Ullr

The tale of Ullr

Ullr is one of the oldest and most mysterious gods of the North. He is the god of the bow, of hunting on skis, of winter and of the shield. He is the son of Sif, Thor's golden-haired wife, and the stepson of Thor himself. His father is never named.

By the time the old myths were written down in the 13th century, almost all of Ullr's own stories had been lost. The poet Snorri Sturluson tells us only a little: that Ullr is "so good a bowman and so good on skis that no one can compete with him", that he is beautiful to look at and has the skills of a warrior, and that people should pray to him before fighting a duel. Poets called a shield "Ullr's ship", perhaps because he crossed the snow or the sea standing on one.

A god people swore by

But place names tell a different story. All over Norway and Sweden there are places named after him, such as Ullevål ("Ullr's field") and Ullensaker ("Ullr's cornfield"), more than for almost any other god. Long before the age of the Vikings, Ullr must have been one of the greatest gods of all.

In one old poem Odin speaks of "Ullr's favour", and in another, oaths are sworn "on Ullr's ring". The holy ring of the temple, on which people swore their most solemn promises, was his. A promise made on Ullr's ring could not be broken.

A later Danish tale says that when Odin was driven into exile for ten years, the gods chose a stand-in to rule in his place: Ollerus (Ullr). He was such a powerful magician that he crossed the sea on a bone carved with spells. When Odin returned, Ollerus fled to Sweden and was killed there.

The skier's god

Ullr lives in Ýdalir, "the yew dales", and the yew is the wood of the best bows. Today skiers in Scandinavia, Germany and the Alps still call him the patron of skiing. Some wear his medallion on the slopes, and towns hold festivals in his honour, asking him for a winter with plenty of snow.

Ullr in Battle of Myths

Ullr is a cost 1 Norse hunter and mystic. His ability, Oath of the Hunt, shoots his target with a powerful arrow and quickens the attacks of both Ullr and the nearest ally. As his quote says: swear on the ring, then draw. Like every Norse hero, he grows stronger with Ragnarök the longer a fight lasts.

Did you know?

• A 3rd-century scabbard fitting found in Denmark, from Thorsberg, carries an inscription that may be the oldest written form of his name: owlþuþewaz, "servant of Ullr".
• In the US town of Breckenridge, Colorado, the yearly Ullr Fest asks the old god for snow.