Norse mythology comes from the Scandinavian countries of the northernmost part of Europe: Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland. The mythology of this region mirrors the weather, which is grim and shadowed by long, sunless winters. Yet the darkness is laced with gleams of grandeur and sparks of humor. The myths depict a universe in which gods and giants battle among themselves in a grand-scale conflict fated to end in the destruction of the world.
Norse mythology developed from the myths and legends of northern peoples who spoke Germanic languages. It shares many features with the mythology of pre-Christian Germanic groups. When some of these groups spread into England and Scandinavia, they carried their myths with them. As they converted to Christianity, their traditional beliefs faded. But Christianity did not take hold in Scandinavia until a later date, and the Norse version of Germanic mythology remained vigorous through the Viking era, from about 750 to 1050 ce. Modern knowledge of Norse mythology stems from medieval texts, most of them written in Iceland. Descendants of Norse colonists in that country maintained a strong interest in their heritage even after becoming Christian.
A major source of information about Norse mythology is a book called the Poetic Edda, sometimes known as the Elder Edda. It consists of mythological and heroic poems, including Voluspa, an overview of Norse mythology from the creation to the final destructive battle of the world known as Ragnarok (pronounced RAHG-nuh-rok). The unknown author who compiled the Poetic Edda in Iceland around 1270 drew on materials dating from between 800 and 1100.
Around 1222, an Icelandic poet and chieftain named Snorri Sturluson (pronounced STUR-luh-suhn) wrote the Prose Edda, or Younger Edda, which interprets traditional Icelandic poetry for the audiences of Snorri’s time. Part of the Prose Edda describes a visit by Gylfi (pronounced GIL-fee), a Swedish king, to the home of the gods in Asgard (pronounced AHS-gahrd). There the king questioned the gods about their history, adventures, and fate.
Norse mythology is known from other Scandinavian texts as well. Many Norse poems refer to mythic events or figures. In the early 1200s, Icelanders started writing family sagas about their ancestors and heroic sagas about their legendary heroes. Many of these sagas contain references to mythological subjects. Also in the 1200s, a Danish scholar named Saxo Grammaticus (pronounced gruh-MAT-i-kuhs) wrote a history of the Danish people that begins with an account of their preChristian gods and ancient heroes. Works by earlier Roman and medieval historians also include information about Germanic and Norse myths. In 98 CE, for example, the Roman historian Tacitus (pronounced
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