The norse mythology books listed below are free to read online or download as ebooks. Njord njord was the norse god of the sea, and also of wind and fertility. The beautiful goddesses were also living then, frigga, freya, nanna, iduna, and sif. Other norse myths concerning the death of balder in saxo. Although the conception of a mother goddess remains a shadowy one, and frigg in particular is an obscure figure, it is no longer customary to dismiss her as of little importance, and to explain her away as a pure literary creation. And in the middle of ginnungagap the air from niflheim and muspelheim met, the fire melted the ice and it began to drip, this ice started to take the shape of a humanoid creature. The gods of norse mythology are just one species that inhabit the cosmos. Odin looks like a sorcerer and may have been an inspiration to gandalf for j. I find that this version ties all the stories together in a cohesive sequence. Odin is sometimes called the allfather or the wanderer, he has, in fact, many names, because he has taken many shapes on various occasions. The body of stories that we today call norse mythology formed one of the centerpieces of the pagan norse religion.
Ah, but a time came when iduna and her apples were lost to asgard, and the gods and goddesses felt old age. In doing so he enrages sifs powerful husband, thor. The book has some fine illustrations and vocabulary and it is a good and readable introduction to norse mythology. See this separate post for the audio book version of the children of odin. Introducing an instant classicmaster storyteller neil gaiman presents a dazzling version of the great norse myths. Norse mythology are the stories of the scandanavian people.
Neil gaiman has long been inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction. Snorri sturluson, a th century icelandic historian, believes odin was a famous warrior who. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates odin with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, victory, sorcery, poetry, frenzy, and the runic alphabet, and portrays him as the husband of the goddess frigg. He twisted and writhed as he tried to escape the dark shapes. Odin, one of the principal gods in norse mythology. In norse mythology, gaiman fashions primeval stories into a. He went to the other gods who were building their shining palaces within the great. Thor, odin s son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods.
The vikings admired odins love for the battle, as he was known as the father of the slain. Svadilfari, in norse mythology, an unusually swift and intelligent horse belonging to a giant who offered to build a great wall around asgard the kingdom of the gods to keep invaders away. Alphabetically listed entries identify and explain the characters, events, important places, and other aspects of norse mythology. Odin, thor, hodur, baldur, tyr, heimdall, vidar and vali, as well as loki, the doer of good and evil. In norse mythology, gaiman fashions primeval stories into a novelistic arc that begins with the genesis of the legendary nine worlds. Jormungand was so big the gods needed all the strength of odin and. While he rose to fame in germanic mythology, he was associated with knowledge, sorcery, healing, death, battle, poetry, and the runic alphabet in norse mythology. My thanks are due to professor magnus olsen for permission to translate the work, and to professor william witherle lawrence, of. He was depicted as a tall, old man, with flowing beard and only one eye.
Hes the ruler of the aesir tribe of deities, yet he often. Neil gaimans passion for odin, thor, and loki is obvious in this inspired take on norse mythology, especially in his enthusiastic audiobook delivery. The norse came upon the romans, who in turn, hired them as mercenaries. The northernmost extension of germanic mythology, norse mythology consists of tales of various deities, beings, and heroes derived from numerous sources from both before and after the. And more stories of greek, celtic, norse, japanese, hindu, chinese, mesopotamian, and egyptian mythology. The poems of the poetic edda have waited a long time for a modern english translation that would do them justice. From asgard to valhalla the remarkable history of the norse myths. Most of the stories we have, however, concern two gods, odin and his son thor, and odins blood brother, a giants son called loki, who lives with the aesir in. The beginning of things norse creation story student. Norse mythology by neil gaiman pdf download ebookscart. Viking challenge resource pack final 8 girlguiding birmingham. Son of bor and bestla, odin was risen to favor mostly by the vikings, and became known as the supreme god in the eighth and ninth centuries.
Odin, thor, loki the gods of the vikings had many wonderful adventures which have inspired the likes of wagner. These will give a more vivid and detailed version of how the norsemen saw the world and what they valued. Odin lessons from norse mythology the art of manliness. Attached are a pdf and a word version of the children of odin by padraic colum. He was known as the trickster and mischievous god in norse mythology, and engaged in battles with several of the gods of asgard, such as thor and baldur. Norse mythology is the body of myths of the north germanic peoples, stemming from norse paganism and continuing after the christianization of scandinavia, and into the scandinavian folklore of the modern period. But the various folk who first told them were so very different, the tales are so very old, and have changed so greatly in the telling from one generation to another, that there are almost as many accounts of the way in which the world began as there are nations upon the earth. Odin knew that hoder could hide himself away from thor. In norse mythology, gaiman stays true to the myths in envisioning the major norse pantheon. From earliest times, odin was a war god, and he appeared in heroic literature as the protector of heroes. It was written in old norse in iceland by the poet and historian snorri sturluson 1178791241 ca.
One of odin s countless names is allfather old norse alfa. Others have been posted online by academic institutions, authors, publishers or scholarly societies. Norse mythology is a series of traditional stories from ancient norse mythology as retold by author neil gaiman. Some editions are out of print or were published before 1923 and therefore in the public domain. Another god in this story is loki, known as the trickster god. The norse gods odin, thor, balder, frey, freya, and loki. Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning. Norse myths archives storynory audio stories for kids. Norse gods vili from norse mythology odins brother. Heimdall, vidar and vali, as well as loki, the doer of good and evil.
These realms are called the nine worlds, and each holds a. The name heimskringla was first used in the 17th century, derived from the first two words of one of the manuscripts kringla heimsins, the circle of the world. Drawing from norse mythology and scandinavian culture, nordic folklore is a vast collection of fables, epics, legends and fairy stories. The stories of the norse gods, passed down for generations throughout scandinavia, feature remarkable characters from a forgotten time and express values that reflect how these medieval people saw the world. While this origin myth lives on, its possible that the deity is based on an actual man. When odin heard this he was terribly angered, for the price the stranger asked for his work was beyond all prices. The story of ragnarok and the apocalypse ancient origins.
Odin is the chief god in norse mythology, and he is often called the father of the gods. Snorri s edda is a veritable handbook for skaldic poets, written about the year 1220 by the illustrious snorri sturluson. Norse mythology a to z third edition mythology a to z african mythology a to z celtic mythology a to z chinese mythol. These amazing texts from a thcentury icelandic manuscript are of huge historical, mythological and literary importance, containing the lions share of information that survives today about the gods and heroes of pre. These are the tales that viking poets recited in dimly lit halls to the captivated attendees of grand feasts, and which fathers and mothers told to their children around roaring hearthfires on long winter nights. Icelandic mythological and heroic poetry, the exploits of. Through clever prose and crisp storytelling, he turns hundreds of years of myths into a cohesive narrative, bringing an easytofollow logic to potentially bewildering ancient folklore.
Norse mythology will serve alike the student of old norse literature, and the general reader who seeks an authoritative guide through the world of northern myth and legend. He played a central role in many myths surrounding the creation and destruction of the world. From the south where muspelheim is, came lava and sparks into the great void ginnungagap. Thor, odins son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods. According to the legend, the world will resurface, the surviving and returning gods will meet, and. Download pdf norse mythology by neil gaiman topnotch. For a long while the fairest of the gods lay in the half light, his brow gleaming as white as the whitest flower, his hair shining, and he tried to snare his dream to name each form and dismiss it. Thor and two other gods, tyr and balder, to pick him up. And the legends of the norse gods provide a revealing glimpse into a fascinating ancient culture. Different realms exist in the cosmology of norse mythology. Odin simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The stories are translated from the original source, the icelandic eddas, which were compiled in the century from much older written and orally transmitted material. Now he turns his attention back to the source, presenting a bravura rendition of the great northern tales. Stories of norse gods and heroes by annie klingensmith consists of 20 chapters, each a story from norse mythology. In norse mythology, ragnarok is a series of apocalyptic events that will define the end of the world, where giants of frost and fire will together fight the gods in a final battle that will ultimately destroy the planet, submerging it under water. Because of odins role in creating the norse universe, he became known as the giver of life. He only needs wine to survive, so he drinks it all day, every day.
The eight manuscripts included in this collection are books 1 to 8 of the classical mythology series by scott lewis. The supposed function of these rituals is to make the stories perhaps stories about fertility or rebirth, violence or apocalypse happen or not. Together they gave life to the worlds first two humans ask and embla. All you need to khow about the end of the world in norse mythology see u in history duration. Odin, the reward i shall ask for my work is the sun and the moon, and freya, who watches over the flowers and grasses, for my wife. Norse mythology retells the norse stories about the forming of the world, the creation of yggdrasil and the nine worlds, how odin lost his eye, how the gods got their treasures, lokis children, thors journey to the land of the giants, the death of balder, ragnarok, and more. When you purchase this title, the accompanying pdf will be available in your audible library along with the audio.
But in the days when the sun and moon were destroyed the gods were destroyed tooall the gods except baldur. Tales from norse mythology, unlocked an otherwise dense literature form and made it accessible and captivating as. The book is written in the thirdperson and in past tense, except for the final chapter, which is written and the present and future tenses. The lay of odins corpse or the lay of odins ravens 28 a summing up foreword a good many people hearing of the edda or of the norse myths. The gods stipulated that, if the builder completed the wall in one winters time, his reward would be the goddess freyja and possession of the sun and the moon. Loki, god of fire and mischief, steals sifs beautiful golden hair. The oldest stories of every race of people tell about the beginning of things.