The Aesir 

Loki

A giant. He became a member of the Aesir when Odin made Loki his blood brother.
He is the god of mischief, a trickster, and very cunning. After causing the death of Balder, he was bound by the gods until the Ragnarok, at which time, he will be freed. There are quite a few sites dealing with Loki including a wonderful on-line essay by Johannes Persson, an article by Eric A. Anderson regarding Loki's offspring, and the Loki Cult Web Page.

Magni

A son of Thor, he will survive the Ragnarok. His name means "strong".

Mimir

A wise being. Possibly the son of Bolthorn. In some myths a god and in others a giant. He was sent as a hostage by the aesir to the vanir. The vanir became mad and cut his head off. Odin preserved his head so he could seek wisdom from it and placed it next to Mimir's well.

Modi

A son of Thor, he will survive the Ragnarok. His name means "courage".

Nanna

Moon goddess according to Bulfinch. Wife of Balder and mother of Forseti. She dies of heartache after Balder's death and is burned with him on his funeral boat -- along with his chopped up horse and an unfortunate dwarf who Thor kicked in at the last minute.

Nerthus

Possibly an older version of Njord (as the opposite sex) or his sister with whom he has Frey and Freya. She was a fertility goddess whose worship was centered in Denmark.

Njord

God of the wind and sea, father of Frey and Freya.He is a member of the vanir and his home is Noatun. His wife was the giantess Skadi. As compensation for the death of her father Thjatsi, the gods decided to let her pick a husband from among them -- one catch, she had to pick her new husband based only on the appearance of his feet. She picked Njord by mistake, assuming his feet belonged to Balder. Njord and Skadi could not agree on where to live. She didn't like his home, and he didn't like her's, so they split up. She was associated with skiing and hunting.

Odin

Leader of the Aesir. Odin had a myriad of names including Allfather, Ygg, Bolverk [evil doer], and Grimnir. He also had many functions including being a god of war, poetry, wisdom, and death. His halls were called Gladsheim Valaskjalf and Valhalla. Odin's high seat, Hlidskialf, was in Valaskjalf. It was from this throne that he could see over all the world. Valhalla is where he gathered his portion of the slain warriors, Einheriar, whom the valkyries had chosen.

The valkyries would serve mead which forever flowed from the udder of Odin's goat, Heidrun. They also served the warriors meat that came from the boar Saehrimnir, which the cook Andhrimnir would prepare for eating by boiling it in the cauldron Eldhrimnir. The boar magically came back to life before the next meal.

After eating, the warriors would go outside the hall and fight each other to the death. They were, of course, brought back to life before the next feast. All of this fighting was practice for when Odin would lead the Einheriar in the final battle, Ragnarok.

Odin had a spear named Grungir which never missed its mark and a bow which unleashed ten arrows with every pull. He also owned a magic ring called Draupnir which created nine of itself every night. It was this ring that Odin laid on his son Balder's funeral pyre and which Balder returned to Odin from the underworld. Another one of Odin's prized possessions was his wonderful steed named Sleipnir which had eight legs.

The horse was the offspring of Loki, who in mare form seduced a giant's horse named Svadilfari. Sleipnir could travel to the underworld and through the air. Odin also had two wolves, Geri and Freki, and two ravens, Hugin [thought] and Munin [memory]. He sent his ravens out every day to gather knowledge for him. Odin sacrificed himself for knowledge by hanging on the world tree, Yggdrasil, which means Ygg's horse.

Ygg is a name for Odin and horse is a metaphor for the gallows. He thereby learns the runes. Another sacrifice he made for wisdom was his eye. He gave it up in order to drink from the Well of Mimir which bestowed great knowledge. Because of this, he is typically depicted as having one eye. He is also depicted as wearing a cloak, being old, having a long grey beard, and wearing a wide brimmed hat down low over his face to conceal his one-eyed visage. Odin was destined to die at Ragnarok; Fenris-Wolf swallowed him.

Knowing his fate, he still chose to embrace it and do battle. Showing the true warrior ethic. He was the god of warriors and kings, not the common man. Many heroes genealogies start with Odin, including Sigurd. His name is not found in many place names and therefore it is believed that not many people worshipped him. He was thought to be a traitorous god, as shown in the sagas, who would strike down a warrior at his whim.

Ran

The wife of Aegir, she was the sea goddess of storms. She collects drowned people in her net.

Saga

Goddess who drinks with Odin in her hall Sokkvabekk. Her name means "seeress" and is connected with the norse word for history -- thus, some call her the goddess of history. Some consider her just an aspect of Frigg.

Sif

Goddess of crops and fertility, married to Thor. At one point, Loki stole her hair and had to replace it. He went to the dwarves and had them make her a new set of hair out of gold. An interesting thing to note is that short hair was a sign of a whore or a slave.

Sjofn (Vjofn)

Goddess concerned with causing men and women to think of love. It was her duty to stop fights between married couples.

Snotra

Wise and gentle goddess. Guerber calls her the goddess of virtue and master of all knowledge. She knew the value of self-discipline.

Syn

Goddess who was invoked by defendents at a trial. She was another attendant of Frigg and guarded the door of Frigg's palace.

Thor

The son of Odin and a member of the Aesir, he was the god of thunder and the main enemy of the giants. He would smash their heads with his mighty hammer Mjollnir. To wield this awesome weapon he needed iron gloves and a belt of strength. Mjollnir would return to Thor's hand after being thrown and was symbolic of lightning. Thor would ride around middle-earth in his wagon drawn by two goats,

His abode was Thruthheim [Land of Strength] and his hall, Bilskinir. His wife was Sif. He was foremost of the gods to the common man, who would call on him to ensure fertility, and widely worshiped. Hammer shaped amulets, a symbol of Thor because it was his weapon, were worn about the neck well into the christianization of Scandinavia. There are molds from that time which contain both cross and hammer shapes, side by side. His name occurs in numerous place names, and it was his statue which was central in the great temple at Uppsala. Thursday is named for him and he was associated by the Romans with Jupiter. Donar was an early version of Thor among the early Germans. The anglo-saxons worshiped a thunder god named hunor.

Thrud

Daughter of Thor. The dwarf Alvis wanted to marry her but Thor tricked him into
being above ground when the sun came up, turning him into stone.

Tyr

God of war. He was the only god brave enough to put his hand in the Fenris- wolf's mouth so the gods could bind it. The wolf bit off his right hand. There is much debate about his lefthandedness. In the norse culture the right hand was given for a pledge, which could be why the right hand was placed in the wolf's mouth. It has also been noted, however, that the offering of the right hand is to show that it is free of weapons. A left handed person was sometimes considered evil because he could use a weapon with his left hand even though he shook with his right hand. Tuesday is named for Tyr who was known as Tiw, or Tiu, by the Anglo-Saxons.

Ull

God of archery and the hunt, according to some he was a god of skiers and the snowshoe. His weapon was a longbow made out of Yew and he lived in Ydal [Yew Dales]. He was called upon for help in duels. He was the son (or step-son) of Thor and Sif (or Ovandrill, depending on the source).His name, which means glorious, is a part of many place names, therefore, he is considered to be an ancient god who was widely worshipped. It is believed that at one time he was one of the highest gods.

Vali

In some sources, the twin brother of Vidar. In other sources, he is the youngest of Odin's sons. His mother is the giantess Rind and he was born for the express purpose of avenging Balder's death since the gods could not kill one of their own. When he was only one night old, he killed Hod. He will be one of the seven Aesir to survive the ragnarok.

Var

Goddess who punishes those who do not keep their marriage vows. Probably the
same as Vor, and just a part of Frigg.

Ve

Son of Bor and Bestla, brother of Vili and Odin. He is identified with Lodur by some. Killed the giant Ymir and created the world out of its carcass along with his brothers. He gave the first humans feeling, appearance, and speech. His name means "Holiness".

Vidar

He was a son of Odin and Grid (a giantess), and had a twin brother named Vali. He dwelled in Vidi. He was one of the strongest of the gods and can be considered a god of vengeance. In the ragnarok he will avenge his father by killing Fenris. He is one of the Aesir who will survive the final battle.

Vili

Son of Bor and Bestla, brother of Odin and Ve. Along with Odin and Ve, he killed the giant Ymir and created the cosmos out of Ymir's carcass. He made the first man and woman, along with Odin and Ve. He gave the humans thought and motion. He is identified with Hoenir by some and only as a part of Odin by others. His name
means "Will".

Vor

A goddess whose name means "vow". Nothing can be hidden from her because she is so wise. She is considered by some to be a goddess of marriage and contracts. She is probably an aspect of Frigg.

© 1996, Nicole Cherry