Old Norse Words of the Week: Spjót, Fleinn, Geirr

Spjót neuter spear, lance Fleinn masculine pike, spear; dart, shaft; fluke of an anchor Geirr masculine spear This week’s words (we’ve missed a few weeks because I’ve been lazy), are three different words for one of the most common weapons of the Viking Age, the spear. The most common word for spear used in the sagas is Spjót,

Old Norse Word of the Week: Jötunn

Jötunn masculine giant In Norse mythology a jötunn is an enemy of the gods. The word is typically translated into English as giant, and while some jötunns were gigantic in size, not all of them seem to have been. The interplay between the jötunns and the gods was complex. Sometimes they fought and killed each other,

Old Norse Word of the Week: Sverð

Sverð neuter sword The word Sverð is one of the most common words found in the Icelandic Sagas. It is a cognate, meaning that both words have the same ancestor, of the Old English word Sweord, which is where we get our English Word Sword. The common sword in use at the time would have been