#also some other random nordic history

[jathun]

Uh-oh

I'm getting really engrossed in one of my old wip stories

[skaldish]

Till en viss det förstår jag personen som skickade hatet. Det är väldigt udda att se amerikaner... jag vet inte hur jag ska formulera det, men typ, ta en del av våran kultur och sprida den? Nu pratar jag inte bara om asatro, den båten har seglat, men vår folktro, vår historia, sägen, osv. Saker som känns mer hemligt, mer "vårt". Och visst, kultur är till för att delas, men... Det känns bara lite udda. Även om amerikanerna som "snor" har nån random gammal släkting som är härifrån trakterna. Lite "gammelmormor var en indiansk prinsessa" vibes haha 😂

Nu säger jag det här bara för att visa att det finns skandinaver som har liknande syn som den som skickade den tidigare asken, dock så följer vi kanske sig och tycker att din syn på saker kan vara intressant. Dessutom verkar du vara duktig på att leta reda på saker som kanske inte är så vidspridda här heller, även om du kanske ibland feltolkar delar av vår kultur.

Så detta är inget hatbrev, det är ett "jag förstår varför den tidigare personen skrev som den gjorde, och jag vill ge en snällare förklaring". Typ. Om det makes sense.

God dag! 😁

To a certain extent, I understand the person who sent the hate. It's very odd to see Americans… I don't know how to put it, but like, take a part of our culture and spread it? Now I'm not just talking about Ásatrú, that boat has sailed, but our folk beliefs, our history, legends, etc. Things that feel more secret, more "ours". And sure, culture is meant to be shared, but… It just feels a bit odd. Even if the Americans who "steal" have some random old relative who is from around here. A little "great grandmother was a Native American princess" vibes haha 😂 Now I say this just to show that there are Scandinavians who have similar views as the one who sent the previous box, however, we may follow you and find your view of things interesting. Also, you seem to be good at finding out things that may not be so widespread here either, although you may sometimes misinterpret parts of our culture. So this isn't a hate mail, it's a "I understand why the previous person wrote the way they did, and I want to give a kinder explanation". Sort of. If that makes sense. Good day to you! 😁

Nah, I understand completely. And I know the image you're seeing of American Heathenry looks batshit. It looks batshit for me too—but that's because I understand it's a fairy-tale and it's always looked like one to me.

I think that's something important to keep in mind here, though. The Heathenry you see in America is manufactured for us, mostly by American companies, orgs, and snake-oil salesmen for the purpose of their own agendas. Whatever these actors can snag from the Nordic countries that makes their fairy tale look more real, they do.

One of the things this fairy-tale tells us is that "Heathenry died off with the vikings a long time ago, so it's up to us to return to our ancient roots to restore it." Often when I bring up your culture, it's to illustrate that this is bullshit, and that your current culture matters when it comes to how we Americans understand Heathenry. (I'm also trying to compare cultural senses to illustrate the differences.)

But if I'm blatantly getting something wrong or being insensitive about something in this process, you are more than free to tell me.

What I don't appreciate is when people are just angry that I exist and want me to take responsibility for the fact they feel angry about my existence. The fact the other person didn't return to explain what the actual problem I was causing was, tells me they just wanted a punching bag.

I understand getting angry about Americans taking what's "yours" without a care—and I agree it's a problem—but getting angry at Americans doesn't solve this problem. It's certainly won't get the tens of thousands of American Heathens to stop being Heathen. A better approach would be to just help us get better educated about it.

[random-brain-dumps]

I made a post about having random headcanons or au's for characters in books, shows, movies, etc. These are sometimes based on a little truth or sometimes 100% unrelated to the character. I wanted to share a few more! As I did last time, I'll try to provide as much explanation as possible, but sometimes there really isn't any as it's my own fantasy. As it's Pride Month, I'll share a few pride headcanons I have!

-Norway (Hetalia): he's a vegetarian (or vegan) (I have no reason for this hc, it just came to me one day and I thought it would be interesting if the other nordics struggled to comprehend Norway not eating meat, eggs, or dairy with them at the dinner table at first, then getting used to it and learning more vegetarian and vegan recipes)

-Piper McLean (The Percy Jackson series): she knows a lot about cars and is very interested in them. She enjoys watching NASCAR (There's not really much reason for this hc; all I can think of is her being a tomboy and stealing a BMW with her Charmspeak; maybe stealing a car made her realize how much she likes them; everyone at Camp Half-Blood, especially the new younger kids, think she's really cool for it; her girlfriend loves it 😏)

-Henry Winter (The Secret History): is so deep in his Dark Academia Lifestyle that he forces himself to do things he doesn't like just because he thinks it looks cool (I can specifically imagine him being far too stubborn to get electric lights for his home and only using his lanterns and candles because of the aesthetic, even though the low yellow lighting ruins his eyes and gives him even more headaches)

-Ponyboy Curtis and Johnny Cade (The Outsiders): they kissed once while in the abandoned church and vowed to never speak of it again (mostly based on the way they interact in the movie - Johnny getting Pony a copy of Gone With the Wind, them watching the sunset like they're in a romance film, snuggling in the church; they probably felt flustered and embarassed about it; I realized I wasn't the only one who thought they looked a little fruity together when I watched clips and read the comments 💀)

-Tori Vega and Jade West (Victorious): Jade hated Tori in the beginning because of jealousy, then grew to like her and become attracted to her, and Tori shares the same feelings (Jade subconsciously tries to test Tori to see if she can handle her, but Tori is tough; Tori also admires Jade and stands up to her, while also caring about her; despite them bickering, Tori is almost always willing to help Jade; they have some soft moments in the show; NickRewind even made a video about Tori and Jade being a good couple)

-Scipio Massimo/Fortunato (The Thief Lord): He is attracted to boys (I actually have this backed up! Cornelia Funke (the author) had responded to a tweet: a fan asked if, hypothetically, Scipio had a girlfriend, how would she be like, and Cornelia answered "I think he would fall in love with a boy"! So maybe this could be considered canon? Even though it's not in the book? You can find this tweet if you scroll for a while on Cornelia Funke's Twitter; I had this hc before I saw the tweet, and I don't have any reason for it)

[jamtlandsarkiv]

🔥 for the ask game!

Hetalia Emoji Asks

🔥 - Are there any popular/widely accepted headcanons you don't like?

Where do I begin?

I don't remember which ones of these are canon and which ones are headcanons, but I certainly don't like them.

Denmark behaves like or is constantly compared to a child or an animal: In this house, we respect Mathias.

All of the Nordics live under the same roof (even if they don't enjoy this living arrangement in the headcanon): They're immortals who can acquire property in their own countries. Never liked these kinds of forced sitcom situations.

Sweden's children are random micronations: A two in one! I don't like the idea that Sweden's children aren't at least partially Swedish and that he doesn't speak Swedish in his own household. I'll always choose regions with a historical connection to Sweden to be his children. I don't like micronations from a worldbuilding standpoint either. It cheapens nations who were formed by generations of humans who shared a common land, language, values and traditions if I can declare my house to be "The Autocratic Micronation of Jämtlantica" and an immortal personification would be born.

Nation ages scale linearly with the age of their culture: Biologically, aging means that the body is decaying and the person is getting closer to death. Why would a thriving culture like China have a personification that is physically frail and close to death just because Chinese culture has existed for a long time? I don't like the randomly chosen ages in the canon either. Their ages should be tied to their population's health.

Nations interact only with each other and with political leaders: Yuck. Politicians living a parallel existence from the people they're supposed to represent. No, go live with your people. Make friends with them and go to work with them and avoid eye contact with them on public transport.

"Ancient" personifications for large regions that are a single person: There was far more diversity in languages and cultures of pre-recorded history because long-distance cultural exchange is impossible without modern technology. Why would all of these different cultures be represented by just one person?! I believe that there would have been many Ancients who passed on before recorded history and were forgotten, but a few live on in the memories of the personifications they raised.

Forced family relationships between nations: The idea that there is a supernatural bond between some nations that they don't know the origins of and can't oppose. I also whined about how it suggests that there is an objectively "correct" way to interpret historical relationships.

Nations' lives have to literally re-enact history: See the above point about objective historical correctness. Also, isn't this boring? There is no room for personal characterization and you're effectively writing a history textbook, not a character.

This is long, but I am a very passionate Hater. Thank you for your ask!

[ifindus]

I have a headcanon that norway goes crazy if he doesn't get to travel for a period of time. like deep down I imagine a part of him from the viking age still lives in him, that adventurer who sets his sail and travels the world. (also Imagine norway asking the other nordics to join him, but they don't have time, and then they see him on a safari all alone in the middle of nowhere on his insta story like: omg what is he up to now🤨🤦🏼)

Norway just really enjoying travelling is one of my fave headcanons - especially with Norwegians famously being explorers throughout history, starting in the Viking Age and sort of coming to a high point in 1911 with reaching the South Pole first. Still today, a lot of travelling series/videos are very popular (I'm thinking specifically about Lars Monsen and Jens Kvernmo, just trecking in the wilderness).

It would def be something Norway would do, just disappear one day, people thinking he might be up in the mountains fishing or something, and then he posts a picture from somewhere random in the world.

My grand-uncle and his wife are currently on a trip in the south of Argentina where they are taking a boat over to Antactica, and then back up Argentina via some islands again, pit stop in Uruguay too.

So, now Norway is on a random trip to South America - might be back in a few weeks, who knows?

[someone-you-do-not-know]

Hey 👋

I'm here with a random ask of the week 🌷

If dennor were on a vacation together, where would they go? Would they take someone with them? Like Iceland, bc you know, it's their kid-

Okay, it depends a little on how much time they have off and the season – so have waaaaay too many headcanons about this!

If they only have a few days off, like one or two, they drive or take the train, either to someplace fun in their own countries, Sweden, or Germany. Denmark really loves amusement parks, if they have a day off during a World Meeting, he will go to the nearest amusement park. His favourite amusement park is also the world's oldest – Bakken in Kalundborg, Denmark, but he loves all the ones in Denmark, of course. His favourite rollercoaster ride is really embarrassing though. It's this one called Wildfire, and it's been named the best in Europe and thirdbest in the world in 2018 – BUT IT'S IN KOLMÅRDEN, SWEDEN (I've tried it though, it really is great). If Norway gets to pick, they usually go out into nature, either hiking in the mountains, fishing, visit the beaches or forests, go kayaking, etc. That is, unless it's winter – then it's skiing every single time. Norway is great at skiing, obviously, especially cross-country skiing. They're very unlikely to visit any historical sites, since they already lived through it, and for these shorter trips, they're more likely to just be the two of them.

Now, if it's a week or more, the world IS THEIR OYSTER. So we need to divide these into seasons:

Spring: In spring, they both have a few days off for Easter, but this is family time, so usually they celebrate with a Easter Lunch together with the other Nordics and just hang out together at one of their homes all five of them. They also go visit other European countries (mostly their fellow protestants, because they think the catholics can get a little prickly around Easter – Denmark claims it's because of the whole Lent thing). If they have a bit more time off, they might also visit Iceland, The Faroe Islands, and Greenland (both should have their own representations, because their history and culture is very different from Denmark and they actually have self rule nowadays).

Summer: Now, you gotta understand. Europe has a lot of time off during summer and of course the nations would too. So there's a lot of options presenting themselves. A week in one of Denmark's many vacation houses near the beaches, going on a train trip through Europe, getting a house boat and sail the nearby seas, taking a plane to the south of Europe and becoming as red as a shrimp in 0.5 second ... The possibilities are endless. Iceland occasionally go with them, and if they're in a vacation house, they get a lot of visitors – especially Germany, Sweden and Finland (Iceland just moves in with them without asking). But they do as much as they can during summer

Autumn: In fall, there's only three options. Either, they go to South Europe or they go to either Thailand or the USA. But 7 out of 10 times, they go to Spain, and they often bring the other Nordics along. Spain is the tourist destination. If it's not mainland Spain, it's Gran Canaria or Mallorca. Spain is definitely their favourite vacation place. Spain isn't entirely sure how much he likes that they visit him year after year after year. Sure, he likes the money the tourism generates, but he's never really sure how much he should be around them and he needs vacation too! How else is he going to visit his favourite half of a nation?

Winter: Christmas and New Year's Eve are some more holidays all the nordics celebrate together, and here, they usually decide to stay near the mountains (meaning not in Denmark) – so they can go skiing! I mentioned skiing earlier, and it is an activity all Nordics enjoy – alpine, cross country, snowboard, you name it, they do it. Finland and Iceland especially like snowboarding, whereas Sweden and Norway are more likely to do cross country. Denmark really likes alpine, and is probably the weakest skier among them – which makes the others tease him endlessly, but he's still pretty good. Just wasn't born on skis like the rest of them. Norway is really good at off-piste – Sweden is too tall to do it as well as Norway, and Denmark is afraid he'll fall (and also tall), so that's one thing Norway, Finland, and Iceland does together.

As you can see, there really is a lot of different vacation types they like to do!

[gardenia777]

avalie modern au secondary school + uni hcs smiles giggles

secondary:

- plays rugby. loves to tackle people, is less interested in chasing the ball and scoring

- best friends with marcurio after they were begrudging partners for a project in history. he thought she was lazy and stupid and she thought he had a stick up his ass. they were both correct

- but then they realised they were both also nerds and became friends

- they have a study group together but they keep getting kicking out of the library for talking

- they had a habit of breaking into places at night time to go explore and look for treasures (avalie lockpicking level 65 atm😇)

- they go hide in some random secluded stairway at lunch times and scowl at year 8s who come too close to them

- someone threw a school panini really hard at marcurio’s head one time and he thought avalie would defend him but she just laughed until she snorted

- avalie keeps getting into trouble because she wears big boots with her uniform rather than the shoes you’re supposed to

- and she does like nordic hairstyles her favourite is like a little tiny french plait on either side of her head with the rest loose

- shes loosely pagan shes religious but in her own way if that makes sense

- one of her comfort items is an amulet that she always wears given to her by her like adoptive grandfather figure who she lives with

- always has like a billion rings on as well

THE INCIDENT she becomes partially blind somehow. either an injury or flash blindness or something like that idk i’m not di

university:

- so she gets a service dog he’s brown and his name is meeko. brings him everywhere obviously and thinks she’s all that because she’s brought her dog to class

- linguistics student!!! with a minor in vocal performance

- she really likes languages especially really old and dead ones. and ever since she lost her vision she’s been more interested in braille

- she tutors people in french and gaeilge

- she’s in a rock band with marcurio (who went to the same uni to study history) he plays bass and she sings. there are other people too i just dk them yet

- she has tattoos!!! she has a big dragon design on her back, and laurel leaves on her collarbones. and swords from her wrists to her forearms.

- still wears her big boots everywhere you can always hear her stomping up the stairs to the top floor of her uni building

- her dorm room looks like some type of wizards lair. why does she have SCROLLS

- she cant see well enough to play rugby anymore but she still likes to lift weights!!! with her former rugby buddies turned gym bros the himbo-esque farkas and mean lady aela

- her flat mates come back from clubbing at 3am to see avalie sitting at the kitchen table in complete darkness absolutely FUCKING UP a bowl of potato soup

- she’s very well known around campus even though she’s not very sociable she does lots of little favours for people. her moral code is dubious but she does like to help out

- or cause problems. people either love her or hate her

- had a really toxic relationship (jaree-ra victims will know) when she first entered uni

- met serana after her band played at a bar serana’s father owned

- avalie thought they’d never see each other again after a very tense conversation of trying not to look at the other’s lips but then serana sought her out on campus

- something something then serana joins their strange little group to make the weirdest trio of freaks you’ve ever seen

- they get serana away from her horrible father and they all move into one apartment together and it’s chaotic and weird and perfect

[trickstarbrave]

i really hate the fact the nord pantheon was just thrown to the wayside in favor for the imperial pantheon and any discussions i see of it are unsatisfying or even sometimes frankly stupid.

“it was 200 years” yeah a lot can change in 200 years but you mean to tell me i will have dunmer lecturing me at random going “oh btw we dont worship the tribunal anymore back to the good old good daedra for us :)” but absolutely 0 fucking explanation of how this happened. im just expected to know it. with the dunmer its kinda silly bc anyone who played thru all of morrowind to know enough about the tribunal worship in detail can probably infer it on their own and don’t need it spelled out for them. and people who haven’t probably wouldn’t know enough to think it was unusual. but sure go ahead and have that in to explain the lore as though my random 25 year old nord dragonborn pc would know anything about dunmeri customs and religious history. but the explanation for the widespread adoption of the imperial pantheon in favor of the nord pantheon???? just completely fuckin gone??? okay fine whatever

“well scandinavia was christianized in like 200 years so things change” the christianization of scandinavia is messy and unusual (and also took longer than like 200 years fully). they were converted mostly peacefully due to the relationship nordic people have with dieties--based on convenience. gods are like people you have relationships with, and sometimes those relationships are business relationships. also it was politically motivated to get some extra manpower from christians for various political battles and scuffles. the nords, while based loosely on pop cultural depictions of vikings, don’t actually follow this. they are people deeply rooted in tradition. change happens, and takes centuries to fully shift. two centuries may in theory be enough time to do that--but not without adequate explanation and see the above on that. they are prideful and at times arrogant. at best i could see them adopting a few compromises for politics, but the thing is imperial pantheon was already the compromise they were tolerating and not really adopting.

“well they needed unity for the great war” that means then that this change is around like, what, 40 years old at the most if i give them 10 years of hindsight for the great war happening. the great war started 30 years before skyrim began. it was not some monumental battle at the 200 years ago mark that would kick start the political shift. could i see it happening? yes. but that would mean ulfric--who is older than the great war very obviously--would probably be MUCH more politically motivated to instead be championing the adoption of the old nord pantheon the imperials tried to stamp out for political unity. in fact, this would be an even better motivation for his direct hostilities with the empire, because that means their religious persecution of nords was LONG before the fucking white gold concordant. but that isn’t what happened. instead this would have to mean 40 years ago at most (probably more around like, what, 32???) the empire forced the imperial pantheon down every nord’s throat, banned their worship of the nord pantheon effectively, redid all their shrines and temples during the war, converted a bunch of people to loving talos through propaganda, and then after the war ended said “nevermind you can’t worship talos anymore” and ulfric was ONLY mad about the last part. right. sure.

also frankly the religious diversity made the world of the elder scrolls more fucking interesting. it was cool to see it. it was interesting to see varieties of faith, different creation myths, complex religious history and shifts of faith. it was cool to see how these cultures evolved and changed through their history to be something alien and weird and to see other cultures react in universe to those differences. keeping the nordic pantheon would have made the game more interesting. but it also would have involved making a world that required more thinking on the part of the player to understand instead of turning off their brain and just thinking this is oblivion with vikings. rich lore previously established is gutted and ignored, only vague place names remaining. is saarthal inthe mage’s college about uncovering the mystery of the attach by snow elves on the atmorans? no its about the eye of magnus. okay, uh, are we gonna learn about the elven god magnus? no, just go to this old nord ruin that was the center of the dragon cult to retrieve an artifact to stop it. oh are we gonna learn about the dragon cult? no you idiot it became a training ground for archmages in disjointed puzzles, go kill some zombies draugar, fight a lich king dragon priest, get the artifact, and come back with no explanation of the arcane mysteries you’ve experience and take your prize of being the archmage now that everyone else is dead. don’t you feel satisfied and like you’re in a real living breathing world and role playing in it?

[nickgerlich]

Let's Get Sociable

I know. We’re barely past Labor Day. PSL’s have hardly begun their meteoric sales path. And it is still pretty warm. But it’s never too early to start thinking about Christmas, right?

Well, suffice it to say that I won’t be thinking about it until Thanksgiving, when we pull that old fake tree out of storage and festoon it with a wide variety of ornaments collected through the years. Not a moment before.

Marketers, though, are thinking about it, and have been for quite some time. Merchandise orders were placed months ago, especially for items sourced overseas. Retailers are busy getting rid of insect repellent, potting soil, garden hoses, and all the things you may very well still need for a couple of months, replacing it with holiday decorations. You know. Because they think that some people will actually buy that stuff long before they ever need it.

And analysts are also paying attention, but for different reasons. They are busy monitoring and surveying consumers’ shopping intentions, which includes how much, where, when, and how. And one of the key takeaways right now from this early vantage point is that GenZ shoppers are more likely to purchase their holiday gifts via social media.

Ponder this. Not in stores. Not just online. In social media apps.

This points to the increasing use of mobile devices for shopping. Of course, it’s not like this started yesterday. Even I, an aging Boomer, have been doing it for quite a few years now. I have also shopped via social media, such as the Nordic Socks ad that enticed me a few years ago with their cozy wool footwear. But to do my holiday shopping there? Hmmm.

Instagram is the most likely site where shopping will occur, followed by Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. I do find the Facebook entry to be a bit curious, because GenZ is notorious for not using Facebook. I also suspect that a lot of GenZers secretly have a Facebook account, but only use it once in a while to stay in touch with older family members. Or maybe shop for them.

This shift in buyer behavior has huge implications. Whereas all other shopping, be it in-store or online, is rather purposive, with shoppers actively seeking products and information, social media shopping has a very different dynamic. There’s an almost random component, meaning you have to have seen an ad or Reel in the first place to know that you could shop there.

Savvy marketers, though, know they can roll the dice with much greater certainty these days with highly targeted ads, aimed squarely at users based on their established preferences, demographics, and prior online usage.

Bear in mind that what you see in your feed, whichever platform you use, is the result of complicated algorithms that track every aspect of your time within that app. Those algorithms also pull in other information stored in cookies and search engine histories. That information is also sold among companies. Unlike broadcast television, though, in which we would all see the same adverts during prime time programming or sports telecasts, each person’s feed is unique.

Long-term implications, if this trend were to continue for GenZers as they progress through adulthood, mean a steadily decreasing role for brick-and-mortar shops, especially during the holidays, and perhaps even the end of Black Friday shenanigans. Why venture out into all that traffic, crowds, and possibly cold weather when you can just snuggle up by the fire and shop on your phone?

It is interesting to consider the generational differences at play here. It is a drama unfolding based largely on technological skills and whether or not you are a digital native. It is GenZ that is, by its very definition, a cohort of truly digital natives, people whom have known no other way. Millennials were the big transition group, and since they were born between 1980 and 1996, there is variability. Those on the latter end are closer to behaving like their younger counterparts than the middle-aged folks who ushered in that generation.

And then there’s Gen X (1965-1979) and the Boomers (1946-1964). While most of us have made the transition to this digital life, there are still some who have resisted. It is hard to shake old ways of doing things, and if you still prefer to shop the stores and—gasp—use cash to pay for everything, that’s on you. You can still do what you like (Note: I am siding with GenZ on this one. I am not a fan of shopping.).

Also know, though, that ultimately resistance is futile. Try buying a concert ticket these days without having to download a QR or bar code to your phone instead of getting a paper ticket. Printed email tickets are also all but dead. Get with the program, or you are not getting in.

Meanwhile, it’s always fun to take advantage of my ring side seat to all this pageantry. It’s a very different place from when I first started teaching, and if anything, all that change keeps this job interesting. And for marketers, it just means they better be on their toes. Christmas is always on the horizon.

Dr “Happy Holidaze” Gerlich

Audio Blog

[fictionfromafar]

Kalmann And The Sleeping Mountain

By Joachim B Schmidt

Translated by Jamie Lee Searle

Bitter Lemon Press

Publication Date: 18 July 2024

Early summer 2022 saw the publication of the English language debut by Joachim B Schmidt, simply named Kalmann. While crime fiction novels from Iceland are far from rare in recent years, Kalmann was a book that stood alone, very much on it's own merits. Featuring a neuro-diverse lead character, a great deal of humour and a whole lot of heart, the book charmed and warmed just as much as it thrilled it's readers. Have you not yet read it, I would certainly intend you to do so. While the original story had been intended to be standalone novel, such was the attention that the book received, that Schmidt was encouraged to write a follow up. This would be no easy feat given the ending of the above noted story, but two years later Kalmann is back.

Happily the same team is also back with the book being published by Bitter Lemon Press and translated by Jamie Lee Searle and thankfully both the appear and the comic aspects also remain. Yet there is also a fair degree of story that needs to be told through the voice of our protagonist to bring the story up to date. Set in a not to alternative universe, Kalmann gets to experience the Coronavirus pandemic, and while that could hinder many an author, particularly one looking to bring some hilarity to the story, thankfully Schmidt as adept at restraining us from thinking too deeply about those times. What touches us more is the developments in Kalmann's own life as he pays a sad goodbye to one beloved family member and then starts to build bridges with another. Indeed there is a lot of manoeuvring in the first half of this story as Kalmann, for the first time in his life ventures far from his hometown of Raufarhöfn. Trouble is never too far away and despite his infinite wisdom, his inability to read the intentions of others will often place him at jeopardy.

Following some memorable experiences, once our hero returns to the region he knows best, we begin to really explore the mystery set deep within the novel. It's a quest that will lead into Iceland's Cold War past. A history that some are unable to leave behind until all memories are extinguished. Along the way, clues are dotted around which lead towards some of the answers. While it may be rare, not every flaming mountain in Iceland is a volcano.

Kalmann And The Sleeping Mountain is a great success which will certainly satisfy all readers of Joachim B Schmidt's debut. Irrespective of the necessary scene setting in this story, I also feel it would be one that many new readers would enjoy solely upon its own merits. It's a very welcome change of mood and style from many of the other novels that I usually read. Only a fool would bet against Kalmann's future encounters being revealed in the future, until then, you can certainly delight in his present.

https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Kalmann-and-the-Sleeping-Mountain-by-Joachim-B-Schmidt-author-Jamie-Searle-Romanelli-translator/9781916725003

Many thanks to Bitter Lemon Press for an advance copy of this book and to Random Things Tours for inclusion on the blog tour.

A NORDIC CRIME THRILLER WITH A DIFFERENCE.

No gratuitous violence, no revenge porn, but a tightly plotted thriller that is chock full of humour. It is set in Washington DC and northern Iceland, both highly exotic locations. AN ENDEARING PROTAGONIST: Our mentally challenged hero, described with empathy and psychological tact, is faced with two murders and the threat of more to come. A PRIZE-WINNER. Joachim B. Schmidt received the Crime Cologne Award for the first Kalmann and the novel is shortlisted for the 2023 SpecSavers Debut Crime Award. As the jury in Cologne put it: “With Kalmann, the award goes to a classic picaresque novel cloaked in crime with an oddball protagonist at its heart. Schmidt succeeds brilliantly with the childlike, naïve narrative technique of his protagonist. Kalmann is back! But he’s already in trouble; in an interrogation room at the FBI headquarters in Washington, no less. All he wanted to do was visit his American father, but the loveable sheriff of Raufarhöfn got himself mixed up in the January 2021 Capitol riots. Thanks to sympathetic FBI agent Dakota Leen, he’s soon on a plane home. But not before she informs him that his grandfather was on a blacklist, suspected of spying for the Russians during the Cold War. Back in Iceland, there’s a murder and one heck of a mystery to unravel. And what role does a mysterious mountain play in all this? Somehow Kalmann never loses heart. There’s no need to worry; he has everything under control.

THE AUTHOR: Joachim B. Schmidt, born in 1981, emigrated from Switzerland to Iceland in 2007. He is the author of several novels and short stories and a journalist and columnist. Joachim, who is Swiss and Icelandic, lives in Reykjavik with his wife and their two children.

THE TRANSLATOR: Jamie Lee Searle is a well-known translator from German and Portuguese into English. She has translated novels by Urs Faes, Anna Kim, Marc-Uwe Kling, Christoph Ribbat and the first Kalmann of course. She lives in Winchester in the UK.

[greyborn2]

Some TES minotaur headcanons I wrote up for Breath of Kyne, my minotaur focused fic (that I REALLY NEED TO GET BACK ONTO WRITING CHAPTERS FOR AAAAA)

- They can 'smell' magic, and even semi-identify it by scent. This is what draws them to ancient Alessian and Ayleid ruins. They smell ancient, dangerous, magic and will move their herd around the ruins to protect it from outside forces. - This sorta goes against what is said in Brenus Astis' journal but I basically wave that away as him not really understanding what he's seeing. Minotaur herd structure is, like, a genderswapped version of orc clan structure. Each herd will have a single dominant female (and, indeed, birth rates are heavily skewed towards waaaaaay more males than females) who acts as the spiritual leader and guide of the herd. The males beneath her will then fight amongst themselves to be a part of her inner circle of 'lords' who she will mate with and give more command rights to. Beneath that there are the respected elderly of the herd, who work as shamans, and beneath that are the general 'calfs'. When a new female comes of age in a herd she will learn all she can from her mother and then take a selection of the 'calfs' to split off into her own, new, herd. 'calfs' also often leave their herd to go a-wandering, and will join up with these fledgling herds - so that keeps the gene pool diversified. - Interbreeding with reachfolk and other surviving nede clans isnt uncommon, though it isnt quite common either. Almost all minotaurs have some human blood in them (aside from Alessia's blood). HOWEVER, those who have an 'unbroken line' that is all pure minotaurs have some special powers as seen with Domihaus in ESO. They're way larger, can summon flaming wings, can use a limited form of the thu'um, etc. They are full on dragonborn... not that they'd ever be recognized as such. - They primarily worship Kyne as the mother goddess of their people and the representation of the world they live in. But they also highly revere Morihaus and Alessia as a sorta combo of saints and their version of adam and eve. First of their kind and all that. - They still speak old cyro-nedic as their first language, which is why they rarely talk with outsiders (that and the inherent fighting between them and most outsiders). It's a heavily Ayleidoon based language with fragments of ancient nordic and other neighbouring nedic tribe-words. - They represent Kyne with a triskelion; the ancient symbol the nedes used for her (this is based on some evidence that that used to be Kyne's symbol but that's another matter). It is this connection between Minotaurs, the triskelion, and Kyne, that led to Morthal (a city named after Morihaus) getting it as its sigil. - The lower ranking members of a herd will wear leather, furs, and other animal made armor and clothing. 'Lords' will be given the right to wear bronze gear - these items are either relics passed down from before the Alessian Order drove the minotaurs into the wild OR items they have made since. They do not forge bronze with fire and smithies, as they rarely stay in an established place long enough to set that up, but they do practice cold forging and are remarkably proficient at it. The Sunna-Esh (Literally 'Blessed Highness' - the herd mother/priestess) will also be HEAVILY decorated in treasured bronze baubles passed down from ancient times, and super ancient (and carefully preserved) nedic silks. - Their connection to Kyne gives them a natural knack for both nature and earth magic, something their shamans make massive use of. - They are naturally distrustful and hostile towards outsiders, given the LONG history of being hunted and killed (both by the Alessian Order and then later just random asshole people. Like for fucks sake, Imperials keep THE MOUNTED HEADS OF SENTIENT FREAKING MINOTAURS ON THEIR WALLS!!!!) but are ESPECIALLY distrustful/hostile towards elves or those they see as being elven given their memory of the Ayleids. - Hypothetically they can live for centuries, with their divine blood. This long lifespan is rarely met, though.

[moodymisty]

✿ Relaxation ✿

Author’s Note: Totally don't expect anyone to like this but me, was just goofing around and making something quick

I’m writing/queueing to post this before THQ Nordic’s presentation, and in honor of possibly getting a Darksiders game reveal. I can’t wait for that not to happen and I get absolutely CLOWNED on watch this AN age like whole milk

Btw if anyone knows a darksiders discord(besides the offical one) that would welcome little ol’ me hit me up i'm totally alone in my obsession sob

Summary: How does one fix shoulder pain that’s older than your species existence?

Relationships: War/GN!Reader

Warnings: None, apart from War being adorable, and mentions of scars

Words: 1807

It had started from a totally offhand and random comment you’d made about your back after stretching tall and hearing it pop, grumbling to yourself about wishing for a massage. It had perked the ears of a curious War, who after stewing for second and deciding if it was worth asking, questioned what you’d meant. When you prodded around and realized he had absolutely no idea what you were referring to, you tried to see if he’d just maybe not remembered. When that didn’t seem to be the case, it was a little bit too hard to not be surprised.

“Wait, so you’re saying that you’ve never had a massage? Like-” You made vague, awkward gestures similar to massaging shoulders, only for War to watch them move with his usual furrowed brow and a confused face. There’s a flash of light from the thunder storm outside, but neither of you pay any mind to it. Thank goodness Ruin can disappear, or else the poor horse would be a smoldering mess.

“No. I am, not familiar with the concept. We Nephilim had no such thing.” That couldn’t possibly be true; Maybe War just never had it first hand. That at least wouldn’t be too surprising, given his history.

“What about if you get sore muscles or just, wanting to relax?” War seems almost confused about why you’re so up in arms about this, responding in the most ‘matter of fact’ tone. Maybe you should've expected it, given you mentioned 'relaxation' in the same sentence you were referring to the Nephilim with.

“Magic can heal most wounds sufficiently enough.” That’s enough outta him for you; And you decide that if anyone in all the realms needs to experience a good ol’ fashioned massage, it’s War.

But given that War is pretty heavily resistant to any large amounts of affection, it’s also a sneaky little way to do so without him getting all huffy about it.

“Do you want one? I can do it to show you what I mean.” While War is often trepidatious regarding anything that’s unfamiliar to him, he can’t help the feeling of curiosity largely about your insistence. Instead of blindly accepting however, he takes the cautious path and probes for anything that might cause alarm bells in his head. Which is a lot of things, but you’ve always been kind to him, and in return he gives you the same amount of trust he would his siblings.

“What does this entail?”

With him deciding to entertain you you're already trying to get him to sit down more to your level; Though moving a wall like War largely requires him to want to be moved. But he shuffles in the way you’re shooing him, watching confused.

“It’s hard to explain. You’ll need to take off all your armor, like your chestplate. Just the top half.” That sentence does not get a positive reaction, and you didn’t know why you hadn’t expected it.

The armor is a part of War, and taking it off is a huge sign of him letting his guard down. You say he doesn’t have to after he comments once again on humanity's over-trusting nature, and that you were just being silly about the whole thing.

But War doesn’t do silly; And so after some deliberation he still moves to lay Chaoseater against the wall right beside him, still well within arms reach. And slowly pieces of armor come off, and get sat right next to each other on the floor, until he’s bare from the waist up.

Part of him still thinks this is a bad idea, and he probably wouldn’t have even entertained it if not for having such a soft spot for you. He looks at you expectantly now, waiting for your next move.

“Just sit down, facing away from me.” The couch groans and complains from the considerable weight of a full grown Nephilim, but still allows you and War to both sit upon it while you stare over the vast, scarred expanse of his back.

War is built for pure strength, and while to someone who’s probably only watched Hollywood movies and flicked through magazines of men with stretched, dehydrated skin might think he’s not, you know underneath that outer layer of softness there’s enough muscle to fist fight demons, angels, and any of threat you could possibly think of, and win. By a considerable margin. He doesn’t need a constantly visible six pack to prove it.

It’s not your first time seeing War without his armor anyways, but given how rare it is, it always makes your breath hitch a little bit; His scarred skin hidden by long locks of white hair flowing downward. It’s a bit of a wonder how throughout everything, his hair has managed to stay so perfect, compared to say Death’s; Who’s ratty mane to himself is seen as nothing more than a hindrance.

It’s not as if War sees it any different however, as the Red Rider also has little vanity, but it’s amusing how wildly different the two ended up. The oddity made you once end up subscribing to the theory that out of all of the Horsemen, War is the one that has the most angel in him.

War ends up having to resist the small jolt of surprise as your soft skin touches his bare shoulders, an incredibly unfamiliar feeling. Not often does he ever have his armor off, even around you, so the sensation of someone touching his bare skin is almost unfamiliar enough to be off-putting. Though your gentle hands quickly make the feeling fade away, as they drift along his shoulders and the cords of his neck.

They feel as tense as can all be, and you find yourself having to press quite hard, though it doesn’t even make War wiggle an inch. If anything you end up pressing as hard as you can even to get through to muscle, just because of how massive of a Nephilim he is. It’s also a bit of a wonder if it’s just because his muscles are so neglected, or because he’s confused on what the hell you’re trying to do to him.

While at first that might’ve been the case, uneasy about what you were doing, soon enough even the most cautious parts of him began to completely melt. He can’t explain exactly why, but your human hands are far more enjoyable than any sort of the nasty healing magics he’s experienced, even if he needed nothing healed to begin with. Though it certainly felt like he had, now that you’re doing this. Maybe he just hadn’t realized. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time he had.

You weren’t exactly an expert, but one would figure if he’s gone an uncountable number of years wearing armor and wielding massive weapons, that it would surely be hell on tense muscles. Tense may not even be the right word to describe it.

He seems to at least somewhat tolerant of the whole thing, even if you’re mostly just replicating motions from a one off hobby lesson and old pre-Apocolypse videos that now only existed in your head.

Though it seems tolerant is quickly turning into enjoyment, as you notice as the time passes and you move from his neck to his shoulders, that his head has drooped forward slightly. His hair was sliding forward to pool over his shoulders, long enough to almost touch his stomach. Other than during far more intimate moments, this is the most relaxed you’ve seen the Red Rider, feeling your small fingers drift over ages of healed cuts and burns. When he’s no longer making any noises or trying to look backward, you can’t help but speak up.

“Still awake?”

You joke, only to hear him grumble in response. You’d probably be relaxed to if you are in his shoes; The storm going on outside was rumbling as rain pattered against the windows, with gentle thunder.

“I see why you insisted this.” The comment makes you laugh, pressing your fingers against the edge of his shoulder blades.

“There’s so people out there that are masters at this; humans have been doing massages for longer than we’ve been keeping track. I just did a few lessons.” He just hums in response, and you can’t help the feeling of pretty immense pride, that you managed to make a horseman melt like this. At least with just your hands; War’s surprisingly easy to make blush, if you know what to say.

Moving downward over his spine however what interests you is a particular scar that catches your eye over all the others, looking down at it. It stretches a good way across his left side, just under his lower ribs. It’s large and ragged, quite distinctly something from a large what you would assume blade.

“This one scar is really nasty; how’d you get it?” War had to think for a moment, trying to remember each one like recounting stories from a book. He almost doesn’t remember, until your fingers drift across it again and the moment comes back to him.

“That one was from the leader of a phalanx of angels.” That certainly peaks your interest, as your hands move pieces of long white hair that had gotten in your way of his shoulders. The tips of your fingers were so soft against his skin, just barely brushing his hair aside. He silently marvels at it; How gentle you can be.

You continue the mindless motions for a little while longer, while along the way curiously prodding at scars and asking their origin. He doesn’t remember most of them, but a few stick out among them. Mostly the most ghastly of them, ones that look like they could’ve kill him. But once you run out of ones to find and your own arms start to hurt, you pull your hands away and rest them on your thighs. War noticeably perks up after you did so, and when he turns around to peer at you, you’d dare say he seems almost disappointed.

“Do you see what I mean now? And I’m not even that good at it.” Tilting his neck to look at you War is secretly impressed, and vows to remember this new human curiosity for a long time coming. He doesn’t know if he’ll ever ask you to do it, given how intimate the whole thing sounds.

War moves to turn around now and face you, raising a hand up to cup the back of your head and lean down, pressing a kiss to your forehead. It’s quite the surprise, and you can’t help but smile wide the entire time. The moment he pulls away and sees it, you rush forward to wrap your arms around his neck. His body instinctively leans back slightly and so you end up partly laying against his chest, smiling up at him.

There’s not many words that War can conjure up to describe how you look to him, but he supposes endearing would work well enough. He’s never been good at translating thoughts to speech, as much as it infuriates him.

But since it’s just the two of you War can let just the tiniest smile warp his features, his brow slightly less furrowed than usual.

“If you ever want another one, you just need to ask.” War watches the way your nose wrinkles as you smile even wider, resting your chin on his sternum.

——————

Flash forward to three months later after War tells Strife about this human phenomenon, he comes over demanding you do it to him and now you’re walking on his back like a tightrope walker trying to crack it in eight different places. It pops like a 4th of July firework and he gives you a 5/5 on Yelp

[toffeelemon]

something qwhite interesting

as one does i was hyperfixating on alexander and i noticed - are most, if not all notable poc characters in young royals set as half white?

obviously sweden is naturally a very white society, and i’d imagine even more so in upper class institutions like hillerska. i remember lisa defending diverse casting and speaking about representing a swedish society she would like to see, so i’m interested to know does she then believe/ is trying to say that in the YR world, poc still need a certain proximity to whiteness to be That Rich (and elite)

we know that felice has a white mother. (who still definitely displays some micro-racism to felice, yikes) i presume her dad, the black man, is the breadwinner of the family - but august still describes her as Modern Nobility. note modern. she’s rich, and elite, and of a desireable class, and yet she’s not of old money or nobility. i cannot be sure if her dad has generational wealth in sweden, or is what august would describe as nouveau riche, but her mum definitely displays social climber tendencies with the obsession with wille. note that felice is still, by western standards, relatively light skinned as a black woman. (still pretty cool that YR depicted a black girl as the desirable love interest to a nordic prince though - and the fact that all of wille’s love interest(s) are poc! excited to see will they ever address this power disparity and the white privilege he has against simon - amongst all the other privileges he has)

alexander (my beloved) has a white dad as we know, and a white passing name. his mother who must be EAsian/ SEAsian was never shown on screen (not that i remember of) and is not of importance to the story i guess. the rest of the society is white. i wonder is alex technically part of the society too - is he also noble born and first son? (although the casting rumours for a potential older sibling disputes that) i will then ask is alexander, the only poc in the society’s space, only allowed to be there because of his proximity to whiteness - east asians have a history of being viewed as unthreatening and submissive. like, if alex isn’t noble and first born, couldn’t august have just found a random white boy minion? honestly i’m still not sure how to feel about this stereotype being played up, but it is also partially realistic to a character who has to exist in such a racially imbalanced environment (rip)

nils is the one we’re not sure if he is half white or not. august described him as nouveau riche - so it is possible that he would be considered ‘immigrant’ instead of mixed white swedish. or maybe he’s second or third gen, and his family has been accumulating wealth in sweden for ages. we don’t know. i wonder if him not being mixed white swedish is what distinguishes him from the nobility of the society - he seems pretty comfortable with the rest of the guys, so i’m leaning towards him being pretty much Swedish instead of first gen or an international student

madison is the international student from new york, and being from the united states is pretty much her essence. the actress nathalie is of lebanese descent, but madison’s ethnicity is not mentioned at all in canon. (maddie speak arabic when!) we assume 1) she has ties to sweden, and 2) she is Rich, in order for her to end up in hillerska. i don’t know does this translate to her being mixed white swedish, but canon definitely portrays her as white (in my opinion?) another scenario is that she is Swedish, but her family just happens to live in the states for business or whatever reason. i’m leaning towards her being pretty much only connected to the states, since she seems pretty bewildered by all the old money european culture around class and monarchy, for someone of her wealth background

simon and sara are the outliers to this pattern because they’re not rich, and they pretty much portray the first gen (i say first gen because linda seems uncomfortable at times, so i’d guess she didn’t grow up in sweden) immigrant instead of the privileged mixed white swedish kid - they didn’t necessarily have to be half white, seeing that omar (as we know of) is Not half white, although i am glad they did not give him a drug dealing latino dad 💀 (simon falling into the drug dealing trope is bad enough… at least he can blame the white dad, oof) otherwise, it would have been nice for simon to Not be half white, to show that he could still be Swedish (and bagging the prince lmao) even though he is latino

i do wish that there are more explicitly Not Half White poc in the YR-verse though

there was absolutely no conclusion to this weird headcanon/ analysis thing but thanks for reading lmao feel free to steal this as fic material

[farieshades]

The runes on Excalibur 👀👀

They’re Nordic, wouldn’t they be Anglo Saxon runes based on the time? Or some sort of Celtic equivalent?

Which. Does the sword = norse or like, type of sword ≠ Norse???

Basically. Just a general Excalibur question and whether it’s historically correct.

Bonus: What do the runes even mean, I know they’re a random sequence and not what they say it means in the show buuttt…. 🤷‍♀️

The Problem of Runes

The runes used in the show are Elder Futhark, an anglo-saxon/norseman language in a time when one of the larger enemy forces are the anglo-saxons. Which… doesn’t make a lot of sense. Interestingly, should the sword exist, at the time they'd have used Latin letters, since Romans had already come and begun slowly making people Christian. Funnily enough, Old English only came after Arthur's time in real history. They most likely were also speaking Old Welsh/Hen Gymraeg. I think I may have mentioned it before, who knows, but language is diverse. Language in a post-roman conquest after rome also leaves but anglo-saxons haven’t shown up, even worse. Likely, it wasn’t all simple as it is in the show (due to audience understandings) and likely each Kingdom had its own language/dialect and the different parts of their land also had their own dialects. Likely, around Camelot to Mercia, and back to Caerleon, it’s likely that the language would have links to Latin, at least in the upper class due to Latin being the language of government and writing, but it wouldn’t be the only thing about. 

But back to Futhark, my base understanding is that in Britain, there is roughly a period between 400-900 in which artifacts with Runes of this type are found, although they did exist up to 1066 until the Norman Conquest, while King Arthur exists anywhere from 420-1100 (give or take - the show has of course anachronisms[Tomato / Potato / Sandwhich / Silk dresses for Morgana], but it also, then, has dragons).  

Also, Ogham may be used if they wanted a more ‘mystic’ feel of inscription. The language is attributed to the Druids, the irish, the pictish, and would use 20 letters.

According to the High Medieval Briatharogam, an irish literature explanation for kennings on the ogham alphabet, trees can be ascribed to specific letters. There is scholarly debate, however, if Ogham is a cipher based on either Germanic runes, Elder Futhark, Greek alphabet, or even Latin. This is due, largely to the “H/Z” letters present in Ogham, but unused in Irish and the vocalic/consonantal variant of “U” vs “W”. And again, at the time, Latin in Roman Britannia, specifically southern and the west, would be prominent (and outside of Ireland, the highest concentration of Ogham is in Wales). 

T - Tinne - Holly = Overcoming challenge

A - Ailm - White Fir = Look to past for future understandings

C - Coll - Hazel = Inspire others through skill/wisdom

E - Eadhadh - Poplar = Face challenge with determination

M - Muin - Vine = Trust intuition/Relax

E - Eadhadh - Poplar = Face challenge with determination

U - Ur - Heather = Healing and respite time  

P - Peith - soft Birch = New beginnings, change, good fortune 

-

C - Coll - Hazel = Inspire others through skill/wisdom

A - Ailm - White Fir = Look to past for future understandings

S - Sail - Willow = Period of learning 

T - Tinne - Holly = Overcoming challenge

M - Muin - Vine = Trust intuition/Relax

E - Eadhadh - Poplar = Face challenge with determination

A - Ailm - White Fir = Look to past for future understandings

U - Ur - Heather = Healing and respite time  

A - Ailm - White Fir = Look to past for future understandings

Y - Eamhancholl = wisdom/understanding  

(Notably Ogham does not have a ‘w’ as a letter so substituting of the sound /u/ is done or with a soft /v/ sound - same with the dual C as there isn’t a K (from what i can tell))

Translation

Based on Arthurian ‘lore’, there are two base sayings that are inscribed on Arthur’s blade “Take me up, cast me away.” This comes from Tennyson'sIdylls of the King, within which the sword is inscribed with the "oldest tongue of all this world". Should the sword be pulled from a rock and anvil, there is often the inscription accompanining it saying "Whoso pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil is likewise King of all England" (or something to that degree) which is seen in Malory’s works. 

To receive an answer of what should be on the sword and what is, is very different. And I am shamelessly pulling from Merlin.fandom as this has been a conversation before. “The runes on the Excalibur in the picture say 'ahefemupwiithstr' which isn't really a word” (https://merlin.fandom.com/f/p/2608657942446217361) However, that’s not to say someone didn’t solve what it should be written as “Translation for "Take Me Up" • Tiwaz - Ansuz - Kenaz - Ewhaz • Mannaz - Ewhaz • Uruz - Perthro • / Translation for "Cast Me Away" • Kenaz - Ansuz - Soliow - Thurasaz • Mannaz - Ewhaz • Ansuz - Wunjo - Ansuz •” 

Now, these runes given for the saying do indeed spell out Take me up/Kast me away, this is written with the intention of spelling the words completely assuming no ideography (using what the letters mean[as you ask] rather than what they show: Tiwaz meaning Tyr/Sky god + order/justice / Ansuz meaning As/Odin + order/inspiration/sovereign power / Kenaz being Beacon/Torch + knowledge/tradition/hearth / Ewhaz being Horse + transportation/Steady progress/change / Mannaz meaning Man/Mankind + The Self/human race/mortality / Uruz being Auroch/Ox + Physical Strength/speed/untamed potential / Perthro meaning Lot Cup/Vagina + Feminine Mysteries/occult/secrets/initiation /// Soliow being The Sun + Success/honour/health / Thurasaz(or redoing Tiwaz potentially in the spelling of it) meaning Thorn/Giant + defense/conflict/catharsis/purging / Wunjo being Joy + Comfort/pleasure/harmony --- In my understanding of these, it feels like “take me up” in these runes has indications of taking a throne, bringing in order to the human race, whereas “cast me away” has similar lettering but implicates successes having been done and a conflict having been finished, thus ‘casting away’ the sword once the battle is done). 

The show, as mentioned above, has the engraving that translates to 'ahefemupwiithstr' and I’m going to save myself a bit of research and info dumping by going to another source, and I also, unfortunately, don’t know how to link things in Tumblr so we get to suffer screenshots - but do check out the original link:  https://dollopheadedmerlin.tumblr.com/post/149429230626/so-guys-im-thinking-of-making-a-replica-of#notes,

Sword Types

Anglo-Saxon swords comprised two-edged straight, flat blades. The tang of the blade was covered by a hilt, which consisted of an upper and lower guard, a pommel (often decorated depending on need and use), and a grip by which the sword was held.

At the time BBC depicts Merlin, the Anglo-Saxons have yet to conquer Britain, thus implying the soldiers wouldn’t likely be using an anglo-saxon sword, however, they could be considering the flow of ideas surpasses the flow of war I suppose.

Excalibur has been depicted from everything from a Roman Gladius (likely in earlier prose when King Arthur existed near the time of Post-Roman Britain, and there are stories with King Arthur and Julius Ceasar meeting, which is very… interesting), to a medieval longsword. Based off the hilt and pommel of Excalibur that we see, it appears to be almost a form of Claymore/Broadsword or Longsword.

However, these range roughly 1100-1700s. In the myths we have, Excalibur is never actually described. However, in modern depictions (film and artwork) it is typically depicted as a form of arming sword, that is, one-handed straight+long-bladed with a double-edge with a crossguard. Which, is reasonable, this style was very popular in the middle ages.

The depiction of Excalibur, in my opinion, is fitting to the 10th and 13th century forms of such swords (the 13th century has that fancy pommel at the end that the sword has in the show). However, your ask was more is this sword norse? Which, the depiction given is kind of in answer, due to the style given at what should be 5th century >< which may look something more similar to this with shorter crossguards while maintaining the circular pommel. Also to note, the term Pommel connects to anglo-normal “little apple” as it was an enlarged fitting at the top of the handle.

[95jezzica]

tbh you can't tell people not to send you questions about iceland ships bc he's a minor and then ship estonia with sweden. estonia is canonically 17 just like iceland. shipping either of them with any nordics is weird

Well, you would have a point if I had ever seen Estonia as 17 years old, but I don't.

In all honesty you might be one of the first people I have personally seen/read who actually sees Estonia as 17? Which is fine and valid, but I also want to clarify that at a bare minimum I see Estonia as 23+ years old, usually even older, and the majority of the Hetalia fans from at least the NB8 countries do the same.

The ages in Hetalia have always been wonky at best, but I don't think I will ever be convinced a nation so closely connected to the Scandinavian and Finnish history have the appearence of a 17y old - especially while knowing the history of Estonian Vikings' burning passion. (10 points for anyone getting the reference.)

Based on history it would even make more sense if Estonia was older than Sweden and Finland, but at the very least Estonia would be around the same age. It's canon hws Sweden existed as a personification during the Viking times, which basically means Estonia also did.

Anyway, we could probaby argue about their ages until we turn blue, but the end of the day we all view characters differently - and that's okay. Please just keep in mind I see Estonia as 23+ years old at a bare minimum, and in human AUs he's usually 1-3 year older than Sweden and/or Finland.

.

Now, my point in the DenNor ask was that I have repeatedly made it clear I see Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Iceland as siblings - but I have also talked about Iceland being a minor/their baby-brother a few times before as well. That's how I view them.

So yeah, it started to get a bit weird and annoying when people kept insisting on asking me for shipping headcanons between characters I have stated to see as siblings.

This is my Tumblr blog.

It's perfectly fine to see characters differently, but I'm not going to make myself uncomfortable on my own blog by making up shipping headcanons for characters I view as siblings, and especially not just because some random anon(s) on the internet asked/demanded me to do so.

I'm happy to answer questions/requests people might have whenever I can, but that also means the asker(s) need to respect my rules and how I view the characters. If they don't agree with how I see someone, that's fine, but then there's also better Tumblr blogs to ask instead.

Do you like DenNor? Ask a DenNor blog. Do you like DenSu? Ask a DenSu blog.

The same could be same about any other shipping out there, not just about Nordics. You wouldn't ask for UsUk headcanons from a FrUk blog, now would you?

So yeah, my point was to not ask the blog who have repeatedly told people how much they love Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Iceland as siblings (or that they view Iceland as a minor, for the matter) for shipping stuff between said siblings.

That's when things get iffy, for a lack of a better word.

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[thorraborinn]

I'm reading The Viking Spirit by Daniel McCoy after being recommend it, but I'm finding myself quite disappointed with it as the author seems to often insert his own opinions and emotions, mostly without clearly stating what is his own conjecture and personal opinion and biases.

Do you know of any better books that go over the history of the religion of the Norse peoples?

Hey, yeah, I don’t recommend Dan McCoy -- anyone presenting their website as “Norse Mythology for Smart People” is trying to sell you something other than just the information you’re looking for.

I gotta admit, the longer I’ve been out of academia, the less qualified I’ve become to answer this.  Still, if I sat here for a while I could probably come up with hundreds of books on the topic off the top of my head (although to be fair, most of the authors would be listed as “I forget their name, I think they’re Danish?”). It’s a huge, multidisciplinary field. The old general introductions are all out of date and the topic has gotten so broad and detailed that a new general overview probably couldn’t possibly be written, because it would be such a massive undertaking that by the time it’s done, it would already be obsolete. I’ll give you a few recommendations though. Some of these are about narrow topics like seiðr or fate, but it’s impossible to treat those thoroughly without also digging into other aspects of Norse religion, so even those may be helpful even if those more narrow subjects aren’t of particular interest.

The best way to find good reading material is, once you have something already that you like, check out that book’s footnotes and works cited. Look into the author, see what else they’ve written and who they’ve worked with. Of course, you need to already have gotten started for that to work, so hopefully my response can help with that.

I have a lot of very well-informed followers, so hopefully some of them can add some stuff to the list too.

Most of the work that gets done in the field gets is in articles rather than books. That can be hard to break into, because most of them assume you already know a bunch of stuff that you might not. Any peer-reviewed article should be well-cited enough for you to investigate any of that, but sometimes those sources will turn out to be hard to acquire or maybe in a language you don’t know. Still, it’s not a bad idea to head to https://www.academia.edu and search for some sub-topics interesting to you, or find a paper like this one (just a random example) and check out the related papers on the right.

Old Norse religion in long-term perspectives, ed. Anders Andrén, Kristina Jennbert, and Catharina Raudvere (2006). A big collection of conference papers from a conference on this topic in 2004 by some 70ish authors, covering a huge range of topics. It’s not a general overview -- this is like going to academia.edu to look for papers but taking a shortcut by having a collection curated for you, but it’s a good collection by some of the most important authors in the field.

Thomas DuBois, Nordic Religions in the Viking Age (1999). I’ll be honest, it’s been a long time since I’ve actually read this, but it was kind of a game-changer when it was written. I found it early in my own development and it helped send me in the right direction. Once this book came out, it was no longer possible to write about all Nordic peoples having a single monolithic culture. It also takes the Sámi people into account in an actually respectful and considered way, which has become more common since then, but was a big deal when it was written.

Christopher Abram, Myths of the Pagan North: The Gods of the Norsemen (2011). This is an introduction to the study of Norse mythology, which is to say, not an introduction to Norse religion. It treats these as two distinct spheres of study with different methods for approaching them

Anders Andrén, Tracing Old Norse Cosmology (2014). This is actually about the pre-history of Nordic religions. It’s about using a dialogue between archaeology and later mythological texts to try to see what can be learned about the development of that later mythology. Andrén focuses specifically on three aspects of the cosmology: the world tree, middle-earth, and the sun.

Karen Bek-Pedersen, The Norns in Old Norse Mythology (2011) or her dissertation, which is free online, Nornir in Old Norse Mythology (2008). The most thorough source out there on the topic of the norns and of fate in Norse myth and religion. One thing that stands out about this book is just how much upheaval of old assumptions and misunderstandings it does. If you happen to be heathen yourself, that probably makes this one even more important.

Neil Price, The Viking Way (2019). An extremely dense, detailed book about seiðr, using mostly an archaeological and anthropological perspective. Definitely a must-read for anyone interested in the topic, and it’s very well-sourced and there is a great deal of text in it explaining the history of research and fairly presenting opinions of other authors that diverge from his.

And here are some more that might be useful, but should be read with a little bit of caution:

Neil Price, The Children of Ash and Elm (2020). Full confession: I haven’t read this one. It comes highly recommended from many corners of the internet. I’ve already recommended a book by the same author. This is probably something somewhat like what you’re looking for. Just, if you’re going to read it, read this review by Mathias Nordvig and keep the criticisms in mind.

E.O.G. Turville-Petre, Myth and Religion of the North (1964). This is kind of the old standard introduction. It’s quite out of date, having been written back when such a general overview was possible. While I recommend reading it with the understanding that anything in it could have become corrected, recontextualized, debunked, or otherwise made obsolete in the last half-century, it’s still actually not a bad idea to read it anyway, not only because there’s plenty of stuff that actually will be found to hold up, but also because it gives you a picture of the state of scholarship as it went into the more contemporary modes of research. Norse mythology has been studied for so long now that scholars aren’t just studying that, they’re also observing and dialoguing with Norse studies from earlier periods, and this is among the best of that. It also has the benefit of being in the public domain: https://archive.org/details/TurvillePetreMythAndReligionOfTheNorth

I hope that helps, and if you want some more, or if there are particular subtopics that you’re looking for, or if there’s anything I can clarify for you feel free to send another ask.