Editing Jötunheimr

{{Short description|Land or lands inhabited by jötnar in Nordic Mythology}}
{{Distinguish|Jotunheimen National Park|text=[[Jotunheimen National Park]], a national park in Norway named after the mythological place}}
[[File:Kulturen - Riesin Holdrykka.jpg|thumb|10th-century [[picture stone]] from the [[Hunnestad Monument]] that is believed to depict a female {{lang|non|jötunn}} (or {{lang|non|gýgr}}) riding on a wolf with vipers as reins, which has been proposed to be [[Hyrrokkin]].]]

The terms '''Jötunheimr''' (in [[Old Norse orthography]]: '''Jǫtunheimr''' {{IPA|non|ˈjɔtonˌhɛimz̠|}}; often [[Old Norse orthography#Anglicized spelling|anglicised]] as '''Jotunheim''') or '''Jötunheimar''' refer to either a land or multiple lands respectively in [[Nordic mythology]] inhabited by the [[jötnar]] (relatives of the gods, in English sometimes inaccurately called "giants"). 

{{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} are typically, but not exclusively, presented in [[Eddic]] sources as prosperous lands located to the north and are commonly separated from the lands inhabited by gods and humans by barriers that cannot be traversed by usual means.

==Etymology==
{{langx|non|Jǫtunheimr}} is a compound word formed from {{langx|non|'[[jǫtunn]]'}} and {{lang|non|'heimr'}}, meaning a 'home' or 'world'.{{sfn|Jǫtunheimr}}{{sfn|*etunaz}}{{sfn|*haimaz}} When attested in [[Eddic]] sources, the word is typically found in its plural form, {{lang|non|Jǫtunheimar}} ('{{lang|non|jǫtunn}}-lands').{{sfn|Jakobsson|2006|p=106}}

==Attestations==
===Poetic Edda===
[[File:Thrym's Wedding-feast.jpg|thumb|Thrym's Wedding-feast by [[W.G. Collingwood]]]]
{{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} are mentioned in three poems of the [[Poetic Edda]]. In the beginning of [[Völuspá]], the coming of three women out of {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} marks the end of the [[Golden Age#Germanic|Age of Gold]] for the gods.{{sfn|Bellows}} Towards the end of the poem, in the section describing the onset of [[Ragnarök]], they are mentioned as follows:

{| width="50%"
! width="25%" | [[Old Norse]] text{{sfn|Völuspá (ON)|loc=Stanza 47 & 48}}
! width="25%" | [[Henry Adams Bellows (businessman)|Bellows]] translation{{sfn|Bellows|2004|loc=Völuspá stanza 47 & 48}}
|-
|
:{{lang|non|Skelfr Yggdrasils askr standandi,}}
:{{lang|non|ymr it aldna tré, en jötunn losnar;}}
:{{lang|non|hræðask allir á helvegum}}
:{{lang|non|áðr Surtar þann sefi of gleypir.}}

:{{lang|non|Hvat er með ásum? Hvat er með alfum?}}
:{{lang|non|Gnýr allr Jötunheimr, æsir ro á þingi,}}
:{{lang|non|stynja dvergar fyr steindurum,}}
:{{lang|non|veggbergs vísir. Vituð ér enn - eða hvat?}}
|
:[[Yggdrasil]] shakes, and shiver on high
:The ancient limbs, and the giant is loose;
:To the head of [[Mímir|Mim]] does Othin give heed,
:But the kinsman of [[Surtr|Surt]] shall slay him soon.

:How fare the gods? how fare the [[elves]]?
:All Jotunheim groans, the gods are at council;
:Loud roar the [[Dwarf (folklore)|dwarfs]] by the doors of stone,
:The masters of the rocks: would you know yet more?
|}

In the prose prologue [[Skírnismál]], while sitting on [[Hliðskjálf]], [[Freyr]] sees [[Gerðr]], the daughter of [[Gymir (father of Gerðr)|Gymir]], in {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} and falls in love with her. A further prose section then describes that he gives his servant [[Skírnir]] his horse and sends him to her home at [[Gymisgarðar]] in {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}}, which he reaches after travelling through wet mountains, a flickering flame and darkness. After his journey, Skírnir meets Gerðr and her family living in a hall and tending to animals in the daylight, protected by a fence and dogs. Upon his return, Freyr asks in a stanza of the tidings from {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}}, to which his servant replies that she will meet him in nine nights at [[Barri]].{{sfn|Orchard|2011|pp=59-67|loc=För Skírns: Skírnir's journey}}{{sfn|Skírnismál (ON)}}{{sfn|Heide|2014|pp=107-108}}

In [[Þrymskviða]], Loki uses [[Freyja]]'s [[fjaðrhamr]] to fly to [[Þrymr]]'s home in {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} to find Thor's [[Mjölnir|hammer]]. The {{lang|non|jötunn}} tells the god that he will only return the hammer in exchange for Freyja's hand in marriage. When she refuses to go to {{lang|non|jötunheimar}}, Thor goes in her place, disguised in a wedding veil, with Loki as his handmaid. In this account, Þrymr's estate is presented as wealthy, with him holding dogs on golden leashes and telling that has cattle with golden horns in his stables and many jewels, with Freyja being the only thing he lacked.{{sfn|Orchard|2011||loc=Þrymskviða: The lay of Thrym}}{{sfn|Þrymskviða (ON)}}{{sfn|Heide|2014|p=121}}

===Gylfaginning===
[[File:Louis Huard - Giant Skrymir and Thor.jpg|upright=1.35|thumb|''Giant Skrymir and Thor'' by [[Louis Huard]]]]
{{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} are referenced throughout [[Gylfaginning]] such as when [[Gefjun]] takes four oxen, who were her sons with a {{lang|non|jötunn}}, out of the {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} to the north and uses them to plough land out of [[Sweden]], forming [[Zealand]]. {{lang|non|Jötnar}} and {{lang|non|[[gýgjar]]}} are also described as living in {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} such as the father of [[Nótt|Night]], [[Narfi]] and [[Angrboða]], the mother of [[Fenrir]]. Beings may also come out from {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} to interact with others, such as the wright who, with the help of his horse [[Svaðilfari]], builds fortifications for the gods to protect them from {{lang|non|jötnar}}.{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc = Gylfaginning, chapter 1. Of King Gylfi and Gefjonr, chapter 10. The arrival of Dagr and Nátt, chapter 14. About the residence of the gods and the origin of the dwarves, chapter 34. Of the children of Loki and the binding of the Fenris wolf}}{{sfn|Gylfaginning (ON)|loc=1. Frá Gylfa konungi ok Gefjuni, 10. Tilkváma Dags ok Nætr, 14. Um bústaði goða ok upphaf dverga, 34. Frá börnum Loka ok bundinn Fenrisúlfr}}

===Skáldskaparmál===
[[Skáldskaparmál]] tells of how [[Loki]] was once coerced into helping the {{lang|non|jötunn}} [[Þjazi]] abduct [[Iðunn]] who carried her northwards, back to his home in {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} named [[Þrymheimr]]. Using Freyja's [[fjaðrhamr]], Loki became a hawk and flew to Þjazi's home while the {{lang|non|jötunn}} was away, having rowed out to sea. Upon reaching Iðunn, Loki turned her into a nut and flew away with her in his talons. Þjazi later finds out that Iðunn is gone and he chases after them as an eagle, but is killed as he reached [[Asgard]] when he flies into a fire that the gods made.{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc = Skáldskaparmál, chapter 2. The giant Þjazi carried off Iðunn, chapter 3. Loki secured Iðunn and the slaying of Þjazi}}{{sfn|Skáldskaparmál (ON)|loc=2. Þjazi jötunn rænti Iðunni, 3. Loki náði Iðunni ok dráp Þjaza}}

Later in Skáldskaparmál, [[Odin]] rides to {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} on [[Sleipnir]] where he meets the {{lang|non|jötunn}} made of stone [[Hrungnir]] and wagers that no horse there was as good as his. Angered, Hrungnir chases Odin back to [[Asgard]] on his horse [[Gullfaxi]] whereupon the gods invite him to drink with them. Becoming drunk, he boasts that he will perform a number of acts including carrying [[Valhöll|Valhall]] to {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} and abduct both [[Sif]] and [[Freyja]]. When the gods tired of his bragging, they called for [[Thor]]. Hrungnir claimed that as he was unarmed, Thor would gain no honour from killing him and so challenged him to a fight in {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}}, at his home [[Grjótúnagarðar]]. Thor later meets him there and kills him with [[Mjölnir]], which on its way to Hrungnir, hits the [[Sharpening stone|hone]] that the {{lang|non|jötunn}} was fighting with, shattering it. One of the pieces flies into Thor's head, becoming stuck. To remove it, he went to the [[völva]] [[Gróa]], who began a {{lang|non|[[galdr]]}} to loosen it. While she was singing, Thor told her that he had carried her husband [[Aurvandil]] as he travelled southwards out of {{lang|non|Jötunheimar}} and that he would soon be with her. In her excitement, she forgot the {{lang|non|galdr}} and the shard remained lodged in Thor's head.{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc = Skáldskaparmál, chapter 24. About the giant Hrungnir, chapter 25. About the völva Gróa}}{{sfn|Skáldskaparmál (ON)|loc=24. Frá Hrugni jötni, 25. Frá Gróu völu.}}

==Position in cosmology==
{{lang|non|Jötunheimar}}, along with other lands such as [[Hel (location)|Hel]], constitute "the otherworld" in Eddic sources that is either journeyed to or from, often leading to a confrontation that forms the basis for the narrative.{{sfn|Nordvig|2013|p=382}} There is no single location that {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} are found in [[Norse cosmology|Nordic cosmology]] however, instead being travelled to by a number of different directions and often separated from the lands of humans and gods by a barrier that is difficult to cross such as [[bodies of water]], [[fells]], fire or forests.{{sfn|Heide|2014|pp=107-108,131-134}} 

{{lang|non|Jötnar}} are typically found in the North and East, with explicit references to {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} locating them in the North, however in Gylfaginning, [[Snorri Sturluson]] writes that after the killing of [[Ymir]], the gods gave the shores around the world to the {{lang|non|jötnar}} to settle, suggesting a worldview in which [[Midgard]] is located centrally and that the {{lang|non|jötnar}} dwell in the periphery, likely in contrast with how contemporary [[Icelanders]] would have viewed wilderness.{{sfn|Jakobsson|2006|pp=105-106}} Later in Gylfaginning, Thor journeys with Loki, [[Thjálfi]]  and [[Röskva]] to {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} which is located to the east and over the deep sea. They then travel through a great forest before eventually reaching the hall of [[Útgarða-Loki]].{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc=Gylfaginning, hapters 44-47}} Sometimes {{lang|non|jötnar}} are positioned in specific geographical locations such as [[Ægir]] on the island of [[Læsø]].{{sfn|Heide|2014|p=118}}  

It has been proposed that rather than being conceived of as a physical land that can be located geographically relative to the regions of the world inhabited by humans, {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} should be seen as connected to other realms by a number of passageways that cannot be traversed by ordinary means, and may seem contradictory from a naturalistic viewpoint in that a single location could be reached from a start point in a number of distinct directions. In this model, the {{lang|non|jötunheimar}} would not be located in these opposing directions, only the passageways by which they are reached.{{sfn|Heide|2014|pp=107-108,120-121,131-134}} It has been further noted that in Eddic sources, it seems that {{lang|non|jötnar}} are located to some extent in all directions and that they can be reached if one travels sufficiently far away from the area inhabited by people. From this, it has been suggested that it may be an intrinsic quality of {{lang|non|jötnar}} as the "other" that they cannot be restricted to a single location, however, not all these lands inhabited by {{lang|non|jötnar}} are explicitly described as being {{lang|non|jötunheimar}}.{{sfn|Jakobsson|2006|pp=109-110}}

==See also==
* [[List of jötnar in Norse mythology]]
* [[Otherworld]]

== Citations ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
===Primary===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Bellows |first1=Henry Adam |title=The poetic Edda : the mythological poems |date=2004 |publisher=Dover Publications |location=Mineola, NY |isbn=9780486437101 |url=https://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/index.htm}}
* {{cite book |last1=Orchard |first1=Andy | author-link= Andy Orchard |title=The Elder Edda : a book of Viking lore |date=2011 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=London |isbn=9780141393728}}
* {{cite book |last1=Sturluson |first1=Snorri |translator-last=Brodeur|translator-first=Arthur Gilchrist|title=The Prose Edda |date=2018 |publisher=Franklin Classics Trade Press |isbn=9780344335013}}
* {{cite web |last1=Bellows |first1=Henry Adam |title=The Poetic Edda: Voluspo |url=https://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/poe/poe03.htm |website=www.sacred-texts.com |access-date=3 July 2022}}
* {{cite web |ref={{SfnRef|Gylfaginning (ON)}}|title=Gylfaginning (ON) |url=https://heimskringla.no/wiki/Gylfaginning |website=heimskringla.no |access-date=7 November 2022}}
* {{cite web |ref={{SfnRef|Skáldskaparmál (ON)}}| title=Skáldskaparmál (ON)|url=https://heimskringla.no/wiki/Sk%C3%A1ldskaparm%C3%A1l |website=heimskringla.com|access-date=5 November 2022}}
* {{cite web |ref={{SfnRef|Skírnismál (ON)}}| title=Skírnismál (ON)|url=https://heimskringla.no/wiki/Sk%C3%ADrnism%C3%A1l |website=heimskringla.com|access-date=9 November 2022}}
* {{cite web |ref={{SfnRef|Þrymskviða (ON)}}| title=Þrymskviða (ON)|url=https://heimskringla.no/wiki/%C3%9Erymskvi%C3%B0a |website=heimskringla.com|access-date=9 November 2022}}
* {{cite web |ref={{sfnref|Völuspá (ON)}} |title=Völuspá (ON) |url=https://heimskringla.no/wiki/V%C3%B6lusp%C3%A1 |website=heimskringla.com |access-date=28 April 2023}}
{{refend}}

===Secondary===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Heide |first1=Eldar |title=Contradictory cosmology in Old Norse myth and religion – but still a system? |journal=Maal og Minne |date=2014 |volume=106 |issue=1 |url=http://ojs.novus.no/index.php/MOM/article/view/226 |access-date=23 April 2022 |language=no |issn=1890-5455}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Jakobsson |first1=Ármann |title="Where Do the Giants Live?". |journal=Arkiv för nordisk filologi |date=2006 |volume=121 |pages=101–112 |url=https://www.academia.edu/20555063 |access-date=6 May 2022}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Nordvig |first1=Mathias |author1-link=Mathias Nordvig |title=A Method for Analyzing World-Models in Scandinavian Mythology |journal=Aarhus University |date=2013 |url=https://pure.au.dk/portal/en/persons/mathias-nordvig(d8ff747f-d809-48b3-afe5-345252806723)/publications/a-method-for-analyzing-worldmodels-in-scandinavian-mythology(f1ed09ae-a792-4e8c-9c0d-45543f3dc3d7).html}}
* {{cite book |last1=Simek |first1=Rudolf | author-link = Rudolf Simek | translator1-last = Hall | translator-first = Angela |title=A Dictionary of Northern Mythology |date=2008 |publisher=BOYE6 |isbn=9780859915137}}
* {{cite web | ref = {{SfnRef|Jǫtunheimr}} | title=Jǫtunheimr|url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/J%C7%ABtunheimr |website=Wiktionary |language=en | access-date=29 October 2022}}
* {{cite web | ref = {{SfnRef|*etunaz}} | title=*etunaz|url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/etunaz |website=Wiktionary |language=en | access-date=20 November 2022}}
* {{cite web | ref = {{SfnRef|*haimaz}} | title=*haimaz|url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/haimaz |website=Wiktionary |language=en | access-date=20 November 2022}}
{{refend}}


{{Norse cosmology}}
{{Norse mythology}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jotunheimr}}
[[Category:Locations in Norse mythology]]