The goddess of love, fertility, war, and death, Freya was believed to have been one of the most powerful deities in Norse mythology.
Public DomainAn illustration of Freya, goddess of love and war in Norse mythology, in Freya (1901) by Johannes Gehrts.
Norse mythology is full of powerful gods like Odin and Loki. But one of the most powerful was a goddess named Freya, or Freyja.
Said to be the goddess of love, sex, fertility, war, and death, Freya held an important place in the pantheon of Norse gods. Her story was described across Old Norse texts, which spun legends about Freya’s magic necklace and feathered cloak, her chariot drawn by cats, and her role in the afterlife.
Still, her story is perhaps less well known that that of Odin or Loki. Read on to learn about Freya, one of the most powerful of all Norse gods.
Freya, Goddess Of Love And War Worshipped In Norse Mythology
Public DomainIllustration of Freya by John Bauer (1882–1918).
As with most ancient deities, Freya’s exact origins are shrouded in mystery. Her name comes from the Proto-Germanic word frawjō, meaning “lady,” and her name means “lady, mistress,” in Old Norse.
Her stories were originally passed from generation to generation as songs and poems, until they were compiled in a number of 13th century texts. These include the Prose Edda and the similar but distinct Poetic Edda.
These texts tell Freya’s legend. In Prose Edda, for example, the poem Gylfaginning describes Freya as one of the most powerful Norse gods. She is said to be the daughter of Njörd, the god of the sea, and the sister of Freyr, the Norse god peace, fertility, rain, and sunshine.
For her part, Freya is connected to the realms of love, sex, fertility, war, and death. She and Odin both welcome slain heroes to their halls in the afterlife: Odin’s hall is Valhalla, and Freya’s is called Fólkvangar.
She is said to own Brísingamen, a necklace symbolizing of her beauty and power, and to wear a cloak called Valshamr that allowed her to transform into a bird and fly between realms. Additionally, Freya purportedly had her own unique form of transportation — a cat-drawn chariot.
How Freya Appeared In Norse Poems And Stories
Public DomainIn one story, Freya’s necklace Brisingamen is stolen — then returned by Heimdall, a son of Odin.
In the Poetic Edda, Freya is mentioned as an important figure during Ragnarök, the death and rebirth of the world. She is described as being married to Óðr, or Odr, with whom she has two daughters, Hnoss and Gersemi. (However, some scholars believe that Freya is actually married to Odin, given her similarities in myth to his wife, Frigg.)
In Grímnismál, another poem in the Poetic Edda, Freya’s power and purpose are described in greater detail. The poem centers around Odin and the Vanir, or gods gifted with powers of wisdom, fertility, and future telling. In the poem, Odin tells Agnar, a mythological hero, that both he and Freya divide the afterlife among them. Warriors that die in battle could either go to Odin’s Valhalla, a banquet hall, or Freya’s Fólkvangr, a meadow.
Freya’s nature as both a loving figure and one closely tied to war and the afterlife is also emphasized in the Grímnismál.
In one famous poem, called the Lokasenna, the Norse trickster god Loki attends a banquet with all of the gods and accuses the goddesses of promiscuity. He even accuses Freya of sleeping with every god — including her own brother. But Freya stands her ground.
Public DomainA depiction of Freya and Loki’s fight in the Lokasenna by Lorenz Frølich c. 1895.
The poem ends with the other gods calling Loki a pervert and admonishing him for his uncouth acts and words.
Another intriguing poem centered around Freya is the Þrymskviða in the Poetic Edda. In the poem, Freya dresses Thor like herself in order to fool a lesser god (jötunn) named Þrymr who stole Thor’s sacred hammer in the hopes of exchanging it for Freya’s hand in marriage. However, the goddess refuses to marry Þrymr, stating:
Know of me to be of women the lewdest,
if with thee I drive to Jötunheim.
Þrymr, blind with lust for Freya, accepts the disguised Thor into his home. Thor, alongside Loki who is dressed as his handmaiden, takes the hammer back by force — all thanks to Freya’s help.
So how was Freya worshipped?
The Early History Of The Worship Of Freya
Public Domain An illustration of Freya picking apples from Arthur Rackham c. 1910.
The worship of Freya likely began centuries ago, and continued into the Viking Age. Freya was considered a powerful goddess, and was thus worshipped by a wide variety of people. Women might turn to her for help with love, for example, while warriors might pray for protection during battle.
Rituals for Freya were performed at sacred sites called lundr or hof. At these sites, worshippers may have left offerings or sacrificed animals on a hǫrg, or stone altar. Indeed, in the poem Hyndluljóð, Freya praises her servant, Óttar, for constructing an altar for her and for performing sacrifices.
For me a shrine of stones he made,
And now to glass the rock has grown;
Oft with the blood of beasts was it red;
In the goddesses ever did Ottar trust.
Wikimedia CommonsA Viking sacrificial ceremony, called “blóts,” were held to sacrifice the gods.
In the 12th century, however, worship of Freya declined as Christianity became more popular across Scandinavia. Her likeness was replaced with images of the Virgin Mary as pagan traditions were discouraged, and missionaries specifically characterized Freya as a sexually impure figure — someone unworthy of reverence. Missionaries referred to Freya as a “whore,” and encouraged newly converted Christians to worship the demure and more “pure” Virgin Mary instead of the sexual Freya.
However, Freya did not disappear completely. Scandinavians continued to quietly worship her as late as the 18th and 19th centuries. And even today, modern Pagans still recognize and worship Freya as one of the most powerful goddesses across in the world wide pantheon.
As such, Freya’s legacy remains powerful, even if she’s not worshipped like she used to be. The Norse goddess of love, sex, war, and death, she played a crucial role in Norse mythology — and was a prominent character in many Old Norse stories. Powerful, stubborn, and sensual, she oversaw the realms of life and death, and was connected to questions of love and fertility.
It’s no wonder that her story has endured across the centuries.
After reading about Freya, goddess of love, sex, death, and war in North mythology dive into the fascinating story of Nyx, the primordial Greek goddess of the night. Then, discover the wild stories of the 12 of the greatest Greek gods and goddesses, from Zeus to Hephaestus to Hestia.
