Norse Mythology · deity

Thor

Þórr

also: Donar (Old English)

deitythunderstormsstrengththe protection of humans

God of thunder and storms, wielder of the hammer Mjölnir, and the mightiest protector of the gods and of humans.

Thor's Battle Against the Jötnar · Mårten Eskil Winge · 1872 · National Museum, Stockholm · Public domain

The account

Who they are

Thor is the god of thunder and the mightiest of the Æsir, the protector of the gods and of humanity [S1][S2][S3]. His weapon is the hammer Mjölnir, which never misses and which he uses against the giants and the monsters that threaten the world [S2]. He is the son of Odin and of a giantess (Járnsaxa in one account, the earth in another) [S2]. Thor is a god of the common people — his hammer was a symbol of protection worn by ordinary people, and his name is the source of 'Thursday' (Thor's day) [S3][S4]. His enemies are the giants (jötnar) and the great monsters: the world-serpent Jörmungandr, whom he will slay (and be slain by) at Ragnarök, and the giant Hrungnir, whom he fells with Mjölnir [S1][S2]. He is a figure of raw, protective strength — not the subtle wisdom of Odin, but the brute force that keeps the world safe [S2][S3].

Worth knowing

Wields the hammer Mjölnir, which never misses [S2].
Protector of the gods and of humans; a god of the common people [S3].
His name gives 'Thursday' (Thor's day) [S3].
Slays and is slain by the world-serpent Jörmungandr at Ragnarök [S1][S2].

Uncertainties & variants

Thor's mother is given as a giantess (Járnsaxa) in some accounts and as the earth (Jörd) in others — a genuine variant [S2].
Thor is the 'common people's' god, more associated with protection than with the courtly Æsir [S3].

Relationships (10)

Connections

9 rows · 10 recorded edges — identical notes are grouped

Family & kinship

PARENT_OFOdin — Odin is the parent of Thor.[S2]

PARENT_OFUllr — Thor (with Sif) is (in some accounts) the parent of Ullr.[S2]

PARENT_OFMóði — Thor is the parent of Móði.[S2]

PARENT_OFMagni — Thor (with Járnsaxa) is the parent of Magni.[S2]

Partners

PARTNER_OFSif — Thor and Sif are married.[S2]

Conflict & enmity

ENEMY_OFLoki — Loki is ultimately an enemy of the gods, including Thor.[S2]

KILLEDJörmungandr — Jörmungandr and Thor will kill each other at Ragnarök.[S1] [S2]

KILLEDHrungnir — Thor slew the giant Hrungnir with Mjölnir.[S2]

Artifacts

OWNSMjölnir — Thor is the wielder of Mjölnir, the hammer of his thunder.[[S1]]

Local graph

Their corner of the divine world

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Myths featuring Thor

2 stories

Ragnarök (The Fate of the Gods)

At the end of the world, a great winter (the Fimbulwinter) precedes Ragnarök. The bonds break: Fenrir breaks free, Jörmungandr rises from the sea, and the ship Naglfar (built from the nails of the dead) sails with the hosts of the dead. Heimdall sounds the horn Gjallarhorn; the gods ride to the field of Vígríðr. In the great battle, Odin is swallowed by Fenrir (avenged by Víðarr), Thor slays Jörmungandr but dies of his venom, Freyr is slain by Surt (having given away his sword), and Heimdall and Loki kill each other. Surt's fire destroys the world; from the ashes, a new world rises [S1][S2].

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Thor and the Giantess (Geirðröðr)

Thor, disguised as a servant, went to the home of the giantess Geirðröðr to win her as a wife. He lifted the cat (which was actually the world-serpent Jörmungandr in disguise) and drank from a horn that was bottomless (the ocean). He was matched by the giant Utgarda-Pöki, who turned out to be the giant who had been deceiving him with illusions [S2].

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Artifacts of Thor

Objects they wielded, forged, or were bound to

INTERPRETIVE CLASSIFICATION · FULL PROFILE IN THE DIVINE VAULT

Mjölnir

S · DivineWielded by Thor

Artworks

Depictions

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