Niffleheim

Niffleheim

Gallery

Official Name

Niffleheim

Aliases

Niflheim, Niflheimr, "house of mists", "Mist-home"

Location Details

Locale

Asgard

First appearance

Unknown

1 History
2 Residents
3 Notes
4 Trivia
5 See Also
6 Links and References

History

Niffelheim is one of the Nine Worlds. It is the far northern region of icy fogs and mists, darkness and cold. It is situated on the lowest level of the universe. The realm of death, Hel is part of the vast, cold region. Niffelheim lies underneath the third root of Yggdrasil, close to the spring Hvergelmir. Also situated on this level is Nastrond, the Shore of Corpses, where the serpent Nidhogg eats corpses and gnaws on the roots of Yggdrasil.

Niffelheim is the darkest and coldest region, mentioned in the Edda. It was the first of the Nine Worlds, created in the empty Abyss Gunnungagap. Niffelheim was placed in the northern region of Gunnungagap and Muspelheim in the southern region.

In Niffelheim there was located the eldest of the three wells, called Hvergelmir, protected by the dragon Nidhogg. Hvergelmir was the origin of all being and the place where every being will go back.

Elivagar ("unknown waves" or "poisonous stream") were the twelve streams, flowing out the Hvergelmir. The Elivagar filled the emptyness of Gunnungagap and freezed in the regions of Niffelheim.

Like the primal cow Audumla, the giant Ymir was created when the hot fire of Muspelheim spray to the Elivagar's glacier. The cow Audumla licked the salty ice-blocks, till Buri came forth from the blocks.

Niffelheim is sometimes called Hel. The ruler of Hel is Hela, daughter of Loki and Angrboda and its guardian was the hell-hound Garm ("Howl"), who was curt in front of Gnipahellir, the cave before Gjoll, the entry of Hel.

Nastrond ("Corpse-Strand"), the land of the dead, was placed in Niffelheim and there stands Eljudni ("Plague"), the hall of Hel.

After Ragnarök , there will be a hall here for the punishment of murderers, oath breakers, and philanderers