Old Norse
Saga language source
Old Norse is the medieval North Germanic language spoken by Scandinavians from roughly the 8th to 14th centuries.
It was the language of the Vikings, the Icelandic sagas, and the Eddas.
Old Norse contributed heavily to English vocabulary—words like sky, egg, they, and husband entered English through Viking contact.
Modern Icelandic remains remarkably close to Old Norse.
- skaldNorse heroic poet
- HávamálOld Norse wisdom poem
- Njáls sagaMedieval Icelandic family chronicle
- oral traditionCulture passed by speech
chronicle · heroic · genealogy · feud · kinship · poetry · verse · lore
Of a North Atlantic island
- FaroeseDanish territory's Germanic language
- linguisticsScience of language structure
- philologyStudy of historical texts
- etymologyWord origin study
grammar · morphology · syntax · phonology · inflection · declension · conjugation · lexicon
Chief Norse deity
- ThorGermanic thunder deity
- LokiNorse god of deception
- FreyjaNorse love goddess
- ValhallaHall for fallen warriors
Asgard · Midgard · Ragnarok · Bifrost · Heimdall · Fenrir · Mjolnir · Norns
Medieval Norse sailing vessels
- raidsSudden armed attacks
- seafaringTraveling by ocean vessel
- ScandinaviaNordic countries collectively
- warriorsPeople engaged in battle
Leif Erikson · Vinland · berserkers · jarls · thralls · mead halls · Thing · settlements
First Germanic runic alphabet
- Younger FutharkReduced Scandinavian runic alphabet
- inscriptionText permanently marked
- runestoneInscribed Viking memorial stone
- carvingShaping by cutting away
staves · divination · memorial · alphabet · transliteration · epigraphy · sorcery · amulets
Snorri Sturluson
- skaldNorse heroic poet
- HávamálOld Norse wisdom poem
- Njáls sagaMedieval Icelandic family chronicle
oral tradition · chronicle · heroic · genealogy · feud · kinship · poetry · verse · lore
Icelandic
Of a North Atlantic island
- FaroeseDanish territory's Germanic language
- linguisticsScience of language structure
- philologyStudy of historical texts
etymology · grammar · morphology · syntax · phonology · inflection · declension · conjugation · lexicon · cognates
Odin
Chief Norse deity
Valhalla · Asgard · Midgard · Ragnarok · Bifrost · Heimdall · Fenrir · Mjolnir · Norns · Balder
longships
Medieval Norse sailing vessels
- raidsSudden armed attacks
- seafaringTraveling by ocean vessel
- ScandinaviaNordic countries collectively
warriors · Leif Erikson · Vinland · berserkers · jarls · thralls · mead halls · Thing · settlements · Eric the Red
Elder Futhark
First Germanic runic alphabet
- Younger FutharkReduced Scandinavian runic alphabet
- inscriptionText permanently marked
- runestoneInscribed Viking memorial stone
carving · staves · divination · memorial · alphabet · transliteration · epigraphy · sorcery · amulets · talismans
- languagesEnglish, Arabic, Chinese, German, French
- NorwayOslo, Bergen, Trondheim, fjord, fjords
- VikingsViking, longships, longship, raiding, raiders
- etymologyword origins, word history, word origin, etymon, root words
- Nordic CultureOdin, Thor, Freya, sagas, Viking history
- Norse mythologyThor, Odin, Loki, Valhalla, Ragnarok