Æsir ON, Ése OE:
One of the two primary tribes of deities of Asatru belief. Strictly speaking, Æsir refers to the Gods, while the Goddesses are called the Asynjur, but generally the term Æsir is used to apply to all the deities. The singular of the term is "Áse." The Scandinavians distinguished two separate tribes of deities, but in England and the Germanic lands of the European continent, there is little evidence that shows a belief in separate tribes of deities. Rather, they saw them all as a single collective of deities. In Heathen Anglo-Saxon, the related term "Ós" simply meant "God," without implying membership in a specific God-tribe.

Ætt, Ættir (pl) ON:
A branch of a tribe or family; also the eight directions of the compass.

Álf, Álfar (pl.) ON, Ælf, Ylfe (pl.) OE:
The term alf was applied to several different kinds of beings. Often the term is used to refer to deceased men of a family line, whose souls or parts of whose souls reside in burial mounds or are otherwise associated with the family land. These forefathers are assumed to take an interest in their living kin, and may offer inspiration, luck, and other gifts. In elder times and today, many Heathens celebrate their alfar during seasonal blotar, normally during the fall.

Ásatrú:
An Old Norse word coined in the 19th century by scholars to describe the ancient Scandanavian religion which is a part of Germanic Heathenry. Largely used now to denote Germanic Heathenry as a whole, or the Icelandic branch of it.

Ásynja, Ásynjur (pl.) ON:
The term for a Goddess of the Æsir.

BCE:
Before the Common Era, sometimes abreviated as BC.

Berserkr, berserkir ON:
A type of warrior seen in the lore that wore animal skins and went beserk. Literally it may be translated "one that wears bear skins" or "one that is bare skined." Scholars debate the translation. Similar is Old English Werwulf "Man wolf" and Wulfesheofod "Wolf's head."

Blót ON and OE:
The most common modern Heathen ritual involving communion with the Gods and done as a libation or feast.

Blótbolli ON, Blótorc OE:
The bowl used in the blessing of a blót.

C.E.
The Common Era, sometimes abbreviated as A.D.

Dís, Dísir (pl.) ON, Ides, Idesa (pl) OE
The disir are spiritual female beings. They are generally considered to be the deceased foremothers of a family line. In some references available from elder times, they seem to have had the stature of Goddesses or demi-Goddesses. Some disir were, and still are, thought to be attached not simply to a single family, but to a tribe or to the folk as a whole. In elder Heathen times and today, many Odinists celebrate their disir during seasonal blotar. The main Scandinavian disablot was held at Winternights during mid-October. In Anglo-Saxon England, the ancestral mothers were celebrated at the beginning of Yuletide, on Mothernight.

Drighten, Dröttin ON, Dryhten OE:
A leader, chieftain, or lord. Sometimes this term was also applied to Heathen Gods, most often to Odin.

Dwarf, Dvergr ON, Dweorg OE:
A creature of Norse myth known for their smithing and other talents.

Ealh OE:
A temple. See Hof.

Einherjar ON:
Literally "the single warriors." Those that have gone on to Valhalla upon death.

Ettin, Jötunn ON, Éoten OE:
A type of giant seen in the lore.

Fetch, Faecce OE:
Also refered to as the fylgja , an attendant spirit with one throughout their entire life from naming until death. Said to take the form of an animal most often.

Frith, Friðr ON, Friþ OE:
In simplistic terms, frith is similar to peace or lack of strife. In deeper, Heathen terms, frith is the actual fabric of the true social bond: the commitments, rules, and attitudes that undergird well-functioning and well-integrated families, communities, and other social units.

Friþgeard OE:
An open air holy site used for worship, see Vé.

Futhark:
Any of the ancient rune rows with the exception of the Anglo-Frisian. See Rune.

Futhorc:
The Anglo-Frisian Rune rows.

Fylgja ON:
Also refered to as the fetch (Old English faecce), an attendant spirit with one throughout their entire life from naming until death. Said to take the form of an animal most often.

Galdr ON, Galder OE:
A magical charm.

Goði ON:
A priest, see also wéofodþegn.

Hamingja ON:
Often confused with the fetch, this term most often means one's main or luck.

Hamr ON, Hama OE:
A skin, esp the spiritual skin of the soul. It can also refer to a special skin used in faring forth from the body (in New Age terms what is called "astral projection).

Harrow, hörg ON, heorg OE:
A Heathen altar. If this is located outdoors, it generally consists of a loose or structured pile of rocks, though sometimes it is made of different materials. Many if not most Heathens have indoor harrows as well, though these are sometimes designated by different terms. An indoor harrow may take many different forms, but its function is the same regardless of form: it is the place where items for one's worship ceremonies are placed, and is the central focus for blots and other worship ceremonies.

Heilsa:
An Old Norse verb meaning "to hail" now used as a greeting its self. See Wassail.

Hof:
A temple. See Ealh.

Housewight, Cofgodas OE: :
Housewights are beings that take up residence in one's home. Sometimes they seem to have an actual physical being, while more often they are spiritual beings which take up residence within a physical object in the household. In elder days, the most frequent object for this purpose was a rock set beside the hearth. Today, many Heathens will obtain a small statue, figurine or other representational object as a housewight-dwelling. Housewights are also thought to reside, on occasion, in household animals, in particular tomcats. Offerings of food and drink are given to housewights to keep their goodwill. Well-meaning housewights bring good luck to a household, and help to keep it functioning smoothly and in an orderly way. Ill-meaning housewights can cause a good deal of mischief and disruption in a household.

Hlautteinn ON, Hlóttán OE:
The "blessing twig: used in a blot. Also called a störkkull in Old Norse, it was the term used for the aspergum or "sprinkler of holy liquid."

Hjallr ON:
The "high seat" used in seiðr, although in truth it was more of a raised platform than a chair.

Holy:
That which is spiritually whole, healthy.

Housel, Húsel OE:
A blot when a feast is held instead of just a libation.

Hyge OE:
Part of the soul, according to Heathen conceptions, that corresponds to the rational mind and some of its related functions such as intentionality. Sometimes the hyge is thought of as the "left brain."

Idis, idesa (pl.):
This term meant "lady" in Anglo-Saxon and continental Germanic languages. Usually the term was applied to women who held a very high position in their society, due to their rank and/or to special abilities they had. Such abilities included foresight, wisdom and counsel, rune-lore, psychic powers, and magical abilities--including in particular battle-magic. Some idesa were priestesses and sacrificers, including human sacrifices--who were generally captives of war. Nowadays, many Heathens use the term idesa interchangeably with the related term disir. See Disir.

Kinfetch:
A female spirit who carries with her the luck and power of a family or a clan. Traditionally, she would attach herself to the person whom she thought was the best leader of the family, and stayed with this person until he (in the lore it is generally a man) died, lost his luck, character or abilities, until he chose to give her up, or she chose for whatever reasons to move on to someone else in the family. In modern times, we often tend to think of the kinfetch as a being who is in some sense attached to and available to all members of a family--at least, all Heathen members, and perhaps all without exception.

Land taking, Landnama ON:
A ritual performed to claim land as one's own.

Landwights, Landvættir ON, Landwihta OE:
Nature-spirits which imbue the landscape with the qualities of soul and spirit. Landwights may choose to dwell in practically any type of landscape feature, including boulders, waterfalls, wells, mounds, trees or stumps, and so forth. Many modern Heathens maintain outdoor harrows or altars which are dedicated to the local landwights, and offerings of food and drink are given to
them there.

Main, Megin ON, Mægen OE:
A modern word based on Old English mægen and Old Norse megin. It refers to one's soul-power, a vital part of a healthy and spiritually-whole person. Main is also contained in non-human beings and in objects, though the qualities of the main differ according to the being or object which contains it. There is a remnant of this concept contained in the expression "With
all one's might and main." In the original meaning of this expression, "might" referred to physical power, while "main" referred to soul-power.

Mara OE:
The "nightmare," A mare is a type of wight responsible for causing men to have nightmares. Mares are the most
powerful of demons and are to be avoided at all costs. Said to ride humans to death and cause night terrors.

Minni ON, Mýne OE:
The part of the soul related to personal and transpersonal memory and intuition, sometimes thought to be similar or related to the "right brain." The holy being most associated with the myne-part of our souls is the etin (giant) Mimir, who wards Mimir's Well, the receptacle of all the memories of all beings that have existed. Mimir's Well can also be seen as the Jungian "transpersonal consciousness." In our understanding, the myne of each of us taps into Mimir's Well, and one of the challenges for full Heathen spiritual development is to bring that connection between our myne and Mimir's Well into our full consciousness so we can incorporate this knowledge into our beings and lives.

Mód OE:
A part of the soul and quality of character. The modern term "mood" is derived from this word. Mod refers particularly to what we might term the emotional components of one's being, such as courage, attitude, and mood. Thor is perhaps the deity most closely associated with the mod-part of the soul. One of his sons is named Modi, "great-mood," or "courageous."

Moss-wives:
Female forest-spirits, also called wood-wives. They are generally gentle and helpful to humans. Often they are hunted by the Wild Hunt or by other fearsome beings, and if humans help to save the moss-wives, they will find some small object such as chips of wood or bits of grain turned into gold as their reward.

Nykr ON, Nicor OE:
A Nixie. A water spirit usually associated with rivers and believed responsible for drownings and floods. The nixies are generally thought of evil creatures preying on human flesh. Many areas of Europe once felt these powerful water demons demanded a sacrifice each year, least they flood the fields or drown someone.

Nithing:
A person who has forfeited all honour and respect because of their ill-deeds or their failure to perform deeds or duties which were expected of them. Cowardice, oath-breaking, criminal behaviour, or going against strongly-established customs and expectations of proper behavior cause a person to be considered a nithing. Sometimes our elder kin would erect a nithing-pole (Old Norse Níðstöng) in order to curse and take revenge on a nithing. This pole was usually carved with spell-working runes and topped with a horse's head, pointed in the direction of the nithing's home.

Norns:
Three holy female beings who live at the root of the Tree of Life, around the Well of Wyrd. Urth or Wyrd is the one who rules That-Which-Is: the accumulation of all the past, which forms the foundation of the present and that which will come. Verdhandi or Werthende rules the moment of becoming, as a being or a deed arises out of That-Which-Is and takes on its own existence.
Skuld or Scyld rules That-Which-Should-Be: the pattern that is shaped by the past and the present acting together, leading into the future. The Norns shape wyrd and nourish the Tree of Life--which represents Being-in-Space--with water and mud from the Well, representing Being-in-Time, thus ensuring the integration of the two into a functioning whole.

Púki ON, Púca OE:
A small demon similar to a goblin with the habits of a poltergeist. This concept, though somewhat diluted,
survived into the Middle Ages to become the "Puck" familiar to us from Shakespeare and other English writers. In parts of England, they sometimes left out bowls of curds and cream for the puck. In most ancient times however they were on par with the mare and thought quite evil. It could be that Loki was in truth a púca. The earlier views of the puck as an evil being are most likely the most accurate and fall in accord with Loki's character perfectly. In Christain Anglo-Saxon texts the Devil is often refered to as the Puck, and this could be a memory of a being in Heathen beliefs on par with or perhaps even Loki himself. The other obvious choice would be Surtr, but then this great fire demon has little in common with the Puck's abilities.

Oath Ring:
The oath ring was an arm band containing at least 20 ounces of silver worn by the wéofodþegn at special occasions, and at all other times resting on the wéofod . Oaths were sworn upon it at Thing and on other occasions.

Orlay, Ørlög ON, Orlæg OE:
Each significant action of our lives, and sometimes our failure to take action, is laid into the Well of Wyrd by the Norns. These layers of deeds, or orlay, accumulate over our lifetimes to form the whole of our personal wyrd,which then influences the shape of our lives to come. The English and American systems of common law (as opposed to statutory law) are based on this Heathen concept of orlay. Each precedent set by a previous action of customary or folk-law forms a layer of orlay; taken all together they add up to the whole of the law--which can be seen as the "wyrd" of the folk as a whole. Thus in the ideal of the common law system, the folk itself gradually shapes--actually evolves--its own law, based on what has worked well in the past and been retained as precedent, rather than having law imposed upon the folk by some "outside force." The words orlay and law are closely related linguistically.

Recels, Récels OE:
Incense or raw herbs burned during a ritual.

Récelsfæt OE:
An incense burner or fire pot in which one can burn dried herbs or incense. It is also called a stórfaet, and in Old Norse, a glóðker (called in Anglo-Saxon récels or stór).

Rísi ON, Hrisi OE:
A word for a type of giant for described as fair to look upon and not to be much greater than human stature. They are said to be of low intelligence though and to like throwing boulders at each other.

Rune:
A mystery or secret.. The myseteries or secrets represented by ancient Germanic letters or staves used in both writing and magic.

Scop OE:
A poet, see skald.

Shild, Skuld ON, Scyld OE:
The moral debt or obligation that we incur by our choices, commitments and deeds or lack thereof, in our lives, current and past, and sometimes indirectly from the lives of any whose wyrd has been woven together with ours through kinship or oathbonds. The shild can be of a positive nature, as would be contained in the main (soul-power) and the luck that are generated by an oath given and kept, or a good deed done. Or, it can be of a negative nature, such as the moral debt (including loss of main and luck) generated by an oath forsworn, or an ill deed done. Most often the term shild is used in a negative sense to refer to moral debt.

Spácraft:
A craft that involves the ability to enter a psychic trance in order to seek knowledge by non-ordinary means. The knowledge may involve foresight into the future, hindsight into the past, and deeper sight into hidden influences working within one's present life. This craft is often considered to be part of the set of paranormal skills referred to by the Scandinavians as seidhr.

Skald ON:
A poet. See Scop.

Sumbl ON, Symbel OE:
Ritual toasting and drinking in rounds.

Stallr ON:
An indoor altar.

Thew:
Refers to a combination of custom, virtues and values. The moral thews hold together the body of folkhood just as the physical thews--the ligaments or tendons--hold together our individual physical bodies.

Thing:
The Icelandic word for "assembly of the folk," sometimes also called the assizes.

Thurse, Þurs ON, Þyrs OE:
A type of giant mentioned in the lore that seemed associated with the more chaotic forces.

Thyle, Þulr ON, Þyle OE:
A discerner and speaker of wisdom which is thought to be gained from or inspired by the Holy Ones, as well as being founded upon knowledge of custom, law, and thews of one's folk. Note by S.W.: Sometimes called mistakeny theal or thule (neither word is a reliable reconstruction or ever existed).

Valkyrja ON, Waelcyrgie OE:
Literally "chooser of the slain." One of Woden's (Odin's) or Freo's (Freya's) maidens sent to collect the souls of slain heros.

Vanir ON, Wena OE:
One of the two tribes of deities in Asatru belief. Sometimes the word is Anglicised to "Wanes," singular "Wane." The Scandinavians distinguished two separate tribes of deities, but in England and the Germanic lands of the European continent, there is little evidence that shows a belief in separate tribes of deities. Rather, they were simply seen as the collective of all the deities.

Vé ON:
An open air sanctuary for Heathen worship.

Vébond ON:
Rope along with hazel poles used to rope offa sacred area.

Wassail, Ves heil ON, Waes hal OE:
A greeting meaning "be whole," which is also used in blessing nut and fruit trees at Yule. Wassail is also the anme of a variety of drinks made at Yule tide.

Well of Wyrd:
The well at the foot of the Tree of Life, wherein is laid our deeds and significant actions of our lives. We have an effect on our own wyrd that is laid in the Well, by the way we choose to live our lives. The Norns are the final arbiters and shapers of all wyrds, through their actions at the Well of Wyrd. The Well of Wyrd and the Tree of Life (Yggdrasil or Yrminsul), that contains all Being within itself, interact strongly on a number of mystical dimensions.

Wéofod OE:
An altar esp. an indoor one.

Wéofodþegn OE:
A priest in Anglo-Saxon Heathenry. also called Bedere, Húselþegn, and Blótere, as well as many other terms.

Wéoh OE:
As a noun this word refers to a statue of one of the Gods, as an adjective it means sacred. That which is in the Gods' realms.

Wight, Vettr ON, Wiht OE:
An English word for a living "being" of any kind, but often applied to spiritual beings.

Wild Hunt:
A powerful and usually very dangerous horde of spiritual beings. The Wild Hunt is most often led by Odin, particularly in the Scandinavian countries and England. On the European mainland, the Hunt is sometimes led by Odin and other times by a Goddess who is clearly a single being, called by different names in different regions of the Germanic countries: Berchta, Perchta, Holda, Frau Wode or Fra Gode. The Wild Hunt is comprised of various spirits of the dead--humans, horses and dogs, and occasionally other animals. It sweeps through the countryside during late fall and around the Yule season, often flying through the air, but sometimes galloping or moving in a procession on the ground. The Hunt can be very dangerous to humans, bringing madness or death, and is also dangerous to other beings such as moss-wives, domestic and wild animals. But it also brings with it fertility of the land, and renewal of the spiritual powers of the land. One of its functions is also to gather up any lost souls of the dead into its train, to bring them home to where they belong. Anecdotal evidence of the Wild Hunt has been given from the most ancient times up until the present day, in all of the lands settled by Germanic folk. It is one of the most pervasive of all manifestations of the Germanic world-view.

Wode, ÓðR ON, Wód OE:
A part of the soul that can be seen as the function of "divine madness." Wode can lead to the heights of artistic and intuitive inspiration, and can also lead to berserker-frenzy or other manifestations of apparent madness and/or psychic overdrive. The effects of moving totally into the wode-part of one's being are generally temporary in nature, and are usually followed by a period of great weakness or unconsciousness. Generally Odin is the bringer of wode, which is often accomplished by a draught of his "mead of inspiration," Odhroerir. He is considered the patron of those who are inspired by wode, such as poets and berserks.

Woodwives:
Female forest-spirits, also called moss-wives. They are generally gentle and helpful to humans. Often they are hunted by the Wild Hunt or by other fearsome beings, and if humans help to save the woodwives, they will find some small object such as chips of wood or bits of grain turned into gold as their reward.

Wyrd:
Wyrd is sometimes translated as "fate," but this can be quite misleading. "Fate" implies something that is fixed and randomly-generated, outside of our control and influence. Wyrd, on the other hand, while it is not entirely under our own control, can nevertheless be significantly influenced by the way we choose to live our lives, for good or ill. And it does not arise at random. Rather, our wyrds are woven out of the fabric of our own past, influenced also by the past of those very closely connected to us, including the wyrds of trans-individual entities such as families, tribes, and the folk as a whole. Wyrd is the moral law of the Multiverse, in which we participate and which we help create, by the actions and choices of our lives. Our deeds as modern Heathens are helping to weave the wyrd of Asatru for the generations to come: a perception which should make each of us take the practice of our faith very seriously indeed.

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