Mimir's sons

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Mimir's sons are mentioned in Norse mythology . In the Völuspá , a song from the Lieder Edda , they play with the Gjallarhorn of the god Heimdall when Ragnarök begins. Otherwise they are not mentioned in the Norse literature . It is unclear who they are and what their role is in Norse mythology. By nature they are either giants like Mimir or natural mythological personifications of the rivers that spring from Mimir's well. The Gjallarhorn probably expresses a location that means Mimir's source under the world tree Yggdrasil . If one sees personifications in them, the Völuspá describes in myth language how the rivers swell at the beginning of Ragnarök, because the Old Norse leika can mean `` to play '' as well as `` dance, move ''. So it can be concluded that they are causing a flood that inundates the country. That the beginning of Ragnarök was also accompanied by a flood disaster is testified by another passage in Old Norse literature that may be related to it:

“In storms, the sea rises to the sky itself, washes over the countries [...]; then it is determined that the counselors [these are the gods] come to an end. "

- Hyndluljóð 42

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Lieder-Edda: Völuspá 46 (citation of the Lieder-Edda after Arnulf Krause: Die Götter- und Heldenlieder der Älteren Edda. Reclam, 2004, ISBN 3-15-050047-8 ). [= Translation after Karl Joseph Simrock : The Edda . 1851, Wöluspa 47]
  2. ^ Francois Xaver Dillmann: Mimir . In: Heinrich Beck, Dieter Geuenich, Heiko Steuer (eds.): Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde , Vol. 20. De Gruyter, Berlin - New York 2001, ISBN 3-11-017163-5 , p. 38.
  3. ^ Eduard Neumann and Helmut Voigt: Germanic mythology . 1973, p. 71. - Wolfgang Golther: Handbook of Germanic mythology . Hirzel, Leipzig 1895. New edition: Marix, Wiesbaden 2004, ISBN 3-937715-38-X , pp. 227, 420.
  4. ↑ Compare Karl Joseph Simrock: Die Edda. 1851, in his notes on Völuspá. - Wolfgang Golther: Handbook of Germanic mythology . Hirzel, Leipzig 1895. New edition: Marix, Wiesbaden 2004, ISBN 3-937715-38-X , p. 637.
  5. ^ Walter Baetke: Dictionary of Norse prose literature. 1st & 2nd edition. In digital version, Greifswald 2006.