Læraðr is a tree in Norse mythology

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...

, often identified with Yggdrasill. It stands at the top of the Valhöll. Two animals, the goat Heiðrún

Heiðrún

Heiðrún is a goat in Norse mythology, which consumes the foliage of the tree Læraðr and produces mead for the einherjar. She is described in the Poetic Edda and Prose Edda.-Prose Edda:-Poetic Edda:...

 and the hart

Hart (deer)

The word hart is an old alternative word for "stag" ....

 Eikþyrnir

Eikþyrnir

Eikþyrnir is a stag which stands upon Valhalla in Norse mythology. The following is related in the Gylfaginning section of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda after the description of Heiðrún....

, graze its foliage.

Etymology

The meaning of Læraðr / Léraðr is unclear. One of the meanings of læ is "harm", "betrayal". A possible translation of Læraðr could therefore be "arranger of betrayal", which would relate to Yggdrasill as the place of Odin's self-sacrifice. Another reading is sometimes suggested, *hléradr, whose first component means "shelter" and which could thus be rendered into "giver of protection".

Poetic Edda

Læraðr is mentioned in two stanzas of the Grímnismál

Grímnismál

Grímnismál is one of the mythological poems of the Poetic Edda. It is preserved in the Codex Regius manuscript and the AM 748 I 4to fragment. It is spoken through the voice of Grímnir, one of the many guises of the god Odin, who is tortured by King Geirröth...

:

Heidrun the goat is called,

that stands o’er Odin’s hall,

and bits from Lærad’s branches.

He a bowl shall fill

with the bright mead;

that drink shall never fail.

Eikthyrnir the hart is called,

that stands o’er Odin’s hall,

and bits from Lærad’s branches;

from his horns fall

drops into Hvergelmir,

whence all waters rise:-

—Grímnismál (25, 26), Thorpe's translation

Prose Edda

Under the name Léraðr , it also appears 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 Gylfaginning:

The she-goat, she who is called Heidrún, stands up in Valhall and bites the needles from the limb of that tree which is very famous, and is called [Léraðr]; and from her udders mead runs so copiously, that she fills a tun every day. [...] Even more worthy of note is the hart Eikthyrni, which stands in Valhall and bites from the limbs of the tree; and from his horns distils such abundant exudation that it comes down into Hvergelmir, and from thence fall those rivers called thus [...].

—Gylfaginning (39), Brodeur's translation

Theories

According to John Lindow

John Lindow

John Lindow is a professor specializing in Scandinavian medieval studies and folklore at the University of California, Berkeley and author. Lindow's works include Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Rituals, and Beliefs, a handbook for Norse mythology...

, the first reason to identify Lærad with Yggdrasill is "Lærad's location at Odin's hall, which would be at the center of the cosmos". Another argument is that many animals dwell in or around Yggdrasill, such as an eagle, the squirrel Ratatoskr, four stags

Four stags of Yggdrasill

In Norse mythology, four stags or harts eat among the branches of the World Tree Yggdrasill. According to the Poetic Edda, the stags crane their necks upward to chomp at the branches. Their names are given as Dáinn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Duraþrór...

, many snakes and the dragon Níðhöggr

Níðhöggr

In Norse mythology, Níðhöggr is a dragon who gnaws at a root of the World Tree, Yggdrasill.-Prose Edda:...

. Snorri also wrote that Hvergelmir

Hvergelmir

Hvergelmir is the wellspring of cold in Niflheim in Norse mythology. All cold rivers are said to come from here, and it was said to be the source of the eleven rivers, Élivágar. Above the spring, the serpent Níðhöggr gnaws on one of the roots of the world tree, Yggdrasil.-References:* Orchard,...

was located under Yggdrasill (Gylfaginning, 15, 16)