Note to Þul Ásynja 1III
[6] Skaði: Although listed among the Ásynjur as the wife of Njǫrðr (see Þul Ása II l. 7), Skaði is the daughter of the giant Þjazi. Bragi (Frag 2/2) calls her ǫndurdís ‘ski-dís’, as does Snorri, who tells how she travelled on skis and shot wild animals (Gylf, SnE 2005, 24; see also Grí 11, Skí 1, Lok 49-51, etc.). With her armour, bow and skis, Skaði shares some features with male gods (cf. Turville-Petre 1964, 164), and this common ground may be inferred from the very form of her name, whose origin is obscure. It is possible that Skaði is derived from skaði m. ‘harm’, but many other interpretations of this name have been suggested, e.g. that Skaði may be connected with Ska(n)dinavia (Scandinavia) or Skáney (Skåne, Scania) (cf. OE Scedenige; see ARG II, 337-8 and AEW: skaði). The name of this goddess does not occur in skaldic kennings.
References
- Bibliography
- AEW = Vries, Jan de. 1962. Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch. 2nd rev. edn. Rpt. 1977. Leiden: Brill.
- Turville-Petre, Gabriel. 1964. Myth and Religion of the North. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
- SnE 2005 = Snorri Sturluson. 2005. Edda: Prologue and Gylfaginning. Ed. Anthony Faulkes. 2nd edn. University College London: Viking Society for Northern Research.
- ARG = Vries, Jan de. 1956-7. Altgermanische Religionsgeschichte. 2 vols. 2nd edn. Berlin: de Gruyter.
- Internal references
- (forthcoming), ‘ Snorri Sturluson, Gylfaginning’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=113> (accessed 26 April 2024)
- Not published: do not cite ()
- Not published: do not cite ()
- Not published: do not cite ()
- Elena Gurevich 2017, ‘ Anonymous, Ása heiti II’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 760. <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=3189> (accessed 26 April 2024)