InNorse mythology, theNine Mothers of Heimdallr are nine sisters who gave birth to the godHeimdallr. The Nine Mothers of Heimdallr are attested in theProse Edda, written in the 13th century bySnorri Sturluson; in the poetry ofskalds; and possibly also in a poem in thePoetic Edda, a book of poetry compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional material. Scholars have debated what being "born of nine mothers" implies and have sought to connect the notion to other European folk motifs. Scholars have theorized that Heimdallr's Nine Mothers may be identical to theNine Daughters of Ægir and Rán, nine goddesses who personify thewaves. In turn, Heimdallr would be born of the sea.
The Nine Mothers of Heimdallr are mentioned in two books of theProse Edda;Gylfaginning andSkáldskaparmál. InGylfaginning, Heimdallr is introduced in chapter 27, where the enthroned figure ofHigh tells the disguised mythical kingGangleri details about the god. Among other details, High says that Heimdallr is the son of nine sisters and, as a reference, provides two lines of the (otherwise now lost) poemHeimdalargaldr, in which Heimdallr says that he was born of nine sisters:
- "I am the son of nine mothers and I was born of nine sisters".[1]
In chapter 16 ofSkáldskaparmál a work by the 10th centuryskaldÚlfr Uggason is quoted. The poem refers to Heimdallr as the "son of eight mothers plus one". Prose following the poem points out that the poem refers to Heimdallr as the son of nine mothers.[2]
The poemVöluspá hin skamma (contained within the poemHyndluljóð, often considered a part of thePoetic Edda) contains three stanza that scholars have frequently theorized as referring to Heimdallr and their nine mothers. According to the stanzas, long ago, a mighty god was born by ninejötnar maidens at the edge of the world. This boy grew strong, nourished by the strength of the earth, the ice-cold sea, and the blood of swine. Names are provided for these nine maidens. For discussion of these names, seeNames section below (note that the translations below present anglicizations of Old Norse forms). The stanzas in question read as follows:
Benjamin Thorpe translation (1866):
- There was one born, in times of old,
- with wondrous might endowed, of origin divine:
- nine jötun maids gave birth, to the gracious god,
- at the world's margin.
- Giâlp gave him birth, Greip gave him birth,
- Eistla gave him birth, and Angeyia;
- Ulfrûn gave him birth, and Eyrgiafa,
- Imd and Atla, and Iârnsaxa.
- The boy was nourished with the strength of the earth,
- with the ice-cold sea, and with Sôn's blood.[3]
Henry Adams Bellows translation (1923):
- One there was born in the bygone days,
- Of the race of the gods, and great was his might;
- Nine giant women, at the world's edge,
- Once bore the man so might in arms.
- Gjolp there bore him, Greip there bore him,
- Eistla bore him, and Angeyja,
- Ulfrun bore him, and Eyrgjafa,
- Imth and Atla, and Jarnsaxa.
- Strong was he made with the strength of the earth,
- With the ice-cold sea, and the blood of swine.[4]
Jeramy Dodds translation (2014):
- One was born in olden days,
- endowed with power from the gods.
- Nine jotun maids carried him,
- a spear-splendid man, along the Earth's edge.
- Gjalp bore him, Greip bore him,
- Eistla bore him and Angeyja,
- Ulfrun and Eyrgjafa, Imd,
- Atla and Jarnsaxa.
- He was endowed with the Earth's power,
- with the cold sea, with boar's blood.[5]
Some of the names of Heimdallr's mothers found inVöluspá hin skamma appear in a variety of other sources, where they may or may not refer to separate entities:
| Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Angeyja or Augeia | "The stalker" or "the one of the narrow island"[6] | |
| Atla | "The argumentative one"[7] or "the forceful"[8] | Name appears listed among jötnar in theNafnaþulur[7] |
| Eistla or Egia | "The stormy one" or "glowing ash"[9] | |
| Eyrgjafa or Aurgiafa | "Sand donor"[10] | |
| Gjálp | "Seeress" or "the roaring one"[11] | The nameGjálp appears frequently for jötnar in the Old Norse corpus.Gjálp andGreip appear together as names of the daughters of the jötunnGeirröðr in Skáldskaparmál. Gjálp attempted to kill Thor by causing a river to swell.[12] |
| Greip | "Grasp"[13] | The nameGreip appears frequently for jötnar in the Old Norse corpus.Gjálp andGreip appear together as names of the daughters of the jötunnGeirröðr in Skáldskaparmál. Greip attempted to kill Thor by knocking down the stones of a mountain.[12] |
| Imd or Sindur | "Latent power"[14] | |
| Járnsaxa or Iarnsaxa | "The one armed with an iron knife"[15] | Name appears listed among the jötnar in theNafnaþulur and the name refers to an apparently separate figure with whom the god Thor is the mother ofMagni and the possible mother ofMóði[15] |
| Ulfrún | "Wolf"[16] | Occurs as an Old Norse female personal name.[16] |
The names of all nine mothers mentioned above inVöluspá hin skamma appear elsewhere as the names of femalejötnar (generally in theþulur). Adding to the confusion, Orchard points out,Gjálp andGreip are otherwise mentioned as jötnar maidens who seek to contravene the godThor from reaching their fatherGeirröðr, andJárnsaxa is otherwise the mother of Thor's sons,Magni andMóði.[17]
Some scholars have linked the Nine Mothers of Heimdallr with theNine Daughters of Ægir and Rán (nine goddesses who personify thewaves), an identification that would mean that Heimdallr was thus born from the waves of the sea. However, this connection has been questioned on the grounds that the names presented for the Nine Daughters of Ægir and Rán and the Nine Mothers of Heimdallr (as found inVöluspá hin skamma) do not match.[18] ScholarJohn Lindow comments that the identification of Heimdallr's mothers as Ægir and Rán's daughters do, however, match on the grounds that Ægir and Rán's daughters, like Heimdallr's mothers, are sisters, and that two separate traditions about Heimdallr's mothers may explain the differences between the two.[19]