Midgard

**Midgard** (an anglicised form of Old Norse ***Miðgarðr***; Old English ***Middangeard***, Old Saxon ***Middilgard***, Old High German ***Mittilagart*** and Gothic ***Midjun-gards***; "middle yard" or "middle enclosure") is the name for Earth or the world of the humans in Germanic and most notably Norse cosmology, and one of the nine worlds. East of Midgard lies Jotunheim, the world of the jotunns, and the two worlds are separated by a great wall surrounding all of Midgard, made from the eyelashes (eyebrows in the sources) of the primeval jotunn Ymir. This wall shows itself in the sky of outer countries as northern lights. Between Asgard, the world of the Aesir gods, and Midgard, is the magical rainbow bridge of Bifrost, which is the only way to travel from Midgard to the gods' home. Bifrost is anchored to Himinbjörg in Asgard, but on the other end it may swing between the worlds. Sometimes, the Old Norse word "*Miðgarðr*" is applied to the foritification around the world in addition to being the name of the world itself, and sometimes the world was also called *Manheimr*, "home of men (humans)".

## Lands

### Norway

Norway is a Nordic country in Northern Europe whose mainland territory comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. At the time of *Valhalla*, which is set during the viking age somewhere between c. 795 and 845 or 865, Norway was divided into petty kingdoms ruled by chiefs who contended for land, maritime supremacy or political ascendance and sought alliances or control through marriage with other royal families, either voluntary or forced. These turbulent and heroic lives are recorded in the *Heimskringla*.

Norway of the Viking Age was divided into petty kingdoms ruled by chiefs who contended for land, maritime supremacy or political ascendance and sought alliances or control through marriage with other royal families, either voluntary or forced. These circumstances produced the generally turbulent and heroic lives recorded in the Heimskringla.

#### Hålogaland

Hålogaland is the northernmost of the Norwegian provinces in medieval times, mentioned in medieval Norse sagas. In the early Viking Age, before Harald Fairhair, Hålogaland was a kingdom that stretched between the Namdalen valley in Trøndelag county and the Lyngen fjord in Troms og Finnmark county. The province was named after the northern lights, which was thought to be "håloga" or "high flames". Hålogaland is close to Asgard as well as the area of Bjarmland, which, if you want to travel to by foot, takes you across half of Hålogaland in order to get to it.

#### Spangarheidi

Spangarheidi (Old Norse: Spangarheiði "isthmus of a small piece of land") is a herred at the Lindesnes peninsula, the southernmost tip of Norway, where the east coast meets the west coast. The king of the Swedes and Danes, Ragnar Lothbrok, came to this area while on one of his expeditions. He ordered two of his men to go on land and bake some bread for their ship's crew, and while staying here he became infatuated with a local, beautiful young woman called Kraka, after his men told him of her. Ragnar ordered two of his male servants to test Kraka's wits, commanding her to arrive neither dressed nor undressed, neither fasting nor eating, and neither alone nor in company. Kraka arrived dressed in a fishnet, biting an onion, and with only a dog as a companion. Ragnar was impressed by her ingenuity and found her a wise companion, and he proposed marriage to her. Kraka however refused until Ragnar had accomplished his mission in Norway, for if he returned then, his love would be true. In reality, Kraka, whose real name is Aslaug, was of noble blood, being the daughter of the legendary dragon-slayer Sigurd and a valkyrie.

Today Spangereid is a former municipality, and before that parish, of Norway. It was named after an old farm called *Spangereid* farm. The local Spangereid Church was located here. The first element comes from the Old Norse *spong* "small piece of land" and the last element *eið* which is identical with the word for "isthmus", since the church was on an isthmus connecting the Lindesnes peninsula to the mainland. The area is one of Norway's richest archaeological sites, with an abundance of remnants from the Bronze Age and Viking Age that show the area to have been very important at the time.

### Sweden

Sweden is a Nordic country in Northern Europe that borders Norway to the west and north and Finland to the east, and is north of Denmark, separated from it by the Öresund Strait. At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi) Sweden is the largest country in Northern Europe. the second-northernmost country on the Scandinavian Peninsula after Norway.

#### Götaland

Götaland is one of three "lands of Sweden", comprising ten provinces. Geographically it is located in the south of Sweden, bounded to the north by Svealand, with the deep woods of Tiveden, Tylöskog and Kolmården marking the border. Herroth was the earl of Götaland when Odin travelled to Midgard, seeking three warriors to bring back to Asgard as part of a wager with the valkyries. It was also then that Ragnar Lothbrok came to the area and killed the lindworm that had trapped Herroth's daughter, Thora, inside of her house. They were subsequently married. In some sources, such as *Bósi and Herrauðr's saga*, Herroth is said to be the king of Östergötland, a province of Götaland. In *Gesta Danorum* he is however said to be "the king of Sweden". In the saga *Tale of Ragnar's Sons*, he is stated to be the "earl of Götaland", similarly to *Bósi and Herrauðr's saga*.

### Bjarmland

Bjarmland, also called Bjarmaland among other names, is a territory mentioned in the Norse sagas since the Viking Age and in geographical accounts until the 16th century. The term is usually seen to have refered to the southern shores of the White Sea and the basin of the Northern Dvina River (*Vienanjoki* in Finnish) as well as, presumably, some of the surrounding areas. Today, those territories comprise a part of the Arkhangelsk Oblast of Russia, as well as the Kola Peninsula.

### Cities

#### Byzantium

Byzantium was the Greek city capital of the Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire from 657 BC to 1453, and is the site of modern day Istanbul, the capital of Turkey.

## Known inhabitants of Midgard

There are many notable inhabitants of Midgard, as well as people who once lived there. Most of them are human.

* Tjalfi, servant of Thor, older brother of Röskva, a warrior.
* Röskva, servant of Thor, younger sister of Tjalfi, and the völva who prophecised the events of Ragnarok.
* Ragnar Lothbrok, legendary Danish-Norwegian king, husband of Thora and later of Kraka/Aslaug.
* Thorbjorn and Hjalte, the name given by Peter Madsen to the two male servants of Ragnar Lothbrok who appear in the saga *Ragnars saga loðbrókar ok sona hans*, "Ragnar Lothbrok and his sons".
* Kraka, the second and last wife of Ragnar Lothbrok.
* Heroth, earl of Götaland and father of Thora.
* Thora, daughter of Heroth and the first wife of Ragnar Lothbrok.
* Starkad, legendary hero and skald, son of the eight-armed jotunn of the same name.
* Christian warrior
* Poppo
* Ansgar
* Geirrod
* Hraudung
* Agnar

1. ↑ Madsen, Peter, Kure, Henning, Rancke, Hans, Vadmand, Per, Håkansson, Søren. *Cry Wolf*. Interpresse 1979. Carlsen Comics 2005.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Madsen, Peter, Kure, Henning, Rancke, Hans, Vadmand, Per, Håkansson, Søren. *Through Fire and Water*. Carlsen Comics 2001.
3. ↑ Madsen, Peter. *The Story of Ragnar and Kraka*. Undervisningsministeriet 1982. Carlsen Comics in *Hen ad vejen* 1983. Carlsen Comics in *Valhalla: The Complete Saga 1* 2010.
4. ↑ Madsen, Peter, Kure, Henning, Rancke, Hans, Vadmand, Per, Håkansson, Søren. *Valhalla: The Complete Saga 1*. Carlsen Comics April 09, 2010.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Madsen, Peter, Kure, Henning, Rancke, Hans, Vadmand, Per, Håkansson, Søren. *Odin's Wager*. Interpresse 1982. Carlsen Comics 2005.