Thor is the god of thunder in Norse mythology, famous for protecting the universe with his mighty hammer Mjolnir. But Thor is a complex god. In addition to being a protector and the ideal warrior, he is a weather deity linked to fertility. While he is a hero in Norse mythology, Thor is not a modern “moral” hero, and often lets his arrogance and appetite guide his actions.
Son of Odin and Thunder God
Thor is the son of the leader of the Aesir gods and the All-Father Odin. But he is not the son of Odin’s wife Frigg. Odin had Thor with the giantess Jordr, who is a personification of the earth, which is part of the reason that Thor is so strong. Thor is considered the strongest of the Norse gods and is therefore called on to protect Asgard, the realm of the gods, when needed. He also protects Midgard, the realm of men, from the chaotic forces of the giants. He does this with his hammer, Mjolnir, which causes lightning and thunder when he strikes.
Thor’s name means thunder, but he was also a more general weather deity associated with rain and fertility. He was also venerated by the Viking sailors who relied on the winds to steer their ships. Thor was also a god of social order. His hammer was called upon to bless important events such as births and marriages. This was important since these events changed social positions and hierarchies, and the ritual of calling on Thor’s hammer confirmed acceptance of that change.
As the ideal Viking warrior, Thor was described and depicted as a burly Viking with an impressive red beard. He had lightning in his eyes and had a prodigious appetite for food and drink.
Thor was widely venerated. This can be seen in the names of Iceland’s founding population, more than a quarter of which have the name of the god incorporated into their own name [e.g., Thorkill or Thorgest]. Thor’s hammer was also the most popular amulet found among Viking grave goods. Mjolnir continued to be used as a symbol of allegiance to the old Viking ways long into the Christian period, suggesting that Thor was the main deity held up as the Norse alternative to Jesus.
Children of Thor
Thor was married to the goddess Sif, another fertility deity, but like his father, Odin, he also had children with several giantess mistresses.
With Sif, he had a daughter, Thrud, whose name means strength. He may also have had another child with Sif called Lorride, but this child is only mentioned once in passing in the sources, and it may be an alternative name for Thor himself.
With a giantess named Jarnsaxa, Thor had a son called Magni, whose name means strength. Some authors suggest that Thor was married to Jarnsaxa before he married Sif. But it is very difficult to create a clear timeline within Norse mythology beyond the creation being the start of all things and Ragnarok being the end. Plus, the Vikings and their gods do not seem to have been concerned about infidelity and clear relationship timelines for their gods.
Thor also had another son called Modi, which means bravery. The name of his mother is never stated. While most scholars suggest that he was also a son of Jarnsaxa and therefore a full brother of Magni, others suggest that he was a son of Sif. Of course, his mother may have been another woman entirely.
Mjolnir: Thor’s Hammer
Mjolnir, Thor’s hammer, is probably the most famous attribute owned by any of the Norse gods. Mjolnir means “crusher,” and it had the power to level mountains, and certainly the power to crush the skulls of Thor’s giant foes (well, most of them).
Mjolnir was made by the dwarves, the master craftsmen of Norse mythology. It was procured for Thor by Loki in the aftermath of some mischief. One night, as a prank, Loki cut off Sif’s beautiful golden hair, which is thought to have represented a corn harvest. Enraged, Thor demanded that Loki replace the hair with something equally fair, or pay the price.
To avoid Thor’s wrath, Loki travels to the realm of the dwarves and asks them to create a headdress for Sif from the finest gold and enchant it to grow on her head. While there, Loki also procured several other treasures that he then gifted to the Aesir gods, including Mjolnir, Thor’s mighty hammer.
While the Marvel comics suggest that only Thor even has the power to lift his hammer, this was not the case in Norse mythology, as revealed by an episode where the giant king Thrym steals Thor’s hammer. Waking up to find Mjolnir missing, Loki informs Thor that it has been stolen by Thrym. The giant says that he will return the hammer, but only in exchange for the hand of the goddess Freyja in marriage.
While Thor assumes that Freyja will marry the giant so that he can get his hammer back, she refuses and refuses to participate in any trick. As the gods brainstorm, Heimdall suggests that Thor dress up as Freyja and go undercover. Thor initially refuses because it would undermine his manhood, but Loki convinces him and shapeshifts into a woman to pose as Thor’s handmaiden.
When they traveled to Thrym’s kingdom, Loki ran interference for Thor to pull off the trick. When Thor almost gave himself away because of his famous appetite, Loki told Thrym that Freyja hadn’t eaten for several days in anticipation of the wedding, and that was why she was so hungry. When Thrym caught sight of Thor’s lightning eyes, Loki said that it was because she had not slept in days for the same reasons.
Finally, when Thrym called on the hammer to sanctify the wedding, Thor seized it and used it to kill everyone in the giant’s hall.
While Mjolnir was not enchanted the way it is in the Marvel movies, it was incredibly heavy and difficult to wield. One of the reasons for this was that it had an unusually short handle. As a result, Thor had a pair of iron gloves, called Jarngreipr, and a belt called Megingjard, which doubled his already considerable strength and let him handle the hammer with ease.
Mjolnir Origin Story
To get Sif’s golden headpiece, Loki traveled to Svartalheim, the land of the dwarves, to consult with the master craftsmen there. He spoke with the brothers Ivaldi, great dwarven craftsmen, who agreed to make a headpiece of Sif, as well as two other treasures to help Loki appease the wrath of the gods. In the end, as well as a headpiece of fine gold that was enchanted to grow on Sif’s head, the dwarven brothers made Gungnir, the spear of Odin, and Gullinbursti, the golden boar of the god Freyr.
As he was waiting, as usual, Loki got himself into mischief. He also visited the dwarven brothers Brokkr and Sindri, saying that everyone knew that they could not produce treasures as fine as the Ivaldi, and challenging them to prove him wrong. The brothers agreed, but were sensibly suspicious of Loki; if they won, the dwarves wanted his head. Loki, always sure that he could outwit anyone, agreed. He then went about sabotaging the work of the dwarves. The brothers made Odin’s ring Draupnir and Freyr’s ship Skidbladnir, but it was when they started making their final treasure, a mighty hammer called Mjolnir, that Loki began to worry.
As Sindri put the iron for Mjolnir in the forge, he sent his brother Brokkr to pump the bellows. To sabotage their work, Loki turned himself into a fly and bit Brokkr on the eyelid hard enough to draw blood. As the blood ran into his eyes, Brokkr was forced to stop working the bellows for a few seconds to wipe his face, but the damage was done. As Sindri drew the hammer from the forge, the handle was much shorter than originally planned, making a hammer that would need to be wielded by one hand, rather than a more traditional Viking two-handed hammer.
As both sets of treasures are taken to Asgard to be judged by the gods, they agree unanimously that the hammer, Mjolnir, despite its short handle, was the finest object ever made.
As the dwarven brothers sought to claim their prize, Loki tried to wriggle out of the consequences by pointing out that he promised them his head, but not his neck, and that they could not very well claim one without the other. With the consent of the gods, the brothers had to be satisfied with sewing Loki’s mouth shut (though this seems to have been temporary).
Myths About Thor
Thor features in many of the surviving Viking stories, many of which are designed to show off his prodigious strength. But they also clearly demonstrate that Thor often acted out of ego or arrogance, and was not the selfless hero of modern stories.
Thor the Enforcer
Thor was the enforcer of Asgard and was often called on to deal with problems. For example, the gods decided to swindle a builder and try and trick him into building the fortified walls of Asgard without payment. However, the trick backfired, and they almost found themselves liable to pay the builder the sun, the moon, and Freyja’s hand in marriage.
Fortunately for the gods, Loki’s machinations meant that the builder never finished the work. But when they discovered that the builder was also a giant, they summoned Thior to kill him. Similarly, when Loki finally took things too far with actions that resulted in the death of the god Balder, the gods summoned Thor to expel Loki from Asgard. When Loki fled, it was also Thor who tracked him down for punishment.
A similar situation occurred with the giant Hrungnir. The giant, who was made of stone, had a fine horse called Gullfaxi. One day, he met Odin riding his eight-legged steed Sleipnir in Jotunheim. The two stopped to compare horses and boast about their steeds.
The pair eventually agreed on a competition and raced back to Asgard. Sleipnir won easily, and Hrungnir accepted his defeat graciously, so the gods invited him in for a drink. But soon Hrungnir got very drunk and started to joke. He said that he would kill all the gods and bury them in Asgard, except for the goddesses Freyja and Sif, whom he would take as wives.
Eventually, the gods got irritated and asked Thor to kill Hrungnir. Thor approached him from behind to end him quickly. But Hrungnir realized what was happening and accused Thor of cowardice. He challenged the god of thunder to prove his strength and martial prowess in a duel. Always eager to show off, Thor agreed.
During the duel, Hrungnir threw a giant stone at Thor, which split in two on impact. But at the same time, Thor threw his hammer at Hrungnir, shattering his skull and killing the giant.
While Thor was not badly injured, the impact of the stone knocked him to the ground. One of Hrungnir’s stone legs then fell on top of him, pinning him down. The god of thunder was unable to free himself, and the other gods tried to lift the leg, but it was too heavy.
Eventually, Thor’s three-year-old son, Magni, came out and was able to lift the leg all by himself. The name Magni means strength in Old Norse, and this story suggests that he may have been even stronger than his father.
It was later revealed that Thor had a small piece of stone lodged in his forehead from the battle. He went to see the sorceress Groa to have it removed, but she was unable to complete the spell. Consequently, Thor spent the rest of his life with the small piece of stone lodged in his head.
Traveling to Jotunheim
This story starts with Thor and Loki traveling together in Thor’s chariot, drawn by two goats. They stop for the evening at the house of a farmer. The farmer welcomes them but admits he has no food to share. Thor says they can eat his goats, and he will bring them back to life, as long as their skins and bones are not damaged.
The farmer’s family has never eaten so well, and the farmer’s son Thjalfi can’t resist cracking open a bone and sucking out the marrow. When Thor restores the goats to life the following day, one of them is lame, and he flies into a rage. He wants to kill the whole family, but instead accepts Thjalfi and his sister Rosva as his servants.
Leaving the goats behind, the group travels through a thick forest and arrives in Jotunheim. In the evening, they encounter an enormous snoring giant. Thor immediately decides to kill the giant, but it awakens before he can strike. The giant introduces himself as Skrymir and agrees to travel with the group.
During the day, the giant carries all their provisions in a bag. When night falls, he falls asleep, leaving Thor to try and open the bag. The god cannot undo the knots. Frustrated, he tries to kill the giant, striking him in the head. But Skrymir simply awakens, thinking that a leaf has fallen on his head. Thor unsuccessfully tries to kill the giant two more times before sunrise.
The next day, the giant leaves the group as they head down to an enormous castle. They find themselves tiny figures in the hall of the giant Utgard-Loki. The giant king immediately mocks them for their small size and challenges them to prove their worth.
Loki pronounces that he can eat more than any giant in the hall, and he enters an eating contest with a giant called Logi, whose name means fire. Each has a trough of meat placed in front of them. While Loki eats his meat quickly, he discovers that Logi has eaten not just the meat, but also the bones and the trough itself!
Thjalfi proclaims himself a fast runner and agrees to race with Hugi, whose name means “thought”. They race three times with embarrassing results for Thjalfi.
Thor claims that he can drink more than anyone in the castle. He is given a drinking horn considered small by the standards of the hall and is told to finish it in three draughts. Thor takes a huge drink and is surprised that the horn is still almost full. He repeats this twice but does not come close to draining the horn.
Next, Utgard-Loki challenges Thor to pick up a cat, a seemingly easy task. But Thor was only able to lift one of the cat’s legs.
Finally, Thor says that he will wrestle with anyone. He is pitted against an old woman called Elli, which means “age”, and loses the contest.
The next day, as the group prepares to leave, Utgard-Loki decides to explain what has happened. Loki competed with “fire” in the eating context, which devours all. Thjalfi raced “thought”, which cannot be outrun. Thor wrestled “age”, which cannot be beaten.
The horn Thor drank from was filled with the sea, and the cat he tried to lift was in fact the enormous Midgard Serpent that encircles the world. Even their interactions with Skrymir were a trick. His bag was closed with chains, and his head was a mountain.
Thor is angered to have been embarrassed by this deception and prepares to kill the giant and destroy his hall. But they disappear before his eyes as if they had never been there.
Thor’s Fishing Trip
In another story, Thor and the god Tyr travel to the hall of the giant Hymir to borrow a cauldron to make sufficient mead for all the gods for a big party. The giant offers them hospitality, but is shocked when Thor eats two oxen in a single sitting.
Hyimir does not want to kill any more of his Oxen, so he tells Thor that they will have to go fishing for food for the next day. When Thor turns up, Hymir is horrified to see that he has slaughtered more of his oxen to use their heads as bait.
Nevertheless, the pair row out to sea and catch many enormous fish, including two whales. But Thor is dissatisfied and keeps insisting that Hymir row further out. This makes the giant nervous because he knows that Jormungandr, the mighty Midgard Serpent, lives in these waters.
Thor insists on fishing and soon catches something on his line, which causes him to lose balance for a moment. He then starts to pull it up. Hymir realizes that this must be Jormungandr, as this is the only being in the ocean strong enough to challenge the god. He begs Thor to let it go, but his plea falls on deaf ears.
Eventually, in his fear, Hymir cuts Thor’s line and lets the serpent sink back into the water. Thor is so angered by this that he pushes Hymir into the water where the serpent is still lurking. Thor does pull him back into the boat eventually, and the two return to shore.
Despite this incident, Hymir still gave the caldron to Thor and Tyr. While Tyr was unable to lift the cauldron, Thor swung it up on his shoulder and walked away.
Thor and Ragnarok
Ragnarök is a prophecy that explains how the world will end when the giants attack the gods in Asgard. Many of the gods will die in battles with their mortal enemies. The fighting will be so ferocious that it will destroy the universe, which will sink back into the waters of chaos.
In the final battle, Thor and Jormungandr will engage in a fierce fight, the most challenging of Thor’s life. While Thor will eventually slay the serpent, during the battle, Jormungandr will spew so much venom onto Thor that he will only be able to walk nine steps before dying himself. The serpent will also spew his venom into the air, poisoning the nine worlds of the Norse cosmos.
Thus, Thor, the protector of the Norse cosmos, and the Norse cosmos itself, will die together.
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