Draugr, much like the Kraken, is a legendary Norse creature. As discussed in part one, the name Drogo derives from the Old Norse word draugr. I've surmised that Hugor (of the Hill) is siimilarly derived from hugr, and that the original Hugor, who lead the Andals during the fight against the evil of the Long Night
To frame the discussion about draugrs, Hugor/hugr, barrows, and the boundaries between the living and the dead, we need to better understand Norse draugr myths. In the essays to follow, I'll discuss how they have been interpreted by fantasy writers, including Tolkien.
Draugrs are the Norse undead. The soul (hugr), upon death, refuses to leave the material plane, and instead reoccupies its former body. There are two types of draugrs: land (or barrow) draugrs, and sea draugrs. This section will focus on land draugrs.
The will appears to be strong, strong enough to draw the hugr [animate will] back to one's body. These reanimated individuals were known as draugar (or draugr). However, though the dead might live again, they could also die again. Draugar die a "second death" as Chester Gould calls it, when their bodies decay, are burned, dismembered or otherwise destroyed.
Draugrs are inextricably linked with barrows in Norse mythology. Barrows, also known as "howes" or "tumuluses", are artificial low mounds (or hills) where people are buried. They are often assoicated with kings or royal families, and offer both the living and the dead a home. For the living, the descendents of those buried in barrows are able to point at the barrows as proof of their long-term [ownership of the land][dragur2]. For the dead, the barrows are home.
Because of this association, draugrs have often been called barrow-wights. This translation of draugr is from the mid-19th century.
Within these Old Norse myths, Draugrs lived in barrows, guarding their burial treasures. While they are not contained by the barrow (they will leave to raid sheep or humans) the artificial mounds are their homes. Even in more modern times, archeological excavations of Viking barrows caused locals to worry about draugrs attacking their livestock- or their loved ones.
The barrows represent a "liminal space", a place of crossover between the worlds of the living and the dead. Draugrs, living when and where they should not, represent beings between the living and the dead. They are the undead, whose hugr would not leave the body, returning by sheer will to continue to live.
A draugr's presence might be shown by a great light that glowed from the mound like foxfire.[15] This fire would form a barrier between the land of the living and the land of the dead.[16] The draugr could also move magically through the earth, swimming through solid stone as does Killer-Hrapp:
Then Olaf tried to rush Hrapp, but Hrapp sank into the ground where he had been standing and that was the end of their encounter.[6]
Hvammr, the Shadow Valley
Another liminal space of crossover between the living and the dead, the "Hvammr" is a geographic feature we might call a dell or valley. These valleys are surrounded by tall mountains, which cast shadows enough to keep the hvammr dark for weeks or months at a time:
Scandinavian draugar are further associated with certain types of landscapes, notably the "hvammr," "a short valley or dell, surrounded by mountains, but open on one side in one direction". Certain traditions record a tradition of the dead "dying into a mountain," equating this sort of mountain with a burial mound. The hvammr represented a boundary area between valley and mountain, between farm and burial mound, between the living and the dead. The hvammr, surrounded by tall mountains, would receive little direct sunlight, and none at all for several weeks in midwinter. Forsaeludale (literally, "Shadow Valley"), the site of Glamr's hauntings in Grettirs saga, was such a place.
A strange relationship between draugrs and iron is related in the Norse myths. Apparently the dead can be prevented from becoming draugrs if iron scissors (or swords?) were placed on the body after death. This prevented the hugr from returning to the body. Iron was also threatening to the draugr, as it could injure them:
Iron could injure a draugr, as is the case with many supernatural creatures, although it would not be sufficient to stop it. Sometimes the hero is required to dispose of the body in unconventional ways. The preferred method is to cut off the draugr's head, burn the body, and dump the ashes in the sea—the emphasis being on making absolutely sure that the draugr was dead and gone.
Iron was to be placed on the deceased body because draug, like other undead, vættir, and fea folk, hate iron. Iron was often used as a means of keeping the undead away by placing iron somewhere at the threshold.
The draugr have many magical powers, including incredible strength, shapeshifting, and more:
Draugar are noted for having numerous magical abilities (referred to as trollskap) resembling those of living witches and wizards, such as shape-shifting, controlling the weather, and seeing into the future. A draugr can change into a seal, a great flayed bull, a grey horse with a broken back but no ears or tail, and a cat that would sit upon a sleeper's chest and grow steadily heavier until the victim suffocated. The draugr Þráinn (Thrain) shape-shifted into a cat-like creature (kattakyn) in Hrómundar saga Gripssonar.
Draugar have the ability to enter into the dreams of the living, and they will frequently leave a gift behind so that "the living person may be assured of the tangible nature of the visit".[14] Draugar also have the ability to curse a victim, as shown in the Grettis saga, where Grettir is cursed to be unable to become any stronger. Draugar also brought disease to a village and could create temporary darkness in daylight hours. They preferred to be active during the night, although it did not appear to be vulnerable to sunlight like some other revenants. Draugr can also kill people with bad luck.
Some draugar are immune to weapons, and only a hero has the strength and courage needed to stand up to so formidable an opponent. In legends, the hero would often have to wrestle the draugr back to his grave, thereby defeating him, since weapons would do no good. A good example of this is found in Hrómundar saga Gripssonar.
The Draugr are even ascribed motivations:
The dead budy was a vehicle of plague and illness, such as that ofthe sorceror Mithothyn of Saxo Grammaticus, but in a day and age in which germ theory was unknown, the causative agent was perceived to be the evil intent of the draugr. Thus it followed that the dead might also make physical attacks against the living. The draugr was believed to feel a longing for the things of life, and even envy of those yet alive.
Famously, the draugr of myth were blue corpses:
The draugar were said to be either hel-blár ("death-blue") or nár-fölr ("corpse-pale").[7] The death-blue color was not actually grey but was a dark blue or maroon hue which covered the entire body. Glámr, the undead shepherd of Grettis saga, was reported to be dark blue,[19] and Laxdæla saga describes how bones were dug up belonging to a dead sorceress who had appeared in dreams, and they were "blue and evil looking."
In part III, I'll examine some famous draugrs in fiction from ancient epic sagas to modern fantasy writing.
dededos
areudirty
vaporwave
romaincrisis
titsay
germansingergirl
snowghoul
blakekathryn
