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In Germanic paganism, the indigenous religion of the ancient Germanic peoples who inhabit Germanic Europe, there were a number of different gods and goddesses. Germanic deities are attested from numerous sources, including works of literature, various chronicles, runic inscriptions , personal names, place names, and other sources.
A figure of a cihuateotl, the spirit of an Aztec woman who died in childbirth. In Aztec mythology, the Cihuateteo (/ s iː ˌ w ɑː t ɪ ˈ t eɪ oʊ /; Classical Nahuatl: Cihuātēteoh, in singular Cihuātēotl) or "Divine Women", were the spirits of women who died in childbirth. [1] They were likened to the spirits of male warriors who died ...
The 9th c. Rök runestone lists names of Germanic heroes and events, but the significance of most of them is nowadays lost. The figures in the lists below are listed either by the name of their article on Wikipedia or, if there is no article, according to the name by which they are most commonly attested.
Continental Germanic mythology formed an element within Germanic paganism as practiced in parts of Central Europe occupied by Germanic peoples up to and including the 6th to 8th centuries (the period of Germanic Christianization). Traces of some of the myths lived on in legends and in the Middle High German epics of the Middle Ages.
The most important sources on Germanic mythology, however, are works of Old Norse literature, most of which were written down in the Icelandic Commonwealth during the Middle Ages; of particular importance is the Poetic Edda. [1] Archaeological evidence, Runic inscriptions and place-names are also useful sources on Germanic mythology. [1]
By the end of the High Middle Ages, Germanic paganism was almost completely marginalized and blended into rural folklore, in which the character of Frau Hulda eventually survived. In Germanic pre-Christian folklore, Hulda, Holda, Holle, and Holla were all names to denote a single being. Hulda is also related to the Germanic figure of Perchta ...
In Dutch Low Saxon mythology and legends, the Witte Wieven (also known as Wittewijven) are spirits of "wise women" (or else elven beings). The mythology dates back at least to the pre-Christian era (7th century) and was known in the present-day regions of the Netherlands , Belgium and parts of France .
It shares many characteristics with Nordic folklore and English folklore due to their origins in a common Germanic mythology.It reflects a similar mix of influences: a pre-Christian pantheon and other beings equivalent to those of Norse mythology; magical characters (sometimes recognizably pre-Christian) associated with Christian festivals, and various regional 'character' stories.