The golden age of the Norse/Normans/Vikings lasted from about 780 to 1070 CE (shortly after the Battle of Hastings), and Norse paganism survived in Iceland to the 11th Century. As such, its mythology is among the most developed, and contains influences of Christianity. As with the Celts, it was largely an oral tradition; some of the myths are "memory" poems, collections of riddles, myths, and names. While many of the myths have been captured (notably by Snorri Sturluson in his Prose (or Younger) Edda, and by Saxo Grammaticus in his Gesta Danorum, much of the mythology, particularly in relation to some of the goddesses, has been lost.
Another literary source is the Volsunga Saga, centring on the hero Sigurd, who as Siegfried, was a key figure in the thirteenth-century German epic Das Nibelungenlied. This, in turn, was the source of Richard Wagner's operatic cycle Der Ring der Nibelungen. Some of its themes (notably the cursed ring) were popularized by J.R.R. Tolkien in The Lord of the Rings.
The Norse was a culture of primogeniture; the oldest inherited everything. The other sons went "viking", taking them on raiding parties to the west as far as Newfoundland, east into Russia, and south through the British Isles and as far south as Constantinople, where they made up the Emperor's guard.
Iceland, the last stronghold of Norse paganism, is a land of fire and ice, so it is not surprising that the world begins the same way, in the meeting of Musspellheim and Niflheim.
Nine Worlds: on three levels, supported by the ash tree Yggdrasill
Asgard (home of the Aesir, and realm of dead heroes), Vanaheim (home of the Vanir), Alfheim (home of the Light Elves)
Midgard: Nidavellir (land of Dwarfs), Svartalfheim (land of Dark Elves), Jotunheim (realm of Giants)
Hel (realm of the evil dead); Niflheim (realm of those who have died of illness and old age)
Aesir: Warrior gods who dwell in Valhalla, led by Odin.
Vanir: Gods of fertility, possibly related to the Finnish gods chronicled in The Kalevala.
Giants: Represent the forces of chaos; use physical force, trickery and magic
Dwarves: Ugly, misshapen, and greedy; master smiths and magicians, malicious, lusting after women, power, and gold
Light Elves, Dark Elves: (similar to the Dwarves), and residents of Niflheim are inactive in the myths.
Gods:
Odin: (Wotan, Wodin) "All-Father"; god of battle, patron of poets; god of the dead; husband of Frigg
depicted as wearing a broad-brimmed hat (to cover his eye) and blue cloak
ravens Huginn ("Thought") and Muninn ("Memory") perch on his shoulder
with brothers Vili and Ve, largely responsible for the creation of the world
slept with many; the only woman who rejected him was "Billing's daughter", a human
magic spear Gungnir never misses mark
eight-legged horse Sleipnir travels to underworld
ring Draupnir drops eight rings of its own weight every ninth night
sacrificed an eye to drink from Mimir's well and hung on Yggdrasill to win runes
swallowed by Fenrir at Ragnarok
Balder: son of Odin and Frigg; husband of Nanna
gentle and beloved, handsome and bright-faced, wise, soft-spoken, merciful, but a firm judge
killed by mistletoe dart by his blind brother Hod (aimed by Loki), and sits on high seat in Hel.
son is Forseti, god of justice
Thor: son of Odin (and Fjorgyn, the Earth Goddess), husband of Sif
god of order, law, and stability, also of weather and the harvest
champion of the common people
huge, red-bearded, huge appetite; quick-tempered, a bit slow-witted; strong and dependable
hammer Mjollnir -- protection against giants; short handled, returns when thrown, can shrink in size, used to bless brides, newborns, and the dead
chariot pulled by goats, wheels cause thunder; broken whetstone in head causes lightning
daughter Thrud (by the giantess Jarnsaxa, "Iron Cutlass") is lusted after by dwarf Alvis
struggles with Jormungand twice during his adventures; they kill each other at Ragnarok
his sons Modi ("Wrath") and Magni ("Might") will survive it
Tyr: (Tiw/Tiwaz) son of Odin
original Germanic god of war and justice, precursor to Odin
sacrificed right hand to bind Fenrir, whom he raised
at Ragnarok, killed by Garm, the hound who guards gates of Hel
Other sons of Odin:
Bragi: god of poetry and eloquence; husband of Idun
Hermod: journeys to Hel on Sleipnir after Balder's death to bargain for his return
Hod: blind and gentle god, throws the mistletoe dart (aimed by Loki) that killed Balder
Vali: son of goddess Rind; conceived to avenge Balder's death; killed Hod (do not confuse with god of same name, son of Loki)
Vidar: son of giantess Grid, will kill Fenrir to avenge Odin's death
Other Gods:
Aegir: god of the sea; his wife is Ran, and they dwell in their hall beneath the sea by the isle of Hlesey
Andvari: dwarf who owned a treasure hoard (including a ring), and cursed it when it was wrested from him by Loki, as ransom for the death of Otter, son of the farmer-magician Hreidmar.
Freyr:Vanir -- most important fertility god; son of Njord; brother of Freyja
determines sun and rain, fertility, peace and plenty, prosperity
his self-propelled sailing ship Skidbladnir can carry all the gods, yet can be folded up and carried
his boar Gullinbursti provides protection in battle
also known as Skirr "the shining one"; his lusting after the giantess Gerd represents the melting of a frozen field
killed by giant Surt at Ragnarok
Heimdall:Vanir: watchman of the gods, who guards the rainbow bridge Bifrost between Asgard and Midgard
sleeps little, sees 100 leagues, can hear grass growing
his horn Gjall will sound at Ragnarok, when he will kill (and be killed by) Loki
may have some romantic connection with Freyja
is associated with the god Rig, father of the races of serfs, servants, and nobles
Honir: one of the Aesir traded to the Vanir with Mimir after the war
strong and handsome, long-legged; but indecisive
travels with Odin and Loki on occasion
after Ragnarok, first among the gods, with a wand of prophecy
Kvasir: According to one version, wisest of the Vanir; according to another, a wise man created from the spittle of the gods. Killed by two dwarfs, the mead of poetry was brewed from his blood.
Loki: the trickster of all trickster gods: dynamic, unpredictable, unstable, and flawed
handsome, moody, cunning, a cheat
a giant, son of Faurbati "Cruel Striker" by his wife Laufey; Sigyn is his faithful wife
foster-brother to Odin
possesses "sky shoes" for swift travel, but also borrows Freyja's falcon skin on occasion
becomes increasingly malicious as the cycle progresses (turning point may be when he had his lips sewn up by the dwarf Brokk, after obtaining the Treasures of the Gods)
with the giantess Angrboda ("Distress Bringer"), fathered three monsters:
Fenrir: wolf raised by Tyr, fettered by the silver ribbon Gleipnir on the island of Lyngvi, in Asgard
Jormungand: the Midgard serpent who bites its own tail
Hel: mistress of the underworld; sad-faced but lovely above the hips, corrupt below
a shape and sex-changer, in a culture where homosexuality was punishable by outlawry and bisexuality was frowned upon
in the form of a mare, lured away Svadilfari, the horse which aided the giant building the wall around Asgard (voiding his contract), and became the mother of Sleipnir
when Mjollnir stolen, went (in drag as handmaiden to Thor's "Freyja") to Thrym's hall
may have been the seeress in Hel who told Odin of Balder's forthcoming death
as giantess Thokk, was the one being who would not weep for Balder
Mimir: god of wisdom, traded to the Vanir after the war. His head was cut off by the Vanir, but Odin preserved it, giving it the power of speech.
Njord: senior god of the Vanir; god of the sea and of winds, ships and sailors, fishing and fertility
father (by his sister, according to Loki) of Freyr and Freyja; like Freyr, presided over sacrifices
married the frost giantess Skadi after the death of her father Thiazi
Goddesses:
Freyja: Vanir: foremost goddess of love and fertility, daughter of Njord and sister to Freyr
also a goddess of war, who divided the dead with Odin; drives chariot pulled by two cats
weeps for her lost husband Od (possibly associated with Odin)
sexually active and permissive; sold herself to 4 dwarfs to gain the Necklace of the Brisings
after Loki (under orders of jealous Odin) stole the necklace, was forced to stir up war, and renew the corpses of dead warriors, for its return
lusted after by several giants (Thrym, who stole Mjollnir; and the giant who built Asgard)
according to Loki, she slept with all the gods; also had human lover Ottar
goddess of magic and witchcraft; may have been the witch Gullveig, whose gold-lust incited the war between the Aesir and the Vanir
owns a falcon skin (borrowed by Loki) to shapechange and travel to the underworld
Frigg: wife of Odin, daughter of Fjorgyn, goddess of the earth
invoked by women in labour; mourned the loss of Balder
may be conceived of in triple aspect with Freya and Skadi
when Balder had forbodings of death, she got oaths from all things (except the tiny mistletoe) to forswear harming him; after his death, she offered herself to anyone who would go to Hel to bargain for his return
Idun: wife of Bragi; keeper of the apples of youth. Tricked by Loki to leave Asgard, she was kidnapped by the giant Thiazi (father of Skadi), who lusted after her
Nanna: loyal wife of Balder, threw herself on his pyre and went to Hel with him.
Norns: The three goddesses of destiny: Urd (Fate), Skuld (Being), and Verdandi (Necessity)
Sif: wife of Thor; fertility goddess. After her natural hair was shorn by Loki on a whim, it was replaced with hair of spun gold
Skadi: frost giantess, goddess of skiing, hunting, and snowshoeing
daughter of Thiazi, who came to Asgard to get recompense for his death
though she lusted after Balder, got Njord instead, in a marriage that lasted only nine nights
at Loki's binding, set a snake above his head to drip poison on him (fended off by Sigyn)
Other Goddesses: Equal in importance to the Aesir, but whose stories have largely been lost:
Eir: goddess of healing
Gefion: Vanir: goddess of agriculture and plowing, possibly related to Freyja and Frigg. Slept with a king, and was rewarded with as much of Sweden as she could plow with four oxen in a single night; used her four giant sons, and plowed out the island of Zeeland.
Lofn: goddess of illicit unions
Saga: goddess who was a drinking-buddy of Odin
Sjofn: goddess of human passion
Snotra: a wise, gentle, and self-disciplined goddess
Syn: goddess invoked by defendants at trials
Var: goddess who heard and enforced the marriage oath
