Laufey

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Laufey or Nál is the wife of the giant Fárbauti and the mother of Loki in Norse mythology .

The interpretation of the name Laufey is uncertain. In a compilation of the Lieder-Edda and Snorra-Edda published by Ulf Diederichs , the name is translated as "Laubinsel". Nál means (as in New Icelandic ) "needle" and is reproduced accordingly in Gustav Neckel's translation of the Snorra Edda :

"His name is Loki or Lopt, his father is Farbauti - a giant - his mother is Laufey or Nadel, his brothers are Byleist and Helblindi ."

- Prose Edda

In addition to this passage from Gylfaginning , Laufey is mentioned several times in both the Lieder Edda and the Snorra Edda, but mostly only in phrases such as “Loki, the son of Laufey”. The fact that Loki is always called Loki Laufeyjar sonr ("Loki, son of Laufey"), but not Farbauta sonr ("son of Farbauti") in the Edda is due to the poetic stylistic device of alliteration .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ulf Diederichs (Ed.): Germanic doctrine of gods . 4th edition. Diederichs, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-424-00746-3 , pp. 246 .
  2. ↑ Ingvar G. Brynjólfsson: Langenscheidts Universal Dictionary Icelandic . 13th edition. Langenscheidt, Berlin 1988, ISBN 3-468-18170-1 , p. 121 .
  3. ^ Prose Edda . In: Ulf Diederichs (Ed.): Germanic doctrine of gods . 4th edition. Diederichs, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-424-00746-3 , pp. 246 .