Freyr: Difference between revisions

'''Freyr''' ([[Old Norse]]: 'Lord'), sometimes anglicized as '''Frey''', is a widely attested [[Æsir|god]] in [[Norse mythology]], associated with kingship, fertility, peace, prosperity, fair weather, and good harvest. Freyr, sometimes referred to as [[Yngvi]]-Freyr, was especially associated with [[Sweden]] and seen as an ancestor of the [[Yngling|Swedish royal house]].{{reference needed|date=June 2024}} According to [[Adam of Bremen]], Freyr was associated with peace and pleasure, and was represented with a [[phallus|phallic]] statue in the [[Temple at Uppsala]]. According to [[Snorri Sturluson]], Freyr was "the most renowned of the [[æsir]]", and was venerated for good harvest and peace.

In the mythological stories in the Icelandic books the ''[[Poetic Edda]]'' and the ''[[Prose Edda]]'', Freyr is presented as one of the [[Vanir]], the son of the god [[Njörðr]] and [[Sister-wife of Njörðr|his sister-wife]], as well as the twin brother of the goddess [[Freyja]]. The gods gave him [[Álfheimr]], the realm of the [[Álfar|Elves]], as a teething present. He rides the shining [[Norse dwarves|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. Freyr is also known to have been associated with the [[Horses in Germanic paganism|horse cult]]. He also kept sacred horses in his sanctuary at [[Trondheim]] in Norway.{{sfn|Davidson|1964|pp=96–97}} He has the servants [[Skírnir]], [[Byggvir]] and [[Beyla]].

Written {{circa}} 1080, one of the oldest written sources on pre-Christian Scandinavian religious practices is [[Adam of Bremen]]'s {{lang|la|[[Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum]]}}. 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 [[Cult image|image]] of him at [[Skara]] was destroyed by the Christian missionary [[Egino (Bishop of Dalby)|Bishop Egino]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Tschan|2002|p=192}} (Book 4, ix (9))</ref> Adam's description of the [[Temple at Uppsala]] gives some details on the god.

In this temple, entirely decked out in gold, the people worship the statues of three gods in such wise that the mightiest of them, [[Thor]], occupies a throne in the middle of the chamber; [[Woden]] and Frikko have places on either side. The significance of these gods is as follows: Thor, they say, presides over the air, which governs the thunder and lightning, the winds and rains, fair weather and crops. The other, Woden—that is, the Furious—carries on war and imparts to man strength against his enemies. The third is Frikko, who bestows peace and pleasure on mortals. His likeness, too, they fashion with an immense [[phallus]].

When Skírnir finds Gerðr he starts by offering her treasures if she will marry Freyr. When she declines he forces her to accept by threatening her with destructive magic.

In 1904, a [[Viking Age]] statuette identified as a depiction of Freyr was discovered on the farm Rällinge in [[Lunda, Södermanland]] parish in the province of [[Södermanland]], Sweden. The depiction features a cross-legged seated, bearded male with an erect penis. He is wearing a pointed cap or helmet and stroking his triangular beard. The seven-centimeter-tall statue is displayed at the [[Swedish Museum of National Antiquities]].<ref name="NATANTSTAT">Swedish Museum of National Antiquities inventory number 14232. Viewable online: [http://www.historiska.se/historia/jarnaldern/vikingar/hedniskagudar/relaterade-bilder-hedniska-gudar/frejstatyett/]</ref>

* ''Freysvin'' ("Freyr's meadow") - name of four old farms in [[Hole Municipality]], [[Lom Municipality]], [[Sunnylven Municipality]], and [[Østre Gausdal Municipality]].