Glossary
The Thief of Faces is set in 9th century Scandinavia during the ‘Viking Age’. I’ve played rather loose with names and felt free to concoct details of Norse life – this isn’t a history book. I’ve tried to use as few Norse words as possible, but there’s a glossary below for the ones I felt I had to keep in. Nidhs were very real and every bit as offensive as Eirik’s. Nidh-contests took place between poets or warriors with some skill at poetry.
‘Wyrd’ is Anglo-Saxon rather than Norse, but the Norse have a similar word, Urdh. I felt that Wyrd would be more familiar to readers and it sounds better to my ears. I’ve also kept the recognisable ‘valkyries’ rather than the original Norse valkyjur.
I’ve used ‘hearthman’ to translate the Norse Hirdhman, which isn’t really accurate but gives the right impression, since these battle-captains gathered round a lord’s hearth to be feasted and entertained.
The ‘Goths’ here are the Gautar, a tribe who are a mystery to historians. Were they actually Goths (as I suppose) or just another Norse clan whose name resembled ‘Goth’? They gave their name to the Götaland regions of Sweden.
The –dh– represents the Norse letter ð or ‘eth’ which is pronounced as ‘th’ (as in ‘then’). I represent the Norse letter Þ or ‘thorn’ (pronounced ‘th’ as in ‘thick’) with –th–. I’ve dropped the –r suffix on Norse words and names (berserkr, seidhr, Eyvindr) to make them more familiar in English.
ASGARDH: The home of the gods; here is Valhöll, where Odhinn gathers the souls of warriors who die in battle
BERSERK: A “bear-shirt” is a warrior who goes into a frenzy in battle, stripping naked and fighting like a bear; the plural is Berserkir
BLÓT: A blood sacrifice to the gods, the principle one being the Dis (Goddess) Blót; the plural is Blótar
DRAUG: A ghost or vampire
FREY: God of peace and prosperity; the Peace of Frey is a sacred truce in the hall of a Jarl and during festivals
FREYJA: Goddess of love and seidh magic
GALDH: A magical song that can charm listeners or even raise the dead; the plural is Galdhrar
GODHI: A priest who performs the rituals at a Blót; the plural is Godhar
HAMASKING: Shapeshifting, turning into a wolf or a bear
HOLMGANG: A duel to the death to settle a point of honour or guilt; trial by combat
JARL: A noble who rules over his own hall
NIDH: An elaborate insult delivered as a poem; slanderous Nidhs are a criminal offence
ODHINN: God of war, magic, poetry and death
RUS: Russia, or at least the European part of it ruled by the Varangians
SEIDH: Trance magic involving meditation or drugs
SEIDHMAN: A sorcerer who traffics in drugs and sex
SNEKKJA: A medium-sized longship
SKÁL: Cheers!
SKALD: A court poet
THUL: A wizard who specializes in ancient lore and medicine; the plural is Thular
THRALL: A slave
TROLL: A malicious supernatural creature or force
VARANGIAN: Mercenaries, but in this case the Norse colonists who conquered Rus
VIKING: A pirate raid to carry off treasure and slaves; also a warrior who goes on those raids
VǪLVA: A priestess who can foresee the future in a seidh trance; the plural is Vǫlvur
WEREGILD: The ‘man price’ paid in compensation for someone’s death to prevent a feud
WULFHEDHINN: A “wolf-coat” is a Berserk who changes into a wolf; the plural is Wulfhedhnar
WYRD: Fate
YULE: A winter month of feasting; the Yule season ends with the Dis (Goddess) Blót
‘Wyrd’ is Anglo-Saxon rather than Norse, but the Norse have a similar word, Urdh. I felt that Wyrd would be more familiar to readers and it sounds better to my ears. I’ve also kept the recognisable ‘valkyries’ rather than the original Norse valkyjur.
I’ve used ‘hearthman’ to translate the Norse Hirdhman, which isn’t really accurate but gives the right impression, since these battle-captains gathered round a lord’s hearth to be feasted and entertained.
The ‘Goths’ here are the Gautar, a tribe who are a mystery to historians. Were they actually Goths (as I suppose) or just another Norse clan whose name resembled ‘Goth’? They gave their name to the Götaland regions of Sweden.
The –dh– represents the Norse letter ð or ‘eth’ which is pronounced as ‘th’ (as in ‘then’). I represent the Norse letter Þ or ‘thorn’ (pronounced ‘th’ as in ‘thick’) with –th–. I’ve dropped the –r suffix on Norse words and names (berserkr, seidhr, Eyvindr) to make them more familiar in English.
ASGARDH: The home of the gods; here is Valhöll, where Odhinn gathers the souls of warriors who die in battle
BERSERK: A “bear-shirt” is a warrior who goes into a frenzy in battle, stripping naked and fighting like a bear; the plural is Berserkir
BLÓT: A blood sacrifice to the gods, the principle one being the Dis (Goddess) Blót; the plural is Blótar
DRAUG: A ghost or vampire
FREY: God of peace and prosperity; the Peace of Frey is a sacred truce in the hall of a Jarl and during festivals
FREYJA: Goddess of love and seidh magic
GALDH: A magical song that can charm listeners or even raise the dead; the plural is Galdhrar
GODHI: A priest who performs the rituals at a Blót; the plural is Godhar
HAMASKING: Shapeshifting, turning into a wolf or a bear
HOLMGANG: A duel to the death to settle a point of honour or guilt; trial by combat
JARL: A noble who rules over his own hall
NIDH: An elaborate insult delivered as a poem; slanderous Nidhs are a criminal offence
ODHINN: God of war, magic, poetry and death
RUS: Russia, or at least the European part of it ruled by the Varangians
SEIDH: Trance magic involving meditation or drugs
SEIDHMAN: A sorcerer who traffics in drugs and sex
SNEKKJA: A medium-sized longship
SKÁL: Cheers!
SKALD: A court poet
THUL: A wizard who specializes in ancient lore and medicine; the plural is Thular
THRALL: A slave
TROLL: A malicious supernatural creature or force
VARANGIAN: Mercenaries, but in this case the Norse colonists who conquered Rus
VIKING: A pirate raid to carry off treasure and slaves; also a warrior who goes on those raids
VǪLVA: A priestess who can foresee the future in a seidh trance; the plural is Vǫlvur
WEREGILD: The ‘man price’ paid in compensation for someone’s death to prevent a feud
WULFHEDHINN: A “wolf-coat” is a Berserk who changes into a wolf; the plural is Wulfhedhnar
WYRD: Fate
YULE: A winter month of feasting; the Yule season ends with the Dis (Goddess) Blót