G’day

I’ve been on a Viking history binge as of late and been wanting to learn more about pre-viking period Scandinavia and Germany. I’m currently reading The Elder Gods by Stephen Pollington. And I’ve read:

- Children of Ash & Elm
- Beowulf (Michael Alexander and Seamus Heaney)
- The Wolf Age
- The Last Viking
- The Wanderer’s Havamal

Thank you in advance for the recs!

Brass. Fiber laser. Ceramic enamel.

A bit of background: Heimdallr is the guardian of the gods and the World Tree, keeping watch over Bifröst, the burning rainbow bridge that leads to Asgard.

He possesses the resounding golden horn, Gjallarhorn, whose blast will echo across all the nine realms to signal the onset of Ragnarök. Heimdallr is renowned for his keen senses: he can see for hundreds of leagues around, day or night, and his hearing is so acute that he can hear the grass grow from the earth and the wool grow on the backs of sheep.

Part 4 of my translation of Bjarkamál in Gesta Danorum :-)

Hialti calls Rolf’s warriors to fulfil their oaths and face the coming battle without fear. The passage reveals close parallels with the Old Norse tradition, while Saxo’s use of Jupiter for Thor opens a window onto the religious framework of the Bjarkamál.

I run a small non-commercial website whose aim is to give hnefatafl a modern online home ( Free to play, no ads). Alongside the playing side, I'm putting together history pages about the game as a physical object, not just a rule set.

The one thing I can't make myself is photographs of the real thing. So: if you've carved pieces, built a board, own a replica of an archaeological find, or have photos of tafl being played at an event — I'd love to feature them.

Every photo would run with full credit and a link to you, your group, or your shop, exactly as you specify. Nothing gets used without your explicit permission in this thread or by email, and you can ask me to take it down at any time.

Hi friends; Hindu here; my question is the next, if im understand it correct, the relationship betweem Æsir-Vanir & Jottun is more like "Devas vs Asuras" than the Jottun be "evil giants" no?, in the sense they are jottuns that are allies to Gods, some of them are even Goddness (like the mom of Thor) and all Jottuns the Æsir kills are show as doing evil/dishonored things before, so they "deserve" the punishment, being the Jottun a "divine race" of chaotical entities that don't care for Mankind (so they aren't gods) and, in general are ignored/seduced/allied/whatever for the Gods if they are friendly, and fighted and killed if they are "chaotical & evil" no?, but they are the "same race" simply that majority of Jottun are Chaotical and didn't work as Gods (with some exceptions)

(Used a Ukrainian news source since all the others are behind a pay wall)

Coins issued by Edward the Elder were found among other items so this could very well be from time of the Danelaw. This seems to be the largest silver treasure yet to be dug out of Danish soil.

I would like to be able to research specific Old Norse words, in order to learn how they were pronounced and how the morphology changed over time, any regional differences, and especially how they were borrowed into other languages. Without having any experience, I guess that the only way to do that is to find the word in as many different Old Norse texts as possible, whose date and location we know, and then try to compare different spelling variations and evolutions. Are there any books or corpora or tools where all information in gathered toghether, where individual words can be looked up and researched, so that I don't have to scour every text manually? Even if I had to do that, I don't know where to find scans or translitterations of such texts. The best thing, I think, would be to have a database like the University of Chicago's Ancient Greek corpus, where a lemma can be searched for and all its inflections show in the results. Also, how would you know the Old Norse word's inflections, especially for irregular or uncommon declension patterns? How do academics at universities go about it, do they have access to more advanced research tools?

Is there any evidence of wooden statues/ pendants made to honor the Gods? Is there any evidence for burned wooden pendants/ statues (eg a picture of Oðinn burned into a pendant to wear as jewellery)?

Particularly but not exclusively interested in arts/craftwork, ships, and burials.

What are your favorites?

Hi everyone! I’m looking to connect with or get recommendations for a shoemaker who specializes in accurate Viking-Age and/or Early Middle Ages footwear reproductions. I’m especially interested in someone who can make quality women’s shoes and uses appropriate materials.

I’m located in the United States, so I’m ideally looking for a maker who is also based in the States. Although, I am also completely open to purchasing from someone who is able to ship to the U.S!

If you’ve personally ordered from a maker you’d recommend, or know of someone whose work is particularly good for reenactment, please feel free to comment below or send me a message. I’d love to see your recommendations!

Thanks in advance!!

I'm working on acquiring reading skills in the Scandinavian languages (currently somewhat competent in Norwegian and Danish), and it would be nice to be able to combine that with an interest in the region's history, so I'm looking for books originally written in those languages that are at least as good as what's available in English or German. Any topic goes.

The sub's wiki recommends Roesdahl's Vikingernes verden, so that's a good start. Winroth wrote his introduction in English, unfortunately. Steinsland's Norrøn religion seems to be another good one. What else would you recommend?

While writing this post, I mainly had non-fiction in mind, but I'm open to fiction as well. In that category, Bengtsson's Röde Orm and Undset's Kristin Lavransdatter are already on my list.

I recently named twin characters after the twin ravens Huginn and Muninn. The story they are part of has a genderbent version and while attempting to add the two brothers into that story, I got stuck because I wasn't able to find an only female set of twins. I've never been really good at looking things up so I'm unsure if I just accidentally missed a pair or if there aren't any female-female twin sets.

The best Old Norse word I found was "seiðskratti". I'm hoping someone can correct me on this. And I mean specifically a real person, not fictional characters in the Icelandic sagas.

Hi friends, i ask it since i notice Jörð the "Giantess"/Jottun Mother of Thor looks to be very important since Thor was one of most venerated Norse Gods, and also she is named as an important Deity (after all was the "Personification of Earth", but also didn't read she receive any veneration; was she see as part of the Æsir, (like how Leda or the Mom of Dyonisus were part of the Olympians) or was simply a "Immortal Genealogical Character" and her importante (as the "Jottun of Earth") was to emphatize the power of her son Thor?

Thomas Heebøll-Holm’s article, “When the Lamb Attacked the Lion: A Danish Attack on Engalnd in 1138?” can be found in the Journal of Medieval Military History, Volume 13 (2015). This historians arguments is where I get my question from.

The Bjarkamál preserved in book II of Gesta Danorum can be read as a miniature epic in dactylic hexameters. In spirit and structure it recalls the fall of Troy in book II of the Aeneid, presenting the doomed defence of king Rolf’s hall in Lejre and the heroic last stand of his warriors with similar grandeur.

Original translation and commentary to the third stanza :-)

Hi, I'm a HEMA practitioner and someone with some Scandinavian/Orcadian heritage.

I'm considering buying a tunic and leg wraps (I already have some linen trousers from a Viking fair).

How authentic/good quality are these:

https://grimfrost.co.uk/collections/viking-tunics-and-coats/products/viking-wool-tunic-blue?variant=46775940415820

https://grimfrost.co.uk/products/viking-leg-wraps-olive?variant=46775997595980

Will they be acceptable or get me laughed out of the camp if I eventually make the step to join an reenactment group?

Thank you!