Máni (Old Norse: [ˈmɑːne]; "Moon") is the Moon personified in Germanic mythology. Máni, personified, is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. Both sources state that he is the brother of the personified sun, Sól, and the son of Mundilfari, while the Prose Edda adds that he is followed by the children Hjúki and Bil through the heavens. As a proper noun, Máni appears throughout Old Norse literature. Scholars have proposed theories about Máni's potential connection to the Northern European notion of the Man in the Moon, and a potentially otherwise unattested story regarding Máni through skaldic kennings.
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👉 Máni in the context of Hati Hróðvitnisson
In Norse mythology, Hati Hróðvitnisson (first name meaning "He Who Hates", or "Enemy") is a warg; a wolf that, according to Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, chases Máni, the Moon, across the night sky, just as the wolf Sköll chases Sól, the Sun, during the day, until the time of Ragnarök, when they will swallow these heavenly bodies. Snorri also gives another name for a wolf who swallows the Moon, Mánagarmr ([ˈmɑːnɑˌɡɑrmz̠], "Moon-Hound", or "Moon's Dog").
Hati's patronymic Hróðvitnisson, attested in both the Eddic poem "Grímnismál" and the Gylfaginning section of the Prose Edda, indicates that he is the son of Fenrir, for whom Hróðvitnir ("Famous Wolf") is an alternate name. According to Snorri, Hati's mother is the giantess, not named but mentioned in the Eddic poem "Völuspá", who dwells to the east of Midgard in the forest of Járnviðr ("Ironwood") and "fosters Fenrir's kin". Snorri states that this giantess and witch bears many giants for sons, all in the form of wolves, including Hati and Sköll, who is thus implied to be Hati's brother. In two verses of "Völuspá" that Snorri cites, an unnamed son of this giantess is prophesied to snatch the Moon, and also eat the flesh of the dead, spattering the heavens with blood. In contrast the Eddic poem "Vafþrúðnismál" states that Fenrir himself will destroy the sun.
In this Dossier
- ⭐ Core Definition: Máni
- 👉 Máni in the context of Hati Hróðvitnisson
- Máni in the context of Norse cosmology
- Máni in the context of Sól (sun)
- Máni in the context of Sköll
Máni in the context of Norse cosmology
Norse cosmology is the account of the universe and its laws by the ancient North Germanic peoples. The topic encompasses concepts from Norse mythology and Old Norse religion such as notations of time and space, cosmogony, personifications, anthropogeny, and eschatology. Like other aspects of Norse mythology, these concepts are primarily recorded from earlier oral sources in the Poetic Edda, a collection of poems compiled in the 13th century, and the Prose Edda, attributed to the Icelander Snorri Sturluson in the 13th century. Together these sources depict an image of Nine Worlds around a cosmic tree, Yggdrasil.
View the full Wikipedia page for Norse cosmologyMáni in the context of Sól (sun)
Sól (Old Norse: [ˈsoːl], "Sun") or Sunna (Old High German, and existing as an Old Norse and Icelandic synonym: see Wiktionary sunna, "Sun") is the Sun personified in Germanic mythology. One of the two Old High German Merseburg Incantations, written in the 9th or 10th century CE, attests that Sunna is the sister of Sinthgunt. In Norse mythology, Sól is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson.
In both the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda she is described as the sister of the personified moon, Máni, is the daughter of Mundilfari, is at times referred to as Álfröðull, and is foretold to be killed by a monstrous wolf during the events of Ragnarök, though beforehand she will have given birth to a daughter who continues her mother's course through the heavens. In the Prose Edda, she is additionally described as the wife of Glenr. As a proper noun, Sól appears throughout Old Norse literature. Scholars have produced theories about the development of the goddess from potential Nordic Bronze Age and Proto-Indo-European roots.
View the full Wikipedia page for Sól (sun)Máni in the context of Sköll
In Norse mythology, Sköll (Old Norse: Skǫll, "Treachery" or "Mockery") is a wolf that, according to Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, chases the Sun (personified as a goddess, Sól) riding her chariot across the sky. Hati Hróðvitnisson chases the Moon (personified, as Máni) during the night. Sköll and Hati are the sons of the wolf Fenrir, and an unnamed giantess. It is foretold the wolves will chase the Sun and Moon across the skies until Ragnarök, at which point the wolves catch up and devour the celestial beings.
In Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, the mention of Sköll appears when describing the story of Sol, who drives the chariot of the Sun in Norse Mythology. The wolf is seen chasing her after she receives her chariot to carry the Sun. "[Sun] goes at a great pace; her pursuer is close behind her and there is nothing she can do but flee. … There are two wolves and the one pursuing her is called Skoll [Treachery] is the one she fears; he will catch her [at the end of the world]."
View the full Wikipedia page for Sköll