Women According to Vikings

How were women seen in Norse culture?

A majority of those allegedly following Norse spiritual beliefs seem to see the Viking age, and thus traditional Norse culture, as being gynocentric - even feminist - no matter where those people stand on the political spectrum. Whether they are on the left or the right, they indeed see women as being the center of society in Norse culture.

Somehow, these neo-Pagans completely ignore Old Norse literature and history, including the Sagas consistently depicting women in a negative way and as the source of almost ills, or traditional customs, such as the fact that women could not enter oaths or have a voice at the Þing.

For those who are intellectually challenged, it may be difficult to understand the general meaning and intent of old texts. I will therefore point to specific references that cannot reasonably be misconstrued when it comes to how women were described and seen in the Viking age and in Norse culture generally.

Hávamál

The Hávamál only has a few Stanzas relating to women, with most sayings relating to males (incidentally confirming the androcentric aspect of Norse culture). Those Stanzas that talk about women are highly critical:

Stanza 90: Explains that women are deceitful and loving them will cause a lot of issues.

“Svá er friðr kvenna þeira er flátt hyggja sem aki jó óbryddum á ísi hálum teitum tvévetrum ok sé tamr illa eða í byr óðum beiti stjórnlausu eða skyli haltr henda hrein í þáfjalli.”

“The love of women who are inherently deceitful in spirit is like riding a smooth-shoe horse on slippery ice, a spirited two-year old and one badly trained, or in a raging wind on a rudderless boat, or like a lame man trying to catch a reindeer on a thawing mountainside.”

Stanza 102: Highlights that women hate men by default.

“Mörg er góð mær ef görva kannar hugbrigð við hali þá ek þat reynda er it ráðspaka teygða ek á flærðir fljóð háðungar hverrar leitaði mér it horska man ok hafða ek þess vættki vífs.”

“Many a good maid, if you look closely, is fickle-minded towards men; I learned that the wise woman to wantonness, when I tried to seduce her scorn on me, the clever maid heaped and I got nothing from this woman.”

Stanza 114: Refers to women emasculating men.

“Hon svá gørir at þú gáir eigi þings né þjóðans máls mat þú villat né mannskis gaman ferr þú sorgafullr at sofa.”

“She will make sure that you do not heed the speech of either Thing or king; you will not desire food or mankind’s pleasure; you will go sorrowfully to sleep.”

Stanza 118: Discusses women lie to destroy men.

“Ofarla bíta ek sá einum hal orð illrar konu fláráð tunga varð honum at fjörlagi ok þeygi um sanna sök.”

“Deeply bitten I saw a man by the word of woman evil; her deceit-crafty tongue was the death of him, and yet the charge was not true.”

Jómsvíkingalǫg

The laws of the Jómsvíkingar include 9 rules. The first and foremost rule is to ban women from not only their ranks, but their premises.

“Alls engi maðr skylde þar kono hafa innan borgar.”

“Absolutely no women within the compounds.”

Old Norse Language

There are four primary highly offensive and grievous insults in the Old Norse language. So offensive indeed to a Víkingr, that these insults would fall under fullrettirsorð (full penalty), allowing the offended party to kill the accuser at once (a hólmganga may have been an option if leading to accuser’s retraction, or his death). Out of these four insults, three compare men to women or relate to feminized/female behavior:

Sansorðinn: Effeminate male demonstrably and willingly sexually used as a whore by one or more men.

Mare: Woman (derogatory for a man).

Argr: Coward, emasculated, effeminate.

Magics

In Ynglingasaga, Óðinn is highly criticized for behaving like a woman, and is described as acting in “a sexually receptive way" or "desirous of penetration", and thus, in a female capacity, during his involvement with magic.

"En þessi fjölkyngi, er framit er, fylgir svá mikil ergi, at eigi þótti karlmönnum skamlaust við at fara, ok var gyðjunum kend sú íþrótt."

"But the use of this magic is accompanied by so great a degree of effeminacy and sexual submission that men were of the opinion that they could not give themselves up to it without shame, so that it was to the priestesses that it was taught.”

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It is undeniable, based on the best known Old Norse texts, and without the possibility of misinterpretation, that women were seen in a negative way in the Viking age. Further reinforcing the fact Norse culture was always androcentric and a very far cry from claims Vikings were feminists or matriarchal.

Whether this displeases neo-Pagans is absolutely irrelevant. Facts are facts, and history does not get revisioned to accommodate modern and Marxist beliefs.