Æsir
Æsir (Old Norse; singular: áss, female: ásynja, female plural: ásynjur) or ēse (Old English; singular: ōs) are gods in Germanic paganism. In Old Nordic religion and mythology, the precise meaning of the term Æsir is debated, as it can refer either to the gods in general or specifically to one of the main families of gods, in contrast to the Vanir, with whom the Æsir waged war, ultimately leading to a joining of the families. The term can further be applied to local gods that were believed to live in specific features in the landscape – such as fells.
↻ synthesized from 5 sources
When
- First attested
- 700 CE
- Attested period
- 700 – 2020
- Historical notes
- Norse mythology texts date from approximately 700-1300 CE.
Relationships
- co occurs with
- ēse, áss, ásynja, *Vih-ansa, Thor, Jörð, Gerð, Vafþrúðnir, Hyndla, Glaðsheimr, Ásynjur, Týr, Odin, Balder, Hermod, Hela, Baldur
- enemy of
- Loki, jötnar, Children of Ymir
- sibling of
- Vanir
- creator of
- Kvasir
Mentioned by
Sources
Source passages
“It has been proposed that most narratives in Old Nordic mythology portray existence as broadly divided into "this world", inhabited by the Æsir and men, and "the otherworld" inhabited by beings such as jötnar.”
#2788 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Snorri states in Gylfaginning that Glaðsheimr is a meeting hall containing thirteen high seats where the male Æsir hold council, located in Iðavöllr in Asgard, near the hall of Vingólf where the Ásynjur goddesses gathered.”
#38406 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Azov is believed by Heyerdahl to have derived its name from as-hof – temple of the Æsir. Mainstream linguists and historians will say that the city of Azov got its name from the Turks, over 1000 years after Heyerdahl believes the Æsir lived there.”
#38436 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5
“Still, it remains for the gods — the Æsir and the Vanir dwelling in Asgard — to bury and to mourn their dead.”
#40888 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“Humanity, however, is not alone. They pray to the Æsir and faithfully worship the great Organically Distributed Intelligence Network or Odin for short. As protectors, it is the Æsir's duty to ensure humanity survives.”
#41102 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001