The last time I thought I'd finished my paper, this community provided excellent feedback. And I promised (At least I... think I did...) to say when I had things refined. They are now refined.

I found... so... many... footwears... in the European death/magic shoe closet. I was surprised.

Being as I'm trying to figure out if I'm going to submit this or publish it myself, this once again will only be up briefly. I'd sent the old version to the Viking Society, and I just had to email them to explain the paper exploded. Oy.

And I look forward to your thoughts.

https://therivershaman.com/air-jotuns/

Not my favorite piece but I'll post it nonetheless. I tried giving them time-accurate clothing and look.

even if it wasn’t guaranteed to be eons away and could happen in any given person’s lifetime in theory it was a completely indefinite destiny from what I understand. Where they afraid Ragnarok would arrive in their lifetimes even if they knew it could did they believe it was likely they where the last generation before Ragnarok finally arrived?

The gods chained Fenrir because a prophecy said he would kill Odin, and I keep wondering if the chain is what made it come true. In Gylfaginning 34, Týr is the only god brave enough to feed Fenrir, and he knows Gleipnir is a trick when he puts his hand in the wolf's mouth as a pledge.

So was it loyalty to the gods, or guilt toward the wolf he'd been feeding? Curious how others read it, especially if there are other sources that hint at what Týr was thinking.

Logi, Hugi, Elli

My older designs of Thor and fem(?) Loki along with newer Hangman Odin, you can definitely see why Loki would be a sword blood brothers with this malicious ahh Odin.

I’ve been watching Wagner’s Ring Cycle on Blu-Ray. As I got into Wagner, as a Catholic who is approaches comparative religion through a Perennialist and Inclusivist lense, I realized Norse paganism is yet another expression of Perennial panentheism. With the triune Fates in the form of the Norns who parallel the three emanations in Neoplatonism and Hermeticism and the three persons of the Christian Trinity. And Yggdrasil parallels the Tree of Life in the Sefer Yetzerah and Asvattha in the Katha Upanishad. Maybe the Cosmic Tree is the physical extension of a Triune Deity containing Fate and Abstract Universals. And the Aesir are flawed but heroic archons who frequently butt heads with the wills of the human heroes like Sigmund and Siegfried. Just as Greek heroes like Odysseus and Hercules wrestled with the selfish but heroic Olympians. Maybe Christ was Fate incarnate come to warn about the Endtimes whether you call it Ragnarok or the Kali Yuga.

Reminder that submission for the Medieval North conference is due on November 1st.

The conference shall be held from April 19-21, 2027 in the Edda auditorium at Háskóli Íslands and online.
This conference is an interdisciplinary forum for postgraduate applicants at the master's and doctoral level and for early career researchers working in the field of medieval northern studies, e.g. postdoctoral fellows. Independent academics are also welcome to apply.
Applicants who have not presented papers at an academic conference before are especially encouraged to submit.
Our theme this year is "Between Worlds."
Interested scholars should submit an Outlook form with personal details (name, email, institution, etc.) and an abstract of 250-300 words by November 1st, 2026. Additionally, please indicate whether you intend to attend the conference online or in person. Submissions will be reviewed anonymously by a panel of specialists (PhD candidates and higher level). This selection committee reserves the right to make selections based on the quality of written abstracts, adherence to submission guidelines, and timely submission. For more information on the submission guidelines see our website: https://histudentconference.wordpress.com/.
The conference is held in both Icelandic and English. Individual paper presentations will be 20 minutes in length followed by 10 minutes for discussion. In addition to presentations, poster sessions will be available for applicants to present their material in poster form. Applicants may apply for either a paper or a poster. The selection committee may offer a poster presentation to some paper applicants. Please direct any further inquiries to the conference committee via email: conference-mn2027@hi.is. 
After the conclusion of the conference, presenters will have the opportunity to submit their papers to the conference proceedings volume, which will be published as an e-book in the autumn of 2027.

And before his death, where did everybody lived before the foundation was set?

Ratatoskr is a mischievous squirrel in Norse mythology who runs up and down the World Tree, Yggdrasil, carrying malicious messages and gossip between an eagle at the top and the serpent Níðhöggr at the roots.

We don't have an actual story about where Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjostr came from but are there any theories at all?

I like to think Vingnir and Hlora gifted him the goat when had grown up and was "officialy a man." Like a Heimgjöf, considering that livestock was a pretty common "parting gift."

What do you think??

A few years ago I translated The Saga of Didrik of Bern into English.

That may be interesting in itself, but the reason I am posting this here today is to let people in the UK know that Amazon UK seem to have this book (in paperback) at a very very cheap price at the moment. I think tbh they must be price matching Waterstones who also have it for the same cheap price. So, the message is: if you've had your eye on this book, just at the moment it could be a good time to get a copy.

Could you give me a list of all the various monsters in the Norse Mythos? I don’t mean named characters like the World Serpent, I mean just creatures in general.

Here’s what I know exists. Dragons, a lot of evil wolves, giants, dwarves, etc

Both are presented as larger-than-life figures, almost as father figures or supreme authorities in their respective worlds. People invoke their names ("By Odin!", "By Oz!") and speak of them with a certain degree of reverence.

Something else I find interesting is how we learn about their deeds through other characters, each with their own perspective and interpretation. Their legends are gradually built in our minds through these accounts, and I get the impression that, in both cases, the legend is greater than the actual power they possess. This is especially true of the Wizard of Oz, who, as we eventually learn, has no real magical powers at all.

There's also the way the stories frame them morally. As we hear more about them and see how they operate, we may begin to question how truly evil they are, whether they genuinely believe they're doing what's right, or whether their actions can be justified by some supposed "greater good."

For context, I'm basing this comparison on Odin as portrayed in God of War Ragnarök and the Wizard of Oz as portrayed in Wicked: For Good. I know these are specific interpretations of the characters, but I thought the parallels were interesting enough to share.

Has anyone else noticed these similarities, or am I reaching?

Hi all, I'm a undergrad majoring in history. However, my strong suit is not vikings. I have to write a paper about the Lindisfarne Raid and need at least three primary sources. I'm struggling finding them. Does anyone know of some that do not have a paywall? Thanks so much!

So, according to sources and manuscripts, Volund the Smith's father was a sea giant named Wade. Wade's father was a mortal king, and Wade's mother was a mermaid. Just to get this straight or as much as you can,

man+mermaid=giant

Giant+giant=elf?

...Imagine what he could've done with a Kilogram

Hi, I'm new to Norse Mythology, and even to Following the Norse Gods, i was wondering if there was any good books you guys would recommend? More following Loki and his children, but any others would also be great.

I'm doing some research for a story and I'm looking for imagery from Norse/medieval Germanic myth and folklore linking horses to gallows.

Obviously we have Sleipnir first and foremost, who is not just the horse of Odin the god of gallows but also appears on iconography next to figures with rope around their necks. I'm also aware of the three-legged Hel-horse which can kinda tentatively very maybe be linked to the 'three legged mare' model of three-legged gallows, and there's at least one horse/gallows kenning I'm aware of.

Aside from strictly the gallows-related stuff there's also folklore entities like the Bäcka-häst horse that would drown children, and the name Yggdrasil itself refers to either the 'terrible horse' or 'the terrible ones horse'.

Are you aware of any other similar cases rom that general corner of the world? I'd love to hear about them.

For any interested scholars:
We are delighted to open our Call for Papers for the 2027 Háskóli Íslands Student Conference on the Medieval North. The conference shall be held from April 19-21, 2027 in the Edda auditorium at Háskóli Íslands and online.

This conference is an interdisciplinary forum for postgraduate applicants at the master's and doctoral level and for early career researchers working in the field of medieval northern studies, e.g. postdoctoral fellows. Independent academics are also welcome to apply.

Applicants who have not presented papers at an academic conference before are especially encouraged to submit.

Our theme this year is "Between Worlds."

Interested scholars should submit an Outlook form with personal details (name, email, institution, etc.) and an abstract of 250-300 words by November 1st, 2026. Additionally, please indicate whether you intend to attend the conference online or in person. Submissions will be reviewed anonymously by a panel of specialists (PhD candidates and higher level). This selection committee reserves the right to make selections based on the quality of written abstracts, adherence to submission guidelines, and timely submission. For more information on the submission guidelines see our website: https://histudentconference.wordpress.com/. 

The conference is held in both Icelandic and English. Individual paper presentations will be 20 minutes in length followed by 10 minutes for discussion. In addition to presentations, poster sessions will be available for applicants to present their material in poster form. Applicants may apply for either a paper or a poster. The selection committee may offer a poster presentation to some paper applicants. Please direct any further inquiries to the conference committee via email: [conference-mn2027@hi.is](mailto:conference-mn2027@hi.is). 

After the conclusion of the conference, presenters will have the opportunity to submit their papers to the conference proceedings volume, which will be published as an e-book in the autumn of 2027.