Jötunn


In Norse mythology, a jötunn or, in the normalised scholarly spelling of Old Norse, jǫtunn ; is a type of entity contrasted with gods and other figures, such as dwarves and elves. The entities are themselves ambiguously defined, variously referred to by several other terms, including risi, thurs and troll.
Although the term giant is sometimes used to gloss the word jötunn and its apparent synonyms in some translations and academic texts, jötnar are not necessarily notably large and may be described as exceedingly beautiful or as alarmingly grotesque. Some deities, such as Skaði and Gerðr, are themselves described as jötnar, and various well-attested deities, such as Odin, are descendants of the jötnar.
Norse myth traces the origin of the jötnar to the proto-being Ymir, a result of growth or sexless reproduction from the entity's body. Ymir is later killed, his body is dismembered to create the world, and the jötnar survive this event by way of sailing through a flood of Ymir's blood. The jötnar dwell in Jötunheimr. In later Scandinavian folklore, the ambiguity surrounding the entities gives way to negative portrayals.

Etymology

Old Norse jötunn and Old English eoten developed from the Proto-Germanic masculine noun *etunaz. Philologist Vladimir Orel says that semantic connections between *etunaz with Proto-Germanic *etanan makes a relation between the two nouns likely. Proto-Germanic *etanan is reconstructed from Old Norse etall "consuming", Old English etol "voracious, gluttonous", and Old High German filu-ezzal "greedy". Old Norse risi and Old High German riso derive from the Proto-Germanic masculine noun *wrisjon. Orel observes that the Old Saxon adjective wrisi-līke "enormous" is likely also connected.
Old Norse þurs, Old English ðyrs, and Old High German duris "devil, evil spirit" derive from the Proto-Germanic masculine noun *þursaz, itself derived form Proto-Germanic *þurēnan, which is etymologically connected to Sanskrit turá- "strong, powerful, rich". Several terms are used specifically to refer to female entities that fall into this category, including íviðja and gýgr. on the coat of arms of Iceland.

Attestations

The jötnar are frequently attested throughout the Old Norse record. For example, in a stanza of Völuspá hin skamma, a variety of origins are provided: völvas are descended from Viðòlfr, all seers from Vilmeiðr, all charm-workers from Svarthöfði, and all jötnar descend from Ymir.

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