8
votes
Accepted
Is there a specific term in Norse mythology for Odin's self-sacrifice?
Nope.
The story is known only through Hávamál, a piece of poetry from the poetic Edda, in which it takes up two stanzas. The relevant here is stanza 138:
Veit ek, at ek hekk
vindga meiði á
...
- 6,027
6
votes
Accepted
What is considered the most authentic illustration of Yggdrasil?
Some Norse myths are depicted on rune stones or other objects, but I am not aware of anything like that for Yggdrasil. The oldest depiction I know of is an illustration in a 17th century manuscript of ...
- 6,027
5
votes
Are forests and trees considered self sufficient and self reliant? Or is there any lore on caretakers of the forests?
To the ancient Celts, certain trees, especially the oak, ash and thorn, held special significance.
To the Celts, Druids and many other peoples of the old world, certain trees held special ...
- 4,067
5
votes
Are forests and trees considered self sufficient and self reliant? Or is there any lore on caretakers of the forests?
Well, I know that with the Ancient Celts the tree of life was a big thing to their culture, to the extent they believed they were trees, or came from trees. They saw them as the symbol for balance, ...
4
votes
Accepted
How was the world tree Yggdrasil created?
Yggdrasil doesn't seem to have an origin; in the Prose Edda, which is a compendium of Norse myth, we get a description of the various beings that live in and around the tree, and how its three roots ...
- 5,920
4
votes
Accepted
Is it said what kind of tree it is?
It's an ash tree
In e.g. Völuspá, stanza 19, this is explicitly stated:
An ash I know, Yggdrasil its name ...
Translation: Henry Adams Bellow
- 6,027
4
votes
Did Yggdrassil exist before the world's creation
I recently read Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology. Although he's probably not considered the top authority on Norse Mythology, he did study the important works of Sturluson.
Here's a quote right form ...
- 373
3
votes
Is there a specific term in Norse mythology for Odin's self-sacrifice?
Not sure if this is what you're looking for, but it looked promising.
"Odinn and His Cosmic Cross" (pdf)
https://skemman.is/bitstream/1946/27093/1/Thesis%20Final%20Draft%20pdf.pdf
The term used ...
- 709
3
votes
How was the world tree Yggdrasil created?
In Völuspa 2, when describing how she was fostered by giants in the beginning of time, the völva says that she remembers "mjötvið mæran, fyr mold neðan" (the glorious measuring-tree in the earth below)...
- 51
1
vote
What is considered the most authentic illustration of Yggdrasil?
The Ockelbo runestone has a depiction of Yggdrasil that is to my knowledge the oldest in existence.
Here is an image of the recreation.
- 51
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