Who Is Nott
Nott is the personification of Night in Norse mythology. She is described as a dark skinned giantess, the daughter of the Jotun Narfi. Though born among the giants, she becomes part of the ordered cosmos when the gods give her a place in the sky.
Each night Nott rides across the heavens on her horse Hrimfaxi. Foam from Hrimfaxi's bit falls down to the earth as dew, linking her nightly journey to the cool moisture of morning.
Nott has several important children: with Naglfari she bears the daughter Aud; with Annar she has the earth goddess Jord; and with the god Delling she gives birth to Dagr, the personified Day. Through her family she stands at the boundary between giants, gods, earth, and sky.
Character and Nature
Night Personified
Nott is not just a goddess of night, she is Night itself riding the sky and covering the world in darkness.
Bearer of Stars
Her passage is linked with the starry sky and the quiet beauty of the hours when the sun has gone.
Rider of Hrimfaxi
Her horse Hrimfaxi pulls her chariot across the sky and its foaming bit becomes the dew of early morning.
Nott and the Cycle of Night and Day
According to the myths, the gods take Nott and her son Dagr and place them in the sky to ride around the world in turn. Nott rides first with Hrimfaxi, bringing darkness. After her comes Dagr on the shining horse Skinfaxi, whose mane lights up the heavens.
This orderly movement of Nott and Dagr creates the rhythm of night and day for gods, giants, and humans alike. The story shows how even beings with giant ancestry are woven into the structure of the cosmos.
Nott's journey above the earth is a reminder that the cycles of time are carried by living powers, each with ancestry, relationships, and a place in the great pattern of the worlds.
Quick Facts
Associated Figures and Realms
Symbolism
Nott symbolises the calm, enveloping power of night and the way even darkness is part of a balanced cosmic rhythm. As a giantess woven into the gods ordered sky, she shows how forces that begin outside Asgard still shape the daily life of every being.