Norse mythology is populated by an extraordinary range of beings. Beyond the gods and the giants, beyond the elves and the dwarves, there are creatures of every shape and disposition: wolves that chase the sun, serpents that encircle the world, dragons gnawing at the roots of the world tree, horses with eight legs, and squirrels who gossip between the branches.
This is a guide to the full cast — not just the famous monsters, but the complete bestiary of the Norse cosmos.
The Great Monsters
Fenrir
Fenrir is the monstrous wolf, son of Loki and the giantess Angrboða. He was raised among the Aesir gods but grew so fast and so large that they became afraid. Only Tyr was brave enough to feed him. Eventually the gods bound Fenrir with Gleipnir — a magical ribbon made by the dwarves from impossible ingredients: the sound of a cat's footsteps, the beard of a woman, the roots of a mountain. Fenrir agreed to be bound only if Tyr put his hand in the wolf's mouth as a pledge. When the binding held, Fenrir bit off Tyr's hand.
Fenrir will remain bound until Ragnarök, when he breaks free and swallows Odin. Odin's son Vidar will then kill Fenrir by tearing his jaws apart or stabbing through his mouth.
Jörmungandr
The World Serpent. Also a child of Loki and Angrboða, Jörmungandr was thrown into the ocean that surrounds Midgard, where he grew until he circled the entire world and could bite his own tail. He is the Midgard Serpent — ouroboros in Norse form. He and Thor are ancient enemies; Thor kills him at Ragnarök but then dies from the serpent's venom, walking nine steps before falling.
Níðhöggr
The corpse gnawer. Níðhöggr is a dragon — or serpent, the sources use both terms — who lives at Hvergelmir, one of the springs at the root of Yggdrasil in Niflheim, and gnaws perpetually at the world tree's roots. He is described in Voluspá as one of the few beings to survive Ragnarök, flying over the ruined earth with corpses in his wings. He represents the force of destruction that is never quite defeated.
The Dragon Fafnir
Fafnir began as a dwarf — or in some versions, a man — who killed his father for a hoard of cursed gold and then transformed into a dragon to guard it. He was killed by the hero Sigurd (Siegfried in the German tradition), who was advised by Odin to dig a trench and stab upward as the dragon passed over. Fafnir is the Norse mythology's defining dragon story, and it influenced Tolkien's dragon Smaug directly.
The Wolves
Sköll and Hati
Two great wolves who chase the sun and moon across the sky. Sköll pursues Sól, the sun goddess. Hati chases Máni, the moon god. They have chased their quarry since the world was made, and at Ragnarök they will finally catch them, swallowing the lights of the sky and bringing darkness.
Garm
The hound of Hel, who guards the entrance to Helheim at the cave Gnipahellir. He is the greatest of dogs, blood-stained, and his howling signals the beginning of Ragnarök. He fights the god Tyr at the end of the world; both die.
The Horses
Sleipnir
Odin's eight-legged horse, the best of all horses, capable of travelling between the nine worlds and at speeds no other horse can match. Sleipnir was born from Loki, who in mare form was impregnated by the great stallion Svaðilfari when Loki was helping a builder construct Asgard's walls. Loki then gave the foal Sleipnir to Odin. Hermod rode Sleipnir to Helheim to beg for Baldr's return.
The Serpents and Dragons
Beyond Níðhöggr and Fafnir, the Norse sources mention numerous serpents gnawing at Yggdrasil's roots. The Völuspá names several: Góinn and Móinn (sons of Grafvitnir), Grábakr, Gráföllud, Ófnir, and Svafnir. They are the forces of decay working at the foundations of the world.
The Eagles and Hawks
The Eagle and Veðrfölnir
A great eagle sits at the top of Yggdrasil, incredibly wise, with a hawk named Veðrfölnir sitting between its eyes. The eagle and Níðhöggr are ancient enemies — the Ratatosk squirrel carries insults between them up and down the tree.
The Squirrel
Ratatosk
The gossiping squirrel of Yggdrasil. Ratatosk runs up and down the world tree, carrying insults and inflammatory messages between the eagle at the top and Níðhöggr at the roots. He keeps the conflict going. He serves no cosmic function except mischief — which is, in Norse mythology, a function in itself.
The Dwarves
Dwarves in Norse mythology are craftspeople of supreme skill rather than warriors. They live in Svartalfheim, the dark world beneath the earth. They forged the most important objects in the Norse cosmos: Mjolnir (Thor's hammer), Gungnir (Odin's spear), Gleipnir (the ribbon that binds Fenrir), Draupnir (Odin's ring that multiplies itself), Skidbladnir (the ship that can sail any sea and fold to fit in a pocket).
Dwarves were created from the maggots in Ymir's corpse, given intelligence by the gods, and set to live in the stone that was once Ymir's bones.
The Elves
Norse elves are divided into two categories: the Ljosalfar (light elves) who live in Alfheim, a realm described as brighter than the sun, and the Dokkalfar (dark elves), who live underground and are described in terms similar to dwarves. The distinction isn't entirely clear in the sources — there's overlap and inconsistency. But elves were semi-divine beings capable of blessing or harming humans, and elf-sickness was a real category of medieval Norse medicine.
The Vættir: Land Spirits
The vættir — land spirits — were among the most practically important supernatural beings in Norse belief. They inhabited the land itself: particular hills, rocks, rivers, and fields. A farmer who wanted a good harvest had to maintain good relations with the vættir of his land. Disturbing their homes without proper ritual respect was dangerous.
When Norse ships approached Iceland, law required the carved dragon heads on the prows to be removed so they wouldn't frighten the island's vættir. Iceland's coat of arms still features four vættir: a dragon, an eagle, a bull, and a giant, one for each quarter of the island.
The Sea Creatures
The Norse ocean was populated by creatures beyond Jörmungandr. The kraken — the enormous sea monster of Norwegian tradition — has roots in this tradition. Hafgufa and Lyngbakr are mentioned in the King's Mirror, a 13th-century Norwegian text: enormous sea creatures so large they were mistaken for islands. The Hafgufa would surface, its breath attracting fish to its open mouth, then submerge and swallow them.
Related Reading
- Fenrir: The Wolf Who Will End the World
- Jörmungandr: The World Serpent of Norse Mythology
- Níðhöggr: The Dragon Gnawing at the Roots of Yggdrasil
- Sköll and Hati: The Wolves Who Chase the Sun and Moon
- Ratatoskr: The Squirrel of Yggdrasil
- Hel: The Norse Goddess Who Rules the Dead
Carry the Norse Bestiary
Our Heathen Norse shirt features wolf and raven imagery drawn from the Norse world, and our Valhalla Awaits shirt is made for those who know the full mythology behind the legend.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most dangerous creature in Norse mythology?
By scale of consequences, Fenrir and Jörmungandr — who kill Odin and Thor respectively at Ragnarök — are the most consequential. Surtr, the fire giant who burns the world with his flaming sword, is also a strong candidate, though he is a giant rather than a creature.
What are Norse dwarves actually like?
In Norse mythology, dwarves are master craftspeople of divine skill who live underground. They're not small (their size is rarely specified) and they're not comic figures. They forged the greatest objects in the cosmos and were treated with respect by gods and heroes alike.
Are elves and dwarves the same in Norse mythology?
Not exactly, though the sources are inconsistent. Light elves (Ljosalfar) are semi-divine beings of Alfheim. Dark elves (Dokkalfar) are described similarly to dwarves and may be another name for the same beings. The later, codified distinction between elves and dwarves is largely a medieval and then a modern development.