Thor goes fishing for the Midgard Serpent in this picture from an 18th century Icelandic manuscript.

Jörmungandr is a sea serpent of the Norse mythology, the middle child of Loki and the giantess Angrboða. According to the Prose Edda Odin took the three children, Fenrisulfr, Hel and Jörmungandr. He tossed Jörmungand into the great ocean that encircles Midgard. The serpent grew so big that he was able to surround the Earth and grasp his own tail. Download high resolution version (918x1134, 897 KB)Thor and Hymir go fishing for the Midgard Serpent. ... Download high resolution version (918x1134, 897 KB)Thor and Hymir go fishing for the Midgard Serpent. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... Sea serpent has come to mean almost invariably a mythical sea monster that is generally long and serpentine. ... Norse mythology, Viking mythology or Scandinavian mythology refer to the pre-Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian people, including those who settled on Iceland, where the written sources for Norse mythology were assembled. ... This picture, from an 18th century Icelandic manuscript, shows Loki with his invention - the fishing net. ... The giants seize Freya. ... Angrboda (Old Norse Angrboða Harm-foreboding) appears in Norse Mythology as a giantess. ... The Younger Edda, known also as the Prose Edda or Snorris Edda is an Icelandic manual of poetics which also contains many mythological stories. ... Odin, Icelandic/Old Norse Óðinn, Swedish Oden, English/Anglo-Saxon and Old Saxon Wõden, Old Franconian Wodan, Alemannic Wuodan, German Wotan or Wothan Lombardic Godan. ... Fenrir biting off Tyrs arm In Norse mythology, The Fenrisulfr or Wolf of Fenrir, usually known simply as Fenrir in English, was a monstrous wolf, the son of Loki and the giantess Angrboda. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... For other things of this name, see Midgard (disambiguation). ... Earth, also known as the Earth or Terra, is the third planet outward from the Sun. ...

Jörmungandr's arch enemy is the god Thor. There are three known myths detailing their encounters. Thors battle against the giants, by Marten Eskil Winge, 1872 Thor, Þórr (ON), Þunor (OE), Donar or Donner (German) is the red-haired and bearded god of thunder and lightning in Germanic and Norse Mythology, the son of Odin and Jord. ...

Lifting the cat

In one, Thor encounters the serpent disguised as a colossal cat by the giant king Útgarða-Loki. As one of the tasks set by Útgarða-Loki, Thor must lift the cat, and though he is unable to lift such a monstrous creature as Jörmungandr, he comes so close that when the deception is revealed by Útgarða-Loki it is still an impressive feat. This myth is only found in the Prose Edda. In Norse mythology, Utgardaloki was the ruler of the city Utgard in Jotunheim. ...

Thor's fishing trip

Another encounter came when Thor went fishing with the giant Hymir. The two did not get on, and when Hymir refused to provide Thor with bait, Thor struck the head off Hymir's largest ox to use as bait. They rowed to a point where Hymir often sat and caught flat fish, and he drew up two whales. Thor demanded to go farther, and so they did. Hymir told Thor that the part they were at was unsafe, because of the Serpent, but Thor ignored him, and to Hymir's horror they rowed out further. In Norse mythology, Hymir was a giant, a husband of Hrod. ...

Thor fighting the sea serpent, Henry Fuseli, 1788.

Thor then prepared a strong line and a large hook, and Jörmungandr bit. Thor pulled the serpent up; the two faced off, Jörmungand dribbling poison and blood. Hymir went pale with fear, and as Thor grabbed his hammer to kill the serpent, the giant cut the line, leaving the serpent to sink beneath the waves. Download high resolution version (2024x2855, 248 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (2024x2855, 248 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Henry Fuseli (in German Johann Heinrich Füssli) (February 7, 1741 - April 16, 1825) was a British painter and writer on art, of German-Swiss family. ...

This encounter seems to have been the most popular motif in Norse pagan art. Four picture stones can be definitely linked with the myth.

Thor's foot goes through the boat as he struggles to pull up Jörmungandr in the Altuna picture stone.

The Altuna picture stone, showing Thor and Jörmungandr. ...

The final battle

Their last meeting will come at Ragnarök, when Jörmungandr will drag himself from the Ocean and poison the skies. Thor will kill Jömungandr and then walk nine steps before falling dead from the serpent's poison. In Norse mythology, Ragnarok (fate of the gods1) is the battle at the end of the world. ...

Sources

The major sources for myths about Jörmungandr are the Prose Edda, Húsdrápa, Hymiskviða and Völuspá. The Younger Edda, known also as the Prose Edda or Snorris Edda is an Icelandic manual of poetics which also contains many mythological stories. ... Thor goes fishing for Jörmungandr in this picture from an 18th century Icelandic manuscript. ... Hymiskviða is a somewhat confusing Eddic poem, but its contents are more or less as follows. ... Voluspa or Völuspá means The Prophecy of the Seeress and tells the story of the creation and coming destruction of the world related by a völva or seeress in what could be described as a shamanic trance to Odin. ...

Less important sources include kennings in skaldic poetry. For example in Þórsdrápa, Faðir lögseims, "father of the sea-thread", is used as a kenning for Loki. This article is about kenning as a poetic notion. ... The type of verse-making unique to the early medieval Scandinavian peoples. ... The Thorsdrapa or Þórsdrápa (Hymn to Thor) is a skaldic poem of Norse mythology usually attributed to Eilífr Goðrúnarson (11th century). ... This article is about kenning as a poetic notion. ...

There are also image stones from heathen times depicting the fishing encounter.

See also

Ouroboros The Ouroboros Alternate spellings: Oroborus, Uroboros, Uroborus The Ouroboros is an ancient symbol depicting a snake or dragon swallowing its tail, constantly creating itself and forming a circle. ...

Familiar forms

Jörmungandr is also sometimes referred to as the Midgard Serpent (Miðgarðsormr) or the World Serpent. His name is sometimes anglicized as Jormungandr or Jormungand. The orthography of the Old Norse language since the introduction of the Latin alphabet in Iceland is a thorny subject. ...