Ergi and argr are two Old Norse terms of insult, denoting effeminacy or other unmanly behavior. Argr (also ragr) is "unmanly" and ergi is "unmanliness"; the terms have cognates in other Germanic languages such as earh, earg, arag, arug, and so on. This is the approximate extent of Old Norse and related languages in the early 10th century. ... An insult is a statement or action which affronts or demeans someone. ... Effeminacy is character trait of a male showing femininity, unmanliness, womanliness, weakness, softness and/or a delicacy, which contradicts traditional masculine, male gender roles. ... The Germanic languages form one of the branches of the Indo-European (IE) language family. ...

To accuse another man of being argr was considered a níðr (defamation), and thus a legal reason to challenge the accuser in mortal combat.

The practice of seiðr (shamanistic magic) was considered ergi in the Viking Age, and in Icelandic accounts and medieval Scandinavian laws, men accused of being argr are sometimes also said to indulge in receptive homosexual intercourse. It is unsure, however, whether this was just a defamation or an actual accusation. Seid (Old Norse: seiðr, sometimes anglicized as seidhr, seidh, seidr, seithr or seith) was a form of shamanism practised by pre-Christian Norse and arguably other Germanic cultures and continued in modern times by people who practice the reconstructionist beliefs of Ásatrú or heathenry. ... The Viking Age is the name of the period between 793 and 1066 AD in Scandinavia and Britain, following the Germanic Iron Age (and the Vendel Age in Sweden). ... Scandinavia, Fennoscandia, and the Kola Peninsula. ... Since its inception, the term homosexuality has acquired multiple meanings. ...

Curiously, in modern Swedish, argr (now arg) has evolved to mean "angry". In modern Icelandic the word has evolved to "ergilegur", meaning "[to seem/appear] irritable".

See also

• Níðr
• Seid
• Thing (assembly)
• Viking Age

Seid (Old Norse: seiðr, sometimes anglicized as seidhr, seidh, seidr, seithr or seith) was a form of shamanism practised by pre-Christian Norse and arguably other Germanic cultures and continued in modern times by people who practice the reconstructionist beliefs of Ásatrú or heathenry. ... A thing (Old Norse and Icelandic: þing; other modern Scandinavian: ting) was the governing assembly in Germanic societies, made up of the free men of the community and presided by lawspeakers. ... The Viking Age is the name of the period between 793 and 1066 AD in Scandinavia and Britain, following the Germanic Iron Age (and the Vendel Age in Sweden). ...

External links

• SAOB: Arg.adj
• Från niding till sprätt. En studie i det svenska omanlighetsbegreppets historia från vikingatid till sent 1700-tal
• Germanska mannaförbund