Myth is by its very nature a fragile thing, viewed through a murky glass of time and poor record-keeping, subject to much distortion and various regional interpretations. Neither of the authors claim to be experts in the field and the definitions and explanations in this appendix undoubtably contain much that reflects their own biases. This is a novel, not a research tome, and we often had to choose one of several versions of events (as well as spellings of names). However, for the purposes of following this story it may be useful. Or funny. Or even accidentally informative.
Ás: the singular of Æsir, although it may occasionally be tempting to think of it as another way of writing "donkey."
Asgard: The great walled home of the Æsir. The original gated community where the upper-crust have their homes. Complete with backyard mountain and all other modern tenth-century conveniences for the discerning Ás.
Ægir: A sea giant. Sometimes indicated as the husband of Ran, at whose home the flyting of Loki (the Lokasenna) is supposed to have taken place.
Æsir: Norse Gods—strictly speaking, the ones that live in Asgard, and not the Vanir . . . Except that some of the Vanir came to be hostages, and live in Asgard and intermarry with Ás, or with giants. (Njörd married the giantess Skadi and Frey married the giantess Gerd.) It's a little difficult for a mere biologist to tell the difference between an Ás and a giant as they appear to have sprung from the same origins, and cheerfully interbreed with each other and with Vanir. However, as the Æsir are associated with war, death, and power—unlike the Vanir, associated with growth and fertility—if they say they're different, you'd better believe them, at least in public.
Andvari: The shape-changing dwarf whose hoard of gold Odin, Hœnir, and Loki take as a ransom for his freedom. The gods need this to pay a blood price for Loki's accidental killing of another shape-changing dwarf, Otr. Andvari attempts to hold back one ring, and when it is spotted, tries to persuade them to let him keep it. When they refuse, he curses the ring, thereby giving rise to the long and horrible and doom-filled Völsung saga, which Wagner used as the basis for the Ring of the Nibelung operas.
Angbroda: "Harm-bidder." A giantess upon whom Loki is supposed to have fathered Fenrir the wolf. Later, in his thirteenth-century version, Snorri Sturluson also gave her credit for being the mother of Hel and Jörmungand. Personally, we suspect Jörmy was adopted.
Aurvangar: "Wet gravel plains" where the dwarves live. The guys who actually made all the weapons and treasures of the gods get to live on the wet gravel plains. Some things are eternally true.
Baldr: The beautiful god with white brow and fair hair. A child of Odin and Frigg, he was troubled with dreams of his own death. So Mummy extracted solemn promises from fire, water, metal, stones, plants, beasts, birds etc. etc. not to harm Baldr. She just happened to miss out mistletoe. Loki is supposed to have found this out (in disguise, naturally) and then talked blind Hod (Baldr's brother) into flinging a dart of mistletoe, as the gods were having a little game of throwing things at Baldr, to see how they wouldn't hurt him. Baldr drops dead and is duly consigned to Nifelheim. At Hermód's entreaty Hel agrees to relent and let Baldr go if all the things in world (fire, water, stones etc.) wept for Baldr. A giantess called Thökk (supposedly Loki in disguise) refused, so Baldr stayed in Hel's hall. It is foretold that after Ragnarok, Baldr will return to rule after the death of Odin.
Bilskríner: "Lightning crack." The home of the God Thor, with 540 doors. Very drafty, probably.
Disir: Supernatural female figures. Not ghosts, although sometimes referred to as "dead women."
Dragon: Dragons are one of the most common motifs in Norse myth, and are of course widely portrayed, not least as the sculpted prows on Viking longships. It's a pity they couldn't have had a big dragon artists and sculptors conference and agreed what they were supposed to look like. Flying dragons are mentioned in some sagas, whereas others appear to be nothing more than mighty serpents. The two are so often conflated that we decided on this being a case of sexual dimorphism.
Einherjar: "Lone fighter." The dead who are chosen by the Valkyries on the field of battle to come and occupy the halls of Odin. Despite the fact that they are not actually "lone," the theory that it was a misspelling and that these were "loan" fighters has been almost entirely discredited. Half of the dead warriors go to Odin's halls where they spend their day in fighting and their night in feasting on the ever-renewed boar-flesh and abundant mead, and sport with the Valkyries. Their livers are praying for Ragnarok.
Élivágar: The river that separates Jötunheim from Midgard.
Fenrir: The translation "fen dweller" is a rather obscure name for the wolf that will devour Odin and possibly the sun and the moon. Fathered by Loki on the giantess Angbroda, and therefore the brother of Hel and the Midgard-serpent, the growing Fenrir frightened the Æsir so badly that they tricked him into being bound by successive chains—which he snapped in turn, until he was bound by the chain Gleipnir. The giant wolf is supposed to wait, bound, with an upright sword holding his jaws open until Ragnarok. This is a popular and foolish choice of name for miniature daschunds, as it makes them even more aggressive than they would be anyway.
Fimbulwinter: "Terrible winter." A three-year winter, which precedes Ragnarok.
Flyting: A contest of abuse, usually focused on charming pointed comments about the sexual habits and courage of the protagonists. Usually in verse. The Lokasenna in which Loki abuses each of the Æsir in turn is the prime example.
Freki: One of Odin's two wolves. Not in the same league as Fenrir.
Frey: "Lord" Chief of the Vanir, a fertility god, portrayed with a big beard and an even bigger phallus. Sitting on Odin's lookout point, he spotted the beautiful giantess Gerd, and fell in love with her. He sent his servant Skírnir to press his suit, but had to bribe him to do so, with his magical sword. Frey drives about in a chariot drawn by the golden boar Gullinborsti.
Freyja: The Vanir goddess of love and sex. Famed for having acquired her most precious possession, the Brísingamen, in payment for her services to four dwarves. It was Loki who led to the betrayal of this escapade, with his usual shape-changing tricks. She has a chariot drawn by cats and a falcon cloak which enables her to assume that shape and fly, which she has on occasion lent to Loki.
Gambanteinn: A wand, whose touch causes certain conditions—wandering madness for example.
Garm: The mighty dog which guards the Nágrind (corpse gate), the entry to Hel's kingdom.
Ginnungagap: "Beguiling void."
Gjallarhorn: "Yelling horn." The great horn with which the god Heimdall will call all of the Æsir's allies to war at Ragnarok. Also indicated in the eddic poem "Grímnismál" as Heimdall's drinking horn.
Góin: One of the snakes who creep around Yggdrasil.
Gram: "Wrath." The sword of the hero Sigurd, supposedly so strong it could split an anvil, yet so sharp it could split a hank of wool drifting against the blade in the river current. Supposedly forged with all the skill and magic that the dwarf Reginn could impart, from the remains of Sigurd's father's legendary sword.
Grid: "Greed." A friendly giantess, who got really friendly with Odin, and also lent Thor a belt of strength, iron gauntlets and "Grid's rod," a staff of iron that had various magical properties.
Grotti: The magical handmill (powered by two giantesses) which ground out whatever you ordered it to.
Gungnir: "Swaying one." Odin's magical spear, supposed never to miss its target, which was made for him by the dwarves—the sons of Ivaldi—and given as a gift to the Æsir when Loki went to see them for new hair for Thor's wife Sif.
Heimdall: The gate-guard of Asgard, Heimdall has gold teeth and a historical feud with Loki. He is supposed to have immensely keen vision, and a horn that can be heard across the nine worlds. In the Norse myth way of balancing things, he is Loki's counterpart, and the two are supposed to kill each other at Ragnarok. Heimdall is given the credit for setting up the order of men, determining (by birth) if they should be noblemen, farmers, or slaves. It seemed a good reason to make him a villain.
Hel: The name applies to both the kingdom and the queen-goddess of the dead. Hel is supposed to be a daughter of Loki and Angbroda. She is half black and half white, and gets all the dead who do not die in combat.
Helblindi: "Helblind." One of the many names for Odin. Also listed in one source as a brother of Loki.
Hœnir: The one-time companion of Odin, who is supposed to have actually been the one to give life to the first humans, Ask and Embla, who were tree-trunks before that. One of the two hostages sent by the Æsir to dwell among the Vanir. His fellow hostage Mirmir got his head chopped off because Hœnir couldn't say a word without asking Mirmir first.
Hrímner: "Frosty." A giant.
Hugin: "Thought." One of Odin's two ravens, who fly around spying for the boss.
Idun: A goddess. The wife of the god of poetry, Bragi. The
custodian of the apple of youth and supposedly as fair as spring. Her apples are purported to restore youth and health. In return for his freedom, Loki once lured her outside of Asgard and into the clutches of the giant Thjazi (the father of Skadi). Eventually Loki is prevailed upon to rescue her, which he does in falcon form, transforming Idun into a nut and carrying her in his claws. The pursuing Thjazi is killed. In the Lokasenna, Loki accuses Idun of having sex with her brother's killer.
Jörmungand: The Midgard Serpent. A dragon, supposedly the child of Loki and Angbroda, whom Odin cast into the sea, where it grew so large that it encircled the world.
Jötunheim: The home of giants in Utgard.
Kvasir's mead: Also called the mead of inspiration, brewed with honey mixed with the blood of the vastly wise Kvasir—a man created by the mixed spittle of the Æsir and Vanir, who was murdered by two dwarves. The brew thus created gave such cunning to the tongues of the dwarves that they were able to trick a giant and his wife into being murdered too. There their luck ran out because the giant's son, Suttung, came along and marooned them on a rock. In exchange for their liberty and survival, the mead changed hands. Suttung kept it under tight guard by his daughter, in a locked cave, but Odin gained entry to the place, seduced the daughter and stole the mead. (You don't want to know the details. It's too gross for modern tastes. The mead would be too.)
Loki: Loki is one of the most confusing figures in all of Norse myth. It is apparent that both his role and popularity changed with the passage of time, with his final demonization occurring in the thirteenth century when Snorri Sturluson in his collation of myth (in which he did some sterling work—and also took some large liberties) used Loki as the chief bad guy to blame for everything. Snorri was collecting myths in Iceland, where Christianity had been the religion for a few centuries.
Some things are certain about Loki. First, he was a trickster. Second, he was as much at home among the giants as among the Æsir. Third, although his frequently thoughtless mischief plunged him and the Æsir into trouble, he never failed to extricate them from it. He got precious little thanks for the latter, despite his role in saving Freyja (twice) and his role in recovering Thor's hammer, or the treasures of the Æsir.
Loki differs from the bulk of the Æsir in a couple of notable ways. For one, he is one of the giants and never claimed to be anything else. For a second he is referred to in matrilineal terms as "Son of Laufey" (Laufey = leafy, his mother's name) which is in direct contrast to normal Norse tradition. Third, it appears that Norse society (in contrast to the Ancient Greeks of Pyramid Scheme) was homophobic. Loki, by being the mare that lured the giant builder's stallion away (so that the Æsir did not have to pay the giant) "played a woman's part" and gave birth to the horse Sleipnir, whom Odin seems to have had no moral qualms about appropriating. The origins of his name have been associated with both fire (logi) and air (loft).
Minni-toast: The toast to the dead. The last toast drunk in the evening.
Mjöllnir: "Lightning." Thor's hammer, created by the dwarf Sindri, one of the sons of Ivaldi. It would never miss and never fail to find its way back to his hand.
Munin: "Memory." Odin's other raven spy.
Myrkvid: Mirkwood. A lot of Tolkien is drawn from Norse sources. The forest that borders Muspellheim dividing it from Midgard.
Naglfar: The corpse-ship. Made from the nails of the dead, it will carry the dead from Hel to Ragnarok.
Nágrind: "Corpse-gate." The entry to Hel's kingdom.
Njörd: One of the Vanir hostages. Chosen as a bridegroom (on the basis of his feet) by the giantess Skadi, in recompense for the Æsir killing her father. He is a sea divinity, which makes the kenning from Loki's flyting make sense. "The daughters of the giant Hymir use his mouth as a pisspot." Hymir being a mountain giant, his "daughters" are the rivers off that mountain, which then empty into the sea. His relationship with Skadi produced Frey and Freyja, but considerable marital discord, as Skadi wanted to live in the mountains in her father's castle, and Njörd wanted to live in his seaside home. In theory they settled for a week in each, but the relations frayed and they went back to separate lives. Skadi is later cited as one of Odin's bits of fluff on the side.
Norns: Three women—Urd (past), Verdani (present), and Skuld (future, or literally "debt")—who chart the destiny of all of mankind. Found hanging out at Urd's well, at the foot of the world tree.
Odin: Generally considered the top god in Norse mythology. He is also a serial adulterer, oathbreaker, thief, liar and self-serving creep. Sometimes known as "evil-worker." Odin's character can scarcely be described as reliable. He is obsessed with the collection of knowledge, which to the biased observer looks like "how do I preserve number one?" If this incidentally involves the safekeeping of Asgard, that's a good reason to do very nearly anything. Known for traveling among men in his wide hat and blue cloak, the one-eyed wanderer has misled many to their doom, and helped others whom, as Loki points out in the Lokasenna, one can see no justification for helping. Odin claims the reasons for his lies, adultery and murderous "help" are beyond the understanding of ordinary gods. It's for their benefit, really. Among Odin's varied deeds include his spending nine days hanging from Yggdrasil with the dead sacrifices, to learn the runes, giving one eye for a drink from Mirmir's well (supposed to confer wisdom), and also seducing the giantess Gunnlöd to get the mead of poetry. He is accompanied by two ravens and keeps two wolves to feed on his table scraps.
Öku-Thor: "Charioteer Thor."
Ragnarok: "Fate of the Gods." The final battle that will destroy the world.
Ran: A sea giantess in charge of the drowning department. It was she who helped Loki with the net that the Æsir used to capture Andvari to pay the blood-price for accidentally killing Otr.
Ratatosk: The squirrel that lives in the world-tree Yggdrasil, and carries little messages of spite and hatred between the eagle at the top and the serpent at the bottom. As he says: it's a job.
Roskva: The sister to Thjalfi and serving maid to Thor.
Seid: A kind of magic, not very savory but very powerful, which only women and Odin are allowed to practice.
Sif: Thor's wife. Shorn one night of her blond hair by Loki in an act that looks very suspiciously like payback for sexual coquetry (Sif also played the field a bit), Thor then forced Loki to do something about it. He went to the Sons of Ivaldi (dwarf artificers) and had real gold made into hair that actually grew on her head.
Sigfrida: A Valkyrie trapped behind the ring of fire for angering Odin and not choosing for death those he wanted . . . in part of a Norse saga. The next bit is lost and then the name seems to be Brynhild. It's all very confusing. Maybe there was a selection of Valkyries.
Sigurd: A hero who at the instigation of the dwarf Reginn killed Reginn's shape-changing brother, the dragon Fafnir. From the hoard of the dragon, Sigurd took various treasures, among them the cursed ring of Andvari. It was Sigurd's horse that jumped the ring of flames protecting the Valkyrie Brynhild/Sigfrida sleeping within. Sigurd is supposed to have woken her before going off to make a complete mess of his life and hers, thanks to the cursed ring.
Sigyn: "Victorious girlfriend." The wife of Loki and a goddess in her own right. Mother of two children by Loki, both abused by Odin to punish Loki. Váli was turned into a rabid wolf to kill his brother Narfi, whose entrails were then used to bind Loki. The epitome of loyalty in a mythology not known for it, Sigyn shields her husband from the venom of Skadi's snake.
Skadi: Giantess daughter of Thjazi, estranged wife of Njörd. She is a patron of hunters and also seems to have slept with Loki and later Odin. It is she who hangs the snake that spits at the captive Loki.
Skírnir: The rather shifty and unpleasant servant of the god Frey who acts as a threatening go-between for the light of Frey's fancy, the giantess Gerd. He also ran errands for Odin, notably fetching Gleipnir, the chain that eventually bound Fenrir.
Sleipnir: Odin's eight-legged horse. The offspring of Loki in the form of a mare.
Surt: "Black." The fire demon from the flaming South.
Svarthöfdi: "Black head." The father of all sorcerers.
Tanngnjóst: "Tooth gnasher." Thor's magical goat that draws his chariot. He can slaughter them and eat them at night, and reanimate them from the bones.
Tanngrisnir: "Tooth gritter." The other goat.
Thjalfi: Thor's bondsman, taken in exchange for cracking one of the goat's bones at the evening goat barbeque. This was absolutely forbidden as the goat was then reanimated with a broken limb.
Thor: The thunder-god was the son of Odin and the giantess Jörd. He was the mightiest warrior and strongest of the Æsir. He has a belt of strength, Megingjörd, that doubles his already formidable strength, iron gauntlets and the famous thunderbolt hammer. Very popular among warriors, less so among nobles; rival armies would often dedicate themselves to one or the other god. Not subtle or of any great intelligence, Thor was still the second greatest of the Æsir. Married to Sif of the golden hair and the father of three children: Modi, Magni, and Thrúd.
Thrúd: "Power." Thor's daughter.
Thrúdvangar: The power plains; lands belonging to the god Thor.
Ull: The archer god.
Valhöll: "The hall of the fallen." More commonly known in its English spelling of Valhalla. Odin's hall where fully half of the warriors slain in battle feast and fight and wait to serve Odin in the final conflict.
Vidólf : The mother all witches.
Vrigid Plain: The plain on which the great battle of Ragnarok will take place.
Yggdrasil: The world tree, an ash, whose branches extend over the whole world and whose roots go down to the deepest part. It is big enough for stags to feed on its branches.
From Pyramid Scheme:
Arachne: Daughter of Idmon of Colophon (a city in Lydia), a weaver of great renown, who had a run-in with Athena. In the weaving competition between them, Arachne wove as her theme the philandering and sordid tricks of the gods. Her weaving was flawless. Athena with the justice, generosity, and nobility of spirit which was characteristic of the Olympians tore the work in shreds, destroyed the loom and turned Arachne into a spider, doomed to weave forever, and draw her thread from her own body. A good loser, Athena.
Bes: A dwarf-god, the protector of man against evil spirits and dangerous beasts. He is always portrayed grinning and bearded, with a topknot adorned with ostrich plumes and a leopard-skin cloak. Fond of fighting and dancing, his symbol was used to protect against dangerous beasts, and evil spirits that haunted dreams. He presided over marriages, and the make-up and adornment of women, as well as protecting pregnant mothers. Revered in Punt and Carthage as well as Egypt, the little hell-raiser was definitely one of the good guys.
Bitar and Smitar: Two winged dragons from Colchis.
Circe: The sorceress from the Odyssey. The daughter of Helios and sister to Aeëtes, and aunt to Medea. She lived on the island of Aeaea, attended by four nymphs, in a house or castle of well-built stone. In the glades around the castle roamed wild beasts, boar, wolves, leopards and lions—all apparently tame.
Medea: One of the most villainous characters described in Greek mythology. Medea the sorceress was a princess and priestess of Hecate, living in the kingdom of Colchis (on the Black Sea, present day Georgia). She fell in love with Jason, leader of the Argonauts and it was only with her help that Jason was able to accomplish the "impossible" tasks set by Aeëtes, King of Colchis, and gain the golden fleece. In return Jason promised to marry her. In their flight from Colchis, Medea and Jason were trapped by Absyrtus, Medea's stepbrother. Under the flag of truce Medea and Jason murdered Absyrtus, and in their subsequent flight delayed Aeëtes by casting the pieces behind them for the king to gather up for burial. On their route back to Hellas, Medea and Jason stop at Aeaea, the isle of the enchantress Circe, who is Medea's aunt and sister to king Aeëtes. Circe gives them forgiveness for the blood-debt. On their return, Medea is supposed to have contrived the murder of King Pelias by his daughters (by convincing them that the aging king could be restored to youth by chopping him up and boiling him with certain herbs). After living for some time with Jason at Ephyra, and bearing him two children, she is told by Jason that he is going to set her aside and marry Glauce, the daughter of the king of Corinth. This is perfectly permissible as she is a non-Hellene and has no rights. Medea is then supposed to have contrived the death of Glauce (with a dress of gold cloth and a coronet), accidentally killing her father too. Medea is then supposed to have killed her children and fled Corinth in a winged chariot drawn by dragons.
Throttler: The name of the Theban sphinx.
Tyche: The goddess of chance. Her attribute is abundance, and she is the daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. One is prompted to wonder if this is why fishing and luck should go hand-in-hand.