Vanir is the name of one of the two groups of gods in Norse mythology, the other and more well known being the Æsir. The name is perhaps from the PIE root wen "to strive, win", cognate to Venus (compare Vanadis), Wynn (Proto-Germanic *Wanizaz). Vanir - Members. They include Niord the father of the gods of Vanir and god of the sea, Freyr, the god of fertility, and Freyja, goddess of love and sexuality, who lived among the Æsir at Yggdrasil directly below the Æsir. Although the Vanir are resp ...

Including:

• Vanir - Members
• Vanir - Characteristics
• Vanir - Location
• Vanir - Vanir and Elves
• Vanir - Cult of the Vanir
• Vanir - Misconceptions
• Vanir - Vanir and their Guests
• Vanir - Links

Read more here: » Vanir: Encyclopedia - Vanir

See also:

Vanir, Vanir - Members, Vanir - Characteristics, Vanir - Location, Vanir - Vanir and Elves, Vanir - Cult of the Vanir, Vanir - Misconceptions, Vanir - Vanir and their Guests, Vanir - Links

Read more here: » Vanir: Encyclopedia II - Vanir - Vanir and Elves

Vanir: A family of gods, the Vanir are especially connected with fertility. The name Vanir could very well come from the Danish word for sea, "van," as the Vanir are very much sea gods.

(See also: Vanir, Magic, Shamanism, Paganism, Wicca)

In Old Norse, the Æsir (singular Áss, feminine Ásynja, feminine plural Ásynjur, Anglo-Saxon Ós, from Proto-Germanic Ansuz) are the principal gods of the pantheon of Norse mythology. They include many of the major figures, such as Odin, Frigg, Thor, Baldr and Tyr. A second clan of gods, the Vanir, is also mentioned in the Norse mythos: the god Njord and his children, Freyr and Freyja, are the most prominent Vanir gods who join the Æsir as hostages after a war between Æsir and Vanir. The ...

Including:

• Æsir - Etymology
• Æsir - Norse mythology
• Æsir - The a-rune
• Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir
• Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia - Æsir

Hœnir was an indecisive god and a member of the Æsir in Norse mythology. Along with Mímir, he went to the Vanir to seal a truce. The Vanir made Hœnir one of their members but he was indecisive and relied on Mimir for all of his decisions, grunting noncommital answers when Mímir was absent. In Völuspá, at the creation of the first man (Ask) and woman (Embla), Hœnir and Lóðurr help Odin. In Gylfaginning, Vili and Vé are mentioned instead. As Snorri knew Völuspá, it is thus possible that Hœnir was another name for Vili. Hœnir also h ...

Read more here: » Hœnir: Encyclopedia - Hœnir

In Norse mythology, Njord or Njordr (Old Norse Njörðr) is one of the Vanir and the god of the fertile land along the seacoast, as well as seamanship and sailing. He is the husband of Skaði and father of Yngvi-Freyr and Freyja. Their mother was, according to the Heimskringla, Njord's own sister and lover. Apparently the Vanir, unlike the Æsir, had the custom of consanguineous marriage. His sister's name may also be Njord, according to the reconstruction of the name of a Teutonic goddess that Tacitus transliterated int ...

Including:

• Njord - How Njord met Skadi
• Njord - Name

Read more here: » Njord: Encyclopedia - Njord

Álfar (singular: álfr) is the Old Norse word for elves. Álfar figure in Norse mythology. Snorri Sturluson in the Younger Edda differentiate between ljósálfar (light-elves) and dökkálfar (dark-elves). The light-elves live in Álfheimr. See elf for a more extensive description. The Eddas tend to use "Álfar" and "Vanir" interchangeably. Norse mythology Categories: Elves | Norse mythology ...

Read more here: » Álfar: Encyclopedia - Álfar

Alvíssmál (Sayings of Alvíss) is an Eddic poem relating a conversation Thor (Old Norse: Þórr) had with the dwarf Alvíss ("All-Wise"). Alvíss comes to Thor to claim Thor's daughter as his bride. The daughter had apparently be promised to him earlier. Thor refuses, as he wasn't home, when the deal was done, unless Alvíss can answer any question Thor poses. The rest of the poem is mainly a list of comparative names for different entities among men, Æsir, Vanir, giants, dwarves and elves, which Alvíss dashes off in ...

Read more here: » Alvíssmál: Encyclopedia - Alvíssmál

In Norse mythology, the giants were a mythological race with superhuman strength, described as standing in opposition to the gods, although they frequently mingled with or were even married to these, both Æsir and Vanir. Their stronghold is known as Utgard, and is situated in Jötunheimr, one of the nine worlds of Norse cosmology, separated from Midgard, the world of men, by high mountains and dense forests. When living in other worlds than their own ...

Including:

• Jotun - Norse giants
• Jotun - Origins
• Jotun - Character of the giants
• Jotun - Ragnarök and the fire giants
• Jotun - Giants in Scandinavian folklore
• Jotun - List of giants and giantesses in Norse mythology

Read more here: » Jotun: Encyclopedia - Jotun

In Norse mythology, Vanaheimr is supposedly the home of the Vanir, one of the two clans of gods besides the Æsir. The name appears in the Ynglinga saga by Snorri Sturluson. In that work, the gods appear as euhemerized heroes of the past, and the name of their realm is linked to the earthly river Don. It is therefore disputable to count Vanaheimr as one of the nine worlds of Norse cosmology. Snorri introduces Vanaheimr thus: Thus it is known that a great sea goes in at Nörvasund [ Straits of G ...

Read more here: » Vanaheimr: Encyclopedia - Vanaheimr

Freyr (sometimes anglicized Frey[1]) is one of the most important deities in Norse paganism and Norse mythology. Worshipped as a fertility god, Freyr bestows "peace and pleasure" upon mortals. He rules over the rain, the shining of the sun and thereby the produce of the fields. He is one of the Vanir, the son of the sea god Njörðr and brother of the love goddess Freyja. The gods gave him Álfheimr, the realm of the Elves, as a teethi ...

Including:

• Freyr - Adam of Bremen
• Freyr - The Prose Edda
• Freyr - The Poetic Edda
• Freyr - Skírnismál
• Freyr - Skaldic poetry
• Freyr - Heimskringla
• Freyr - Icelanders' sagas
• Freyr - Gesta Danorum
• Freyr - Other traditions
• Freyr - Ballad of Veraldur
• Freyr - Possible Later Survivals
• Freyr - Notes

Read more here: » Freyr: Encyclopedia - Freyr

Norse mythology ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir

Norse mythology ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir

Norse mythology ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir all names in Old Norse form, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir all names in Old Norse form

The interaction between the Æsir and the Vanir is an interesting aspect of Norse mythology. While other cultures have had "elder" and "younger" families of gods, as with the Titans versus the Olympians of ancient Greece, the Æsir and Vanir were portrayed as contemporary. The two clans of gods fought battles, concluded treaties, and exchanged hostages (Freyr and Freyja are mentioned as such hostages). It is tempting to speculate that the interactions described as occurring between Æsir and Vanir reflect the types of interaction common to v ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - Norse mythology

The word áss, Proto-Germanic *ansuz is believed to be derived from Proto-Indo-European *ansu- 'breath, god' related to Sanskrit asura and Avestan ahura with the same meaning; though in Sanskrit asura came to mean 'demon'. The cognate Old English form to áss is os 'god, deity', as in the still-current surname Osgood, or the first names Oswin, Osbert, Oswald, Osborn, Osmund (but Osca ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - Etymology

The word áss, Proto-Germanic *ansuz is believed to be derived from Proto-Indo-European *ansu- 'breath, god' related to Sanskrit asura and Avestan ahura with the same meaning; though in Sanskrit asura came to mean 'demon'. The cognate Old English form to áss is os 'god, deity', as in the still-current surname Osgood, or the first names Oswin, Osbert, Oswald, Osborn, Osmund (but Osca ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir all names in Old Norse form, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - Etymology

The interaction between the Æsir and the Vanir is an interesting aspect of Norse mythology. While other cultures have had "elder" and "younger" families of gods, as with the Titans versus the Olympians of ancient Greece, the Æsir and Vanir were portrayed as contemporary. The two clans of gods fought battles, concluded treaties, and exchanged hostages (Freyr and Freyja are mentioned as such hostages). It is tempting to speculate that the interactions described as occurring between Æsir and Vanir reflect the types of interaction common to v ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir all names in Old Norse form, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - Norse mythology

The a-rune , Younger Futhark ᚬ was probably named after the Æsir. The name in this sense survives only in the Icelandic rune poem as Óss, referring to Odin in particular, identified with Jupiter. The name of a in the Gothic alphabet is ahsa. The common Germanic name of the rune may thus have either been ansuz "God, one of the Æsir", or ahsam "ear (of corn)". ...

See also:

Æsir, Æsir - Etymology, Æsir - Norse mythology, Æsir - The a-rune, Æsir - List of Æsir and Vanir, Æsir - External link

Read more here: » Æsir: Encyclopedia II - Æsir - The a-rune

Vanir, Vaner, Vanr (Icelandic, Scandinavian) [plural of van wont, accustomed, lacking, defective]

Sometimes Wane. A class of Norse gods, representing the waters of space or infinitude. Because the vanagods are associated with the waters of space, they are usually believed to be water gods who were supplanted by the aesir in the course of time. However, the evidence points to the vanir having a range of activity extending through far vaster realms of space. They are evidently superior to the aesir, whose dwelling is Asgard and who imbody in the worlds of the solar system, and are almost always referred to by the aesir as "the wise Vanir."

The vanagods are said to have battled the aesir (the war in heaven) and remained victorious in the celestial realms, while the aesir were "ousted" and descended into material spheres, where they are the regents of worlds.

Following the war in heaven there took place an exchange of "hostages" between the aesir and vanir, and Njord (Saturn) was a vanagod sent as hostage to the aesir. He represents the saturnian qualities, among them those of Chronos (time). His children are Frey, the earth deity, and Freya, Venus, who is the guardian and protectress of the intelligent kingdom (humanity) on earth. This suggests that Njord was an emissary or avatara from the wise vanir to the active planetary gods, and that the vanir inspire avataric figures among the aesir. There are indications also that the aesir may graduate to the stature of the wise vanagods.

(See also: Vanir, Vaner, Vanr, Mysticism, Mysticism Dictionary, Body mind and Soul)