Heathenry

Overview

Heathenry is a modern Pagan religion inspired by the pre-Christian religions of Europe's Germanic-speaking peoples, most often those who spoke Old Norse. It is not the same thing as the ancient Germanic or Norse religion itself: Heathens have assembled their new religion from historical and archaeological sources since the twentieth century, and while many see themselves as reviving or continuing that older tradition, scholars treat Heathenry as a new religious movement. Heathens, who worship gods such as Odin, Thor and Freyja, organize in small local groups called kindreds or practise alone, since there is no central authority. The movement is split between a "folkish" current that restricts membership by ancestry and a "universalist" current open to anyone; most Heathens today reject the folkish and racist positions that some groups hold.^[9–11]

History

Romantic roots and völkisch groups 1800s–1940s

Old Norse mythology, preserved mainly in medieval Icelandic texts, grew popular in European art and culture from the 18th century onward. In the 1900s and 1910s this fed into small völkisch groups in Germany and Austria that claimed to revive the pre-Christian religion of a Germanic or Nordic race; Nazi figures such as Heinrich Himmler later drew on similar ideas to support claims of a racially pure Aryan past, although these groups had little real influence over Hitler's government.^[12]

Founding the modern movement 1972–1987

Iceland's Ásatrúarfélagið won official legal recognition as a religion in 1973. In the United States, Stephen McNallen founded the Viking Brotherhood in 1972, renamed the Asatru Free Assembly in 1976; it rejected fascism and stressed individualism, courage and self-reliance. McNallen disbanded the Assembly in 1987, and former members soon formed successor groups such as the Asatru Alliance.^[13–15]

Growth and the folkish current 1970s–1992

Spurred by the spread of other modern Pagan religions such as Wicca, Heathenry gained new groups in the United States, Britain, Iceland, Norway and Sweden from the 1970s. Like their early-20th-century forebears, many presented Heathenry as a racial religion open only to the biological descendants of Germanic peoples, a position later called "folkish." McNallen returned to leadership in 1992, founding the Asatru Folk Assembly.^[16–17]

The internet era and the rejection of racism 1990s–today

From the 1990s the internet spread Heathenry further and increased the number of solitary practitioners, while many Heathens pushed for greater fidelity to the historical and archaeological evidence. Growing numbers disapproved of the movement's racial ideas, and by 2015 an international survey found that most Heathens had rejected folkish ideology, even as real tensions between folkish and universalist Heathens continued in countries such as the United States and Britain.^[18–19]

Key moments

1. 1973 CEThe old gods recognised · Iceland

Beliefs

Gods of the Aesir and Vanir

Heathens are usually polytheistic, honouring gods and goddesses drawn chiefly from Old Norse sources, among them Odin, Thor and Freyja, though some favour deities from other Germanic-speaking traditions, such as Old English or Old High German. Most regard the gods as having an independent existence, while others see them only as symbolic figures.^[20–21]

The Nine Noble Virtues

Many Heathens follow this modern ethical code, drawn from Old Norse attitudes to behaviour: courage, truth, honour, fidelity, discipline, hospitality, industriousness, self-reliance and perseverance. Heathens who reject folkish ideology point to the virtues' individualism as incompatible with racial exclusion.^[22]

Folkish and universalist

Heathens differ widely on social questions, especially race, gender and sexuality, largely along the line between the "folkish" view that the religion belongs only to people of Germanic descent and the "universalist" view that it is open to anyone drawn to it.^[23]

Practice

Kindreds and solitary practice

Heathens typically meet in small local groups called kindreds, sometimes linked to national organizations, or practise entirely on their own; no single authority governs the religion as a whole.^[24]

Blót and the ritual calendar

As in the old religion, Heathens mark the turning seasons with a sacrificial feast called a blót, along with holidays such as Yule and the summer solstice.^[25]

Symbols and identity

Heathens often identify themselves with symbols drawn from archaeology, above all Mjöllnir, Thor's hammer, along with runic letters and the three-cornered valknut.^[26]

Holy days

Yule

Around the winter solstice (20–22 December)

A midwinter festival adapted from the old Germanic Yule, kept by many Heathen groups with feasting and toasts to the gods.^[27]

Midsummer

Around the summer solstice (June)

A warm-season festival honouring the sun and the fertility of the land, kept across most Heathen traditions.^[28]

People

Numbers

National censuses

Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0

Common misconceptions

Glossary

Kindred

A small local group of Heathens, the usual unit of organized practice, sometimes linked to wider national associations.^[33]

Ásatrú · Ásatrú

"Being true to the Æsir": the most common Scandinavian name for Heathenry; Iceland's Ásatrúarfélagið won legal recognition as a religion in 1973.^[34]

Folkish

The position that Heathenry belongs only to people of Germanic or Northern European ancestry; rejected by most Heathens today.^[35]

Universalist

The position that Heathenry is open to anyone drawn to it, regardless of ancestry; the majority view among Heathens surveyed in the 2010s.^[36]

Mjöllnir

Thor's hammer, Heathenry's best-known symbol, often worn as a pendant.^[37]