September Homework

Deadline: January 15th, midnight HOL time

Please send your homework to rachel.selenia@gmail.com. In the subject line, put “Norse Myths – HW1 – your HOL name” (for me that would be “Norse Myths – HW1 – Prof Rachel Selenia”). Remember to include your HOL name and House in the main body of your e-mail. Don’t send attachments – they will not be opened!


Pick and choose from the following tasks. The first 30 points worth you hand in will be counted as Homework, the rest will be counted as Extra Credit, with a total maximum of 60 points for this month’s assignment.

Short Answers (2 points each – total 10 points)
1. When did people believe in the Norse Mythology?
2. What are three of the most important sources of Norse Mythology called?
3. Who was the famous poet, historian and politician born in 1179?
4. What is the Heimskringla a history of?
5. What is Codex Regius?

Fill in the Blank (1 point each – total 10 points)
1. Long ago before the world was created, there was only ________ in the north, __________ in the south and the empty void ___________ between them.
2. This was ____, the ancestor of all giants.
3. The cow ________ licked a _____ stone for three days, and on the third day a man emerged.
4. Borr’s wife was the giantess ______, and together they had the sons ____ (the first of the Aesir gods), Vili and Ve.
5. Four _______ (North, South, East and West) were placed at the four corners of the Earth to hold up the _______.

Class Discussion (10 points)
Go to the Class Forum and join this month’s discussion! The topic for September is the Creation Myth. What do you think about it? Do you recognize elements of it from other religions in the world?

Jigsaw (10 points)
Solve the jigsaw puzzle below, take a screen cap of your solution, upload the image to an image hosting website and send me the link.

Matching (1 point each – total 10 points)
Match 1-10 with A-J.

1. Niflheim
2. Muspelheim
3. Jotunheim
4. Godheim
5. Vanaheim
6. Mannheim
7. Alfheim
8. Svartalfheim
9. Helheim
10. Yggdrasil

A – home of the fire-demons
B – home of a group of gods contemporary with the Aesir
C – home of the best blacksmiths in all the worlds
D – home of some violent but wise creatures
E – situated in the middle of the world
F – here you can find the fortress Midgard
G – ruled by Frey
H – the world tree
I – the death realm
J – home of the shadow-beings

Art (15 points)
Draw, paint or create a graphic of the creation of the world (or a single event from it) according to Norse Mythology. Upload your image to an image hosting site and send me the link.

Creative Writing (15 points)
Create your own creation story! It can be as full of imagination as you’d like.
Please write at least 100 words for full points.

Short Research (5 points)
What are the names of the four deer eating off the branches of Yggdrasil?

Research Another Myth (15 points)
Please research and retell the creation story of another religion. Remember to mention which religion it is, and include links to your sources. Minus 1 point if links to sources are missing.