Breidablik

This article is about the location in Nordic mythology. For other uses, see Breiðablik.

Breiðablik (sometimes anglicised as Breithablik or Breidablik) is the home of Baldr in Nordic mythology.

Meaning

The word Breiðablik has been variously translated as 'broad sheen', 'Broad gleam', 'Broad-gleaming' or 'the far-shining one',

Attestations

Grímismál

The Eddic poem Grímnismál describes Breiðablik as the fair home of Baldr:

Old Norse text	Bellows translation
Breiðablik eru in sjaundu, en þar Baldr hefir sér of gerva sali, á því landi, er ek liggja veit fæsta feiknstafi.	The seventh is Breithablik; Baldr has there For himself a dwelling set, In the land I know that lies so fair, And from evil fate is free.

Gylfaginning

In Snorri Sturluson's Gylfaginning, Breiðablik is described in a list of places in heaven, identified by some scholars as Asgard:

Old Norse text	Brodeur translation
Þar er einn sá staðr, er Breiðablik er kallaðr, ok engi er þar fegri staðr.	Then there is also in that place the abode called Breidablik, and there is not in heaven a fairer dwelling.

Later in the work, when Snorri describes Baldr, he gives another description, citing Grímnismál, though he does not name the poem:

Old Norse text	Brodeur translation
Hann býr þar, sem heitir Breiðablik. Þat er á himni. Í þeim stað má ekki vera óhreint...	He [Baldr] dwells in the place called Breidablik, which is in heaven; in that place may nothing unclean be...

Interpretation and discussion

The name of Breiðablik has been noted to link with Baldr's attributes of light and beauty.

Similarities have been drawn between the description of Breiðablik in Grímnismál and Heorot in Beowulf, which are both free of 'baleful runes' (Old Norse: feicnstafi and Old English: fācenstafas respectively). In Beowulf, the lack of fācenstafas refers to the absence of crimes being committed, and therefore both halls have been proposed to be sanctuaries.

In popular culture

• Breidablik is a sacred weapon in Fire Emblem Heroes that the Summoner uses to summon Heroes coming from different Fire Emblem games.
• In the PlayStation game Xenogears, Bledavik is the name of the capital city of the desert kingdom of Aveh on the Ignas continent.

See also

• Álfheimr, the home of Freyr
• Nóatún, the home of Njörðr
• Þrúðvangr, the home of Thor

Bibliography

Primary

• Bellows, Henry Adam (2004). The poetic Edda : the mythological poems. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications. ISBN 9780486437101.
• Orchard, Andy (2011). The Elder Edda : a book of Viking lore. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 9780141393728.
• Sturluson, Snorri (2018). The Prose Edda. Translated by Brodeur, Arthur Gilchrist. Franklin Classics Trade Press. ISBN 9780344335013.
• "Grímnismál (Old Norse)". heimskringla.com. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
• "Gylfaginning (Old Norse)". heimskringla.no. Retrieved 4 October 2022.

Secondary

• Liberman, Anatoly; Lindow, John (2004). "Some Controversial Aspects of the Baldr Myth" (PDF). Alvíssmál. 11: 17–54.
• Branston, Brian (1980). Gods of the North. London: Thames and Hudson.
• Simek, Rudolf (2008). A Dictionary of Northern Mythology. Translated by Hall, Angela. BOYE6. ISBN 9780859915137.