Nordic Religions in the Viking Age

By Thomas A. DuBois

Book Overview

The popular image of the Viking as a horn-helmeted berserker plying the ocean in a dragon-headed long boat is firmly fixed in history. Imagining Viking "conquerors" as much more numerous, technologically superior, and somehow inherently more warlike than their neighbors has overshadowed the cooperation and cultural exchange which characterized much of the Viking Age. In actuality, the Norse explorers and traders were players in a complex exchange of technology, customs, and religious beliefs between the ancient pre-Christian societies of northern Europe and the Christian-dominated nations surrounding the Mediterranean.

DuBois examines Anglo-Saxon, Celtic, and Mediterranean traditions to locate significant Nordic parallels in conceptions of supernatural beings, cults of the dead, beliefs in ghosts, and magical practices. These beliefs were actively held alongside Christianity for many years, and were finally incorporated into the vernacular religious practice. The Icelandic sagas reflect this complex process in their inclusion of both Christian and pagan details.

This work differs from previous examinations in its inclusion of the Christian thirteenth century as part of the evolution of Nordic religions from localized pagan cults to adherents of a larger Roman faith.

Thomas DuBois unravels for the first time the history of the Nordic religions in the Viking Age and shows how these ancient beliefs and their oral traditions incorporated both a myriad of local beliefs and aspects of foreign religions, most notably Christianity.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812217144
• ISBN13: 9780812217148
• Release Date: August 1999
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.9" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

MUST have

I used this book for my Thesis on Nordic religions and the transition to Christianity. It is very clear with many quotable points. It is a must have for any Scandinavian studies scholor and is also a great read for non-academic settings.

The interaction between cultures in Northern Europe

This book covers the interaction between the varioius Nordic cultures, the Finns, the Sami and continental Europeans during the period from about 800 to 1300 CE. It covers the ancient pagan religions and their relationships and the relationships between the Christian converts of the north and other Europeans.The chapters are as followsPreface: Introduction: Communities of Belief1 : The Cultures and History of the Viking Age North2 : Religions in the Viking Age: Contexts and Concepts for Analysis3 : Gods, Guides, and Guardians: Spiritual Aids4. : Visitors from Beyond: Death, Afterlife, and the Problem of Ghosts5. : Concepts of Health and Healing6. : The Intercultural Dimension of the Seidr Ritual7. : The Coming of the Cross: Religious and Artistic Effects8. : Achieving Faith: Christian Themes and Pagan FunctionThe author covers the relationship between the pagan religions of the people of the North, the shamanistic beliefs of the Sami and the Christian beliefs of Europe and the newly converted Norse. I would have liked a more in depth discussion of the ancient pagan, shamanistic and medieval Christian beliefs but the author does give us tantelizing tid bits. For example, I was unaware that the Cross had sush an important part in Medieval Christianity including visions of the Cross speaking, the Cross as an anulet of protection and other functions that it does not have in present day Christiantiy. The relationship between pagan beliefs and Christian beliefs was interesting in as much as they existed simultaneously.It is not a book to read for discovering the beliefs and details of the religions covered but is very interesting in its discussion of the cultural interactions between the groups discussed. There were trade relations and hostile raiding relations between the groups and this was also reflected in their religious relations. Groups of Christians fought other Christians and the same with the non-Christians. The author gives an interesting picture of the era.