Myten om Þórs fisketur

• The well-known Old Norse narrative about how the god Þórr fishes the “Serpent of Middle Earth” out of the depths of the waters was obviously widely spread in pre-Christian and early Christian times. The sources in which this narrative is preserved reach from Gosforth in the west to Altuna in the east and span over at least three centuries. The narrative therefore raises interesting questions about continuity, reception, adaptation, and interpretation. This article tries to address these questions through a survey of the forms of the narrative as preserved in the extant sources.

Subject headings

HUMANIORA  -- Filosofi, etik och religion -- Religionshistoria (hsv//swe)

HUMANITIES  -- Philosophy, Ethics and Religion -- History of Religions (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Tor

Midgårdsormen

Hymiskviða

Gosforth slab

Ardre

Altuna

picture stone

mythology

Old Norse religion

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)