Forseti (Old Norse "the presiding one", "president" in modernIcelandic andFaroese) is thegod of justice and reconciliation inNorse mythology. He is generally identified withFosite, a god of theFrisians.
Grimm tookForseti, "praeses, princeps", to be the older form of the name, first postulating theOld High German equivalent*forasizo (cf. modern GermanVorsitzender "one who presides", Old Englishfore-sittan 'to preside').[1] but later preferring a derivation fromfors, a "whirling stream" or "cataract", connected to the spring and the god's veneration by seagoing peoples.[2] It is plausible thatFosite is the older name andForseti afolk etymology.[3] According to the Germanphilologist Hans Kuhn the Germanic form Fosite is linguistically identical to GreekPoseidon, hence the original name may have been introduced before theProto-Germanicsound change, possibly via Greek sailors purchasingamber (cf.Phol as a cognate ofBaldr).[4][5] The etymologist Wolfgang Laur, is highly critical, however, as the names of Germanic gods are composed almost exclusively of Germanic components. According to Laur, the name Forseti remains largely unexplained.[6]
According toSnorri Sturluson in theProse Edda,[7] Forseti is the son ofBaldr andNanna. His is the best of courts; all those who come before him leave reconciled. This suggests skill inmediation and is in contrast to his fellow godTýr, who "is not called a reconciler of men."[8] However, asde Vries points out, the only basis for associating Forseti with justice seems to have been his name; there is no corroborating evidence in Norse mythology.[9] 'Puts to sleep all suits' or 'stills all strifes' may have been a late addition to the strophe Snorri cites, from which he derives the information.[10]
The first element in the nameForsetlund (Old NorseForsetalundr), a farm in the parish ofOnsøy ('Odin's island'), in eastern Norway, seems to be the genitive case of Forseti, offering evidence he was worshipped there.[10][11]
Glitnir (meaning "one who shines")[12] is the hall of Forseti, and the seat of justice amongstgods and men. It is also noted to have been a place of dwelling forBaldr, Forseti's father in Norse andGermanic mythologies. Glitnir is symbolic of the importance of discussion rather than violence as a means of resolution of conflict within the Norse tradition. It has pillars ofgold and is roofed withsilver, which radiated light that could be seen from a great distance.[13] The stories of Baldr and his son Forseti may have been contaminated with legends about kingGuðmundr and his son Höfundr ('the judge'), who inhabited theotherworld land ofGlæsisvellir.
According toAlcuin's Life ofSt. Willebrord, the saint visited an island between Frisia and Denmark that was sacred to Fosite and was called Fositesland after the god worshipped there. There was a sacred spring from which water had to be drawn in silence, it was so holy. Willebrord defiled the spring by baptizing people in it and killing a cow there.[10]Altfrid tells the same story ofSt. Liudger.[14] Adam of Bremen retells the story and adds that the island wasHeiligland, i.e.,Heligoland.[15]
There is also a late-medieval legend of the origins of written Frisian laws. Wishing to assemble written lawcodes for all his subject peoples,Charlemagne summoned twelve representatives of the Frisian people, theasega's ('law-speakers'), and demanded they recite their people's laws. When they could not do so after several days, he let them choose between death, slavery, or being set adrift in a rudderless boat. They chose the last and prayed for help, whereupon a thirteenth man appeared, with a golden axe on his shoulder. He steered the boat to land with the axe, then threw it ashore; a spring appeared where it landed. He taught them laws and then disappeared.[16][17] The stranger and the spring have traditionally been identified with Fosite and the sacred spring of Fositesland.
This hypothesis has not met with universal acceptance.[18]
Jacob Grimm noted that if, asAdam of Bremen states, Fosite's sacred island wasHeligoland, that would make him an ideal candidate for a deity known to both Frisians and Scandinavians, but that it is surprising he is never mentioned bySaxo Grammaticus.[19]
The Germanneofolk bandForseti named itself after the god.[20]
In the 2002Ensemble Studios gameAge of Mythology, Forseti is one of 9 minor gods Norse players can worship.[21][22][23]
