Ýdalir

For the album by Skálmöld, see Ýdalir (album).

Leaning on a bow, the god Ullr stands atop a frozen lake surrounded by evergreen trees and a building (1882) by Friedrich Wilhelm Heine.

In Norse mythology, Ýdalir ("yew-dales") is a location containing a dwelling owned by the god Ullr. Ýdalir is solely attested in the Poetic Edda, specifically in the poem Grímnismál, where Odin, disguised as Grímnir, tells the young Agnar that Ullr owns a dwelling in Ýdalir. This place is significant because the yew tree, from which the name derives, was highly valued for making bows, linking Ullr to archery. It's compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources. Scholarly theories have been proposed about the implications of the location.

Scholars have proposed various theories about Ýdalir’s significance. Henry Adams Bellows noted that the yew tree’s wood was used for bows in the North, similar to its later use in England. Rudolf Simek suggested that this connection with the yew tree led to Ullr being seen as a bow-god. Andy Orchard also commented that Ýdalir is an aptly named dwelling for the archer-god Ullr.

Hilda Ellis Davidson pointed out that while Valhalla is well-known for its association with warfare and death, the significance of other halls like Ýdalir and Freyja’s afterlife realm, Fólkvangr, has been largely forgotten. Additionally, the name Ýdalir has influenced place names outside of Scandinavia. For example, Udale in Cromarty, Scotland, is thought to derive from Old Norse y-dalr, possibly reflecting the veneration of Ullr among Norse settlers.

The cultural impact of Ýdalir extends beyond mythology. It has inspired various elements in popular culture, such as the name of a bow in the 1996 Super Famicom game Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War and an album by the Icelandic heavy metal band Skálmöld.

Attestations

Ýdalir is solely attested in stanza 5 of the poem Grímnismál (collected in the Poetic Edda), where Odin (disguised as Grímnir) tells the young Agnar that Ullr owns a dwelling in Ýdalir. The stanza reads (Ýdalir is here translated as Ydalir):

Ydalir it is called, where Ullr

has himself a dwelling made.

Alfheim the gods Frey gave

in days of yore for a tooth-gift.

This brief mention is significant because it ties Ullr, a god associated with archery and winter, to a specific location known for its yew trees. The yew tree’s wood was prized for making bows, which aligns with Ullr’s attributes as a bow-god.

The mention of Alfheim in the same stanza, given to the god Frey as a tooth-gift, provides a glimpse into the practice of gifting realms or lands to gods, often as part of significant events or rites of passage.

Theories

Ýdalir, often translated as "Yew Dales," holds significant associations with the Norse god Ullr, particularly due to the connection between the yew tree and archery. Henry Adams Bellows remarks on this, noting that the yew tree's wood was traditionally used for making bows in the North, much like it was later in England. This relationship is further explored by Rudolf Simek, who points out that the association between Ullr and the yew tree has led to Ullr being identified as a "bow-god," as reflected in the Old Norse term "ýbogi," meaning "yew bow." Andy Orchard supports this view, describing Ýdalir as a fitting residence for the archer-god Ullr.

In Norse mythology, while much attention is given to Valhalla, the grand hall of the slain warriors, other mythological halls like Ýdalir and Fólkvangr, the domain of the goddess Freyja, often receive less recognition. Hilda Ellis Davidson highlights this disparity, noting that the significance of these other halls has been somewhat overshadowed by the prominence of Valhalla in popular imagination.

The influence of Norse mythology and Ullr’s veneration extended beyond Scandinavia. The place name Udale in Cromarty, Scotland, first recorded in 1578, is believed to derive from the Old Norse term "y-dalr," meaning "yew dale." Robert Bevan-Jones suggests that this name reflects the reverence the pagan Norse settlers had for Ullr, linking the location to the god's mythological abode, Ýdalir. This connection indicates a broader cultural and religious influence of Norse beliefs in the regions they settled, with the yew tree's symbolic importance and Ullr's association with archery enduring in the place names they left behind.

In popular culture

Ýdalir was probably the inspiration for the name of a bow in the 1996 Super Famicom game Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War. A legendary bow wielded by the crusader Ullr (named after the Norse God) is called Ichiibaru (Japanese: イチイバル), with "Ichii" the Japanese term for "Yew", and "baru" perhaps a loose Japanese syllabification of the English word "valley." The same term was used in the 2012 anime Symphogear. In 2013, "Ichaival" was added to an English Wikipedia list, but incorrectly presented as a Norse term for a bow of Odin, rather than a Japanese phrase translating Ýdalir's meaning of "Yew Dales". This confusion resulted in the inclusion of "Ichaival" elsewhere as a bow of Odin originating in Norse mythology, notably in the 2014 video game Smite. The erroneous term was briefly removed in 2015 but quickly restored; it was removed more finally from the English Wikipedia article in 2018.

The Icelandic heavy metal band Skálmöld released an album titled Ýdalir in 2023. The album is inspired by Grímnismál and features a title track about the location.

References

• Bellows, Henry Adams (Trans.) (2004). The Poetic Edda: The Mythological Poems. Courier Dover Publicans. ISBN 0-486-43710-8
• Bevan-Jones, Robert (2002). The Ancient Yew: A History of Taxus baccata. Windgather Press. ISBN 0-9538630-4-2
• Davidson, Hilda Roderick Ellis (1993). The Lost Beliefs of Northern Europe (illustrated edition). Routledge. ISBN 0-415-04937-7
• Esch, Louisa (11 August 2023). "Skálmöld - Ýdalir Review". Metal.de (in German). Retrieved 1 July 2024.
• Thorpe, Benjamin (Trans.) (1907). The Elder Edda of Saemund Sigfusson. Norrœna Society.
• Orchard, Andy (1997). Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend. Cassell. ISBN 0-304-34520-2
• Simek, Rudolf (2007) translated by Angela Hall. Dictionary of Northern Mythology. D.S. Brewer. ISBN 0-85991-513-1
• Zawodniak, Melanie (29 August 2019). "That Time Fire Emblem Accidentally Created A Fake Norse Myth". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved 12 June 2024.