Valkyrie

 

 

ORIGIN

They are found in Norse mythology

 

FIRST SIGHTED/RECORDED

There are stories as far back as the 11th century but there is not actual point as to where their legend came about.

 

APPEARANCE

They are extremely beautiful, with long flowing golden hair and skin as white as the moon. They wear helmets of either gold or silver and they also wear red corselets.

 

GENDER

Female

 

ALSO KNOWN AS

Valkyrja (from Old Norse meaning "chooser of the slain"), óskmey ("wish girl"), Óðins meyjar ("Odin’s girls"), wælcyrge and wælcyrie (Old English), also spelt Valkyr. They are sometimes given very unworldly names such as: Skogul (raging), Hlokk (shrieking) and Gjoll (screaming).

 

REPELLED BY

N/A

 

MAGICAL POWERS/SKILLS

They have superhuman strength but their main power is to search out the hero’s of the battlefield and take them to Odin to be part of his army.

 

HISTORY/ABOUT

They are a host of females who decide who shall live and die in battle. Once they have chosen their fallen warriors (usually the most heroic), they take them into afterlife to the hall of the slain, known as Valhalla. This is ruled over by the God Odin. They are often referred to as Odin’s special battle maidens. There are usually 9 of them. The love Goddess Freya, leads them to wherever they are needed. No matter what happens, they never lose their love for the earth, they can also never be tied down but they go on to elevate and inspire those who need it. Sometimes they are connected to either swans or horses but they are usually accompanied by ravens. In some legends, they carried out sacrifices for Odin. In earlier stories however, they were sinister spirits of slaughter, seen as dark angels of death.

 

CAN BE FOUND

Most of the time they are found on the battlefield (especially bloody ones). They can also be found in the halls of Valhalla, serving drinks to those who are there.

 

TALES

They appear throughout the poetry of Skalds. They were also featured in the Poetic Edda, a book of poetry published in the 13th century. They were also found in earlier traditional sources including: the Prose Edda, Heimskringla and Njals saga (a saga of Icelanders). There are also various runic inscriptions that they appear in.

 

ANY SIGHTINGS?

Apparently in some archaeological excavations throughout Scandinavia, they have uncovered amulets depicting them. In some of the most recent wars, men who have been close to death have reported seeing female figures walking all over the battlefield. Some of these views are disregarded as delusions.

 

SIMILAR CREATURES

The Norns, The Fates