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Tag Archives: asatru

Icelandic midwinter feast, Þorrablót. Posted by on Jan 28, 2016

In the deepest winter Icelanders celebrate Þorri, the personification of winter: that’s when traditional foods are served along with strong liquor, preferably Brennivín.The celebration bears the name Þorrablót, a clear reminder of its Pagan roots – a blót is a ritual sacrifice or a feast held to honour a god or gods. The tradition died…

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Icelandic kennings. Posted by on Jul 16, 2015

What is “a wave’s horse”? If someone’s talking of “Ymir’s skull”, what are they talking about? What or who is being called Hringaná in the old song Hættu að gráta Hringaná? And who is “the possessor of the fallen slain and the owner of Sessrúmnir”? Kennings, or circumlocutions, form a large part of traditional Icelandic…

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Happy First of Summer! Posted by on Apr 23, 2015

Summer is finally here! I mean it did snow a few times today and the night before was freezing, but that’s just good luck according to old beliefs, it’s said that if winter and summer freeze together the summer will be good. Sumardagurinn fyrsti, The First of Summer, divides the year into its warmer half just like…

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Staving off a disaster; magical tattoos. Posted by on Apr 16, 2014

I’ve noticed a growing trend of people having Icelandic magical staves tattooed on them lately. Some of the choices, alas, range from weird to unintentionally funny and inappropriate. On its own having such a stave tattooed is not a bad thing at all. Icelanders themselves often get them as tattoos and it’s not considered insulting…

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The end is nigh (again). Posted by on Feb 13, 2014

Bad news first, the end of the world has been announced for the 22nd of February. Then for the good ones, this time it will be Ragnarök so no need to repent your sins, just strap yourself in and enjoy the ride! To be expected: earthquakes, volcanic activity, possible sightings of a massive sea serpent…

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New Year’s party in Iceland Posted by on Dec 30, 2013

The year is almost over and we’re all heading for a new one, so let’s take a moment to have a look at the past, present and future of Iceland and this particular Icelandic blog shall we? 😉 PAST Well, that sounds dramatic but in fact I just wanted to take a quick look back…

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Thor son of Odin wears it best. Posted by on Nov 30, 2013

“What’s the most typical syllable that names begin in Medieval, Norwegian sagas?” our professor asked on our this week’s Medieval literature lesson. People guessed immediately Þór/Þor, which was actually not correct for Norway but rather Iceland. If you’ve ever read Icelandic sagas you’ll totally understand this one… it’s almost comical to try to follow the…

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