Denna uppsats är en studie i divination som användes i fornnordisk, samisk, irländsk-keltisk, grekisk och romersk religion. Syftet med uppsatsen har varit att undersöka om det finns något som kan sägas vara typiskt inom den fornnordiska divinationsformen. De teman jag koncentrerat mig på för att besvara dessa frågor är status, roll, genus, metod och plats. De metoder jag använt mig av är deskriptiv och komparativ litteraturstudie. Dessutom tillämpas hermeneutisk metod. Resultatet visar att det som kan sägas vara typiskt för den fornnordiska divinationen är att völvorna hade högre status än sejdmännen, manliga völvor. Något annat som är typiskt och som kan ha ett samband med völvans högre status är den stav hon bär som därför kan tolkas som en maktsymbol. Det finns paralleller till den fornnordiska divinationen i alla de religioner som tas upp i denna uppsats, dock verkar de flesta likheterna finnas i den keltiska och den samiska religionen gällande utförandet av divinationen och divinatörernas roller.

Begreppet kultkontinuitet används många gånger för att beskriva hur en ny religion övertar fenomen från en tidigare religion. I denna uppsats har den fornnordiska gudinnekultens kultkontinuitet undersökts i Svensk romansk kyrkokonst. Genom en tvärvetenskaplig litteraturstudie inom religionshistoria och konsthistoria som utmynnade i en bildanalys har symbolik framkommit som kunde anknytas till den fornnordiska gudinnekulten. Undersökningen visade att det förekommer en gudinnekultkontinuitet i en förändrad form. Symboliken är emellertid i många fall otydlig, och kan mer förstås genom vad jag benämner som en symbolisk anknytning; det vill säga även om symbolerna inte direkt går att anknyta till den fornnordiska symboliken, finns det attribut och egenskaper som kan relateras till de fornnordiska gudinnorna. Undantag från detta är avbilder av Jungfru Maria vilkens aspekter och kvalitéer tydligt kan liknas med den fornnordiska fruktbarhetsgudinnan Freyja.

Domarringarna (Stone circles) are mysterious monuments preserved from Prehistory. With this study, I will discuss them and their meaning from different angles. I have mainly used a qualitative method of working through of previous research on Stone circles, but I also worked with a quantitative approach by compiling statistics. A clear result was difficult to achieve. Several of the new sources are based on the older research. More research and archaeological studies are required to obtain more evidence that can support new interpretations.

This thesis analyses how norse mythology is being used in modern videogames. This is done via a qualitative content analysis using grounded theory of the game God of War from 2018 by Santa Monica Studios, and comparing the games contents with literature regarding Norse mythology, the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda, as well as studies done on similar games in fields closely related to the subject. The subjects that get compared in this thesis are the gods: Freyja, Mimir and Baldur, the places: Niflheim and Muspelheim, the events: Fimbulvinter and Ragnarök, and studies done on other games usage of norse mythology and -society, ehere the other games in question are: Jotun by Thunder Lotus Games, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice by Ninja Theory, and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim by Bethesda Game Studios. The Thesis aims to identify the changes between the games representation of Norse mythology and the mythology itself, how the changes have been shaped by our contemporary society, how these changes can be explained, and finally if similar phenomenon can be observed in other games based on or using Norse mythology as inspiration. Some of these changes are for example how the Fimbulvinter and Ragnarök starts with Baldur’s death, the climate of places such as Niflheim and Muspelheim, the heavy usage of strong female characters, and the origins of certain gods, like Mimir for example. Hopefully, this thesis can be used as a basis and inspiration for thesis and studies done in this or closely related subjects in future studies. The rest of the thesis is written in Swedish.

The sacrificial tree of Frösö: A symbiosis of two cultures? This bachelor thesis deals with the site of what has been interpreted as the remains of a sacrificial tree under the church of Frösö, on the island of Frösö. The found material consists predominantly of animal bones, where a large part has been identified as wild animals such as brown bears, but also a large number of juvenile pigs. Previous research has interpreted the place as an Old Norse place of worship to the Norse god Frey, due to the rich numberof pigs and the islands theophoric name (translated to “The island of Frey”). The unusual wild animals, such as squirrels and red deer have been interpreted as a staging of the ancient world tree Yggdrasil in Norse mythology. The overrepresentation of bones from brown bear however has been debated and is often compared to Sami bear graves. There are some similarities to the bear graves, but the differences that exist needs to be looked at more closely. The aim is to process materials and interpretations in a more holistic way. This is done by discussing various ritual acts, belief system and the choice of place of worship and sacrificial material, then apply this to the findings under the church of Frösö. Since such a large part of the bone material descents from brown bears, the use of bears in various cult practices has also been studied. The aim of this study is to provide new insight and interpretation of which ethnic groups may have used the site, before the church was built.The discussion concludes that a symbiosis is possible in the vicinity of the island, and that it is therefore not unlikely that this also applies to the island of Frösö. The found material under the church of Frösö could be remnants of a bear ceremony, but it could also be remnants from a more economic aspect or simply a mixture of the two. The bear was important financially in the Norse society and a Sami influence, based on their customs and beliefs, is not entirely unlikely given the close contact that existed. This could therefore have been symbolically incorporated into the religious rites.

Tyr – A historical and comparative study of configurations and formations connected to the Old Norse god Tyr. Klas af Edholm   This thesis has two aims. One is a discussion of the history of the study of Old Norse religion and related aspects, centered on how general tendencies within the area of research have affected the interpretations of the god *Tīwaz/Tyr. Thereby, it treats a selection of influential trends of interpretation, and a selection of prominent scholars of the field. The second aim is an empirical and comparative analysis of the Old Norse source material and, to some degree, the continental Germanic, the Baltic, and the other Indo-European material. Tyr has been interpreted according to trends of research in the field; the mythological character has been used as a projection screen of the theories. Already from the beginning, Tyr was interpreted as a sky god; connected to this was the conception of an original high god. The interpretations of Tyr as a sun god, sky god, and/or law god are close related to this high god conception. These interpretations of the god Tyr has built their arguments upon the etymological connection to Indo-European words for ‘heaven, celestial’ and ‘god’, but they have not taken enough consideration of the Old Norse sources. Georges Dumézil interpreted Tyr, according to his système tripartite, as a law god. This understanding of the god has been widely adopted, but cannot be confirmed; the Old Norse material only speaks of Tyr as a war god. The comparative Indo-European etymological material indicates that his function as sky god is archaic, while the martial traits shared with the continental Germanic and Celtic counterparts prove that this characteristic must have evolved early. Tyr (or rather his predecessor *Tīwaz) lost his celestial traits and became an unmitigated war god, and as such we perceive him in the Old Norse religion.

This essay is an analysis of Brian Wood's Viking epic Northlanders, published by Vertigo/DC between the years of 2007-2012. The aim is to identify how Old Norse faith and Christianity are portrayed. This is done by using the theory of representation as developed by Stuart Hall and putting them into the historical context of a postmodern, secular western world of thought. The research shows a wide variety of religiosity in both Norse and Christian characters. Some common trends have been identified though, and these are a general appreciation of physical strength within the Norse religion and a general tendency in Norse religion to explain natural phenomena and to have fatalistic leanings while Christianity rather seeks to offer comfort in times of need. The results also show that one of the greater roles Christianity plays in Northlanders is contributing to, or sometimes forcing a societal change, while the practitioners of the Norse faith tend to lean toward stability. There is also a tendency to present the northerners as outcasts, while the Christian counterparts are part of an establishment.

<p>Min ambition med denna uppsats har varit att visa på hur Loke har utsatts för ett justitiemord. Han anklagas för att ligga bakom mordet på Balder, och därigenom förlusten av odödlighet i den fornnordiska gudavärlden. Jag har velat visa hur Loke till sin karaktär är en maliciös trixter, detta genom att jämför hans roll med andra trixters, och hur ovanlig hans utveckling till att bli fiendens härförare egentligen är. Vid jämförelser av de tre föreliggande källorna: Den Poetiska Eddan, Snorres edda och Saxos Den Store Danmarkshistorie, har det visat sig att de har väldigt olika saker att säga om Loke, och den roll han eventuellt spelar i omständigheterna kring Balders död. I polemik med den store auktoriteten på området, George Dumézil, som vill hävda att Loke är identisk med den indoeuropeiska Duryodhana vill jag hävda att Dumézils tes i alltför hög grad bygger på Lokes agerande i Snorres version av händelserna kring Balders död och att de två andra källorna avviker från denna beskrivning av det inträffade.</p>

Min ambition med denna uppsats har varit att visa på hur Loke har utsatts för ett justitiemord. Han anklagas för att ligga bakom mordet på Balder, och därigenom förlusten av odödlighet i den fornnordiska gudavärlden. Jag har velat visa hur Loke till sin karaktär är en maliciös trixter, detta genom att jämför hans roll med andra trixters, och hur ovanlig hans utveckling till att bli fiendens härförare egentligen är. Vid jämförelser av de tre föreliggande källorna: Den Poetiska Eddan, Snorres edda och Saxos Den Store Danmarkshistorie, har det visat sig att de har väldigt olika saker att säga om Loke, och den roll han eventuellt spelar i omständigheterna kring Balders död. I polemik med den store auktoriteten på området, George Dumézil, som vill hävda att Loke är identisk med den indoeuropeiska Duryodhana vill jag hävda att Dumézils tes i alltför hög grad bygger på Lokes agerande i Snorres version av händelserna kring Balders död och att de två andra källorna avviker från denna beskrivning av det inträffade.

Chaos-Gnosticism is a branch of the occult tree which through an eclectic approach tries togather all the dark, antagonistic aspects and forces from certain religions and mythologies ofthe world in order to reach back to the primeval Chaos, the stage that existed before theCreation. With a fundamental gnostic worldview the cosmos is seen as a prison, created byDemiurges, and in Chaos a total freedom rules.The philosophy (or Chaosophy to use a term used by the Chaosgnostics) has spread all over theworld during the past ten years or so. It is vital, in connection to this fact, to give the importanceto the music scene, especially the genre called black metal, for the spreading of theChaosgnostic ideas. Some of the leading bands in this genre, for instance Dissection, Watainand Arckanum, have adopted the Chaosgnostic tenets into their music and thus making theseideas more known all around the world than they otherwise would have been. That being said,it is not clear how many actual practioners of Chaos-Gnostcism there are since it is mainly anindividual religion and the handfull of orders that exist display no sorts of missionary ambitionsand are, additionaly, quite closed for outsiders.Although the first ideas of Chaos-Gnosticism emerged in Sweden in the middle of the 1990´s,an in-depth academic survey has not yet been made on the movement itself. This essay aims tochange that by putting Chaos-Gnosticism in its correct historical and occult context and also byshedding some light on the fundamental tenets and beliefsystem aswell as the importance ofnumerology and central symbols. The essay also presents the three different Chaosgnosticbranches that has emerged to date: Temple of the Black Light, with its Qabbalistic approach,Templum Falcis Cruentis, inspired by folktraditions of Central America and the biblical figureof Cain and finally Thursatrú in which the Chaosgnostic worldview is adopted on Old Norsemythology.