Jötunn in the context of "Angrboða"

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⭐ Core Definition: Jötunn

A jötunn (also jotun; plural jötnar; in the normalised scholarly spelling of Old Norse, jǫtunn /ˈjɔːtʊn/; or, in Old English, eoten, plural eotenas) is a type of being in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, jötnar are often contrasted with gods (the Æsir and Vanir) and with other non-human figures, such as dwarfs and elves, although the groupings are not always mutually exclusive. The entities included in the jötunn category are referred to by several other terms, including risi, þurs (or thurs) and troll if male and gýgr or tröllkona if female. The jötnar typically dwell across boundaries from the gods and humans in lands such as Jötunheimr.

The jötnar are frequently attested throughout the Old Norse records, with eotenas also featuring in the Old English epic poem Beowulf. The usage of the terms is dynamic, with an overall trend that the beings become portrayed as less impressive and more negative as Christianity becomes more influential over time. Although the term "giant" is sometimes used to gloss the word "jötunn" and its apparent synonyms in some translations and academic texts, this is seen as problematic by some scholars as jötnar are not necessarily notably large.

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Jötunn in the context of Víðarr

In Norse mythology, Víðarr (Old Norse: [ˈwiːðɑrː], possibly "wide ruler", sometimes anglicized as Vidar /ˈvdɑːr/, Vithar, Vidarr, and Vitharr) is a god among the Æsir associated with vengeance. Víðarr is described as the son of Odin and the jötunn Gríðr and is foretold to avenge his father's death by killing the wolf Fenrir at Ragnarök, a conflict he is described as surviving. Víðarr is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson, and is interpreted as depicted with Fenrir on the Gosforth Cross. A number of theories surround the figure, including theories around potential ritual silence and a Proto-Indo-European basis.

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Jötunn in the context of Freyja

In Norse mythology, Freyja (Old Norse "(the) Lady") is a goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, sex, war, gold, and seiðr (magic for seeing and influencing the future). Freyja is the owner of the necklace Brísingamen, rides a chariot pulled by two cats, is accompanied by the boar Hildisvíni, and possesses a cloak of falcon feathers to allow her to shift into falcon hamr. By her husband Óðr, she is the mother of two daughters, Hnoss and Gersemi. Along with her twin brother Freyr, her father Njörðr, and her mother (Njörðr's sister, unnamed in sources), she is a member of the Vanir. Stemming from Old Norse Freyja, modern forms of the name include Freya, Freyia, and Freja.

Freyja rules over her heavenly field, Fólkvangr, where she receives half of those who die in battle. The other half go to the god Odin's hall, Valhalla. Within Fólkvangr lies her hall, Sessrúmnir. Freyja assists other deities by allowing them to use her feathered cloak, is invoked in matters of fertility and love, and is frequently sought after by powerful jötnar who wish to make her their wife. Freyja's husband, the god Óðr, is frequently absent. She cries tears of red gold for him, and searches for him under assumed names. Freyja has numerous names, including Gefn, Hörn, Mardöll, Sýr, Vanadís, and Valfreyja.

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Jötunn in the context of Ogre

An ogre (feminine: ogress) is a legendary monster depicted as a large, hideous, humanoid being that eats ordinary human beings, especially infants and children. Ogres frequently feature in mythology, folklore, and fiction throughout the world. They appear in many classic works of literature, and are most often associated in fairy tales and legend.

In mythology, ogres are often depicted as inhumanly large, tall, and having a disproportionately large head, abundant hair, unusually colored skin, a voracious appetite, and a strong body. Ogres are closely linked with giants and with human cannibals in mythology. In both folklore and fiction, giants are often given ogrish traits (such as the giants in "Jack and the Beanstalk" and "Jack the Giant Killer", the Giant Despair in The Pilgrim's Progress, and the Jötunn of Norse mythology); while ogres may be given giant-like traits.

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Jötunn in the context of Loki

Loki is a god in Norse mythology. He is the son of Fárbauti (a jötunn) and Laufey (a goddess), and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. Loki is married to the goddess Sigyn and they have two sons, Narfi or Nari and Váli. By the jötunn Angrboða, Loki is the father of Hel, the wolf Fenrir and the world serpent Jörmungandr. In the form of a mare, Loki was impregnated by the stallion Svaðilfari and gave birth to the eight-legged horse Sleipnir.

Like other gods, Loki is a shape shifter and in separate sources appears in the form of a salmon, a mare, a fly, and possibly an elderly woman named Þökk (Old Norse 'thanks'). While sometimes friendly with the gods, Loki engineers the death of the beloved god Baldr. For this, Odin's specially engendered son Váli binds Loki with the entrails of one of his sons, where he writhes in pain. In the Prose Edda, this son, Nari or Narfi, is killed by another of Loki's sons, who is also called Váli. The goddess Skaði is responsible for placing a serpent above him while he is bound. The serpent drips venom from above him that Sigyn collects into a bowl; however, she must empty the bowl when it is full and the venom that drips in the meantime causes Loki to writhe in pain, thereby causing earthquakes.

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Jötunn in the context of Fárbauti

Fárbauti (Old Norse) is a jötunn in Norse mythology. In all sources, he is portrayed as the father of Loki. Fárbauti is attested in the Prose Edda and in kennings of Viking Age skalds.

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Jötunn in the context of Ymir

In Norse mythology, Ymir (/ˈmɪər/), also called Aurgelmir, Brimir, or Bláinn, is the ancestor of all jötnar. Ymir is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material, in the Prose Edda, written by Snorri Sturluson in the 13th century, and in the poetry of skalds. Taken together, several stanzas from four poems collected in the Poetic Edda refer to Ymir as a primeval being who was born from atter (Old Norse: eitr), yeasty venom that dripped from the icy rivers called the Élivágar, and lived in the grassless void of Ginnungagap. Ymir gave birth to a male and female from his armpits, and his legs together begat a six-headed being. The grandsons of Búri, the gods Odin and Vili and Vé, fashioned the Earth—elsewhere personified as a goddess named Jörð—from Ymir's flesh; the oceans from his blood; from his bones, the mountains; from his hair, the trees; from his brains, the clouds; from his skull, the heavens; and from his eyebrows, the middle realm in which humankind lives, Midgard. In addition, one stanza relates that the dwarfs were given life by the gods from Ymir's flesh and blood (or the Earth and sea).

In the Prose Edda, a narrative is provided that draws from, adds to, and differs from the accounts in the Poetic Edda. According to the Prose Edda, after Ymir was formed from the elemental drops, so too was Auðumbla, a primeval cow, whose milk Ymir fed from. The Prose Edda also states that three gods, the brothers Odin, Vili and Vé, killed Ymir, and details that, upon Ymir's death, his blood caused an immense flood. Scholars have debated as to what extent Snorri's account of Ymir is an attempt to synthesize a coherent narrative for the purpose of the Prose Edda and to what extent Snorri drew from traditional material outside of the corpus that he cites. By way of historical linguistics and comparative mythology, scholars have linked Ymir to Tuisto, the Proto-Germanic being attested by Tacitus in his 1st century CE ethnography Germania and have identified Ymir as an echo of a primordial being reconstructed in Proto-Indo-European mythology.

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Jötunn in the context of Gríðr

Gríðr (Old Norse: [ˈɡriːðz̠]) often anglicized as Gríd, is a jötunn in Norse mythology. She is the mother of Víðarr the silent and the consort of Odin. Saturn's moon Gridr was named after her.

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Jötunn in the context of Fenrir

Fenrir (Old Norse 'fen-dweller') or Fenrisúlfr (Old Norse "Fenrir's wolf", often translated "Fenris-wolf"), also referred to as Hróðvitnir (Old Norse "fame-wolf") and Vánagandr (Old Norse 'monster of the [River] Ván'), is a monstrous wolf in Norse mythology. In Old Norse texts, Fenrir plays a key role during the events of Ragnarök, where he is foretold to assist in setting the world aflame, resulting in the collapse of humanity and society, and killing the god Odin.

Fenrir, along with Hel and Jörmungandr, is a child of Loki and female jötunn Angrboða. He is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda and Heimskringla, composed in the 13th century. In both the Poetic Edda and Prose Edda, Fenrir is the father of the wolves Sköll and Hati Hróðvitnisson, is a son of Loki and is foretold to kill the god Odin during the events of Ragnarök, but will in turn be killed by Odin's son Víðarr.

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