Thursday is named after Thor, the Norse god of thunder. As you may have seen via recent media, namely the movie that is coming out that bears his name, Thor is well known for his giant hammer, Mjolnir. This hammer had the ability to return to Thor’s hand when thrown. Even with all his strength, […]
Happy Wōden’s Day! (Wednesday)
Nearing the end of my “Gods of the week” series, we reach Wōden’s Day. Wōden is the Old English equivalent to the Norse god Odin. Both gain their origins from the Roman god Mercury. Mercury is the god of trade and was a messenger among the gods. His appearance was very close to that of […]
Happy Mars/Tiwesdæg (Tuesday)!
Continuing with my look at the gods as we approach the holidays, today we look at Mars. (Mars was translated into Tiw in Old English.) Mars is the Roman god of war and was worshipped by the soldiers of the time. Among the order of gods, only Jupiter was more powerful than He. While his […]
Happy Selene/Moon-Day (Monday)
Monday gets its name from the old English Mōnandæg, or Moon day. The Greek Goddess of the moon is Selene, or Luna to the Romans. She is depicted as a beautiful woman with long black hair. She rides across the sky in a silver chariot that is pulled by either a pair of horses, a […]
Happy Sunne-day! (Sunday)
Sunday, named for the Norse goddess Sunne (or Sunna) also known as Sól. Sunne rides across the sky in her chariot pulled by the horses Allsvinn and Arvak (meaning “Very Fast” and “Early Rising”.) Sunne is said to be pursued by a wolf named Skoll. Eclipses are said to be the cause of the wolf […]
Happy Saturn Day (Saturday)
Of all the days of the week, Saturday is the only one that maintains its Roman origin. Saturday is named after Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture and harvest. Saturn’s influence can be seen in Roman lore as a golden age, or time of abundance, among men. According to Wikipedia: In the Roman tradition, in […]