"a thrill ride at Blackpool Pleasure Beach in England. Valhalla In Norse mythology, Valhalla (; from Old Norse Valhöll ""hall of the slain"") is a majestic, enormous hall located in Asgard, ruled over by the god Odin. Chosen by Odin, half of those who die in combat travel to Valhalla upon death, led by valkyries, while the other half go to the goddess Freyja's field Fólkvangr. In Valhalla, the dead join the masses of those who have died in combat known as Einherjar and various legendary Germanic heroes and kings, as they prepare to aid Odin during the events of"
"Vingólf In Norse mythology, Vingólf is one of the buildings of the gods. It is described as the hall or ""hörgr"" of the goddesses and also as a place where righteous men and those slain in battle go after death. It is mentioned in the Prose Edda, Gylfaginning 3 and in the enigmatic poem ""Hrafnagaldur Óðins"". Vingólf is mentioned three times in the ""Gylfaginning"" section of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda. The three mentions of Vingólf seem somewhat contradictory. In the first instance it appears as an alternative name for Gimlé, a paradise where righteous people go after death. In the"
"Sessrúmnir In Norse mythology, Sessrúmnir (Old Norse ""seat-room"" or ""seat-roomer"") is both the goddess Freyja's hall located in Fólkvangr, a field where Freyja receives half of those who die in battle, and also the name of a ship. Both the hall and the ship are attested in the ""Prose Edda"", written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. Scholarly theories have been proposed regarding a potential relation between the hall and the ship. Sessrúmnir is specifically referred to as a hall in chapter 24 of the ""Prose Edda"" book ""Gylfaginning"". After describing Fólkvangr, High tells Gangleri (described as king Gylfi"
"Sindri (mythology) In Norse mythology, Sindri (from the Old Norse ""sindr"": ""spark"") is the name of both a character (probably a dwarf) and a hall that will serve as a dwelling place for the souls of the virtuous after Ragnarök. ""Völuspá"" mentions ""a hall of gold, of the lineage of Sindri"" located northward, in Niðavellir. There are several reasons to think that Sindri is probably a dwarf: his name is related with forging and the hall is made of gold (dwarves are said to be skillful smiths), the location of the hall is Niðavellir, which possibly means ""dark fields"" (dwarves"
"a character may come from a misinterpretation of the stanza of ""Völuspá"". Sindri (mythology) In Norse mythology, Sindri (from the Old Norse ""sindr"": ""spark"") is the name of both a character (probably a dwarf) and a hall that will serve as a dwelling place for the souls of the virtuous after Ragnarök. ""Völuspá"" mentions ""a hall of gold, of the lineage of Sindri"" located northward, in Niðavellir. There are several reasons to think that Sindri is probably a dwarf: his name is related with forging and the hall is made of gold (dwarves are said to be skillful smiths), the"
"(friend) and ""gólf"" (floor, hall) and mean something like ""pleasant hall"". Alternatively the name could be read Víngólf and the meaning would be ""wine hall"". ""Uppsalabók"", one of the four main manuscripts of the Prose Edda, has the variant reading Vindglóð seemingly meaning ""wind ember"" but most variant readings which occur only in that manuscript are thought to be corrupted. In the entry for Vingólf in the ""Dictionary of Northern Mythology"", Rudolf Simek lists the following articles. Vingólf In Norse mythology, Vingólf is one of the buildings of the gods. It is described as the hall or ""hörgr"" of the"
"Heorot Heorot ( ), also Herot, is a mead-hall described in the Anglo-Saxon epic ""Beowulf"" as ""the foremost of halls under heaven."" It served as a palace for King Hroðgar, a legendary Danish king of the sixth century. ""Heorot"" means 'Hart, stag'. After the malicious entity Grendel slaughters the inhabitants of the hall, the Geatish hero Beowulf defends the royal hall before subsequently defeating him. Later Grendel's mother attacks the inhabitants of the hall, and she too is subsequently defeated by Beowulf. The anonymous author of ""Beowulf"" praises Heorot as follows: <poem>Then, as I have heard, the work of constructing"
"for bows in the North just as it was long afterwards for England."" Rudolf Simek says that ""this connexion of the god with the yew-tree, of whose wood bows were made (cf. ON ""ýbogi"" 'yew bow'), has led to Ullr being seen as a bow-god."" Andy Orchard comments that Ýdalir is an ""aptly named dwelling-place [for the] archer-god, Ull."" According to Hilda Ellis Davidson, while Valhalla ""is well known because it plays so large a part in images of warfare and death,"" the significance of other halls in Norse mythology such as Ýdalir, and the goddess Freyja's afterlife location Fólkvangr"
"emphasis on that ""Gylfaginning"" relates that ""whenever she rides into battle she takes half of the slain,"" and interprets ""Fólkvangr"" as ""the field of the Warriors."" Näsström comments that: Freyja receives the slain heroes of the battlefield quite respectfully as Óðinn does. Her house is called Sessrumnir, 'filled with many seats', and it probably fills the same function as Valhöll, 'the hall of the slain', where the warriors eat and drink beer after the fighting. Still, we must ask why there are two heroic paradises in the Old Norse View of afterlife. It might possibly be a consequence of different"
"second instance it is the hall or hörgr of the goddesses. In the third instance it is a residence for those slain in battle. The name does not occur in Eddaic or skaldic poetry. The enigmatic ""Hrafnagaldur Óðins"", a young mythological poem composed in the Eddic style, mentions Vingólf in one of its strophes. The context is enigmatic but Vingólf seems to be a place where the Æsir have gathered for an ale feasts. The significance of this mention hinges on the interpretation of ""Hrafnagaldur Óðins"" as a whole. The name ""Vingólf"" is usually thought to be composed of ""vinr"""
"Fólkvangr In Norse mythology, Fólkvangr (Old Norse ""field of the host"" or ""people-field"" or ""army-field"") is a meadow or field ruled over by the goddess Freyja where half of those that die in combat go upon death, while the other half go to the god Odin in Valhalla. Fólkvangr is attested in the ""Poetic Edda"", compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the ""Prose Edda"", written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. According to the ""Prose Edda"", within Fólkvangr is Freyja's hall Sessrúmnir. Scholarly theories have been proposed about the implications of the location. In the"
"created two great wolves. These wolves were called Hati and Sköll, and they were placed in the sky to pursue the chariots and devour them if they caught them. The realm of the Norse gods, the Æsir, is called Asgard or the ""Court of the Ás"". The Æsir built it after the homeworld of humans, and it contains many halls. Odin's hall, Válaskjálf, is roofed in silver. He can sit within it and view all the worlds at once. Gimli, a hall roofed in gold, to which righteous men are said to go after death, also lies somewhere in Asgard."
"Faulkes's translation of the ""Prose Edda"". Andlang In Norse mythology, Andlang (also Andlàngr or Öndlangr) is described as the second heavenly realm which stretches between the first, containing the halls of the gods, and the third, named Vídbláin. In all there are nine heavens according to Snorri. Andlang will serve as a shelter and dwelling place for the souls of the dead during and after the destruction of Ragnarök. Holtsmark (1964) noted that Snorri's Andlang derived from ""andlegr himinn"" (""spiritual heaven"") in the medieval Icelandic version of the ""Elucidarius"", crediting Hjalmar Falk for this inspiration, adding her own insight that"
"works of art, publication titles, and elements of popular culture, and has become a term synonymous with a martial (or otherwise) hall of the chosen dead. The Modern English noun ""Valhalla"" derives from Old Norse ""Valhöll"", a compound noun composed of two elements: the masculine noun ""valr"" 'the slain' and the feminine noun ""höll"" 'hall'. ""Valr"" has cognates in other Germanic languages such as Old English ""wæl"" 'the slain, slaughter, carnage', Old Saxon ""wal-dād"" 'murder', Old High German 'battlefield, blood bath'. All of these forms descend from the Proto-Germanic masculine noun *""walaz"". Among related Old Norse concepts, ""valr"" also appears"
"Andlang In Norse mythology, Andlang (also Andlàngr or Öndlangr) is described as the second heavenly realm which stretches between the first, containing the halls of the gods, and the third, named Vídbláin. In all there are nine heavens according to Snorri. Andlang will serve as a shelter and dwelling place for the souls of the dead during and after the destruction of Ragnarök. Holtsmark (1964) noted that Snorri's Andlang derived from ""andlegr himinn"" (""spiritual heaven"") in the medieval Icelandic version of the ""Elucidarius"", crediting Hjalmar Falk for this inspiration, adding her own insight that the ""and-"" heading made the term"
"in the afterlife in ""Gylfaginning"" but whether the two residences are identical is uncertain. Brimir In Norse mythology, Brimir is possibly another name for the giant Ymir and also a name of a hall for the souls of the virtuous following the endtime conflict of Ragnarok. In the ""Gylfaginning"" section of the ""Prose Edda"" Brimir refers to a hall in the heavens for good souls following Ragnarok where ""plenty of good drink"" will be available for those who take pleasure in it. In stanza 9 of ""Völuspá"", the first poem of the ""Poetic Edda"", Brimir and Blain are both interpreted"
"association with warriors in that she presides over the eternal combat of Hjaðningavíg. Rudolf Simek theorizes that the name ""Fólkvangr"" is ""surely not much older than ""Grímnismál"" itself"", and adds that the ""Gylfaginning"" description keeps close to the ""Grímnismál"" description, yet that the ""Gylfaginning"" descriptions adds that Sessrúmnir is located within Fólkvangr. According to Hilda Ellis Davidson, Valhalla ""is well known because it plays so large a part in images of warfare and death,"" yet the significance of other halls in Norse mythology such as Ýdalir, where the god Ullr dwells, and Freyja's Fólkvangr have been lost. Britt-Mari Näsström places"
"Hörgr A hörgr (Old Norse, plural ""hörgar"") or hearg (Old English) was a type of altar or cult site, possibly consisting of a heap of stones, used in Norse religion, as opposed to a roofed hall used as a ""hof"" (temple). The Old Norse term is attested in both the ""Poetic Edda"" and the ""Prose Edda"", in the sagas of Icelanders, skaldic poetry, and with its Old English cognate in ""Beowulf"". The word is also reflected in various place names (in English placenames as ""harrow""), often in connection with Germanic deities. Old Norse ""hǫrgr"" means ""altar, sanctuary""; Old English ""hearg"""
"offices and the workrooms of the court. The area north of the cathedral and west of the Medieval palace Tre Kronor (""Three Crowns""), burnt down in 1697, was known as ""Helvetet"" (""Hell""). The background of this atrocious name have been subject for some scholarly disputes; some suggesting it reflexes the popular belief the area north of churches were the location of evil (and therefore suitable for suicides and criminals), while other found references in Norse folklore where the ""Kingdom of the Dead"" was believed to be located to the north, and, 'Hell' still not associated with the pejorative meaning of"
"Þrúðvangr In Norse mythology, Þrúðvangr (Old Norse ""power-field"", sometimes anglicized as Thrudvang or Thruthvang) or Þrúðvangar (plural form) is/are a field/fields where the god Thor resides. The field is attested in the ""Prose Edda"" and in ""Heimskringla"", both written by Snorri Sturluson in the 13th century. In the ""Prose Edda"" book ""Gylfaginning"", the enthroned figure of High tells Gangleri (King Gylfi in disguise) about the god Thor. Among other details, High mentions that Thor's realm is Þrúðvangr and that Thor owns the hall Bilskírnir, the largest of all buildings ever erected. Further in ""Gylfaginning"", High mentions that Thor returned to"
"must ""administer board and lodging to those sent to her, and that is those who die of sickness or old age."" High details that in this realm Hel has ""great Mansions"" with extremely high walls and immense gates, a hall called Éljúðnir, a dish called ""Hunger,"" a knife called ""Famine,"" the servant Ganglati (Old Norse ""lazy walker""), the serving-maid Ganglöt (also ""lazy walker""), the entrance threshold ""Stumbling-block,"" the bed ""Sick-bed,"" and the curtains ""Gleaming-bale."" High describes Hel as ""half black and half flesh-coloured,"" adding that this makes her easily recognizable, and furthermore that Hel is ""rather downcast and fierce-looking."" In"
"the modern English noun ""hell"". In Swedish folklore, some mountains that were traditionally regarded as abodes of the dead were also called ""Valhall""; it is therefore possible that the ""höll"" element derives from ""hallr"", ""rock"", and originally referred to an underworld, not a hall. Valhalla is referenced at length in the ""Poetic Edda"" poem ""Grímnismál"", and ""Helgakviða Hundingsbana II"", while Valhalla receives lesser direct references in stanza 33 of the ""Völuspá"", where the god Baldr's death is referred to as the ""woe of Valhalla"", and in stanzas 1 to 3 of ""Hyndluljóð"", where the goddess Freyja states her intention of"
"Another word for hall, ""höll"", was used to describe another kind of sacral building, not meant for habitation but dedicated to special purposes like holding feasts. In the legend of Beowulf, Heorot is named as such. However the word ""höll"" is not found in place names and is likely to have been borrowed into East Norse from German or English in the late period. The ""vé"" is another kind of holy place and is also the most unambiguous name used for holy places in Scandinavia. The word comes from the proto-Germanic ""*wîha"", meaning ""holy"". Originally this word was used for"
"Niðavellir In Norse mythology, Niðavellir (anglic. as Nidavellir; prob. compd. of O.N. ""Nið"" - ""new moon"", ""the wane of the moon"" (perhaps related to ""niðr"" - ""down"") + ""Vellir"" (pl. of ""völlr"") - ""fields"": ""Dark Fields"", ""Downward Fields""), also called Myrkheim (""Myrkheimr"", O.N. compd. of ""myrkr"" - ""darkness"" + ""heimr"" - ""home"": ""the world of darkness"", ""Dark Abode""), is the home of the Dwarves. Hreidmar is the king of Niðavellir. It is mentioned in the Völuspá: ""Stóð fyr norðan, / á Niðavöllom / salr úr gulli / Sindra ættar"" (Stood to the north, a dark field, Halls of gold, Sindri's"
"she translates as ""filled with many seats""), a dwelling that Näsström posits likely fills the same function as Valhalla. Näsström comments that ""still, we must ask why there are two heroic paradises in the Old Norse view of afterlife. It might possibly be a consequence of different forms of initiation of warriors, where one part seemed to have belonged to Óðinn and the other to Freyja. These examples indicate that Freyja was a war-goddess, and she even appears as a valkyrie, literally 'the one who chooses the slain'."" Siegfried Andres Dobat comments that ""in her mythological role as the chooser"
"beings. The Furies were female spirits who exacted vengeance against people who committed specific crimes. Keres were female spirits of death and destruction. Persephone was the goddess of the underworld and the spouse of Hades. Thanatos, the god of death, was said to wear dark robes. The Vikings believed that if a warrior died in battle, he would be taken to the Norse afterlife: the hall of Valhöll, in which the warriors would prepare for Ragnarökk, the battle at the end of the world. Rune stones were erected to commemorate particularly brave warriors. Death in one's sleep (a ""straw death"")"
"Brimir In Norse mythology, Brimir is possibly another name for the giant Ymir and also a name of a hall for the souls of the virtuous following the endtime conflict of Ragnarok. In the ""Gylfaginning"" section of the ""Prose Edda"" Brimir refers to a hall in the heavens for good souls following Ragnarok where ""plenty of good drink"" will be available for those who take pleasure in it. In stanza 9 of ""Völuspá"", the first poem of the ""Poetic Edda"", Brimir and Blain are both interpreted as alternate names for Ymir, although distinction between origin and issue is often difficult"
"as the first element of the nouns ""valkyrja"" 'chooser of the slain, valkyrie' and ""Valfreyja"", one of the goddess Freyja's several names. The second element, ""höll"", is a common Old Norse noun. It is cognate to Modern English ""hall"" and has the same meaning. Both developed from Proto-Germanic *""xallō"" or *""hallō"", meaning 'covered place, hall', itself from the Proto-Indo-European root *""kol-"". As philologists such as Calvert Watkins have noted, the same Indo-European root produced Old Norse ""hel"", a proper noun employed for both the name of another afterlife location and a supernatural female entity who oversees it, as well as"
"Hel (being) In Norse mythology, Hel is a being who presides over a realm of the same name, where she receives a portion of the dead. Hel is attested in the ""Poetic Edda"", compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the ""Prose Edda"", written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In addition, she is mentioned in poems recorded in ""Heimskringla"" and ""Egils saga"" that date from the 9th and 10th centuries, respectively. An episode in the Latin work ""Gesta Danorum"", written in the 12th century by Saxo Grammaticus, is generally considered to refer to Hel, and"
"world is mentioned in the ""Prose Edda"" by Snorri Sturluson as ""Svartálfaheimr"". Niðavellir In Norse mythology, Niðavellir (anglic. as Nidavellir; prob. compd. of O.N. ""Nið"" - ""new moon"", ""the wane of the moon"" (perhaps related to ""niðr"" - ""down"") + ""Vellir"" (pl. of ""völlr"") - ""fields"": ""Dark Fields"", ""Downward Fields""), also called Myrkheim (""Myrkheimr"", O.N. compd. of ""myrkr"" - ""darkness"" + ""heimr"" - ""home"": ""the world of darkness"", ""Dark Abode""), is the home of the Dwarves. Hreidmar is the king of Niðavellir. It is mentioned in the Völuspá: ""Stóð fyr norðan, / á Niðavöllom / salr úr gulli / Sindra"
"and before Osiris and Nephthys. In the middle of the western wall there is the entrance leading to the long hall. The lomg hall proper is mainly dedicated to the Underworld and to funerary rites. The South wall is divided into three registers and shows a funerary procession, boats as well as Osiris and the Western goddess. The Northern wall shows the deceased in the fields of Iaru (the Underworld), the pilgrimage to Abydos is shown. The passage to the inner hall is decorated with the spells 110, 112 and 113 from the Book of the Dead. The spells are"
"Álfheimr Alfheim (, ""Land Of The Elves"" or ""Elfland""), also called Ljosalfheim (""Ljósálf[a]heimr"", ""home of the light-elves""), is one of the Nine Worlds and home of the Light Elves in Norse mythology. Álfheim as an abode of the Elves is mentioned only twice in Old Norse texts. The eddic poem ""Grímnismál"" describes twelve divine dwellings beginning in stanza 5 with: Ýdalir call they the place where Ull A hall for himself hath set; And Álfheim the gods to Frey once gave As a tooth-gift in ancient times. A tooth-gift was a gift given to an infant on the cutting of"
"and that Snorri's description of Hel may at times be influenced by Christian teachings about the after-life. Hel (location) In Norse mythology, Hel (occasionally Helheim in secondary sources), the location, shares a name with Hel, a being who rules over the location. In late Icelandic sources, varying descriptions of Hel are given and various figures are described as being buried with items that will facilitate their journey to Hel after their death. In the ""Poetic Edda"", Brynhildr's trip to Hel after her death is described and Odin, while alive, also visits Hel upon his horse Sleipnir. In Snorri Sturluson's ""Prose"