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Heimdall

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This article is about the Old Norse god. For other uses, seeHeimdall (disambiguation).
Heimdallr brings forth the gift of the gods to humanity(1907) by Nils Asplund

InNorse mythology,Heimdall(fromOld NorseHeimdallr;modernIcelandicHeimdallur) is agod.He is the son ofOdinand nine mothers. Heimdall keeps watch for invaders and the onset ofRagnarökfrom his dwellingHiminbjörg,where the burning rainbow bridgeBifröstmeets the sky. He is attested as possessing foreknowledge and keen senses, particularly eyesight and hearing. The god and his possessions are described in enigmatic manners. For example, Heimdall is golden-toothed, "the head is called his sword," and he is "the whitest of the gods."

Heimdall possesses the resounding hornGjallarhornand the golden-maned horseGulltoppr,along with a store ofmeadat his dwelling. He is the son ofNine Mothers,and he is said to be the originator ofsocial classesamong humanity. Other notable stories include the recovery of Freyja's treasured possessionBrísingamenwhile doing battle in the shape of asealwithLoki.The antagonistic relationship between Heimdall and Loki is notable, as they are foretold to kill one another during the events of Ragnarök. Heimdallr is also known asRig,Hallinskiði,Gullintanni,andVindlérorVindhlér.

Heimdall is attested in thePoetic Edda,compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material; in theProse EddaandHeimskringla,both written in the 13th century; in the poetry ofskalds;and likely in arunic inscriptionon theSaltfleetby spindle-whorlfound inEngland.Two lines of an otherwise lost poem about the god,Heimdalargaldr,survive. Due to the enigmatic nature of these attestations, scholars have produced various theories about the nature of the god, including his relation tosheep,borders, and waves.

Names and etymology

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The etymology of the name is obscure, but 'the one who illuminates the world' has been proposed.Heimdallrmay be connected toMardöll,one ofFreyja's names.[1]Heimdallrand its variants are usuallyanglicizedasHeimdall(/ˈheɪmdɑːl/;[2]with the nominative-rdropped).

Heimdall is attested as having three other names;Hallinskiði,Gullintanni,andVindlérorVindhlér.The nameHallinskiðiis obscure, but has resulted in a series of attempts at deciphering it.Gullintanniliterally means 'the one with the golden teeth'.Vindlér(orVindhlér) translates as either 'the one protecting against the wind' or 'wind-sea'. All three have resulted in numerous theories about the god.[3]

Attestations

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Saltfleetby spindle-whorl inscription

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TheSaltfleetby spindle whorl,fromLincolnshirein England, possibly recording the name of Heimdall.

Heimdallr is likely mentioned on theSaltfleetby spindle-whorl,aleadspindle whorlbearing anOld NorseYounger Fuþarkinscription that was discovered inSaltfleetbyin easternEnglandin 2010. The spindle-whorl itself is dated from the 10th to 12th centuries CE, with the writing possibly being added significantly after the object was made. Whilst there are difficulties in interpreting the inscription, it likely records a charm asking for help fromOdin,Heimdallr andÞalfa,a figure whose name closely resembles that ofÞjálfi,one ofThor's servants. The religion of the writer is debated, with the invoking of Germanic gods not procluding adherence to Christianity, but also possibly attesting to the continuing ofOld Nordic religionin some English communities significantly after theestablishment of Christianity in the region.[4][5]

Poetic Edda

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In thePoetic Edda,Heimdall is attested in six poems;Völuspá,Grímnismál,Lokasenna,Þrymskviða,Rígsþula,andHrafnagaldr Óðins.

Heimdall is mentioned three times inVöluspá.In the first stanza of the poem, the undeadvölvareciting the poem calls out for listeners to be silent and refers to the Norse god:

Benjamin Thorpetranslation:

For silence I pray all sacred children,
great and small, sons of Heimdall.
they will that I Valfather's deeds recount,
men's ancient saws, those that I best remember.[6]

Henry Adams Bellowstranslation:

Hearing I ask from the holy races,
From Heimdall's sons, both high and low;
Thou wilt,Valfather,that well I relate.
Old tales I remember of men long ago.[7]

This stanza has led to various scholarly interpretations. The "holy races" have been considered variously as either humanity or the gods. The notion of humanity as "Heimdall's sons" is otherwise unattested and has also resulted in various interpretations. Some scholars have pointed to the prose introduction to the poemRígsþula,where Heimdall is said to have once gone about people, slept between couples, and so doled out classes among them (seeRígsthulasection below).[8]

Heimdall blows Gjallarhorn in an 1895 illustration byLorenz Frølich.

Later inVöluspá,the völva foresees the events ofRagnarökand the role in which Heimdall andGjallarhornwill play at its onset; Heimdall will raise his horn and blow loudly. Due to manuscript differences, translations of the stanza vary:

Benjamin Thorpe translation:

Mim's sons dance,
but thecentral treetakes fire,
at the resounding Giallar-horn.
Loud blows Heimdall,
his horn is raised; Odin speaks with Mim's head.[9]

Henry Adams Bellows translation:

Fast move the sons of Mim and fate
Is heard in the note of the Gjallarhorn;
Loud blows Heimdall, the horn is aloft,
In fear quake all who onHel-roads are.[10]

Regarding this stanza, scholarAndy Orchardcomments that the nameGjallarhornmay here mean "horn of the riverGjöll"as" Gjöll is the name of one of the rivers of the Underworld, whence much wisdom is held to derive ", but notes that in the poemGrímnismálHeimdall is said to drink finemeadin his heavenly homeHiminbjörg.[11]

Earlier in the same poem, the völva mentions a scenario involving the hearing or horn (depending on translation of the Old Norse nounhljóð—translations bolded below for the purpose of illustration) of the god Heimdall:

Benjamin Thorpe translation:
She knows thatHeimdall's hornis hidden
under theheaven-bright holy tree.
A river she sees flow, with foamy fall,
fromValfather's pledge.
Understand ye yet, or what?[12]
Henry Adams Bellows translation:
I know of thehorn of Heimdall,hidden
Under the high-reaching holy tree;
On it there pours from Valfather's pledge
A mighty stream: would you know yet more?[13]
Carolyne Larrington translation:
She knows thatHeimdall's hearingis hidden
under the radiant, sacred tree;
she sees, pouring down, the muddy torrent
from the wager of Father of the Slain; do you
understand yet, or what more?[14]

Scholar Paul Schach comments that the stanzas in this section ofVöluspáare "all very mysterious and obscure, as it was perhaps meant to be". Schach details that "Heimdallar hljóðhas aroused much speculation. Snorri [in theProse Edda] seems to have confused this word withgjallarhorn,but there is otherwise no attestation of the use ofhljóðin the sense of 'horn' in Icelandic. Various scholars have read this as "hearing" rather than "horn".[15]

ScholarCarolyne Larringtoncomments that if "hearing" rather than "horn" is understood to appear in this stanza, the stanza indicates that Heimdall, like Odin, has left a body part in the well; his ear. Larrington says that "Odin exchanged one of his eyes for wisdom from Mimir, guardian of the well, while Heimdall seems to have forfeited his ear."[16]

In the poemGrímnismál,Odin (disguised asGrímnir), tortured, starved and thirsty, tells the youngAgnarof a number of mythological locations. The eighth location he mentions is Himinbjörg, where he says that Heimdall drinks finemead:

Benjamin Thorpe translation:

Himinbiörg is the eighth, where Heimdall,
it is said, rules o'er the holy fanes:
there the gods' watchman, in his tranquil home,
drinks joyful the good mead.[17]

Henry Adams Bellows translation:

Himingbjorg is the eighth, and Heimdall there
O'er men holds sway, it is said;
In his well-built house does the warder of heaven
The good mead gladly drink.[18]

Regarding the above stanza,Henry Adams Bellowscomments that "in this stanza the two functions of Heimdall—as father of humanity [... ] and as warder of the gods—seem both to be mentioned, but the second line in the manuscripts is apparently in bad shape, and in the editions it is more or less conjecture".[18]

In the poemLokasenna,Lokiflytswith various gods who have met together to feast. At one point during the exchanges, the god Heimdall says that Loki is drunk and witless, and asks Loki why he won't stop speaking. Loki tells Heimdall to be silent, that he wasfateda "hateful life", that Heimdall must always have a muddy back, and that he must serve as watchman of the gods. The goddessSkaðiinterjects and the flyting continues in turn.[19]

The poemÞrymskviðatells of Thor's loss of his hammer,Mjöllnir,to thejötnarand quest to get it back. At one point in the tale, the gods gather at thethingand debate how to get Thor's hammer back from the jötnar, who demand the beautiful goddessFreyjain return for it. Heimdall advises that they simply dress Thor up as Freyja, during which he is described ashvítastr ása(translations of the phrase vary below) and is said to haveforesightlike theVanir,a group of gods:

Benjamin Thorpe translation:

Then said Heimdall, ofÆsirbrightest—
he well foresaw, like other Vanir—
Let us clothe Thor with bridal raiment,
let him have the famedBrîsinga necklace.
"Let by his side keys jingle,
and woman's weeds fall around his knees,
but on his breast place precious stones,
and a neat coif set on his head. "[20]

Henry Adams Bellows translation:

Then Heimdall spake, whitest of the gods,
Like the Wanes he knew the future well:
"Bind we on Thor the bridal veil,
Let him bear the mighty Brisings' necklace;
"Keys around him let there rattle,
And down to his knees hang woman's dress;
With gems full broad upon his breast,
And a pretty cap to crown his head. "[21]

Jeramy Doddstranslation:

The most glittering of gods, Heimdall, who,
like the Vanir, is gifted with the gift of foresight,
said: 'Let's strap a bridal veil over Thor's face
and let him don the Brising necklace.[22]
'Let the wedlock keys jingle around his waist,
and dress him in a woman's dress to his knees
and loop giant gems across his chest
and top him off with a stylish headdress.'[22]

Regarding Heimdall's status ashvítastr ása(variously translated above as "brightest" (Thorpe), "whitest" (Bellows), and "most glittering" (Dodds)) and the comparison to the Vanir, scholarJohn Lindowcomments that there are no other indications of Heimdall being considered among the Vanir (on Heimdall's status as "hvítastr ása",see" scholarly reception "below).[23]

Rig in Great-grandfather's Cottage(1908) byW. G. Collingwood

The introductory prose to the poemRígsþulasays that "people say in the old stories" that Heimdall, described as a god among theÆsir,once fared on a journey. Heimdall wandered along a seashore, and referred to himself asRígr.In the poem, Rígr, who is described as a wise and powerful god, walks in the middle of roads on his way to steads, where he meets a variety of couples and dines with them, giving them advice and spending three nights at a time between them in their bed. The wives of the couples become pregnant, and from them come the various classes of humanity.[24]

Eventually a warrior home produces a promising boy, and as the boy grows older, Rígr comes out of a thicket, teaches the boyrunes,gives him a name, and proclaims him to be his son. Rígr tells him to strike out and get land for himself. The boy does so, and so becomes a great war leader with many estates. He marries a beautiful woman and the two have many children and are happy. One of the children eventually becomes so skilled that he is able to share in runic knowledge with Heimdall, and so earns the title ofRígrhimself. The poem breaks off without further mention of the god.[24]

Prose Edda

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The cockGullinkambiatop his head and the burning rainbow bridgeBifröstin the background, Heimdall blows into Gjallarhorn while holding a sword with a man's face on it (a reference to the "man's head"kenning). Illustration (1907) by J. T. Lundbye.

In theProse Edda,Heimdall is mentioned in the booksGylfaginning,Skáldskaparmál,andHáttatal.InGylfaginning,the enthroned figure ofHightells the disguised mythical kingGangleriof various gods, and, in chapter 25, mentions Heimdall. High says that Heimdall is known as "the whiteAs",is" great and holy ", and thatnine maidens,all sisters, gave birth to him. Heimdall is calledHallinskiðiandGullintanni,and he has gold teeth. High continues that Heimdall lives in "a place" calledHiminbjörgand that it is nearBifröst.Heimdall is the watchman of the gods, and he sits on the edge of heaven to guard the Bifröst bridge from the bergjötnar.Heimdall requires less sleep than a bird, can see at night just as well as if it were day, and for over a hundred leagues. Heimdall's hearing is also quite keen; he can hear grass as it grows on the earth, wool as it grows on sheep, and anything louder. Heimdall possesses a trumpet, Gjallarhorn, that, when blown, can be heard inall worlds,and "theheadis referred to asHeimdall's sword".High then quotes the above-mentionedGrímnismálstanza about Himinbjörg and provides two lines from the otherwise lost poem about Heimdall,Heimdalargaldr,in which he proclaims himself to be the son ofNine Mothers.[25]

In chapter 49, High tells of the godBaldr's funeral procession. Various deities are mentioned as having attended, including Heimdall, who there rode his horse Gulltopr.[26]

In chapter 51, High foretells the events of Ragnarök. After the enemies of the gods will gather at the plainVígríðr,Heimdall will stand and mightily blow into Gjallarhorn. The gods will awake and assemble together at thething.At the end of the battle between various gods and their enemies, Heimdall will face Loki and they will kill one another. After, the world will be engulfed in flames. High then quotes the above-mentioned stanza regarding Heimdall raising his horn inVöluspá.[27]

At the beginning ofSkáldskaparmál,Heimdall is mentioned as having attended a banquet inAsgardwith various other deities.[28]Later in the book,Húsdrápa,a poem by 10th centuryskaldÚlfr Uggason,is cited, during which Heimdall is described as having ridden to Baldr's funeral pyre.[29]

In chapter 8, means of referring to Heimdall are provided; "son of nine mothers", "guardian of the gods", "the white As" (seePoetic Eddadiscussion regardinghvítastr ásaabove), "Loki's enemy", and "recoverer ofFreyja's necklace".The section adds that the poemHeimdalargaldris about him, and that, since the poem, "the head has been called Heimdall's doom: man's doom is an expression for sword". Hiemdallr is the owner ofGulltoppr,is also known as Vindhlér, and is ason of Odin.Heimdall visitsVágaskerandSingasteinnand there vied with Loki forBrísingamen.According to the chapter, the skald Úlfr Uggason composed a large section of hisHúsdrápaabout these events and thatHúsdrápasays that the two were in the shape of seals. A few chapters later, ways of referring to Loki are provided, including "wrangler with Heimdall andSkadi",and section of Úlfr Uggason'sHúsdrápais then provided in reference:

Renowned defender [Heimdall] of the powers' way [Bifrost], kind of counsel, competes withFarbauti's terribly sly son at Singastein. Son of eight mothers plus one, might of mood, is first to get hold of the beautiful sea-kidney [jewel, Brisingamen]. I announce it in strands of praise.

The chapter points out that in the aboveHúsdrápasection Heimdall is said to be the son of nine mothers.[30]

Heimdall is mentioned once inHáttatal.There, in a composition bySnorri Sturluson,a sword is referred to as "Vindhlér's helmet-filler", meaning "Heimdall's head".[31]

Heimskringla

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InYnglinga sagacompiled inHeimskringla,Snorri presents aeuhemerizedorigin of the Norse gods and rulers descending from them. In chapter 5, Snorri asserts that theÆsirsettled in what is now Sweden and built various temples. Snorri writes that Odin settled inLake Logrin"at a place which formerly was calledSigtúnir.There he erected a large temple and madesacrificesaccording to the custom of the Æsir. He took possession of the land as far as he had called it Sigtúnir. He gave dwelling places to the temple priests. "Snorri adds that, after this,Njörðrdwelt inNóatún,Freyrdwelt inUppsala,Heimdall at Himinbjörg,ThoratÞrúðvangr,BaldratBreiðablikand that to everyone Odin gave fine estates.[32]

Visual depictions

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TheGosforth Crosspanel often held to depict Heimdall with Gjallarhorn

A figure holding a large horn to his lips and clasping a sword on his hip appears on a stone cross from theIsle of Man.Some scholars have theorized that this figure is a depiction of Heimdall with Gjallarhorn.[33]

A 9th or 10th centuryGosforth CrossinCumbria,Englanddepicts a figure holding a horn and a sword standing defiantly before two open-mouthed beasts. This figure has been often theorized as depicting Heimdall with Gjallarhorn.[34]

Scholarly reception

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Heimdall's attestations have proven troublesome and enigmatic to interpret for scholars.[35]A variety of sources describe the god as born from Nine Mothers, a puzzling description (for more in-depth discussion, seeNine Mothers of Heimdallr). Various scholars have interpreted this as a reference to theNine Daughters of Ægir and Rán,personifications of waves. This would therefore mean Heimdall is born from the waves, an example of a deity born from the sea.[36]

In the textual corpus, Heimdall is frequently described as maintaining a particular association with boundaries, borders, and liminal spaces, both spatial and temporal. For example,Gylfaginningdescribes the god as guarding the border of the land of the gods, Heimdall meets humankind at a coast, and, if accepted as describing Heimdall,Völuspá hin skammadescribes him as born 'at the edge of the world' in 'days of yore' by the Nine Daughters of Ægir and Rán, and it is Heimdall's horn that signals the transition to the events ofRagnarök.[37]

Additionally, Heimdall has a particular association with malesheep,rams. A form of the deity's name,Heimdali,occurs twice as a name for 'ram' inSkáldskaparmál,as does Heimdall's nameHallinskíði.Heimdall's unusual physical description has also been seen by various scholars as fitting this association: As mentioned above, Heimdall is described as gold-toothed (by way of his nameGullintanni), as having the ability to hear grass grow and the growth of wool on sheep, and as owning a sword called 'head' (rams have horns on their heads). This may mean that Heimdall was associated with the ram perhaps as a sacred and/or sacrificial animal or that the ancient Scandinavians may have conceived of him as having been a ram in appearance.[38]

All of these topics—Heimdall's birth, his association with borders and boundaries, and his connection to sheep—have led to significant discussion among scholars. For example, influentialphilologistandfolkloristGeorges Dumézil,comparingmotifsand clusters of motifs in western Europe, proposes the following explanation for Heimdall's birth and association with rams (italics are Dumézil's own):

Many folklores compare waves which, under a strong wind, are topped with white foam... to different animals, especially to horses or mares, to cows or bulls, to dogs or sheep. We say in France, "moutons, moutonner, moutannant" (white sheep, to break into white sheep, breaking into white sheep) and the English "white horses." The modern Welsh, like the Irish, speak of "white mares (cesyg) "but the old tradition linked to the name of Gwenhidwy, as in French, Basque, and other folklores, turned these waves into sheep. Conversely, in many countries the sailors or the coast dwellers attribute to certain wave sequences particular qualities or forces, sometimes, even,... a supernatural power: it happens that the third, or the ninth, or the tenth wave is the biggest, or the most dangerous, or the noisiest or the most powerful. But what I have found nowhere else but in the Welsh tradition concerning Gwenhidwy is a combination of these two beliefs, the final result of which isto make the ninth wave the ram of the simple ewes that are the eight preceding waves.

This concept furnishes a satisfactory explanation of that section of Heimdall's dossier which we are considering: it allows us to combine his birth—nine mothers who are waves, at the confines of the earth—and his attributes of a ram. We understand that whatever his mythical value and functions were,the scene of his birth made him, in the sea's white frothing, the ram produced by the ninth wave.[39]

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As with many aspects ofNorse mythology,Heimdall has appeared in many modern works.Heimdallappears as a character inMarvel Comicsand is portrayed in thefilm versionsby English actorIdris Elba.[40]

Heimdall is the namesake ofa crateronCallisto,a moon ofJupiter.[41]

Heimdall is the protagonist ofan eponymous video gamereleased in 1991 and its 1994 sequel,Heimdall 2.In the 2002Ensemble StudiosgameAge of Mythology,Heimdall is one of 12 gods the Norse can choose to worship.[42][43]Heimdallr is one of the playable gods in themultiplayer online battle arenagameSmite.[44]Heimdall also appears as an antagonist in the 2022action-adventurevideo gameGod of War Ragnarökand is played by the American actorScott Porter.

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^Simek (2007:135 and 202).
  2. ^"Heimdall".Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.
  3. ^Simek (2007:122, 128, and 363).
  4. ^Hines 2017.
  5. ^Jesch 2020.
  6. ^Thorpe (1866:3).
  7. ^Bellows (1923:3).
  8. ^See discussion at Thorpe (1866:3), Bellows (1923:3), and Larrington (1999:264).
  9. ^Thorpe (1866:9).
  10. ^Bellows (1923:20). See connected footnote for information on manuscript and editing variations.
  11. ^Orchard (1997:57).
  12. ^Thorpe (1866:7).
  13. ^Bellows (1932:12).
  14. ^Larrington (1999:7).
  15. ^Schach (1985:93).
  16. ^Larrington (1999:265).
  17. ^Thorpe (1866:21).
  18. ^abBellows (1923:90).
  19. ^Larrington (1999:92).
  20. ^Thorpe (1866:64).
  21. ^Bellows (1923:178).
  22. ^abDodds (2014:110).
  23. ^Lindow (2002:170).
  24. ^abLarrington (1999:246—252).
  25. ^Faulkes (1995:25-26).
  26. ^Faulkes (1995:50). See Faulkes (1995:68) forÚlfr Uggason'sHúsdrápahandling this.
  27. ^Faulkes (1995:54).
  28. ^Faulkes (1995:59).
  29. ^Faulkes (1995:68).
  30. ^Faulkes (1995:75—77).
  31. ^Faulkes (1995:171).
  32. ^Hollander (2007:10).
  33. ^Lindow (2002:168).
  34. ^Bailey (1996:86—90).
  35. ^For example, scholarGeorges Dumézilsummarizes the difficulties as follows:

    The god Heimdall poses one of the most difficult problems in Scandinavian mythography. As all who have dealt with him have emphasized, this is primarily because of a very fragmentary documentation; but even more because the few traits that have been saved from oblivion diverge in too many directions to be easily "thought of together," or to be grouped as members of a unitary structure. (Dumézil 1973:126)
  36. ^See for example Lindow (2002: 169) and Simek (2007: 136).
  37. ^For brief discussion of this topic, see Lindow (2002: 170).
  38. ^For discussion on this, see for example Lindow (2002: 171), Simek (2007: 136), and Much (1930).
  39. ^Dumézil (1973:135).
  40. ^"Idris Elba joins Marvel Studios' 'Thor'".The Hollywood Reporter.2009-11-20.
  41. ^"Planetary Names: Crater, craters: Heimdall on Callisto".planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov.Retrieved2020-06-01.
  42. ^"The Minor Gods: Norse - Age of Mythology Wiki Guide - IGN".27 March 2012.
  43. ^"Age of Mythology".
  44. ^"Archived copy".Archived fromthe originalon 2021-07-31.Retrieved2021-08-02.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

References

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