Norse (Asterism Names) - Revision history

Sushoff at 19:26, 21 May 2026

2026-05-21T19:26:22Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:26, 21 May 2026
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	\|[[Bifrǫst]]		\|[[Bifrǫst]]
	\|Bifröst		\|Bifröst
			\|
			\|-
			\|
			\|
			\|[[Charles's Wain]]
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-

YoulaAzkarrula at 06:40, 8 May 2026

2026-05-08T06:40:05Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:40, 8 May 2026
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	[[File:Old norse, ca 900.svg\|thumb\|The approximate extent of Old Norse and related languages in the early 10th century (CC BY Wiglaf and Idjck).]]		[[File:Old norse, ca 900.svg\|thumb\|The approximate extent of Old Norse and related languages in the early 10th century (CC BY Wiglaf and Idjck).]]
	The Old Norse culture is a Pre-Christian pagan culture in Northern Europe. Many sources on astronomical information are preserved in the works of (early) Christian missionaries, implying possible framing.		The Old Norse culture is a Pre-Christian pagan culture in Northern Europe. Many sources on astronomical information are preserved in the works of (early) Christian missionaries, implying possible framing.

			The Eddic myths were widespread in the North Germanic cultural area, which encompasses present-day Scandinavia (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland). They were written down in the 13th century in Iceland, predominantly in two literary works, the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda, this way representing the most important sources of our knowledge on Norse mythology. The culture referred to here therefore includes the North Germanic peoples from the 13th century and earlier. An important factor in observing the sky at this latitude is the brightness of the midnight sun in summer. During several weeks, the sky at Iceland's latitude does not get dark or only for a very short time, which severely limits the possibility of observing stars during this period. Given the fact that Snorri’s Edda was written in Iceland and under the assumption that some of the myths describe celestial phenomena, this plays an important role in the localization of assumed constellations: for instance, the modern constellation of Scorpius, the Scorpion, is hardly visible, so, it won't be identified with any Norse constellation.

			== Sky ==
			The origin of the Eddic myths remains disputed (Jonsson 1994,<ref name=":0">Jonsson, B. (1994) Star Myths of the Vikings: A New Concept of Norse Mythology. Swan River, Manitoba: The Author.</ref> p. 41). In recent decades, some attempts have been made to map the sagas of the Edda onto constellations in the night sky. However, this fact does not negate Snorri's statement that the phenomena he describes are quite literally located in the sky (Sigurdson 2022<ref name=":1">Sigurðsson, G. (2022) ‘How Gylfi’s Illusion Breathes Life into the Sky’, Religionsvidenskabeligt Tidsskrift, 74, pp. 231–246. DOI: 10.7146/rt.v74i.132105.</ref>, p. 239). Snorri Sturluson provides a systematic, sequential description of mythological cosmogony in his Edda. Gangleri, the protagonist of Gylfaginning, is told that in the beginning lights were assigned a staðr (place) and a path in the sky. Their movements marked the passage of time. The Sun is given salir (halls) and the stars staðir (places) by the gods (Æsir). These are the key terms in Gylfaginning for celestial locations and phenomena (Sigurdson 2022<ref name=":1" />, p. 239). After that several places in the sky are described, some of which can be found here as constellations. The sky itself was created by the Æsir from the skull of the primeval giant Ymir, whom they had slain (Sturluson 2017<ref name=":2">Sturluson, S. (2017) The Edda of Snorri Sturluson. Translated by K. Simrock. Bibliographically updated edition. Stuttgart: Reclam.</ref>, p. 21). Subsequently, they took sparks that had flown from Muspelheim, the realm of fire, and set them in the sky as stars (Sturluson 2017<ref name=":2" />, p. 22).

			=== Milky Way ===
			the Milky Way serves as the embodiment of the world tree Yggdrasil. This ash tree is the largest and best of all trees, and its branches spread across the entire world (Sturluson 2017<ref name=":2" />, p. 28). It has three roots, and beneath each one is a spring. Several literary scholars believe that locating Yggdrasil in the sky would be useful for understanding the topography of the Eddic myths. However, this is contradicted by the description of animals living in the tree (Lorenz 1984<ref>Lorenz, G. (1984) Gylfaginning. Text, translation and commentary. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft. (Texte zur Forschung, 48).</ref>, p. 241). If we assume that the animals mentioned, such as squirrels and eagles, are also celestial objects/ constellations, then Yggdrasil forms a super-constellation containing these constellations, and equating it with the Milky Way becomes rather inevitable. Sigurdson (2022)<ref name=":1" /> and Jonsson (1994)<ref name=":0" /> also believe that this translucent white tree in the sky should be understood as a mythical analogue of the Milky Way (Sigurdson 2022<ref name=":1" />, p. 238).

	== Solar System Names ==		== Solar System Names ==
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	\|"Star of Plenty", Njörðr's star		\|"Star of Plenty", Njörðr's star
	\|}		\|}
			Due to the geographical latitude at which many inhabitants of ancient Scandinavia lived, summers are very bright and winters very dark. At the latitude of Iceland, there are even several weeks in summer during which hardly any stars can be observed at night. Likewise, there are several weeks in winter when the sun is barely visible and the moon rises only a few degrees above the horizon (or not at all, depending on its orbit's position). Under these unreliable conditions, it is unlikely that Old Norse peoples maintained detailed calendars based on the sun or the moon. In Eddic mythology, the sun and the moon are personified as the children of Mundilfari. The son, Mani, steers the course of the moon, and the daughter, Sol, that of the sun (Sturluson 2017<ref name=":2" />, p. 24). Neither may ever stop on their paths, for both are pursued by wolves that wish to devour them. The wolf chasing the sun is called Sköll, and the one chasing the moon is called Hati. When Ragnarök begins, the downfall of the gods, both will be devoured by the wolves (Sturluson 2017<ref name=":2" />, p. 25).

	== <small>Here is an overview on Norse asterism names</small> ==		== <small>Here is an overview on Norse asterism names</small> ==
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Fiskikarlar		\|[[Fiskikarlar]]
	\|Fisherman		\|Fisherman
	\|		\|
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Himinhjǫrð		\|[[Himinhjǫrð]]
	\|Ox's Head		\|Ox's Head
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Hræsvélgr		\|[[Hræsvélgr]]

	\|Eagle Giant		\|Eagle Giant
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Hvergelmir		\|[[Hvergelmir]]
	\|Boiling Well		\|Boiling Well

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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Jormungandr		\|[[Jormungandr]]
	\| {\|Midgard Serpent		\| {\|Midgard Serpent
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Mímis brunnr		\|[[Mímis brunnr]]
	\|Mimir's Well		\|Mimir's Well
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Rátatǫskr		\|[[Rátatǫskr]]
	\|Ratatosk		\|Ratatosk
	\|		\|
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Urðarbrunnr		\|[[Urðarbrunnr]]
	\|Well of Urðr		\|Well of Urðr
	\|		\|
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	\|		\|
	\|}		\|}

			== References ==

			* [[References]] (general)

	[[Category:Eurasia]] [[Category:European]] [[Category:Norse]]		[[Category:Eurasia]] [[Category:European]] [[Category:Norse]]
	[[Category:Overviews]]		[[Category:Overviews]]
	[[Category:Service]]		[[Category:Service]]

YoulaAzkarrula at 06:18, 8 May 2026

2026-05-08T06:18:39Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:18, 8 May 2026
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Asar Bardagi		\|[[Asar Bardagi]]
	\|Battlefield of the Æsir		\|Battlefield of the Æsir
	\|		\|
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Bifrǫst		\|[[Bifrǫst]]
	\|Bifröst		\|Bifröst
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Freyju vagn		\|Fiskikarlar
			\|Fisherman
			\|
			\|-
			\|
			\|[[Freyju vagn]]
	\|Freyja's Chariot		\|Freyja's Chariot
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Freys sigð		\|[[Freys sigð]]
	\|Freyr's Sickle		\|Freyr's Sickle
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Himinbjǫrg		\|[[Himinbjǫrg]]
	\|Heimdall's Castle		\|Heimdall's Castle
	\|		\|
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Ván		\|[[Ván]]
	\|River Van		\|River Van
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Þjaza augu		\|[[Þjaza augu]]
	\|Thiazi's Eyes		\|Thiazi's Eyes
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Þórr		\|[[Þórr]]
	\|Thor		\|Thor
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Þórs vagn		\|[[Þórs vagn]]
	\|Thor's Chariot		\|Thor's Chariot
	\|		\|

Sushoff at 07:26, 17 April 2026

2026-04-17T07:26:29Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:26, 17 April 2026
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Aurvandils tá		\|[[Aurvandils tá]]
	\|Aurwandill's Toe		\|Aurwandill's Toe
	\|		\|

Sushoff at 15:12, 24 March 2026

2026-03-24T15:12:13Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:12, 24 March 2026
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Úlfs Keptr		\|[[Ulfs Keptr\|Úlfs Keptr]]
	\|Jaw of the Wolf		\|Jaw of the Wolf
	\|		\|

Sushoff at 15:25, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T15:25:55Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:25, 20 January 2026
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	\|}		\|}

	== <small>Here is an overview on ~~all Persian Star~~ names</small> ==		== <small>Here is an overview on Norse asterism names</small> ==
	{\| class="wikitable sortable"		{\| class="wikitable sortable"
	\|-		\|-
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	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Asar Bardagi
			\|Battlefield of the Æsir
	\|		\|
			\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Aurvandils tá
			\|Aurwandill's Toe
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Bifrǫst
			\|Bifröst
	\|		\|
			\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Freyju vagn
			\|Freyja's Chariot
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Freys sigð
			\|Freyr's Sickle
	\|		\|
			\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Himinbjǫrg
			\|Heimdall's Castle
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Himinhjǫrð
			\|Ox's Head
	\|		\|
			\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Hræsvélgr

			\|Eagle Giant
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Hvergelmir
			\|Boiling Well

	\|		\|
			\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Jormungandr
			\| {\|Midgard Serpent
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Mímis brunnr
			\|Mimir's Well
	\|		\|
			\|-
	\|		\|
			\|Rátatǫskr
			\|Ratatosk
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Úlfs Keptr
	\|		\|Jaw of the Wolf
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Urðarbrunnr
			\|Well of Urðr
	\|
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Ván
	\|		\|River Van

	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Þjaza augu
	\| {\|		\|Thiazi's Eyes
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Þórr
	\|		\|Thor
	\|		\|
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|		\|Þórs vagn
	\|		\|Thor's Chariot
	\|		\|
	\|}		\|}

Sushoff at 15:14, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T15:14:36Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:14, 20 January 2026
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	\|Sól		\|Sól
	\|Sun		\|Sun
	\|		\|Sól is a goddess
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
	\|Máni		\|Máni
	\|Moon		\|Moon
	\|		\|Máni is a god
	\|-		\|-
	\|		\|
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	\|Gnógleiksstjarna		\|Gnógleiksstjarna
	\|Saturn		\|Saturn
	\|~~Njord~~'s star		\|"Star of Plenty", Njörðr's star
	\|}		\|}

Sushoff at 15:09, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T15:09:05Z

Show changes

Sushoff at 14:57, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T14:57:34Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:57, 20 January 2026
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	[[Category:Eurasia]] [[Category:European]] [[Category:Norse]]		[[Category:Eurasia]] [[Category:European]] [[Category:Norse]]
	[[Category:~~Asterism~~]] [[Category:~~Constellation~~]]		[[Category:Overviews]]
			[[Category:Service]]

Sushoff at 14:56, 20 January 2026

2026-01-20T14:56:55Z

Show changes