Jötunn

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DR284 from the Hunnestad Monument, which has been interpreted as depicting the Template:Lang Hyrrokkin riding on a wolf with a snake as reinsTemplate:Sfn

A Template:Lang (also jotun; plural Template:Lang; in the normalised scholarly spelling of Old Norse, Template:Lang Template:IPAc-en;Template:Sfn or, in Old English, Template:Lang, plural Template:Lang) is a type of being in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, Template:Lang 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 Template:Lang category are referred to by several other terms, including Template:Lang, Template:Lang (or Template:Lang) and Template:Lang if male and Template:Lang or Template:Lang if female. The Template:Lang typically dwell across boundaries from the gods and humans in lands such as Template:Lang.

The Template:Lang are frequently attested throughout the Old Norse records, with Template:Lang 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 "Template:Lang" and its apparent synonyms in some translations and academic texts, this is seen as problematic by some scholars as Template:Lang are not necessarily notably large.

The terms for the beings also have cognates in later folklore such as the English yotun, Danish Template:Lang and Finnish Template:Lang which can share some common features – such as being turned to stone in the day and living on the periphery of society.

Origin, appearance and terminology

Terms and etymology

File:Beowulf - eotenas.jpg

The word Template:Lang in the manuscript of Beowulf

Template:Langx and Old English Template:Lang developed from the Proto-Germanic masculine noun Template:Lang.<ref name="OREL-86">Orel (2003:86).</ref> Philologist Vladimir Orel says that semantic connections between Template:Lang with Proto-Germanic Template:Lang ('to eat') makes a relation between the two words likely.<ref name="OREL-86"/> The words are cognate with Template:Wikt-lang, an archaic word for a type of being.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Old Norse Template:Lang and Old High German Template:Lang derive from the Proto-Germanic masculine noun Template:Lang. Orel observes that the Old Saxon adjective Template:Lang 'enormous' is likely also connected.<ref name="OREL-472">Orel (2003:472).</ref> Old Norse Template:Lang, Old English Template:Lang, and Old High German Template:Lang 'devil, evil spirit' derive from the Proto-Germanic masculine noun Template:Lang, itself derived from Proto-Germanic Template:Lang, which is etymologically connected to Sanskrit Template:Lang- 'strong, powerful, rich'.<ref name="OREL429-430">Orel (2003:429–430).</ref> Several terms are used specifically to refer to female entities that fall into this wider category, including Template:Lang (plural Template:Lang), Template:Lang (plural Template:Lang) and Template:Lang (plural Template:Lang).Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Terms for Template:Lang are also found in Old Norse compound words such as Template:Lang,Template:Sfn ("mountain-risi") and Template:Lang ("rime-þurs", or "frost-þurs").Template:Sfn

The cognates Template:Lang and Template:Lang, and Template:Lang and Template:Lang have been equated by scholars such as J. R. R. Tolkien and Rudolf Simek, with the words being used to describe the being in either Old Norse or Old English respectively.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Appearance, connotations and distinctions

In the Eddas, Template:Lang are beings typically with similar power to the gods and may also be referred to by the negative terms Template:Lang and Template:Lang.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn The harmful nature of Template:Lang is also described in the Icelandic and Norwegian rune poems, where they are identified for causing strife to women.<ref name="DICKINS28-33">Dickins (1915:28–33)</ref>Template:Sfn Descriptions of the appearance of Template:Lang are uncommon; however, the progenitor of the Template:Lang is described as having the form of a man.Template:Sfn Some female Template:Lang are described as being beautiful, such as Gerðr and Hymir's partner, while others are described as monstrous and having many heads.Template:Sfn Some dwarfs are described as Template:Lang such as Regin and Fáfnir, while in Alvíssmál, the eponymous dwarf is noted for having the likeness of a Template:Lang.Template:Sfn

As the influence of Christianity grew, Template:Lang became demonised and typically portrayed as less intelligent, easier to outwit and more monstrous, as is common with giants in later Germanic folklore.Template:Sfn In some later sagas, such as Bárðar saga Snæfellsáss, Template:Lang are clearly distinct from Template:Lang however in others the terms are used interchangeably, albeit with an overall trend that Template:Lang have begun to be seen negatively relative to Template:Lang.Template:Sfn

Template:Lang has a much wider semantic scope in Old Norse literature than solely Template:Lang, also including individuals with unusual or supernatural traits such as witches, abnormally strong, large or ugly people, ghosts and berserkers.Template:Sfn

Glossing as "giant"

Terms for Template:Lang are often translated into Modern English as "giant" or "giantess".Template:Sfn John Lindow uses the glosses to contrast them with the gods but notes that they are not giant, being similar in size to the gods, and are best conceived of as a kin or family group, separated by relation rather than physical appearance.Template:Sfn Due to this issue, some scholars such as Terry Gunnell, Jeramy Dodds and Benjamin Thorpe either anglicise or leave untranslated terms for Template:Lang in translations and academic work.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Notable Template:Lang

Template:Further

Gerðr, a daughter of Gymir and wife of Freyr. Usually regarded as an earth-goddess.Template:Sfn
Grendel, an eoten who, along with his mother, ravages the hall of Heorot before being killed by Beowulf.Template:Sfn
Fárbauti, the jötunn father of Loki with Laufey.Template:Sfn
Fenja and Menja, sisters who turn the mill Grotti to produce gold and Fróði's Peace.Template:Sfn
Hrungnir, a jötunn champion who challenged Thor to a duel.Template:Sfn
Jörð, possibly a jötunn at one period of time and the mother of Thor with Odin. According to Rudolf Simek, Jörð is "[a]n Æsir goddess, even though she is also called a giantess"; while John Lindow claims, "Jörd must have been a giantess in the beginning."Template:Sfn Template:Sfn
Skaði, a daughter of Þjazi and later wife of Njörðr. Goddess associated with skiing and claimed as a mythical ancestor of Haakon Sigurdsson.Template:Sfn
Þjazi, a jötunn who once kidnapped Iðunn and her apples of youth. He was later killed by the gods and his eyes made into stars.Template:Sfn
Ymir, the progenitor of the jötnar.Template:Sfn

Mythological origin

In a stanza of Völuspá hin skamma (found in the poem "Hyndluljóð"), all Template:Lang descend from Ymir.Template:Sfn Gylfaginning elaborates on this, describing that the primordial Template:Lang Ymir formed in the warm waters that arose in Ginnungagap when the rime of Niflheim was melted by the heat of Muspelheim. He lay there asleep, fed by milk from Auðumbla, whereupon from his left armpit he sweated a male and a female, and his legs begat a son with one another. Together, these children became the ancestors of all other Template:Lang.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Later, he was killed by the first gods, resulting in a flood of Ymir's blood, in which all Template:Lang drowned except Bergelmir and his family, who survive this event by way of sailing upon a Template:Lang.Template:Sfn This has been linked to a runic inscription on a sword hilt in Beowulf which describes the Template:Lang being killed in an ancient flood and has been proposed to derive from Germanic and wider Indo-European mythology.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

According to Gylfaginning, after Ymir was killed, his body was wrought into the world and a sea surrounded it. The gods then gave the surviving families Template:Lang lands along the shore to settle, placing them in the periphery. Ymir's brows were then used to build Midgard and protect it from the Template:Lang due to their known aggression.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Attributes and themes

Position as the "Other"

File:Odin, Suttungr and Gunnlöd.jpg

Stora Hammars III, an image stone from Gotland thought to show Odin as a bearded eagle, Gunnlöð holding the mead of poetry, and Suttungr

Most stories in Old Norse mythology show a clear division between "This World", pertaining to that of gods and men, and "The Other", which is inhabited by Template:Lang and beings associated with them.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

A common motif is the journeying to obtain secret knowledge from the Template:Lang. In the Eddic poem Hyndluljóð, Freyja travels to the Template:Lang Template:Lang to obtain understanding of the lineage of Ottar, and the "ale of remembrance" (Template:Langx) so that he does not forget it.Template:Sfn In the Eddic poem Vafþrúðnismál, Óðinn travels to the Template:Lang Vafþrúðnir whereupon they engage in a wisdom contest.Template:Sfn He also travels to the Template:Lang to obtain from Suttungr the Mead of poetry, which imparts skill in poetry to any who drink it.Template:Sfn The völva who tells the Völuspá prophecy to Óðinn, while not explicitly described as a Template:Lang but was raised by them.Template:Sfn

Cosmology in Germanic mythology, as with other oral cultures, has many apparent contradictions when viewed from a naturalistic standpoint.Template:Sfn Despite this, a system of motifs repeat when travelling to the Template:Lang. In the Prose Edda that the Template:Lang dwell in Jötunheimr which is at points located in the North or East and in Template:Lang can only be reached by air, however Template:Lang are also found South and across water.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Lang such as Suttungr and Skaði live in mountains, which is further reflected in the terms Template:Langx (mountain risar) and Template:Langx (mountain dweller), a kenning for Template:Lang. Their lands of inhabitation are not restricted to this, also including forests, underground, and the shore.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Sometimes they are referred to as living in specific geographical locations such as Ægir on Læsø.Template:Sfn These motifs are also seen in the section of Beowulf concerning the fight with mother of the Template:Lang Grendel which has been noted by scholars to closely resemble the fight between a Template:Lang and Grettir in his eponymous saga, wherein the female beings may only be reached by crossing through water.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn The seemingly ununified location of the Template:Lang has been suggested to be an outcome of their intrinsically chaotic nature.Template:Sfn Even within the same story, what seem like contradictions have been noted by scholars, prompting the proposal of a model that the otherworld where the Template:Lang dwell can be reached from a number of passages or boundaries that cannot be traversed under normal conditions, such as the mountains, darkness and "flickering flame" crossed by Skírnir in Skírnismál.Template:Sfn

In Eddic sources, Template:Lang present a constant threat to gods and humans, often leading them to confrontation with Thor. Hárbarðsljóð and Þrymskviða tell that if it was not for Thor and Mjöllnir, Template:Lang would soon overrun Midgard and Asgard respectively.Template:Sfn Nonetheless, Thor also has a positive relationship with some Template:Lang, such as Gríðr and the unnamed wife of Hymir, who provide magical items and council that enable him to overcome other Template:Lang.Template:Sfn

Ancestors of gods and humans

File:Coat of arms of Iceland.svg

A bergrisi ("mountain risi")—the traditional protector of southwestern Iceland—appears as a supporter on the coat of arms of Iceland.

The distinction between gods and Template:Lang is not clearly defined and they should be seen as different culturally rather than biologically, with some gods, such as Odin, Thor and Loki being the descendants of Template:Lang.Template:Sfn A common motif that often forms the core storyline of Eddic narratives is the unsuccessful attempts of Template:Lang to marry one of the goddesses, be it through either trickery or force.Template:Sfn In contrast, the female Template:Lang Skaði chooses the male Vanr Njörðr as a husband. According to the Ynglinga saga, she later had children with Odin, from whom kings such as Earl Hakon were descended. The Template:Lang Freyr also marries Gerðr, who are the claimed ancestors of the Ynglings.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Odin also seduces the Template:Lang Gunnlöð and Rindr and marries Jörð.Template:Sfn In the cases when gods marry Template:Lang, they appear to be fully incorporated into the gods and are referred to as Ásynjur in Nafnaþulur. Consistent with this, reference to Skaði's vés in Lokasenna and toponyms such as Skedevi in Sweden suggests that despite being a Template:Lang, she was worshipped in Old Norse religion.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Association with wild animals

One of the Template:Lang who dwell in the wood Járnviðr is a mother of jötnar in the forms of wolves and from whom are descended all wolves.Template:Sfn This Template:Lang has been suggested to be Angrboða, the Template:Lang who begat with Loki the monstrous wolf Fenrir and venomous worm Jörmungandr who become enemies of the gods.Template:Sfn Also in Járnviðr dwells the jötunn Eggþér who has been interpreted as either a guardian of the gýgjar who live there or a herdsman of the wolves.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Wolves are also taken as mounts by Template:Lang such as Hyndla and Hyrrokkin, the latter of which using snakes as reins.Template:Sfn This is further attested in skaldic poetry in which "wolf" is described by the kennings "Leikn's horse", "Gjálp's horse", "Gríðr's horse", while a group of wolves is referred to as "Gríðr's grey herd of horses".Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Wolf-riding Template:Lang are referred to as Template:Lang ("riders in the night") or Template:Lang ("dusk riders").Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Hræsvelgr is told in Vafþrúðnismál (37) and Gylfaginning (18) to be a Template:Lang in an arnarhamr (eagle-guise) who creates the wind by beating his wings.Template:Sfn Other Template:Lang, such as Þjazi and Suttungr are able to become eagles by wearing their Template:Lang,<ref name="Heimskringla, Skáldskaparmál">Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn Template:Sfn or resemble them like Griðr in Illuga saga Gríðarfóstra who has hands like eagle talons.Template:Sfn

Demonisation

In later material composed during the Christian period such as the legendary sagas, Template:Lang are often portrayed as uncivilised and cannibalistic. In the case of Bárðar saga Snæfellsáss and Hálfdanar saga Brönufóstra they specifically eat both human and horse meat, the latter of which was directly associated with heathen practices.Template:Sfn The post-Christian association between Template:Lang and pre-Christian practices is also seen in Beowulf, in which the man-eating Template:Lang Grendel is described as having a "heathen soul" and "heathenish hand-spurs".Template:Sfn Female Template:Lang are explicitly described as being heathen in some later sources such as Orms þáttr Stórólfssonar, in which religion prevents her from being with the hero, and the legendary saga Þorsteins þáttr bæjarmagns, in which she must be baptised before marrying the hero.Template:Sfn

Modern folklore

File:Yetnasteen.jpg

The Yetnasteen - a standing stone in Rousay in Orkney, held in local folklore to be a giant or jötunn that has been turned to stone

Giants with names cognate to terms for Template:Lang are found in later Northern European folklore, such as the English ettin or yotun, thurse and hobthrust, Danish Template:Lang, Swedish Template:Lang and Finnish Template:Lang.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Sfn In Germanic folklore, giants often share traits with Template:Lang, particularly as depicted in legendary sagas, combined with motifs from other European giants and are often interchangeable with trolls.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

As with Template:Lang, Germanic giants live outside of human communities, in woods and mountains.Template:Sfn They commonly show an aversion to Christianity, often showing a disdain for the ringing of church bells.Template:Sfn Similarities are also both seen in their role in the construction of stoneworks. Akin to the Old Norse [[Svaðilfari|tale of the Template:Lang who built the wall of Ásgarðr]], giants often enter into wagers involved in the building of churches which they later lose, as with the tale of Jätten Finn who is attributed with the construction of Lund Cathedral.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Ruins are also attributed to the works of both beings, as in the Old English poem The Ruin and the aetiological story of Wade's Causeway in Yorkshire.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Some standing stones in northern Europe are explained as petrified giants such as the Yetnasteen in Orkney which derives its name from Template:Langx (Jötunn's stone).Template:Sfn According to folklore, it awakens every New Year at midnight whereupon it visits the Loch of Scockness to drink.Template:Sfn Orcadian folklore also explains the Ring of Brodgar as dancing giants who were turned to stone by the morning sun.Template:Sfn This motif is also seen in Helgakviða Hjörvarðssonar, in which the Template:Lang Hrímgerðr engages in a senna with Helgi Hundingsbane until the sun rises and she is turned to stone.Template:Sfn

The Orcadian tradition of Gyro Night derives its name from Template:Langx and consisted of two older boys dressing up as masked old women one night in February and chasing smaller boys with ropes.Template:Sfn Similar to this are the Faroese and Shetlandic popular customs of dressing up as giantesses referred to as Template:Lang (plural Template:Lang), or other similar terms, in costumes traditionally made from a combination of animal skins, tattered clothes, seaweed, straw and sometimes featuring masks. Grýla is a female creature described in Sturlunga saga as having fifteen tails, and listed as a Template:Lang in the Nafnaþulur section of the Prose Edda who features in folklore throughout the North Atlantic islands settled by Scandinavians.Template:Sfn Template:Sfn

Toponomy

Place-names derived from þurs or cognate:

England

Thursford (Þyrs ford) – Village in Norfolk Template:Sfn
Thursgill (Þurs' gill) – Gill in West Riding of Yorkshire, field in Cumbria Template:Sfn Template:Sfn
Thruss Pits (Þyrs pit) – Field in Derbyshire Template:Sfn
Thrispin Head (Þurs fen) – Wetland in West Riding of Yorkshire Template:Sfn
Trusey Hill (Þyrs hill) – Hill in East Riding of Yorkshire Template:Sfn

Citations

Template:Reflist

Bibliography

Primary

Secondary

External links

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