1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910795644703321

Autore

Nordvig Mathias

Titolo

Volcanoes in Old Norse mythology : myth and environment in early Iceland / / by Mathias Nordvig [[electronic resource]]

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Leeds : , : Arc Humanities Press, , 2021

ISBN

1-64189-292-7

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (156 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)

Collana

Borderlines

Disciplina

551.2

Soggetti

Volcanoes - Iceland - History - To 1500

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 27 Apr 2021).

Nota di contenuto

Frontmatter -- CONTENTS -- Introduction -- Chapter 1. Old Norse Mythology between Environment and Literature -- Chapter 2. An Indigenous Theory of Volcanism in Iceland -- Chapter 3. Volcanism in Old Norse Cosmogony -- Chapter 4. Volcanoes in the Social Order of Old Norse Mythology -- Chapter 5. Volcanoes as a Cosmological Principle in Old Norse Mythology -- Bibliography -- Index.

Sommario/riassunto

Volcanoes in Old Norse Mythology details how Viking Age Icelanders, migrating from Scandinavia to a new and volcanically active environment, used Old Norse mythology to understand and negotiate the hazards of the island. These pre-Christian myths recorded in medieval Iceland expound an indigenous Icelandic theory on volcanism that revolves around the activities of supernatural beings, such as the fire-demon Surtr and the gods Odin and Thor. Before the Icelanders were introduced to Christianity and its teachings, they formulated an indigenous theory of volcanism on basis of their traditional mythology much like other indigenous peoples across the world.