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Bell Ringer #9: Tuesday 2/8/11

Bell Ringer #9: Tuesday 2/8/11. Believe it or not, the Norse had more influence on our language today than you might think (Thursday is named after Thor, “Hel” was the goddess of the underworld.)

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Bell Ringer #9: Tuesday 2/8/11

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  1. Bell Ringer #9: Tuesday 2/8/11 Believe it or not, the Norse had more influence on our language today than you might think (Thursday is named after Thor, “Hel” was the goddess of the underworld.) If you were a god or goddess, what significant everyday title or object would we name after you? What would make people want to name something that important after you? Explain.

  2. Modern Day Influence: • Sunday: Sun's Day. The Sun gave people light and warmth every day. They decided to name the first (or last) day of the week after the Sun. • Monday: Moon's Day. The Moon was thought to be very important in the lives of people and their crops. • Tuesday: Tiw's Day. Tiw, or Tyr, was a Norse god known for his sense of justice. • Wednesday: Woden's Day. Woden, or Odin, was a Norse god who was one of the most powerful of them all. • Thursday: Thor's Day. Thor was a Norse god who wielded a giant hammer. • Friday: Frigg's Day. Frigg was a Norse god equal in power to Odin. • Saturday: Seater's Day or Saturn's Day. Saturn was a Roman god.

  3. Norse Myth

  4. The Geography • Norway • Sweden • Finland • Denmark • Iceland

  5. Sources of Norse Mythology Norse myths existed only in oral form while they were central to religious belief. They were only written down after Northern Europe had become Christian. So we have new problems with our primary sources: • no coherent body of literature showing the myths and legends • possible alteration due to the influence of Christianity

  6. Sources: The Eddas Prose Edda: A narrative of many different adventures of the Norse gods, but presented as a fictional account, sometimes almost humorous. The closest we have to an overview/ collection of Norse myth, but often untraditional, and very engaged with intellectual & Christian traditions (e.g., he connects Thor with Troy).

  7. Sources Poetic Eddas: Traditional songs, which often refer to mythic incidents, usually just individual adventures. Skaaldic songs: poems in honor of human accomplishments, with occasional references to myth, sometimes very cryptic.

  8. Creation myth:

  9. Creation: Fusion of hot and cold In the south was a land of fire; in the north was a land of ice. They met in the great emptiness of Ginnungagap, and the ice began to melt. From the melting ice came a huge giant, Ymir. The first man and woman grew from his armpits. The frost-giants (Jogar) grew from his feet. Ymir fed on the milk of a cow (Audhumla), which licked another creature, a man named Bur, from the ice.

  10. Creation • Bur’s grandsons, Odin and 2 brothers (Ve and Villi), killed Ymir and made the world from his parts: • his skull became the sky • his eyebrows formed a barrier between the world of men and the world of giants • his blood became sea and lakes • his bones became the mountains The world was divided into several worlds. The world tree, Yggdrasill, extended between all of these lands. At its foot in Asgard was the well of Urd, where the Norns lived, three women who oversee fate.

  11. The Three Levels of Existence • Realm of Asgard • Realm of Midgard • Realm of Niflheim (world of the dead)

  12. Realm of Asgard Asgardian (gods): Asgard. Light Elves: Alfheim Primordial element of Fire and Fire Demons: Muspelheim

  13. Realm of Midgard *** Asgard and Midgard were connected with the flaming bridge, Bifrost, that appears to the human eye as a rainbow. Upper Region Vanir (gods): Vanaheim Humans: Midgard Lower Region Giants: Jotunheim Dwarves: Nidavellir Dark Elves: Svartalfheim

  14. Realm of Niflheim Dead: Hel – where those who died of old age, sickness, or accident were judge

  15. World in the Balance Creation was all tied together by Yggdrasil Yggdrasill, the world tree, spans the different realms of Norse myth. These realms are joined by the three roots of the great tree Yggdrasill.

  16. Norse Gods:

  17. The Gods The Norse gods are divided into two races: Aesir and Vanir. Aesir are dominant; they are the gods most associated with heroic tales, conflict with giants, warfare, and the beginning and end of the world. Vanir tend to be fertility deities; there are fewer of them.

  18. The Vanir Gods • Njord, a god of the sea and seafaring • Freyr, a god of crop fertility • Freyja, “Goddess of love and sexuality, also associated with crop fertility; goddess of a realm of death; associated with shamanic experience. • Frigg goddess of love and fertility. She receives credit for seeing the fate of all mankind. • Nanna is the mood goddess. She died of grief when her husband Balder died. • Skadi goddess of skis or snow shoes • Hermod messenger to the gods. Tried to convince Hel to release Balder.

  19. The Aesir Gods • Bor father of Odin • Odin is the chief of the gods; more later. His wife is Frigg, whose name means fate. • Ve and Villibrothers of Odin who killed Ymir and made the world out of his dead body • Ulle god of chase, archery, and hunting. He was called upon to help in duels. • Sif the goddess of crops and fertility. Wife of Thor. • Bragi god of poetry and eloquence. Married to Iduna who lived in the underworld • Iduna goddess of youth, keeper of the apples which keep the gods eternally young • Hod blind god of winter who kills his brother with mistletoe as a result of a trick

  20. The Aesir Gods: The Most Popular! • Tyr is a war god, who bound the wolf Fenrir • Fenrir is the giant wolf who is the son of Loki • Thor is a god of thunder, with the muscle, violence, and brute strength laced with intelligence, that we see in Heracles. • Loki is a trickster figure, often on the side of mischief or even evil; his father was a giant. • Hemdall watches the rainbow bridge for the coming of Ragnarok and never sleeps • Balder (the beautiful) is the beloved god of light, justice, and spring who dies from an act of betrayal. He had nightmares that couldn’t be deciphered. • Forseti a god of justice who was pure and fair • Hel goddess of the underworld

  21. Ragnarok

  22. Ragnarok • End of the world • Similar to Christian concepts • Good vs. Evil • But…...

  23. Ragnarok Norse myth, unlike Greek and near Eastern, does not portray a world in which the gods have conquered discord and established order, but a world in which the gods are constantly battling their adversaries. This battle comes to a head at Ragnarok. The death of Balder is one element in the final episode of Norse myth, Ragnarok, “The Twilight of the Gods.”

  24. Ragnarok Loki remains suffering under the poison of the serpent, and Balder remains in Hel (rather than in Valholl!) until the conflicts of Ragnarok. The end of the world is preceded by an increase of wars and conflicts among men; then there is a three-year winter. Monsters break loose, jormungand (the world’s serpent) emerges from the sea and floods the earth. A wolf swallows the sun and her brother the moon; stars fall from the sky.

  25. “An age of axes, an age of swords, shattered shields, an Age of tempests, an age of wolves, before the age of men crashes down.” • Led by the giant Surt, with Loki as the helmsman, the giants arrive in their ship, Naglfar, made from the uncut fingernails of the dead (It was considered a disgrace to die with uncut fingernails. Everyone who did contributed to the building of this ship, and the gods wanted to prolong its completion as long as possible.) • A huge battle between gods and giants takes place at the gates of Asgard.

  26. Ragnarok • Odin is swallowed by Fenrir; Odin’s son Vidar kills the wolf in revenge. • Thor once again fights jormungand (serpent); he kills it, but he also dies from the venom. • Tyr fights the hound Garm, and they kill each other.

  27. Ragnarok • Loki and Heimdall (watchmen of the gods) kill each other. • Freyr is killed by the giant Surt, who scatters fire over the earth. • But from this destruction comes a new world and those who remained hidden in Yggdrasill will repopulate the world. Thus the end will contain the germ of a new beginning , and the cycle will start again. • Balder (god of light and spring) returns from Hel to rule over this new world, in peace and plenty. • A golden age arises; fields flourish without work. • Two humans survived to begin the race again . . .

  28. Norse God Presentations: We will go to the lab for the next two class periods for you to work on your presentations. You may use PowerPoint, Moviemaker, Photostory, etc. as long as there is a visual with notes provided to your peers. **Please double check that you save the correct format BEFORE leaving the lab.

  29. Norse God options: • Hermod • Tyr • Fenrir • Thor • Loki • Hemdall • Balder • Forseti • Hel

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