Introduction
Chapter 1 Traditions and Beliefs
1.1 Beliefs
1.2 Traditions associated with birth
1.3 Training and the "moral code"
1.4 Funeral rites
Chapter 2 Science and Art
2.1 Calendar
2.2 Navigation
2.3 Shipbuilding
2.4 Medicine
2.5 Literature. Poetry
Conclusion
List of used literature
Introduction
The relevance of this work is due to the fact that in order to understand the history of a people, it is important to know not only the material, but also the spiritual side of their life. For a long time, the role of mentality was underestimated by many scientists, but using only a materialistic approach, it is sometimes difficult to explain some historical phenomena. In addition, this leads to an unjustified belittlement of the importance of the achievements of ancient people; to the fact that their culture is presented by many researchers as “primitive”. At the same time, the very difference between the worldview of ancient and modern people is not taken into account. In recent years, they have begun to appear good work, which are based on the consideration of mentality, but they are mainly devoted to the civilizations of the Ancient East. There are no special works devoted to the spiritual culture of pre-Christian Scandinavia, at least in Russian. All this determines the relevance of this work.
First of all, it should be said about what is meant by the concepts of “culture” and “pre-Christian Scandinavia”.
“Culture (from the Latin Cultura - cultivation, upbringing, education, development, veneration), a historically determined level of development of society, creative powers and abilities of a person, expressed in the types and forms of organization of people’s lives and activities, in their relationships, as well as in the material and spiritual values they create... In a narrower sense, the sphere of people’s spiritual life. Includes the substantive results of people’s activities... as well as human powers and abilities realized in activities (knowledge, abilities, skills, level of intelligence, moral and aesthetic development, worldviews, methods and forms of communication between people),” the Big Encyclopedic Dictionary tells us. .
In this work, the concept of “culture” will be used in the narrow sense of the word, that is, to denote spiritual and intellectual values created by man.
Now let's determine the place of pre-Christian Scandinavia in time and space. Scandinavia includes the Scandinavian Peninsula, the island of Iceland, the Jutland Peninsula, as well as the small islands surrounding them. Within the chronological framework, the lower limit is the settlement of Scandinavia in the 3rd-2nd millennia BC. e.. Here it should be noted that basically the information provided refers to the 9th – 12th centuries, but it should be remembered that any culture is formed not in a year or two, but in centuries and millennia. The upper limit of the period under consideration is the end of the 12th century. By this time, the Christianization of Scandinavia was completed.
As for the historiography of this issue, there are not very many scientific works in Russian devoted to the topic of pre-Christian Scandinavia, especially its culture separately (as discussed above). Things are not much better with translated literature; most of it is just popular science publications depicting the Scandinavians of the pre-Christian era as people with a very primitive level of development in every sense.
"Before the time of Charlemagne Nordic countries constituted an almost completely closed world, about which only a few fragmentary news and legends reached the attention of the Romans...” writes A. Strinnholm, a prominent Swedish Scandinaviist. What then can we say about more ancient times... The sources of the medieval era include both the chronicles of continental Europe and the sagas of Scandinavia itself.
Among the excellent works on this topic, the monograph “Viking Campaigns” by the aforementioned Anders Strinnholm should be noted. A. Khlevov, scientific editor of the Russian edition of this work, writes the following in the preface: “Up until the appearance in the 1950-1970s. books by M.I. Steblin-Kamensky, A.Ya. Gurevich, G.S. Lebedev, dedicated to the history of the Vikings, “Viking Campaigns”, published in 1861, remained the only serious and comprehensive historical study in Russian.” This truly classic work describes both the cultural and political life of Scandinavia during the Viking Age (8th-12th centuries).
I would like to mention the encyclopedia “Vikings: Raids from the North”, published in the “Vanished Civilizations” series. It is beautifully illustrated and contains a wealth of archaeological finds. Most of the book is devoted to battles, trade, and colonial activities; however, when reading, one often gets the impression that the author (whose name, by the way, is not indicated anywhere...) considers the culture of pre-Christian Scandinavia primitive. The adherence to the “Norman theory” is striking: “Starting with Rurik and up to the son of Ivan the Terrible Fedor, these Scandinavians ruled the largest medieval power in Europe - Russia.” Moreover, as in most similar publications, there is almost no information about the spiritual life of the people.
In the popular science series “Question Mark” a brochure by V.I. Shcherbakova “Where did the heroes of Eddic myths live?” The author examines the question of the origin of Scandinavian culture, relying on legends and archaeological data. It should be noted that none of the other available works contradicts Shcherbakov’s point of view.
Among the excellent popular science works, it is worth noting the essay by M. Semyonova “I will tell you about the Vikings”, published in the collection “Vikings”. This work contains a detailed description of the life and, most importantly, the mentality of the Scandinavians of that era. Moreover, it should be noted that M. Semyonova has an interesting approach to the narration; she tries to show the worldview of the Scandinavians as if “from the inside.”
The purpose of this work is to consider the culture of pre-Christian Scandinavia and show its features.
The objectives of the work are to talk about the spiritual values and intellectual achievements of the Scandinavians of the pre-Christian era: about their navigation and shipbuilding art, about poetry and the famous Scandinavian runes, about knowledge in the field of medicine and astronomy; and, of course, about traditions and beliefs, about how they thought and how they perceived the world.
The work consists of two chapters. The first is devoted to the spiritual life of the Scandinavians of the pre-Christian period, their worldview, beliefs, and some traditions, and the second chapter is devoted to the scientific knowledge, practical skills and poetic art of the Scandinavians.
Chapter 1 Traditions and Beliefs
1.1 Beliefs
The Scandinavians of the period under review were characterized by a religious-mythological type of thinking (in the historical, but not the philosophical understanding of this term). One can draw some parallel between such a worldview and pantheism, which represents the deity as if “dissolved” in nature, and not standing “above” nature. Strinnholm writes the following about this: “Peoples, in their infancy, not comprehending the laws of nature and the internal connections between objects, always suspected the participation of living beings wherever they noticed acting forces, and personified nature. And the ancient Normans, like the Pythagoreans, filled the whole world with special spiritual essences.”
According to the Scandinavians, there were nine worlds, each of which had its own inhabitants. Only one of them is accessible to human feelings - Midgard, the “middle city,” the world of people. He was in the center, between the other eight worlds. Therefore, the “spiritual essences” of all worlds could manifest themselves in the lives of the inhabitants of Midgard. Let's take a closer look at these worlds to understand what creatures and entities surrounded the Scandinavian pantheist.
Directly above Midgard is Lyusalfheim - the world of the light elves, beautiful creatures.
Above Ljusalfheim is Asgard, the “city of the Aesir,” the supreme Scandinavian gods, which will be discussed below.
Immediately below Midgard is located Svartalfheim, “the home of the black elves”: “the dark elves are blacker than pitch.”
Even lower is Helheim - the home of Hel, the goddess of death and rebirth (many researchers, unfortunately, often forget about her second “function”).
To the east of Midgard is Jotunheim, the country of frost giants, spirits of frost. In the north is Niflheim, the kingdom of cold. There are no living creatures here. To the west of Midgard is Vanaheim - the “home of the Vanir” - deities who patronize fertility, weather, etc. In the south is the country of fire - Muspelheim. From here, according to legend, the fire giant Surtr will come out and burn the worlds to the ground on the day of Ragnarok. It can be assumed that the prototype of this image was a certain natural cataclysm (it could have occurred even before the division of the Indo-Europeans - here we can recall, for example, the Greek Titanomachy).
This is what he writes about the connection between the images of Niflheim and Muspelheim and the cataclysm of V.I. Shcherbakov: “After this (cataclysm - author’s note), the glacier began to rapidly melt, one might assume, due to the sinking of some islands to the bottom of the ocean and a change in the direction of the Gulf Stream, which rushed to the shores of Scandinavia, melting thousand-year-old ice. And the Edda remembers this! The myths directly speak of an ice shell and a hot, calm country in the south. It is interesting that then, before the cataclysm, the atmosphere was calmer, and the exchange of heat was minimal - severe cold in the north and unrelenting heat in the south. And this is told in Scandinavian myths!
Let us now note that the cataclysm, or flood, which is spoken of in the myths of many peoples, was the root cause of the resettlement of tribes to territories freed from ice. This migration took place in several waves - naturally, from the south and southeast. The process lasted for thousands of years. And this, as is clear from the Edda, was remembered by ancient people, contemporaries of giants, dwarfs and gods!”
Judging by archaeological excavations, the Vikings were buried along with those items that could be useful to them in the afterlife. These were weapons, food, beer, jewelry. Sometimes rich people were buried along with slaves, horses and dogs. Their graves were very large, because everything that they took with them to another world should have been freely accommodated there. The walls of the graves of wealthy Vikings were decorated with wood inlaid with silver. A mound and a monument in the form of ships made of stones were erected over the grave, the size of which also depended on the degree of wealth of the deceased. The higher the status of the Viking, the more luxurious the rite of his burial.
The burial of kings occupied a special place. Next to the body of the deceased leader, all valuables, jewelry, food, water and beer, killed horses and dogs, and sometimes pieces of furniture were placed on the deck of the ship, and weapons were placed in the hands. Then the ship was carried with raised arms to the burial site. There were cases when slave girls consciously decided not to part with their master in order to serve him in the afterlife. To alleviate the suffering of voluntary victims, before taking their lives, the old woman, the “angel of death,” gave the slaves a powerful painkiller narcotic drink to drink. After killing, their bodies were carried onto the deck and laid next to other goods. The honor of putting the king to the fire belonged to close relatives or noble Vikings.
Did anything confuse the soul of a Viking setting off to conquer foreign lands? Why did he value both his own and others’ lives so little? The answer to these questions must be sought in their faith and customs. Inner world The Viking religion rested on foundations that were different from the Christian ones that had long dominated Europe at that time.
Their religion said that the first living creature in the world was the evil giant (van) Ymir. He, and then the other Vanir, were in turn born from drops of the melted frost of Niflheim. From the stone came the Parent, who gave life to Odin and his brothers Vili and Ve - the first aces (gods). Having killed Ymir, the gods threw the giant's body into the World Abyss. This is how the Earth appeared. From his blood they made seas and oceans, from his skull - the firmament. So the aces managed to push “evil” into the dark underworld - the “land of ice” and “land of fire.”
The universe was represented to the Scandinavians in the form of a giant tree, the Indrasil ash tree. Among its roots, in the underworld, the forces of evil are concentrated. From roots to crown - people live in Midgard. At the top, in the thick green branches touching the Moon and the Sun, is the abode of the gods. The first people of the Earth originated from trees. The male Ask is made of ash, and the female Embla is made of willow. God Odin breathed life into them and gave them a soul, Vili - reason, and Ve - speech, hearing, sight and smell.
The supreme god of the pantheon, the All-Father, or Odin, is a one-eyed old man, accompanied by two ravens - Hyugin (Reason) and Mugin (Memory) and two wolves, who tell him about everything that happens in the world. One lives in the palace of Valhalla along with the brave warriors who fell on the battlefield. The chief celestial gave them a second life, obliging them to devote it entirely to war. Here they spend time not only at feasts, where they are served by warrior maidens - Valkyries, but also in mandatory daily martial arts classes, necessary so that the warriors do not lose shape while waiting last battle between aces and giants. After all, the gods, as the Vikings believed, were mortal. And the hidden giants are ready to deal them a crushing blow at any moment. Then, as the prophets predict, the final battle will break out and the hour of “twilight of the gods” will come - the end of the world. But since the world is eternal, the “twilight of the gods” will pass and be born new life, other supreme rulers, reasonable and kind, will reign.
The God of knowledge and poetry is also One. For the sake of the first, he gave his eye to the giant Mimir, and for the sake of the second, he drank the magical drink kvasir - “the honey of poetry.” The legend about the appearance of kvasir is interesting. Once, in order to conclude a truce with the gods, the Vanir left the giant Njord as a hostage, and then, to confirm the sincerity of their intentions, together with the Aesir they spat into the bowl, and from this saliva the sage and skald (storyteller) the dwarf Kvasir was created. But the evil gnomes living in the roots of the Indrasil tree killed him. The dwarf's blood was mixed with honey and a magical drink was obtained, which has the ability to endow anyone with an extraordinary mind and the gift of writing.
Thor - the eldest son of Odin - the god of thunder. This red-haired giant was armed with the hammer Mjolnir, which destroys the forces of evil, and his blows were like heavenly thunder. In addition, he is the patron saint of Midgard, and therefore the protector of all people. He was worshiped by both ordinary people and warriors. By the end of the Viking Age, the cult of Thor became dominant in their vast pantheon.
Balder - the second son of Odin - the god of goodness and happiness. Freya is the goddess of love, taking some of the dead warriors from Odin for herself. Tyr is the one-armed god of victory.
The Vikings worshiped and offered prayers to their gods as best they could. Often bloody sacrifices, including human ones, were made to the aesirs, whose figurines were present in any family. But a moment came in the history of the Viking Age when their pagan views, cultivated for centuries, began to be gradually replaced by completely different ideas.
Vikings who have seen beyond long years traveling to different countries and peoples, and often remaining to serve rich European rulers, they believed that the steadily growing prosperity of the latter was a reward for their Christian faith. Therefore, the Scandinavians, with their eternal desire for a better life, began to think more and more often that the Christian God might quickly make their dreams come true.
The Danes were the first converts among the northern peoples, probably because their king Harald I, who was baptized in 960, greatly accelerated this process. The Norwegian king Olaf Trygvasson had to force his subjects to be baptized by force, extending the need for this to the Iceland, Greenland, Faroe, Hybrid and Shetland islands inhabited by the Norwegians.
The Swedish king Olaf Shetkonung, later than other Scandinavian rulers, forced the Swedes and was ready to abandon paganism, which, despite the ban decree, continued to persist there until the 13th century.
Conversion to the new faith also became widespread among the Viking Varangians. Askold and Dir, the Kiev princess Olga and the great-grandson of Rurik, Prince Vladimir, became Christians.
But even after becoming Christians, the majority of the Vikings could not completely forget the faith of their ancestors, and therefore wore a talisman in the form of Thor’s hammer on their chests next to the pectoral cross.
Rus' and the Varangians
The Slavs, Khazars and Arabs called the Vikings Varangians. These people lived beyond the Baltic Sea, which until the 18th century was called the Varangian Sea. On their strong boats they traveled to both neighboring and distant lands. Through the Gulf of Finland, the Neva, Lake Ladoga and Volkhov - to Lake Ilmen, along the Lovat and Western Dvina, without fear of lengthy portages, they reached the Dnieper, and along it - to the Black Sea. This path was called "from the Varangians to the Greeks." The first mention of the presence of the Varangians in Rus' is found in the Tale of Bygone Years. According to the chronicle, already at the beginning of the 9th century, these overseas newcomers began to appear on the river routes of Rus'. Initially, for the Russians, they were merchants and warriors, going through Rus' to Byzantium to serve the emperor and trade profitably along the way. It is precisely this type of occupation that is indicated by the meaning of the Russian word “Varyag” - peddler, petty trader, “Varyag” - to engage in trade.
In addition, the Varangians, who had the reputation of fearless warriors, were invited to join hired squads to guard trade routes, escort merchant caravans, protect the territories of appanage princes and participate in internecine wars with other nations. It was the Varangians who formed the core of the squads. The Scandinavians, who were trained in the art of war from an early age and revered their father, mother and all ancestors, placed above all else the “blood” relationship of brotherhood, that is, comrades in the squad, avenging the death of their “brother” to the last drop of blood. Therefore, they represented an ideal army, strictly observing subordination and discipline. The overseas aliens were led by kings.
Very soon realizing their superiority over their peace-loving neighbors, the warlike Scandinavians in 859 imposed tribute on the Chud, Meri, Vesi, Ilmen Slavs and Krivichi. Tired of the endless extortions of foreigners, the Russians united and expelled the insatiable Varangians. But peaceful coexistence still did not work out. Exhausted by endless civil strife, they again turned to the Varangians: “Come reign and rule over us.” It was this circumstance that marked the beginning of the transition of the Vikings from ambitious neighbors to rulers. According to one of the existing versions, three Varangian leaders responded to the call - Rurik, Truvor and Sineus - and began to reign in Novgorod, Izborsk and Beloozero, respectively. According to another, only Rurik, but with his home (“sine-hus”) and his faithful squad (“tru-voring”). The Varangians who came made up a significant stratum of the population, but the largest number of them accumulated in large trading cities, mixing with the local residents and adopting their faith.
There is an assumption that, having appeared in Rus', Rurik came to the city on the Volkhov River. Here he lived himself, and after him - the princely mayors. Under his rule, Novgorod reached its peak. Apparently, this is why “Rurikov” Novgorod overshadowed the city that already existed here before.
Rurik, having concentrated all power in his hands, did not suit the inhabitants of the territories under his control with the policies of his rule and the excesses of his squad. Frequent unrest arose. The suppression of one of them - the Novgorod one, headed by a certain Vadim, who was killed along with his like-minded people and advisers, is mentioned in the chronicle. Many dissatisfied people fled from Novgorod and other cities to Kyiv.
Two of Rurik’s warriors, Askold and Dir, asked him for permission to leave for Constantinople along with their families. In fact, their goal was Kyiv. To own the keys of Kyiv, a city founded by the tribal prince-leader of the Polans, Kiy, meant to have power over all the trading people. Quite easily uniting the locals and the Varangians who came with them and all those who fled from the power of Rurik, Askold and Dir subjugated the glades. But, having come to Kyiv not at the invitation of the tribe, but as conquerors, and, moreover, not having sufficient material resources, they were unable to organize lasting order in the city.
In 869, having transferred all power to his relative Oleg and leaving his young son Igor in his care, Rurik died. After three years of reigning in Novgorod, Oleg, having gathered an army from the Varangians and all the tribes under his control - the Chuds, Ilmen Slavs, Meri, Vesi and Krivichi, marched south to subjugate other tribes and expand the territorial borders of his principality. Having reached Kyiv, he lured Askold and Dir by cunning, killed them and established himself in the city, making it the capital. The Kiev prince ruled, relying on a squad, which was divided into boyars - advisers and gridi - warriors.
Since it was in Kyiv that the Greco-Varangian trade chain closed, all trading cities were completely dependent on Prince of Kyiv, which could, by closing the descent along the Dnieper, completely block all connections with Byzantium. This circumstance allowed Kyiv to achieve significant dominance over other Russian cities.
The unification of Kyiv and Novgorod (conventional date - 882) is considered the time of the emergence of the Old Russian state. Oleg's reign lasted from 882 to 912 and was marked by the subjugation of most East Slavic tribes and a significant strengthening of the borders of Rus'.
Foreign conquests
At the end of the 9th century, Norwegian Vikings, in search of fertile lands, landed off the coast of Iceland and gradually began to populate the island they liked. The first settler, a certain Ingolfar Arnarson, so successfully chose a place for his farm near a convenient bay that it was subsequently there that the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik began to grow.
From Norway to the island, with a favorable wind, it took about a week, and it was very convenient, so the Vikings soon settled on the island, and by 930, about 30,000 Norwegians had moved here, taking with them household utensils, livestock and seeds, including those who did not want to submit to the power of the cruel Harold Fairhair, who founded his kingdom in Norway.
For several centuries, independent Iceland was ruled by respected and influential leaders - the Godards, who gathered every summer for meetings of the Althing - one of the first prototypes of parliament.
Among the Viking leaders who settled in Iceland was Eirik Raudi (Red). After committing the murder, he was sentenced to three years of exile from the island. Remembering the story of the sea tramp Gunber, who saw from afar the snow-covered land on the edge of the Western Sea, Eirik decided to gather a team and go west - so he obeyed the verdict of the court, and hoped not to miss the chance to be the first to set foot on no man's land. And having reached it, he ordered the establishment of the settlement of Brattalid at the edge of the ice cap. The enterprising Eirik dubbed this harsh desert the Green Country - Greenland. In his opinion, this promising name should have attracted simple-minded Icelanders, Norwegians and Danes - seekers of a happy lot. And his calculation turned out to be correct.
For more than four centuries, the Vikings lived in the south of the island, laboring and struggling with harsh nature. The population of fifty villages was engaged in cattle breeding, agriculture, fishing, and hunting sea animals and whales. Capacious, high-sided knorrs and coggs tirelessly plied between Greenland and European ports. The Greenlandic settlers sent some of their goods for sale, and exchanged some of their goods for the most necessary things on the farm, primarily for timber, which was worth its weight in gold on the island.
...Meanwhile, there was only one step left to the North American continent, or rather, a sea crossing in the same western direction. And this step was taken. It is unknown which Viking was the first to land on the American shore. But the name of the son of Eirik the Red - Leif, nicknamed the Happy, who did this around the year 1000, is known to almost everyone. Leif Eiriksson and his detachment landed on the Labrador Peninsula, then, descending to the south, discovered the island of Newfoundland. According to the sagas, a little later the detachment reached the region where wild grapes and maize grew, and salmon abounded in the rivers. The Vikings called this region Vinland - the Land of Grapes.
Based on the fact that the northern border of the distribution of wild vines and the southern border of salmon habitat lie at a latitude of 41 - 42 degrees, much later it was concluded that Leif the Happy had reached the place where Boston is located today. It was there that today's Americans built a monument to him as the true discoverer of the New World.
A year later, Leif's brother Torvald led another research expedition, but got into a skirmish with the Skraeling Indian tribe and was killed. This loss did not stop his comrades, and they still tried to found their own colony on these lands. But the Skraelings, who did not want to put up with such a neighborhood, did not give them rest day or night, and after 3 years the settlers were forced to leave inhospitable America.
The reasons that forced the Vikings to leave Greenland are not entirely clear. Some researchers explain this by the sharp cold snap that occurred there in the 13th century, others by the aggressiveness of the Eskimos, and still others by the plague epidemic... Be that as it may, the end of the Viking era was marked by their almost complete disappearance from the New World.
The Germans appear in history much later than the Celts. Actually, the Romans began to use this name itself from the 1st century BC. e. One of the first manifestations of the “Germanic spirit” was the actions of the Cimbri and Teutons (although they may have belonged to peoples intermediate between the Celts and the Germans).
The Cimbri and Teutones sought to establish control over Celtica, but were eventually exterminated by the Romans. The same fate befell the German leader Ariovistus, who was defeated by Caesar. The power of Rome grew in 10 BC. e. Drusus and Tiberius occupied the lands between the Rhine and Elbe. The answer was the creation of the “power” of the Marcomannic king Maroboda (it covered the territories of present-day Poland, the Czech Republic and East Germany, the number of Maroboda’s warriors reached 70 thousand) and the uprising of the Cherusci leader Arminius, who destroyed three legions of Quintilius Varus in the Teutoburg Forest.
The punitive expeditions of the Romans, in general, did not achieve their goal. The well-oiled machine of the Roman regular army ultimately proved powerless. The Germans proved that if the people have the will to fight, they are able to maintain independence.
However, the Germanic tribes did not want to submit to their own kings. Arminius died in civil strife, and Marobod was expelled. For two and a half centuries, a balance of power was established between the Empire and Free Germany, interrupted, of course, by conflicts.
A new era began in the middle of the 3rd century. n. e. - the so-called Great Migration of Peoples. Rome was in a state of political collapse, and among the Germans young aggressive peoples appeared, whom L. Gumilev considered the product of a passionary impulse: the Alemanni, Goths and Franks. The last two were destined for a great future.
According to the 6th century Gothic historian Jordanes, the Ostrogoths, Visigoths and Vandals originated from southern Scandinavia. They landed at the mouth of the Vistula and gradually advanced to the Black Sea. Then the Goths, using Bosporan ships, plundered Hellas and the coast of Asia Minor. In the 4th century, the vast power of Ermanaric existed in Eastern Europe. However, the Goths did not get along with many local ethnic groups (with the exception of the Alans) and were expelled by the Huns. They found refuge on the lands of the empire, but from then on they posed a permanent threat to Rome. Ultimately, the Visigoths captured Gaul and Iberia (Spain), and the Ostrogoths captured Illyria and Italy. Other tribes did not lag behind: the Franks, Vandals, Anglo-Saxons, Burgundians, Heruli, Rugi, Gepids, Lombards, Frisians...
The participation of the ancient Germans in numerous wars and frequent changes of places affected social structure. These tribes did not preserve the ancient Indo-European class of priests and religious rites were performed by leaders or the most respected people. Due to this, as well as early Christianization (which was not so gentle on the continent), Germanic mythology has not reached us in its original form. But its Scandinavian version has been preserved.
Scandinavian tribes, with the exception of the Goths, did not take part in the Great Migration. During these years they showed relative peace. The ancestors of the Swedes formed a strong Sveian state (described by Tacitus). From the 5th century n. e. it enters a period of economic and cultural prosperity - the so-called Wendel period. The cultural ties of the Scandinavians extend from the British Isles to the Middle Volga. In art, an international “Wendel style” has developed, in which both Roman and Eastern (Sarmatian) influences can be traced. The Irish tradition was of particular importance for its creation. The Anglo-Saxons apparently acted as intermediaries between the Scandinavians and the Celts at this time. But the true center of the new art, which covered the European continent before the Frankish state and Lombard Italy, was Sweden and its centers such as Uppsala, Helge, Valsjoerde, Wendel.
However, the period of prosperity and relative peace was replaced by an event that was reminiscent of the era of the Migration of Peoples and was called the “Viking movement” (the word “Vikings” itself comes either from “vik” - “bay, bay”, or from “vikingr” - “pirate” , raider"). The victims of their raids were England, Ireland, France, Northern Germany, the Iberian Peninsula, and Southern Italy. The significant, albeit controversial role of the Vikings in the creation of Kievan Rus is known.
The Vikings discovered and settled Iceland. Its development was of key importance for the preservation of Scandinavian mythology. Here we must keep in mind that the Viking culture developed already in Christian times, representing a kind of “belated flowers of northern paganism.” The involvement of the Scandinavians in the life of continental Europe entailed their baptism, often accompanied by cultural excesses. In Iceland, this process took place relatively peacefully (as in Ireland), here for a long time dual faith flourished, and then the ancient gods moved into the category of poetic metaphors.
From the point of view of the preservation of mythology, the Scandinavians are similar to the Celts. On the one hand, this is a grandiose layer of pagan decorative and applied art, dating back to several historical periods. The most significant of these periods were: The period of the great migration of peoples (3rd – 5th centuries AD), which left the famous bracteates - gold plaques worn around the neck; Wendel period (5th – 8th centuries AD) with its superbly decorated weapons; The Viking Age (late 8th – 11th centuries), when the famous stone images and wood carving monuments were created.
On the other hand, these are texts. The Scandinavians had Iceland, which became for them the same reserve of mythology that Ireland was for the Celts. (In general, it has been noted that relict forms, not only of culture, but also of nature, are more often preserved on islands). Once again, Christianity with its traditional learning played a positive role here. In the 13th century n. e. Two wonderful books were created in Iceland. These are the Elder Edda and the Younger Edda. The first presents an anonymous collection of mythological, epic and didactic songs. The second, written by the famous Snorri Sturluson and intended to be a textbook of skaldic poetry, is essentially a prosaic and structured transcription of a significant corpus of myths. It is very important that both Eddas include the most important creative and eschatological myths. Adjacent to these monuments are the “Acts of the Danes” by the Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus (also mentioning the ancient gods, although in a euhemeric vein) and a number of skaldic poems. The time gap between textual and visual material is not as great as among the Celts, which also facilitates the study of mythologies.
Very often, we don’t even notice how we spend time comfortably sitting on pillows from the Finnish brand Marimekko, wrapped in a blanket, lying on a sofa from IKEA, and eating another portion of Gravlax, washing down the whole thing with Aquavit, staring at the screen on which we are walking. some Scandinavian detective, simultaneously lighting candles in the house.
pillows from the Finnish brand Marimekko
Let's say that tonight we decided to watch a new episode of the series "The Bridge", which takes place in both Sweden and Denmark, due to the fact that a crime takes place on the Oresund Bridge, which connects these two countries and each country sends a detective to investigate this case. Cold, autistic Saga from Sweden and hot Dane Martin put all their differences aside to find the killer. Or, another option is the series “Government”, which is also quite popular today.
still from the series "The Bridge", the main characters are Martin and Saga
Why are we attracted to eternal November, rain, comfort, authenticity, functionality, simplicity? This is probably all close to our hearts. This is not fake sincerity, clarity, practicality, which gives enormous freedom, in fact. This explains our love for the Scandinavian atmosphere that we strive to create in our home.
Indeed, despite the fact that the influence of other cultures is obvious and occurs, both in Russia and in other countries of the former Soviet Union, the love for everything Scandinavian still stands out clearly. Scandinavian interiors are gaining immense popularity not only in the UK, Poland, but also in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. Yes, perhaps, the furniture giant IKEA has won the hearts of many.
Scandinavians have a reputation for being cool and sophisticated aesthetes, yes, it's a little boring, but boring has become fashionable. And “boring” was not always the most obvious adjective to describe the Scandinavian character. The first Viking invasion dates back to 793, when there was a bloodthirsty raid on the monastery at Lindisfarne. Thus began the Viking Age.
However, the gentle cultural intrusion has been welcomed with open arms in the 21st century. Our homes sparkle with the minimalism of Scandinavian interiors, our bookshelves are filled with books from Jo Nesbø, Stieg Larsson, Fredrik Backman, Mike Viking and Henning Mankell. And before, remember, books and cartoons by Astrid Lindgren, Tove Janson... But what about your favorite Lego constructor? A series about Thor and Loki from Marvel. We borrowed a lot from northern cultures and quickly wove into everyday life.
If you haven’t really heard anything about Sweden before, except that this country manufacturer of fine furniture and home of the Abba group. Now, we're looking for a wool sweater like Sarah Lund's from The Killing. Today it is not uncommon to meet a person who loves music that glorifies Scandinavian mythological stories, such as Amon Amarth, Black Messiah and the like. Swedish Volvo cars, which we associate with safety and efficiency, warm and delicate Selbu knitwear from Norway, which is loved by everyone in the world, including Kylie Minogue, Cheryl Cole, Claudia Schiffer and Kate Hudson, Danish Ecco shoes, the quality of which has no doubt even Morgan Freeman and Bruce Willis. Sweden has given us the inexpensive joys of H&M, as well as the classic, minimalist cult brand Acne. Norway introduced us to delicious salmon and stunning fjords. Finland charmed us with its saunas, love of hockey and fishing. Yes, you can’t even describe how much there is! All this is firmly settled in our screens, homes, shops and bookshelves. Thanks to the development of the Internet, the availability of films, books, TV series, as well as the opportunity to travel, we are increasingly accumulating not only various material objects from other countries, but also expanding our horizons, changing our worldview and approach to life, relying on the mentality of other peoples .
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We like the political structure and standard of living in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland. High taxes (often 50 to 60% of income, for example in Norway) create a basis for the distribution of benefits throughout the country. Transparency, accessibility, the ability to influence - these are what we lack.
A family with a child is the main priority of countries such as Sweden and Norway. You will not find parents in these countries who think about how to find time to communicate with their child. Thanks to the wonderful work/life balance that is firmly ingrained in the Scandinavian mind, they don't have to think about it. Yes, no Swede or Norwegian will take overtime, stay late at work or think about it on the weekends. Life-work balance has such a positive impact on children's development that, according to the latest Unicef data, children in Sweden are significantly happier than children in other countries. After all, both parents participate in upbringing, and often the father, along with the mother, babysits the child - feeds him formula, changes diapers, or picks mushrooms in the forest with the child... The high standard of living, as well as the quality of life and its duration in the Scandinavian countries is off the charts. in a good way, although medicine there is not at the best level (they simply don’t really need it, given the quality of life). What is their desire for environmental friendliness and maintenance worth? healthy image the life of not only an individual person, but also the entire country and planet. Ecology, family, health, quality of life - these are not empty sounds in the Scandinavian countries - these are guidelines for life.
However, under the impeccable and modest taste and calm of the social-democratic government, there is another more intriguing side of Scandinavia - the dark side of the lands of the midnight sun, as evidenced by the numerous creations of Scandinavian thriller and detective writers literally obsessed with darkness, crime and cruelty. Scandinavian aesthetics knows how to play with contrasts, be it architecture with its simple lines and acidic colors on the facades, Scandinavian interiors in white and black, or neon rubber boots from Ilse Jacobson.
The Germanic-Scandinavian peoples belong to the Indo-European language family, which makes them similar to such geographically distant cultures as the Scythians, Persians, and Indians. However, relatively early, a western branch emerged from the common trunk of the Indo-Europeans, including the Greeks, Italics, Celts, Slavs, Balts and Germans. These ethnic groups played a colossal role in the destinies of Europe and the world. The importance of the Greeks and Romans as the creators of a unique ancient civilization is well known. But no less important in history is occupied by the so-called “Barbarian Europe”, which had a difficult relationship with the world of antiquity, and later replaced it, absorbing the Greco-Roman heritage and learning the lessons of the past. One of the leading peoples of “Europe of the barbarian fields” were the Germans.
They played a key role in the Great Migration of Peoples. Germanic tribes: Goths, Vandals, Heruls, Burgundians, Angles and Saxons, Lombards, Franks leave the land of their ancestors and create their kingdoms on the territory of the former Western Roman Empire. A number of these states later formed the basis of medieval Europe.
The participation of the ancient Germans in numerous wars and frequent changes in habitat affected the social structure. These tribes did not preserve the ancient Indo-European priestly caste, and religious rites were carried out by leaders or the most respected people. Due to these reasons, as well as early Christianization, German mythology has not reached us in its original form. But its Scandinavian version has been preserved.
The Scandinavian tribes, with the exception of the Goths, Burgundians and Heruls, did not take part in the Great Migration. During these years they showed relative peace. The ancestors of the Swedes formed a strong Sveian state (described by Tacitus). From the W. century AD it enters a period of economic and cultural prosperity - the so-called Wendel period. Scandinavian connections extend from the British Isles to the Middle Volga; an international “Wendel style” has developed in art, in which both Roman and Eastern (Sarmatian) influences can be traced. The Irish-Scottish tradition was of particular importance for its creation. The Anglo-Saxons apparently acted as intermediaries between the Scandinavians and the Celts (which is confirmed both by excavations of burials in Setton Hoo (east coast of England), and on the other hand by the analysis of the Anglo-Saxon epic "Beowulf", which told about legendary events in Sweden and Denmark, but with a number of Celtic motifs (underwater giants, severed brush, etc.) But the true center of the new art that swept the European continent before the Frankish state and Lombard Italy was Sweden and its settlements such as Uppsala, Helge, Valsjoerde, Wendel.
However, the period of prosperity and relative peace was replaced by an event that resembled the era of the Migration of Peoples and was called the “Viking movement.”
A.P. Gurevich describes this phenomenon as follows: “In the world of the Scandinavians, at the end of the 8th, first half of the 9th centuries, a sharp shift occurred - a break in the gradual development. Among them appears new type- brave sailors, seekers of loot, adventure and impressions, with connections in different countries. In short, the old and familiar way of life was broken and became impossible" (Gurevich A.I. // Viking Campaigns. M.).
These people (they were called Vikings - the word "Viking" comes from "vik" - "bay", "bay", or "vikingr" - "pirate", "raider") - gathered in fighting squads and went on long sea voyages . The victims of their raids were England, Ireland, France, Northern Germany, the Iberian Peninsula, and Southern Italy. They penetrated (under the name of the Varangians) both into Byzantium and eastern Europe(their significant, albeit controversial role in the creation of Kievan Rus is known).
For military campaigns, the Vikings built their famous “dragon ships” (with a bow decorated with an image of a beast or dragon). They were made of wood, had an elegant shape, sometimes reaching 30 m in length; shields were hung along the sides, behind which the rowers took cover.
Changes have affected different sides life of the ancient Scandinavians. At this time, their new cities were born and quickly flourished.
Religious centers were also important. In Uppsala (Sweden) there was a famous pagan complex dedicated to Odin, Thor, and Frey - the supreme triad of the Scandinavian pantheon (an accurate illustration of the three-fold structure of Indo-European mythology by Dumezil - magical power, military strength, fertility).
The temple of Frey (the legendary ancestor of the Swedish kings) was especially famous. The ancient gods were revered in the form of wooden idols; a description of the statue of Thor has been preserved (in life size), sitting in a chariot drawn by goats. Pets, weapons and jewelry, and sometimes people, were sacrificed to the gods.
There were also sacred groves. The idea of pagan sanctuaries can be partly obtained from the late Christian churches. In Borgund (Norway) a temple was built, reminiscent of the wooden cathedrals of the Russian North. At the same time, he, like his Slavic analogues, was little similar to Christian churches Western European or Byzantine canons. Perhaps the character of the wooden northern churches was influenced by architectural traditions dating back to the early medieval community of the peoples of the Baltic Sea.
Scandinavian houses were rectangular in shape. They were built from wooden planks or rods coated with clay. The roof was usually covered with thatch. The frame of the house was supported by wooden pillars covered with carved ornaments. Tapestries made of wool hung on the walls inside, and wooden floorings were placed along the walls.
Every house had a loom, and most people wore homespun clothes. For men, these were linen shirts and woolen trousers, over which a tunic with long rights was worn. The tunic was tied with a belt. In winter, people wore fur coats or cloaks, pinned at the shoulder with a special pin.
Women wore long tunics over their dresses, which consisted of two rectangular pieces of fabric fastened at the shoulders with straps and two large brooches. They grew their hair very long, tying it in a knot at the top of their heads. Men usually had shoulder-length hair, sometimes braiding them on both sides of their faces. The beard was also braided.
Women among the ancient Scandinavians enjoyed significant independence, in particular they had the right to divorce. In general, the Germans, just like the Celts, believed in their prophetic power. Some women who professed the cult of Freya were soothsayers and interpreters of dreams.
The changes that accompanied the emergence of the “Viking movement” also affected the sphere of decorative and applied arts. The Wendel animal style merges with the ribbon design. An image of a large beast appears, filling the image plane of the so-called rune stones. The frame for this image was composed of intricately intertwined snakes or one dragon biting its tail. Runes were placed on these ribbon-shaped monsters - pagan written signs. (By the way, myself runic alphabet, known since the 2nd century. n. e., also experienced a transformation during the Viking Age).
Compared to the previous period, art acquired expression and a certain chaotic nature. Already contemporaries were amazed by Scandinavian products, with their inherent plots of mortal struggle between people and animals, monsters convulsively clinging to each other, and the cult of death and destruction. This art reflected the northern Viking Age, with its collapse of the old world...
Vikings combine the traits of warriors, merchants and travelers. They discovered and settled Iceland (though they met Irish hermit monks already living there). From there, brave sailors penetrated to Greenland and even North America, where they founded their settlements.
The development of Iceland played a key role in the fate of the Old Scandinavian civilization (quite comparable to the importance of Ireland among the Celts).
Here we must keep in mind that the Viking culture arose and developed already in the Christian era, representing a kind of “belated flowers of northern paganism.” (Perhaps this circumstance explains its gloomy flavor, the feeling of an impending catastrophe. The bearers of Viking culture seemed to have a presentiment of their historical doom). The involvement of the Scandinavians in the life of continental Europe inevitably entailed their baptism, often accompanied by cultural excesses. In Iceland, this process took place relatively peacefully (as in Ireland), dual faith flourished here for a long time, and then the ancient gods moved into the category of poetic metaphors.
Partly thanks to the latter circumstance, Old Norse mythology was preserved. Icelanders were a people of poets. Poetry on the island was divided into Eddic and Skaldic. The first (mainly the songs included in the so-called “Elder Edda”, recorded in Iceland in the 13th century) had a relatively simple form, but rich mythopoetic content. The second was extremely complex in style, although it usually talked about simple things- battles, feasts, glorified military leaders. Skaldic poetry is younger than Eddic poetry, for it appeared simultaneously with the Viking movement. Literary scholars consider it as “a kind of mutation.” In skaldic poetry, like Scandinavian ornament, an elaborate, intricate form was cultivated. Its authors - skalds (poets-singers) developed a whole system of metaphors called "kennings". They said “snow of bowls”, “bones of the earth”, “path of the eels”, “bear of the sea currents”, “dark dragon of the shield”, and they meant: silver, mountains, sea, ship, horse. Over time, kennings became more complex, consisting not of two, but of three or more words. So, “birch of the ringing fire of the hand” meant “woman” (“ringing fire of the hand” - gold; “birch of gold” - woman. Kenning in kenning).
At the same time, the skaldic tradition interacted with the Eddic tradition, drawing themes for its metaphors from myths and epics.
The Vikings also created a prose genre of literature - sagas, which could tell about historical events, biographies of individual people. There were sagas in which there were many fairy-tale motifs - they were called "false sagas."
Finally there was special group stories dedicated to legendary heroes. The most famous of them is the “Saga of the Welsungs”, the plots of which are also present in the literature of the continental Germans (“The Song of the Nibelungs”, etc.).
But, perhaps, the most famous book of Iceland and all of ancient Scandinavia is the Younger Edda. It was written in the 13th century. Icelander Snorri Sturluson. In the "Younger Edda" the stories about the ancient gods are presented with such completeness that Scandinavian mythology, along with Greek and Indian mythology, can be considered a real standard with which it is convenient to compare folklore traditions other Indo-European peoples. Moreover, many cosmogonic and eschatological subjects have been preserved here (which is so lacking in Irish legends). Of course, the nature of Iceland, grandiose and pristine “as on the first day of creation,” left its mark on the nature of their description.
Getting to know nature, history, and the way of life of the ancient Scandinavians allows us to better understand how such a magnificent tree of legends could grow on the meager northern soil. Its bizarre shape was certainly influenced by the "interruption in gradual development."
The Scandinavian gods are well identified with the ancient Germanic ones, but their functions and place in the pantheon have undergone a certain shift. For example, the position of the Thunderer (TOR) and the God of the Clear Sky (Tyr) has changed. Both of these characters were pushed into second and third place, respectively, by the Culture Hero - Odin, the god of military magic and a mediator on the paths of the living and the dead, reminiscent of the Greek Hermes. (The growth of his cult could have been influenced by the shamanism of the Finno-Ugric peoples, with whom the Scandinavians were actively in contact in the mid-1st millennium AD).
In Scandinavian mythology, two groups of gods are distinguished: the smaller one, the Vanir, personifying fertility, and the larger one, the Ases, associated with military function. It is sometimes believed that the Aesir may have been the gods of the Vikings, while the Vanir were preferred by their sedentary relatives.
Despite Christianization, representatives of both groups are reflected in the names of the days of the week. Of course, this was influenced by astrology (since the names of the gods are associated with celestial bodies) and the Bible (the name “Saturday” given to the sixth day of the week). Nevertheless, the presence of the names of the main Indo-European mythological characters, correlated with the main types of gods identified in this work, is indicative. The purest example is the Germanic languages. Tuesday is the day of Tiu/Tyur (God of the Clear Sky). Wednesday is the day of Wodan/Odin (Cultural Hero). Thursday is the day of Donar/Thor (God of Thunder. It is curious that in Russia, where the thunderer Perun was contaminated with Elijah the Prophet, “Ilya’s day” also fell on Thursday). Friday is the day of Freya (Great Goddess. In Russia, the functions of the Great Goddess were partially transferred to Paraskeva Friday). Perhaps the day of the God of Earthly Powers was Saturday.
But, of course, Old Norse mythology left its mark not only on the calendar. On the outskirts of the northern world it was not forgotten throughout the Middle Ages. In the 17th century, a phenomenon called the “Scandinavian scientific renaissance” arose. The collection of ancient manuscripts began. In the 18th century they were widely published in Europe and taken up by the romantics. Northern legends (Celtic and Scandinavian mythologies) served as an inspiring source for the English artist, poet and thinker William Blake. Pagan images entered his poems and paintings, although they were creatively reinterpreted. Blake's giant Ymir corresponds to the giant Albion (graphic sheet "Dance of Albion", etc.), containing all of humanity. The gods Odin and Loki are comparable to the demiurge Juraizen and the demon of rebellion Orc; the hammerman Thor resembles Blake's god of creativity, Los. Finally, the apocalyptic roar of the eternal wolf, running through Blake's entire poem "America. Prophecy", various images of the monstrous sea serpent Leviathan - evoke the characters of the Edda - the Wolf Fenrir and the World Serpent Ermungand, whose appearance on the surface of the earth marks the end of times.
The magnificent plots of Eddic mythology have been repeatedly played out in literature. They were addressed by R. Hebbel (the Nibelungen trilogy), the poet and playwright J. Giraudoux (the play “Siegfried”). Finally, the modern genre of “fantasy” is largely based on Scandinavian motifs. This is evidenced by the very name of the main novel of the founding father of “fantasy” D. Tolkien - “The Lord of the Rings” (the image of the cursed ring is borrowed from the heroic songs of the Edda).
Scandinavian mythological plots also penetrate into Russian literature; the popular folk tale “Eruslan Lazarevich” is known, in which the king Fiery Shield, the Flaming Spear, rides on an eight-legged horse across the sky, in this character it is easy to guess the Scandinavian Odin. It is curious that this fairy tale by A.S. Pushkin based "Ruslan and Lyudmila". True, the Fire King did not move into the poem, he was replaced by Chernomor, but it retains the talking head of a giant, which was based on the dead head of the giant Mimir, with which Odin loved to hold council.
Fine art, in the period after Blake, also often turned to subjects from northern mythology, including, naturally, in the Scandinavian countries themselves. Sculptor G.Z. Freud in the first half of the twentieth century. created an image of Odin (Copenhagen, National Museum). True, it is still too academic and similar to the famous statues of Zeus, except for the two wolves lying on either side of the legs of the god sitting on the throne. Another Freud sculpture - the winged Loki (Copenhagen, New Carlsberg Glyptothek) better shows the insidious and restless spirit of this character. Later, in the capital of Denmark, one of the parks was decorated with sculptural groups on Eddic subjects. Among them is Gevion, leading a team of four bulls (sculptor A. Bungor). According to legend, she plowed the island of Zealand from Sweden, on which Copenhagen was founded. But the most successful, perhaps, is the equestrian statue of the Valkyrie S. Sinding, which well expresses the fury of the warlike maiden.
A special role in the promotion of the Northern European heritage belongs to the neo-mythological direction in culture and its founder Richard Wagner. The German composer created the majestic opera tetralogy "The Ring of the Nibelung", based on the Scandinavian version of the epic, densely saturated with mythological images, and influenced the Russian school of music. This can be seen, for example, from a comparison of his works with the operas of N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov "The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh and the Maiden Fevronia" and "Koschei the Immortal". The musical image of Kitezh, the Russian spiritual ideal, echoes Wagner's Grail, and in Kashcheevne we recognize a type of Valkyrie.
Finally, the influence of the German composer on the formation of the Art Nouveau style, clearly expressed in the architecture of Europe and Russia, is undeniable. Even the Hall of the Nibelungs was created in Mannheim (Germany). An important place in its design is occupied by a large stucco frieze, depicting the scenes of the epic in a manner stylized as a Scandinavian wicker ornament.
In St. Petersburg, Moscow and a number of others Russian cities Some buildings of this era include mascarons in their decor in the form of male and female heads in feathered helmets. Their type is sharply contrasted with the type of Hermes (who also had a winged cap). One can with a high degree of confidence recognize the image of Odin (Wotan, Woden) in the male faces, and the Valkyrie in the female ones. It was precisely the characters in his operas that Wagner imagined wearing winged helmets. This is how they entered our consciousness.