Editing Æsir (section)

====Specific beings referred to as Æsir====
{{See also|List of Germanic deities}}
[[File:Snæfellsjökull in the Morning (7622876302).jpg|thumb|left|300px|[[Snæfellsjökull|Snæfell]] in Iceland, where according to [[Barðar saga]], Barðr Snæfellsáss became an áss who was worshipped in the region and protected those who lived there.{{sfn|Jakobsson|1998|p=63}}]]
[[Snorri Sturluson]]'s Prose Edda contains two lists of Æsir, one in [[Gylfaginning]] and one in the [[þulur]]. Though these sources largely agree, they are not identical.{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=3}} Gylfaginning lists the male Æsir as Odin,{{efn|Odin is referred to in the þulur as [[List of names of Odin|Yggr]].{{sfn|Nafnaþulur}}}} Thor, Njörðr,{{efn|In Gylfaginning, Njörðr is listed as the third áss yet is also noted to be "not of the race of the Æsir" ({{langx|non|Eigi er Njörðr ása ættar}}.{{sfn|Gylfaginning 21-30}}}} Freyr,{{efn|Freyr is referred to in the þulur as [[List of names of Freyr|Yngvi-Freyr]].{{sfn|Nafnaþulur}}}} [[Týr]], [[Heimdallr]], [[Bragi]], [[Víðarr]], [[Váli]], [[Ullr]], [[Forseti]] and Loki and the ásynjur as [[Frigg]], [[Sága]], [[Eir]], [[Gefjon]], [[Fulla]], [[Freyja]], [[Sjöfn]], [[Lofn]], [[Vár]], [[Vör]], [[Syn (goddess)|Syn]], [[Hlín]], [[Snotra]], [[Gná]], [[Sól (sun)|Sól]], [[Hjúki and Bil|Bil]]{{sfn|Gylfaginning 11-20}}{{sfn|Gylfaginning 21-30}}{{sfn|Gylfaginning 31-40}} The [[þulur]] add to this the ásynjur [[Skaði]], [[Sigyn]], [[Hnoss]], [[Gerðr]], [[Jörð]], [[Iðunn]], [[Ilmr]], [[Njörun]], [[Nanna (Norse deity)|Nanna]], [[Rindr]], [[Þrúðr]], [[Rán]].{{sfn|Nafnaþulur}} Some scholars have noted, however, that the Prose Edda does not reflect a worldview held by all heathen Nordic, or more widely Germanic, people throughout time and space. Terry Gunnell further challenges the idea that all North-Germanic people conceived of the gods as Snorri portrays them - living as a pantheon of Æsir and Vanir in [[Ásgarð]] together and all being ruled by Óðinn who is the ancestor of many of them. He proposes that this view of Óðinn as the leader of a distinct family of gods, the Æsir, would likely not have been held by the majority of heathens, instead resulting from the material that Snorri presents coming from the elite warrior class, with whom Óðinn was closely associated.{{sfn|Gunnell|2015|pp=55-56,60-61}}

Beyond this, a runic inscription on the 9th century CE Engstad whalebone pin has been interpreted as referencing an {{langx|non|garðáss}} ("yard-áss" or "áss of the settled space"). In this context, it has been proposed that the term would refer to a local god or being of that specific farmstead rather than of the whole world more generally.{{efn|The normalised spelling is {{langx|non|garðáss}}, being derived from the inscription which reads '''karþạs''' with ''k'' and ''a'' as a [[bind rune]]. The bind rune could theoretically be read in the other order as ''ak'', making the inscription '''akrþạs'''.{{sfn|Frog|2021|p=148}}{{sfn|McKinnell|Simek|Düwel|2004|p=116}}}}{{sfn|Frog|2021|p=148}} Similarly, the Old Norse term {{lang|non|landáss}} ("land-áss") is used in a poem attributed to [[Egill Skallagrímsson]] to refer to one of a list of gods which he wishes to turn against [[Erik Bloodaxe|King Eiríkr]]. This god is often interpreted as being [[Thor]], though it is also possible that it refers to a local land spirit, possibly the {{lang|non|landálfr}} ("land-elf") referred to in the next stanza of the poem.{{sfn|Frog|2021|p=150}} Æsir closely associated with specific [[fells]] or hills are also found in the Old Norse record such as {{lang|non|Svínfellsáss}} ("the áss of Svínfell"), referred in an insult in [[Njáls saga]], and [[Barðr Snæfellsáss]] ("áss of Snæfell"), a man who got his name, according to his eponymous saga, because he of the worship he received by those living around [[Snæfellsjökull|Snæfell]] and the help he in turn gave them when they were in need.{{sfn|Frog|2021|p=163}}{{sfn|Vigfússon|1860|at=ch.&nbsp;6}}{{efn|
''"kallaðr Bárðr Snjófelsáss, þvíat þeir trúðu á hann náliga þar um nesit, ok höfðu hann fyrir heitguð sinn, varð hann ok mörgum en mesta bjargvættr"''.{{sfn|Vigfússon|1860|at=ch.&nbsp;6}}
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was called Bard Snowfelsás, because they believed in him near about the headland, and had him through his namesake, and he became many but the greatest saviour.<ref name=bing_translator>{{cite web |title=Microsoft Translator |department=[[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] to [[English language|English]] |via=bing.com/translator |publisher=[[Microsoft Corporation]] |url=https://www.bing.com/translator/ |access-date=9 April 2025 }}</ref>
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In the context of ritual speech, an unnamed áss is the {{lang|non|[[almáttki áss]]}} ("almighty áss") mentioned along with Frey and Njörð in a formula said by individuals swearing an [[Rings in early Germanic cultures#Oaths|oath on a ring]]. This has been variously identified by scholars as Thor, Ullr and Odin, although the possibility remains that it is a result of Christian work that was written as a foreshadowing of the establishment of Christianity, as an example of the "noble pagan" motif.{{sfn|Simek|2008|pp=9-10}}{{sfn|Lindow|2002}}

The term {{lang|non|áss}} is further used in translations of works into Old Norse such as in [[Díalógar Gregors páfa]], in which the phrase {{lang|non|sólar áss}} ("áss of the sun") is used to refer to [[Apollo]], in the phrase {{lang|non|sævar goð}} ("god of the sea") and in {{lang|non|drauma goð}} ("god of dreams").{{sfn|Frog|2021|p=160}} [[Morkinskinna]] further describes copper images of æsir, [[Völsungs]] and [[Gjúkings]] at the [[hippodrome]] in [[Constantinople]]. This has been interpreted as translating Greek gods and heroes into a Germanic context, however, other proposals include that this should be seen as stemming from a euhemeristic angle, with the Æsir being descended from Trojans, as they are depicted by Snorri in the Prose Edda and Ynglinga Saga.{{sfn|Frog|2021|pp=155-156,164}}