![]() The fact that Vanaheim ends differently, with -heim, or ‘home,’ might suggest a more chaotic environment. Asgard and Midgard both end with the word -gard, or ‘enclosure,’ which links to the idea of innangard, and suggests that both realms are neatly ordered and self-contained. In an effort to understand what Vanaheim might have looked like, historians have studied its name. This is true of Norse cosmology in general for example, no source provides a clearly defined list of the 9 realms, because writers assumed that everyone knew them already. ![]() Writers at the time may have taken prior knowledge of Vanaheim for granted, assuming that the nature of the place was so well-known that it did not need to be explained. The realm is also mentioned in the Prose Edda, but only in passing. It is mentioned once by name in the Poetic Edda, with no further information provided, apart from the fact that it was somewhere to the west of Asgard. Vanaheim was the realm of the Vanir, but virtually nothing is known about its nature. Asgard, realm of the Æsir, would have been the ultimate example of innangard, while Midgard, realm of humans, was striving to achieve a similar sense of law and order. Utanhard, or ‘outside the fence,’ refers to a society which is chaotic and wild. Innangard, or ‘inside the fence,’ refers to a society which is orderly, law-abiding, and civilized. In terms of the vertical positions of the 9 realms on the World Tree, Yggdrasil, Midgard is somewhere near the middle, with Asgard above and Helheim below.Īs for the word ‘enclosure,’ this links to the idea of innangard and utangard, a principle discussed by a number of modern scholars. ‘Midgard’ translates as ‘middle enclosure,’ with the word ‘middle’ referring to the position of the realm in relation to all the others. It was the only realm to which the Norse had access, with all the others beyond human reach, although there are plenty of examples of other beings visiting Midgard, including gods and jötnar. Midgard was the realm of humans, otherwise known as the real world. Sturluson’s Prose Edda offers an interesting take on Asgard, saying that it was a real city in Asia, hence the similarities between ‘Asia’ and ‘Æsir.’ This is known as ‘euhemerism:’ the belief that mythological accounts must be based upon real world people, places and events. The rest of the sub-realms are never mentioned, and historians are unlikely to ever find out what they were. Thrudheim was the home of Thor, Breidablik was the home of Baldur, and Himinbjörg was home of Heimdall. Another was Fólkvangr, a verdant field where Freya provided for the other half. One of these sub-realms was Valhalla, a beautiful golden hall where Odin gave an afterlife to half of all warriors who died in battle. Asgard was connected to Midgard, the realm of humans, by a rainbow bridge called the Bifröst.Īccording to the Poetic Edda, Asgard was divided into 12 smaller sub-realms. ![]() Asgard was the realm of the Æsir, a place which was never described in too much detail, but which seems to have been full of large, divine palaces. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |