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Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

The fylgja of the Háleygjar Family

UNNHILD

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Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr in the saga tradition

In the saga literature Þorgerðr appears under the names Hölga troll, Höl-
gabrúðr, Hölgatroll, Höldabrúðr, höldatroll, Hörgabrúðr, Hörðabrúðr
and Hördatroll. Gustav Storm has investigated her different names and
concluded that the forms containing -brúðr are the most original, while
the troll-names reflect the later demonization of Þorgerðr.

This demoni-

zation is evident in Flateyjarbók, the great Icelandic compilation from
the 1380–1390’s. The demonization is evident not only through her char-
acterisation as flagð ‘witch’, but also in the general perspective of the au-
thor, who characterizes her as a statue empowered by Satan, who is in
conflict with the missionary king and behaves as a representative of the
old faith.

Þorgerðr in Jómsvíkinga þáttr in Flateyjarbók

Jómsvíkinga þáttr in Flateyjarbók describes the role played by Þorgerðr
and her sister Irpa in the battle of the Jómsvíkingar.

Before the battle

Hákon jarl arrives on an island called Primsigd.

He walks through a dark

forest until he comes to a clearing, where he kneels towards the North
and says prayers to his fulltrua Þorgerde Hordabrude ‘best trusted

Storm 1885.

Flateyjarbók I:191–194. The prayers to Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr and her sister Irpa, as well

as the sacrifice of Hákon jarl’s son, are also reported in Jómsvíkinga saga and in Oddr
munk’s saga of Óláfr Tryggvason. For a discussion of the relationship between the differ-
ent sources describing the Jómsvíkinga battle, see Knut Helle 1992.

Knut Helle identifies this as the island of Sula, south of Ålesund. Helle 1992:188.

Gunnhild Røthe

friend Þorgerðr Hörðabrúðr’.

Þorgerðr is unwilling to hear his prayers

and Hákon fears that she is angry with him. He offers her sacrifices but
she refuses, so he then offers her human sacrifices. When she still re-
fuses, he offers to choose a victim from among his own men, excepting
himself and his sons Eirikr and Sveinn. The jarl decides that his seven
year old son Erlingr will be sacrificed. The skald Bjarni Kolbeinsson de-
scribes this sacrifice in Jómsvíkingadrápa, although he does not name
the son.

After the jarl has called on Þorgerðr and Irpa, bad weather arrives

from the North. The sky turns black and there are thunderstorms and
hail. Þorgerðr fights against the jarl and it seems as though arrows are
shot from each of the witch’s fingers. This detail of the fight is also re-
ported by the skald Þórkell Gíslason in the twelfth-century Búadrápa.
He does not call the antagonist Þorgerðr but flagð et forljóta ‘the ugly
witch’ which is in accordance with Flateyjarbók where Þorgerðr

called flagd.

Þorgerðr is also mentioned in the Jómsvíkingadrápa by

Bjarni Kolbeinsson who died in 1222. He says that illa œða Hölga-
brúði ‘the terribly furious bride of Hölgi’ caused furiously bad weather
and a severe hailstorm coming from the North.

After the battle has

ended Hákon jarl and his men found the hailstones that were cast by
Þorgerðr and her sister. They later weighed a hailstone in order to
prove the strength of the sisters and it was said that each hailstone
weighed one eyrir.

This detail of the battle is also reported by þórkell

Gíslason in Búadrápa.

Snorri does not mention Þórgerðr in his description of the Jóms-

víkinga battle. There are however signs in his text that show that he was
familiar with the Þorgerðr tradition. Snorri refers to sogn manna ‘the
stories of men’ that related that Hákon jarl had sacrificed his son Erlingr
til sigrs sér ‘in order to win the fight’. This had caused the bad weather

Olafs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 154, Flateyjarbók I:191.

Den norsk-islandske Skjaldedigtning B II:7. Oddr munk relates that the son of Hákon jarl

was nine years old, but he does not mention any name (Soga om Olav Tryggvason etter
Odd munk Snorresson chapter 18). Saxo relates how Hákon sacrificed two of his sons at
the altar, but he does not mention Þorgerðr in this connection. According to Saxo, Hákon
jarl sacrificed his sons in order to win the battle (Saxo Grammaticus. Danmarks krønike.
Tiende bog:388).

Den norsk-islandske Skjaldedigtning B I:538. Jómsvíkinga þáttr, Flateyjarbók I:192.

Den norsk-islandske Skjaldedigtning B II:7.

Jómsvíkinga þáttr, Flateyjarbók I:195. One eyrir is about 26–27 gram.

Den norsk-islandske Skjaldedigtning B I:537.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

and storm.

Snorri also reports that the hailstones from the storm

weighed one eyrir each, but he does not mention the sisters causing the
storm.

A possible reason for Snorri failing to mention Þorgerðr and her

sister Irpa here could be due to his perception of Þorgerðr as a historical
figure. His description of Þorgerðr in Snorra Edda shows that he looked
upon her as a real woman rather than a superhuman figure. He says that
Þorgerðr was the daughter of Hölgi, the king after whom Hálogaland was
named.

Þorgerðr in Færeyinga þáttr in Flateyjarbók

Þorgerðr is also given the surname Hörðabrúðr in Færinga þáttr.

In the

þáttr we are told that Hákon jarl supported Sigmundr Brestisson in his
attempt to conquer the Færeyjar. While Sigmundr was staying with the
jarl they went out into the forest. Hákon asked what Sigmundr believed
in, and he answered that he trui a matt minn ok megin ‘believed in his
own strength and power’.

The jarl then replied that he put all his faith

in the place where Þorgerðr was to be found,

and he said that they

should go and find her. They went through the forest and came to a clear-
ing where they saw a house surrounded by a wooden fence. The house
was decorated with gold and silver and had windows made of glass.
They went into the house where lots of gods were found. Inside the house
they saw a well-clothed woman, and the jarl threw himself down at her
feet and lay like this for a long time. Then he stood up and told Sigmundr
that they should bring her offerings. Silver was then put on a chair in
front of her. As a token of her gratitude for the offerings, Þorgerðr was
to let go of the ring she had on her arm.

When Sigmundr was about to

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 42, Heimskringla:135.

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 41, Heimskringla:133.

Skáldskaparmál chapter 42.

Færinga þáttr, Flateyjarbók I:144.

Færeyinga þáttr, Flateyjarbók I:144.

Gro Steinsland interprets the transferring of Þorgerðr’s ring to Sigmundr as a ritual sym-

bolizing the sacred marriage between Sigmundr and Þorgerðr. The ring is a symbol of fate,
a sign of Eros and love, but also of destiny and of the violent and unheroic death of the hero.
Steinsland 2005:83. Þorgerðr’s ring as a symbol of paganism and predicted death can be
compared to the ring that Óláfr Tryggvason takes from the door of the hof at Lade and
sends to Sigríðr stórráða as a token of marriage (Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 60–61,
Heimskringla:148, 149). Sigríðr reveals the falseness of the ring and this leads to her con-

Gunnhild Røthe

take the ring, however, she would not let release it, but when Hákon
prostrated himself before her a second time, she let him have the ring.
Hákon gave Sigmundr the ring and Sigmundr swore friendship with the
jarl.

Even though Hákon’s belief in Þórgerðr is here called atrunat, the

word used for belief in the wrong gods, the description of the relation-
ship between Hákon jarl and Þorgerðr does not appear negative, but ra-
ther positive. She provides him with the ring that makes it possible for
him to maintain friendship between himself and Sigmundr. In a wider
context however, taking the whole life story of Sigmundr into consider-
ation, this ring does lead to his death. Because he had sworn friendship
with Hákon jarl and refused to renounce this in his meeting with the mis-
sionary King Óláfr Tryggvason, he was doomed to die.

Þórgerðr in Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds in

Flateyjarbók

Another story about Þorgerðr is found in Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds in
Flateyjarbók.

The main theme in the þáttr is the animosity between

Hákon jarl and the Icelandic skald Þorleifr. The animosity is sparked
when Hákon kills some of Þorleifr’s men. Þorleifr takes revenge for the
killings by making a niðvísa ‘insulting verse’ about the jarl. The verses
humiliate the jarl and he wants to avenge himself. In order to wreak re-
venge, the jarl calls on Þorgerðr and her sister Irpa to send galdr ‘witch-
craft, sorcery’ to Iceland to harm Þorleifr, and he gives them many sac-
rifices and seeks their advice.

When he has been given favourable ad-

vice, he takes a piece of wood and from it makes a human statue.

takes this man’s heart and places it in the wooden figure, then clothes
him and gives him the name Þorgarðr. He then fortifies him with the
power of Satan so that he comes to life and is able to speak. Hákon jarl
then sends him to Iceland in order to kill Þorleifr, giving him the sword

flict with Óláfr Tryggvason that finally leads to his death. In Heimskringla this story is con-
nected with the story of the baptism of Óláfr Haraldsson. Thus the ring motif predicting
death caused by deceit is transported over to the life story of Óláfr Haraldsson. Røthe 2004:
190–191.

Færeyinga þáttr, Flateyjarbók I:144, 145.

Flateyjarbók I:207–215.

Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds, Flateyjarbók I:213.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

that he had taken from the hof that Þorgerðr, Irpa and Hörgi had owned.
Þorgarðr meets Þorleifr and there is a battle between them where they
both ultimately die. The death of Þorleifr is said to be caused by the sor-
cery of Hákon jarl.

After his death, Þorleifr is buried in a mound.

As with the other stories of Þorgerðr in Flateyjarbók, the author’s

Christian viewpoint is evident. The power of Þorgerðr and her sister is
attributed to the power of Satan, and the condemnation of Hákon jarl as
a representative of the wrong faith is clearly expressed in the introduc-
tion to the þáttr. Here he is accused of being a guðníðingr ‘denier of
God’ who leads people astray with his evil deeds.

Although the þáttr’s

perspective is a Christian one, this does not preclude the possibility that
the story might contain information about pre-Christian belief and ritual.
For example, in saga literature the expression ganga til fréttar is used as
a common description for rituals of divination. If we conceive of Þor-
gerðr as the fylgja of Hákon, the story indicates that he performed divi-
nation rituals where he turned to Þorgerðr as his tutelary spirit. If this is
the case, it is possible to compare Þorgerðr’s function to that of the
spádísir ‘female fortune-tellers’. The spádísir that are characteristic of
the legendary sagas fulfil the same function as the female fylgja, i.e. pro-
tect and help a protégé.

Gabriel Turville-Petre translates both dís and

fylgja as ‘guardian-spirit, attendant’.

This definition of the status of

Þorgerðr is in line with Else Mundal’s interpretation of Þorgerðr as the
fylgja of the family of Hákon jarl, an interpretation to which I shall return
later in the article.

Þorgerðr in Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar in

Flateyjarbók

One further story of Þorgerðr in Flateyjarbók presents her cult as involv-
ing a statue. Here the statue of Þorgerðr is connected with the statue of
Freyr. In chapter 322 we are told how Óláfr Tryggvason rode a horse
dedicated to Freyr to the hof, where he cut down the statue of Freyr and
tied it to the horse’s tail before riding away.

In chapter 326 we find a

Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds, Flateyjarbók I:214.

Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds, Flateyjarbók I:207, 208.

Mundal 1974:82.

Turville-Petre 1964:227.

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 322, Flateyjarbók I:400, 401.

Gunnhild Røthe

parallel story of how Óláfr Tryggvason attacked the cult of Þorgerðr. The
king and his men came to a clearing in the forest where they saw a beau-
tiful house. They went inside and found a statue made in the shape of
Þorgerðr, beautifully clothed and decorated with gold and silver.

The

king ripped off the gold, silver and clothes, then bound the statue to the
horse’s tail and rode with it to his men. He said that the chieftains in the
land had praised her greatly and that she now had lost her husband. One
of the king’s men recognized the statue and the king asked why he knew
the statue’s name. The man answered that he knew her from the old faith
but since he had taken holy baptism he would turn away from the wrong
faith. When he had turned to Þorgerðr it was more out of graleika ok
gabbi ‘evil will and foolishness’ than faith in her blessings.

The king

thanked him for his words and said that he wanted to hear the same
words from the rest of his men. The king then asked them to put clothes
on the statue. This was done and she was seated at a high altar, with cas-
kets full of gold and silver placed beside her. The king stood beside her
and received promises that they would not offer her praise nor humility
but rather would look upon her in anger.

When they had promised, this

the king praised the Lord that they had not defiled their holy faith be-
cause of the ugliness of the statue.

Then the king made a fire where he

burnt the statues of Þórgerðr and Freyr because he did not want Christian
men to praise either of the statues and thus bring about evilness and
wrong faith.

The rest of the chapter consists of praise for the holy God

and the true faith, with the king warning the chieftains against the wrong
faith. In this chapter the cult of Þorgerðr is used as an exemplification of
the wrong faith, and the statue of Þorgerðr with the power of speech is
portrayed as the spokeswoman for the old and diabolized faith.

Þorgerðr in Njáls saga

In Njáls saga there is also a description of a cultic house with a statue of
Þorgerðr.

The saga relates that Hákon jarl went to a feast held by Guð-

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 326, Flateyjarbók I:407.

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 326, Flateyjarbók I:408.

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 326, Flateyjarbók I:409.

Njáls saga chapter 88. In the different manuscripts of the saga she has the surnames höl-

dabrúðr, Hölgabrúðr or hörgabrúðr.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

brandr. During the night, Víga-Hrappr went to the hof, where he saw
Þorgerðr höldabrúðr sitting. She was as big as a grown man, and had a
golden ring on her arm and a veil on her head. Víga-Hrappr removed her
ring and veil. He then saw Þórr’s cart and removed his ring as well, and
took a third ring from Irpa. He then took the gods out of the hof and re-
moved their clothes, before setting the hof on fire.

The next day, Hákon

jarl and Guðbrandr went to the hof and found the gods outside. Guð-
brandr said that their gods must be powerful because they had fled the
fire, but the jarl answered that this was not due to the power of the gods;
a man must have taken them out of the hof and the man responsible
would be driven out of Valhall.

In contrast to the stories of Þorgerðr in

Flateyjarbók, Hákon is here portrayed as sceptical of the power of the
old gods. Guðbrandr is described as the defender of the old gods, a role
he is also given in the story of the meeting between Guðbrandr and Óláfr
Haraldsson at Hundorp.

In Njáls saga the cult of Þorgerðr is connected with that of Þórr, in

contrast to Flateyjarbók where her cult is connected with that of Freyr.
Which one of these connections is the original is hard to determine. It
may be that neither of them is original, which means that the connection
between the cult of Þorgerðr and the cult of other heathen gods is a sec-
ondary one, made as the tradition of her cult was passed from generation
to generation.

As in Færeyinga þáttr in Flateyjarbók, the statue of Þorgerðr wears a

ring. The ring held great symbolic and cultic importance in the
pre-Christian Scandinavian religion. Óðinn’s ring Draupnir was a sym-
bol of regeneration as well as of the ruler’s predestined death,

while the

baugr ‘holy ring’ was used when people swore oaths. In several sources,
the ritual of swearing an oath entails putting a hand on the baugr and
calling upon Freyr, Njörðr and the almighty god.

The faldr ‘veil’ worn by Þorgerðr indicates that she is married. Nora

The story of how Óláfr Tryggvason destroyed the hof at Lade is reminiscent of this story.

After he had christianized the North of Møre, he sailed into Lade, where he had the hof de-
stroyed. He took the goods and all the decorations from the hof and the gods, as well as the
large golden ring that Hákon jarl had commissioned from the door of the hof (Óláfs saga
Tryggvasonar chapter 59, Heimskringla:147, 148).

Njáls saga chapter 88.

Óláfs saga helga chapter 112–113, Heimskringla:282–286.

Steinsland 1991:148–151.

Edsformularer. Kulturhistorisk leksikon for nordisk middelalder III:517–519 by Olav

Bø.

Gunnhild Røthe

Chadwick compares the lifting of her veil with the lifting of a veil worn
by Þórr in Þrymskviða, as well as with the Faldafeykir tune, reportedly
played at a wedding feast according to Bósa saga ok Herrauðs
konungs.

This tune was so powerful that it made veils drop from

women’s heads. In the saga, the Faldafeykir is connected with toasts
honouring the gods. During the wedding, guests drank a minni to honour
all the æsir and a minni to honour Þórr, Óðinn and Freyja.

Þorgerðr in Harðar saga ok Hólmverja

Þorgerðr is also described as a statue located in a hof in Harðar saga ok
Hólmverja. The goði Grímkell was planning to marry his daughter Þor-
björg to Indriði and went to Þorgerðr’s hof in order to seek advice. When
he came to the hof all the gods were very much disturbed and prepared
to leave the altars.

Grímkell asked Þorgerðr whom she then wanted to

direct the good luck to. Þorgerðr answered that she did not want to direct
the good luck to Hörðr because he had robbed her brother Sóti of a good
golden ring that he had owned and thus shamed him. She wanted instead
to direct the good luck to Þorbjörg, and she said that Grímkell would
have a short life. On hearing this news, Grímkell angrily returned home
to fetch some fire. He burnt down the hof with all the gods and said that
he would be told no more sad stories. In the evening when they were
seated at the table, Grímkell suddenly died.

John McKinnell interprets

the death of Grímkell as reminiscent of Þorgerðr’s demands for human
sacrifices.

Þorgerðr in Gesta Danorum

In addition to the saga literature, Þorgerðr is mentioned by Saxo Gram-
maticus who wrote the Gesta Danorum about 1200. Saxo describes Rag-
nar Lodbrog, who fought against the Swedish King Frø in order to
avenge his grandfather. In the battle, an army of valkyries led by Ladgerd
(Latin Lathgertha) came to his aid. Ladgerd was fighting as a man but

Bósa saga ok Herrauðs konungs chapter 12. Chadwick 1950:405.

Bósa saga ok Herrauðs konungs chapter 12.

Harðar saga ok Hólmverja chapter 19.

McKinnell 2002:269, 270.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

her long hair showed that she was in fact a shield maiden.

When Ragnar

asked about her origins, he learnt that she was of noble lineage. He
sought out her home in Guldalen, married her, and had two daughters
and one son with her. He later married Thora, but still Ladgerd helped
him win a battle against King Harald.

The valkyrie function that is at-

tributed to Ladgerd in this story is similar to that attributed to Þórgerðr
and her sister Irpa in the story of the Jómsvíkinga battle. According to
Nora Chadwick it is probable that Ladgerd is identical with Þorgerðr.
The name is probably derived from Hlað(a)-Gerðr with loss of initial h-
before -l- in Danish.

Chadwick compares the relationship between

Ragnar and Ladgerd to the relationship between the hero and his fóstra
‘fostermother’. This relationship, which is especially significant in the
legendary sagas and heroic poetry, is characterized as a ritual marriage
contracted in a spiritual milieu, a kind of mystery. This union is spiritu-
ally permanent, the fóstra becoming the hero’s fylgju-kona, his tutelary
spirit and supernatural protector.

Nora Chadwick and Britt-Mari Näsström have identified the figure of

Helgi in the poems of the Poetic Edda as a classic example of super-
natural fosterage.

A recurrent pattern in the heroic tales of Helgi Hund-

ingsbani is the relationship between Helgi and a female figure who helps
and protects him. As a young boy Helgi is nameless and dumb,

defects

which prevent him from inheriting his father’s kingdom. With the help
of nine valkyries, among them Sváva, however, he acquires the ability to
speak and he is given the name Helgi as well as a sword.

He is sitting

on a mound as he watches the arrival of the nine valkyries.

Helgi’s dumbness is also a motif in Saxo’s story of Helge, the king of

Helgeland (Hálogaland) who was wooing Thora, daughter of Guse,
Prince of the Finns and Bjarmians. Helge was disadvantaged by speech
impediments, and his marriage proposal was turned down by Thora’s fa-
ther, although with the help of Hød he was able to win his bride.

Chad-

Saxo Grammaticus. Danmarks krønike. Niende bog:357.

Saxo Grammaticus. Danmarks krønike. Niende bog:362,363.

Chadwick 1950:414.

Chadwick 1950:415.

Chadwick 1950:415. Näsström 1995:158–161.

The prose passage before stanza 6 in Helgakviða Hiorvarðssonar.

Helgakviða Hiorvarðssonar stanzas 6–9.

The prose passage before stanzas 6 and 10 in Helgakviða Hiorvarðssonar.

Saxo Grammaticus. Danmarks krønike. Tredje bog:68–69.

Gunnhild Røthe

wick and Näsström maintain that the fact that Saxo identified Helge with
Hölgi means that Thora must be identical with Þorgerðr.

According to

Gustav Storm, however, there is no reason to make such an identifica-
tion. He argues that Hölgi ought to be conceived of as the eponymous fa-
ther of the Háleygjar and that nowhere in the sources is this name con-
fused with the name Helgi.

The identification of Hölgi with Helgi thus

seems to be due to a later development of the tradition.

Medieval depictions of the cult of Þorgerðr

A common trait in the sources which we have investigated so far is the
description of Þorgerðr as the statue of a well-clothed woman placed in
a hof. We might look at these descriptions as literary products of the mis-
sionary genre. The depiction of the cult of Þorgerðr in the medieval
sources could thus be interpreted as the product of a literary genre where
the pre-Christian cult is compared to the cult of Christian saints. The de-
scription of Þorgerðr as a veiled female statue could be modelled on the
veiled statues of the Virgin Mary, with whom the medieval authors were
acquainted. On the other hand, there is sufficient archaeological evi-
dence to make us presume that the cult of wooden idols was part of the
pre-Christian religion.

The miracle-working Christian relics and

images seem to have substituted for the religious functions of the pagan
idols and ex votos.

As regards the existence of the hof as a separate cult building, there

has been a tendency since the critical investigations of Olaf Olsen to
view the saga descriptions of the hof as purely literary products. The hof
seems to be the name given to the hall of a farm when it was used for
sacral purposes.

This does not seem to be the case with the cult of

Þorgerðr, however. In most descriptions of her cult, we are told that her
cultic house was located in a clearing in the forest. Does this mean that
the cult of Þorgerðr differed from the cult performed at the farms? Lotte
Motz argues that this was probably the case, and sees the location of the
cult of Þorgerðr in the wilderness as reminiscent of a cult which originat-

Storm 1885:126–127. Chadwick 1950:408. Näsström 1995:159.

Storm 1885:128.

Olsen 1966:121.

Fuglesang 2004.

Olsen 1966:94.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

ed in a mountain or mountain cave.

She argues that the cult of Þorgerðr

originated as the cult of a giantess who personified the landscape.

Þorgerðr identified as a giantess

In her investigation of the giant family, Lotte Motz has commented upon
the character of Þorgerðr.

She compares the giants with the nature-own-

ers of other Northern nations,

and groups Þórgerðr Hölgabrúðr among

the giants and giantesses who control the elements of nature. Motz points
to the fact that Þorgerðr is not mentioned in the poems and prose of eddic
myth, nor is she a member of the families of gods as they are presented
by Snorri in Gylfaginning. In Snorra Edda, the name Hölgabrúðr is listed
in the enumeration of giantesses.

Motz compares Þorgerðr’s qualities

with the qualities of other giantesses mentioned in the sagas, and con-
cludes that she, like the other giantesses, is connected to a specific dwell-
ing place, usually in the north of the countries they are said to inhabit.

In the legendary sagas there are many spirits given names compound-

ed with -gerðr.

Þorgerðr resembles other giantesses in the legendary

sagas as regards their ability to cause bad weather, skills in warfare and
magical powers. The elements comprising Þorgerðr’s persona find a
counterpart in the giantesses of the legendary sagas. These giantesses
may have been modelled on the daimons of the landscape who were re-
vered by the local population. When the communities were united into a
kingdom governed by a single ruler, one spirit rose to national promi-
nence.

The cult of Þorgerðr developed into the cult of the Great God-

dess, and as a result, the rituals performed in her honour moved from a
mountain or mountain cave into a temple.

Þorgerðr and the hieros gamos motif

Þorgerðr’s surname -brúðr indicates that she and her lover, whether
Hölgi or Hákon jarl, fit into the pattern of the hieros gamos ‘holy mar-

Motz 1997: 475.

Motz 1987:221.

Snorra Edda tillæg IX:197.

Motz 1997:473.

Motz 1997:475.

Gunnhild Røthe

riage’.

This motif occurs in the skaldic poetry celebrating Hákon jarl.

In this poetry the jarl’s conquering of the land is compared to the divine
marriage between Óðinn and a female figure representing the landscape:
“Det tema över vilket han formar sin iscensättning är den mytiska idén
om ett äktenskap resp. bröllop mellan två mäktiga gudomliga parter,
Óðinn och jorden.”

Folke Ström argues that the relationship between

Þorgerðr and Hákon jarl should be seen as a similar hieros gamos where
Þorgerðr represents the land that the jarl rules over. Þorgerðr’s nature as
a divine being is compared to that of the dísir.

What characterizes

Þorgerðr as a dís is her double character as both warrior goddess and fer-
tility goddess.

According to Ström, Hákon jarl was acquainted with the

concept of a sacred marriage between the ruler and the goddess repre-
senting the land he ruled over. In this connection he mentions the prob-
ability that the relationship between Þorgerðr and the jarl was celebrated
in a ritual marriage.

Gro Steinsland builds on Ström’s analysis of the hieros gamos motif

in skaldic poetry, but in opposition to Ström she stresses the giantess na-
ture of Þorgerðr. She compares the role of Þorgerðr to the role of the
giantess in a hieros gamos between a giantess and a god, a liaison that
according to her thesis belongs to the pre-Christian ideology of kingship.
According to her thesis the hieros gamos between a giantess and a god
accounts for the birth of the prototypical ruler as well as his death.

The

Yngling kings were the descendants of Fjölnir

the son of the god Freyr

and the giantess Gerðr while Sæming, the forefather of the Háleygjar
dynasty, was the son of the god Óðinn and the giantess Skaði. Steinsland
argues that the relationship between Þorgerðr and Hölgi represents a
forerunner to the Óðinn–Skaði genealogy of the Háleygjar.

She points

to the possibility, earlier proposed by Ström, that the relationship be-
tween Þorgerðr and Hákon jarl was modelled on the relationship be-
tween Þorgerðr and Hölgi and acted out in a ritual marriage.

Steins-

In Flateyjarbók Hákon jarl is described as the bóndi ‘husband’ of Þorgerðr (Óláfs saga

Tryggvasonar chapter 326, Flateyjarbók I:408).

Ström 1983:68.

This comparison was earlier drawn by Magnus Olsen and Anne Holtsmark. Ström 1983:

75.

Ström 1983:75.

Ström 1983:79.

Steinsland 1991.

Steinsland 1991:225.

Steinsland 1991:226.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

land’s view of Þorgerðr as a giantess is in accordance with Lotte Motz’s
exposition of the giant nature of Þorgerðr.

Þorgerðr identified as a goddess

John McKinnell compares Þorgerðr to Freyja, the great Vanir goddess,
and argues that her cult shows a number of features which are reminis-
cent of the Vanir cult.

Even though he regards her as having originated

as a local goddess, probably the family patroness of the Háleygjar, he ar-
gues that she can be classified as a Vanir goddess. He compares her re-
lationship with Hákon jarl with the relationship between Freyja and her
devotees. The element –brúðr implies that her devotee was regarded as
her sexual partner.

McKinnell assumes that the name Hölgi was ap-

plied to her devotee as well as to his dead predecessors. McKinnell fur-
ther argues that there is a correspondence between Þorgerðr’s sister Irpa
and the figure of Hel, the dark aspect of Freyja. The name Irpa seems to
be related to jarpr ‘swarthy’, Old English eorp.

Even though he regards

Hölgi as a dead human ruler resting in a mound, he rejects the possibility
that Þorgerðr had a parallel role as the dead ruler’s daughter or wife rest-
ing in a mound.

As regards the cult of Þorgerðr, McKinnell argues that

it is unlikely that there were purpose-built temples either in Norway or
in Iceland, although there probably were idols and sacred sites.

As earlier research shows, Þorgerðr has been interpreted as a giantess

as well as a goddess. Her relationship with Hákon jarl is identified as be-
ing between a goddess and her human lover. Both Motz and McKinnell
emphasize the resemblance between Freyja and Þorgerðr. Yet even if the
cult of Þorgerðr seems to be reminiscent of the cult of the Vanir goddess
Freyja, this does not necessarily mean that her cult originated as the cult
of a goddess, as is evident from Motz’s research. Another possible origin
for the figure of Þorgerðr is proposed by Else Mundal in her investiga-
tion of the fylgja motif in saga literature. Þorgerðr and Hölgi were the
forebears of the Háleygjar family, and Mundal regards Þorgerðr as the
fylgja of this family.

McKinnell 2002.

McKinnell 2002:267, 277.

McKinnell 2002:271.

McKinnell 2002:267.

McKinnell 2002:265.

Gunnhild Røthe

Þorgerðr identified as the foremother and fylgja of

the Háleygjar family

Gustav Storm argues that the name Hölgi is identical with that of the
eponymous King Háleygr. Proof of this identification is found in genea-
logical information in Njáls saga, where it is said that the mother of
Grímr was Hervör, and the mother of Hervör was Þorgerðr, the daughter
of King Háleygr of Hálogaland.

The eponymous Háleygr is to be re-

garded as the forefather of the Háleygjar, the family from which Hákon
jarl originated.

In the sources there are two different traditions accounting for the de-

scent of the Háleygjar family. In the skaldic poem Háleygjatal the family
is said to have its origin in the divine marriage between Óðinn and Skaði,
who were the parents of the first jarl Sæming.

The divine genealogy of

the Háleygjar is supposedly patterned on the divine genealogy of the
Ynglingar related in Ynglingatal. An older genealogical origin is implied
in the skaldic stanza composed by the skald Þorbjörn hornklofi about
900, however. This poem was composed in connection with the marriage
between Haraldr inn hárfagri and the Danish king’s daughter, and the
skald scorns the king for having spurned the daughters of Norwegian
families. One of the families is Hölga ættar ‘the family of Hölgi’.

Gustav Storm’s opinion Hölga ættar is identical to Háleygja ætt, the
family of Hákon jarl.

If this is correct we have to regard Hölgi as an-

other name for the forefather of the Háleygjar.

If we consider Þorgerðr to be the bride of Hölgi as her name indicates,

then she must be identified as the foremother of the Háleygjar. The term
brúðr has the primary meaning bride, woman but not daughter. This
means that the relationship between Þorgerðr and Hölgi must be identi-
fied as that of wife and husband. On this point Saxo seems to be more
correct than Snorri, as maintained by Gustav Storm.

As the foremother

of the Háleygjar, Þorgerðr can be classified as the fylgja of the family.

Else Mundal has made an analysis of the fylgja motif in saga literature,

including both animal and female fylgjur. The latter were regarded as

Njáls saga chapter 113.

Háleygjatal stanza 3 and 4. Den norsk-islandske Skjaldedigtning B I:60.

Den norsk-islandske Skjaldedigtning B I:24.

Storm 1885:129.

Storm 1885: 128.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

tutelary spirits that protected their family. Mundal argues that the con-
ception of the female fylgja originated in the cult of deceased fore-
mothers, and the female fylgjur have their origin in the cult of mater
familias who developed into the tutelary spirits of their family.

Mundal

further assumes that the cult of the dísir developed along similar lines,
that they were deceased foremothers whom people venerated after
death.

Mundal comments upon the figure of Þorgerðr, who in the

sources is given the same function as the female fylgja in that she is ven-
erated as the tutelary spirit of Hákon jarl: “Vi kan også jamføre kvin-
nefylgja med Torgerd Hordabrud som skulle vere stammor til ladejar-
lane. Ho vart dyrka som ein guddom av ættingane sine, og føremålet med
denne dyrkinga var at ho skulle hjelpe dei.”

If we take into consider-

ation Mundal’s view that the cult of the female fylgja originated in the
cult of deceased foremothers, this indicates that the cult of Þorgerðr orig-
inated in the cult of a specific woman who was regarded as the fore-
mother of the Háleygjar.

Even if a prohibition against a cult of deceased foremothers is not

specified in the sources, it is probable that the general prohibition against
the cult of the dead included this kind of cult.

The many prohibitions in

the laws against awaking the dead imply that some sort of communica-
tion between the living and the dead was part of the pre-Christian reli-
gion.

It is logical that the cult of the deceased was practiced at their

mounds, and in fact some sources do indicate that the cult of the dead
was connected with their mounds.

The cult of the dead at the mound

The cult of a deceased king in his mound is described in Óláfs þáttr Geir-
staðaálfs.

Óláfr is said to have been a king of the Yngling dynasty who

was venerated as an álfr ‘elf’ after his death. While he was alive, he was
so ársæll ‘prosperous’ that there was no bad harvest or famine during his
reign. In order to maintain this prosperity and prevent famine, he was

Mundal 1974:106.

Mundal 1974:104.

Mundal 1974:102.

Mundal 1974:116.

Eldre Gulatingslov chapter 32, Eldre Frostatingslov chapter V, 45, Nyare Gulatings

kristenrett chapter 3.

Óláfs þáttr Geirstaðaálfs, Flateyjarbók II: 3–9.

Gunnhild Røthe

venerated with blót ‘sacrifices’ after his death and his name was changed
to Geirstaðaálfr, ‘the elf at Geirstað’. The story of Óláfr Geirstaðaálfr is
incorporated into the different sagas of St. Óláfr and the king at Geirstað
is identified as the Christian king’s heathen predecessor. This literary de-
tail does not preclude the possibility that the story might be a source
showing the apotheosis of a dead person.

The use of the mound as a place for pre-Christian worship is connect-

ed with the god Freyr. In Ynglinga saga we are given a euhemeristic ex-
planation for the cult of Freyr. Freyr is said to have been a king in Swe-
den who had the ability to bring people ár ok friðr ‘peace and prosperi-
ty’. When he died he was built a mound and placed inside in order to con-
vince people that he was still alive. People brought him offerings of gold,
silver and copper in order to secure ár ok friðr.

A similar story of Freyr is told in Flateyjarbók. Freyr is said to have

been a king in Sweden who died, causing his people great sorrow. He
was buried in a mound where they offered gold, silver and copper
coins.

They thought he was still alive and able to give them ár ok

friðr.

Because no living person wanted to accompany Freyr into the

mound, they made two wooden statues of Freyr and placed one in the
mound. The other they sent to Trondheim and this statue became the
starting point for the local cult of Freyr.

These stories of the origin of the cult of Freyr represent two different

ways of linking the cult of Freyr to the mound. In both cases the aims of
the cult were to produce good harvests, peace, and prosperity, the same
aims as the cult of the dead King Óláfr at Geirstað. There seems to have
been a relationship in the Old Norse religion between the cult of the dead
and the cult of the Vanir gods ensuring ár ok friðr.

The fact that the cult

of Þorgerðr is reminiscent of the cult of Freyja might be due to this rela-
tionship.

If we regard Þorgerðr as a historical figure rather than a goddess, it

Røthe 2004:41–54.

Ynglinga saga chapter 10.

Ólálafs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 323. Flateyjarbók I:403.

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 323. Flateyjarbók I:403.

Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar chapter 323. Flateyjarbók I:403. In Flateyjarbók this story of

the origin of the statue of Freyr is connected with the story of the statue of Þorgerðr. Is it
possible that the statue of Þorgerðr could similarly be regarded as originating in the mound
as well? Freyr could be regarded as Þorgerðr’s lover, a mythological counterpart to her hu-
man lover Hákon jarl.

Turville-Petre 1964:231.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

might be that her cult developed from the cult at her mound, as was the
case with Óláfr Geirstaðaálfr. Even if we do not have a story of the cult
of Þorgerðr comparable to that of Óláfr Geirstaðaálfr, there are several
other traits in the sources indicating a link between the mound and the
figure of Þorgerðr. One of these traits is the element hörga- in some of
her names.

The hörgr as a cultic site

In Harðar saga ok Holmverja Þórgerðr’s surname is hörgabrúðr, the
same as in Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds.

The surname hörgabrúðr is also

appended to Þórgerðr in one of the manuscripts of Njáls saga.

A paral-

lel to the hörga- name for Þorgerðr is the nickname Hörgi for Hölgi in
Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds.

Þorgerðr is also given the surname hörga- in

the legendary saga of Ketill hæng.

This saga narrates the adventure of

Ketill hæng, who one night wakes up hearing loud noises from the forest.
He runs out and sees a troll woman with a mane floating over her shoul-
ders. Ketill asks what she wants and she becomes angry at him and
answers that she is going to the assembly of large trolls from the North
of the country.

The name Þorgerðr is mentioned along with other char-

acters that seem to be conceived of as the personifications of different
landscapes. Þorgerðr is called Hörgatröll ‘the troll of the hörgr’.

If we

identify Þorgerðr as the personification of the landscape, as Lotte Motz
does, it then seems logical to understand her hörgr as something marking
this landscape.

The meaning of the term hörgr is disputed. In the mythological

sources the hörgr is a cultic site especially connected with female div-
inities. In Gylfaginning Snorri tells us that the place where the goddess-
es were worshipped was called a hörgr. This was a beautiful house
called Vingólf.

In the eddic poem Hyndlulioð the hörgr is described

as a heap of stones built by Óttarr in order to venerate Freyja and the

Harðar saga ok Hólmverja chapter 19. Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds, Flateyjarbók I: 213.

Njáls saga chapter 88, note 2.

Þáttr Þorleifs jarlaskalds, Flateyjarbók I: 214.

Saga Ketils hængs chapter 5. The other versions of the saga have Haurðaþroll,

Höldaþroll.

Saga Ketils hængs chapter 5.

Gylfaginning chapter 13.

Gunnhild Røthe

goddesses.

Óttarr slaughtered oxen and reddened the hörgr as a sac-

rifice to the goddesses.

The literal and archaeological evidence for the hörgr as a cultic site

has been investigated by Olaf Olsen.

100

The term hörgr can describe both

a natural and an artificially built pile of stones, and the term hörgr as a
description of a sacred site is older than the term hof. It is evident from
some archaeological finds dating from the Early Iron Age that an image
was sometimes raised on a pile of stones. According to Olsen’s thesis on
the development of the hörgr, such early forms developed into a shel-
tered building consisting of a four-post construction supporting a small
roof, and this construction was later integrated into a larger building.

101

There are two apparent grave and hörgr combinations from Norway, at
the archaeological sites of Tysnes and Haneberg. Within the context of
pre-Christian burials there were found remains of buildings that Olsen
defines as hörgr.

102

This combination indicates that the hörgr could also

mean a grave site or a mound.

The hörgr as a mound

In Den eldre Gulatingslova there is a prohibition against blót made at
different sites. It was forbidden to make offerings to heathen gods, to
mounds and to hörga.

103

In manuscript AM 78 4º it was further explained

that it was forbidden to build a mound or house and call this a hörgr.

104

In this case, it is possible to interpret the hörgr as a term signifying both
mound and house,

105

where it was forbidden to make offerings. The pro-

hibition indicates that a mound could be called a hörgr, and if we take
this interpretation of the hörgr into consideration, we might suppose that
the cult of Þorgerðr originated in either a house or a mound called a
hörgr. The descriptions of her cultic house as a house situated in the wil-
derness might indicate a more primitive form of building such as the
hörgr described as the sheltered four-post construction rather than a
proper building. As indicated by the prohibition in Den eldre Gu-

Hyndluljoð stanza 10.

100

Olsen 1966.

101

Olsen 1966: 281, 282.

102

Olsen 1966: 225–228.

103

Den eldre Gulatingslova. Ed. Bjørn Eithun, Magnus Rindal and Tor Ulset chapter 29.

104

Den eldre Gulatingslova. Ed. Bjørn Eithun, Magnus Rindal and Tor Ulset p. 52.

105

Olsen 1966:105, 106.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

latingslova, is it also possible to understand hörgr as a mound, and we
do have additional sources indicating that Þorgerðr could be thought of
as a mound-dweller.

Þorgerðr as a mound-dweller

Nora Chadwick argues that in the case of Þorgerðr and Hákon jarl, both
lines of descendents are linked to the mound.

106

The name of Hákon’s

great-grandfather was Grjótgarðr, which means ‘stone enclosure’. He
was the son of Herlaugr and the brother of Hrollaugr. These brothers
were said to have built a mound of grjót and earth in the time of Haraldr
inn hárfagri. Snorri relates that King Herlaugr supplied the mound with
food and drink and entered it alive, together with eleven men.

107

This

story, like the story of the burial of Freyr, presupposes some kind of rit-
ual relationship between the living and the dead in the mounds.

Evidence of ritual marriage performed at the mound is found in the

eddic poem Helgakviða Hundingsbana II. This poem tells the story of
Helgi and the valkyrie Sváva, who were reborn as Helgi and Sigrún. Af-
ter Helgi had received a fatal spear-wound he entered Valhall. He later
returned and met Sigrún who had prepared a bed for them in his burial
mound. Chadwick identifies their relationship as a combined ritual mar-
riage and ritual burial.

108

It is explicitly stated that this ritual took place

inside the mound.

109

A weighty argument for viewing Þorgerðr as a historical person rather

than a goddess or a giantess is Snorri’s description of her as the daughter
of King Hölgi.

110

If she had been viewed as a goddess or a giantess in the

pre-Christian period, she would probably have appeared along with
other mythological figures in Snorra Edda.

111

Snorri presents Hölgi and

106

Chadwick 1950:417.

107

Haralds saga hárfagra chapter 8, Heimskringla:45, 46.

108

Helgakviða Hundingsbana II stanza 45–51. Chadwick 1950:413.

109

There is some archaeological evidence indicating that the mound or part of the mound

could function as the scene of ritual performances. Archaeological excavation of the Ose-
berg mound shows that half of the mound was left open for some time. The area in front of
the grave chamber might be identified as a ritual scene. Gansum 2002:278–281. Among
the findings from this area is a double bed with an ox-head lying in it. Is the ox-head a sac-
rifice made in connection with a ritual marriage taking place in this bed?

110

Skaldskarparmál chapter 42.

111

Eyvind Fjeld Halvorsen is also of the opinion that Þorgerðr was not looked upon as a

goddess: “Når hun oppfattes og skildres som troll hos Oddr og i Jómsvíkinga saga, kan det

Gunnhild Røthe

Þorgerðr as historical persons venerated by blót after their deaths, and
the mound plays an important role in his description of them. Snorri re-
lates that the king called Hölgi, the one whom Hálogaland was called af-
ter, was the father of Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr. They were both venerated
and a mound was built for Hölgi. The mound was composed of one layer
of earth and stone and one layer of gold or silver that was the offerings.

112

This story was told in order to explain the kenning Hölga haugþok ‘the
roof of the mound of Hölgi’ for gold.

113

Snorri does not explain exactly

how the cult of Hölgi and Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr was practiced. From the
information he gives, it is however logical to assume that the cult was
based at the mounds of the two. It seems probable that a mound was con-
structed for Þorgerðr as well as for Hölgi, whom Snorri identifies as
daughter and father.

A connection between Þorgerðr and the mound is established in

Harðar saga ok Holmverja where Þorgerðr is portrayed as the sister of
the haugbúi Sóti. The story of the robbery of his mound, situated in the
east of Gautland, is a classic story of haugbrot. A man clad in a blue
cloak calling himself Björn helps Hróarr and Hörðr to perform the haug-
brot. This man, Björn, is Óðinn in disguise, and he gives Hörðr the sword
Bjarnarnaut which makes it possible for him to perform the haugbrot.

114

They break into the mound and steal Sóti’s golden ring, sword and hel-
met.

115

When Þorgerðr refuses to help Grímkell, she refers to the haug-

brot of her brother’s haugr, refusing to help him because he had robbed
her brother of his golden ring.

116

If Sóti is regarded as a mound-dweller,

it seems logical that his sister could similarly be regarded as a
mound-dweller as well.

Even if we have no direct description of Þorgerðr as a dead woman

dwelling in her mound, there are several indications in the sources that
link her to a mound. The cult of Þorgerðr could thus have originated as

nok skyldes det kristne syn på alle overnaturlige vesener fra hedendommen, men i dette til-
felle er det ingen ting som tyder på at Þ. H. noensinne har vært oppfattet som en virkelig
gudinne.” Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr. Kulturhistorisk leksikon for nordisk middelalder XX:384
by Eyvind Fjeld Halvorsen.

112

Skáldskaparmál chapter 42.

113

The metal layers of a mound are also attested to in the legendary saga of Örvar- Odd. It

is said that when a man died, people should bring one handful of silver and one of earth to
the mound. (Örvar-Odds saga chapter 4).

114

Harðar saga ok Hólmverja chapter 15.

115

Harðar saga ok Hólmverja chapter 15.

116

Harðar saga ok Hólmverja chapter 19.

Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr

the cult of a dead woman in her mound. The apotheosis of the dead King
Óláfr at Geirstað that changed his status into that of an álfr can be seen
as a parallel to the apotheosis of Þorgerðr that changed her from a ven-
erated foremother of the Háleygjar to the fylgja of the family.

The cult of Þorgerðr as the cult of the fylgja of the

Háleygjar family

If we take into consideration the possibility that the cult of foremothers,
as well as that of forefathers, originated in a cult localized at their
mounds, we might suppose that the cult of Þorgerðr began as the cult of
a specific grave mound. This was the point of departure for the later de-
velopment of a national cult. Instead of supposing that the point of de-
parture for her cult was in a mountain or mountain cave as proposed by
Lotte Motz, I propose that the first stage in the development of her cult
was the cult at her mound. This implies that I regard the figure of Þor-
gerðr not as a goddess but rather as a historical woman. Like her husband
Hölgi she was interred in a mound where she was venerated with blót.
From the cult of a specific mound, the cult of Þorgerðr developed into a
national cult with several places of worship. This development is in ac-
cordance with the development of the hörgr as described by Olaf Olsen.
From an open-air place of worship, or in some instances inside a
pre-Christian grave construction, it developed into a sheltered building
housing the image of the god. In the case of Þorgerðr, her statue did not
represent a deity of the Old Norse pantheon, but rather a historical
woman who after her death was elevated to the position of fylgja of the
Háleygjar family. As such she was the fulltrúi ‘best trusted friend’ of its
descendant Hákon jarl.

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Summary

UNNHILD

ØTHE

The aim of this article is to throw new light on one of the most mysterious char-
acters of saga literature, Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr. In the medieval sources she is de-
scribed as a statue placed in a cultic house where she is venerated by Hákon jarl
as his fulltrúi ‘best trusted friend’. In this article I argue that the cult of Þorgerðr
Hölgabrúðr originated as the cult of the dead foremother of the Háleygjar family.
As such, Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr was the fylgja ‘tutelary spirit’ of the Háleygjar
family. Further I argue that her names containing the element hörga- indicate the
development of her cult. I propose that the veneration of her person developed
from a cult based at her mound into that of a cultic building as described in the
medieval sources.

Document Outline