Old Norse Mythology — Comparative Perspectives Old Norse Mythology— Comparative Perspectives
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Stevenson Memorial Tournament 2018 Edited by Jordan
Stevenson Memorial Tournament 2018 Edited by Jordan Brownstein, Ewan MacAulay, Kai Smith, and Anderson Wang Written by Olivia Lamberti, Young Fenimore Lee, Govind Prabhakar, JinAh Kim, Deepak Moparthi, Arjun Nageswaran, Ashwin Ramaswami, Charles Hang, Jacob O’Rourke, Ali Saeed, Melanie Wang, and Shamsheer Rana With many thanks to Brad Fischer, Ophir Lifshitz, Eric Mukherjee, and various playtesters Packet 2 Tossups: 1. An algorithm devised by this person uses Need, Allocated, and Available arrays to keep the system in a safe state when allocating resources. This scientist, Hoare, and Dahl authored the book Structured Programming, which promotes a paradigm that this man also discussed in a handwritten manuscript that popularized the phrase “considered harmful.” Like Prim’s algorithm, an algorithm by this person can achieve the optimal runtime of big-O of E plus V-log-V using a (*) Fibonacci heap. This man expanded on Dekker’s algorithm to propose a solution to the mutual exclusion problem using semaphores. The A-star algorithm uses heuristics to improve on an algorithm named for this person, which can fail with negative-weight edges. For 10 points, what computer scientist’s namesake algorithm is used to find the shortest path in a graph? ANSWER: Edsger Wybe Dijkstra [“DIKE-struh”] <DM Computer Science> 2. A design from this city consists of a window with a main panel and two narrow double-hung windows on both sides. The DeWitt-Chestnut Building in this city introduced the framed tube structure created by an architect best known for working in this city. Though not in Connecticut, a pair of apartment buildings in this city have façades with grids of steel and glass curtain walls and are called the “Glass House” buildings. -
Number Symbolism in Old Norse Literature
Háskóli Íslands Hugvísindasvið Medieval Icelandic Studies Number Symbolism in Old Norse Literature A Brief Study Ritgerð til MA-prófs í íslenskum miðaldafræðum Li Tang Kt.: 270988-5049 Leiðbeinandi: Torfi H. Tulinius September 2015 Acknowledgements I would like to thank firstly my supervisor, Torfi H. Tulinius for his confidence and counsels which have greatly encouraged my writing of this paper. Because of this confidence, I have been able to explore a domain almost unstudied which attracts me the most. Thanks to his counsels (such as his advice on the “Blóð-Egill” Episode in Knýtlinga saga and the reading of important references), my work has been able to find its way through the different numbers. My thanks also go to Haraldur Bernharðsson whose courses on Old Icelandic have been helpful to the translations in this paper and have become an unforgettable memory for me. I‟m indebted to Moritz as well for our interesting discussion about the translation of some paragraphs, and to Capucine and Luis for their meticulous reading. Any fault, however, is my own. Abstract It is generally agreed that some numbers such as three and nine which appear frequently in the two Eddas hold special significances in Norse mythology. Furthermore, numbers appearing in sagas not only denote factual quantity, but also stand for specific symbolic meanings. This tradition of number symbolism could be traced to Pythagorean thought and to St. Augustine‟s writings. But the result in Old Norse literature is its own system influenced both by Nordic beliefs and Christianity. This double influence complicates the intertextuality in the light of which the symbolic meanings of numbers should be interpreted. -
Snorri Sturluson Qua Fulcrum
MIRATOR 12/2011 1 Snorri Sturluson qua Fulcrum: Perspectives on the Cultural Activity of Myth, Mythological Poetry and Narrative in Medieval Iceland* Frog The present paper seeks to complement discussions of the social impacts of Snorri Sturluson’s (1179–1241) mythography, concentrating on Edda and the discourse it generated in medieval Iceland. It sets out to build an overview of Snorri’s impact on the cultural activity1 of mythology in medieval Iceland through a complementary set of specific examples with no pretence of a comprehensive survey. These examples concentrate on sites of probable innovation in Snorri’s handling of mythological material as contrasted with broader evidence of the traditions to which they are related. Each example could be presented in a paper-length discussion, but the emphasis here is on the construction of an overview in order to develop a broader frame for further discussion. Although no one example is unequivocally demonstrable, the outline of the broader social pattern presented here is not dependent on the specific details of each case nor on any one case independently. Moreover, the frame of the overview affirms that individual discussions are relevant and warranted when surveying and extending existing research. Of course, the recognition of the social impacts of Edda on the cultural activity of mythology does not demonstrate that individual examples are necessarily responses to Edda, it nevertheless shows that these would be consistent with a pattern and trend rather than arbitrary. For this reason, in addition to late or statistically demonstrable examples which are * I would like to thank my two anonymous reviewers as well as Haukur Þorgeirsson for their valuable comments and suggestions in the preparation of this paper for publication. -
Nú Mun Hon Sökkvask
Lauren Hamm Kt. 290191-5219 MA in Old Nordic Religions: Thesis Autumn 2019 Nú mun hon sökkvask: The Connection between Prophetic Magic and the Feminine in Old Nordic Religion Lauren Hamm Lokaverkefni til MA–gráðu í Norrænni trú Leiðbeinandi: Terry Gunnell Útskriftarmánuður: Október 2019 Lauren Hamm Kt. 290191-5219 MA in Old Nordic Religions: Thesis Autumn 2019 Nú mun hon sökkvask The Connection between Prophetic Magic and the Feminine in Old Nordic Religion Lauren Hamm Lokaverkefni til MA–gráðu í Norrænni trú Leiðbeinandi: Terry Gunnell Félags - og mannvísindadeild Félagsvísindasvið Háskóla Íslands Október 2019 Lauren Hamm Kt. 290191-5219 MA in Old Nordic Religions: Thesis Autumn 2019 Nú mun hon sökkvask: The Connection between Prophetic Magic and the Feminine in Old Nordic Religion Ritgerð þessi er lokaverkefni til MA – gráðu í Norrænni trú og er óheimilt að afrita ritgerðina á nokkurn hátt nema með leyfi rétthafa. © Lauren Hamm, 2019 Prentun: Háskólaprent Reykjavík, Ísland, 2019 Lauren Hamm Kt. 290191-5219 MA in Old Nordic Religions: Thesis Autumn 2019 Acknowledgements This thesis would not have been possible if it were not for the endless kindness and patience of my thesis advisor, Dr. Terry Gunnell. I truly do not have words eloquent enough to iterate how very much he deeply cares about his work and the work of his students nor how much this meant to me personally. The year of waking up to 6:00 AM skype meetings every Tuesday with Terry provided a gentle reminder of my duties and passion for this topic as well as a sense of stability and purpose I badly needed during a tumultuous time in my life. -
Frigg, Astghik and the Goddess of the Crete Island
FRIGG, ASTGHIK AND THE GODDESS OF THE CRETE ISLAND Dedicated to the goddesses-mothers of Armenia and Sweden PhD in Art History Vahanyan V. G., Prof. Vahanyan G. A. Contents Intrоduction Relations between Frigg and the Goddess of the Crete Island Motifs in Norse Mythology Motifs in Armenian Mythology Artifacts Circle of the World Afterword References Introduction According to conventional opinion, the well-known memorial stone (Fig. 1a) from the Swedish island Gotland (400-600 AC) depicts goddess Frigg holding snakes. The unique statuettes of a goddess holding snakes are discovered on Crete (Fig. 1b), which date to c. 1600 BC1. The depiction of Frigg embodies a godmother with her legs wide open to give birth. In Norse mythology Frigg, Frige (Old Norse Frigg), Frea or Frija (Frija – “beloved”) is the wife of Odin. She is the mother of the three gods Baldr, Hodr and Hermodr. a b Fig. 1. (a) Memorial stone from the Swedish island Gotland (400-600 AC) depicting Frigg holding snakes. (b) Goddess holding snakes, Crete (c. 1600 BCE) The Swedish stone from Gotland island depicts the godmother, who is sitting atop the mountain before childbirth (Fig. 1а). Her hands are raised and she is holding two big snakes-dragons. The composition symbolizes the home/mountain of dragons (volcanic mountain). The composite motif of the depiction on the memorial stone, according to the 1 The findings belong to Crete-Minoan civilization and are found in the upper layers of the New Palace in Knossos. Two items are discovered (Archaeological Museum, Heraklion) authors, stems to the archetypes in the Old Armenian song “The birth of Vahagn” 2. -
FOLKTALE and PARABLE: the Unity O/Gautreks Saga
ELIZABETH ASHMAN ROWE FOLKTALE AND PARABLE: The Unity o/Gautreks Saga As SEVERAL SCHOLARS have pointed out, Gautreks saga has no single pro- tagonist, no chronological plot, and a haphazard assortment of characters and settings.' It is currently considered a single text, but the heterogenous nature of its parts is so great that it has led in the past to the perception of these parts 2 as constituting relatively independent/?œrf/7. Despite such „deviations" from the techniques of classical composition, I would like to propose that a single 3 theme does inform the saga. In it, the traditional characteristics of the suc- 1 E.g., Boyer (1979) and Kathryn Hume (1973). Joseph Harris (1975, 1986:210 ff.) has drawn attention to a number of texts which do not display „biographical unity", such as Qg- mundar þáttr dytts ok Gunnars helmings, and Gautreks saga can be added to the list. Although Gautreks saga is preserved in two versions, one shorter and earlier, and the other longer and later, it is with the longer one, believed written towards the end of the thirteenth century, that I am concemed. See Ranisch (1900:i—xviii). The shorter version, whose lack of detail makes the action seem illogical and unmotivated, also does not include the story of Starkaðr. Henceforth, references to Gautreks saga indicate the longer version unless specified otherwise. 2 So Schier (1970:76, 78, 89). Hermann Pálsson and Edwards (1985:10-3) give no hint in the introduction to their translation that Gautreks saga might be „separable", and the assumption of the unity of Gautreks saga is essential to the argument of Régis Boyer (1979). -
How Uniform Was the Old Norse Religion?
II. Old Norse Myth and Society HOW UNIFORM WAS THE OLD NORSE RELIGION? Stefan Brink ne often gets the impression from handbooks on Old Norse culture and religion that the pagan religion that was supposed to have been in Oexistence all over pre-Christian Scandinavia and Iceland was rather homogeneous. Due to the lack of written sources, it becomes difficult to say whether the ‘religion’ — or rather mythology, eschatology, and cult practice, which medieval sources refer to as forn siðr (‘ancient custom’) — changed over time. For obvious reasons, it is very difficult to identify a ‘pure’ Old Norse religion, uncorroded by Christianity since Scandinavia did not exist in a cultural vacuum.1 What we read in the handbooks is based almost entirely on Snorri Sturluson’s representation and interpretation in his Edda of the pre-Christian religion of Iceland, together with the ambiguous mythical and eschatological world we find represented in the Poetic Edda and in the filtered form Saxo Grammaticus presents in his Gesta Danorum. This stance is more or less presented without reflection in early scholarship, but the bias of the foundation is more readily acknowledged in more recent works.2 In the textual sources we find a considerable pantheon of gods and goddesses — Þórr, Óðinn, Freyr, Baldr, Loki, Njo3rðr, Týr, Heimdallr, Ullr, Bragi, Freyja, Frigg, Gefjon, Iðunn, et cetera — and euhemerized stories of how the gods acted and were characterized as individuals and as a collective. Since the sources are Old Icelandic (Saxo’s work appears to have been built on the same sources) one might assume that this religious world was purely Old 1 See the discussion in Gro Steinsland, Norrøn religion: Myter, riter, samfunn (Oslo: Pax, 2005). -
WAGNER and the VOLSUNGS None of Wagner’S Works Is More Closely Linked with Old Norse, and More Especially Old Icelandic, Culture
WAGNER AND THE VOLSUNGS None of Wagner’s works is more closely linked with Old Norse, and more especially Old Icelandic, culture. It would be carrying coals to Newcastle if I tried to go further into the significance of the incom- parable eddic poems. I will just mention that on my first visit to Iceland I was allowed to gaze on the actual manuscript, even to leaf through it . It is worth noting that Richard Wagner possessed in his library the same Icelandic–German dictionary that is still used today. His copy bears clear signs of use. This also bears witness to his search for the meaning and essence of the genuinely mythical, its very foundation. Wolfgang Wagner Introduction to the program of the production of the Ring in Reykjavik, 1994 Selma Gu›mundsdóttir, president of Richard-Wagner-Félagi› á Íslandi, pre- senting Wolfgang Wagner with a facsimile edition of the Codex Regius of the Poetic Edda on his eightieth birthday in Bayreuth, August 1999. Árni Björnsson Wagner and the Volsungs Icelandic Sources of Der Ring des Nibelungen Viking Society for Northern Research University College London 2003 © Árni Björnsson ISBN 978 0 903521 55 0 The cover illustration is of the eruption of Krafla, January 1981 (Photograph: Ómar Ragnarsson), and Wagner in 1871 (after an oil painting by Franz von Lenbach; cf. p. 51). Cover design by Augl‡singastofa Skaparans, Reykjavík. Printed by Short Run Press Limited, Exeter CONTENTS PREFACE ............................................................................................ 6 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................... 7 BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF RICHARD WAGNER ............................ 17 CHRONOLOGY ............................................................................... 64 DEVELOPMENT OF GERMAN NATIONAL CONSCIOUSNESS ..68 ICELANDIC STUDIES IN GERMANY ......................................... -
An Investigation of the Kennings in Ragnarsdrápa and Øxarflokkr
Universitet i Oslo, Fall 2013 Exploring the Emotive versus the Scholarly: an Investigation of the Kennings in Ragnarsdrápa and Øxarflokkr By Sydney A. Krell Guidance: Mikael Males Master Thesis in Nordic Viking and Medieval Culture Summary The poetry of Bragi inn Gamli and Einarr Skúlason has been thoroughly studied by many Old Norse scholars, but never directly in comparison to one another. This paper will investigate the nuances of each author’s verse, specifically regarding the way in which they utilize kennings, and draw conclusions based upon their similarities and differences. Both Bragi and Einarr composed within the same language, geographical area, and poetic tradition; they used similar kenning types that evolve from pagan imagery; and each describes a precious weapon given to them by a ruler whom they praise via a traditional skaldic long style poem. However, they could not be more different. This is due to the fact that Einarr’s kennings are meant to show his scholastic prowess, and Bragi’s are meant to affect his audience and move his plot based verse forward. The poetry of Bragi Boddason makes use of pagan mythology, ekphrasis, nýgerving, ofljóst and metaphors in the form of kennings, just as the poetry of Einarr Skúlason does. And yet the poems differ so greatly. Bragi’s kennings are meant to affect his audience on an emotional level, whereas Einarr’s are meant to impress on a scholarly level. Each author accomplishes magnificent prose, but with different expectations and outcomes achieved. 1 Acknowledgements I would like to express my gratitude to my advisor Mikael Males for his support, useful comments, encouragement and guidance throughout the process of writing my master thesis. -
Geologic Map and Stratigraphy of the Yggdrasil Quadrangle from the 2015 Canmars Msr Analogue Mission
47th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (2016) 2225.pdf GEOLOGIC MAP AND STRATIGRAPHY OF THE YGGDRASIL QUADRANGLE FROM THE 2015 CANMARS MSR ANALOGUE MISSION. P. A. Christoffersen1, J. D. Newman1, Z. R. Morse1, L. L. Torna- bene1, G. R. Osinski1,2, 1Department of Earth Sciences & Centre for Planetary Science and Exploration, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, N6A 5B7, Canada. [email protected] 2Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Western Ontario, London ON, Canada. Introduction: The 2015 CanMars MSR analogue grated with orbital datasets [6] to characterize the stra- mission was a Mars Sample Return Analogue Mission tigraphy and lithologies within the Yggdrasil quadran- carried out in partnership between the Canadian Space gle. The integration of these data sets allowed for the Agency (CSA), MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates creation of a finer scale bedrock geologic map, and a Ltd. (MDA), and the Centre for Planetary Science and stratigraphic column of the quadrangle. Exploration (CPSX) at the University of Western On- tario, as part of the NSERC CREATE project “Tech- nologies and Techniques for Earth and Space Explora- tion” [1]. The 2015 CanMars mission took place in an undisclosed location in Utah, USA over the course of ~2 weeks during November using the Mars Explora- tion Science Rover (MESR) rover, built by MDA. Mission goals included evaluating hardware and soft- ware capabilities along with exploration strategies, workflow, and logistics associated with a Mars Sample Return mission. The mission payload instrumentation used by the rover included: a hand-held XRF stand-in for Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) [2], portable XRD, a hand-held Raman spectrometer, the Three Dimensional Exploration Multispectral Mi- croscope Imager (TEMMI) [3, 4], a MastCam [5], a push tube solid sampler, and a portable field core drill as a stand-in for a rock core sampler. -
Crossing the Borders: Loki and the Decline of the Nation State
Chapter 11 Crossing the Borders: Loki and the Decline of the Nation State Katja Schulz The Old Norse mythic world is principally inhabited by two groups of anthro- pomorphic beings: the gods on the one hand, and the giants on the other. If one takes the mythological narratives as a whole, the lion’s share deals with interactions between these two focal groups of the Old Norse mythical world. These narratives, handed down to posterity in two Icelandic texts from the thirteenth century that go under the term Edda (the Poetic Edda and the Snor- ra Edda),1 tell about numerous peaceful interactions such as Ægir’s feast, when the sea giant brews ale and feasts with the gods.2 They describe how Óðinn visits Vafþrúðnir for a contest in mythological knowledge (in Vafþrúðnismál) and can tell of intermarriages between gods and giantesses, such as the one be- tween Niǫrðr and Skaði according to Gylfaginning, Chapter 23. In most cases, the gods are the ones that benefit from these interactions; they gain knowledge about primeval matters, genealogies and mythical facts, and they acquire intel- lectual gifts such as the mead of poetry or counsel, as when Odin drinks from the well of Mímir, or when they make a contract with a giant to build the for- tification of Ásgarðr. The giants often lose out; they are fraudulently defeated, never allowed to marry a goddess (which is a constant desire of male giants), and all in all the relationship between gods and giants is characterised by nega- tive reciprocity.3 Nevertheless, peaceful interactions between the two groups 1 References to Snorra Edda are given to the chapters following Anthony Faulkesʼ edition of Snorri Sturluson: Edda. -
Gylfaginning Codex Regius, F
Snorri Sturluson Edda Prologue and Gylfaginning Codex Regius, f. 7v (reduced) (see pp. 26/34–28/1) Snorri Sturluson Edda Prologue and Gylfaginning Edited by ANTHONY FAULKES SECOND EDITION VIKING SOCIETY FOR NORTHERN RESEARCH UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON 2005 © Anthony Faulkes 1982/2005 Second Edition 2005 First published by Oxford University Press in 1982 Reissued by Viking Society for Northern Research 1988, 2000 Reprinted 2011 ISBN 978 0 903521 64 2 Printed by Short Run Press Limited, Exeter Contents Codex Regius, fol. 7v ..........................................................Frontispiece Abbreviated references ....................................................................... vii Introduction ..........................................................................................xi Synopsis ..........................................................................................xi The author ..................................................................................... xii The title ....................................................................................... xvii The contents of Snorri’s Edda ................................................... xviii Models and sources ........................................................................ xx Manuscripts .............................................................................. xxviii Bibliography ...............................................................................xxxi Text .......................................................................................................