In my book, ‘Heathenry for the Solitary Practitioner’, I challenge some of the key misrepresentations often associated with Heathenry today. In this article, I examine the reality of women in Heathenry versus media-driven stereotypes, both historical and contemporary.

“A common misconception within popular culture is that Heathenry is aimed at and intended for men. You could be, to some extent, forgiven for thinking this – it’s hard not to be swayed by social media and popular entertainment depictions of Heathens as either hyper-masculine or head-banging heavy metal fans. Your ideas could originate from Victorian heroic depictions of Vikings, which pretty much offered the pervasive ideal until more recently.”

This Viking fantasy is heavily played upon by certain right-wing political groups with the aim of perpetuating violence and disharmony, and is often encouraged by depictions on social media sites. But when we strip away this 19th-century Victorian denotation and examine the roots of the pre-Christian Germanic and Scandinavian belief, you might be surprised to find that this historical blind spot completely misinterprets Viking Age society, which was deeply complex, with gender roles far more fluid and nuanced than stereotypical depictions suggest.

Firstly, let’s examine the myth of the warrior by looking at Birka grave BJ 581:

“… one of the best-known and infamous Viking graves found in Sweden was for years considered to be that of a warrior man. This is not surprising if we consider that it was first excavated in the late Victorian Age. The grave was large, filled with weapons, horses and gaming pieces, and the skeleton was tall in stature – so, of course, it was a Viking man, right? In 2017, the results of the DNA analysis revealed two X chromosomes, meaning this was a woman. This has led to a reassessment of how Viking society is viewed.”

Further evidence of Women as warriors is found in The Saga of King Heidrick the Wise, with the character of Hervör, who was reared as a tomboy and disguised herself as a warrior, even changing her name to Hjörvard to raid and steal a magical sword from her father’s burial mound.  (Tolkien, 1960, pp 11-21).

The Old Norse literary corpus further demonstrates that women were the driving force behind the actions of men. For example, in The Saga of Erik the Red, we learn of Gudrid Thorbjarnardottir, who grew up in Iceland, settled in Greenland, and went on an expedition with her husband, eventually settling in Vinland (Newfoundland, Canada). Here, she had a child, and although the settlement didn’t last long, her achievement for a woman at that time was remarkable.

However, by far, the most renowned woman in the whole Saga of Erik the Red is Thorbjörg, a prophetess known as ‘Little volva’. During the wintertime, she would travel around farms and, during Seidr rituals, predict what would befall the farms and people who had invited her in the next year. In this saga, you will find one of the most complete descriptions of both the role of the Volva and the practice of Seidr. The importance of the Volva within Viking society is evident in many archaeological finds across Northern Europe. One of note is the famous Fyrkat burial in Denmark, which revealed a woman buried with iron staffs, henbane (a hallucinogen), many riches and various amulets. In Viking society, Seidr, or magic, was primarily associated with women.

“And Let’s not forget that in The Voluspa, Odin – the head god, the leader of all- has gone to great lengths to awaken a dead Volva – a seeress – to get the answers he needs. He could not get these answers without her help. That is extremely significant. The Nornir, weavers of fate, control the destiny of all, including gods. None can escape their fate, which is woven by these supernatural female beings. Freya, the mighty Vanir goddess, has jurisdiction over the battle dead, even before Odin. She taught Seidr (magic) to the Aesir gods and importantly has agency over her own sexuality.”

In the chapter, I interviewed Heathen women from all walks of life about their practice and their thoughts on how Heathenry today represents women. “I feel, often counter to popular belief, that Heathenry is very empowering as a woman.” Sif, an author and active member of Asatru UK, continued, “Misconceptions abound, of course, but we’re still very much in the process of realising the importance of women when it came to religious and cultural practices in the late Iron Age. There are incredibly strong women and feminine forces within Heathenry – Frigg, Sif, Freyja, the Valkyries, Hel, who act as inspirations and drivers for personal improvement. They drive me to be better.” 

Viki, a solitary Heathen, added, “I came across prejudice before I was a Heathen, but never encountered it as a Heathen. It’s never occurred to me to consider that there’s any gender difference.”

None of the women I spoke to had any issues within Heathenry because of their sex, nor did they tell me they had been actively discriminated against.  This then refutes the hyper-masculine agenda propagated by the media and supports modern Heathenry as an inclusive practice.

Modern Heathenry is not about inventing a new space for women; the tradition is simply maintaining a seat at the table that has existed since the Viking Age.

For more details: https://www.collectiveinkbooks.com/moon-books/authors/thea-prothero