Norse Gods & Ragnarok

40 questions · Answers revealed below each question · Print this set

1.What is the name of Odin's spear that never misses its mark?
- A. Gungnir
- B. Gram
- C. Gungnir's twin
- D. Mjölnir
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Gungnir
Did you know? Odin's spear Gungnir, made by dwarves, never misses its mark.
2.What did Sif's golden hair cost Loki besides shame?
- A. He gave up his place at the feasts
- B. He served Idunn for a year
- C. He paid with the ring Draupnir
- D. He had to trick the dwarves into forging the gods' treasures
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He had to trick the dwarves into forging the gods' treasures
Did you know? Loki wagered his own head that dwarven smiths could out-craft the sons of Ivaldi.
3.Which two brothers return from Hel to live in the new world?
- A. Balder and Hodr
- B. Modi and Magni
- C. Odin and Thor
- D. Freyr and Njord
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Balder and Hodr
Did you know? After Ragnarök, Balder and Hodr come back from Hel to dwell in the renewed halls.
4.What is Valhalla?
- A. Odin's hall where slain warriors feast
- B. The cave where the sun is kept
- C. The ship that carries the dead
- D. The dwarf city under the mountains
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Odin's hall where slain warriors feast
Did you know? Valhalla, the hall of the slain, stands in Asgard with its roof of golden shields.
5.How do the Norns keep Yggdrasil green despite its many wounds?
- A. They drive off the deer each dawn
- B. They plant a new tree each spring
- C. They pour water and white clay from Urd's well over the tree
- D. They sing healing runes nightly
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They pour water and white clay from Urd's well over the tree
Did you know? The Norns water Yggdrasil daily from Urd's well, and the white clay heals its bark.
6.Which god lost his hand to the wolf Fenrir as a pledge of good faith?
- A. Tyr
- B. Freyr
- C. Odin
- D. Heimdall
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Tyr
Did you know? Only Tyr dared feed Fenrir, placing his hand in the wolf's jaws as pledge.
7.Which three monstrous children did Loki father with the giantess Angrboda?
- A. Fenrir, Jörmungandr and Hel
- B. Narfi, Vali and Fenrir
- C. Thrym, Geirrod and Hrungnir
- D. Sköll, Hati and Geri
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Fenrir, Jörmungandr and Hel
Did you know? The gods raised Loki's three children: the wolf Fenrir, the serpent Jörmungandr and Hel.
8.What does the world become after Ragnarök's destruction?
- A. It becomes a realm of giants
- B. It rises green and fruitful from the sea
- C. It sinks into eternal ice
- D. It merges with the realm of Hel
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It rises green and fruitful from the sea
Did you know? After Ragnarök the earth rises again from the waves, green with growing grain.
9.Which beings choose the battle-slain and carry them to the afterlife halls?
- A. The Norns
- B. The dwarves
- C. The Valkyries
- D. The Einherjar
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The Valkyries
Did you know? The Valkyries ride over battlefields choosing the slain for Odin.
10.Which bird perches between the eyes of the eagle atop Yggdrasil?
- A. The hawk Vedrfolnir
- B. The owl of Asgard
- C. The raven Muninn
- D. The swan of Urd
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The hawk Vedrfolnir
Did you know? The eagle sits on Yggdrasil's crown with the hawk Vedrfolnir between its eyes.
11.Which one-eyed god is called the Allfather of the Norse gods?
- A. Tyr
- B. Thor
- C. Loki
- D. Odin
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Odin
Did you know? Odin, ruler of Asgard, trades an eye and hangs himself for wisdom and runes.
12.What does the word Ragnarök literally describe?
- A. The eternal winter only
- B. The reign of the giants
- C. The fate of the gods, their doom
- D. The rainbow road of the dead
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The fate of the gods, their doom
Did you know? Ragnarök is the prophesied doom in which the gods fall and the world burns.
13.How many doors does Valhalla have for the warriors' entry?
- A. Only one great gate
- B. Ninety-nine
- C. Five hundred and forty
- D. Six, one for each realm
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Five hundred and forty
Did you know? Grimnismal counts Valhalla's doors: five hundred forty, each wide enough for eight hundred warriors.
14.Under which three places do Yggdrasil's roots reach?
- A. Hel, Jotunheim and Muspelheim
- B. Valhalla, Alfheim and Svartalfheim
- C. Urd's well, Mimir's well and Hvergelmir
- D. Three lakes of Asgard
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Urd's well, Mimir's well and Hvergelmir
Did you know? One root drinks from Urd's well, one from Mimir's well of wisdom, one from Hvergelmir's springs.
15.What did Odin trade for a drink from Mimir's well of wisdom?
- A. One of his eyes
- B. His golden arm ring
- C. His spear Gungnir
- D. His eight-legged horse
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One of his eyes
Did you know? Odin pledged one eye to Mimir's well to drink deep wisdom.
16.Who steers the ship Naglfar loaded with the dead against the gods?
- A. Surtr
- B. Hel
- C. Fenrir
- D. Loki
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Loki
Did you know? Loki breaks free at Ragnarök and steers Naglfar, made of dead men's nails.
17.Which four deer browse on Yggdrasil's branches?
- A. Dainn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Durathror
- B. Sköll, Hati, Geri and Freki
- C. Bil, Hjuki, Sól and Mani
- D. Hrimfaxi, Skinfaxi, Arvakr and Alsvid
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Dainn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Durathror
Did you know? Four harts named Dainn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Durathror eat Yggdrasil's highest boughs.
18.What are the names of Odin's two ravens that fly over the world each day?
- A. Huginn and Muninn
- B. Sköll and Hati
- C. Ask and Embla
- D. Geri and Freki
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Huginn and Muninn
Did you know? Huginn (thought) and Muninn (memory) bring Odin news of the world.
19.Which human pair survives Ragnarök to repopulate the world?
- A. Líf and Lífþrasir
- B. Sigurd and Brynhildr
- C. Ask and Embla
- D. Bil and Hjuki
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Líf and Lífþrasir
Did you know? Líf and Lífþrasir hide in Hoddmímir's wood and live on morning dew.
20.What is Bifröst?
- A. The river that circles the world
- B. The road the sun rides
- C. The burning rainbow bridge between Midgard and Asgard
- D. The hall of the dwarven smiths
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The burning rainbow bridge between Midgard and Asgard
Did you know? Bifröst, the trembling rainbow bridge, joins earth to Asgard and will break at Ragnarök.
21.Which crafts made Mjölnir, Thor's hammer?
- A. The giants of Jötunheim
- B. The elves of Alfheim
- C. The Cyclopes of the forge
- D. The dwarves Brokkr and Eitri
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The dwarves Brokkr and Eitri
Did you know? The dwarven smiths Brokkr and Eitri forged Mjölnir in a wager against Loki.
22.Which wolves devour the sun and moon at Ragnarök?
- A. Managarm and Sól
- B. Fenrir and Jörmungandr
- C. Geri and Freki
- D. Sköll and Hati
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Sköll and Hati
Did you know? Sköll swallows the sun and Hati tears down the moon, darkening the world.
23.What is Yggdrasil in Norse cosmology?
- A. The well of wisdom
- B. The great ash tree holding the nine worlds
- C. The ship of the dead
- D. The mountain where Odin hung
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The great ash tree holding the nine worlds
Did you know? Yggdrasil, the world ash, binds the nine worlds with its roots and branches.
24.Which Norse god wields the hammer Mjölnir?
- A. Baldur
- B. Freyr
- C. Odin
- D. Thor
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Thor
Did you know? Thor defends Asgard and Midgard with his hammer Mjölnir.
25.What is special about Odin's horse Sleipnir?
- A. He runs across the sky bridge
- B. He breathes fire
- C. He speaks prophecies
- D. It has eight legs
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It has eight legs
Did you know? Sleipnir, the best of horses, carries Odin across sky and sea with eight legs.
26.Which goddess of love wears the necklace Brisingamen?
- A. Sif
- B. Idunn
- C. Freyja
- D. Frigg
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Freyja
Did you know? Freyja owns the falcon-feather cloak and the famous necklace Brisingamen.
27.According to Hesiod's ages, which age did mortals first enjoy?
- A. The Golden Age
- B. The Iron Age
- C. The Silver Age
- D. The Bronze Age
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The Golden Age
Did you know? Hesiod's Golden Age knew no toil under Cronus's reign.
28.What does the goddess Hel look like?
- A. She is made entirely of ice
- B. She has wings of black feathers
- C. Half living flesh and half dead, darkened
- D. She wears a crown of serpents
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Half living flesh and half dead, darkened
Did you know? Hel, cast down to Niflheim, rules the dead with one side living and one dead.
29.Which wolf swallows Odin at Ragnarök, and who avenges him?
- A. Fenrir, avenged by Vidarr
- B. Geri, avenged by Heimdall
- C. Managarm, avenged by Freyr
- D. Sköll, avenged by Thor
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Fenrir, avenged by Vidarr
Did you know? Fenrir devours Odin, and Odin's silent son Vidarr tears the wolf's jaws apart.
30.What do the einherjar do every day in Valhalla?
- A. They guard the rainbow bridge
- B. They sleep until Ragnarok
- C. They build ships for the gods
- D. They fight each other and rise revived at evening
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They fight each other and rise revived at evening
Did you know? The einherjar train by battle each dawn, healing by nightfall for Odin's final war.
31.Which Chinese tree shelters the ten suns between their baths?
- A. The Fusang tree
- B. The Jianmu pillar
- C. The Bodhi tree
- D. The cassia of the moon
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The Fusang tree
Did you know? The Fusang mulberry stood in the eastern sea where the sun-birds rested.
32.Which squirrel runs up and down Yggdrasil carrying insults?
- A. Fenrir
- B. Dvalinn
- C. Ratatoskr
- D. Geri
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Ratatoskr
Did you know? Ratatoskr ferries the eagle's and the dragon's insults along the trunk.
33.Which sea god is the father of Freyr and Freyja?
- A. Aegir
- B. Odin
- C. Njord
- D. Heimdall
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Njord
Did you know? Njord came to Asgard among the Vanir in exchange for hostages of peace.
34.How many attempts does the Popol Vuh record before humans succeed?
- A. Three
- B. Two
- C. Four
- D. Seven
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Three
Did you know? Mud people, then wooden people, then the maize people followed one another.
35.What magical fetter finally bound the wolf Fenrir?
- A. The root of an oak
- B. The silken ribbon Gleipnir
- C. A chain forged in Muspelheim
- D. Iron chains blessed by Tyr
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The silken ribbon Gleipnir
Did you know? Fenrir snapped every chain until the dwarves made Gleipnir from impossible things.
36.What happens to Thor after he kills Jörmungandr?
- A. He survives to rule the new world
- B. He walks nine steps and dies of the serpent's venom
- C. He is dragged into the sea
- D. He ascends Odin's throne
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He walks nine steps and dies of the serpent's venom
Did you know? Thor slays the Midgard Serpent, walks nine paces, and falls dead from its poison.
37.Where do warriors who die of sickness or old age go?
- A. They are denied any afterlife
- B. To the dwarves under the hills
- C. To Hel's hall in Niflheim
- D. To Valhalla without weapons
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To Hel's hall in Niflheim
Did you know? Those who die of age or sickness dwell in Hel's realm instead of Valhalla.
38.Which divine smith forges the Sampo mill in the Finnish Kalevala?
- A. Vainamoinen
- B. Louhi
- C. Ilmarinen
- D. Lemminkainen
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Ilmarinen
Did you know? Ilmarinen hammered the Sampo, the corn-mill of plenty, from a swan's feather.
39.Who are the three Norns who shape destiny at the well of Urd?
- A. Huginn, Muninn and Geri
- B. Idunn, Sif and Sigyn
- C. Frigg, Fulla and Gefjon
- D. Urd, Verdandi and Skuld
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Urd, Verdandi and Skuld
Did you know? The Norns Urd (past), Verdandi (present) and Skuld (future) carve each life's fate.
40.Whom will Heimdall fight in a mutual duel at Ragnarök?
- A. Loki
- B. Fenrir
- C. Surtr
- D. Jörmungandr
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Loki
Did you know? Heimdall and Loki, old foes, slay each other at Ragnarök.

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