Norse Mythology: The Unofficial Guide

We've paid a lot of lip service to the idea of variation in myth, but in this episode we'll dig into a prime example as we have two full versions of the story where Thor goes fishing surviving from Iceland. This myth challenges some scholarly ideas, showcases some unusual relationships, and features what is probably our only attestation of Thor shapeshifting.

Sources:

• “Germania” by Publius Cornelius Tacitus, 1st century
• “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Our story today is a big one, just like the jǫtnar it features, so we'll spend a lot more time story telling and a lot less time interjecting theories from scholars. But, not to worry. You'll finally get to listen to yours truly, one of the biggest Thor fans of all time, finally talk about some of Old Redbeard's famous failures.

Sources:

• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Just a quick update on the release cycle since it's going to be affected by the hurricane currently in the Gulf of Mexico. No need to worry!

Contact:

• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW
• You can also write me at waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com

All Norse gods and goddesses are subject to some level of mischaracterization in popular media, but Loki's frequent shapeshifting into female form have made him a particularly attractive target for embellishment of the story. In this episode I won't be telling you what you should think about Loki, but I will be compiling every little detail we have that could possibly relate to his gender and sexuality, and examining them through the lens of the ancient Scandinavian mindset. Spoiler alert: ancient people didn't conceptualize gender and sexuality the way we do today, but there's no reason why you should be forced to view Loki the way ancient people did a thousand years later. The myths are what you make of them.

Sources:

• “Coming to terms with Navajo Nádleehi: a critique of berdache,’gay’, ‘alternative gender’, and ‘two-spirit’” by Carolyn Epple, 1998
• “Lokasenna: The Norse Poem of Loki’s Locker Talk” by Jackson Crawford on YouTube, 2017
• “Loki” by Jens Peter Schjødt in “Pre-Christian Religions of the North” Volume III, 2020
• “Níð, Ergi and Old Norse Moral Attitudes” by Folke Ström, 1974
• “The Unmanly Man: Concepts of Sexual Defamation in Early Northern Society” by Preben M. Sørenson, translation by Joan Turville-Petre, 1983
• “The Poetic Edda”, original translations in this episode by me
• “The Prose Edda”, original translations in this episode by me

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Once upon a time, Thor made a journey into jǫtunheimr without his magic hammer. Or at least, that's one version of the story. So along the way he had to make due with other weapons. But do these other weapons preserve a more ancient memory of the thunder god's arsenal? And by the way, has Mjǫllnir always been a hammer? Let's dig in together.

Sources:

• “Agricola’s Ukko in the light of archaeology: a chronological and interpretive study of ancient Finnish religion” by Unto Salo, 1990
• “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2010
• “Encyclopedia of Russian & Slavic Myth and Legend” by Mike Dixon-Kennedy 1998
• “Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic” by Guus Kroonen, 2013
• “Gesta Danorum” transl. by Karsten Friis-Jensen and Peter Fisher, 2015
• “Hamarinn Mjǫllnir: The Eitri Database and the Evolution of the Hammer Symbol in Old Norse Mythology” by Katherine Beard, 2019
• “Herkuleskeule und Donar-Amulett” by Joachim Werner 1964
• “How Thor Lost His Thunder” by Declan Taggart, 2018
• “In Search of the Indo-Europeans” by J.P. Mallory 1991
• “Lithuanian Mythology” by Gintaras Beresnevičius
• “Shepards' crowns, fairy loaves and thunderstones: the mythology of fossil echinoids in England” by Kenneth McNamara 2007
• “The History of the Archbishops of Hamburg-Bremen” transl. by Francis Tschan, 2002
• “The Thunderweapon in Religion and Folklore” by Christian Blinkenberg 1911
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In which we cover Thor's legendary duel with Hrungnir. Unlike your average Norse duel, this one is actually intended to end in death. But the moral of the story is, whether you're nine miles tall or have a heart made of stone, you're just never a match for the awesome power of thunder. 

Sources:

• “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2010
• “Haustlǫng”, transl by Richard North, 2010
• “How Thor Lost His Thunder” by Declan Taggart, 2018
• “Kormáks saga” transl. by W.G. Collingwood and J. Stefansson, 1901
• “Táin Bó Cúailnge” transl. by Joseph Dunn, 1914
• “The Earliest Norwegian Laws, Being the Gulathing Law and the Frostathing Law” by Lawrence M. Larson, 2008
• “The history of Lapland wherein are shewed the original, manners, habits, marriages, conjurations, etc. of that people” by Johannes Scheffer, 1674
• “Thor’s Duel With Hrungnir” by John Lindow, 1996
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In this episode we dig into the kidnapping of Iðunn, a goddess whose magic apples keep the gods perpetually young. But this story is a lot less about the apples and a lot more about the goddesses. Join me as we focus in on both Iðunn and Skaði, a jǫtun who becomes a goddess by marriage, and the way Loki plays a prominent role in both of their stories.

Sources:

• “Apple and Apple Tree” by Joseph S. Hopkins, 2020, from mimisbrunnr.info
• “De Gamle Eddadigte,” transl. by Finnur Jónsson, 1932
• “Haustlǫng”, transl by Richard North, 2010
• “Lokrur, Lóðurr and Late Evidence” by Haukur Þorgeirsson 2011
• “The Poetic Edda: Volume II - Mythological Poems” by Ursula Dronke, 1997
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In one of the most famous Norse myths of all time, Thor's hammer is stolen by the jǫtnar and the only way to get it back is to dress in drag. But this story is much more than a surface-level comedy. It turns Norse ideas about gender and societal expectations on their heads and teaches us a lot about the personalities of the gods. It also seems to prove the age-old adage that comedy is the one place where anything goes.

Sources:

• “Negative Reciprocity” by Margaret Clunies Ross in “Prolonged Echoes” Volume I, 1994
• “Níð, Ergi and Old Norse Moral Attitudes” by Folke Ström, 1974
• “Paganism at Home: Pre-Christian Private Praxis and Household Religion in the Iron-Age North“ by Luke John Murphy, 2018
• “The dating of Eddic poetry – evidence from alliteration” by Haukur Þorgeirsson, 2017
• “Þrymsvkiða, Myth and Mythology” by John Lindow, 1997
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In this episode we'll cover some of your deepest and most pressing questions about Óðinn, the chief of the Norse gods. What does he want? Where did he come from? And I don't mean who was his father, I mean, where did he really come from? How was Óðinn worshipped in ancient times? Did everyone venerate him or just a select few? Is there a secret to getting into Valhǫll without dying in battle? And if someone decides to worship Óðinn, what are the chances he might kill them himself? Join me on a deep dive into the character of this enigmatic hunter of souls and his ancient, frightening origins.

Sources:

• "Die wilde Jagd bei Schwarzkosteletz" by Josef Virgil Grohmann in “Sagen-Buch von Böhmen und Mähren. Erster Theil: Sagen aus Böhmen”, 1863
• “Germania” by Publius Cornelius Tacitus, 1st century
• “Óðinn” by Jens Peter Schjødt in “Pre-Christian Religions of the North” Volume III, 2020
• “Óðinn’s Path to Greatness” by Anatoly Liberman in “In Prayer and Laughter: Essays on Medieval Scandinavian and Germanic Mythology, Literature, and Culture”, 2016
• “The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle”
• “The History of the Archbishops of Hamburg-Bremen” by Adam of Bremen 10th century, translated by Francis Tschan
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Thanks for all of your support and feedback so far! The purpose of this announcement is to let you know that you are all invited to join me on a new Discord server! If you aren't familiar with Discord, it's an app you can visit in the browser or download to your devices that allows you to chat with people who are interested in similar topics. Our community is intended to be open and friendly. Here's the link:

Contact:

• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW
• You can also write me at waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com

In the future the world as we know it will be destroyed. But this can't happen before we introduce all the major players. In this episode we'll discuss the origins of Hel, the World Serpent, and the monstrous wolf Fenrir, and we'll see how the way Fenrir became an enemy of the gods is all too easy to misunderstand without the proper context of the Norse world view. What does it mean to be an outcast? What does it mean to have your fate decreed by prophecy? And could things have gone another way? Let's find out together.

Sources:

• “Fate” by John Lindow in “Pre-Christian Religions of the North” Volume II, 2020
• “Norse Mythology” by Neil Gaiman, 2017
• “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001
• “The Historical Development of Basic Color Terms in Old Norse-Icelandic” by Jackson Crawford, 2014
• “The Níðingr and the Wolf” by Bernt Øyvind Thorvaldsen, 2011
• “Wolves, Serpents, and Birds: Their Symbolic Meaning in Old Norse Belief” by Anne-Sofie Gräslund, 2004
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Thor hasn't always had his famous hammer. And for that matter, Óðinn hasn't always had his famous spear. As it turns out, these gods only came to possess their signature weapons as the result of Loki being a trouble-maker. In this episode we'll talk about rowan trees, golden hair, infidelity, dwarves, and some likely shape-shifting shenanigans. By the end, we'll have finally gotten to the bottom of what magical powers the weapons of the gods actually have, and why Loki once had his mouth sewn shut.

Sources:

• “Avlsten” by P. V. Glob, 1959
• “Myth and Religion of the North: The Religion of Ancient Scandinavia” by Gabriel Turville-Petre, 1964
• “The History of the Archbishops of Hamburg-Bremen” by Adam of Bremen 10th century, translated by Francis Tschan.
• “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

A big thank you to everyone who's subscribed and started listening! The show is starting to do pretty well and it's time for me to start getting some feedback from you. So here's an email: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

After the Æsir-Vanir war ends, a strange sequence of events is set in motion that results in mankind acquiring a talent for poetry. But did the gods intend for us to have this skill or did we acquire it entirely by accident? And how do a couple of serial-killer dwarves factor into the equation? What exactly is a dwarf, by the way? And is Oðinn canonically an evil-doer? Have a listen for answers to these questions and for some poignant thoughts by the Alföðr himself.

Sources:

• “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2010
• “Heimskringla”, transl. by Alison Finlay and Anthony Faulkes, 2011
• “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This episode covers the very first war that ever occurred in the world. But why did it happen and who exactly is fighting who? Did the Aesir kill the goddess Freyja three times over? And who exactly are the Vanir? Are they original to the pagan tradition or did Snorri make them up to fill in some gaps? You might be surprised how hard some of these questions are to answer and you might be surprised at how weird modern scholarship can get sometimes.

Sources:

• “Dictionary of Northern Mythology” by Rudolf Simek, 2010
• “Gesta Danorum” Volume I, translated and edited by Karsten Friis-Jensen and Peter Fisher
• “Heimskringla”, transl. by Alison Finlay and Anthony Faulkes, 2011
• “In Defence of the Vanir” by Clive Tolley, 2011
• “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001
• “Relative sá and the dating of Eddic and skaldic poetry” by Christopher D. Sapp, 2019
• “The Role of Hostages in Roman Diplomacy with Sasanian Persia” by A. D. Lee, 1991
• “The Vanir: An Obituary” by Rudolf Simek, 2010
• “Vanir and Æsir” by John Lindow in “Pre-Christian Religions of the North” Volume III, 2020.
• “Verses versus the Vanir: Response to Simek’s ‘Vanir Obituary’” by Frog & Jonathan Roper 2011
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This episode does a deep dive into almost everything we know about Thor. What did he look like? Was he a good father? How did the ancient Norse people pray to Thor? How does his hammer work? Does he ever strike anyone with lightning? And, wait... was Thor actually god of the sea?

Sources:

• “Bleikr, Gulr, and the Categorization of Color in Old Norse” by Jackson Crawford, 2016
• “Gods and Myths of Northern Europe” by H. R. Ellis Davidson, 1964
• “How Thor Lost His Thunder” by Declan Taggart, 2017
• “Medieval Folklore: A Guide to Myths, Legends, Tales, Beliefs, and Customs” by Carl Lindahl, John McNamara, and John Lindow, 2002
• “Teutonic Mythology” by Jacob Grimm, 1882, transl. by James Stallybrass
• “Þórr and wading” by Tarrin Wills, 2017
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

How does time work in mythology? Is it always present, cyclical, or normal and linear? More importantly, was Loki once impregnated by a horse? In this episode, we'll correct a few common misconceptions about Norse mythic time and dig into the origin of Óðinn's famous steed, Sleipnir. There are some sensitive topics in this one, but there's no reason why we can't discuss historical interpretations without a little modern sensitivity.

Sources:

• “Concepts of Time in Old Norse Myth” by Margaret Clunies Ross in “Prolonged Echoes” Volume I, 1994
• “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001
• “Profane Duration and Sacred Time” by Mircea Eliade in “The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion”, 1963
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In which Oðinn may not be the only Norse god to have ever sacrificed a part of his body for a drink from the well of wisdom. This episode covers the two most famous wells situated near the World Tree, Yggdrasill, as well as the beings who maintain them: Mímir whose severed head offers counsel to Oðinn, and the norns who author the fates of mankind. And did you know that the norns are the reason why the English word "weird" still exists today?

Sources:

• “Chronicles” Volume II by Raphael Holinshed, 1587
• “Dictionary of Northern Mythology”, by Rudolf Simek, 2010
• “Fate” by John Lindow in “Pre-Christian Religions of the North” Volume II, 2020
• “Norns” by Karen Bek-Pedersen in “Pre-Christian Religions of the North” Volume II, 2020
• “The History and Chronicles of Scotland” Volume II by Hector Boece, transl. by John Bellenden, early 1500s.
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

The universe according to Norse mythology is organized around a giant ash tree called Yggdrasill. But did you know that the motif of worshiping a giant, cosmically-central tree shows up in 8th-century Christian literature from England? And did you know the word "Yggdrasill" might be a reference to a story about Odin learning the runes by means of hanging himself? This episode doesn't cover everything the myths say about the famous World Tree, but it does dive into the importance of the great, cosmic ash to the ancient Norse and other pagan, Germanic societies.

Sources:

• “Cosmology” by Mathias Nordvig in “Pre-Christian Religions of the North” Volume III, 2020
• “Dictionary of Northern Mythology”, by Rudolf Simek, 2010
• “Dream of the Rood”, transl. by Richard Hamer, 1970
• “Evergreen Ash: Ecology and Catastrophe in Old Norse Myth and Literature”, by Christopher Abram, 2019
• “Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs” by John Lindow, 2001
• “Sacred Tree and Holy Grove” by Joseph S. Hopkins at mimisbrunr.info, 2020
• “The Forest in Old High German Literature” by Michael J. Swisher in “Amsterdamer Beiträge zur älteren Germanistik”, 1988
• “The Poetic Edda”, transl. by Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• “The Prose Edda”, transl. by Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In this episode we complete the creation of the world and dive into the origins of humanity. We'll talk about Christian influence in our sources, the dangers of taking our source texts too literally, and the difference between humans and trees in Norse poetic culture. Spoiler: there is no difference.

Sources:

• "Dictionary of Northern Mythology", Rudolf Simek, 2010
• "Evergreen Ash: Ecology and Catastrophe in Old Norse Myth and Literature", Christopher Abram, 2019
• "Sacred Tree and Holy Grove", Joseph S. Hopkins, 2020, mimisbrunnr.info
• "The Poetic Edda", transl. Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• "The Prose Edda", transl. Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In this episode we dig into where the universe began, how the gods came to be, and where that information comes from. We also tackle misconceptions about the differences between gods and "giants" and the famous "nine worlds" of Norse cosmology. Spoiler: gods are giants but giants aren't giant.

Sources:

• "A Handbook of Germanic Etymology", Vladimir Orel, 2003
• "Dictionary of Northern Mythology", Rudolf Simek, 2010
• "Nío man ec heima, nío íviði, miǫtvið mæran fyr mold neðan. Tid og rum i Vǫluspá 2", Jens Peter Schjødt, 1992
• "The Poetic Edda", transl. Carolyne Larrington, 2014
• "The Prose Edda", transl. Anthony Faulkes, 1995

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

People often associate Norse mythology with the vikings. But "viking" was just one of many jobs in medieval Scandinavia where farmers, poets, lawspeakers, and all sorts of people incorporated this northern version of Germanic paganism into their daily lives. The Viking Age itself only lasted about two and a half centuries whereas the religion of the north had been growing and evolving for thousands of years. In this episode we'll talk about what Norse mythology is, where it comes from, and where to find it in modern times.

Contact:

• Write in: waelhraefn (at) gmail (dot) com
• Join the Discord: https://discord.gg/Nvw5hmkRsW

Music:

Celebration by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com). Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Join me on a deep dive through history and mythology where we'll learn together from the experts about the stories and traditions held sacred and dear to the hearts of the ancient, medieval people of the north.

Music: Wild West Vikings by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/