The same source also says that 'he squirrel called Ratatoskr runs up and down the length of the Ash, bearing envious words between the eagle and Nídhǫggr. This root is placed over Niflheimr and Níðhǫggr gnaws it from beneath. It is sometimes believed that the roots are trapping the beast from the world. The Danish forms Nidhug and Nidhøg can also be encountered or Norwegian Nidhogg and Swedish Nidhögg.Īccording to the Gylfaginning part of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, Níðhǫggr is a being which gnaws one of the three roots of Yggdrasill.

The Modern Icelandic form Níðhöggur is also sometimes seen, with special characters or similarly anglicized. The name can be represented in English texts with i for í th, d or (rarely) dh for ð o for ǫ and optionally without r as in Modern Scandinavian reflexes. In the standardized Old Norse orthography, the name is spelled Níðhǫggr, but the letter ǫ is frequently replaced with the Modern Icelandic ö for reasons of familiarity or technical expediency. Thus, its name might refer to its role as a horrific monster in its action of chewing the corpses of the inhabitants of Náströnd: those guilty of murder, adultery, and oath-breaking. In historical Viking society, níð was a term for a social stigma, implying the loss of honor and the status of a villain. In Norse mythology, Níðhöggr ( Malice Striker, in Old Norse traditionally also spelled Níðhǫggr, often anglicized Nidhogg ) is a dragon who gnaws at a root of the world tree, Yggdrasil. If you're interested in emblazoning one of these beautiful symbols on a drinking horn or tankard, send it to us via our horn customizer.Níðhǫggr gnaws the roots of Yggdrasill in this illustration from a 17th-century Icelandic manuscript. But many modern artists have designed their own, oft times incorporating Yggdrasil, Nidhogg's home. Unlike Jormungandr, Nidhogg doesn't have an ancient symbol. I think getting fucked by a dragon is the literal definition of metal. The screenshot above comes from the game Nidhogg, where you and an opponent vy for the chance to be devoured by the serpent.Īnd if you're super, duper into dragons, sex toy site ZooFur makes a dildo named after our cowardly boy. He is also the inspiration for Alduin in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Nidhogg lends his name to a lot of video games, including World of Warcraft, Ragnarok Online, Age of Mythology, and Final Fantasy XIV. If you are a big gamer, chances are when you saw the word, 'Nidhogg', you probably pictured this: He will fly over the battlefield of the gods, carrying on his wings the bodies of men he has killed. There are four stags, at least seven other great serpents, an eagle who lives at the top, and even a squirrel named Ratatoskr.įrom the Völuspá via the Bellows' translation :īut Nidhogg has one other job: he will be the herald of Ragnarok. There are a number of pests that live in Yggdrasil, so Nidhogg is by no means lonely. If two poles were placed together, it suggested that the man or men accused of nīþ were also homosexual.īut let's get back to our cowardly serpent. In physical representations of nidings, they are often represented by a single pole called a nidstang or niding pole. If you did not engage in physical contact with the accuser, however, it was known that you were a coward. You could challenge them to take their words back or you would murder them.

If people called you nīþ to your face (and it was expected if you were known to be a niding), you were required to fight them. Being called a nīðing (níðingr/ᚾᛁᚦᛁᚴᛦ in Old Norse, nīðing, nīðgæst in Old English, or nidding in Old Germanic). Modern Dutch and German even has similar sounds which imply hate, envy, or greed.Īnyway, anything having to do with nīþ implies unmanliness, cowardice, villianry. It implies that a person has suffered a great loss of honor and is, in fact, a villain. You see, nīþ means a social stigma in Norse and Germanic culture. Nīþ is the first syllable for the word Nidhogg, and it plays a very important role in Norse society. Like all creatures, gods, and mortals in Norse mythology, Nidhogg's name tells us exactly who he is. The second greatest is Fafnir, who fought the great hero, Sigmund.īut the third greatest (and relishing in his lowly position) would be Nidhogg (also called Níðhöggr). Perhaps the greatest is Jormungandr, the World Serpent. There are a lot of dragons in Norse mythology.

Nidhogg norse