Alvíssmál
E912337
Alvíssmál is an Old Norse Eddic poem in which the dwarf Alvíss engages in a wisdom contest with Thor, revealing extensive mythological lore through question-and-answer dialogue.
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Eddic poem
ⓘ
Old Norse poem ⓘ mythological poem ⓘ |
| associatedTradition | Norse mythology NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| centralEvent | wisdom contest between Alvíss and Thor ⓘ |
| contains |
kennings and heiti
ⓘ
lists of poetic synonyms for mythological concepts ⓘ names for natural phenomena in different worlds ⓘ |
| culturalContext | medieval Scandinavian literature ⓘ |
| educationalRole | teaches poetic diction to skalds through lists of names ⓘ |
| featuresCharacter |
Alvíss
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Thor NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| featuresMotif |
dwarf turned to stone by daylight
ⓘ
trickster-like delay until sunrise ⓘ |
| focusesOn |
cosmic realms and their inhabitants
ⓘ
terminology used by gods, elves, dwarfs, and other beings ⓘ |
| genre | wisdom contest ⓘ |
| hasCharacterType |
dwarf
ⓘ
god ⓘ |
| language | Old Norse NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| literaryFunction |
catalogue of mythological names
ⓘ
didactic exposition of mythological knowledge ⓘ |
| mainAntagonist | Alvíss NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| mainProtagonist | Thor NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| meter | fornyrðislag ⓘ |
| mythologicalFunction |
illustrates danger of daylight to dwarfs
ⓘ
illustrates superiority of Thor over dwarfs ⓘ |
| narrativeForm | question-and-answer dialogue ⓘ |
| origin | medieval Iceland ⓘ |
| originalScript | runic-derived medieval Icelandic script ⓘ |
| partOf | Poetic Edda NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| plotSummary | Thor questions Alvíss until sunrise, turning the dwarf to stone ⓘ |
| preservationStatus | survives in a single main manuscript tradition ⓘ |
| preservedIn | Codex Regius NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| primaryTheme |
cosmological knowledge
ⓘ
mythological lore ⓘ wisdom and deception ⓘ |
| relatedWork |
Grímnismál
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Vafþrúðnismál NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| scholarlyUse |
source for Old Norse cosmological concepts
ⓘ
source for Old Norse mythological vocabulary ⓘ |
| structure | series of questions by Thor and answers by Alvíss ⓘ |
| subjectOf |
metrical studies
ⓘ
mythological analyses ⓘ philological studies ⓘ |
| timeOfComposition | likely 12th or 13th century ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.