Valkyrie

Subject: Valkyrie Sat Jun 26, 2010 11:08 pm

n Norse mythology, a valkyrie (from Old Norse valkyrja
"chooser of the slain") is one of a host of female figures who decide
who will die in battle. The valkyries bring their chosen to the
afterlife hall of the slain, Valhalla, ruled over by the god Odin, where the deceased warriors become einherjar. There, when the einherjar are not preparing for the events of Ragnarök, the valkyries bear them mead.
Valkyries also appear as lovers of heroes and other mortals, where they
are sometimes described as the daughters of royalty, sometimes
accompanied by ravens, and sometimes connected to swans.
Valkyries are attested in the Poetic Edda, a book of poems compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources; the Prose Edda and Heimskringla, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson, and Njáls saga, a Saga of Icelanders skalds, in a 14th century charm, and in various runic inscriptions. also written in the 13th century. They appear throughout the poetry of
The Old English cognate terms wælcyrge and wælcyrie
appear in several Old English manuscripts, and scholars have explored
whether the terms are derived through Norse influence, or an indigenous
tradition from Anglo-Saxon paganism. Scholarly theories have been proposed about the relation between the valkyries, the norns, the dísir, Germanic seeresses, and shieldmaidens.
Archaeological excavations throughout Scandinavia have uncovered
amulets theorized as depicting valkyries. In modern culture, valkyries
have been the subject of works of art, musical works, video games and
poetry.