Who Is Hyndla
Hyndla is a giantess and seer who appears in the Eddic poem Hyndluljod. She is known for her deep knowledge of ancestry, lineages, and the old stories of gods, giants, and heroes. When the goddess Freyja needs proof of her worshipper Ottar's noble descent, she turns to Hyndla for help.
Freyja rides to Hyndla's dwelling, sometimes described as a cave or remote hall, and urges the giantess to accompany her. Together they travel, often pictured riding wolf or boar, while Hyndla recites the long list of Ottar's forebears and the tangled web of kinship among gods, kings, and giants.
Hyndla's role combines the fearsome presence of a giantess with the authority of a wise woman. She is not a friend to the gods, yet her knowledge is valuable enough that even Freyja must bargain and contend with her to obtain it.
Character and Nature
Keeper of Lineages
Hyndla is famed for reciting long genealogies, revealing the ancestry of Ottar and connecting him to famous heroes and ancient families.
Prophetic Insight
As a seer, Hyndla has a wide view of the mythic past and the hidden ties that bind gods, giants, and humans.
Remote Giantess
She dwells in a far-off place and must be sought out, underlining how difficult it is to gain true knowledge of one's origins.
Hyndla in the Poem Hyndluljod
In Hyndluljod, Freyja wishes to reward her devoted worshipper Ottar by helping him secure an inheritance. To prove his claim, she needs a witness who can recite his ancestry. She rides to Hyndla and demands that the giantess accompany her and speak the names of Ottar's forefathers before the gods.
Hyndla initially resists and speaks sharply to Freyja, but the goddess persists. During their journey, Hyndla delivers an extensive catalogue of ancestors, linking Ottar to legendary figures, kings, and heroes. The poem becomes both a legal aid for Ottar and a rich source of mythic genealogy for the audience.
At the end, Freyja asks for a drink of memory for Ottar so that he will remember all that Hyndla has recited. The exchange shows the uneasy cooperation between goddess and giantess, and the power of spoken lineage in Norse culture.
Quick Facts
Associated Figures and Tales
Symbolism
Hyndla symbolises the depths of memory and tradition, preserved on the edges of the worlds in the mind of a single, feared figure. She represents how ancestry, law, and identity depend on those who remember and speak the old names, even when they stand outside the society that needs their knowledge.