Translation: Jon Alkorta Martiartu, PhD (UPV/EHU)
Valkyries: guardians of Valhalla
The word “Valkyrie” is part of our cultural heritage. We associate this term with the female deities who transported warriors who had fallen in battle to the Scandinavian paradise or Valhalla. To a large extent, this concept has been incorporated into our imagination thanks to Wagner’s operas, one of which includes the well-known musical piece The Ride of the Valkyries. The truth is that these powerful women have been part of Germanic mythology even before Odin himself. Let’s learn about their origin and their connection with the development of the Nordic universe.
Who are the valkyries?
The term “Valkyrie” has a very ancient origin. It appears in both Norse (valkyria) and English (waelcyrge) and in both it means ‘she who chooses the battle-dead’. Its root (val-) is linked to the deceased and also appears in “Valhalla” (the place where the battle-dead reside) and “Valfödr”, an appellation of Odin meaning ‘father of those who died in battle’. Originally, before the first references to this god or to Valhalla, valkyries were seen as soul-tormenting funerary spirits. It is very likely that their present-day characteristics were defined by their association with this mythological context.
We know the characteristics of these warrior women from many sources, especially the Eddas and the Icelandic sagas. According to the medieval author Snorri Sturluson, one of their tasks was to serve drinks and prepare the tables at the great banquet in Valhalla. In addition, in the name of Odin, they had to choose which side would win and who would die during the battles. The fallen fighters were then taken to paradise. We also know that the moment of death and collection of the corpse involved their sexual union with the valkyries, something akin to mystical ecstasy.
Valkyrie, Arthur Rackham.
The most important valkyries
Mythology tells us about a number of special valkyries, as they have a greater presence than the rest both in medieval texts and in runic inscriptions. We know stories associated with them and interesting facts about them. Brynhildr (Brunhildr) is undoubtedly the most popular. She appears in the Volsung Saga and her name means ‘battle-cloak’. She became famous when Wagner rescued her in his cycle of operas The Gold of the Rhine. There, she is associated with the hero Siegfried.
Another valkyrie to mention is Sigrún (‘secret of victory’), who appears in both volumes of Helgakviða Hundingsbana. Her name is connected with a peculiarity of some of these maidens: their possible connection with magic. The connection is not clear, but there are stories that point to it. In this respect, we can mention the resurrective power of Hilda (‘battle’), whose wanderings we find in both Eddas. Her mission was to revive dead fighters. As a peculiarity, it is mentioned that her father Högni and her husband Hedin were human.
Gunnr and Skögul must also have been very important, as they appear in runic inscriptions. The former is mentioned on the Rök stone in Ödeshög (Sweden), the rock with the most runes found to date. The name of the second rune is found in Bergen, Norway, on a 13th century archaeological site.
In Valhalla
Odin, Georg von Rosen.
Some accounts say that the valkyries were daughters of Odin. However, as we have seen, some were descended from humans. The most widespread story explains that, although they served Odin, they were under the supervision of Freyja. Their mission, as mentioned above, was to collect warriors who had fallen in battle and transport them to Valhalla. In this mythical place, Odin gathered an army made up of all of them to fight in the battle of the end of time, Ragnarök.
Valhalla was a gigantic palace that had five hundred and forty gates, through each of which up to eight hundred warriors could enter. It is said that twenty rivers flowed from it. To reach this paradise, fighters had to consecrate their lives to Odin and have his mark: a spear wound acquired through an initiation ritual. This wound could be practised after death if the test had not been passed in life.
Thus, once the fight began, the valkyries would come in the form of a raven or an eagle and choose the fighters they wished to take to Valhalla. It was believed that those who looked up at the sky during the fight were sighted and chosen. Upon arrival at the palace, their captors would feast them with horns filled with mead. They were then served during the great banquet around Odin.
But all the soldiers recruited by the valkyries were not enough to win in the final judgement of Ragnarök. The terrible war would set Odin, at the head of the Æsir, against his enemies (Loki, the jotuns and the giants, led by Surt). This event would be the great catastrophe that would put an end to the known universe. However, that was not the end of the story: there would be a new rebirth, a new cycle of life.
In short: divine or human, wicked or kind, the valkyries played a central role in the lives of the Vikings, guiding them after death to the home of their lord Odin. Nothing stopped these people from war, for they were sure that glory awaited them in the afterlife, where they would spend eternity in the company of beautiful maidens.
OpenEdition le sugiere que cite este post de la siguiente manera:
Dr. Pedro Ortega (3 de agosto de 2023). Valquirias: guardianas del Valhalla. El blog de Tartalo. Recuperado 19 de marzo de 2025 de https://doi.org/10.58079/unvu