Álfablót
Encyclopedia
The Álfablót or the Elven sacrifice was a pagan
Scandinavia
n sacrifice
to the elves
towards the end of autumn, when the crops had been harvested and the animals were most fat. Unlike the great blót
s at Uppsala
and Mære
, the álfablót was a local celebration at the homesteads and they were mainly administered by the lady of the household. Nothing is known about the particular rites because they were surrounded by secrecy and strangers were not welcome to the homesteads during the celebrations. However, since the elves were collective powers with a close connection to ancestors and fertility, it is possible that the álfablót concerned ancestor worship and the life force of the family. It also appears that Odin
was implied and that the master of the household was called Ölvir when administering the rites. The first element of Ölvir means "beer", which was an important element in Norse pagan sacrifices generally.
There is a notable account of the ceremony in Austrfararvísur
by the Norwegian skald
Sigvatr Þórðarson
, where he tried to impose on the privacy of a series of homes during the sacred family holiday, a privacy that he was accordingly asked to respect.
Austrfararvísur
, the Norwegian skald Sigvatr Þórðarson
gave a first hand account of his less than agreeable encounter with the holiday in Sweden. Sighvatr and his companions had been sent on a diplomatic mission to Skara
in Västergötland
and were to meet jarl
Ragnvald Ulfsson
, but they had not arrived at the destination yet and had to find night quarters.
After an arduous journey, Sighvatr and his companions arrived at a homestead called Hof
, which probably is modern Stora Hov, near Edsvära in Västergötland
. They expected to be received according to the laws of hospitality, but the door remained shut. Sighvatr had to stick his nose down into a narrow opening in order to present himself, but the people of the household declined by saying that the place was hallowed. Sighvatr retorted that the troll
s should take them, and continued to the next homestead.
At the following farm, he met a lady who told him to go away and said "Don't go further inside unlucky man! We are afraid of Odin
's wrath; we are pagans!" Then, she chased him away as if he were a wolf and said that they were having the elven sacrifice at the homestead.
They tried three more times to find a place to rest, but all the times they were dispatched by men who called themselves Ölvir. Then, they decided to seek out the man who was reputedly the most hospitable man in the district. The last man only scowled at them, and calling the man the "guardian of the pickaxe", Sighvatr stated that if that man was the "best man", the worst man must have been truly evil.
, there is an account on how sacrifices were done to the elves in order to heal a battle wound. Unlike the sacrifices described by Sigvatr, this one appears to have been a sacrifice that could have been performed at any time of the year:
Norse paganism
Norse paganism is the religious traditions of the Norsemen, a Germanic people living in the Nordic countries. Norse paganism is therefore a subset of Germanic paganism, which was practiced in the lands inhabited by the Germanic tribes across most of Northern and Central Europe in the Viking Age...
Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n sacrifice
Blót
The blót was Norse pagan sacrifice to the Norse gods and the spirits of the land. The sacrifice often took the form of a sacramental meal or feast. Related religious practices were performed by other Germanic peoples, such as the pagan Anglo-Saxons...
to the elves
Elf
An elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...
towards the end of autumn, when the crops had been harvested and the animals were most fat. Unlike the great blót
Blót
The blót was Norse pagan sacrifice to the Norse gods and the spirits of the land. The sacrifice often took the form of a sacramental meal or feast. Related religious practices were performed by other Germanic peoples, such as the pagan Anglo-Saxons...
s at Uppsala
Gamla Uppsala
Gamla Uppsala is a parish and a village outside Uppsala in Sweden. It had 16,231 inhabitants in 1991.As early as the 3rd century AD and the 4th century AD and onwards, it was an important religious, economic and political centre...
and Mære
Mære
Mære is a village in the municipality of Steinkjer in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located along the European route E6 highway and the Nordlandsbanen railway line, about south of the town of Steinkjer. The village of Sparbu lies about south of Mære. Mære Church is located in this...
, the álfablót was a local celebration at the homesteads and they were mainly administered by the lady of the household. Nothing is known about the particular rites because they were surrounded by secrecy and strangers were not welcome to the homesteads during the celebrations. However, since the elves were collective powers with a close connection to ancestors and fertility, it is possible that the álfablót concerned ancestor worship and the life force of the family. It also appears that Odin
Odin
Odin is a major god in Norse mythology and the ruler of Asgard. Homologous with the Anglo-Saxon "Wōden" and the Old High German "Wotan", the name is descended from Proto-Germanic "*Wodanaz" or "*Wōđanaz"....
was implied and that the master of the household was called Ölvir when administering the rites. The first element of Ölvir means "beer", which was an important element in Norse pagan sacrifices generally.
There is a notable account of the ceremony in Austrfararvísur
Austrfararvísur
Austrfararvísur "East Journey Verses" is a skaldic poem composed by the Icelandic skald Sigvatr Þórðarson in the 1020s. Sigvatr was visiting the Norwegian king Olaf and was sent on a delegation to the Swedish king Olaf....
by the Norwegian skald
Skald
The skald was a member of a group of poets, whose courtly poetry is associated with the courts of Scandinavian and Icelandic leaders during the Viking Age, who composed and performed renditions of aspects of what we now characterise as Old Norse poetry .The most prevalent metre of skaldic poetry is...
Sigvatr Þórðarson
Sigvatr Þórðarson
Sigvatr Þórðarson or Sigvat the Skald was an Icelandic skald. He was a court poet to King Olaf II of Norway, as well as Canute the Great, Magnus the Good and Anund Jacob, by whose reigns his floruit can be dated to the earlier eleventh century.Sigvatr was the best known of the court skalds of...
, where he tried to impose on the privacy of a series of homes during the sacred family holiday, a privacy that he was accordingly asked to respect.
Austrfararvísur
In his skaldic poemSkald
The skald was a member of a group of poets, whose courtly poetry is associated with the courts of Scandinavian and Icelandic leaders during the Viking Age, who composed and performed renditions of aspects of what we now characterise as Old Norse poetry .The most prevalent metre of skaldic poetry is...
Austrfararvísur
Austrfararvísur
Austrfararvísur "East Journey Verses" is a skaldic poem composed by the Icelandic skald Sigvatr Þórðarson in the 1020s. Sigvatr was visiting the Norwegian king Olaf and was sent on a delegation to the Swedish king Olaf....
, the Norwegian skald Sigvatr Þórðarson
Sigvatr Þórðarson
Sigvatr Þórðarson or Sigvat the Skald was an Icelandic skald. He was a court poet to King Olaf II of Norway, as well as Canute the Great, Magnus the Good and Anund Jacob, by whose reigns his floruit can be dated to the earlier eleventh century.Sigvatr was the best known of the court skalds of...
gave a first hand account of his less than agreeable encounter with the holiday in Sweden. Sighvatr and his companions had been sent on a diplomatic mission to Skara
Skara
Skara is a locality and the seat of Skara Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 18595 inhabitants in 2005. Despite its small size, it has a long educational and ecclesiastical history. One of Sweden's oldest high schools, Katedralskolan , is situated in Skara...
in Västergötland
Västergötland
', English exonym: West Gothland, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden , situated in the southwest of Sweden. In older English literature one may also encounter the Latinized version Westrogothia....
and were to meet jarl
Earl
An earl is a member of the nobility. The title is Anglo-Saxon, akin to the Scandinavian form jarl, and meant "chieftain", particularly a chieftain set to rule a territory in a king's stead. In Scandinavia, it became obsolete in the Middle Ages and was replaced with duke...
Ragnvald Ulfsson
Ragnvald Ulfsson
Ragnvald Ulfsson the Old was a jarl of Västergötland or Östergötland, and married to a sister of Olav Tryggvason.Ragnvald is mentioned in the skaldic poem Austrfaravísur, ascribed to Sigvatr Þórðarson, skald of King Olaf Haraldsson of Norway , who had been on a diplomatic mission to Sweden...
, but they had not arrived at the destination yet and had to find night quarters.
After an arduous journey, Sighvatr and his companions arrived at a homestead called Hof
Heathen hofs
Heathen hofs or Germanic pagan temples were the temple buildings of Germanic paganism; there are also a few built for use in modern Germanic neopaganism...
, which probably is modern Stora Hov, near Edsvära in Västergötland
Västergötland
', English exonym: West Gothland, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden , situated in the southwest of Sweden. In older English literature one may also encounter the Latinized version Westrogothia....
. They expected to be received according to the laws of hospitality, but the door remained shut. Sighvatr had to stick his nose down into a narrow opening in order to present himself, but the people of the household declined by saying that the place was hallowed. Sighvatr retorted that the troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
s should take them, and continued to the next homestead.
At the following farm, he met a lady who told him to go away and said "Don't go further inside unlucky man! We are afraid of Odin
Odin
Odin is a major god in Norse mythology and the ruler of Asgard. Homologous with the Anglo-Saxon "Wōden" and the Old High German "Wotan", the name is descended from Proto-Germanic "*Wodanaz" or "*Wōđanaz"....
's wrath; we are pagans!" Then, she chased him away as if he were a wolf and said that they were having the elven sacrifice at the homestead.
They tried three more times to find a place to rest, but all the times they were dispatched by men who called themselves Ölvir. Then, they decided to seek out the man who was reputedly the most hospitable man in the district. The last man only scowled at them, and calling the man the "guardian of the pickaxe", Sighvatr stated that if that man was the "best man", the worst man must have been truly evil.
Kormáks saga
In Kormáks sagaKormáks saga
Kormáks saga is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It tells of the tenth-century Icelandic poet, Kormákr Ögmundarson, and Steingerðr, the love of his life. The saga preserves a significant amount of poetry attributed to Kormákr, much of it dealing with his love for Steingerðr. Though the saga is...
, there is an account on how sacrifices were done to the elves in order to heal a battle wound. Unlike the sacrifices described by Sigvatr, this one appears to have been a sacrifice that could have been performed at any time of the year:
Hún segir: "Hóll einn er héðan skammt í brott er álfar búa í. Graðung þann er Kormákur drap skaltu fá og rjóða blóð graðungsins á hólinn utan en gera álfum veislu af slátrinu og mun þér batna." |
"A hill there is," answered she, "not far away from here, where elves have their haunt. Now get you the bull that Cormac killed, and redden the outer side of the hill with its blood, and make a feast for the elves with its flesh. Then thou wilt be healed." |
Sources
- Larsson, Mats G (2002). Götarnas Riken : Upptäcktsfärder Till Sveriges Enande. Bokförlaget Atlantis AB ISBN 9789174866414
- Steinsland, G.Gro SteinslandGro Steinsland is a Norwegian scholar of medieval studies and history of religion and since August 2009 has been the Scientific Director of the Centre for Advanced Study of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters....
& Meulengracht Sørensen, P. (1998): Människor och makter i vikingarnas värld. ISBN 9173245917 - Austrfararvísur in Old Norse, two editions
- Kormáks saga, at Snerpa.
- Chapter 22, What the Witch Did for Them in Their Fights, in an English translation called "The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald".