Fornjót
Encyclopedia
Fornjót was an ancient giant in Norse mythology
and a king of Finland
. His children are Ægir
(the ruler of the sea), Logi
(fire giant) and Kári (god of wind).
The name has often been interpreted as forn-jótr "ancient giant", and Karl Simrock (1869) because of this identified Formjotr with the primeval giant Ymir
.
But it is also possible, as was suggested by Müller (1818), that it is one of a well-established group of names or titles of gods in -njótr "user, owner, possessor", which would make Fornjótr the "original owner" (primus occupans vel utens) of Norway.
where "son of Fornjót" seems to refer to fire and in a citation in Snorri Sturluson
's Skáldskaparmál
:
Fornjót is listed as a giant (jötun) in one of the thulur sometimes included in editions of the Skáldskaparmál. This is as expected, since Fornjót's son Ægir is also identified as a giant in various sources.
In the Orkneyinga saga
and in Hversu Noregr byggdist
('How Norway was settled')— both found in the Flatey Book— Fornjót appears as an ancient ruler of Finland
, Kvenland and Gotland
. He is father of three sons named Ægir or Hlér, Logi and Kári. The Hversu account says further that Ægir ruled over the seas, Logi over fire, and Kári over wind.
in the tale of Thor
and Loki
's journey to the castle of the giant Útgarða-Loki
in Jötunheimr
where Loki was pitted against Logi in an eating contest. The contestants appeared to be equal in speed at eating meat from the bone, but Logi also consumed the bones and even the wooden trencher
in which the meat was placed. Útgarða-Loki afterwards explained that Logi was really fire itself.
('Saga of Thorstein son of Víking') brings in a king named Logi who ruled the country north of Norway
. Logi was the handsomest of men, but with the strength and size of the giants from whom he was descended. (Logi's ancestry is here not otherwise specified.) Because Loge was larger and stronger than any other man in land, his name was lengthened from Logi to Hálogi 'High-Logi' and from that name the country was called Hálogaland 'Hálogi's-land' (modern Hålogaland
or Halogaland).
The saga tells that Hálogi's wife was Glöd (Glǫð 'glad'), the daughter of Grím (Grímr) of Grímsgard (Grímsgarðr) in Jötunheim in the far north and her mother was Alvör (Alvǫr) the sister of King Álf the Old ('Álfr hinn gamli') of Álfheim
. Or perhaps, the name of Hálogi's wife should be rendered instead as Glód (Glóð 'red-hot embers') if this Logi is indeed either identical or confused with Logi as a personification of fire. The names of his daughters in this account were Eisa 'glowing embers' and Eimyrja 'embers', the fairest women in the land, whose names were later applied to the things which became their meaning, certain indication of the original fiery nature of their father. (Wife and daughters are sometimes wrongly ascribed to Loki rather than Logi in secondary sources.)
Two of Hálogi's jarls named Véseti and Vífil (Vífill) abducted Hálogi's daughters and fled the country. At that point Hálogi is out of the story. Véseti settled in Borgundarhólm (Bornholm
) where Eisa bore him two sons named Búi and Sigurd Cape (Sigurðr Kápa). Vífil fled farther east to an island named Vífilsey 'Vífil's Isle' where Eimyrja bore him a son named Víking
(Víkingr) who was father of Thorstein (Þorsteinn) the hero of the saga. Víking is made out to be a contemporary of a King Ólaf (Ólafr) who is said to be the brother of King Önund
(Ǫnundr) of Sweden
. Descendants of Thorstein appear in Fridthjófs saga ins frækna (Friðþjófs saga ins frækna 'Saga of Fridthjof the Bold') and in the Starkad
section of Gautreks saga
'Gautrek's saga'.
This account cannot be reconiciled with the account in the Hversu and Orkneyinga saga without assuming multiple figures with the same names. In Thorsteins saga Víkingssonar, Logi (a descendant of giants) is the husband to a niece of King Álf the Old of Álfheim who himself is the husband of Bergdís the daughter of King Raum (Raumr) of Raumaríki. In the other accounts Logi is the brother of Kári who is a distant ancestor of Raum the Old
who is father of Álf or Finnálf (Finnálfr), king of Álfheim.
See Snær
to follow this lineage further.
the names Logi and Frosti are otherwise connected when it relates that King Agni of Sweden
in a raid on Finland killed Frosti, the leader of the Finns who opposed him and captured Skjálf, Frosti's daughter, and her brother Logi. (But the verse of the Ynglingtal quoted here as confirmation says only that Skjálf is Logi's kin.) For Skjálf's marriage to Agni and her vengeance on him see Agni
. Agni himself, as discussed under Snær
, is here a descendant of Snær through Snær's daughter Drífa who married King Vanlandi
of Sweden.
Norse mythology
Norse mythology, a subset of Germanic mythology, is the overall term for the myths, legends and beliefs about supernatural beings of Norse pagans. It flourished prior to the Christianization of Scandinavia, during the Early Middle Ages, and passed into Nordic folklore, with some aspects surviving...
and a king of Finland
Ancient kings of Finland
Almost nothing is known about the Ancient kings of Finland. Even though no record of ancient kings in Finland exists, prehistoric Finland probably had chieftains called "kings", as the loanword kuningas, "king", has existed in the same meaning in the Finnish language since early Germanic times,...
. His children are Ægir
Ægir
Ægir is a sea giant, god of the ocean and king of the sea creatures in Norse mythology. He is also known for hosting elaborate parties for the gods.Ægir's servants are Fimafeng and Eldir.- Description :...
(the ruler of the sea), Logi
Logi
In Norse mythology, Logi or Loge is a fire giant, god and personification of fire. He is son of giant Fornjótr and brother of Ægir and Kári...
(fire giant) and Kári (god of wind).
The name has often been interpreted as forn-jótr "ancient giant", and Karl Simrock (1869) because of this identified Formjotr with the primeval giant Ymir
Ymir
In Norse mythology, Ymir, also called Aurgelmir among the giants themselves, was the founder of the race of frost giants and was later killed by the Borrs.-Etymology:...
.
But it is also possible, as was suggested by Müller (1818), that it is one of a well-established group of names or titles of gods in -njótr "user, owner, possessor", which would make Fornjótr the "original owner" (primus occupans vel utens) of Norway.
Fornjót in the texts
Fornjót is mentioned only twice in old verse: in stanza 29 of YnglingatalYnglingatal
Ynglingatal is a skaldic poem listing the kings of the House of Ynglings, dated by most scholars to the late 9th century.The original version is attributed to Þjóðólfr af Hvini who was the skald of a Norwegian petty king named Ragnvald the Mountain-High and who was a cousin of Harald Fairhair...
where "son of Fornjót" seems to refer to fire and in a citation in Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was twice elected lawspeaker at the Icelandic parliament, the Althing...
's Skáldskaparmál
Skáldskaparmál
The second part of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda the Skáldskaparmál or "language of poetry" is effectively a dialogue between the Norse god of the sea, Ægir and Bragi, the god of poetry, in which both Norse mythology and discourse on the nature of poetry are intertwined...
:
How should the wind be periphrased? Thus: call it son of Fornjót, Brother of the Sea and of Fire, Scathe or Ruin or Hound or Wolf of the Wood or of the Sail or of the Rigging.
Thus spake Svein in the Nordrsetu-drápa:
First began to fly
Fornjót's sons ill-shapen.
Fornjót is listed as a giant (jötun) in one of the thulur sometimes included in editions of the Skáldskaparmál. This is as expected, since Fornjót's son Ægir is also identified as a giant in various sources.
In the Orkneyinga saga
Orkneyinga saga
The Orkneyinga saga is a historical narrative of the history of the Orkney Islands, from their capture by the Norwegian king in the ninth century onwards until about 1200...
and in Hversu Noregr byggdist
Hversu Noregr byggdist
Hversu Noregr byggðist is an account of the origin of various legendary Norwegian lineages, which survives only in the Flatey Book. It traces the descendants of the primeval Finnish ruler Fornjót down to Nór, who is here the eponym and first great king of Norway, and then gives details of the...
('How Norway was settled')— both found in the Flatey Book— Fornjót appears as an ancient ruler of Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Kvenland and Gotland
Gotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
. He is father of three sons named Ægir or Hlér, Logi and Kári. The Hversu account says further that Ægir ruled over the seas, Logi over fire, and Kári over wind.
In Gylfaginning
Logi appears by that name in GylfaginningGylfaginning
Gylfaginning, or the Tricking of Gylfi , is the first part of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda after Prologue. The Gylfaginning deals with the creation and destruction of the world of the Norse gods, and many other aspects of Norse mythology...
in the tale of Thor
Thor
In Norse mythology, Thor is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing, and fertility...
and Loki
Loki
In Norse mythology, Loki or Loke is a god or jötunn . Loki is the son of Fárbauti and Laufey, and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. By the jötunn Angrboða, Loki is the father of Hel, the wolf Fenrir, and the world serpent Jörmungandr. By his wife Sigyn, Loki is the father of Nari or Narfi...
's journey to the castle of the giant Útgarða-Loki
Útgarða-Loki
In Norse mythology, Útgarða-Loki was the ruler of the castle Útgarðr in Jötunheimr. He was one of the Jötnar and his name means literally "Loki of the Outyards," to distinguish him from Loki, the companion of Thor.-Prose Edda:According to the Prose Edda book Gylfaginning, Thor, Þjálfi and Loki,...
in Jötunheimr
Jötunheimr
Jötunheimr is one of the Nine Worlds and the homeland of the Giants of Norse Mythology — Rock Giants and Frost Giants.-Legend:...
where Loki was pitted against Logi in an eating contest. The contestants appeared to be equal in speed at eating meat from the bone, but Logi also consumed the bones and even the wooden trencher
Trencher (tableware)
A trencher is a type of tableware, commonly used in medieval cuisine. A trencher was originally a piece of stale bread, cut into a square shape by a carver, and used as a plate, upon which the food could be placed before being eaten. At the end of the meal, the trencher could be eaten with sauce,...
in which the meat was placed. Útgarða-Loki afterwards explained that Logi was really fire itself.
In the Saga of Thorstein Víking's son
The beginning of Þorsteins saga VíkingssonarÞorsteins saga Víkingssonar
Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar or The Saga of Thorstein, Viking's Son is a legendary saga taking place in the 7th century and it is about the father of Frithjof the Bold. It begins in Norway and Sweden but continues into exotic places such as India. It is not one of the more famous sagas, but it is...
('Saga of Thorstein son of Víking') brings in a king named Logi who ruled the country north of Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. Logi was the handsomest of men, but with the strength and size of the giants from whom he was descended. (Logi's ancestry is here not otherwise specified.) Because Loge was larger and stronger than any other man in land, his name was lengthened from Logi to Hálogi 'High-Logi' and from that name the country was called Hálogaland 'Hálogi's-land' (modern Hålogaland
Hålogaland
Hålogaland was the northernmost of the Norwegian provinces in the mediaeval Norse sagas. In the early Viking Age, before Harald Fairhair, Hålogaland was a petty kingdom extending between Namdalen in Nord-Trøndelag and Lyngen in Troms.-Etymology:...
or Halogaland).
The saga tells that Hálogi's wife was Glöd (Glǫð 'glad'), the daughter of Grím (Grímr) of Grímsgard (Grímsgarðr) in Jötunheim in the far north and her mother was Alvör (Alvǫr) the sister of King Álf the Old ('Álfr hinn gamli') of Álfheim
Álfheim
Alfheim is one of the Nine Worlds and home of the Light Elves in Norse mythology and appears also in Anglo-Scottish ballads under the form Elfhame as a fairyland, sometimes modernized as Elfland .-In Old Norse texts:Álfheim as an abode of the Elves is mentioned only twice in Old Norse texts.The...
. Or perhaps, the name of Hálogi's wife should be rendered instead as Glód (Glóð 'red-hot embers') if this Logi is indeed either identical or confused with Logi as a personification of fire. The names of his daughters in this account were Eisa 'glowing embers' and Eimyrja 'embers', the fairest women in the land, whose names were later applied to the things which became their meaning, certain indication of the original fiery nature of their father. (Wife and daughters are sometimes wrongly ascribed to Loki rather than Logi in secondary sources.)
Two of Hálogi's jarls named Véseti and Vífil (Vífill) abducted Hálogi's daughters and fled the country. At that point Hálogi is out of the story. Véseti settled in Borgundarhólm (Bornholm
Bornholm
Bornholm is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea located to the east of the rest of Denmark, the south of Sweden, and the north of Poland. The main industries on the island include fishing, arts and crafts like glass making and pottery using locally worked clay, and dairy farming. Tourism is...
) where Eisa bore him two sons named Búi and Sigurd Cape (Sigurðr Kápa). Vífil fled farther east to an island named Vífilsey 'Vífil's Isle' where Eimyrja bore him a son named Víking
Viking (Norse Mythology)
Viking is the name of the son of Vífil and Eimyrja in Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar. Viking is the father of Thorsten and Thorer.The two daughters of Logi were stolen away by suitors to nearby islands. Viking was a son of one of these daughters. He grew up in Bornholm. By the time he was 15, he is...
(Víkingr) who was father of Thorstein (Þorsteinn) the hero of the saga. Víking is made out to be a contemporary of a King Ólaf (Ólafr) who is said to be the brother of King Önund
Anund
Anund, Swedish: Bröt-Anund meaning trail-blazer Anund or Anund the Land Clearer; alternate names Brøt-Anundr or Braut-Önundr , was a legendary Swedish king of the House of Yngling who reigned in the mid-seventh century...
(Ǫnundr) of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Descendants of Thorstein appear in Fridthjófs saga ins frækna (Friðþjófs saga ins frækna 'Saga of Fridthjof the Bold') and in the Starkad
Starkad
Starkad, Old Norse: Starkaðr or Störkuðr, Latin: Starcaterus, and during the late Middle Ages, also known as Starkodder, was a legendary hero in Norse mythology....
section of Gautreks saga
Gautreks saga
Gautreks saga is a Scandinavian legendary saga put to text towards the end of the 13th century which survives only in much later manuscripts...
'Gautrek's saga'.
This account cannot be reconiciled with the account in the Hversu and Orkneyinga saga without assuming multiple figures with the same names. In Thorsteins saga Víkingssonar, Logi (a descendant of giants) is the husband to a niece of King Álf the Old of Álfheim who himself is the husband of Bergdís the daughter of King Raum (Raumr) of Raumaríki. In the other accounts Logi is the brother of Kári who is a distant ancestor of Raum the Old
Raum the Old
Raum the Old is a legendary king in Norway in the Hversu Noregr byggdist and in Thorsteins saga Víkingssonar. He was said to have been ugly, as was his daughter, Bryngerd, who was married to King Álf. Indeed, in Old Norse, raumr means a big and ugly person...
who is father of Álf or Finnálf (Finnálfr), king of Álfheim.
Kári
Kári is mentioned in one of the thulur as a term for wind. Otherwise this personage appears only in the Hversu and Orkneyinga saga accounts where Kári appears to be the heir to his father's kingdoms as in the Hversu Kári's descendants emerge also as rulers of Finland and Kvenland. Kári is father of a son who is named Frosti ('frost') according to the Orkneyinga saga but named Jökul (jǫkull: 'icicle, ice, glacier') according to the Hversu. This son in turn is the father of Snær the Old (Snærr inn gamli 'Snow the Old').See Snær
Snær
Snær Snærr, East Norse Sniō, Latin Nix, Nivis) 'snow', in Norse mythology seemingly a personification of snow, appearing in extant text as an euhemerized legendary Scandinavian king.-Icelandic tradition:...
to follow this lineage further.
More traditions about persons named Frosti and Logi
In the Ynglinga sagaYnglinga saga
Ynglinga saga is a legendary saga, originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson about 1225. It was first translated into English and published in 1844....
the names Logi and Frosti are otherwise connected when it relates that King Agni of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
in a raid on Finland killed Frosti, the leader of the Finns who opposed him and captured Skjálf, Frosti's daughter, and her brother Logi. (But the verse of the Ynglingtal quoted here as confirmation says only that Skjálf is Logi's kin.) For Skjálf's marriage to Agni and her vengeance on him see Agni
Agne
Agne, English: Agni, Hogne or Agni Skjálfarbondi was a mythological king of Sweden, of the House of Yngling.Snorri Sturluson relates that he was the son of Dag the Wise, and he was mighty and famous. He was also skilled in many ways....
. Agni himself, as discussed under Snær
Snær
Snær Snærr, East Norse Sniō, Latin Nix, Nivis) 'snow', in Norse mythology seemingly a personification of snow, appearing in extant text as an euhemerized legendary Scandinavian king.-Icelandic tradition:...
, is here a descendant of Snær through Snær's daughter Drífa who married King Vanlandi
Vanlade
Vanlandi or Vanlande was a Swedish king at Uppsala of the House of Yngling in Norse mythology. He was the son of Sveigðir whom he succeeded as king. He married a girl from Finnland , but forgot about her. In revenge, the girl arranged so that Vanlandi was hag ridden to death...
of Sweden.