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91-750: Researchers suggest that the basic meaning of the word dís is "goddess". It usually is said to be derived from the Indo-European root * dhēi- , "to suck, suckle" and a form dhīśana . Scholars have associated the Dísir with the West Germanic Idisi , seeing the initial i- as having been lost early in Old or Proto-Norse . Jacob Grimm points out that dís Skjöldunga in the Eddic Helgakviða Hundingsbana II (v. 52)

182-513: A patron saint by farmers, fishermen, sailors and merchants of the Hanseatic League , who turned to him for good yield and protection. From Thor, he inherited the quick temper, physical strength and merits of a giant-slayer. Popular tradition also made marks in the ecclesiastical material. Early depictions of Olaf portray him as clean-shaven, but after 1200 he appears with a red beard, which may have been absorbed from Thor. The Passio

273-580: A "dignified, well respected woman (married or unmarried), possibly a term for any woman, and therefore glosses exactly Latin matrona " and that a link to the North Germanic term dísir is reasonable to assume, yet that it is not undisputed. In addition, the place name Idisiaviso (meaning "plain of the Idisi") where forces commanded by Arminius fought those commanded by Germanicus at the Battle of

364-468: A couple of Eddic and skaldic poems , and in various kennings the generic dísir appears instead of the more specific labels norns , fylgjas , and valkyries . The eddic poem Hamðismál deals with how Hamðir and Sörli go to the Gothic king Ermanaric to exact vengeance for the cruel death of their half-sister Svanhild . On the way, they kill their reluctant brother Erpr. Later, knowing that he

455-637: A designation which goes back to the 13th century. St. Olaf is attested having been born in Ringerike , yet Ringerike must not be conflated with the modern notion of the district named after the legendary Ringerike of Ivar Vidfamne and Sigurd Hring, which may be regarded as the confederation of five petty kingdoms conferring with the five kings that established Olaf Haraldson as their High King at Hringsakri according to Saint Olafs Saga, King Hrœrekr, King Guðrøðr, King Hring and two others of less certain identity. Olaf Haraldsson did not become King of Norway until

546-523: A fairly unsuccessful ruler, whose power was based on an alliance with the much more powerful King Cnut the Great ; who was driven into exile when he claimed power of his own; and whose attempt at a reconquest was swiftly crushed. This calls for an explanation of the status he gained after his death. Three factors are important: the later myth surrounding his role in the Christianisation of Norway,

637-643: A few hundred metres from St Olav's Church , which is the Norwegian Church in London . It also led to the naming of St Olave's Grammar School , which was established in 1571 and was in Tooley Street until 1968, when it moved to Orpington , Kent. The village of St Olaves in Norfolk bears the name as it is the location of the remains of a 13th-century Augustinian priory dedicated to Olaf. St. Olaf

728-616: A kind of valkyrie, as these also have the power to hamper enemies in Norse mythology" and points to a connection with the valkyrie name Herfjötur (Old Norse "army-fetter"). Hilda Ellis Davidson compares the incantation to the Old English Wið færstice charm, and theorizes a similar role for them both. Simek says that the West Germanic term Idisi (Old Saxon idis , Old High German itis , Anglo-Saxon ides ) refers to

819-479: A larger scale the inhabitants of the former Viking territories, namely the Scandinavian countries and, even more so, Norway . This choice can be explained by the time in which Olaf lived and when the exchanges between Normandy and the Scandinavian countries were common. There were also many kinships between the inhabitants of the brand new Norman state, as illustrated by the choice of Archbishop Robert II for

910-448: A later date. Olaf most likely did try to bring Christianity to the interior of Norway, where it was less prevalent. Questions have also been raised about the nature of Olaf's Christianity. Modern historians generally agree that Olaf was inclined to violence and brutality, and note that earlier scholars often neglected this side of his character. It seems that, like many Scandinavian kings, Olaf used his Christianity to gain more power for

1001-474: A miracule beati Olavi , the official record of Olaf's miracles, contains an episode where Olaf helps a man escape from the huldrefolk , the "hidden people" of Norwegian folklore . In Normandy , Saint Olaf represents an important figure and was chosen unofficially as the patron saint of the Normans , this term mainly designating the inhabitants of continental Normandy and of channel islands , but also on

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1092-590: A mythological model for human behavior. In western Scandinavia, dísablót appears to have been a private observance. Even the large gathering in Víga-Glúms saga was for family and friends. In contrast, according to the Saga of St. Olaf in Heimskringla , at Gamla Uppsala the dísablót was celebrated during the month of Gói, i.e. in late February or early March, and accompanied by a popular assembly known as

1183-441: A name for Skaði . He notes that in both cases the compound using dís immediately follows one using goð , 'deity': Vanagoð , öndurgoð . Lotte Motz suggested that dís was the original Old Norse word for 'goddess' and that it had been replaced later by ásynja , which is simply the feminine of áss . In many texts, the dísir are equated to or seem to play the same role as other female figures. In Þiðranda þáttr ok Þórhalls ,

1274-678: A person a saint, and a formal canonisation procedure through the papal curia was not customary; in Olaf's case, this did not happen until 1888. But Olaf II died before the East-West Schism and a strict Roman Rite was not well-established in Scandinavia at the time. He is also venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church . Grimketel was later appointed bishop in the diocese of Selsey in southeastern England. This

1365-610: A rising storm. The Finns pursued them and made the same progress on land as Olaf and his men made on water. Despite these events they survived. The exact location of the battle is uncertain and the Finnish equivalent of Herdaler is unknown, but it has been suggested that it could be in Uusimaa , probably near present-day Ingå . As a teenager Olaf went to the Baltic , then to Denmark and later to England . Skaldic poetry suggests he led

1456-589: A rock, perhaps suggesting a ritual killing. It also appears in Hervarar saga where Helga becomes so infuriated over the death of her father at the hands of Heiðrekr , her husband, that she hangs herself in the shrine. Although Snorri Sturluson does not mention the dísir in the Prose Edda , he does list Vanadís —'dís of the Vanir '— as a name for Freyja , and öndurdís —'snow-shoe dís'—as

1547-453: A slayer of trolls and giants, and as a protector against malicious forces. He was said to have healing power, which attracted people to his shrine, and various springs were claimed to have sprung forth where he or his body had been. Around the 12th century, folk traditions and iconography of Olaf absorbed elements of the gods Thor and Freyr from Norse mythology . Like Freyr, he became associated with fertility, which led to his adoption as

1638-538: A successful seaborne attack that took down London Bridge , though Anglo-Saxon sources do not confirm this. This may have been in 1014, restoring London and the English throne to Æthelred the Unready and removing Cnut. According to Snorri's Heimskringla , the attack happened soon after the death of Sweyn Forkbeard with the city being held by Danish forces. Snorri's account claims that Olaf assisted Æthelred in driving

1729-577: A year after his death. The cult of Olaf unified the country and consolidated the Christianisation of Norway. He is also recognized as the patron saint of the Faroe Islands . Owing to Olaf's later status as Norway's patron saint, and to his importance in later medieval historiography and in Norwegian folklore, it is difficult to assess the historical Olaf's character. Judging from the bare outlines of known historical facts, he appears to have been

1820-581: Is The Passion and the Miracles of the Blessed Olafr . A widely used account of Olaf's life is found in Heimskringla from c.  1225 . Although its facts are dubious, the saga recounts Olaf's deeds as follows: In 1008, Olaf landed on the Estonian island of Saaremaa (Osilia). The Osilians , taken by surprise, had at first agreed to Olaf's demands, but then gathered an army during

1911-754: Is Ólafur [ˈouːlaːvʏr̥] , in Faroese Ólavur , in Danish Olav , in Swedish Olof , and in Finnish Olavi . Olave was the traditional spelling in England, preserved in the name of medieval churches dedicated to him. Other names, such as Óláfr hinn helgi , Olavus rex , and Olaf are used interchangeably (see the Heimskringla of Snorri Sturluson ). He is sometimes called Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae (English: "Norway's Eternal King" ),

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2002-487: Is about to die at the hands of the Goths, Sörli talks of the cruelty of the dísir who incited him to kill Erpr, because he would have cut off the head of Ermanaric and made their expedition successful. In this poem, dísir appears as a synonym of norns and the translator Henry Adams Bellows simply translates dísir as norns : In Grímnismál , the wise Grímnir (Odin) predicts king Geirröðr's death, which he attributes to

2093-486: Is difficult to conclusively construct a clear pre-Christian mythology without conjecture. However, the Germanic languages appear to have had a northward, rather than southward, progression from the initial contact with the speakers of Indo-European languages near Denmark or Jutland. H. Davidson notes a similar northward progression of mythology where elements of Proto-Germanic concepts have metamorphosed or been combined by

2184-660: Is exactly parallel to ides Scildinga "Scylding queen" in Beowulf (l. 1168). He also suggests that Iðunn may be a reflex of the original form of the word. However, except for the First Merseburg Charm , in which they work battle-magic, idis only occurs with the meaning "lady", sometimes "maiden." The words are not presumed to be directly related by some scholars, although the resemblance evidently led to influence on Old Norse poetic use. Other scholars group all female deities and spirits associated with battle under

2275-762: Is generally accepted to be the earliest datable church foundation dedicated to Olaf and is further evidence of a cult of St. Olaf in the early 1050s in England. St Olave Hart Street in the City of London is the burial place of Samuel Pepys and his wife. Another St. Olave's Church south of London Bridge gave its name to Tooley Street and to the St Olave's Poor Law Union , later the Metropolitan Borough of Bermondsey : its workhouse in Rotherhithe became St Olave's Hospital and then an old people's home

2366-496: Is probably why the earliest traces of a liturgical cult of Olaf are found in England. An office , or prayer service, for Olaf is found in the so-called Leofric collectar (c. 1050), which Bishop Leofric of Exeter bequeathed in his last will and testament to Exeter Cathedral . This English cult seems to have been short-lived. Writing around 1070, Adam of Bremen mentions pilgrimage to St. Olaf's shrine in Nidaros , but this

2457-400: Is still his day of celebration. Many Christian institutions with Scandinavian links as well as Norway's Order of St. Olav are named after him. Olaf's Old Norse name is Óláfr Haraldsson [ˈoːlɑːvz̠ ˈhɑrɑldsˌson] . During his lifetime he was known as Olaf "the fat" or "the stout" or simply as Olaf "the big" ( Ólafr digri [ˈdiɣre] ; Modern Norwegian Olav Digre ). He

2548-470: Is synonymous with valkyrie is the skaldic poem Krákumál – composed by Ragnarr Loðbrók while awaiting his death in a snake pit. It features the line: Heim bjóða mér dísir (the dísir invite me home), as one of several poetic circumscriptions for what awaits him. One source seems to describe the Dísir as the ghosts or spirits of dead women. In Atlamál , believed to have been written in Greenland in

2639-548: Is the only firm trace we have of a cult of St. Olaf in Norway before the mid-12th century. By this time he was also being called Norway's Eternal King . In 1152/3, Nidaros was separated from Lund as the archbishopric of Nidaros . It is likely that whatever formal or informal veneration of Olaf as a saint may have existed in Nidaros before that was emphasised and formalised on this occasion. Miracles performed by St. Olaf appear for

2730-411: The Heimskringla . According to Víga-Glúms saga it was held at Winter Nights (at the onset of winter). In Hervarar saga , the dísablót is also held in autumn, and is performed by a woman, the daughter of King Álfr of Álfheim, who "reddens the hörgr with sacrifices and is subsequently rescued by the god Thor after she has been abducted. John Lindow suggests that, on its face the text depicts

2821-429: The Battle of Nesjar he defeated Earl Sweyn , one of the earls of Lade and hitherto the de facto ruler of Norway. He founded the town of Borg, later known as Sarpsborg , by the waterfall Sarpsfossen in Østfold county. Within a few years he had won more power than any of his predecessors on the throne had enjoyed. Olaf annihilated the petty kings of the south, subdued the aristocracy, asserted his suzerainty in

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2912-454: The Battle of Nesjar . St. Olaf was the son of Åsta Gudbrandsdatter and Harald Grenske , a petty king in Vestfold , whom later Icelandic sagas would describe as a great-great-grandchild of Harald Fairhair (who had unified Norway as one Kingdom, establishing a feudalist structure with the kingship far less dependent of local rulers, earls, herses and the so called petty kings). Harald

3003-581: The Battle of Stiklestad on 29 July 1030. His remains were enshrined in Nidaros Cathedral , built over his burial site. His sainthood encouraged the widespread adoption of Christianity by Scandinavia 's Vikings / Norsemen . Pope Alexander III confirmed Olaf's local canonisation in 1164, making him a recognised saint of the Catholic Church , and Olaf started to be known as Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae – eternal king of Norway . Following

3094-571: The Battle of the Helgeå . In 1029 the Norwegian nobles, seething with discontent, supported the invasion of King Cnut the Great of Denmark. Olaf was driven into exile in Kievan Rus . He stayed for some time in the Swedish province of Nerike , where, according to local legend, he baptised many locals. In 1029, King Cnut's Norwegian regent, Jarl Håkon Eiriksson , was lost at sea and Olaf seized

3185-559: The Christianisation of Norway, but most scholars of the period now believe that Olaf had little to do with the process. Olaf brought with him Grimketel , who is usually credited with helping him create episcopal sees and further organising the Norwegian church, but Grimketel was only a member of Olaf's household and no permanent sees were created until c. 1100. Also, Olaf and Grimketel most likely did not introduce new ecclesiastical laws to Norway; these were ascribed to Olaf at

3276-725: The Dominican Monastery in the Altstadt ("Old City") neighborhood of Koblenz. He was the Archbishop of Nidaros in Norway from 1452 to 1458. When he died in 1464, he was buried in front of the shrine's altar. However, the shrine did not last: the Dominican Monastery was secularized in 1802 and bulldozed in 1955. Only the Rokokoportal (" Rococo Portal"), built in 1754, remains to mark the spot. In

3367-518: The Faroe Islands , the day of St. Olaf's death is celebrated as Ólavsøka , a nation-wide holiday. Recently the pilgrimage route to Nidaros Cathedral , the site of St. Olaf's tomb, has been reinstated. The route is known as The Pilgrim's Way ( Pilegrimsleden ). The main route, approximately 640 km long, starts in the ancient part of Oslo and heads north, along Lake Mjosa , up the Gudbrandsdal Valley, over Dovrefjell and down

3458-728: The Orkdal Valley, ending at Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim . A Pilgrim's Office in Oslo gives advice to pilgrims, and a Pilgrim Centre in Trondheim, under the aegis of the Cathedral, awards certificates to pilgrims when they complete their journeys. However, the relics are no longer exposed in the cathedral, and it is not sure where exactly in the cathedral crypt his remains are buried. For centuries, Olaf figured in folk traditions as

3549-610: The Orkney Islands , and conducted a successful raid on Denmark. He made peace with King Olof Skötkonung of Sweden through Þorgnýr the Lawspeaker , and was for some time engaged to Olof's daughter, Ingegerd , though without Olof's approval. In 1019 Olaf married Astrid Olofsdotter , King Olof's illegitimate daughter and the half-sister of his former fiancée. The union produced a daughter, Wulfhild , who married Ordulf, Duke of Saxony in 1042. In 1026 he participated in

3640-637: The Reformation , he was a commemorated historical figure among some members of the Lutheran and Anglican Communions. The saga of Olav Haraldsson and the legend of Olaf the Saint became central to a national identity. Especially during the period of romantic nationalism , Olaf was a symbol of Norwegian independence and pride. Saint Olaf is symbolised by the axe in Norway's coat of arms and Olsok (29 July)

3731-643: The Thing of all Swedes or Dísaþing and a yearly fair. When Christianity arrived, the assembly and market were moved to a Christian feast at the beginning of February: At the time when heathendom still prevailed in Sweden, it was an old custom there that the main sacrifices were held in Uppsala in the month of Gói... Sacrifices were to be made at that time for peace and victory for the king, and people from all over Sweden were to resort there. At that place and time also

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3822-654: The Byzantine military forces, is believed to have been kept in this chapel in times of peace. Thus St. Olaf was also the last saint venerated by both the Western and Eastern churches before the Great Schism . The basilica of Sant'Ambrogio e Carlo al Corso in Rome has a Chapel of St Olav. Its altarpiece contains a painting of the saint, shown as a martyr king defeating a dragon, representing victory over his pagan past. It

3913-570: The Commonwealth of Uppsala posing a possible threat to the royal House of Munsö under King Olof Skötkonung. The Earls of Hlaðir and the petty kings of Hringerike had been in conflict since at least King Harald Fairhair assumed power of all of Norway. Many texts have information about Olaf Haraldsson. The oldest is the Glælognskviða or "Sea-Calm Poem", composed by Þórarinn loftunga , an Icelander. It praises Olaf and mentions some of

4004-536: The Danes out of England. Olaf is also said by Snorri to have aided the sons of Æthelred after his death. Olaf is said to have won battles but been unable to assist Æthelred's sons in driving Cnut out. After this, he set his sights on Norway. Olaf saw it as his calling to unite Norway into one kingdom, as Harald Fairhair had largely succeeded in doing. On the way home he wintered with Duke Richard II of Normandy . Marauding Vikings had conquered this region in 881. Richard

4095-597: The Eddic sources might lead us to conclude that the disir were valkyrie-like guardians of the dead, and indeed in Guðrúnarkviða I 19 the valkyries are even called Herjans disir 'Odin's disir'. The disir are explicitly called dead women in Atlamál 28 and a secondary belief that the disir were the souls of dead women (see fylgjur ) also underlies the landdísir of Icelandic folklore ." Simek says that "as

4186-464: The Good (c. 920–961) were Christians (however Håkon later reverted to Heathenism as an apostate ), as was Olaf's main opponent, Cnut the Great . What seems clear is that Olaf made efforts to establish a church organization on a broader scale than before, among other things by importing bishops from England , Normandy and Germany , and that he tried to enforce Christianity in the inland areas, which had

4277-599: The Middle Ages were probably compiled or written by Eystein Erlendsson , the second Archbishop of Nidaros (1161–1189). The nine miracles reported in Glælognskviða form the core of the catalogue of miracles in this office. St. Olaf was widely popular throughout Scandinavia. Numerous churches in Norway, Sweden, and Iceland were dedicated to him. His presence was even felt in Finland and many travelled from all over

4368-438: The Norman and Plantagenet kings promoted the cult of St. Edward the Confessor at Westminster Abbey , their coronation church. Sigrid Undset noted that Olaf was baptised in Rouen , the capital of Normandy , and suggested that Olaf may have used priests of Norman descent for his missionaries. Normans were somewhat familiar with the culture of the people they were to convert and in some cases may have been able to understand

4459-404: The Norse god Odin , or in the case of the kings of the Swedes at Old Uppsala , from Freyr . In Christian times this legitimation of a dynasty's right to rule and its national prestige was based on its descent from a saintly king. Thus the kings of Norway promoted the cult of St. Olaf, the kings of Sweden the cult of St. Erik and the kings of Denmark the cult of Saint Canute , just as in England

4550-445: The Norse world in order to visit his shrine. Apart from the early traces of a cult in England, there are only scattered references to him outside the Nordic area. Several churches in England were dedicated to him (often as St Olave ); the name was presumably popular with Scandinavian immigrants. St Olave's Church, York , is referred to in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle for 1055 as the place of burial of its founder, Earl Siward . This

4641-409: The Swedes is there. The name Dísaþing (now Disting ) remained in use, however, and the Fair is still held every year in Uppsala on the first Tuesday in February. It may be one of the oldest in Sweden. The stated purpose of the dísablót at Uppsala is to sacrifice for peace and victory. Norwegian places called Disin , from Old Norse Dísavin , "meadow of the dísir", and the possible relationship of

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4732-429: The Weser River in 16 CE. Simek points to a connection between name Idisiaviso, the role of the Idisi in one of the two Merseburg Incantations, and valkyries . Regarding the dísir, Simek states that Old Norse dís appears commonly as simply a term for 'woman,' just as Old High German itis , Old Saxon idis , and Anglo-Saxon ides , and may have also been used to denote a type of goddess. According to Simek, "several of

4823-404: The baptism of Olaf. The normand flag with a Scandinavian cross, which recalls the Scandinavian origins of Normandy, has been baptized "Cross of Saint Olav" (or "Cross of Saint Olaf") in honor of the saint. Baptized in Rouen by the brother of a Duke of Normandy, a church in Rouen is dedicated to Saint-Olaf. The Norwegian Saint-Olaf Church was built in 1926, rue Duguay-Trouin, near the home of

4914-471: The belief in the dísir , like the belief in the valkyries, norns, and matrons, may be considered to be different manifestations of a belief in a number of female (half-?) goddesses." There is considerable evidence that the dísir were worshipped in Scandinavia in pagan times. Firstly, a sacrificial festival ( blót ) honouring them, the dísablót , is mentioned in one version of Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks konungs and in Víga-Glúms saga , Egils saga , and

5005-405: The case of Freyja , whose name means "lady" ( frawjō ) and who is called Vanadís ("lady of the vanir "). Adding to the ambiguous meaning of dís is the fact that just as supernatural women were called dísir in the sense "ladies", mortal women were frequently called by names for supernatural women, as noted by Snorri Sturluson in Skáldskaparmál : Woman is also metaphorically called by

5096-410: The class of idis, dis, valkyrie, and other names, such as sigewif (victory-women, associated by the Anglo-Saxons with a swarm of bees), and find the commonalities both linguistically and in surviving myths and magic charms sufficient cause to group together all variations on this theme from various Germanic cultures. Stories from these and other cultures survive from earlier dates than the Eddas and it

5187-460: The court of King Eysteinn of Denmark, saying he believes "our dísir" have come with him, armed, to Denmark. Úlfr replies that he thinks all the dísir of Útsteinn and his men are dead and their luck run out. In Helgakviða Hundingsbana I , when the hero Helgi Hundingsbane first meets the valkyrie Sigrún , the poet calls her a "dís of the south". Henry Adams Bellows rendered this simply "the southern maid". The dísir are also equated with or play

5278-464: The dead, and, indeed, in Guðrúnarkviða I 19 the valkyries are even called Herjans disir 'Odin's disir'. The disir are explicitly called dead women in Atlamál 28. A secondary belief that the disir were the souls of dead women (see fylgjur ) also underlies the landdísir of Icelandic folklore ." Simek says that "as the function of the matrons was also extremely varied – fertility goddess, personal guardians, but also warrior-goddesses –

5369-498: The earlier Fagrskinna . The sources seem to say that he had been raised in the Norse pagan religion, but converted to Christ early in his adulthood. The Oldest Saga of St. Olaf ( c.  1200 ) is important to scholars for its constant use of skaldic verses, many of which are attributed to Olaf himself. Finally, many hagiographic sources describe St. Olaf, but these focus mostly on miracles attributed to him and cannot be used to accurately recreate his life. A notable one

5460-475: The effects of the Lutheran iconoclasm in 1536–37. King Cnut, though distracted by the task of governing England, ruled Norway for five years after Stiklestad, with his son Svein and Svein's mother Ælfgifu (known as Álfífa in Old Norse sources) as regents. But their regency was unpopular, and when Olaf's illegitimate son Magnus ('the Good') laid claim to the Norwegian throne, Svein and Ælfgifu were forced to flee. Olaf has traditionally been seen as leading

5551-629: The famous miracles attributed to him. The Norwegian synoptic histories also mention Olaf. These include the Ágrip af Nóregskonungasögum ( c.  1190 ), the Historia Norwegiae ( c.  1160 –1175) and a Latin text, Historia de Antiquitate Regum Norwagiensium by Theodoric the Monk ( c.  1177 –1188). Icelanders also wrote extensively about Olaf and there are several Icelandic sagas about him, including Fagrskinna ( c.  1220 ) and Morkinskinna ( c.  1225–1235 ). Heimskringla ( c.  1225 ), by Snorri Sturluson , largely bases its account of Olaf on

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5642-424: The first time in Þórarinn loftunga 's skaldic poem Glælognskviða , or "Sea-Calm Poem", from about 1030–34. One is the killing and throwing onto a mountain of a sea serpent still visible on the cliffside. Another took place on the day of his death, when a blind man regained his sight after rubbing his eyes with hands stained with Olaf's blood. The texts used for the liturgical celebration of St. Olaf during most of

5733-430: The function of the matrons was also extremely varied – fertility goddess, personal guardians, but also warrior-goddesses – the belief in the dísir , like the belief in the valkyries, norns, and matrons, may be considered to be different manifestations of a belief in a number of female goddesses." Jacob Grimm proposes a potential connection to the name of the Norse goddess Iðunn and the idisi. Grimm states that "with

5824-449: The hall, not poorly decked out. They wished to choose you, would've invited you quickly to their benches; I declare of no value these dísir to you." Idis (Germanic) In Germanic mythology , an idis ( Old Saxon , plural idisi ) is a divine female being. Idis is cognate to Old High German itis and Old English ides , meaning 'well-respected and dignified woman.' Connections have been assumed or theorized between

5915-414: The idisi and the North Germanic dísir ; female beings associated with fate, as well as the amended place name Idistaviso . One of the two Old High German Merseburg Incantations call upon female beings— idisi —to bind and hamper an army. The incantation reads: In the Old English poem Beowulf , the term ides is used multiple times to describe female beings. In line 1074 and again in line 1117,

6006-452: The language. Among the bishops Olaf is known to have brought with him from England was Grimketel ( Latin : Grimcillus ). He was probably the only one of the missionary bishops left in the country at the time of Olaf's death, and he stood behind the translation and beatification of Olaf on 3 August 1031. Grimketel later became the first bishop of Sigtuna in Sweden. At this time, local bishops and their people recognised and proclaimed

6097-426: The least communication with the rest of Europe, and which economically were more strongly based on agriculture, so that the inclination to hold on to the former fertility cult was stronger than in the more diversified and expansive western parts of Norway. Many believe Olaf introduced Christian law into Norway in 1024, based upon the Kuli stone , but this stone is hard to interpret. The codification of Christianity as

6188-424: The legal religion of Norway was attributed to Olaf, and his legal arrangements for the Church of Norway came to stand so high in the Norwegian people's and clergy's eyes that when Pope Gregory VII attempted to make clerical celibacy binding on the priests of Western Europe in 1074–75, Norwegians largely ignored it, since there was no mention of clerical celibacy in Olaf's legal code for their church. Only after Norway

6279-432: The monarchy and centralise control in Norway. The skaldic verses attributed to Olaf do not speak of Christianity at all, but use pagan references to describe romantic relationships. In his book The Conversion of Scandinavia , Anders Winroth argues that there was a "long process of assimilation, in which the Scandinavians adopted, one by one and over time, individual Christian practices." Winroth does not claim that Olaf

6370-485: The names of the Ásynjur or the Valkyrs or Norns or women of supernatural kind. The name dís appears in several place names in Norway and Sweden. Moreover, it was a common element in the names of girls, as evidenced on runestones , and it still is in Iceland . The word appears as a first element in Old High German female given names such as Itispuruc and Itislant. More frequent are Old Norse given names such as Thórdís, Hjördís, Ásdís, Vigdís, Halldís, Freydís. In

6461-474: The negotiations and attacked the Norwegians. Olaf nevertheless won the battle. It is said that Olaf participated alongside fellow Viking Thorkell the Tall in the siege of Canterbury in 1011. Olaf sailed to the southern coast of Finland sometime in 1008. The journey resulted in the Battle at Herdaler , where Olaf and his men were ambushed by the Finns in the woods. Olaf lost many men but made it back to his boats. He ordered his ships to depart despite

6552-638: The opportunity to win back the kingdom. Given military and logistical support by the Swedish king Anund Jacob he tried to bypass the formidable "Øresundfleet" of the Danish king by traveling across the Jämtland -mountains to take Nidaros, the Norwegian capital at the time, in 1030. However, Olaf was killed in Battle of Stiklestad on 29 July 1030, where some of his own subjects from central and northern Norway took arms against him. The exact position of Saint Olaf's grave in Nidaros has been unknown since 1568, due to

6643-658: The original form idis the goddess Idunn may possibly be connected." St. Olaf Olaf II Haraldsson ( c.  995 – 29 July 1030), also Olav Haraldsson and Olaf the Stout , later known as Saint Olaf and Olaf the Holy , was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske , a petty king in Vestfold , Norway, he was posthumously given the title Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae (English: Eternal/Perpetual King of Norway ) and canonised at Nidaros ( Trondheim ) by Bishop Grimketel , one year after his death in

6734-617: The queen Hildeburh is described as an ides while mourning the death of her kin after the Battle of Finnsburg . In line 620, Hrothgar 's wife, Wealhtheow is described as the " ides of the Helmings " and again in line 1168 as the " ides of the Scyldings ". In line 1259, the mother of the thurs Grendel is introduced as an ides . The idisi mentioned in the first Merseburg Incantation are generally considered to be valkyries. Rudolf Simek says that "these Idisi are obviously

6825-419: The role of norns. They give an impression of great age, but by the time of the oldest surviving texts, their significance had become blurred and the word had lost almost all distinct meaning. Accordingly, some scholars have argued that dísir may be the original term for the valkyries (lit. "choosers of the slain"), which in turn would be a kenning for dís . Unlike the mentions of the valkyrja and norn ,

6916-621: The term dís never appears in the Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson . As stated above, dís has been regarded as cognate with Old High German itis , Old Saxon idis and the Anglo-Saxon ides , all meaning "lady",; and idisi appears as the name of the valkyries in the only surviving pagan source from Germany, the Merseburg Incantations (see below). Dís also had the meaning "lady" in Old Norse poetry , as in

7007-469: The time of the initial recording of the Icelandic sagas. According to Rudolf Simek , Old Norse dís appears commonly as simply a term for 'woman', just as Old High German itis , Old Saxon idis , and Anglo-Saxon ides . It also may have been used to denote a type of goddess. According to Simek, "several of the Eddic sources might lead us to conclude that the disir were valkyrie-like guardians of

7098-440: The twelfth century, the character Glaumvör warns her husband Gunnar that she had a dream about the Dísir. Some of the surrounding text has been lost and it is not known what Gunnar may have said prior to this, and there is disagreement on which stanza number this should be given. A possible translation of the material is given as follows by John Lindow in his 2001 book Norse Mythology : "I thought dead women came hither into

7189-507: The various dynastic relationships among the ruling families, and the need for legitimisation in a later period. Olaf Haraldsson and Olaf Tryggvason (Olaf Haraldsson's godfather ) are both traditionally regarded as the driving forces behind Norway's final conversion to Christianity. But large stone crosses and other Christian symbols suggest that at least Norway's coastal areas were deeply influenced by Christianity long before Olaf's time; with one exception, all of Norway's rulers since Håkon

7280-532: The word to the Indian dhīsanas have suggested to some scholars that the dísir were fertility deities. There are two mentions of a hall or temple of a dís. Hollander translates dísarsálr as "the hall of the goddess". In the Ynglinga saga part of Heimskringla , Aðils , the king of Sweden , dies when he rides one of his horses around the dísarsálr at the time of Dísablót and he is thrown and brains himself on

7371-419: The wrath of the dísir. Again, dísir is used as a synonym for the norns: In Reginsmál , the unmarried Lyngheiðr is called dís ulfhuguð (dís/lady with the soul of a wolf) as an insult. Later in the same poem, there is a stanza, where the dísir appear as female spirits accompanying a warrior in order to see him dead in battle, a role where they are synonymous with valkyries: An additional instance where dís

7462-531: The years after Olaf's death in 1030, Olaf's illegitimate son with the concubine Alvhild, Magnus the Good , assumed power in Norway, and eventually also in Denmark. Numerous Danish churches were dedicated to Olaf during his reign, and the sagas give glimpses of the young king's efforts to promote the cult of his deceased father. This became typical of Scandinavian monarchies. In pagan times, Scandinavian kings derived their right to rule from their claims of descent from

7553-651: The youth Þiðrandi is killed by dísir dressed in black, riding black horses, while a troop of dísir dressed in white and riding white horses are unable to save him. The two groups represent the struggle between heathenry and Christianity. The benevolent dísir here play the role of tutelary spirits associated with a family, and Thorhall the Prophet explains them as fylgjur . The dísir are also referred to as if they are, or include, protective fylgjur in an exchange of verses in Hálfs saga ok Hálfsrekka . Útsteinn quarrels with Úlfr at

7644-753: Was also called Olaf 'the Lawbreaker' for his many brutal ways of converting the Norwegian populace. In modern Norway he is commonly called Olav den hellige ( Bokmål ; Olaf the Holy) or Heilag-Olav ( Nynorsk ; the Holy Olaf) in recognition of his sainthood. Olaf Haraldsson had the given name Óláfr in Old Norse (etymology: Anu- "forefather", -laibaR — "heir"). Olav is the modern equivalent in Norwegian , formerly often spelt Olaf . His name in Icelandic

7735-814: Was also, together with the Mother of God , the patron saint of the chapel of the Varangians , the Scandinavian warriors who served as the bodyguard of the Byzantine emperor. This church is believed to have been near the church of Hagia Irene in Constantinople. The icon of the Madonna Nicopeia , presently in St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, which is believed to have been traditionally carried into combat by

7826-570: Was himself an ardent Christian, and the Normans had also previously converted to Christianity. Before leaving, Olaf was baptised in Rouen in the pre-Romanesque Notre-Dame Cathedral by Richard's brother Robert the Dane , archbishop of Normandy. Olaf returned to Norway in 1015 and declared himself king, obtaining the support of the five petty kings of the Norwegian Uplands . In 1016 at

7917-510: Was made a metropolitan province with its own archbishop in 1153—making the Norwegian church, on the one hand, more independent of its king, but on the other hand, more directly responsible to the Pope—did canon law gain a greater prominence in the life and jurisdiction of the Norwegian church. For various reasons, most importantly the death of King Cnut the Great in 1035 but perhaps also a certain discontent among Norwegian nobles with Danish rule in

8008-480: Was not Christian, but argues that we cannot think of any Scandinavians as fully converting as portrayed in the later hagiographies or sagas. Olaf himself is portrayed in later sources as a saintly miracle-working figure to help support this quick view of conversion for Norway, but the historical Olaf did not act this way, as seen especially in the skaldic verses attributed to him. Olaf swiftly became Norway's patron saint; Bishop Grimketel performed his canonisation only

8099-677: Was originally a gift presented to Pope Leo XIII in 1893 for the golden jubilee of his ordination as a bishop by Norwegian nobleman and papal chamberlain Baron Wilhelm Wedel-Jarlsberg . The chapel was restored in 1980 and reinaugurated by Bishop John Willem Gran , bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oslo . In Germany , there used to be a shrine of St. Olaf in Koblenz . It was founded in 1463 or 1464 by Heinrich Kalteisen at his retirement home,

8190-528: Was the son of Gudrød Bjørnsson , King Bjørn Farmann in Vestfold, that is, son of King Harald I Fairhair Halvdansson. Harald Grenske died when Åsta Gudbrandsdatter was pregnant with Olaf. Åsta later married Sigurd Syr , with whom she had other children, including Harald Hardrada , who later reigned as king of Norway. The petty kings of Ringerike seem to have had some claims to the High Kingship of

8281-408: Was to be the assembly of all Swedes, and there was also a market and a fair which lasted a week. Now when Christianity was introduced, the general assembly and the market were still held there. But at present, when Christianity is general in Sweden and the kings have ceased residing at Uppsala, the market has been shifted to meet at Candlemas ... but now it lasts only three days. The general assembly of

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