Roman era The earliest records of the Germanic peoples were recorded by the Romans, and in these works Thor is frequently referred to—via a process known as (where characteristics perceived to be similar by Romans result in identification of a non-Roman god as a Roman deity)—as either the Roman god
Jupiter (also known as
Jove) or the
Greco-Roman god Hercules. The first clear example of this occurs in the Roman historian
Tacitus's late first-century work , where, writing about the religion of the (a confederation of
Germanic peoples), he comments that "among the gods Mercury is the one they principally worship. They regard it as a religious duty to offer to him, on fixed days, human as well as other sacrificial victims. Hercules and Mars they appease by animal offerings of the permitted kind" and adds that a portion of the also venerate "
Isis". In this instance, Tacitus refers to the god
Odin as "
Mercury", Thor as "Hercules", and the god as "
Mars", and the identity of the
Isis of the Suebi has been debated. In Thor's case, the identification with the god Hercules is likely at least in part due to similarities between Thor's hammer and Hercules' club. In his
Annals, Tacitus again refers to the veneration of "Hercules" by the Germanic peoples; he records a wood beyond the river
Weser (in what is now northwestern
Germany) as dedicated to him. A deity known as
Hercules Magusanus was venerated in
Germania Inferior; due to the Roman identification of Thor with Hercules,
Rudolf Simek has suggested that
Magusanus was originally an epithet attached to the
Proto-Germanic deity *
Þunraz.
Post-Roman era bears his crucifix after felling Thor's Oak in
Bonifacius (1905) by
Emil Doepler The first recorded instance of the name of the god appears upon the
Nordendorf fibulae, a piece of jewelry created during the
Migration Period and found in
Bavaria. The item bears an
Elder Futhark inscribed with the name (i.e. ), the southern Germanic form of Thor's name. Around the second half of the 8th century, Old English texts mention (), which likely refers to a
Saxon version of the god. In relation, is sometimes used in Old English texts to gloss
Jupiter, the god may be referenced in the poem
Solomon and Saturn, where the thunder strikes the devil with a "fiery axe", and the Old English expression ("thunder ride") may refer to the god's thunderous, goat-led chariot. A 9th-century AD codex from
Mainz, Germany, known as the
Old Saxon Baptismal Vow, records the name of three Old Saxon gods, (Old Saxon "
Wodan"), , and , by way of their renunciation as demons in a formula to be repeated by Germanic pagans formally
converting to Christianity. According to a near-contemporary account, the Christian missionary
Saint Boniface felled an
oak tree dedicated to "Jove" in the 8th century, the
Donar's Oak in the region of
Hesse,
Germany. The
Kentish royal legend, probably 11th-century, contains the story of a villainous reeve of
Ecgberht of Kent called Thunor, who is swallowed up by the earth at a place from then on known as (Old English 'Thunor's mound').
Gabriel Turville-Petre saw this as an invented origin for the placename demonstrating loss of memory that Thunor had been a god's name. 's
A Description of the Northern Peoples; from left to right,
Frigg, Thor and Odin
Viking age In the 11th century, chronicler
Adam of Bremen records in his that a statue of Thor, who Adam describes as "mightiest", sits in the
Temple at Uppsala in the center of a triple throne (flanked by
Woden and "Fricco") located in ,
Sweden. Adam details that "Thor, they reckon, rules the sky; he governs thunder and lightning, winds and storms, fine weather and fertility" and that "Thor, with his mace, looks like Jupiter". Adam details that the people of had appointed
priests to each of the gods, and that the priests were to offer up
sacrifices. In Thor's case, he continues, these sacrifices were done when plague or famine threatened. Earlier in the same work, Adam relays that in 1030 an English preacher, Wulfred, was
lynched by assembled Germanic pagans for "profaning" a representation of Thor. Two objects with
runic inscriptions invoking Thor date from the 11th century, one from
England and one from Sweden. The first, the
Canterbury Charm from
Canterbury,
England, calls upon Thor to heal a wound by banishing a . The second, the
Kvinneby amulet, invokes protection by both Thor and his hammer. On four (or possibly five)
runestones, an invocation to Thor appears that reads "May Thor hallow (these
runes/this monument)!" The invocation appears thrice in Denmark (
DR 110,
DR 209, and
DR 220), and a single time in (
VG 150), Sweden. A fifth appearance may possibly occur on a runestone found in , Sweden (
Sö 140), but the reading is contested. Pictorial representations of Thor's hammer appear on a total of five runestones found in Denmark (
DR 26 and
DR 120) and in the Swedish counties of (
VG 113) and (
Sö 86 and
Sö 111). At least three stones depict Thor fishing for the serpent : the
stone in , Denmark, the
Altuna Runestone in , Sweden and the
Gosforth Cross in
Gosforth, England.
Sune Lindqvist argued in the 1930s that the image stone
Ardre VIII on depicts two scenes from the story: Thor ripping the head of Hymir's ox and Thor and Hymir in the boat, but this has been disputed.
Image gallery File:Runestone from Sønder Kirkby, Falster, Denmark.jpg|The
Runestone (DR 220), a runestone from Denmark bearing the "May Thor hallow these runes!" inscription File:Sö 111, Stenkvista.jpg|A runestone from , Sweden bearing a depiction of Thor's hammer File:U1161 Altunastenen Tors fiskafänge 2.jpg|The
Altuna stone from Sweden, one of four stones depicting Thor's fishing trip File:Altunastenen U 1161 (Raä-nr Altuna 42-1) Tor detalj 0440.jpg|Closeup of Thor with depicted on the Altuna stone. File:Gosforth fishing.jpg|The
Gosforth depiction, one of four stones depicting Thor's fishing trip File:Vg150 Väne-Åsaka 8 Velandastenen Thor vigi.jpg|Runes () '''''' on the
Velanda Runestone, Sweden, meaning "may
hallow". File:Thor and Jörmungandr by Frølich.svg|
Thor and Jörmungandr by Lorenz Frølich
Post-Viking age In the 12th century, more than a century after Norway was "officially" Christianized, Thor was still being invoked by the population, as evidenced by a stick bearing a runic message found among the
Bryggen inscriptions in
Bergen,
Norway. On the stick, both Thor and Odin are called upon for help; Thor is asked to "receive" the reader, and Odin to "own" them.
Poetic Edda In the
Poetic Edda, compiled during the 13th century from traditional source material reaching into the pagan period, Thor appears (or is mentioned) in the poems , , , , , , , , and . In the poem , a dead recounts the history of the universe and foretells the future to the disguised god Odin, including the death of Thor. Thor, she foretells, will do battle with the
great serpent during the immense mythic war waged at , and there he will slay the monstrous snake, yet after he will only be able to take nine steps before succumbing to the venom of the beast: : Afterwards, says the , the sky will turn black before fire engulfs the world, the stars will disappear, flames will dance before the sky, steam will rise, the world will be covered in water and then it will be raised again, green and fertile. In the poem , the god Odin, in disguise as , and tortured, starved and thirsty, imparts in the young cosmological lore, including that Thor resides in , and that, every day, Thor wades through the rivers
and, and the two . There, says, Thor sits as judge at the immense cosmological world tree, . In , the god 's messenger, , threatens the fair , with whom is smitten, with numerous threats and curses, including that Thor, , and Odin will be angry with her, and that she risks their "potent wrath". Thor is the main character of , where, after traveling "from the east", he comes to an inlet where he encounters a ferryman who gives his name as (Odin, again in disguise), and attempts to hail a ride from him. The ferryman, shouting from the inlet, is immediately rude and obnoxious to Thor and refuses to ferry him. At first, Thor holds his tongue, but only becomes more aggressive, and the poem soon becomes a match between Thor and , all the while revealing lore about the two, including Thor's killing of several in "the east" and women on (now the Danish island of ). In the end, Thor ends up walking instead. is lame, by (1895) Thor is again the main character in the poem , where, after the gods have been hunting and have eaten their prey, they have an urge to drink. They "sh[ake] the twigs" and interpret what they say. The gods decide that they would find suitable cauldrons at 's home. Thor arrives at 's home and finds him to be cheerful, looks into his eyes, and tells him that he must prepare feasts for the gods. Annoyed, tells Thor that the gods must first bring to him a suitable cauldron to brew ale in. The gods search but find no such cauldron anywhere. However, tells Thor that he may have a solution; east of lives , and he owns such a deep kettle. So, after Thor secures his goats at 's home, Thor and go to 's hall in search of a
cauldron large enough to brew
ale for them all. They arrive, and sees his nine-hundred-headed grandmother and his gold-clad mother, the latter of which welcomes them with a horn. After —who is not happy to see Thor—comes in from the cold outdoors, 's mother helps them find a properly strong cauldron. Thor eats a big meal of two oxen (all the rest eat but one), and then goes to sleep. In the morning, he awakes and informs that he wants to go fishing the following evening, and that he will catch plenty of food, but that he needs bait. tells him to go get some bait from his pasture, which he expects should not be a problem for Thor. Thor goes out, finds 's best ox, and rips its head off. After a
lacuna in the manuscript of the poem, abruptly picks up again with Thor and in a boat, out at sea. catches a few
whales at once, and Thor baits his line with the head of the ox. Thor casts his line and the monstrous serpent bites. Thor pulls the serpent on board, and violently slams him in the head with his hammer. shrieks, and a noisy commotion is heard from underwater before another lacuna appears in the manuscript. After the second lacuna, is sitting in the boat, unhappy and totally silent, as they row back to shore. On shore, suggests that Thor should help him carry a whale back to his farm. Thor picks both the boat and the whales up, and carries it all back to 's farm. After Thor successfully smashes a crystal goblet by throwing it at 's head on 's mother's suggestion, Thor and are given the cauldron. cannot lift it, but Thor manages to roll it, and so with it they leave. Some distance from 's home, an army of many-headed beings led by attacks the two, but are killed by the hammer of Thor. Although one of
his goats is lame in the leg, the two manage to bring the cauldron back, have plenty of ale, and so, from then on, return to 's for more every winter. In the poem , the half-god
Loki angrily
flites with the gods in the sea entity 's hall. Thor does not attend the event, however, as he is away in the east for unspecified purposes. Towards the end of the poem, the flyting turns to , Thor's wife, whom Loki then claims to have slept with. The god 's servant interjects, and says that, since all of the mountains are shaking, she thinks that Thor is on his way home. adds that Thor will bring peace to the quarrel, to which Loki responds with insults. Thor arrives and tells Loki to be silent, and threatens to rip Loki's head from his body with his hammer. Loki asks Thor why he is so angry, and comments that Thor will not be so daring to fight "the wolf" () when it eats Odin (a reference to the foretold events of ). Thor again tells him to be silent, and threatens to throw him into the sky, where he will never be seen again. Loki says that Thor should not brag of his time in the east, as he once crouched in fear in the thumb of a glove (a story involving deception by the magic of , recounted in the
Prose Edda book )—which, he comments, "was hardly like Thor". Thor again tells him to be silent, threatening to break every bone in Loki's body. Loki responds that he intends to live a while yet, and again insults Thor with references to his encounter with . Thor responds with a fourth call to be silent, and threatens to send Loki to . At Thor's final threat, Loki gives in, commenting that only for Thor will he leave the hall, for "I know alone that you do strike", and the poem continues. : Thor is unhappily dressed by the goddess and her attendants as herself In the comedic poem , Thor again plays a central role. In the poem, Thor wakes and finds that his powerful hammer, , is missing. Thor turns to Loki, and tells him that nobody knows that the hammer has been stolen. The two go to the dwelling of the goddess , and so that he may attempt to find , Thor asks her if he may borrow her feather cloak. agrees, and says she would lend it to Thor even if it were made of silver or gold, and Loki flies off, the feather cloak whistling. In , the sits on a
barrow, plaiting golden collars for his female dogs, and trimming the manes of his horses. sees Loki, and asks what could be amiss among the and the
elves; why is Loki alone in ? Loki responds that he has bad news for both the elves and the —that Thor's hammer, , is gone. says that he has hidden eight leagues beneath the earth, from which it will be retrieved, but only if is brought to him as his wife. Loki flies off, the feather cloak whistling, away from and back to the court of the gods. Thor asks Loki if his efforts were successful, and that Loki should tell him while he is still in the air as "tales often escape a sitting man, and the man lying down often barks out lies." Loki states that it was indeed an effort, and also a success, for he has discovered that has the hammer, but that it cannot be retrieved unless is brought to as his wife. The two return to and tell her to put on a bridal head dress, as they will drive her to . , indignant and angry, goes into a rage, causing all of the halls of the to tremble in her anger, and her necklace, the famed , falls from her. pointedly refuses. As a result, the gods and goddesses meet and hold a
thing to discuss and debate the matter. At the thing, the god puts forth the suggestion that, in place of , Thor should be dressed as the bride, complete with jewels, women's clothing down to his knees, a bridal head-dress, and the necklace . Thor rejects the idea, yet Loki interjects that this will be the only way to get back . Loki points out that, without , the will be able to invade and settle in
Asgard. The gods dress Thor as a bride, and Loki states that he will go with Thor as his maid, and that the two shall drive to together. After riding together in Thor's
goat-driven chariot, the two, disguised, arrive in . commands the in his hall to spread straw on the benches, for has arrived to be his wife. recounts his treasured animals and objects, stating that was all that he was missing in his wealth. Early in the evening, the disguised Loki and Thor meet with and the assembled . Thor eats and drinks ferociously, consuming entire animals and three casks of
mead. finds the behavior at odds with his impression of , and Loki, sitting before and appearing as a "very shrewd maid", makes the excuse that "'s" behaviour is due to her having not consumed anything for eight entire days before arriving due to her eagerness to arrive. then lifts "'s" veil and wants to kiss "her". Terrifying eyes stare back at him, seemingly burning with fire. Loki says that this is because "" has not slept for eight nights in her eagerness. : Thor clasps his daughter's hand and chuckles at the "all-wise"
dwarf, whom he has outwitted In the poem , Thor tricks a
dwarf, , to his doom upon finding that he seeks to wed his daughter (unnamed, possibly ). As the poem starts, Thor meets a dwarf who talks about getting married. Thor finds the dwarf repulsive and, apparently, realizes that the bride is his daughter. Thor comments that the wedding agreement was made among the gods while Thor was gone, and that the dwarf must seek his consent. To do so, Thor says, must tell him what he wants to know about
all of the worlds that the dwarf has visited. In a long question and answer session, does exactly that; he describes natural features as they are known in the languages of various races of beings in the world, and gives an amount of cosmological lore. However, the question and answer session turns out to be a ploy by Thor, as, although Thor comments that he has truly never seen anyone with more wisdom in their breast, Thor has managed to delay the dwarf enough for the Sun to turn him to stone; "day dawns on you now, dwarf, now sun shines on the hall". In the poem , offers to the woman to (sacrifice) to Thor so that she may be protected, and comments that Thor does not care much for women.
Prose Edda, , and sagas The prologue to the
Prose Edda euhemerises Thor as a prince of
Troy, and the son of
Menon by Troana, a daughter of . Thor, also known as , is said to have married the prophetess
Sibyl (identified with ). Thor is further said here to have been raised in
Thrace by a chieftain named
Lorikus, whom he later slew to assume the title of "King of Thrace", to have had a pale complexion and hair "fairer than gold", and to have been strong enough to lift ten bearskins. In later sagas he is described as red-bearded, but there is no evidence for a red beard in the Eddas. The name of the is explained as "men from
Asia",
Asgard being the "Asian city" (i.e., Troy). Alternatively, Troy is in (Turkey, i.e., Asia Minor), and
Asialand is
Scythia, where Thor founded a new city named Asgard. Odin is a remote descendant of Thor, removed by twelve generations, who led an expedition across Germany, Denmark and Sweden to Norway. In the
Prose Edda, Thor is mentioned in all four books;
Prologue, , , and . In , composed in the 13th century by , Thor or statues of Thor are mentioned in , , , and . In chapter 5, a heavily euhemerized account of the gods is provided, where Thor is described as having been a —a pagan priest—who was given by Odin (who himself is explained away as having been an exceedingly powerful magic-wielding chieftain from the east) a dwelling in the mythical location of , in what is now Sweden. The saga narrative adds that numerous names—at the time of the narrative, popularly in use—were derived from
Thor.
Saint Olaf . Around the 12th century, folk traditions and iconography of the Christianizing king
Olaf II of Norway (Saint Olaf; c. 995 – 1030) absorbed elements of both Thor and Freyr. After Olaf's death, his cult had spread quickly all over Scandinavia, where many churches were dedicated to him, as well as to other parts of Northern Europe. His cult distinctively mixed both ecclesiastical and folk elements. From Thor, he inherited the quick temper, physical strength and merits as a giant-slayer. Early depictions portray Olaf as clean-shaven, but after 1200 he appears with a red beard. For centuries, Olaf figured in folk traditions as a slayer of
trolls and giants, and as a protector against malicious forces.
Modern folklore Tales about Thor, or influenced by native traditions regarding Thor, continued into the modern period, particularly in Scandinavia. Writing in the 19th century, scholar
Jacob Grimm records various phrases surviving into Germanic languages that refer to the god, such as the Norwegian ("Thor's warmth") for lightning and the Swedish ("The good old (fellow) is taking a ride") as well as the word ("Thor's rumble" or "Thor's thunder") when it thunders. Grimm comments that, at times, Scandinavians often "no longer liked to utter the god's real name, or they wished to extol his fatherly goodness". In Sweden, it was probably as a euphemism that people referred to thunder as "the ride of the god"—*
ās-ækia (OWN: *
áss-ekja) resulting in the modern Swedish word for thunder—
åska. Thor remained pictured as a red-bearded figure, as evident by the Danish rhyme that yet referred to him as ("Thor with his long beard") and the
North-Frisian curse ("let red-haired thunder see to that!"). In the Netherlands,
The Sagas of Veluwe has a story called
Ontstaan van het Uddeler- en Bleeke meer which features Thor and his fight with the Winter Giants. ==Archaeological record==