Jörd

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Earth goddess Jörd - sculpture by Ásmundur Sveinsson from 1936

Jörd ( aisl. Jörð "earth") is the earth goddess in Norse mythology .

Through Odin she is the mother of Thor, the god of thunder, and daughter of Nótt and Ánarr . Otherwise it no longer plays a role in mythology, but has several names: Fjörgyn , Fold , Grund and Hlóðyn . The latter name appears as Hludana on five Roman consecration stones from Lower Germany and Beetgum in Friesland . The name Fjörgyn , on the other hand, belongs to the old English firgen and Gothic fairguni "mountains" and further to the ancient name of the German low mountain range ( celt. Hercynia silva , Old High German : Virgunnea ). In addition, Nordic mythology knows a male god Fjörgynn , who is the father of the goddess Frigg . Although this name corresponds etymologically exactly to the name of the Baltic thunder god Perkunas , the connection remains hidden. A probably independent development from an old word for oak (ie. * Perkuos , Latin quercus ; ahd. Fereh-eih ) is assumed .

The name Fold is also found in the Anglo-Saxon tradition as a fold, fira módor ("earth, the mother of man") in the Anglo-Saxon field blessing . A few lines later she is called Erce, Erce, Erce eorþan módor ("Erce, earth mother"). The name seems to be of Indo-European origin * Plth₂uih₂ meh₂tēr , f., "Earth mother": ancient Indian: Prthivī mātā and Gallic Litavis .

wagner

In Richard Wagner's opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen the earth goddess is called Erda , she is the mother of Brünnhilde and the Norns through Wotan , but this is based on the free design of the figure by Wagner.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. Beetgum CIL 13, 08830
  2. ↑ Digitized manuscripts: http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=cotton_ms_caligula_a_vii_f177v .