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Freyr (sometimes anglicized '''Frey'''The name ''Freyr'' is related to words meaning "lord" in West Germanic Languages . It is sometimes anglicized to ''Frey'' by omitting the Nominative ending. In the modern Scandinavian Languages it can appear as ''Frej'', ''Frö'', ''Frøy'' or ''Fröj''. In Richard Wagner 's '' Das Rheingold '' the god appears as ''Froh''.) is one of the most important deities in Norse Paganism and Norse Mythology . Worshipped as a Phallic Fertility God , Freyr "bestows peace and pleasure on mortals". He rules over the rain, the shining of the sun and the produce of the fields. He is one of the Vanir , the son of the sea god Njörðr and brother of the love goddess Freyja . The gods gave him Álfheimr , the realm of the Elves , as a teething present. He rides the shining Dwarf -made boar Gullinbursti and possesses the ship Skíðblaðnir which always has a favorable breeze and can be folded together and carried in a pouch when it is not being used. He has the servants Skírnir , Byggvir and Beyla . The most extensive Freyr Myth relates Freyr's falling in love with the Giantess Gerðr . Eventually she becomes his wife but first Freyr has to give away his Magic Sword which fights on its own "if wise be he who wields it". Deprived of this weapon Freyr defeats the giant Beli with an Antler . But at Ragnarök , the end of the world, Freyr will be killed by the fire giant Surtr . Freyr was especially associated with Sweden and seen as an ancestor of the Swedish Royal House . ADAM OF BREMEN One of the oldest written sources on pre-Christian Scandinavian religious practices is Adam Of Bremen 's ''Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum''. Writing around 1080 Adam claimed to have access to first-hand accounts on pagan practices in Sweden. He refers to Freyr with the Latinized name Fricco and mentions that an image of him at Skara was destroyed by a Christian missionary. His description of the Temple At Uppsala gives more details on the god. Later in the account Adam states that when a marriage is performed a Libation is made to the image of Fricco. This association with marriages, peace and pleasure clearly identifies Fricco as a Fertility God . Historians are divided on the reliability of Adam's account.Haastrup 2004, pp. 18-24. While he is close in time to the events he describes he has a clear agenda to emphasize the role of the see of Hamburg in the Christianization Of Scandinavia . His timeframe for the Christianization of Sweden conflicts with other sources, such as Runic inscriptions, and archaeological evidence does not confirm the presence of a large temple at Uppsala. On the other hand the existence of phallic idols was confirmed in 1904 with a find at Rällinge in Södermanland, Sweden."Rällinge-Frö". THE ''PROSE EDDA'' When Snorri Sturluson was writing in 13th century Iceland the pagan gods were still remembered despite more than two centuries of Christianity. In the '' Gylfaginning '' section of his '' Prose Edda '', Snorri introduces Freyr as one of the major gods. This description has similarities to the older account by Adam of Bremen but the differences are interesting. Adam assigns control of the weather and produce of the fields to Thor but Snorri says that Freyr rules over those areas. Snorri also omits any explicitly sexual references in Freyr's description. Those discrepancies can be explained in several ways. It is possible that the Norse gods did not have exactly the same roles in Icelandic and Swedish paganism but it must also be remembered that Adam and Snorri were writing with different goals in mind. Adam was probably eager to shock his readers with tales of pagan lewdness while Snorri treats the mythology with the sympathy of an antiquarian and aims to entertain his audience. Either Snorri or Adam may also have had distorted information. The only extended myth related about Freyr in the ''Prose Edda'' is the story of his marriage. The woman is Gerðr , a beautiful Giantess . Freyr immediately falls in love with her and becomes depressed and taciturn. After a period of brooding, he consents to talk to Skírnir , his foot-page. He tells Skírnir that he has fallen in love with a beautiful woman and thinks he will die if he cannot have her. He asks Skírnir to go and woo her for him. The loss of Freyr's sword has consequences. According to the ''Prose Edda'', Freyr had to fight Beli without his sword and slew him with an Antler . But the result at Ragnarök , the end of the world, will be much more serious. Freyr is fated to fight the fire-giant Surtr and since he does not have his sword he will be defeated. Even after the loss of his weapon Freyr still has two magical artifacts, both of them Dwarf -made. One is the ship Skíðblaðnir , which will have favoring breeze wherever its owner wants to go and can also be folded together like a napkin and carried in a pouch. The other is the boar Gullinbursti whose mane glows to illuminate the way for his owner. No myths involving Skíðblaðnir have come down to us but Snorri relates that Freyr rode to Baldr 's funeral in a wagon pulled by Gullinbursti. THE ''POETIC EDDA'' Freyr is mentioned in several of the poems in the '' Poetic Edda ''. The information there is largely consistent with that of the ''Prose Edda'' while each collection has some details not found in the other. '' Völuspá '', the best known of the Eddic poems, describes the final confrontation between Freyr and Surtr during Ragnarök. Some scholars have preferred a slightly different translation, in which the sun shines "from the sword of the gods". The idea is that the sword which Surtr slays Freyr with is the "sword of the gods" which Freyr had earlier bargained away for Gerðr. This would add a further layer of tragedy to the myth. Sigurður Nordal argued for this view but the possibility represented by Dronke's translation above is equally possible. '' Grímnismál '', a poem which largely consists of miscellaneous information about the gods, mentions Freyr's abode. A Tooth-gift was a gift given to an infant on the cutting of the first tooth. Since ''Alfheimr'' or ''Álfheimr'' means "World of Álfar (Elves)" the fact that Freyr should own it is one of the indications of a connection between the Vanir and the obscure Álfar. ''Grímnismál'' also mentions that the sons of Ívaldi made Skíðblaðnir for Freyr and that it is the best of ships. In the poem '' Lokasenna '', Loki accuses the gods of various misdeeds. He criticizes the Vanir for Incest , saying that Njörðr had Freyr with his sister. He also states that the gods discovered Freyr and Freyja having sex together. The god Týr speaks up in Freyr's defense. ''Lokasenna'' also mentions that Freyr has servants called Byggvir and Beyla . They seem to have been associated with the making of bread. ''SKíRNISMáL'' See Also: Skírnismál The courtship of Freyr and Gerðr is dealt with extensively in the Eddic poem '' Skírnismál ''. , one of the two manuscripts to preserve ''Skírnismál'', has notes on the margin indicating the speaker of each verse. Some scholars consider this a clue that the poem might have been performed as a theatrical work.]] Freyr is depressed after seeing Gerðr. Njörðr and Skaði ask Skírnir to go and talk with him. Freyr reveals the cause of his grief and asks Skírnir to go to Jötunheimr to woo Gerðr for him. Freyr gives Skírnir a horse and his magical sword for the journey. When Skírnir finds Gerðr he starts by offering her treasures if she will marry Freyr. When she declines he gets her consent by threatening her with destructive magic. SKALDIC POETRY Freyr is referred to several times in Skaldic Poetry . In '' Húsdrápa '' he is said to ride a boar to Baldr's funeral. In a poem by Egill Skalla-Grímsson , Freyr is called upon along with Njörðr to drive Eric Bloodaxe from Norway. The same Skald mentions in '' Arinbjarnarkviða '' that his friend has been blessed by the two gods. In '' Nafnaþulur '' Freyr he is said to ride the horse Blóðughófi (''Bloody Hoof''). Freyr's name is, as those of other gods, common in Kenning s for warriors. ''YNGLINGA SAGA'' Snorri Sturluson 's starts his epic history of the kings of Norway with '' Ynglinga Saga '', a Euhemerized account of the Norse gods. Here Odin and the Æsir are men from Asia who gain power through their prowess in war and Odin's skills. But when Odin attacks the Vanir he bites off more than he can chew and peace is negotiated after a destructive and indecisive war. Hostages are exchanged to seal the peace deal and the Vanir send Freyr and Njörðr to live with the Æsir. At this point the saga, like ''Lokasenna'', mentions that incest was practised among the Vanir. Odin makes Njörðr and Freyr priests of sacrifices and they become influential leaders. Odin goes on to conquer the North and settles in Sweden where he rules as king, collects taxes and maintains sacrifices. After Odin's death, Njörðr takes the throne. During his rule there is peace and good harvest and the Swedes come to believe that Njörðr controls these things. Eventually Njörðr falls ill and dies. in this early 19th century artwork by Hugo Hamilton .]] Freyr had a son named Fjölnir , who succeeds him as king and rules during the continuing period of peace and good seasons. Fjölnir's descendants are enumerated in '' Ynglingatal '' which describes the Mythological Kings Of Sweden . OTHER ICELANDIC SOURCES Worship of Freyr is alluded to in several Icelanders' Sagas . The protagonist of '' Hrafnkels Saga '' is a Priest of Freyr. He dedicates a horse to the god and kills a man for riding it, setting in motion a chain of fateful events. In '' Gísla Saga '' a chieftain named Þorgrímr Freysgoði is an ardent worshipper of Freyr. When he dies he is buried in a howe. '' Hallfreðar Saga '', '' Víga-Glúms Saga '' and '' Vatnsdœla Saga '' also mention Freyr. Other Icelandic sources referring to Freyr include '' Íslendingabók '', '' Landnámabók '' and '' Hervarar Saga ''. '' Íslendingabók '', written around 1125, is the oldest Icelandic source to mention Freyr, including him in a geneology of Swedish kings. '' Landnámabók '' includes a heathen oath to be sworn at an assembly where Freyr, Njörðr and "the almighty ''áss''" are invoked. '' Hervarar Saga '' mentions a Yuletide sacrifice of a boar to Freyr. GESTA DANORUM The Danish '' Gesta Danorum '' describes Freyr, under the name Frø, as the "viceroy of the gods". That Freyr had a cult at Uppsala is well confirmed from other sources. The reference to the change in sacrificial ritual may also reflect some historical memory. There is archaeological evidence for an increase in Human Sacrifice s in the late Viking Age Davidson 1999, Vol. II, p. 55. though among the Norse gods human sacrifice is most often linked to Odin. Another reference to Frø and sacrifices is found earlier in the work, where the beginning of an annual '' Blót '' to him is related. King Hadingus is cursed after killing a divine being and atones for his crime with a sacrifice. The sacrifice of dark-coloured victims to Freyr has a parallel in Ancient Greek Religion where the Chthonic fertility deities preferred dark-coloured victims to white ones. In book 9, Saxo identifies Frø as the "king of Sweden" (''rex Suetiae''). The reference to public prostitution may be a memory of fertility cult practices. Such a memory may also be the source of a description in book 6 of the stay of Starcatherus , a follower of Odin, in Sweden. YNGVI See Also: Yngvi A strophe of the Anglo Saxon Rune Poem (c. 1100) records that: Ing was first among the East Dane s seen by men and this may refer to the origins of the worship of Ingui in the tribal areas that Tacitus mentions in his '' Germania '' as being populated by the Inguieonnic tribes. A later Danish chronicler lists Ingui was one of three brothers that the Danish tribes descended from. The strophe also states that "then he (Ingui) went back over the waves, his wagon behind him" which could connect Ingui to earlier conceptions of the wagon processions of Nerthus , and the later Scandinavian conceptions of Freyr's wagon journeys. Ingui is mentioned also in some later Anglo-Saxon literature under varying forms of his name, such as "For what doth Ingeld have to do with Christ", and the variants used in Beowulf to designate the kings as 'leader of the friends of Ing'. The compound Ingui-Frea (OE) and Yngvi-Freyr (ON) likely refer to the connection between the god and the Germanic King s' role as priests during the sacrifices in the pagan period, as 'Frea' and 'Freyr' are titles meaning 'Lord'. The Swedish royal dynasty was known as the , and his son Mannus , as the origin of their race, as their founders. To Mannus they assign three sons, from whose names, they say, the coast tribes are called Ingaevones ; those of the interior, Herminones ; all the rest, Istaevones ". PARALLELS , the hammer-wielding Thor and Freyr holding up an ear of corn. Others hold that those are three Christian kings and still others that the artist intended the ambiguity.Leiren 1999.]] Traditions related to Freyr are also connected with the Legendary Danish Kings named Fróði , especially Frotho III or Peace-Fróði. He is especially treated in Book Five of Saxo Grammaticus ' '' Gesta Danorum '' and in the '' Ynglinga Saga ''. His reign was a golden age of peace and prosperity and after his death his body was drawn around in a cart. In Catholic Christianity several saints have domains and rites similar to those of Freyr. In some areas of Western-Europe, Saint Blaise was honored as the patron saint of plowmen and farmers. The benediction of grain prior to seeding was associated with him and on Saint Blaise's Day, February 3, a procession was held in his honor. In the procession, a man representing the saint was drawn on a cart throughout the countryside. In some villages, Saint Blaise was also considered a patron of human fecundity and young women wishing to marry prayed before his statue.Berger 1985, pp. 81-84. Also noteworthy in this context are the Phallic Saints who were patrons of human fertility. In Scandinavia and England, Saint Stephen may have inherited some of Freyr's legacy. His Feast Day is December 26 and thus he came to play a part in the Yuletide celebrations which may previously have been associated with Freyr. In old Swedish art, Stephen is shown as tending to horses and bringing a boar's head to a Yuletide banquet.Berger 1985, pp. 105-112. Both elements are extracanonical and may be pagan survivals. Christmas Ham is an old tradition in Sweden and may have originated as a Yuletide boar sacrifice to Freyr. NOTES REFERENCES
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