Freya Basics


She is associated with witchcraft (called seiðr, “say-thur”) and battle, and is a goddess of both life and death. Freya famously teaches Óðin (“oh-thin”) seiðr, with whom she splits the spoils of battle. Freya’s pick of the fallen are said to go to Fólkvangr, her realm in Ásgard, where her hall Sessrúmnir is located. She is often considered leader of the valkyrjur, the goddess figures who choose the heroic warriors from battlefields. 

Her brother is Freyr, and her father is Njörðr, by his unnamed sister (generally considered to be Nerthus).  Her husband is said to be Óðr (thought be a nickname of Óðin), with whom she has two daughters, Hnoss and Gersemi. She drives a chariot pulled by a team of cats. Most seem to agree they were lynxes, or skogkatts (a breed of felines the size of lynxes), native to Northern Europe. In Freya’s honour, kittens (felis domesticus), were commonly given to brides as wedding gifts in the Viking era.

Many consider Freya and Frigga are one and the same, as they have striking similarities. They seem to have emerged as a single goddess in earlier history. In the later Eddas, they are depicted as separate, interacting characters. Like Frigga, Freya owns a mantle of falcon feathers.

Freya is said to use this to fly over Miðgarðr (“mith-gar-thur”) looking for her husband Óðr, who has left her to go wandering. Freya is forever searching for him, and weeps golden tears, which appear on earth as the precious stone amber, or as veins of gold.

Freya is much sought-after by the Jötnar. Several tales tell of desperate barters to win Freya for a bride. When Thor’s hammer goes missing, it is the giant Þrymr (“thrym-eer”) who has taken it, and demands Freya in ransom. Freya is also the price (along with the Sun and Moon) for the construction of the wall around Ásgard. In both cases, the jötnar are tricked out of the deal, and Freya’s honour is preserved.

Marriage had different rules in proto-Heathen times and hers (and other gods’) marriage appear to modern, and Medieval Christian eyes as perhaps unusual. She travels with a constant companion boar, Hildisvíni, who is her human lover Óttar in disguise. As payment for Brísingamen, she slept with several dwarfs, and in Lokasenna she is accused of sleeping with her brother, Freyr, by Loki in front of the other gods at a party. This necklace is said to appear as the Northern Lights over Miðgarðr.

Long after Christianisation,  Freya continued to be honoured and named by rural Scandinavians, in folklore and folk magic well into the 19th century. As attested in several sources, due to Freya’s fame, women of rank could become known by her name Frúvor (“lady”), and a woman who was the mistress of her property was often referred to as Freya, and Húsfreyja (“lady of the house”).

Thoughts on Freya




Unlike Frigga, Freya was not easily reconciled with Christianity. Much of Frigga’s character was absorbed by the Virgin Mary, while Freya was demonized, and her figure was converted to the folkloric character of the witch and her cat. It is theorized by some that it may have been the Christian influence on the lore that separated Freya and Frigga into two separate goddesses.

Signs and Symbols

Gold, sunshowers, and amber. Pigs, cats, honey, eroticism. Witchcraft and the Northern Lights. The rune .

Associated Names
