Regin
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Volsung Cycle |
|---|
| Volsunga saga |
| Poetic Edda |
| Norna-Gests þáttr |
| Artifacts |
| Andvarinaut |
| Gram |
| Dwarves |
| Andvari |
| Hreidmar |
| Otr |
| Regin |
| Dragon |
| Fafnir |
| People |
| Volsung |
| Sigmund |
| Signy |
| Sinfjötli |
| Helgi Hundingsbane |
| Sigurd |
| Brynhild |
| Gudrun |
| Attila |
| Gunnar |
| Locations |
| Gautland |
| Hunaland |
| Related |
| Nibelungenlied |
| Hagbard and Signy |
In Norse mythology, Regin was the son of Hreidmar and foster father of Sigurd. Regin had all wisdom and deftness of hand. Regin built a house of glittering gold and flashing gems for his father. Regin and his brother, Fafnir, killed Hreidmar for the cursed gold he had received from the gods after they killed his other son, Otr. Fafnir, however, turned into a dragon because he wanted to keep all of the gold (dragons frequently symbolize greed in European folklore). Fafnir drove Regin away from the gold. Regin lived among men. He taught men how to sow, reap, work metals, sail seas, tame horses, yoke beasts of burden, build houses, spin, weave, & sew. Regin sent Sigurd to retrieve the gold.
Regin forged a marvelous sword for Sigurd, but it quickly broke. Sigurd found his father's (Sigmund) sword, Gram, and had it fixed and reforged by Mimir and used it to kill Fafnir. He gained wisdom from licking the dragon's blood because Fafnir could talk to birds. Sigurd, who had discovered from the birds, that Regin was planning on killing him to get the gold, killed his stepfather and took the gold.
The Thidrekssaga relates a slightly different tale, with Regin as the dragon and Mimir as his brother and foster father to Sigurd.
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Norse mythology |
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| Sources: Poetic Edda | Prose Edda | The Sagas | Volsung Cycle | Tyrfing Cycle | Rune stones | Old Norse language | Orthography | Later influence | |
| Society: Viking Age | Skald | Kenning | Blót | Seid | Numbers | |
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