ABSTRACT
Chapter 1 lays out the impetus for the study, which is the famous complexity of the pre-Christian Nordic god Odin, as seen in the many contradictory results in research on the subject. The complexity of Odin derives from the Old Norse/Icelandic sagas, eddas, and Saxo’s Gesta Danorum, texts that underlie the study of Old Norse religion and do not depict Odin in a consistent manner. The pagan god appears to be a literary figure who can be shaped in accordance with the different textual contexts. Consequently, Odin will be studied on the premises of the texts with a focus on the depictions of him and his function in the Old Norse/Icelandic and Christian Middle Ages.
