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Before the beginning of time, there was Ginnungagap - a bottomless abyss, which separated the icy land of Niflheim and the fiery land of Muspelheim. These two realms rose in power and clashed; the burning frost turned into water drops and the water drops turned into life.

The first living being was Ymir, a hermaphroditic giant who was created from those life-giving drops of water and whose death was brought about by Odin and his brothers. Odin, Vili, and Vé, Ymir’s descendants, fashioned the Nordic mythological universe from his blood, bones, flesh, teeth, hair, eyelashes, brains and skull.

The Norse gods belong to two major clans: Æsir and Vanir. Odin, Frigg, Thor, Loki, Balder, Hod, Heimdall and Tyr are the most elevated representatives of Æsir and are known as the main gods. The second clan, Vanir, contains the fertility gods and count Njord, Freyr, and Freyja as their most notable members. Despite the antagonism between them, it was necessary for the two families to combine their powers and ideals for all to prosper.

At the time of publishing, entering the code LEARNING at checkout will reduce the price of our
Norse Mythology Diploma Course to £29.

Norse Gods Design Featuring the Triple Horn of Odin

The Norse Gods & Goddesses

Odin

The supreme deity of Norse mythology and the greatest among the Norse gods was Odin, the Allfather of the Aesir. He was the awe-inspiring ruler of Asgard, and most revered immortal, who was on an unrelenting quest for knowledge with his two ravens, two wolves and the Valkyries. He is the god of war and, being delightfully paradoxical, the god of poetry and magic. He is famous for sacrificing one of his eyes in order to be able to see the cosmos more clearly and his thirst for wisdom saw him hang from the World Tree, Yggdrasil, for nine days and nine nights until he was blessed with the knowledge of the runic alphabet. His unyielding nature granted him the opportunity to unlock numerous mysteries of the universe.

Frigg

Odin’s wife, Frigg, was a paragon of beauty, love, fertility and fate. She was the mighty queen of Asgard, a venerable Norse goddess, who was gifted with the power of divination, and yet, was surrounded by an air of secrecy. She was the only goddess allowed to sit next to her husband. Frigg was a very protective mother, so she took an oath from the elements, beasts, weapons and poisons, that they would not injure her brilliant and loving son, Balder. Her trust was betrayed by Loki, a most deceitful god.

Balder

Frigg and Odin are the parents of Balder, who was described as living between heaven and earth. Balder was the epitome of radiance, beauty, kindness and fairness. He was believed to be immortal, but he was killed with mistletoe - the golden bough that contained both his life and his death.

Loki

Loki was a mischievous god who could shape-shift and can take up animalistic forms. He conceived a scheme to cause the death of Balder. Upon learning that mistletoe was the only thing that could hurt Balder, he placed a branch into the hands of the blind god, Hod, and tricked him into throwing it at Balder, killing him.

Thor

Thor was Odin’s most widely-known son. He was the protector of humanity and the powerful god of thunder who wielded a hammer named Mjöllnir. Among the Norse gods, he was known for his bravery, strength, healing powers and righteousness.

Freya

Freya was one of the most sensual and passionate goddesses in Norse mythology. She was associated with much of the same qualities as Frigg: love, fertility and beauty. She was the sister of Freyr.

Freyr

Freyr was the god of fertility and one of the most respected gods for the Vanir clan. Freyr was a symbol of prosperity and pleasant weather conditions. He was frequently portrayed with a large phallus.

Heimdall

Heimdall, known as the ‘shiniest’ of all gods due to him having the ‘whitest skin’, was a son of Odin who sat atop the Bifrost (the rainbow bridge that connects Asgard, the world of the Aesir tribe of gods, with Midgard, the world of humanity) and remained forever on alert; guarding Asgard against attack.

Hel

Hel was the goddess and ruler of the Norse underworld of the same name (also known as Helheim). She has pale skin and appears to be death-like. She nurtures and houses any who enter her realm.

Vidar

Vidar was another son of the supreme god and Grid (a giantess), and his powers were matched only by that of Thor.

Vale

Vale was the son of Odin who avenged Balder’s death by killing Hod, the god who pierced Balder with mistletoe.

The richness of the Norse mythology and folklore continues to mesmerise people of all ages and backgrounds. Immersed in the sagas, we let our imagination go wild, as we learn of old worlds and consider new and exciting interpretations.

At the time of publishing, entering the code LEARNING at checkout will reduce the price of our
Norse Mythology Diploma Course to £29.

Comments

Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— November 2, 2018 12:32:57
Good summary. Thank you.
Mark Harrison
Mark Harrison
— November 12, 2018 15:19:48
Glad you enjoyed it.
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— April 27, 2019 09:21:44
Thanks! It was very useful :)
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— May 13, 2019 23:05:28
That was very helpful info! I hope you post more soon! I will make sure to use this information handy in my mythology world!
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— June 4, 2019 11:55:03
Great information for my History students
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— July 18, 2019 18:50:55
I am writing a book based on Norse mythology and this was a huge help. I needed to know about all the Gods and Goddesses and now I do!
Thewaterboi241
Thewaterboi241
— September 17, 2022 20:23:06
it would be cool to read your book
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— July 31, 2019 05:27:00
i found this very helpful thank you.
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— August 10, 2019 01:53:13
A great summary would love to know more about the Norse clans and the families of that time.
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— August 12, 2019 19:56:00
The mortals who became gods through sacrifice, the era of conquest and warfare . Ancient wisdom that tarries till today even in the hearts of the woriors in Vahalla and the wise ones among men who dine with the gods, for those that dine with the gods are wiser than men. Memorable write up...
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— September 24, 2019 11:04:26
That rlly helped with my assignment thank you xx
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— October 9, 2019 15:39:10
Recently, Saturn has had 20 recently discovered moons. They will all be named after Norse gods and goddesses. I found this rather interesting and wonder if any of the gods mentioned on this page will become the name of one of these new moons.
Centre of Excellence User
Centre of Excellence User
— October 23, 2019 17:57:55
cool I cant believe saturn has MORE MOONS
Cody Brynlund
Cody Brynlund
— April 19, 2023 15:52:47
This is good info but you forgot a bunch of the Norse gods and goddesses while making this including Odin's 2 brothers, Mimir the wisest of the gods, Odin's father, etc...
hunter shoemaker
hunter shoemaker
— April 20, 2023 14:40:04
i think that its funny that's mistletoe killed balder you can contact me at [email protected]
WESLEY FISHER
WESLEY FISHER
— May 3, 2023 14:41:00
mythology ologymyth is mythed ology
WESLEY FISHER
WESLEY FISHER
— May 4, 2023 14:15:19
In ologied myth

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