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Norse deity
This article is about the Norse god. For the ancient Chinese place, see
Wuxi
.
In
Norse mythology
,
Meili
(
Old Norse
:
[?m?ile]
, 'the lovely one'
[1]
) is a
god
, son of the god
Odin
and
Jorð
, and brother of the god
Thor
. Meili is attested in the
Poetic Edda
, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the
Prose Edda
, written in the 13th century by
Snorri Sturluson
. Other than Meili's relation to Odin and Thor, no additional information is provided about the deity in either source.
Attestations
[
edit
]
In the
Poetic Edda
poem
Harbarðsljoð
, Meili receives a single mention; the god Thor declares that, even if he were an
outlaw
, he would reveal his name and his homeland, for he is the son of Odin, the brother of Meili, and the father of
Magni
.
[2]
Meili receives four mentions in the
Prose Edda
book
Skaldskaparmal
. In chapter 17, verses from the poem
Haustlong
(attributed to the 10th century
skald
Þjoðolfr of Hvinir
) are provided, where Thor is referred to as "Meili's brother."
[3]
In chapter 22, additional quotes from
Haustlong
are provided where a
kenning
is employed for the god
Hœnir
that refers to Meili ("step-Meili").
[4]
In chapter 23, a quote by a work from the skald
Þjoðolfr of Hvinir
is provided that refers to Thor as "Meili's brother".
[5]
In chapter 75, Meili is listed among names of the
Æsir
and as a son of Odin (between the god
Baldr
and the god
Viðarr
).
[6]
Reception
[
edit
]
Some 19th-century scholars proposed that Meili's mother should be understood as
Jorð
, a goddess and the personified Earth.
[7]
Also during the 19th century,
Viktor Rydberg
theorized that
Baldr
and Meili are one and the same.
[8]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
Simek (2007:210).
- ^
Larrington (1999:70).
- ^
Faulkes (1995:80).
- ^
Faulkes (1995:87).
- ^
Faulkes (1999:89).
- ^
Faulkes (1995:156).
- ^
Examples include Pierer (1844:204), Barth (1846:396), and Uhland (1868:18).
- ^
Rydberg (2003:191).
References
[
edit
]
- Barth, Christian K. (1846).
Teutschlands Urgeschichte, Vol. 5
. Erlangen: J. J. Palm & Ernst Enke.
(in German)
- Faulkes, Anthony (Trans.) (1995).
Edda
.
Everyman
.
ISBN
0-460-87616-3
- Larrington, Carolyne (Trans.) (1999).
The Poetic Edda
.
Oxford World's Classics
.
ISBN
0-19-283946-2
- Pierer, Heinrich A. (1844).
Universallexikon der Gegenwart und Vergangenheit, Vol. 21
. Altenburg: H. A. Pierer.
(in German)
- Simek, Rudolf
(2007) translated by Angela Hall.
Dictionary of Northern Mythology
.
D.S. Brewer
.
ISBN
0-85991-513-1
- Rydberg, Viktor (2003).
Our Father's Godsaga: Retold for the Young
. Lincoln: iUniverse.
ISBN
0-595-29978-4
- Uhland, Ludwig (1868).
Schriften zur Geschichte der Dichtung und Sage, Vol. 6
. Stuttgart: Verlag der J. G. Cotta'schen Buchhandlung.
(in German)
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Society
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