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"Edda" (/ˈɛdə/;Old NorseEdda, pluralEddur) is anOld Norse term that has been applied by modern scholars to the collective of twoMedieval Icelandic literary works: what is now known as theProse Edda and an older collection of poems (without an original title) now known as thePoetic Edda. The term historically referred only to theProse Edda, but this usage has fallen out of favour because of confusion with the other work. Both works were recorded inIceland during the 13th century inIcelandic, although they contain material from earlier traditional sources, reaching back into theViking Age. The books provide the main sources for medievalskaldic tradition inIceland and forNorse mythology.
At least five hypotheses have been suggested for the origins of the wordedda:
ThePoetic Edda, also known asSæmundar Edda or theElder Edda, is a collection ofOld Norse poems from theIcelandic medievalmanuscriptCodex Regius ("Royal Book"). Along with theProse Edda, thePoetic Edda is the most expansive source on Norse mythology. The first part of the Codex Regius preserves poems that narrate the creation and foretold destruction and rebirth of the Old Norse mythological world as well as individual myths about gods concerningNorse deities. The poems in the second part narrate legends aboutNorse heroes and heroines, such asSigurd,Brynhildr andGunnar.
It consists of two parts. The first part has 10 songs about gods, and the second one has 19 songs about heroes.
The Codex Regius was written in the 13th century, but nothing is known of its whereabouts until 1643, when it came into the possession ofBrynjólfur Sveinsson, then theChurch of Iceland's Bishop ofSkálholt. At that time, versions of theProse Edda were well known in Iceland, but scholars speculated that there once was anotherEdda—anElder Edda—which contained thepagan poems Snorri quotes in his book. When the Codex Regius was discovered, it seemed that this speculation had proven correct. Brynjólfur attributed the manuscript toSæmundr the Learned, a larger-than-life 12th century Icelandic priest. While this attribution is rejected by modern scholars, the nameSæmundar Edda is still sometimes encountered.
Bishop Brynjólfur sent theCodex Regius as a present to KingChristian IV of Denmark, hence the nameCodex Regius. For centuries it was stored in theRoyal Library inCopenhagen but in 1971 it was returned to Iceland.
TheProse Edda, sometimes referred to as theYounger Edda orSnorri's Edda, is anIcelandic manual of poetics which also contains many mythological stories. Its purpose was to enableIcelandic poets and readers to understand the subtleties ofalliterative verse, and to grasp the mythological allusions behind the manykennings that were used inskaldic poetry.
It was written by the Icelandic scholar and historianSnorri Sturluson around 1220. It survives in four known manuscripts and three fragments, written down from about 1300 to about 1600.[6]
TheProse Edda consists of aPrologue and three separate books:Gylfaginning, concerning thecreation andforetold destruction and rebirth of the Norse mythical world;Skáldskaparmál, a dialogue betweenÆgir, a Norse god connected with the sea, andBragi, theskaldic god of poetry; andHáttatal, a demonstration of verse forms used in Norse mythology.
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