| Garmr | |
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Other Names |
Garmr, Garm |
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First Appearance |
Norse Myth |
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Created by |
Norse Myth |
Origin[]
In Norse mythology, Garmr or Garm is a wolf or dog associated with both Hel and Ragnarök, and described as a blood-stained guardian of Hel's gate.
The Poetic Edda poem Grímnismál mentions Garmr:
The best of trees must Yggdrasil be, Skíðblaðnir best of boats; Of all the gods is Óðinn the greatest, And Sleipnir the best of steeds; Bifröst of bridges, Bragi of skalds, Hábrók of hawks, and Garm of hounds.
One of the refrains of Völuspá uses Garmr's howling to herald the coming of Ragnarök:
Now Garm howls loud before Gnipahellir, The fetters will burst, and the wolf run free; Much do I know, and more can see Of the fate of the gods, the mighty in fight.
After the first occurrence of this refrain the Fimbulvetr is related; the second occurrence is succeeded by the invasion the world of gods by jötnar; after the last occurrence, the rise of a new and better world is described.
Baldrs draumar describes a journey which Odin makes to Hel. Along the way he meets a dog.
Then Óðinn rose, the enchanter old, And the saddle he laid on Sleipnir's back; Thence rode he down to Niflhel deep, And the hound he met that came from hell.
Bloody he was on his breast before, At the father of magic he howled from afar; Forward rode Óðinn, the earth resounded Till the house so high of Hel he reached.
Although unnamed, this dog is sometimes assumed to be Garmr. Alternatively, Garmr is sometimes assumed to be identical to Fenrir. Garmr is sometimes seen as a hellhound, comparable to Cerberus.
The Prose Edda book Gylfaginning assigns him a role in Ragnarök:
Then shall the dog Garmr be loosed, which is bound before Gnipahellir: he shall do battle with Týr, and each become the other's slayer.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Garmr from before Janury 1, 1929 are in the public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed here:
- Prose Edda
- Poetic Edda:
- Grímnismál
- Völuspá
- Baldrs draumar