Laufey

Laufey

Pronunciation

LOW-fay (the 'au' is like 'ow' in 'low')

Also Known As

Nál (meaning 'Needle'; given as alternate name in Gylfaginning — Snorri's gloss)

Tribe

Jötnar


Sacred Animals

  • NA

Sacred Symbols & Objects

  • NA

Parentage

Parentage is unknown or unattested.


Consorts

No consorts are recorded.


Offspring

No offspring are recorded.

Source Quality: Directly Attested

Laufey (Old Norse: Laufey, possibly meaning ‘Leafy Island’ or ‘Leaf-Island’) is the mother of Loki, attested in Gylfaginning and in skaldic verse. Unusually, Loki is more commonly referred to by his matronymic — Laufeyjarson (son of Laufey) — than by his patronymic in both the Eddic and skaldic traditions. In a society where patronymics were the norm, the consistent use of a matronymic has attracted significant scholarly discussion. Snorri in Gylfaginning describes Laufey as a woman (kona) and gives Nál (Needle) as an alternate name.

Traditional Offerings

  • No offerings to Laufey are described in any primary source.

Modern Offerings

  • Not commonly venerated

Primary Sources

Source Quality

Directly Attested

Additional Notes

Notes

The persistent use of the matronymic Laufeyjarson for Loki rather than a patronymic is one of the minor puzzles of Norse mythological nomenclature. Proposals include: that Laufey was of higher social status than Fárbauti; that the matronymic is a deliberate marker of Loki's otherness. Snorri gives Nál (Needle) as an alternate name in Gylfaginning, possibly derived from her slender appearance — but this is Snorri's gloss and should be treated as thirteenth-century interpretation.

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