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Iðavöllr

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Iðavöllr (Old Norse Iðavǫllr, possibly "splendour-plain") is a location referenced twice in Völuspá, the first poem in the Poetic Edda, as a meeting place of the gods.

Contents

Attestations

In a stanza early into the poem Völuspá, the völva reciting the poem describes that, early in the mythological timeline, the gods met together Iðavöllr and constructed a hörgr and a hof:

Iðavöllr is again mentioned at the very end of the poem in verse 60, after the events of Ragnarök. It is once again a meeting place for the gods, however, most of them being killed in the battle previous to the return, few of the same gods visit the field twice. These survivors build a new city on Iðavöllr, starting with Gimlé:

Theories

Several etymologies of Iðavöllr have been proposed, and the meaning of the name is considered unclear. If Iðavöllr is amended to *Ið[is]avöllr, the location name corresponds precisely to Idisiaviso, the amended location name where on the Weser river forces commanded by Arminius fought those commanded by Germanicus at the Battle of the Weser River in 16 CE, attested in chapter 16 of book II of Tacitus' Annales.

References

Iðavöllr Wikipedia