This glossary is a work in progress, including Norse and Irish terms used in my books for handy reference. These terms are included in the back of all my books and ebooks.
Álf—elf, male, often considered ancestors (plural: álfar)
Berserker—warriors said to have superhuman powers. Translates either as “bear shirt” or “bare shirt” (also berserk)
Bindrune—three or more runes drawn one over the other
Blót—sacrifice. i.e., Álfablót is sacrifice in honor of the elves, Dísablót is in honor of the dís
Bower—women’s quarters, usually a separate building
Breeks—breeches
Brynja—chain-mail shirt
Dís—spirits of female ancestors (plural: dísir)
Distaff—a staff for holding unspun wool or linen fibers during the spinning process. About a meter long, usually made of wood or iron, with a bail to hold the wool. Historically associated with witchcraft.
Draugr—animated corpse
Fylgja—a guardian spirit, animal or female
Fóstra—a child’s nurse (foster mother)
Flyting—a contest of insults
Galdr—spells spoken and sung
Gammelost—literally “old cheese”
Gungnir—Odin’s spear
Hafvilla—lost at sea
Hamr—“skin”; the body
Hamingja—a person’s luck or destiny, passed down in the family
Haugbui—mound-dwelling ghost
Haugr—mound
Hird—the warrior retinue of a noble person
Hnefatafl—also Tafl, a chess-like board game found in Viking graves
Holmgang—“isle-going”; a duel within boundaries, sometimes fought on small islets
Hudfat—sleeping bags made of sheepskin
Hugr—the soul, the mind
Húskarl—the elite household warriors of a nobleman (plural: húskarlar)
Jarl—earl, one step below a king
Jotun—giants, enemies of the gods. (plural: jotnar)
Jól—Yule midwinter feast honoring all the gods, but especially Odin
Karl—a free man, also “bonder”
Karvi—a small Viking longship
Kenning—a metaphorical expression in Old Norse poetry
Knarr—a merchant ship
Law-speaker—a learned man who knew the laws of the district by heart
Longfire—a long, narrow firepit that ran down the center of a hall
Nålebinding—an early form of knitting with a single needle
Odal land—inherited land
Ørlög—personal fate
Primstave—a flat piece of wood used as a calendar. The days of summer are carved on one side, winter on the reverse.
Runes—the Viking alphabet, said to have magical powers, also used in divination
Saeter—a summer dairy hut, usually in the mountains
Seax—long, single-edged fighting knife
Seidr—a trance to work magic
Shield-maiden—female warrior
Shield wall—a battle formation
Skáld—poet
Skagerrak—a body of water between Southeast Norway, Southwest Sweden, and Northern Denmark
Skerry—a small rocky islet
Skjaergarden—a rocky archipelago on the southern cape of Norway
Skyr—a dairy product similar to yogurt
Small beer—a beer with a low alcohol content, a common drink
Sverige, Svea—Sweden and Swedes
Swinehorn—a v-shaped battle formation
Thrall—slave
Ting, Allting—assembly at which legal matters are settled
Ulfhed—“wolf head”; another warrior like a berserker (plural: ulfhednar)
Valknut—“corpse knot,” a symbol of Odin
Vardlokkur—a song to draw the spirits
Völva—a sorceress. Literally, “wand-bearer” (plural: völur)
Wergild—the value of a person’s life, to be paid in wrongful death
Vaettr—a spirit of land and water, wight. (plural: vaettir)
Wootz—crucible steel manufactured in ancient India
A chroi—my heart
A ghra—my love
A mhuirin—my darling
Ard Ri—High king
Ban na Sidhe—“banshee,” a faery woman
Bard—the poet class of Irish intellectual society
Bratt—a wool wrap worn by both sexes
Brehon—a legal expert of the Irish intellectual class
Cashel—a fort with stone walls
Cenel—kindred
Cláirseach—An Irish harp with a body carved of wood and strings of brass
Crannog—an island fortress
Currach—a boat made of cowhide stretched over a framework of branches. Also Curragh
Druid—the priestly class of the Irish intellectual class
Dun—a stronghold
Filidh—the intellectual class of Irish society, predating Christianity, comprised of druids, bards, and brehons
Finn gaill—white foreigners (Norse)
Dubh gaill—dark foreigners (Danes)
Geantraí—the melody of merriment
Geis—being under a vow or curse taboo
Goiltai—the melody of sadness
Grianan—palace of the sun
Leine—a gown, worn by both men and women
Lochlainn—Norway
Ollave—the highest rank of bard (Irish: ollamh)
Rath—a fort with earthen walls
Sil—progeny
Sidhe—the faerie folk of Ireland, who dwell in the mounds and are said to be the ancient Tuatha Dé Danann
Souterrain—(French) underground rooms and passages used for escape and cold storage
Suantraí— music that will bring sleep over the listeners
Tuath—clan or tribe