chooses each day,
but Odin the other half."
It was written by Snorri Sturluson in the Prose Edda that "whenever she rides to the strife, she has one-half of the slain". The stanza above describes Freyja's realm. The name Fólkvangr can be translated to "People-Field" or "Army-Field"). Her hall, Sessrúmnir, can be translated as "Seats-Roomy". These names indicate a parallel to Valhalla, which houses the Einherjar, an army of the dead preparing for Ragnarök.
Völuspá
Völuspá ("Prophecy of the Seeress") is the first and one of the primary poems of the Poetic Edda. In the poem, a Völva ("Seeress") professes much information about past and future events to Odin. Freyja is mentioned briefly in the poem:
"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 Óðr's bride [Freyja] to the giants' brood.
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."
These two stanzas are part of the story mentioned in the Prose Edda, when the gods tried to break the deal with the owner of Svadilfari in order to protect Freyja. Here Freyja is mentioned as "Óðr's bride", and the one with "venom the air had filled" is Loki. Parts of this scropt were lost because the Völuspá manuscript, like most other Eddic Poems, was in very poor shape.
In his books, Viktor Rydberg had another idea. He thinks that these stanzas are connected to the story of the execution of Gullveig (which is mentioned right before this part), and that Gullveig was executed because she gave Freyja to Jötunheim. Rydberg's explanation is not unsupportable, because given Völuspá's poor state, many Eddic editors sorted the poem differently.
Þrymskviða
Þrymskviða ("The Song of Thrymr") is arguably the best and oldest of all Eddic poems. The poem begins with Thor one day finding his legendary hammer, Mjolnir, stolen. Thor goes with Loki to Fólkvangr to borrow Freyja's hawk's plumage.
Thor:
"Wilt thou me, Freyja,
thy feather-garment lend,
that perchance my hammer
I may find?"
Freyja:
"That I would give thee,
although of gold it were,
and trust it to thee,
though it were of silver."
Loki then used the feathered cloak to transform into a bird to seek for Thor's hammer. He met Thrymr, King of the Rime Jötuns, who admitted that he had hidden the hammer somewhere, and demanded to marry Freyja in return.
Thrymr:
"I have Hlorridi's
hammer hidden
eight rasts
beneath the earth;
it shall no man
get again,
unless he bring me
Freyja to wife."
Loki came back to Asgard and went to Fólkvangr again.
Loki:
"Bind thee, Freyja,
in bridal raiment,
for we two must drive
to Jötunheim."
Freyja was so wrathful that all the gods' dwellings were shaken and the necklace Brísingamen broke off from her neck.
Wroth then was Freyja,
and with anger chafed,
all the Æsir’s halls
beneath her trembled:
in shivers flew the famed
Brisinga-necklace. (Brisinga: flaming, twinkling; -men: necklace, jewery
Freyja:
"Know me to be
of women lewdest,
if with thee I drive
to Jötunheim."
Since Freyja refused, gods and goddesses hold a council. And following Heimdallr's advice, Thor and Loki borrowed Brísingamen. They went to the wedding disguised as "Freyja and her maid", where Thrymr jubilantly welcomed his new bride.
Thrymr:
"Rise up, Jötuns!
and the benches deck,
now they bring me
Freyja to wife,
Njörðr's daughter,
from Noatún.
Hither to our court let bring
gold-horned cows,
all-black oxen,
for the Jötuns' joy.
Treasures I have many,
necklaces many,
Freyja alone
seemed to me wanting."
At the banquet, Thrymr was shocked as "Freyja" ate an ox, eight salmons, and drank three casks of meads, but Loki was quick to make lies.
Thrymr:
"Where hast thou seen brides
eat more voraciously?
I never saw brides
feed more amply,
nor a maiden
drink more mead."
"The maid":
"Freyja has nothing eaten
for eight nights,
so eager was she
for Jötunheim."
Thrymr:
"Why are so piercing
Freyja's looks?
Methinks that fire
burns from her eyes."
"The maid":
"Freyja for eight nights
has not slept,
so eager was she
for Jötunheim."
The Jötuns eventually gave "Freyja" the hammer.
Thrymr:
"Bring the hammer in,
the bride to consecrate;
lay Mjöllnir
on the maiden's knee;
unite us each with other
by the hand of Vör."
Thor took back his hammer, sprang out from his disguise, slew Thrymr and all his kin, and robbed all his numerous treasures. This is the reason why the Frost Giants are amongst the gods' enemies at the final battle, but they have no leader.
Lokasenna
Lokasenna ("Loki's Wrangling") was found only in one edition of the Poetic Edda, the Regius. Most references in this poem are not mentioned anywhere else either, and whether the poet was influenced by Christianity or not is debated, because he seems not to have any respect for pagan deities.
Following the events of Hymiskviða, Ægir obtained a mighty kettle, brewed mead and invited the Æsir and the Alfar. Of all the gods came Odin, Njörðr, Freyr, Bragi, Týr, Heimdallr, Vidar. Of all the goddesses came Frigg, Freyja, Gefjun, Iðunn, Skaði, and Sif. Although not invited, Loki appears. There, he kills one of Ægir's servants and accuses the gods and goddesses of various vices. Gods and goddesses exchange hurtful comments with Loki, and the poem continues until Thor intervenes. At the end of the poem, a prose ending part relates that shortly afterward, Loki is caught by the gods and bound to a rock until Ragnarök.
The exchange between Freyja and Loki reads as follows:
Loki:
"Be thou silent, Frigg!
Thou art Fjorgyn's daughter, (Fjorgyn: the earth.)
and ever hast been lustful,
since Ve and Vili, it is said,
thou, Vidrir's wife, didst (Vidrir: another name of Odin, Ve and Vili: Odin's brothers)
both to thy bosom take."
Freyja:
"Mad art thou, Loki!
in recounting
thy foul misdeeds.
Frigg, I believe,
knows all that happens,
although she says it not."
Loki:
"Be thou silent, Freyja!
I know thee full well;
thou art not free from vices:
of the Æsir and the Alfar,
that are herein,
each has been thy paramour."
Freyja:
"False is thy tongue.
Henceforth it will, I think,
prate no good to thee.
Wroth with thee are the Æsir,
and the Asyniur.
Sad shalt thou home depart."
Loki:
"Be silent, Freyja!
Thou art a sorceress,
and with much evil blended;
since against thy brother thou
the gentle powers excited.
And then, Freyja! what didst thou do?"
Njörðr:
"It is no great wonder,
if silk-clad dames
get themselves husbands, lovers;
but 'tis a wonder that a wretched man,
that has borne children, (i.e. the horse Sleipnir)
should herein enter."
Beside Frigg and Freyja; other goddesses like Iðunn, Gefjun, Sif, Skaði, and even Týr's wife (who is unknown) are also insulted by Loki in the same way. Lee M. Hollander theorized that Lokasenna was intended to be humorous and that the accusations thrown by Loki in the poem are not necessarily to be taken as "generally accepted lore" at the time it was composed. Rather they are charges that are easy for Loki to make and difficult for his targets to disprove, or which they do not care to refute.
Hyndluljóð
Hyndluljóð ("The Lay of Hyndla") was found only in a late edition of the Poetic Edda (around 1400), where it is preserved in a very poor shape. The poem is in fact two poems mixed up together, the semi-historical "Lay of Hyndla" and another labelled by Snorri as "The lesser Völuspá". The date it was composed is generally accepted as around 12th century. In this poem, Freyja rode on her boar Hildisvini to enlist the help of the giantess Hyndla (She-Dog) to find the pedigree of Óttar, her protégé. Óttar here is maybe another name of Freyja's husband, Óðr.
Freyja arrived at Hyndla's cave and called her to Valhalla. But Hyndla quickly realized that the boar is Óttar in disguise.
Hyndla:
"False art thou, Freyja!
who tempest me:
by thy eyes thou showest it,
so fixed upon us;
while thou thy man hast
on the dead-road, (i.e. the road to Valhalla)
the young Óttar,
Innstein's son."
Freyja:
"Dull art thou, Hyndla!
methinks thou dreamest,
since thou sayest that my man
is on the dead-road with me;
there where my hog sparkles
with its golden bristles,
hight Hildisvini,
which for me made
the two skilful dwarfs,
Dain and Nabbi."
Hyndla came with Freyja, riding on a wolf. On the road, Freyja explained her duty, and how Óttar had induced her to help him: "For me he built a hörgr with rocks; those stones are now turned to glass; as he reddened it with fresh blood of cattle". (Hörg hann mér gerði hlaðinn steinum; nú er grjót þat at gleri orðit; rauð hann í nýju nauta blóði).
Freyja:
"They have contested
for the dead's gold,
Óttar the young
and Angantir.
A duty 'tis to act
so that the young prince
his paternal heritage may have,
after his kindred.
An offer-stead to me he raised,
with stones constructed;
now is that stone
as glass become.
With the blood of oxen
he newly sprinkled it.
Óttar ever trusted
in the Asyniur.
Now let us reckon up
the ancient families,
and the races of
exalted men."
Hyndla gave a very long list of heroes' names as Óttar's ancestors (this is the main part and purpose of the poem). Freyja then confirmed that the boar is Óttar in disguise. She further requested Hyndla to give Óttar a potion that would enable him to remember all that he had been told. But the giantess refused.
Hyndla:
"Go thou quickly hence,
I long to sleep;
more of my wondrous power
thou gettest not from me.
Thou runnest, my hot friend,
out at nights,
as among he goats
the she goat goes."
Freyja:
"Fire I strike
over thee, dweller of the wood!
so that thou goest not
ever away from hence."
Hyndla was forced to give the memory-mead, but did not forget to curse it first.
Hyndla:
"Bear thou the cup
to Óttar's hand,
the mead with venom mingled,
in an evil hour!"
Freyja:
"Thy malediction
shall be powerless;
although thou, Jötun maid!
dost evil threaten.
He shall drink
delicious draughts.
All the gods I pray
to favour Óttar."
Oddrúnargrátr
Oddrúnargrátr ("Oddrún's Laments") belongs to the myths of heroes. In this heroic lay, after giving birth, Princess Borgny called upon Frigg and Freyja to bless Oddrún.
At last were born a boy and girl,
Son and daughter of Hogni's slayer;
Then speech the woman so weak began,
Nor said she aught ere this she spake:
"So may the holy ones thee help,
Frigg and Freyja and favoring gods,
As thou hast saved me from sorrow now."

 

[wicked_faery]

Freyja Continued:

Sagas of Icelanders
The various Sagas of Icelanders contain numerous mentions of Freyja.
According to the Ynglinga saga:
"Dóttir Njarðar var Freyja, hon var blótgyðja, ok hon kendi fyrst með Ásum seið, sem Vönum var títt. Þá er Njörðr var með Vönum, þá hafði hann átta systr sína því at þat váru þar lög; váru þeirra börn Freyr ok Freyja. En þat var bannat með Ásum at byggja svá náit at frændsemi." "Njörðr's daughter Freyja was priestess of the sacrifices, and first taught the Æsir the magic art, as it was in use and fashion among the Vanir. While Njörðr was with the Vanir he had taken his own sister in marriage, for that was allowed by their law; and their children were Freyr and Freyja. But among the Æsir it was forbidden to intermarry with such near relations."
After the deaths of Odin, Njörðr, and Freyr:
"Freyja hélt þá upp blótum, því at hon ein lifði þá eptir goðanna, ok varð hon þá hin frægsta, svá at með hennar nafni skyldi kalla allar konur tignar, svá sem nú heita frúvor. Svá heitir ok hver freyja yfir sinni eign, en sú húsfreyja, er bú á. Freyja var heldr marglynd; Óðr hét bóndi hennar, dætr hennar hétu Hnoss ok Gersemi; þær váru fagrar mjög: af þeirra nafni eru svá kallaðir hinir dýrstu gripir." "Freyja alone remained of the gods, and she became on this account so celebrated that all women of distinction were called by her name, whence they now have the title Frú (Frau in German); so that every woman is called frú (frau in German), or mistress over her property, and the wife is called the house-Frú (Ehefrau in German). Freyja continued the blood-sacrifices. Freyja had also many other names. Her husband was called Óðr, and her daughters Hnoss and Gersemi. They were so very beautiful, that afterwards the most precious jewels were called by their names."
In King Håkon the Good's saga, Freyja is mentioned twice. First, regarding the sacrifices for the goddess:
And first Odin's goblet was emptied for victory and power to his king. Thereafter, Njörðr's and Freyja's goblets for peace and a good season
Secondly, Freyja's golden tears for her husband are referenced:
Although the king had gained of old
Enough of Freyja's tears of gold,
He spared himself no more than tho'
He'd had no well-filled purse to show.
In Egils saga, when Þorgerðr threatened to commit suicide, she said: "No supper have I had, and none will I have till I sup with Freyja. I can do no better than does my father: I will not overlive my father and brother."
In Hálfs saga ok Hálfsrekka, Queen Signy, wife of King Alfrek, prayed for the help of Freyja in an ale-brewing contest. Her opponent, Geirhild, however, had the help of Odin, who gave her his drools as yeast. And so Signy lost.
As written in Harbardsljod, while Odin was popular with warriors, Thor was popular with peasants, but Freyja was especially popular with noblewomen, who expect go to Fólkvangr in the afterlife. Freyja and her husband Óðr represent the common situation of noble families in old Scandinavia: due to harsh environments and war campaigns, the man often goes away on long journeys, the woman is left in charge of the house and has considerable powers (as also written in the Prose Edda, Gylfaginning).
A part of the Húsdrápa poem relates the story of the theft of Brísingamen by Loki. When Freyja found her necklace missing, she enlisted the help of Heimdallr to search for it. Eventually they found the thief, who turned out to be Loki who had transformed himself into a seal. Heimdallr turned into a seal as well and fought Loki. After a lengthy battle, Heimdallr won and returned Brísingamen to Freyja. The rivalry of Loki and Heimdallr for Brísingamen is an important event, as they are destined to fight again and slay each other at the end of Ragnarök.
This myth, which takes place at the sea, is maybe related to the origin of Freyja's name "Mardöll" (Sea-Bright), the bright here is maybe the glittering of the stolen Brísingamen (brísinga means "glittering, twinkling, flaming"). In Heimdallr's name, the word dallr (light) is masculine of döll, and heim means "earth" or "land" (cf. Vanaheim, Alfheim). This is maybe one of the lost tales of Freyja's journey in search for her husband (as Snorri wrote: "She has a great variety of names, for having gone over many countries in search of Óðr, each people gave her a different name".)[28]. In Gesta Danorum is another story of a beautiful woman named Sýr (Latinized as Syritha) seeking for Óðr/Óttar (Latinized as Otharus). Sýr is also wanted for marriage by a giant, who was later slain trying to woo her.
The tale of Freyja and Óðr was also mentioned in Frithiof's Saga:
Freyja one day
Falcon-wings took, and through space hied away.
Northward and southward she sought her
Dearly-loved Oder.
According to Njáls saga: "There had been a change of rulers in Norway, Earl Hacon was dead and gone, but in his stead was come Olaf Tryggvason. Along with that was heard that there had been a change of faith in Norway; they had cast off the old faith, but King Olaf had christened the western lands, Shetland, and the Orkneys, and the Faroe Isles. Then many men spoke so that Njal heard it, that it was a strange and wicked thing to throw off the old faith..." Then, Hjalti Skeggiason, an Icelander newly converted to Christianity, wished to express his contempt for the native gods, so he sang:
"Ever will I Gods blaspheme
Freyja methinks a dog does seem,
Freyja a dog? Aye! Let them be
Both dogs together Odin and she!"
Hjalti was was found guilty of blasphemy for his infamous verse and he ran to Norway with his father-in-law, Gizur the White. Later, with Olaf Tryggvason's support, Gizur and Hjalti came back to Iceland to invite those assembled at the Althing to convert to Christianity.
The Saga of King Olaf Tryggvason, composed around 1300, describes that following King Olaf Tryggvason's orders, to prove their piety, people must insult and ridicule major heathen deities when they are newly converted into Christianity. Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld, who was reluctantly converted from paganism to Christianity by Olaf, also had to make a poem to forsake pagan deities. Freyja is named among those major deities.
Historically, during the Christianization of Norway, King Olaf Tryggvason used elaborate ways to kill those who refused to Christianize.
15th century account
Written by two Christian priests in the 15th century, the Icelandic short story Sörla þáttr is an attempt to humiliate pagan deities, praise Christianity, and immortalize the Christian King Olaf Trygvason. The story borrows parts of Heimskringla (of how heathen deities are euhemerised), parts of the poem Lokasenna (of Gefjun sleeping with a boy for a necklace), parts of the Húsdrápa poem (of Loki stealing Brisingamen), and the eternal battle Hjaðningavíg. In the end of the story, the arrival of Christianity dissolves the old curse that traditionally was to endure until Ragnarök.
"Freyja is said to be a human in Asia. She was the fairest woman at that time and was the favorite concubine of Odin, King of the Asialand. When this woman wanted to buy a beautiful necklace (no name given) from four dwarves (named Alfrig, Dvalin, Berling, and Grer) with gold and silver, they said they do not lack of gold, and demanded a night with her for each of them. She agreed, but a man called Loki somehow knew the deal, and he came to tell Odin.
King Odin was very angry, he ordered Loki to steal the necklace. Loki turned into a fly to sneak into Freyja's bower and stole the necklace. When Freyja found her necklace missing, she came to ask King Odin. Odin said he would only return the necklace to her if she could put a curse on some Kings to cause an eternal war until the arrival of a great Christian Lord. She said it would be done and got that necklace back.
Under the spell, the Kings fought and slew others but as soon as they fell down, they had to stand up and continue fighting. It is said that chaos lasted for one hundred and forty-three years. But in the end, the great christened King Olaf Tryggvason arrived with his Christian army, and whoever slain by a Christian would stay dead. The evil heathen curse was finally dissolved, and Christianity brought peace to the land. After that, the noble man, King Olaf, went back to his realm."
This late work of Christian monks is clearly unoriginal and does not represent an authentic pagan tradition. The Christian priests Jon Thordson and Magnus Thorhalson, who respectively wrote and revised this anti-pagan story, put this line in their manuscript: "May God Almighty and the Virgin Mary bless both the one that wrote and the one that dictated!" The story was later rewritten by some modern people, with most parts altered and removed to make it sound like an original myth.
19th century accounts
Rural Scandinavians remained dependent on the forces of nature, fertility gods remained important and in rural 19th century Sweden, Freyja retained elements of her role as a fertility goddess. In the province of Småland, there is an account of how she was connected with sheet lightning in this respect:
Jag minns en söndag på 1880-talet, det var några gubbar ute och gick bland åkrarna och tittade på rågen som snart var mogen. Då sa Måns i Karryd: "Nu ä Fröa ute å sir ätter om råjen är mogen." När jag som liten pojke satt hos den gamla Stolta-Katrina, var jag som alla dåtida barn mycket rädd för åskan. När kornblixtarna syntes om kvällarna, sade Katrina: "Du sa inte va rädd barn lella, dä ä bara Fröa som ä ute å slår ell med stål å flenta för å si etter om kornet ä moet. Ho ä snäll ve folk å gör dä bare för å hjälpa, ho gör inte som Tor, han slår ihjäl både folk å fä, när han lynna Jag har sedan hört flera gamla tala om samma sak, på ungefär samma sätt.
I remember a Sunday in the 1880s, when some men were walking in the fields looking at the rye which was about to ripen. Then Måns in Karryd said: "Now Freyja is out watching if the rye is ripe" When as a boy I was visiting the old Proud-Katrina, I was afraid of lightning like all boys in those days. When the sheet lightning flared in the nights, Katrina said: "Don't be afraid little child, it is only Freyja who is out making fire with steel and flintstone to see if the rye is ripe. She is kind to people and she is only doing it to be of service, she is not like Thor, he slays both people and livestock, when he is in the mood" I later heard several old folks talk of the same thing in the same way.
In Värend, Freyja could also arrive at Christmas night and she used to shake the apple trees for the sake of a good harvest and consequently people left some apples in the trees for her sake. Moreover, it was dangerous to leave the plough outdoors, because if Freyja sat on it, it would no longer be of any use.
Receiver of half the slain
Freyja receives half of the spirits of warriors who had died bravely in battle. Snorri writes in Gylfaginning that "wherever she rides to battle, she gets half the slain".
Further, from Grímnismál:
The ninth is Fólkvangr, where bright Freyja decrees
where in the hall warriors shall sit:
Some of the fallen belong to her,
And some belong to Odin.
Freyja is also called Eigandi valfalls (Possessor of the slain) and Valfreyja, Mistress of the slain and of the Valkyries in general.
In Egil's Saga, Thorgerda (Þorgerðr), threatens to commit suicide in the wake of her brother's death, saying: "I shall not eat until I sup with Freyja". This should be taken to mean that she expected to pass to Freyja's hall upon her death.
Another point of view explains a difference between Odin's Einherjar and Freyja's; the oral tradition, or Óðal property, explains that Odin's warriors are "the offensive", or those who dedicate their life to fighting. Freyja’s warriors are "the defensive", or those who only fight to protect their families, clans or goods. The historian Else Roesdahl noticed that a difference between the two cultures in regards to burials containing weapons. In those in Norway the buried warriors had defensive shields, and in Denmark they had only offensive weapons.
Possessions
Freyja, depicted in a painting by J. Penrose.Surviving tales regarding Freyja often associate Freyja with numerous enchanted possessions.
Jewelry
Brísingamen (Necklace of Flame) is Freyja's famous necklace reputedly made of gold. The necklace is thought to represent the sun's fire and the circle of day and night. According to the notes of Saxo Grammaticus, Brísingamen was among the items given to the gods by Alberich. In some mythological writings, Brísingamen is assigned to Frigg.
In Skáldskaparmál, it is written that women often wore "stone-necklaces" as a part of a woman's apparels, to indicate their social status. That is the reason why woman is periphrased with reference to jewels and agates. Frigg and Freyja are the foremost Norse goddesses, therefore they are portrayed as having precious necklaces. Necklaces also seem to be the favorite gifts in heathen times. In Völuspá, the seeress refused to talk until Odin gave her some golden necklaces. In Skáldskaparmál and the skaldic poem Ragnarsdrápa, when Hildr came to ask her father, King Högni, for peace on behalf of Heðinn, she offered him a necklace. But the battle still happened, and Hildr resurrected the soldiers to make them fight for an eternity. The story was borrowed and altered in Sörla þáttr, which relates that Freyja, in order to get her necklace back, made Högni and Heðinn fight for an eternity, but her spell was dissolved by the great Christian lord Olaf Tryggvason's brave "christened" men.
Cloak
Freyja owns a cloak of falcon feathers, which can give her the ability to change into the guise of any birds, and to fly between worlds. It is called Valshamr, the "hawk's plumage", "falcon skin", or "falcon-feathered cloak" in different translations. The same magical cloak was also assigned to Frigg in some tales.
Cat-drawn Chariot
A depiction of Freyja riding a cat-driven chariot and flanked by Italian Renaissance-inspired putti by Swedish painter Nils Blommér.Freyja often rides on a chariot drawn by a pair of large cats. She rode this chariot to Baldur's funeral. These cats are called Gib-cats in the Prose Edda. They are often thought to be Norwegian forest cats. Cats are sacred to Freyja, just as wolves are to Odin. "When a bride goes to the wedding in fine weather, they say 'she has fed the cat well,' not offended the favourite of the love-goddess."
Freyja is considered a warrior goddess among her many roles. The chariot also is a warlike attribute and often given to exalted deities only. This does not mean that every exalted Germanic deity must have a wagon, but most of them have special rides. Odin and Heimdallr have horses, Thor has a chariot drawn by goats, Freyr has a boar, but Freyja has both chariot and boar.
Boar
Freyja also rides a golden-bristled boar called Hildisvini (Battle-Swine) which appeared only in the poem Hyndluljóð. Later we are told that the boar is her protégé, Óttar, but it seems that Óttar was temporarily disguised as Hildisvini, not that Hildisvini is Óttar. The boar has special associations within Norse Mythology, both relative to the notion of fertility and also as a protective talisman in war.
In Skáldskaparmál, Freyr is described as riding on another golden-bristled boar, Gullinbursti, which may be one and the same with Freyja's.
The battle-bold Freyr rideth
First on the golden-bristled
Barrow-boar to the bale-fire
Of Baldur, and leads the people.
Other names
Forms of "Freyja"
Freyja
Freyju
Freja - common Danish and literary Swedish form.
Freija
Freia
Freya
Frya - Frisian form
Frea - History of the Langobards
Freo
Frowa
Froya
Frøya, Fröa - common Norwegian, and rural Swedish form.
Fröe - a Danish form
Froijenborg - Swedish folk song, in which she is referred to as the fair sun "den väna solen" (Vana: from "Vanir", means beautiful)
Friia, Frīa - second Merseburg Charm
Frija - variant of Friia
Reija - Finnish form
Other forms
Härnevi which means "Hörn's shrine" was once a sacred location dedicated to Freyja, in Uppland, Sweden.According to Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, Freyja also bore the following names:
Vanadís, which means "Dís of the Vanir" or "fair goddess" (väna means beautiful);
Mardöll, which means "sea-bright" (mar: "sea", döll: feminine of dallr "bright light", cf. Heimdallr);
Hörn, which may be related to the word hörr meaning "flax", "linen";
Gefn, which means "the giver", is a suitable name for a fertility goddess;
Sýr, whose translation is "sow", illustrates the association of the Vanir with pigs and fertility.
In the famous Njal's Saga, another title of Freyja is mentioned: Valfreyja, which means "Mistress of the Chosen", "Mistress of the Slain" (cf. Valfadir "Choosing Father" (Odin), Valkyrja "Chooser of the Slain").
Kennings
Gold is called Tears of Freyja:
Many a fearless swordsman
Received the Tears of Freyja
The more the morn when foemen
We murdered; we were present
Ródi's Roof's great Ice-Lump
For the Rain of Freyja's Eyelids
Grows not less, my fair axe-head;
His age my lord so useth.
I received the Ice of Wed Rims,
With Freyja's golden Eye-Thaw,
From the upright prince high-hearted;
We bear in hand the Helm's Hurt.
Gold is called Tears of Mardöll:
Where, mounted 'twixt the carvings,
The Tear of Mardöll lieth,
We bear the axe shield-splitting,
Swollen with Serpent's lair-gold.
...
The free-handed Lord gave,
The heroes accepted,
Sif's firm-grown tresses,
Ice of the bow-force,
Otter-gild unwilling,
Weeping of Mardöll,
Fire-flame of Órun,
Idi's fine Speeches.
Gold is called Tears of Óðr's Bride:
The shield, tempest's strong roof-ice,
With tear-gold is unminished,
The Eye-rain of Óðr's Bride:
His age the King so useth.
Jewel is called Child of Hörn:
Hörn's Child, the glorious adornment,
I own, gold-wound a jewel
Most fair to the shield's rim
Fast is the golden Sea-Flame:
Gem is called Niece of Freyr, Gold is called Tears of Hnoss's Mother:
On the gem, Freyr's Niece, the tear-drift
Of the fore-head of her Mother
She bears; the Raven-Feeder
Gave me Fródi's seed-gold's fostering.
Gem is called Child of Njörðr's Daughter:
A defence of songs full goodly
He freely gave me, neighbor
Of sea-scales: I praise gladly
Njörðr's Daughter's golden gem-child.
Fair things are called Daughter of Freyja:
The awesome Stately Urger
Of Odin, he who raises
The struggle stern, gave to me
The courage-stalwart daughter
Of the Vana-Bride, my fair axe;
The valorous sword-mote's Ruler
Led Gefn's girl to the Skald's bed,
Set with the sea-flame's gold-work.
"It is proper to join 'tears' with all the names of Freyja, and to call gold by such terms; and in divers ways these periphrases have been varied, so that gold is called Hail, or Rain, or Snow-Storm, or Drops, or Showers, or Water falls of Freyja's Eyes, or Cheeks, or Brows, or Eyelids." (The Prose Edda, The poesy of Skalds or Poetical Diction, Snorri's teachings of how Freyja and Hnoss's names can be used as kennings for fair things like gold, jewels, and gems).
Eponyms
People
Freya (and its variant forms) is a common Scandinavian female name. In 2005, the name Freja was the 5th most popular given name for Danish girls born that year. The following year, 2006, the name became even more popular in Denmark, having risen to the 3rd most popular given name for girls born in 2006; but it dropped to 4th place in 2007. The name Freya was the 23rd (in 2006) and 25th (in 2007) most common given name for baby girls in England and Wales.
Places
Many farms in Norway have Frøy- as the first element in their names, and the most common are the name Frøyland (13 farms). But whether Frøy- in these names are referring to the goddess Freyja (or the god Freyr) is questionable and uncertain. The first element in the name Frøyjuhof, in Udenes parish, are however most probably the genitive case of the name Freyja. (The last element is hof 'temple', and a church was built on the farm in the Middle Ages, which indicates the spot as an old holy place.) The same name, Frøyjuhof, also occur in the parishes Hole and Stjørdal. There are also two islands named Frøya in Norway.
In the parish of Seim, in the county of Hordaland, Norway, lies the farm Ryland (Norse Rýgjarland). The first element is the genitive case of rýgr 'lady' (identical with the meaning of the name Freyja, see above). Since the neighbouring farms have the names Hopland (Norse Hofland 'temple land') and Totland (Norse Þórsland 'Thor's land') it is possible that rýgr (lady) here are referring to a goddess. (And in that case most probably Freyja.) A sideform of the word (rýgja) may occur in the name of the Norwegian municipality Rygge.
There's Horn in Iceland and Hoorn in Holland, various places in the German lands are called Freiburg (burg meaning something like settlement).
Plants
Freyja's hair - Polygala vulgaris - a species of the genus Polygala.Several plants were named after Freyja, such as Freyja's tears and Freyja's hair (Polygala vulgaris), but after the introduction of Christianity, they were renamed after the Virgin Mary, suggesting her closest homologue in Christianity.
Friday
The name Friday comes from the Old English frigedæg, meaning the day of Frige the Anglo-Saxon form of Frigg, a West Germanic translation of Latin dies Veneris, "day (of the planet) Venus."
However, in most Germanic languages the day is named after Freyja—such as Frīatag in Old High German, Freitag in Modern German, Freyjudagr in Old Norse, Vrijdag in Dutch, Fredag in Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish—but Freyja and Frigg are frequently identified with each other.
Misc
The chemical element Vanadium is named after Freyja via her alternative name Vanadís. The Orion constellation was called Frigg's distaff or Freyja's distaff (Frejerock).
Homologues
It has been proposed that Freyja may be the most direct mythological descendant from Nerthus. Nerthus, a goddess associated with a number of Germanic tribes as described by Tacitus in the 1 AD in his work Germania, is sometimes identified with Njörðr through etymological connections. The first name is the exact older linguistical stage of the latter. Njörðr married his sister; they have a son, Freyr, and a daughter, Freyja. This secondary pair of deities may be an "emanation" of the first. Like Freyja's chariot, the early Germanic goddess Nerthus was also often described as riding a wagon.
Britt-Mari Näsström posits in her "Freyja: the Great Goddess of the North" that there is a tenable connection from Freyja to other goddesses worshiped along the migration path of the Indo-Europeans who consistently appeared with either one or two cats/lions as companions, usually in the war goddess aspect but occasionally also as a love goddess. These would include: Durga, Ereshkegal, Sekhmet, Menhit, Bast, Anat, Asherah, Nana, Cybele, Rhea, and others.
Freyja in Modern Culture
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Freyja and the apple tree at the end of the world as depicted in an illustration by Arthur Rackham.
Freyja taken away by the giants as depicted in an illustration by Arthur Rackham.Freyja, in her German variant name "Freia", appears in Richard Wagner's massive opera cycle, Der Ring des Nibelungen which includes Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, Siegfried, and Götterdämmerung. This has led to many portrayals based on Wagner's interpretation, although some are closer to pre-Wagnerian models. Since Wagner's time, numerous depictions and references have entered popular culture to varying extents. In Wagner's depiction, Freyja is Frigg's sister. She is the goddess of beauty who guards the golden apples. When she was captured by two giants Fasolt and Fafnir, the gods quickly became old and ugly, and Odin had to pay the giants a hefty ransom including the Tarnhelm and the Ring of the Nibelung which he robbed from Alberich to get her back.
Thor, Freyr, Frigg, Odin, and Loki became old due to the loss of Freyja and her apples as depicted in an illustration by Arthur Rackham.
[edit] Sagan om Valhalla
Freyja (in her common Swedish name "Freja") is the central character of Johanne Hildebrandt's book trilogy "Sagan om Valhalla", a fictional account of how Norse mythology took shape. In the novels the gods are ordinary people, their characters built with the myths as inspiration. Freyja is a mighty priestess who can foretell the future, heal the sick and aid warriors in battle. She has a passionate love affair with Thor (although the myths never suggest that the two were lovers), but their love is doomed, as their people are at war with each other. Freyja and Thor are the parents of Iðunn, which they were not in the myths.
Influence in Christmas traditions
"Christian beliefs combined with existing pagan feasts and winter rituals to create many long-standing traditions of Christmas celebrations. For example, ancient Europeans believed that the mistletoe plant held magic powers to bestow life and fertility, to bring about peace, and to protect against disease. Northern Europeans associated the plant with the Norse goddess of love, Freyja, and developed the custom of kissing underneath mistletoe branches. Christians incorporated this custom into their Christmas celebrations, and kissing under a mistletoe branch eventually became a part of secular Christmas tradition."
Potential connections
Frigg
Main article: Frigg#Connection_between_Frigg_and_Freyja
Frigg is the highest goddess of the Æsir, while Freyja is the highest goddess of the Vanir. Many arguments have been made both for and against the idea that Frigg and Freyja are really the same goddess, avatars of one another. Some arguments are based on linguistic analysis, others on the fact that Freyja wasn't known in southern Germany, only in the north, and in some places the two goddesses were considered to be the same, while in others they were considered to be different.
Gefjun
Main article: Gefjun#Possible_connections_with_Frigg_and_Freyja
Some modern scholars think that the minor goddess Gefjun is an avatar of Frigg or Freyja because of their many similarities.
Gullveig
Main article: Gullveig#Speculation_and_hypotheses
Due to a number of similarities, a hypothesis supported by Gabriel Turville-Petre is that Gullveig, a seeress mentioned in Völuspá is another name for Freyja.

 

[wicked_faery]

Gullveig



Gullveig (seemingly "gold drink" or "gold might") is, in Norse mythology, a mysterious goddess or giantess who became the igniting source for the War of the Gods. In the Poetic Edda, the poem Völuspá has a stanza where Gullveig is said to have been burned three times in Odin's hall, to have been three times born, and to live yet.
Gullveig is only mentioned in the Völuspá, stanza 21. The seeress, after her account of the coming of the Norns, continues:
The war I remember, the first in the world,
When the gods with spears had smitten Gullveig,
And in the hall of Hor had burned her,
Three times burned, and three times born,
Oft and again, yet ever she lives.
Heid 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.
Hár 'High' is a common name for Odin. Heid means 'gleaming' and as a noun 'honor'. It is a common given name for seeresses or witches in the sagas notably in the Landnámabók, in the Hrólfs Saga Kraka and in Örvar-Odds Saga. Seið is a particular type of magic, often looked on pejoratively. Instead phrase translated here "worked seið in a trance" is sometimes interpreted instead as something like "drove mad the gods with seið. The Anglo-Saxon scholar Benjamin Thorpe translated it as:
Heidi they called her,
whithersoe´r she came,
the well-forseeing Vala:
wolves she tamed,
magic arts she knew,
magic arts practised;
ever was she the joy
of evil people.
It is generally assumed that the two stanzas are connected and that Heiðr is another name for Gullveig. The poem continues with a council apparently about who should pay "wergild" for Gullveig and that leads into a war with the Vanir.
Commentators speculate variously on this passage, but with general agreement that in part it speaks about the corrupting power of gold and generally understanding that mistreatment of this Gullveig was the reason for the resultant war between the Æsir and Vanir. Gullveig is usually taken to be one of the Vanir.
Because the poem was preserved in very poor shape, Eddic editors tried to sort the stanzas. Sophus Bugge and many Eddic scholars maintains that the stanza about "Heid" describes the Seeress who is reciting the poem, and put it at the beginning of the poem. Therefore in some editions of the Poetic Edda, the part about Gullveig has only one stanza.
The war I remember, the first in the world,
When the gods with spears had smitten Gullveig,
And in the hall of Hor had burned her,
Three times burned, and three times born,
Oft and again, yet ever she lives.
On the host his spear did Odin 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.
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.
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 Ódr's bride to the giants' brood.
In swelling rage then rose up Thor,
Seldom he sits when he such things hears,
And the oaths were broken, he words and bonds,
The mighty pledges between them made.
The Wanes are the Vanir. As the poem described, they apparently won the war of the gods. Ódr's bride is goddess Freyja. All Eddic scholars agreed that there is a lost stanza between the two meetings.
Speculation and hypotheses
Gullveig's brief mention in surviving texts has resulted in a number of scholars and others speculating on the nature of the figure.
Dumézil
Georges Dumézil (1966 and 1973) believed that the first war was based on a mythical Indo-European pattern that also emerges in the Roman legend of the war between the warlike Romans (comparable to the Æsir) and wealthy Sabines (comparable to the Vanir) and that the Gullveig element corresponded to the role of Tarpeia in Roman tradition. In one common version Tarpeia betrayed the citadel to the Sabines in exchange for what they had on their left arm, meaning their gold bracelets. However the Sabines, while taking advantage of Tarpeia's treachery, fulfilled their part of the bargain by striking her with their shields, which were also on their left arms, until she died.
Dumézil also proposed that a related tradition occurs in Saxo Grammaticus' account (Gesta Danorum, Book 1) of Frigg's theft of the gold from Odin' statue and her adultery. Odin (either from disgust or shame) goes into exile and a certain Mit-othin to some extent gains Odin's position, until Odin returns and drives Mit-othin away.
"Loki finds Gullveig's Heart" illustrated by John Bauer for Our Fathers' Godsaga by Viktor Rydberg
Rydberg
Viktor Rydberg proposed a connection between the Gullveig stanza of Völuspá to two stanzas in Völuspá hin skamma (found in some editions of the Poetic Edda as the last section of the poem Hyndluljóð):
The wolf did Loki sire on Angrboda,
And Sleipnir he bore to Svadilfari;
The worst piece of witchcraft seemed the one
Sprung from the brother of Byleist then.
A heart ate Loki— in the embers it lay,
And half-cooked found he the woman's heart—
With child from the woman Lopt soon was,
And thence among men came every troll-woman.
(Loki is often called "brother of Byleist" and "Lopt" in other texts.)
If the burned heart of a woman that was eaten by Loki is Gullveig's heart, then Gullveig may live still through a race of troll-women whom Loki then bore. "Troll-women" might refer to malevolent seeresses and witches in general. The word flagð is well established as meaning 'troll-woman, female monster, ogress, giantess, witch'. But it is sometimes here taken metaphorically to mean she-wolves, or all wolves, even monsters in general.
The Lesser Völuspá also refers to Heid and Hrossthjóf (a name otherwise unknown) as the children of Hrímnir in a context that suggests Hrímnir is a giant.
Rydberg took the account of Loki eating the heart as a recaptulation of the previous stanza and so identified Gullveig with Angrboda, the mother of Fenrir. To make this work Rydberg glosses flagð 'troll-woman' as referring to trolls of either gender and includes Fenrir among them. (However Snorri Sturluson in his Edda knew Angrboda only as "a giantess of Jötunheimr" and mother by Loki of Fenrir, Jörmungandr, and Hel and provides no indication that Loki gave birth to any of these himself.)
Rydberg also identifies his Gullveig/Angrboda with the old woman of Ironwood mentioned in Völuspá stanza 49 as raising the kindred of Fenrir, a normal interpretation. More daring is his identification of Gullveig, Angrboda or Woman-of-Ironwood with Aurboda, the wife of Gymir and mother of Gerd and also with the giantess Hyrrokin 'Fire-smoked', who is said to be slain by Thor in a list in the þulur. Accordingly Rydberg believes Gullveig was finally slain by Thor's hammer. Rydberg then notes that in the Svipdagsmál Aurboda is also the name of one of Menglöd's nine serving women (Menglöd is often thought to be a variant of Freyja), that Heid was the name of Hrímnir's daughter, and that in the Völsunga saga Hljóð is both daughter of the giant Hrímnir and a maidservant of Frigg. (This Hljóð marries the hero Volsung and becomes father of the hero Sigmund). Rydberg takes all these as further variants of Gullveig. Rydberg further identifies his extended Gullveig with Grendel's dam in Beowulf.
Rydberg's multiple identifications are generally not accepted by later scholars.
Müllenhoff
A different hypothesis created by the Eddic editor Müllenhoff, and later adopted by some modern scholars like Gabriel Turville-Petre[1] is that Gullveig is a name for the goddess Freyja.
In Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda tale Gylfaginning, Freyja sheds tears of red gold for her husband Ódr in his absence and who is mother of Gersemi and Hnoss, whose names both mean "Treasure". Freyja is often associated with a love for jewelry and treasure in surviving representations.
In Snorri Sturluson's Heimskringla, in the Ynglinga Saga, chapter 4, Snorri relates that it was Freyja who introduced seið among the Æsir as it was in use and fashion among the Vanir. Therefore, all Vanir practice seið. In chapter 7 Snorri relates that Odin also knew seið:
…but it was not thought respectable for men to practise it; and therefore the priestesses were brought up in this art.

 

[wicked_faery]

Nerthus



Nerthus is a goddess in Germanic paganism associated with fertility. Nerthus was mentioned by Tacitus, a 1st Century AD Roman historian, in his work entitled Germania. An amount of speculation exists regarding the goddess and her potential later traces amongst the Germanic tribes.
Etymology
The actual Germanic name of the goddess in the 1st Century AD might have been *Nerþuz. Etymological links have been made to Njörðr, citing Njörðr as a masculine counterpart to Nerþuz. However, Polomé argues that Njörðr and Nerthus come from different roots. Lotte Motz proposes that the Germanic goddess described by Tacitus may not have been called Nerthus at all and proposes that the name was selected by Grimm from several manuscript variants because it bore an etymological resemblance to Njörðr.
Tacitus' account
Tacitus recorded a second-hand account of a sacrifice to this goddess in a lake:
After the Langobardi come the Reudigni, Auiones, Angli, Varni, Eudoses, Suarines and Nuithones all well guarded by rivers and forests. There is nothing remarkable about any of these tribes unless it be the common worship of Nerthus, that is Earth Mother. They believe she is interested in men's affairs and drives among them.
On an island in the ocean sea there is a sacred grove wherein waits a holy wagon covered by a drape. One priest only is allowed to touch it. He can feel the presence of the goddess when she is there in her sanctuary and accompanies her with great reverence as she is pulled along by kine.
It is a time of festive holiday making in whatever place she decides to honour with her advent and stay. No one goes to war, no one takes up arms, in fact every weapon is put away, only at that time are peace and quiet known and prized until the goddess, having had enough of peoples company, is at last restored by the same priest to her temple. After which the wagon and the drape, and if you like to believe me, the deity herself is bathed in a mysterious pool.
The rite is performed by slaves who, as soon as it is done, are drowned in the lake. In this way mystery begets dread and a pious ignorance concerning what that sight may be which only those who are about to die are allowed to see. --Germania, ch. 40.
Theories
A number of theories have been proposed regarding the figure of Nerthus, including the location of the events described, relations to other known gods and goddesses and her role amongst the Germanic tribes.
Location
A number of scholars have proposed a potential location of Tacticus' account of Nerthus as on the island of Zealand in Denmark. Reasoning behind this notion is the linking the name Nerthus with the medieval place name Niartharum (now called Naerum) located on Zealand. Further justification is given that Lejre, the seat of the ancient kings of Denmark, is also located on Zealand.
Pairs
It has been suggested by Hilda R. Ellis Davidson that that there was possibly originally a male and female pair of deities, Njord and Nerthus, with Freyja later replacing Nerthus. Davidson also proposes that there were other male and female pairings of Germanic gods of whom little is known but their names such as Ullr and Ullin.
If so, Nerthus may have been the sister of Njord and the mother of his children, Freyr and Freyja, who is also described as having a sexual relationship according to Loki in Lokasenna. This may be the reason why Snorri Sturluson wrote in the Ynglinga saga that brother-sister marriages were common and accepted among the Vanir, but not among the Æsir.
Nerthus may have then been a logical counterpart of her brother Njord, in a society of fishermen and farmers, where she would have been associated with the harvest of the land, and her brother with the harvest of the sea.
Worship of Freyr and Freyja (the names mean the lord and the lady respectively) as the great deities of fertility was highly common in Viking Age Scandinavia, even more so than the Eddas might suggest. It is not unlikely then that Freyr and Freyja are the mythological descendants to Nerthus and her male counterpart, while the root in the name Nerthus was shifted to their father. Similaties include that Freyja was described as the great goddess of the Nordic nations, and she also had a famed carriage, albeit drawn by cats and not cows.
The fact that Njord, Freyr and Freyja are Vanir, along with the facts of place names mentioned above, has by some been suggested to indicate that the Vanir, with Nerthus and her postulated consort as main goddess and god, represent the pantheon of an older religion in Scandinavia, possibly of Nordic Bronze Age origin and later overshadowed by the introduction of a new religion with the Æsir as pantheon. If so, Ullr could have been a name Nerthus's counterpart, or another important deity of this religion, later fading greatly out worship.
Gefjun
Links between Gefjun and Nerthus have been proposed in that both names seemingly refer to water and, if the Zealand hypothesis is correct, both would figure into the same vicinity and that Nerthus had later become known under this name in Denmark.
Wagon
The wagon of Nerthus has been likened to several other legends of wagons. In one story, the major Vanir god Freyr is named in connection with a wagon that customarily traveled about the land in his name to bless the fields, according to a story named Hauks þáttr hábrókar in the 14th century Flateyjarbók manuscripts. In the same manuscript, King Eric of Sweden consults a god named Lytir in a wagon who was brought to his hall and performed a divination ceremony.
H.R. Davidson draws a parallel between these incidents and the Tacitus' account of Nerthus, stating that Lytir could have been another name for Freyr. Further, Davidson notes various archaeological finds of ritual wagons in Denmark dating from 200 AD and the Bronze Age, as well as a neck-ring wearing female figure "kneeling as if to drive a chariot" also from the Bronze Age. Davidson posits that evidence suggest that similar customs as detailed in Tacitus' account continued to exist during the close of the pagan period through worship of the Vanir and Freyr.
War of the Gods
The Æsir were described as having fought with the Vanir in the War of the gods, which has been oft theorized as a mythological description of a shift of religion. This war resulted in linked figures such as Njord, Freyr and Freyja becoming war hostages among the Æsir.
The difference in religious worship between Scandinavian Bronze Age and Iron Age (based on the archaeological material) is not controversial. As an example, the sun wheel symbol is abundant in the archaeological material from Bronze Age Scandinavia, but was later much more scarcely used. The transition between these two practices has not been satisfactory explained, however. Older theories focusing on the invasion and conquest by a warrior culture are today seen as unlikely.
Accepting the view described above of the development of Nerthus and her counterpart into Freyja and Freyr along with their diminished importance does not implicate accepting the shift of religion hypothesis. Followers of the trifunctional hypothesis of Georges Dumézil see the Vanir as the gods of common Norsemen, whereas the Æsir were the gods of the warrior and clerical castes (represented primarily by Thor and Odin respectively). The fading of the Vanir's importance would then suggest a social rather than religious development.