Óðr
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In Norse mythology, Óðr ([ˈoːðz̠]; Old Norse for the "Divine Madness, frantic, furious, vehement, eager", as a noun "mind, feeling" and also "song, poetry"; Orchard (1997) gives "the frenzied one"[1]) or Óð, sometimes anglicized as Odr or Od, is a figure associated with the major goddess Freyja. The Prose Edda and Heimskringla, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson, both describe Óðr as Freyja's husband and father of her daughter Hnoss. Heimskringla adds that the couple produced another daughter, Gersemi. A number of theories have been proposed about Óðr, generally that he is a hypostasis of the deity Odin due to their similarities.
Etymology
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The
Philologist Jan de Vries has argued that the Old Norse deities Óðinn and Óðr were probably originally connected (as in the doublet Ullr–Ullinn), with Óðr (*wōđaz) being the elder form and the ultimate source of the name Óðinn (*wōđa-naz). He further suggested that the god of rage Óðr–Óðinn stood in opposition to the god of glorious majesty Ullr–Ullinn in a similar manner to the Vedic contrast between Varuna and Mitra.[4]
The adjective *wōđaz ultimately stems from a
Attestations
Óðr is attested in the following sources:
Poetic Edda
Óðr is mentioned in stanza 25 of the Poetic Edda poem Völuspá. The name appears in a kenning for the major goddess Freyja; "Óð's girl" (Old Norse Óðs mey gefna), pointing to a relation with the goddess.[8]
Stanza 47 of the poem Hyndluljóð contains mention of a figure by the name of Œdi. There, Hyndla taunts Freyja, stating that Freyja had run to Œdi, "always full of desire". Scholar Carolyne Larrington says that the identity of Œdi is uncertain; it has been theorized that this may simply be Óðr, or that the figure may be another lover of Freyja's.[9] Scholar John Lindow describes this reference as "puzzling" as no other information is provided regarding the situation referred to by Hyndla.[10] Scholar Britt-Mari Näsström says that this reference likely does not refer to Óðr, rather being the product of the amendments of Sophus Bugge, and that the line simply points to Freyja's lust. Näsström comments that "perhaps the philologists of the nineteenth century were misled by their romantic intentions".[11]
Prose Edda
In chapter 35 of the Prose Edda book
In chapter 20 of the Prose Edda book Skáldskaparmál, poetic names for the goddess Freyja are listed, including "wife of Óðr".[14] In chapter 36, a prose narrative points out than an excerpt of a work by the skald Einarr Skúlason refers to Freyja as the wife of Óðr ("Óðr's bedfellow").[15] The same excerpt appears in chapter 49.[16] In chapter 75, Óðr is mentioned a final time in the Prose Edda, where Freyja is cited as having "wept gold" for Óðr.[17]
Heimskringla
In chapter 1 of the Heimskringla book Ynglinga saga, Snorri Sturluson refers to the two in an euhemerized account, stating that Freyja had a husband named Óðr, two daughters named Hnoss and Gersemi, and that they were so beautiful that their names were used for "our most precious possessions" (both of their names literally mean "jewel").[18]
Theories
The name Óðr for Freyja's husband appears prominently in Völuspá 25, where it is said that "Óðs mey" was given to the giants. Nothing else is stated of him by this name in the Eddic poems. In Gylfaginning, Snorri briefly states that Óðr traveled to many nations and that Freyja searched for him in earnest, weeping as she went. Óðr is often theorized as somehow connected to Odin (Old Norse: Óðinn), the head of the Æsir in Norse mythology, by way of etymological similarities between the two names (Lindow states that the linguistic relationship is identical to that of Ullr and Ullin—often considered as variant names of a single god), and the fact that both are described as going on long journeys, though Lindow points out that Snorri is careful to keep them apart.[10] All theories regarding him must remain speculative, due to the limited accounts contained in the sources.
Scholar
Scholar
Scholar Rudolf Simek says that since Óðr appears in a kenning employed by the 11th century skald Einarr Skúlason (in Skáldskaparmál) and in the Poetic Edda poems Völuspá and Hyndluljóð, Óðr is not a late invention. Simek says that "the most obvious explanation is to identify Óðr with Odin," noting the similarity between their names (and agreeing with the Ullr/Ullin parallel), the long absences (comparing them to Odin's exile in Gesta Danorum), and Óðr's marriage with Freyja.[21]
Simek adds that although these similarities exist, there are things that speak against it, such as that "Freyja's tears for Odin and her search are unmotivated," and that "the reference to Hnoss as their only child is surprising - why, for example, should
Simek concurs that, if the two gods were identical, Snorri would not have kept them so apart; yet that the names Odin and Óðr are so close that a lack of connection between the two gods isn't possible. Some scholars have examined the relationship between the two in an attempt to find "older" and "younger" layers in the figures of Óðr and Odin, but Simek says that this approach has yet to yield any results that are convincing due to the sparsity of sources that mention Óðr.[21]
Scholar
Grundy theorizes that the goddesses
See also
- Odic force, also known as Od
Notes
- ^ Orchard (1997:121).
- ^ Orel 2003, p. 469.
- ^ a b c Kroonen 2013, p. 592.
- ^ de Vries 1970b, p. 104.
- ^ a b Koch 2020, p. 140.
- ISBN 978-90-04-17336-1.
- ISBN 978-90-04-16797-1.
- ^ Larrington (1996:7).
- ^ Larrington (1999:297).
- ^ a b Lindow (2001:246—247).
- ^ Näsström (1998:69).
- ^ Faulkes 1987, pp. 29–30.
- ^ Faulkes 1987, p. 36.
- ^ Faulkes 1987, p. 86.
- ^ Faulkes 1987, p. 98.
- ^ Faulkes 1987, p. 119.
- ^ Faulkes 1987, p. 157.
- ^ Hollander (1964:14).
- ^ Rydberg, Undersökningar i Germanisk Mytologi, v. 1, 1886.
- ^ Davidson (1965:154).
- ^ a b c Simek (2007:250).
- ^ Grundy (1998:56 and 58-59).
- ^ Grundy (1998:66).
References
- OCLC 466619179.
- ISBN 0-14-013627-4.
- Faulkes, Anthony, trans. (1987). Edda (1995 ed.). Everyman. ISBN 0-460-87616-3.
- Grundy, Stephan (1998). "Freyja and Frigg". In Billington, Sandra; Green, Miranda (eds.). The Concept of the Goddess. Routledge. ISBN 0-415-19789-9.
- ISBN 0-292-73061-6.
- ISBN 9781907029325.
- Kroonen, Guus (2013). Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic. Brill. ISBN 9789004183407.
- Larrington, Carolyne (Trans.) (1999). The Poetic Edda. ISBN 0-19-283946-2.
- ISBN 0-19-515382-0.
- Näsström, Britt-Mari (1998). "Freyja: a Goddess with Many Names". In Billington, Sandra; Green, Miranda (eds.). The Concept of the Goddess. Routledge. ISBN 0-415-19789-9.
- ISBN 0-304-34520-2.
- ISBN 978-90-04-12875-0.
- ISBN 978-0-85991-513-7.
External links
- MyNDIR (My Norse Digital Image Repository) Illustrations of Óðr from manuscripts and early print books.