Customer Reviews

Essays on Germanic Religion (Journal of Indo-European Studies Monograph Series No. 6)

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This monograph consists of four papers written previously. Each one is a gem itself and brings fresh ideas to the topic of Germanic religion.

The first essay looks at Indo-European components of Germanic religion and reconsiders the story of the death of Baldr from a comparative method. The analysis is well done and very detailed.

The second essay looks at the story of the creation of humans from logs, the scant parallels in other Indo-European traditions, and the internal structure. Particular attention is paid to the role of Lodhurr and his gifts.

The third essay looks at divine names from Indo-European and their connection with the sky and with sovereignty.

The fourth essay is an overview of Germanic religion. This essay, which occupies nearly half of the monograph, forced me to reconsider some of Dumezil's theories on Germanic concepts of law and sovereignty and in my view adds greatly to the theories.

I would highly recommend this monograph to anyone studying Germanic religion.

I honestly liked this monograph from Polome. It brought up sources that I had only glanced over before, making me re-read them with renewed zeal. For some the academic nature of the work may be daunting or view it a bit dry, particularly in regards to the etomology of words, although it is a must read for those with a serious interest in the subject.

Introduction; The Indo-European Component in Germanic Religion; Some Comments on V?luspá, Stanzas 17-18; Divine Names in Indo-European; Germanic Religion; Postscript.