The Novel Free

The Hammer of Thor



AEGIR—lord of the waves

AESIR—gods of war, close to humans

ALICARL—Norse for fatso

ARGR—Norse for unmanly

AVENTAIL—a chain mail curtain around the base of a helmet, meant to protect the neck

BARROW—the tomb of a wight

BERSERKER—a Norse warrior frenzied in battle and considered invulnerable

BIFROST—the rainbow bridge leading from Asgard to Midgard

BILSKIRNIR—Bright Crack, Thor and Sif’s palace

BINT—Arabic for daughter

BRUNNMIGI—a being who urinates into wells

DRAUGR—Norse zombies

EINHERJAR (EINHERJI, sing.)—great heroes who have died with bravery on Earth; soldiers in Odin’s eternal army; they train in Valhalla for Ragnarok, when the bravest of them will join Odin against Loki and the giants in the battle at the end of the world

FENRIS WOLF—an invulnerable wolf born of Loki’s affair with a giantess; his mighty strength strikes fear even in the gods, who keep him tied to a rock on an island. He is destined to break free on the day of Ragnarok.

FOLKVANGER—the Vanir afterlife for slain heroes, ruled by the goddess Freya

FREY—the god of spring and summer; the sun, the rain, and the harvest; abundance and fertility, growth and vitality. Frey is the twin brother of Freya and, like his sister, is associated with great beauty. He is lord of Alfheim.

FREYA—the goddess of love; twin sister of Frey; ruler of Folkvanger

FRIGG—goddess of marriage and motherhood; Odin’s wife and the queen of Asgard; mother of Balder and Hod

GAMALOST—old cheese

GINNUNGAGAP—the primordial void; a mist that obscures appearances

GJALLAR—Heimdall’s horn

HEIMDALL—god of vigilance and the guardian of Bifrost, the gateway to Asgard

HEL—goddess of the dishonorable dead; born of Loki’s affair with a giantess

HELHEIM—the underworld, ruled by Hel and inhabited by those who died in wickedness, old age, or illness

HUGINN AND MUNINN—Odin’s ravens, whose names mean thought and memory, respectively

HULDER—a domesticated forest sprite

HUSVAETTR—house wight

JORMUNGAND—the World Serpent, born of Loki’s affair with a giantess; his body is so long it wraps around the Earth

JOTUN—giant

KENNING—a Viking nickname

LINDWORM—a fearsome dragon the size and length of an eighteen-wheeler, with just two front legs and leathery brown bat-type wings too small for effective flight

LOKI—god of mischief, magic, and artifice; the son of two giants; adept at magic and shape-shifting. He is alternately malicious and heroic to the Asgardian gods and to humankind. Because of his role in the death of Balder, Loki was chained by Odin to three giant boulders with a poisonous serpent coiled over his head. The venom of the snake occasionally irritates Loki’s face, and his writhing can cause earthquakes.

MAGNI AND MODI—Thor’s favorite sons, fated to survive Ragnarok

MEINFRETR—stinkfart

MIMIR—an Aesir god who, along with Honir, traded places with Vanir gods Frey and Njord at the end of the war between the Aesir and the Vanir. When the Vanir didn’t like his counsel, they cut off his head and sent it to Odin. Odin placed the head in a magical well, where the water brought it back to life, and Mimir soaked up all the knowledge of the World Tree.

MJOLNIR—Thor’s hammer

MORGEN-GIFU—morning gift; a gift from the groom to the bride, given on the morning after a marriage is consummated. It belongs to the bride, but it is held in trust by the groom’s family.

MUNDR—bride-price; a gift from the groom to the father of the bride

MUSPELL—fire

NAGLFAR—the Ship of Nails

NØKK—a nixie, or water spirit

NORNS—three sisters who control the destinies of both gods and humans

ODIN—the “All-Father” and king of the gods; the god of war and death, but also poetry and wisdom. By trading one eye for a drink from the Well of Wisdom, Odin gained unparalleled knowledge. He has the ability to observe all the Nine Worlds from his throne in Asgard; in addition to his great hall, he also resides in Valhalla with the bravest of those slain in battle.

OSTARA—the first day of spring

OTHALA—inheritance

RAGNAROK—the Day of Doom or Judgment, when the bravest of the einherjar will join Odin against Loki and the giants in the battle at the end of the world

RAN—goddess of the sea; wife of Aegir

RATATOSK—an invulnerable squirrel that constantly runs up and down the World Tree carrying insults between the eagle that lives at the top and Nidhogg, a dragon that lives at the roots

RED GOLD—the currency of Asgard and Valhalla

SAEHRIMNIR—the magical beast of Valhalla; every day it is killed and cooked for dinner, and every morning it is resurrected; it tastes like whatever the diner wants

SIF—goddess of the earth; mother of Uller by her first husband; Thor is her second husband; the rowan is her sacred tree

SLEIPNIR—Odin’s eight-legged steed; only Odin can summon him; one of Loki’s children

SUMARBRANDER—the Sword of Summer

THANE—a lord of Valhalla

THINGVELLIR—field of the assembly

THOR—god of thunder; son of Odin. Thunderstorms are the earthly effects of Thor’s mighty chariot rides across the sky, and lightning is caused by hurling his great hammer, Mjolnir.

THRYM—king of the jotun

TREE OF LAERADR—a tree in the center of the Feast Hall of the Slain in Valhalla containing immortal animals that have particular jobs

TYR—god of courage, law, and trial by combat; he lost a hand to Fenris’s bite when the Wolf was restrained by the gods

ULLER—the god of snowshoes and archery

URNES—a symbol of two entwined snakes, which signifies change and flexibility; sometimes a symbol for Loki

UTGARD-LOKI—the most powerful sorcerer of Jotunheim; king of the mountain giants

VALA—a seer

VALHALLA—paradise for warriors in the service of Odin

VALKYRIE—Odin’s handmaidens, who choose slain heroes to bring to Valhalla

VANIR—gods of natur

e; close to elves

VIDAR—the god of vengeance; also called the Silent One

WERGILD—blood debt

WIGHT—a powerful undead creature who likes to collect weapons

YGGDRASIL—the World Tree

ZUHR—Arabic for midday prayer

AEGIR AY-gear

AESIR AY-ser

ALF SEIDR ALF SAY-der

ALFHEIM ALF-haym

ALICARL AL-ih-carrl

ARGR ARR-ger

ASGARD AZ-gahrrd

BIFROST BEE-frrohst

BILSKIRNIR BEEL-skeerr-neer

DAGAZ DAH-gahz

DRAUGR DRAW-ger

EINHERJAR/EINHERJI in-HAIRR-yar/in-HAIRR-yee

EHWAZ AY-wahz

FEHU FAY-hoo

FENRIS FEHN-rrihss

FOLKVANGER FOHK-vahn-ger

FREY FRRAY

FREYA FRRAY-uh

FRIGG FRRIHG

GAMALOST GA-ma-lohst

GEBO GIH-bo

GEIRROD GAR-rod

GERD GAIRRD

GINNUNGAGAP GEENG-un-guh-gahp

GJALLAR gee-YALL-ar

HAGALAZ HA-ga-lahts

HEIMDALL HAME-doll

HEL HEHL

HELGI HEL-ghee

HELHEIM HEHL-haym

HUGINN HOO-gihn

HULDER HOOL-dihr

HUNDING HOON-deeng

HUSVAETTR HOOS-veht-tr

ISA EES-ah

JORMUNGAND YOHRR-mun-gand

JOTUN YOH-toon

JOTUNHEIM YOH-tuhn-haym

LAERADR LAY-rrah-dur

KENNING KEN-ning

LINDWORM LIHND-wohrrm

LOKI LOH-kee

MEINFRETR MAYN-frih-ter

MIDGARD MIHD-gahrrd

MIMIR MEE-meer

MJOLNIR MEE’OHL-neer

MODI MOH-dee

MORGEN-gifu MORR-ghen-GIH-foo

MUNDR MOON-der

MUNINN MOON-in

MUSPELL MOO-spel

MUSPELLHEIM MOOS-pehl-haym

NAGLFAR NAHG’L-fahr

NIDAVELLIR Nee-duh-vehl-EER

NIDHOGG NEED-hawg

NIFLHEIM NIHF-uh-haym

NØKK NAWK

NORNS NOHRRNZ

NORUMBEGA nohrr-uhm-BAY-guh

ODIN OH-dihn

OSTARA OH-starr-ah

OTHALA OH-thal-ah

PERTHRO PERR-thrroh

RAGNAROK RAG-nuh-rrawk

RAN RAN

RATATOSK RAT-uh-tawsk

SAEHRIMNIR SAY-h’rrihm-neer

SAMIRAH AL-ABBAS sah-MEER-ah ahl-AH-bahss

SIF SEEV

SLEIPNIR SLAYP-neer

SUMARBRANDER SOO-marr-brrand-der

THINGVELLIR THING-vih-leer

THURISAZ THOORR-ee-sahts

THOR THORE

THRYM THRRIMM

THRYNGA THRRIN-gah

TIWAZ TEE-vahz

TYR TEAR

ULLER OO-lir

URNES OORR-nis

URUZ OOR-oots

UTGARD-Loki OOT-gahrrd-LOH-kee

VALA VAL-uh

VALHALLA Val-HAHL-uh

VALKYRIE VAL-kerr-ee

VANAHEIM VAN-uh-haym

VANIR Vah-NEER

VIDAR VEE-dar

WERGILD WIR-gild

WIGHT WHITE

YGGDRASIL IHG-druh-sihl

THE NINE WORLDS

ASGARD—the home of the Aesir

VANAHEIM—the home of the Vanir

ALFHEIM—the home of the light elves

MIDGARD—the home of humans

JOTUNHEIM—the home of the giants

NIDAVELLIR—the home of the dwarves

NIFLHEIM—the world of ice, fog, and mist

MUSPELLHEIM—the home of the fire giants and demons

HELHEIM—the home of Hel and the dishonorable dead

RUNES (IN ORDER OF MENTION)

FEHU—the rune of Frey

OTHALA—inheritance

DAGAZ—new beginnings, transformations

URUZ—ox

GEBO—gift

PERTHRO—the empty cup

THURISAZ—the rune of Thor

HAGALAZ—hail

EHWAZ—horse, transportation

ISA—ice
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