Was Odin Racist?

A thought occurred to me that I thought would make the basis for a good article, so here goes. As many people who know me are aware, I’ve had a continuing interest in world mythologies and ancient religions. I always found the Norse lore to be very interesting as it is quite unique, yet still has some definite similarities to other ancient world literature. This fascination is widespread, and the Norse lore has inspired artist throughout the centuries, even after the indigenous religions of Europe were no longer commonly practiced. From Richard Wagner to J.R.R. Tolkien to Marvel Comics, the Norse lore has had a definite influence on world cultures. However, the imagery and motifs that appear in the ancient Norse literature have been used by racist movements in (relatively) recent times. This begs the question of whether or not this is appropriate. Do the stories of Odin and Thor that have come to us from ancient days actually condone racism?

If one studies the Norse myths, they may notice that various races of beings live throughout the cosmos and influence the lives of humans on Earth. This concept is nothing new- just about every mythology and religion contains some type of spiritual entities that exist beyond the physical plane. These types of beings are usually categorized as “angelic” (positive; good) or “demonic” (negative; destructive), but the lines within the Norse literature are not as clearly defined. Odin is the ruler of the gods of Asgard and their rivals are the Jotuns(also called Giants). Many Jotuns are enemies of the gods and humanity, and are often kept at bay by the Norse thunder god Thor. However, not all of the Jotuns are hostile toward the gods or humanity. In fact, some of the Norse gods even intermarry and start families with the Jotuns. The god Frey gives up his prized sword to marry the Jotun princess Gerd. Thor has a family with the Jotun woman Jarnsaxa and has sons with her before he marries the harvest goddess Sif. Some anti-racist sects of New Age spiritual movements have cited these details from the Norse lore as strong evidence that this literature does not condone racism, because if it did the gods would not intermarry with the Jotuns who are a different race. This argument makes sense, but perhaps the Norse literature has other ways of addressing this issue.

The racists often use a specific Norse myth as evidence of segregationist racial ideology existing in ancient Norse literature. This myth involves the god Heimdall, a son of Odin who guards the rainbow bridge Bifrost (entrance to Asgard, home of the gods) and is credited with being the progenitor of humankind. A story exists in which Heimdall descends to Earth and spends a night at the home of three separate couples. The first couple is crude and stupid, and the offspring that come from them share those characteristics. The next couple is less crude but not quite sophisticated enough for Heimdall’s tastes either. This couple also has children. The third couple is beautiful and intelligent, and Heimdall favors the offspring of this couple most. This myth explains the basis of the social structure of ancient times- which every ancient civilization has had in some manner. It is difficult to deny that this myth has a slight tone of elitism, but it does not state in any way that the three couple were different races. In fact, it seems much more plausible that each of the couples were all the same race, but of varying degrees of sophistication. This can occur in any society, anywhere in the world. Racists may try to use this myth to fit their agenda, but to say that this myth is evidence of racialism existing in ancient Norse literature is a weak argument at best.

Perhaps the strongest proof that ancient Norse literature did not endorse racism, but possibly even supported positive interracial relations, comes from the relationship between Odin and Loki. Odin is the king and forefather of the Aesir, the race of Norse gods, and Loki is from the Jotun race. Despite this, Odin swears an oath of brotherhood to Loki. This was described in Norse literature as a blood oath. If Odin was a racist, would he really have mixed his blood with a Jotun? One could argue that Odin’s oath to Loki eventually brought about the downfall of the gods, and that this is evidence of Norse literature warning against having interracial ties. But to make this claim would deny all of the other relationships between the Aesir and Jotuns that benefitted both parties- such as the union of Frey and Gerd, and the union of Thor and the Jotun Jarnsaxa. The latter produced the sons of Thor, who survived the final battle of Ragnarok. This means that Loki is the exception, not the rule. His betrayal of the gods stems more from personal issues of his own rather than tensions between their backgrounds. Last but not least, the dispute between Odin and Loki triggers the battle of Ragnarok in which most of creation perishes before it is born again. This can very well indicate that tension between peoples- regardless of their race, religion, etc. – will cause great chaos and destruction. This may very well be the Norse lore’s way of telling humanity the importance of getting along.

Ultimately, I find no evidence to suggest that the ancient Norse literature endorses a racist viewpoint. If anything, it seems there is more evidence to the contrary. Anyone interested in this topic is of course free to read the literature and come to their own conclusions. I just wanted to publish this article to show that individuals with a specific agenda should not be allowed to monopolize ancient literary texts, which I believe to be a valuable part of world heritage.

Thanks for reading

Mike