Dr. Jackson Crawford returns to the Northern Myths Podcast to tell us about his Wanderer's Havamal. We discuss his involvement with the upcoming Assassin's Creed Valhalla, and other exciting projects Dr. Crawford is working on. In our discussion of the Havamal, we hear why Dr. Crawford finds this wisdom so timeless, and we find out some interesting new things about Yggdrasil and the runes!

This is the Northern Myths Podcast, an archetypal exploration of the myths and legends of Northern Europe, including Norse mythology, the Finnish Kalevala, and more. If you'd like to support the show you can support us on Patreon here: Northern Myths Podcast Patreon

Dr. Crawford's excellent YouTube channel with videos about Old Norse and Norse Mythology can be found here. Dr. Crawford's website is https://jacksonwcrawford.com/ If you'd like to support Dr. Crawford, you can do so on his Patreon. If you'd like to connect with Dr. Crawford, you'll find him on Twitter @norsebysw

The Wanderer's Havamal by Dr. Jackson Crawford is available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3ectCEq

Show Outline (YouTube timestamps):

00:00:00 - Opening and Introduction 00:04:27 - Dr. Jackson Crawford Calls In 00:05:25 - Assassin's Creed Valhalla 00:09:33 - The age and dating of the Poetic Edda 00:15:00 - The number of versions of the Havamal 00:20:23 - Introduction to the Wanderer's Havamal 00:23:01 - Dr. Crawford's Great Courses class on Norse Mythology 00:26:07 - The origins of Dr. Crawford's Poetic Edda translation 00:27:46 - The runes and spells in the Havamal 00:34:05 - The tree Odin hangs on and the origins of "Yggdrasil" 00:48:12 - The runes, Odin, and sacrifice 00:52:42 - The significance of Havamal 01:01:40 - Odin as the archetypal wise man of Norse Mythology 01:05:30 - Star Wars as a modern day Saga 01:08:14 - Dr. Crawford's current projects and upcoming books 01:13:35 - Closing and Acknowledgements

Referenced sources (signup required to download from academia.edu): In Prayer and Laughter - Anatoly Liberman Contradictory cosmology in Old Norse myth and religion – but still a system? - Eldar Heide

Check out our YouTube channel for videos of all episodes and interesting clips of the show:  Northern Myths Podcast YouTube Channel

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Our intro and outtro music is Takk from the album Sagnamadr by Folket Bortafor Nordavinden. Check the album out on Spotify, and you can purchase from Grimfrost.com or Amazon. 

If you'd like to follow along with us or learn more about the ideas we talk about on the show, we have a list of recommended books on our website. Included are our recommended copies of the Poetic Edda and the Kalevala, as well as books about archetypal narrative, comparative religion, and more: Recommended Books

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