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In Norse mythology, Nótt or Night is the personification of night. Her origin and nature are described by Snorri Sturluson in the Prose Edda.
- Nörfi eða Narfi hét jötunn er bygði í Jötunheimum. Hann átti dóttur er Nótt hét. Hon var svört ok døkk sem hon átti ætt til. Hon var gipt þeim manni er Naglfari hét. Þeira sonr hét Uðr. Því næst var hon gipt þeim er Annarr hét. Jörð hét þeira dóttir. Síðarst átti hana Dellingr, var hann Ása ættar. Var þeira sonr Dagr. Var hann ljóss ok fagr eptir faðerni sínu. Þá tók Allföðr Nótt ok Dag, son hennar, ok gaf þeim tvá hesta ok tvær kerrur ok setti þau upp á himin, at þau skulu ríða á hverjum tveim dœgrum umhverfis jörðina. Ríðr Nótt fyrri þeim hesti er kallaðr er Hrímfaxi, ok at morni hverjum døggvir hann jörðina af méldropum sínum. Sá hestr er Dagr á heitir Skinfaxi, ok lýsir allt lopt ok jörðina af faxi hans. - Normalized text from the R manuscript, [1]
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- There was a giant living in Giantland called Nörfi or Narfi. He had a daughter named Night. She was dark and swarthy, like the family to which she belonged. Her first marriage was with a man called Naglfari, their son was called Auð. Next she was married to Annar, their daughter was called Earth. Last, Delling married her, and he was of the family of the gods. Their son was Day, he was bright and beautiful like his father's side. Then All-father took Night and her son, Day, and gave them two horses and two chariots and put them up in the sky, so that they should ride round the world every twenty-four hours. Night rides first on a horse called Hrímfaxi, and every morning he bedews the earth with the foam from his bit. Day's horse is called Skinfaxi, and the whole earth and sky are illuminated by his mane. - Young's translation
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While nótt is a common word occurring in several poems of the Poetic Edda it is hard to tell when the poet had the personification in mind.
[edit] References
- Eysteinn Björnsson (ed.) (2005). Snorra-Edda: Formáli & Gylfaginning : Textar fjögurra meginhandrita. http://www.hi.is/~eybjorn/gg/
- Finnur Jónsson. Lexicon Poeticum (1931). København: S. L. Møllers Bogtrykkeri.
- Young, Jean I. (1964). Snorri Sturluson : the Prose Edda. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-01231-3.
