According to Norse mythology, the cosmos is comprised of nine distinct worlds, each of which sits among the branches of the Tree of Life, Yggdrasil. Each world is home to a different species of beings, for example, Midgard is the world of men and Asgard is the world of the Aesir gods. One of the…
The cosmos as described in Norse mythology is very different from the universe as we understand it today. According to the Norse tales, the universe is composed of nine realms, one for each of the races of beings: gods, giants, men, and more. One of the most intriguing of these realms is Alfheim, the homeland…
According to Norse mythology, the cosmos is composed of nine discreet worlds, all of which are held together and connected by Yggdrasil, the Tree of Life. Chief among these worlds, and situated high above the others in the heavens, is Asgard. This is the realm of the Aesir gods, the principal gods in Norse mythology.…
Anyone who has seen the History Channel’s epic show Vikings will be familiar with Ivar the Boneless, Ivar hinn Beinlausi, the brutal but crippled son of Ragnar Lodbrok. A cunning and ruthless tactician, he leads his brothers on an invasion of England in order to avenge the death of his father. But how likely is…
Ragnarok, which means “Fate of the Gods” in Old Norse, is a prophecy about how the world will come to an end and the gods of Norse mythology will meet their doom. In the story, many of the gods die and the nine worlds of the Norse cosmos held in the branches of Yggdrasil are…
What do you think of when you hear the name William of Conqueror or also called Guillaume Le Conquérant in French? King of England after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. True. French leader as the Duke of Normandy. Also true. Viking Warrior King ? This one is true as well. A descendant of the…
The Viking sagas are full of powerful warriors that called themselves kings while raiding across Europe – it is difficult to know how much of their stories are history, and how much are legend. One of the most memorable of these mythical figures is the 9th century Viking raider Bjorn Ironside. One of the many…
Vegvisir is an Icelandic runic stave, that evolved from earlier Viking runic magic. The rune had the power to ensure its wearer never got lost, and always found their way home, even when they did not the way. It was a wayfinding symbol, also often called the Viking or Norse Compass. But how does this…
The Viking world was full of symbols. Not only were they a powerful way to express ideas, but the Vikings also thought that symbols had power. As well as expressing the world, the Vikings believed that symbols, when made by the right hands, had the power to shape the world. One of the most common…
We often imagine the Vikings as having a work-hard, play-hard culture. They gave their all on the battlefield, and afterward celebrated with nights of heavy drinking of mead and beer, out of large drinking horns ideal for drinking games! That is actually not too far from the truth. The Vikings did mark their victories with…
