Skadi

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This article is about the Scandinavian goddess. For the moon of Saturn, see Skathi (moon). For the character in Alastair Reynolds' Revelation Space novels, see Skade (Revelation Space).
Skaði, by Frølich


In Norse mythology, Skaði (Anglicized as Skadi) is a giantess, daughter of Thjazi, wife of Njord and stepmother of Freyr and Freyja.

Skáldskaparmál

According to Skáldskaparmál, when the giant Thjazi was killed by the gods following his kidnapping of Idunn, his daughter Skadi journeyed to Asgard with her armour and weapons in order to avenge his death. The gods instead offered her various forms of compensation to placate her, the first of which was to choose one of the gods for a husband, but she could only make her choice by looking at their feet and nothing else. One particular pair she thought was exceptionally beautiful and chose that one, thinking it could only belong to Baldr, but it was really that of Njord, god of wind and sea, and it is for this reason that a kenning for Skadi is "god bride".

It was also in her terms of settlement that the gods were to perform the seemingly impossible task of making her laugh. Loki then tied one end of a cord around the beard of a goat and the other end around his testicles, and they began pulling each other back and forth, both squealing loudly. Then Loki fell into Skadi's lap and succeeded in making her laugh. The atonement with her was complete. As a further token of good will, Odin placed Thjazi's eyes in the night sky as stars.

Although Skadi is a giantess, she is traditionally counted among the Æsir, similar to Loki, not only because of her marriage to Njord, but also from kennings that describe her as a goddess and in various lists of Ásynjur throughout Skáldskaparmál that include her name.

Gylfaginning

Unfortunately, things did not turn out very well for Njord and Skadi as a couple. According to Gylfaginning, Skadi had wanted to live in Thrymheim, a mountain realm in Jötunheim that belonged to her father when he was alive, but Njord wished to remain by the sea in his hall of Noatun, so they tried a compromise. They agreed to spend nine nights in Thrymheim and another nine in Noatun, alternating between both, but when Njord returned to his hall he admitted his dislike of the mountains, preferring the song of the swans over the howling of wolves. Conversely, Skadi complained of not being able to sleep in Noatun because of the screaming of the seagulls. The two ultimately separated, and Skadi returned to Thrymheim. There she travels along the snow on skis and shoots game with her bow. For this reason she is also known as Öndurgud or Öndurdis ("Snowshoe Goddess").

Later, when Loki was bound in a cave as punishment for his murder of Baldr, it was Skadi who placed the venomous serpent above his head dripping poison on his face. This is repeated in the prose ending to Lokasenna.

Grímnismál

In Grímnismál, during Odin's visions of the various dwelling places of the gods he mentions that of Skadi in stanza 11:

"Thrymheim the sixth is called
where Thjazi lived, the terrible giant,
but now Skadi, shining bride of the gods,
lives in her father's ancient courts"

Skírnismál

In Skírnismál, after Freyr becomes lovestruck upon seeing the giantess Gerd for the first time, Skadi wonders why he seems upset and urges Skírnir, his messenger and servant, to speak with him to see what is the matter.

Lokasenna

In Lokasenna, Skadi is present during the feasting at the hall of Aegir and takes part in the verbal slandering instigated by Loki. After he berates Heimdall, Skadi comes to his defense and taunts Loki about him being bound in the future (the gods are gifted with prophecy) in a cave with the guts of his son. Loki then makes the claim that he was the "first and foremost" killer of her father. Skadi replies that if that was true, then he would get only baneful words from her, but Loki reminds her that she was gentler in speech when she invited him into her bed. This love affair is not mentioned in other sources.

Hyndluljód

According to the interpolated group of stanzas known as the Short Völuspá in Hyndluljód, Skadi is again confirmed as the daughter of Thjazi.

Ynglinga saga

In Ynglinga saga, Snorri speaks of Skadi in euhemeristic terms, stating that after leaving Njord she married Odin and bore him many sons, including Saeming, ancestor of a dynasty of jarls. While it may be tempting while reading the Eddas to assume that Skadi is the mother of Freyr and Freyja, Ynglinga saga states that they were the offspring of Njord and his sister, which was allowable by Vanir law before their alliance and integration with the Æsir.

Theories

It is believed by some mythologists that in the early days of Norse mythology, Skaði was venerated as a goddess of the hunt, and rivalled the goddesses Frigg and Freyja in terms of significance and popularity. However, she seems to have faded into the background during the progression of Scandinavian beliefs, and little of her survives in lore or artefact.

It is interesting to note that Skaði's name appears in the oldest place names in Scandinavia. It might therefore be that originally her name was an older one for Nerthus.

Her name could mean "damage" or "goddess of the underground world". Skaði is sometimes mentioned as the source of the name "Scandinavia".

Familiar forms

  • Skade (mainland Scandinavian)
  • Skadhi (transliteration of "Skaði")
  • Skadi (transcription of "Skaði")
  • Skathi (alternative transliteration of "Skaði")

Skadi in Popular Culture

  • In the RPG Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne, Skadi appears as one of the bosses in the Amala Temple Level, and can later be recruited to work for you.

Template:NorseMythology

da:Skade (nordisk mytologi) de:Skadi et:Skadi es:Skadi fr:Skadi hr:Skadi is:Skaði it:Skaði lt:Skadi hu:Szkádi nl:Skadi (godin) ja:スカディ no:Skade pl:Skadi pt:Skade ro:Skadi ru:Скади sh:Skadi sv:Skade

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