Viking mythology and all that goes with it

[Bates]

For online texts, it's hard to beat http://www.northvegr.org/lore/main.php . Most of them are also available in book form, but you might have to do some searching on the titles. As for college textbooks... can't help you there, but I'm sure some of the actual educated folk around here might know a thing or two.

 

[Tyra]

What Bates said (in terms of religion anyhow). The Rise of Bronze Age Society by Kristian Kristiansen and Thomas B Larsson, even old books by H R Ellis-Davidson is reliable still to this day, anything by Peter Sawyer is really good, I highly recommend his Oxford Illustrated History of the Vikings, and Graham Campell is good (although som of his books are a bit dated by now). Technically speaking, all those books, as well as northvegr.org falls outside of "history" and entirely within "archaeology". I know of loads of great books for that subject, too, but none in English... In other words, if it's Scandy history you want to learn, then I am pretty much useless to you.

 

[Rae_of_Sunshine]

I'll definitely check all of those out. Since I'm majoring in history and I'm almost done, I wanted to take some classes and read some books. I heard Sweden is in need of teachers. I'm hoping to prepare myself and hopefully when I'm done, I'll have something to offer them.

Thanks for your input, guys.

 

[Tyra]

Or you could just move to Canada. We need teachers, too...and we're nice, and we have Dairy Queen. They don't have DQ in Sweden. Mind you, they have Johan. OK, Sweden wins. But check first, to see what the qualifications are for teaching, though. Sucks if you prep for years and then find out that you still aren't qualified. I know, that's what happened to me when I moved here.

 

[Rae_of_Sunshine]

Or you could just move to Canada. We need teachers, too...and we're nice, and we have Dairy Queen. They don't have DQ in Sweden. Mind you, they have Johan. OK, Sweden wins. But check first, to see what the qualifications are for teaching, though. Sucks if you prep for years and then find out that you still aren't qualified. I know, that's what happened to me when I moved here.

Hehe. I definitely am. Thanks for the concern.

I've got a solid group of friends from there that are helping me with just about anything I need. Yea, your little BIG bro is a definite plus. ;D

I've got some relatives in Sweden, and since I was little, I always wanted to live there. The politics in this country are driving me out. I'll see if I can find a ste in English that will give me the requirements for teaching.

Thanks bunches, Tyra

 

[Tyra]

Hey, Dragonkeeper and Celtik:
www.ncl.ac.uk/nuiss
and
www.york.ac.uk/depts/arch

 

[Sonia G]

Hi Tyra,
Could you please recommend me some book about vikings? I know that you've made lots of recommendations in this thread to many people but I think all of them are more or less "experts" in this subjects and I am not expert at all
I'm interested in the vikings since I starded admiring and listening AA and since I saw your brother Johan (you know, that astonishing viking). That why I say that I don't know if those books that you've mentioned in this thread would be very useful for me to give me an introduction to the viking world.
Thanks for give me your attention and sorry if my English is not as good as other members of the forum, I see that all of them write in a fantastic English, they're nice and they've given me all their support in that, telling that my English is great but... I don't know...
Cheers,
Sonia

 

[DragonKeeper]

Hey, Dragonkeeper and Celtik:
www.ncl.ac.uk/nuiss
and
www.york.ac.uk/depts/arch

Tack! I will check those out as well.

 

[Tyra]

Sonia,
I guess start with what Bates and I suggested in th posts just above. I don't know how good your English is, so that makes it a bit difficult for me to know what to suggest, and I have no clue what's available to you at the library etc. Northvegr.org is free on the net, but those are old historical texts mostly, and I get the feeling that's not really what you're looking for? Sawyer is always good, regardless.

 

[Sonia G]

Sonia,
I guess start with what Bates and I suggested in th posts just above. I don't know how good your English is, so that makes it a bit difficult for me to know what to suggest, and I have no clue what's available to you at the library etc. Northvegr.org is free on the net, but those are old historical texts mostly, and I get the feeling that's not really what you're looking for? Sawyer is always good, regardless.

Hi Tyra,
In fact, I'm looking for some book about vikings to know how they lived, how they thought, how they were organized, which ones were their traditions, how they expressed their culture, what they believed in... in an English that I could easily follow.
I'm going to English classes twice a week, one hour and a half on Monday and the same on Wednesdays (three hours a week is not so much, is it?). In this course we're preparing for taking the CAE exam (Certificate of Advanced English), a kind of exams that are made by Cambridge and that we'll do in Barcelona, in the British Council (I hope to pass the exam! it will be on June!). This is in order you to know more or less the level I have, to help you to know what to recommend me.
Likewise, I will check Northvegr.org. and other links that you've put here.
Thank you very much for giving me part of your time
Cheers!

 

[Tyra]

Sonia, well then I think you should check out Sawyer.

Dragonslayer/Celtic:
From Dan's newsletter today:
"The second excavation will take place in July and concerns a supposed Viking Age farmstead. I have made some trial survey of the area, using metal detector and phosphate mapping, and found some objects that point to late Viking Age and middle ages. This excavation is open to all people and run by “Peoples school” in northern Gotland and is for 2-4 weeks. There will be some 30 participants I think."
You can contact Dan through the web page (www.arkedok.com) for more info, but you should hurry, as space is limited.

 

[Sonia G]

Ok, I will check out Sawyer then. Thank you very much Tyra!
Hugs,
Sonia

Sonia, well then I think you should check out Sawyer.

Dragonslayer/Celtic:
From Dan's newsletter today:
"The second excavation will take place in July and concerns a supposed Viking Age farmstead. I have made some trial survey of the area, using metal detector and phosphate mapping, and found some objects that point to late Viking Age and middle ages. This excavation is open to all people and run by “Peoples school” in northern Gotland and is for 2-4 weeks. There will be some 30 participants I think."
You can contact Dan through the web page (www.arkedok.com) for more info, but you should hurry, as space is limited.

 

[Celtik Militia]

Sonia, well then I think you should check out Sawyer.

Dragonslayer/Celtic:
From Dan's newsletter today:
"The second excavation will take place in July and concerns a supposed Viking Age farmstead. I have made some trial survey of the area, using metal detector and phosphate mapping, and found some objects that point to late Viking Age and middle ages. This excavation is open to all people and run by “Peoples school” in northern Gotland and is for 2-4 weeks. There will be some 30 participants I think."
You can contact Dan through the web page (www.arkedok.com) for more info, but you should hurry, as space is limited.

Thanks Tyra. I hadn't checked out this thread in a while. Hadn't noticed your messages.
The website doesn't seem to work though.
But from your description it looks pretty cool and if its in July its perfect for me cause i'm gonna dig other sites in june and august (in France) and I may be free for July. Yet I'll have to check my finances for the plane ticket and shit... :s
But in the mean time, that website doesn't work, i don't know if its just me or if they're having temporary technical problems. i'll check again later on.
Thanks for your help. Its very thoughtfull of you.

 

[Bates]

http://www.arkeodok.com/
I think someone types a bit fast at times.

 

[Celtik Militia]

haha thanks bates, I must have been stupid to not figure it out myself!

 

[DragonKeeper]

I just emailed Dan Carlsson about the "open" dig at that Viking farmstead in Gotland, so I will see what he says

Side note: I was re-reading that part in the Edda where it talks about that ship that roams around and is entirely composed of dead peoples' icky unkempt fingernails, and it really didn't sink in until 2 weeks ago....
I saw this guy (I think he was a university student) that was sitting across from me at this cafe near the university who had the most disgusting fingernails ever, and it reminded me of that ship in the Edda. The Old Norse really knew how to make sure people kept up their personal hygene with their strange but effective imagery. I think this further proves that the ON were relatively clean folks and cared about personal hygene. I mean, if they bothered to incorporate that into their mythology then it must have been important, right?

 

[Bates]

Ya, the Norse folk were known for being well-kempt, Saturday=Laugardagur ="bath day" for a reason. Also, the most frequently found relics are combs, razors, ear spoons, etc.

 

[DragonKeeper]

Indeed, there are alot of combs, ear spoons, tweezers, etc. Which reminds me...I need to order that Viking comb I have been looking at Thanks for reminding me!
Bath days are good Especially since it has been really hot here the past few days, cold showers are really nice.

 

[Shealladh]

@ Tyra

Just seen a nice tv movie that was made in 2005 (I think) called Ring of the Nibelungs which was based on the Germanic myth "Das Nibelungenlied" and the Nordic "Volsunga Saga" apparently.

Is there some part of this based in myth or something I can read up on?

I thought this was good and entertaining but always sceptical about "based upon" statements.

 

[Bates]

The Nibelungenliad is loosely based on the Volsung sagas, or is at least the later, southern Germanic version of them. The various sagas make up a good portion (at least in my copy) of the Poetic Edda, but for a good overview of them, I'd probably recommend Gripisspa, Reginsmal, Fafnismal, and Sigrdrifumal. Those really only cover a portion of the story, and not necessarily the same parts as are in the Nibelungenliad, but are the "beginning" of the story in the Nordic version.