During the 12th century, Danish accounts bySaxo Grammaticus and other Danish Latin chroniclers recorded aeuhemerized account of his story. Compiled inIceland during the 13th century, but based on olderOld Norse poetry, thePoetic Edda and theProse Edda contain numerous references to the death of Baldr as both a great tragedy to theÆsir and a harbinger ofRagnarök.
TheOld NorsetheonymBaldr ('brave, defiant'; also 'lord, prince') and its various Germanic cognates – includingOld EnglishBældæg andOld High GermanBalder (orPalter) – probably stems fromProto-Germanic*Balðraz ('Hero, Prince'; cf. Old Norsemann-baldr 'great man', Old Englishbealdor 'prince, hero'), itself aderivative of*balþaz, meaning 'brave' (cf. Old Norseballr 'hard, stubborn',Gothicbalþa* 'bold, frank', Old Englishbeald 'bold, brave, confident', Old Saxonbald 'valiant, bold', Old High Germanbald 'brave, courageous').[1][2]
This etymology was originally proposed byJacob Grimm (1835),[3] who also speculated on a comparison with theLithuanianbáltas ('white', also the name of a light-god) based on the semantic development from 'white' to 'shining' then 'strong'.[1][2] According to linguistVladimir Orel, this could be linguistically tenable.[2] PhilologistRudolf Simek also argues that the Old EnglishBældæg should be interpreted as meaning 'shining day', from a Proto-Germanic root *bēl- (cf. Old Englishbæl, Old Norsebál 'fire')[4] attached todæg ('day').[5]
Old Norse also shows the usage of the word as an honorific in a few cases, as inbaldur î brynju (Sæm. 272b) andherbaldr (Sæm. 218b), in general epithets of heroes. In continental Saxon and Anglo-Saxon tradition, the son ofWoden is called notBealdor butBaldag (Saxon) andBældæg, Beldeg (Anglo-Saxon), which shows association with "day", possibly withDay personified as a deity. This, as Grimm points out, would agree with the meaning "shining one, white one, a god" derived from the meaning of Balticbaltas, further adducing SlavicBelobog and GermanBerhta.[6]
One of the twoMerseburg Incantations namesBalder (in the genitive singularBalderes), but also mentions a figure namedPhol, considered to be a byname for Baldr (as in ScandinavianFalr,Fjalarr; (in Saxo)Balderus :Fjallerus). The incantation relates ofPhol endeWotan riding to the woods, where the foot of Baldr's foal is sprained. Sinthgunt (the sister of the sun),Frigg and Odin sing to the foot in order for it to heal.[7] The identification with Balder is not conclusive. Modern scholarship suggests that the godFreyr might be meant.[8]
"Mímir and Baldr Consulting the Norns" (1821–1822) byH. E. Freund.Baldr in an illustration to a Swedish translation of the Elder Edda.
Unlike the Prose Edda, in the Poetic Edda the tale of Baldr's death is referred to rather than recounted at length. Baldr is mentioned inVöluspá, inLokasenna, and is the subject of the Eddic poemBaldr's Dreams.
Among the visions which theVölva sees and describes in Völuspá is Baldr's death. In stanza 32, the Völva says she saw the fate of Baldr "the bleeding god":
Henry Adams Bellows translation: I saw for Baldr, | the bleeding god, The son of Othin, | his destiny set: Famous and fair | in the lofty fields, Full grown in strength | the mistletoe stood.[9]
In the next two stanzas, the Völva refers to Baldr's killing, describes the birth ofVáli for the slaying ofHöðr and the weeping ofFrigg:
Stanza 33: From the branch which seemed | so slender and fair Came a harmful shaft | that Hoth should hurl; But the brother of Baldr | was born ere long, And one night old | fought Othin's son.
Stanza 34: His hands he washed not, | his hair he combed not, Till he bore to the bale-blaze | Baldr's foe. But inFensalir | did Frigg weep sore For Valhall's need: | would you know yet more?[9]
In stanza 62 of Völuspá, looking far into the future, the Völva says that Höðr and Baldr will come back, with the union, according to Bellows, being a symbol of the new age of peace:
Then fields unsowed | bear ripened fruit, All ills grow better, | and Baldr comes back; Baldr and Hoth dwell | in Hropt's battle-hall, And the mighty gods: | would you know yet more?[9]
A depiction of Loki quarreling with the gods (1895) byLorenz Frølich.
Baldr is mentioned in two stanzas of Lokasenna, a poem which describes aflyting between the gods and the godLoki. In the first of the two stanzas, Frigg, Baldr's mother, tells Loki that if she had a son like Baldr, Loki would be killed:
Jackson Crawford translation: You know, if I had a son like Balder, sitting here with me in Aegir's hall, in the presence of these gods, I declare you would never come out alive, you'd be killed shortly.[10]
In the next stanza, Loki responds to Frigg, and says that he is the reason Baldr "will never ride home again":
You must want me to recount even more of my mischief, Frigg. After all, I'm the one who made it so that Balder will never ride home again.[10]
The Eddic poemBaldr's Dreams opens with the gods holding a council discussing why Baldr had had bad dreams:
Henry Adams Bellows translation: Once were the gods | together met, And the goddesses came | and council held, And the far-famed ones | the truth would find, Why baleful dreams | to Baldr had come.[9]
Odin then rides toHel to a Völva's grave and awakens her using magic. The Völva asks Odin, who she does not recognize, who he is, and Odin answers that he is Vegtam ("Wanderer"). Odin asks the Völva for whom are the benches covered in rings and the floor covered in gold. The Völva tells him that in their location mead is brewed for Baldr, and that she spoke unwillingly, so she will speak no more:
Here for Baldr | the mead is brewed, The shining drink, | and a shield lies o'er it; But their hope is gone | from the mighty gods. Unwilling I spake, | and now would be still.[9]
Odin asks the Völva to not be silent and asks her who will kill Baldr. The Völva replies and says that Höðr will kill Baldr, and again says that she spoke unwillingly, and that she will speak no more:
Hoth thither bears | the far-famed branch, He shall the bane | of Baldr become, And steal the life | from Othin's son. Unwilling I spake, | and now would be still.[9]
Odin again asks the Völva to not be silent and asks her who will avenge Baldr's death. The Völva replies that Váli will, when he will be one night old. Once again, she says that she will speak no more:
Rind bears Vali | in Vestrsalir, And one night old | fights Othin's son; His hands he shall wash not, | his hair he shall comb not, Till the slayer of Baldr | he brings to the flames. Unwilling I spake, | and now would be still.[9]
Odin again asks the Völva to not be silent and says that he seeks to know who the women that will then weep be. The Völva realizes that Vegtam is Odin in disguise. Odin says that the Völva is not a Völva, and that she is the mother of three giants. The Völva tells Odin to ride back home proud, because she will speak to no more men until Loki escapes his bounds.[9]
Baldr's death is portrayed in this illustration from an 18th-centuryIcelandic manuscript.
InGylfaginning, Baldr is described as follows:
Annarr sonr Óðins er Baldr, ok er frá honum gott at segja. Hann er beztr, ok hann lofa allir. Hann er svá fagr álitum ok bjartr, svá at lýsir af honum, ok eitt gras er svá hvítt, at jafnat er til Baldrs brár. Þat er allra grasa hvítast, ok þar eftir máttu marka fegurð hans bæði á hár ok á líki. Hann er vitrastr ásanna ok fegrst talaðr ok líknsamastr, en sú náttúra fylgir honum, at engi má haldast dómr hans. Hann býr þar, sem heitir Breiðablik. Þat er á himni. Í þeim stað má ekki vera óhreint[.][11]
Translation:
The second son of Odin is Baldr, and good things are to be said of him. He is best, and all praise him; he is so fair of feature, and so bright, that light shines from him.A certain herb is so white that it is likened to Baldr's brow; of all grasses it is whitest, and by it thou mayest judge his fairness, both in hair and in body. He is the wisest of the Æsir, and the fairest-spoken and most gracious; and that quality attends him, that none may gainsay his judgments. He dwells in the place called Breidablik, which is in heaven; in that place may nothing unclean be[.]
Apart from this description, Baldr is known primarily for the story of his death, which is seen as the first in a chain of events that will ultimately lead to the destruction of the gods atRagnarök.
Baldr had a dream of his own death and his mother,Frigg, had the same dream. Since dreams were usually prophetic, this depressed him, and so Frigg made every object on earthvow never to hurt Baldr. All objects made this vow, save for themistletoe[13]—a detail which has traditionally been explained with the idea that it was too unimportant and nonthreatening to bother asking it to make the vow, but which Merrill Kaplan has instead argued echoes the fact that young people were not eligible to swear legal oaths, which could make them a threat later in life.[14]
WhenLoki, the mischief-maker, heard of this, he made a magical spear from this plant (in some later versions, an arrow). He hurried to the place where the gods were indulging in their new pastime of hurling objects at Baldr, which would bounce off without harming him. Loki gave the spear to Baldr's brother, the blind godHöðr, who then inadvertently killed his brother with it (other versions suggest that Loki guided the arrow himself). For this act, Odin and theásynjaRindr gave birth toVáli, who grew to adulthood within a day and slew Höðr.[15]
Baldr was ceremonially burnt upon his shipHringhorni, the largest of all ships. On the pyre he was given the magical ringDraupnir. At first the gods were not able to push the ship out onto sea, and so they sent forHyrrokin, agiantess, who came riding on a wolf and gave the ship such a push that fire flashed from the rollers and all the earth shook.
As he was carried to the ship, Odin whispered something in his ear. The import of this speech was held to be unknowable,[16] and the question of what was said was thus used as an unanswerable riddle by Odin in other sources, namely against the giantVafthrudnir in the Eddic poemVafthrudnismal and in the riddles ofGestumblindi inHervarar saga.
Upon seeing the corpse being carried to the ship, Nanna, his wife, died of grief. She was then placed on the funeral fire (perhaps a toned-down instance ofSati, also attested in the Arab travellerIbn Fadlan's account of a funeral among theRus'), after which it was set on fire. Baldr's horse with all its trappings was also laid on the pyre.
As the pyre was set on fire,Thor blessed it with his hammerMjǫllnir. As he did a small dwarf namedLitr came running before his feet. Thor then kicked him into the pyre.
Upon Frigg's entreaties, delivered through the messengerHermod,Hel promised to release Baldr from theunderworld if all objects alive and dead would weep for him. All did, except agiantess,Þökk (often presumed to be the godLoki in disguise), who refused to mourn the slain god. Thus Baldr had to remain in the underworld, not to emerge until after Ragnarök, when he and his brother Höðr would be reconciled and rule the new earth together withThor's sons.
Besides these descriptions of Baldr, the Prose Edda also explicitly links him to the Anglo-SaxonBeldeg in its prologue.
Writing during the end of the 12th century, theDanish historianSaxo Grammaticus tells the story of Baldr (recorded asBalderus) in a form that professes to be historical. According to him, Balderus and Høtherus were rival suitors for the hand of Nanna, daughter of Gewar, King ofNorway. Balderus was a demigod and commonsteel could not wound his sacred body. The two rivals encountered each other in a terrific battle. Though Odin and Thor and the other gods fought for Balderus, he was defeated and fled away, and Høtherus married the princess.
Nevertheless, Balderus took heart of grace and again met Høtherus in a stricken field. But he fared even worse than before. Høtherus dealt him a deadly wound with amagic sword which he had received from Mimir, the satyr of the woods; after lingering three days in pain Balderus died of his injury and was buried with royal honours in a barrow.
A Latin votive inscription from Utrecht, from the 3rd or 4th century C.E., has been theorized as containing the dative formBaldruo,[17] pointing to a Latin nominative singular *Baldruus, which some have identified with the Norse/Germanic god,[18] although both the reading and this interpretation have been questioned.[19][20]
There are a few old place names in Scandinavia that contain the nameBaldr. The most certain and notable one is the (former) parish nameBalleshol in Hedmark county, Norway: "a Balldrshole" 1356 (where the last element ishóll m "mound; small hill"). Others may be (inNorse forms)Baldrsberg in Vestfold county,Baldrsheimr in Hordaland countyBaldrsnes in Sør-Trøndelag county—and (very uncertain) theBalsfjorden fjord andBalsfjord Municipality in Troms county.
InCopenhagen, there is also a Baldersgade, or "Balder's Street". A street in downtownReykjavík is called Baldursgata (Baldur's Street).
InSweden there is a Baldersgatan (Balder's Street) inStockholm. There is also Baldersnäs (Balder's isthmus), Baldersvik (Balder's bay), Balders udde (Balder's headland) and Baldersberg (Balder's mountain) at various places.
^"Bæl-dæg itself is white-god, light-god, he that shines as sky and light and day, the kindlyBièlbôgh, Bèlbôgh of the Slav system. It is in perfect accord with this explanation ofBæl-dæg, that the Anglo-Saxon tale of ancestry assigns to him a son Brond, of whom the Edda is silent,brond, brand, ON.brandr (fire brand or blade of a sword), signifyingjubar, fax, titio. Bældæg therefore, as regards his name, would agree withBerhta, the bright goddess.
^Merrill Kaplan, 'Once More on the Mistletoe', inNews from Other Worlds/Tíðendi ór ǫðrum heimum: Studies in Nordic Folklore, Mythology and Culture in Honor of John F. Lindow, ed. by Merrill Kaplan and Timothy R. Tangherlini, Wildcat Canyon Advanced Seminars Occasional Monographs, 1 (Berkeley, CA: North Pinehurst Press, 2012), pp. 36–60;ISBN0578101742.
^According to Carolyne Larrington in her translation of thePoetic Edda it is assumed that what Odin whispered in Baldr's ear was a promise of resurrection.
^Gutenbrunner, Siegfried (1936).Die germanischen Götternamen der antiken Inschriften. Max Niemeyer Verlag., pp. 210, 218–20.
^Vermeyden, Pamela & Quak, Arend (2000).Van Ægir tot Ymir: personages en thema's uit de Germaanse en Noordse mythologie. Cambridge University Press. p. 43.ISBN906168661X.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link).
^Helm, Karl (1976).Balder, in Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. p. 2.
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