Professor: "Norway has a pagan heritage to be proud of"
Neither in Celtic, Slavic, nor other Germanic areas of Europe is there anything comparable.
Mikael Males is a professor of Old Norse philology at the University of Oslo. Petter Jensen has written a master's thesis in the same field.(Photo: Bård Amundsen)
Until just over a thousand years ago – during the Viking Age – people in Norway and the Nordic countries worshipped the pagan, Norse gods.
Norwegians were among the very last in Europe to say goodbye to a more tolerant religion than Christianity.
This makes Norway the country where we can best understand the pagans' worldview from more than a thousand years ago, according to philology professor Mikael Males.
Unique texts written by pagans
The Norse faith was open to other gods and religions.
Annonse
Males suggests this tolerance may even have paved the way for Jesus and Christianity in Norway.
In a new book, the Swedish professor at the University of Oslo explains that, outside the Roman Empire and ancient Greece, the only place we find extensive texts written in the words of pagans themselves is in the Nordic religion.
Most of them are from Norway.
"Norway and the Nordic countries have a pagan heritage to be somewhat proud of. A heritage that few have been aware of," says Males.
The worldview before Christianity took over
We are not talking about Snorri Sturluson.
Even though he is the one who has made Viking Age history, as well as pre-Viking and pre-Christian Norwegian texts widely known.
Snorri, however, viewed the pagan Norwegians through a filter. He wore the Christian lenses he had acquired at the Catholic Latin school.
Völuspá is not just a depiction of Norse mythology, but also an important philosophical work. Today, we can read Völuspá as a key to pagan Norse belief in gods. The work provides a deep understanding of humanity's place in the universe. Here, in a manuscript written by hand in the 13th century. A book like this, with parchment pages, could require the hides of up to 100 cows.(Unknown photographer, Wikimedia)
Instead, there are extensive texts from Norway that – entirely on their own – tell us something about pagans' views on life and the world.
Texts from before Christianity took over.
We are talking about unique works such as Hávamál (Words of the High One) and Völuspá (The Prophecy of the Seeress).
"This Norse poetry has been preserved in a more unaltered form than much other poetry from ancient times," says Males.
Believes much has been lost
"Neither in Celtic, Slavic, nor other Germanic areas of Europe do we find anything comparable. This gives us a unique opportunity to approach the cultures that flourished here in the north of Europe before Christianity's final victory," says Males.
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He is a professor of Old Norse philology. Males himself defines philology as 'the study of texts in dead languages.'
The golden age of philology was in the 19th century and lasted until around 1930.
Today, the Swedish professor is one of the few academics in a field where he believes much has been lost over the past hundred years.
Sweden's most famous painter Carl Larsson completed his highly controversial work Midvinterblot (Midwinter Sacrifice) in 1915. The painting shows the mythical king Domalde, known from Norse Swedish mythology for sacrificing himself to the gods in an attempt to appease them. The popular painting was not displayed in the National Museum in Stockholm until 1998.(Photo: National Museum / Wikimedia)
The first to write in a language other than Latin
Just over a thousand years ago, few in Northern Europe even considered writing in a language other than Latin.
The first person to challenge this norm and attempt to write in a language spoken by ordinary people was likely someone in Ireland in the 6th or 7th century, according to the Great Norwegian Encyclopedia.
England followed next, and soon after, the idea spread to Norway and Iceland.
Although the runic alphabet existed in Norway and the Nordic countries, it was primarily used for short inscriptions on stones, wood, and metal.
Pagan literature was bolder
Pagan literature in Norway was far bolder than the literature that would later become subordinate to Christianity, Males explains in his new book.
From the 850s, we have the poetry of the skald Bragi, who likely invented a completely new literary form: skaldic poetry.
From the early 900s – or even earlier – we have Hávamál (Words of the High One), a vast collection of stories, advice, and words of wisdom. The poems also convey knowledge of magic.
From the latter part of the 900s, Völuspá (The Prophecy of the Seeress) provides insight into how Norse pagans viewed themselves and the world around them. It tells the story of how the gods created the world from chaos and how Ragnarok will once again destroy the world with chaos.
Skaldic poetry, in particular, became a central part of Norse pagan culture.
These were intricate and highly sophisticated poems, greatly valued by Norwegians of the time, according to Males.
The unique poetic techniques used in skaldic poetry required great skill from the poets.
Listeners and readers also needed to be familiar with complex expressions known as kennings. They had to be able to interpret these figurative descriptions themselves and know that the expression 'the horse of the sea' = ship, 'rain of swords' = battle, and 'Odin's drink' = poetry.
Odin leans on his spear as he listens to the seeress' prophecy.(Drawing by Karl Gjellrup, 1895)
Claims much has been made up
Petter Jensen recently completed a master's degree at the University of Oslo's Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies. He shares many of the same interests as Professor Males:
"We have very few sources on how people practiced pagan religions in Europe outside the Roman Empire and ancient Greece."
"Only early Norse literature, such as Hávamál andVöluspá, can give us a direct insight into pagan Norse religion," Jensen tells sciencenorway.no.
Many have been fascinated by the Celtic pagan traditions in Ireland, England, and on the continent. Films and books often create the impression that we know a lot about what went on. But in reality, our knowledge is quite limited. We do not have the Celts' own words on the subject. Much of what we think we know about Celtic religious practices was written down by later Christian authors.
Mikael Males is also concerned with another issue: That archaeological finds are so often used to interpret early Nordic worship of the gods.
This frequently appears in the media.
"As a philologist and literary scholar, I won't hide that I find it frustrating that research on paganism in the Nordic region has almost entirely been left to archaeologists," he says.
The Nazis misused Old Norse religion
Mikael Males' new book by the Swedish publisher Dialogos.
Norse pagan mythology did not have an easy time after the Nazis and Norway's own Vidkun Quisling saw fit to misuse it.
"This has made researchers hesitant to engage with Old Norse mythology for a long time, ," says Males.
However, Males has never personally encountered ordinary people who associate Old Norse beliefs with extremist ideology.
"In fact, I have only come across such attitudes among academics," he says.
Males believes it is long overdue for academia to embrace the study of Norse paganism without hesitation.
He now thinks it is high time for academia to normalise research on Norse paganism.
Males also points out that Snorri Sturluson (1178-1241) bears some of the responsibility for later misinterpretations.
"At the same time, it's difficult to determine whether Snorri was simply mistaken or if he deliberately shaped his narrative through the perpective he gained at the Catholic Latin school he attended," he says.
Völuspá was composed in Trondheim
Males believes thatVöluspá was most likely composed by someone in the circle of Haakon Jarl, also known as Haakon the Powerful, at Lade in Nidaros.
The Earl of Lade in Trondheim was Norway's last pagan ruler.
Haakon Jarl ruled from 970 to 995 and came from a noble family in Northern Norway.
In Snorri's writings and other sagas, Haakon Jarl is often portrayed quite negatively. This may have a lot to do with Olaf Tryggvason, the Christian king who succeeded him.
Males sees Völuspá as a product of a time of religious transition. Some passages closely resemble Christian poetry, while others present something completely different.
The pagan perspective: The more, the better
Haakon Jarl, drawn by Christian Krogh in 1899.
Much of the pagan mindset may have revolved around the idea of 'the more, the better.'
They had no issue with worshipping many gods.
"If a new god appeared and was seen as beneficial, they simply added that god to their pantheon. This was likely how many pagans in Norway thought when Jesus appeared," says Males.
In the very early days of Christianity in Norway, the belief in Jesus did not come from above.
It was only under the rule of two Olaf kings – Olaf Tryggvason and Olaf Haraldsson (later Saint Olaf) – that an intolerant religion emerged victorious. From then on, Norwegians were no longer free to choose their own faith.
"This is a pattern we often see in pagan cultures. They were generally more open and, therefore, more religiously tolerant than monotheistic religions like Christianity," he says.
Confident pagans in Nidaros
A great deal of Norse poetry was composed within the circles of the pagan earls at Lade in Nidaros.
The poem Vellekla, written by the skald Einar Helgason, also known by the epithet skálaglamm, provides valuable insights.
"Here, Haakon Jarl is praised for protecting the pagan faith. He is described as someone who 'makes the grass grow on the land again.' Among the poets surrounding Haakon Jarl, we see a strong sense of confidence in their pagan beliefs," says Petter Jensen.
People did not view their Norse pagan faith as inferior when confronted with the new Christian religion. They probably thought, 'we'll handle this well,' Jensen believes.
In his master's thesis, Jensen describes how Haakon Jarl was praised as a ruler by poets because he knew how to properly perform the pagan sacrificial rituals.
"When Snorri later recorded these stories, he likely thought there was too much paganism in them. Keep in mind that by the time Snorri lived, paganism had been a taboo for two hundred years," he says.
Jensen believes that Snorri probably stripped many of stories from pagan Norway of their religious content.
Mikael Males adds that Snorri also clearly misunderstood some things. Several aspects of Norse mythology in Snorri's writings suggest that he did not fully grasp the old language and culture.
They were proud to be pagans
The pride of the Norwegian pagans is evident in Völuspá.
Alongside the praise for Haakon Jarl, the celebration of his sacrifices, and the opposition to Christ, we find the Norwegian pagans' own account of how the world was created.
And how it will ultimately be destroyed in Ragnarok.
In this way, Völuspá serves as an alternative narrative to the Christian Book of Genesis, which describes creation in six days and the Book of Revelation, which foretells the end of the world.
Males believes the confident pagans of Nidaros wanted to show that they were in no way inferior to the Christians.
These people, living in late Viking Age Norway at the end of the 900s, clearly did not see themselves as among the last pagans in Europe.
The coiling pagan Midgard Serpent appears as a motif on runestones, in wood carvings, and even in Christian ornamentation – such as here in the famous portal of Urnes Stave Church. The serpent also appears in a lot of skaldic poetry.(Photo: SebastiaanPeeters / Shutterstock / NTB)
Believes religious historians are wrong
The philology professor at the University of Oslo has a bone to pick with scholars from another field: religious historians.
"They often argue that to truly understand religion, we must trace it far back in time," he says.
Males, however, believes that a pagan faith like Norse mythology was constantly evolving and adopting new elements.
This belief system was inherently open and adaptable.
"Take, for instance, the widely known myth of the Midgard Serpent, the giant sea serpent that encircles the world's oceans. This myth likely came to Norse society through their interactions with Ireland," he says, adding:
"Over time, the people of the North became obsessed with the Midgard Serpent, embracing its powerful symbol of chaos and destruction in the world."
