Mjolnir has inspired many works of art, such as this drawing.

In Norse mythology, Mjolnir (also Mjollnir, literally "that which smashes") is the Hammer of Thor, the god of lightning and thunder. This war hammer (made by Brok and Eitri) had enormous destructive capabilities, and was associated with lightning. When thrown, it would return to the thrower's hand after striking its target. Only Thor and his son, Magni, could lift it. The account of how Thor came by Mjolnir is given in the 11th century poem Thorsdrapa.

Culture

Replicas of the hammer were widely popular in Scandinavia and were used in Blóts and other sacral ceremonies, such as weddings. In 1925, in Gotland, a hammer was still put in the bed of the newlyweds to bring fertility to the new family. During the period of christian missionary, it was a popular symbol competing with the Christian cross and sometimes even worn beside it.

Today, replicas of such hammers are frequently used and sold in jewelry shops and worn by many, especially by those interested in Norse mythology and ancient Scandinavian history. It is also used by Nationalists and people on the extreme right of politics, making the hammer controversial (see Thor's Hammer).

Thunder

To wield this formidable weapon, even a deity like Thor needed special iron gloves and a belt that doubled the wearer's strength. The strike of Mjolnir caused thunderclaps, and the name of this deity has produced the word for "thunder" in most Germanic languages.

Norse myth

With the hammer, Thor indulged in his favourite sport of killing giants. Most of the surviving myths centre on Thor's exploits, and this and inscriptions on monuments suggest that Thor was very much the favourite deity of ancient Scandinavians.

In Trymskvida, the most light and funny of all Thor's adventures, the giant Thrym secretly steals Mjolnir from Thor and then demands fair Freya in exchange.

Marvel Comics

In the Marvel Comics version of the character, the hammer could also allow Thor to fly by grasping the holding strap of his hammer after he threw it in the direction he wanted to go. It also allowed him to control the weather, travel through time and other dimensions. It could be used defensively by twirling it by its holding strap to deflect bullets. It had to stay in physical contact with Thor to prevent him from turning back into his mortal form of Doctor Don Blake after sixty seconds, but that weakness was removed after an alien warrior named Beta Ray Bill proved worthy of Mjolnir and received a variant hammer, called Stormbreaker, with the transformation weakness being transferred to it.

Only a person who is considered worthy is able to lift Mjolnir. So far, the only beings so qualified have been Odin, Thor, Beta Ray Bill, Captain America and a hero from the future named Drago.

Games

Mjolnir also appears as a magical artifact in the roguelike computer game NetHack and also in the Diablo-like "Darkstone".

In both Marathon, the main character is a cyborg whose type is named Mjolnir, and in Halo, the protagonist uses a combat suit designated as MJOLNIR.

In the Volition game Freespace 2, Mjolnir is a long range beam cannon.

In the Breath of Fire III game, Mjolnir (spelt Myollinir) is the most powerful thunder-elemental magic spell.

In the Quake expansion pack Scourge of Armagon, Mjolnir is reproduced somewhat faithfully as a hammer weapon which fires lightning bolts at nearby enemies when it is struck against the ground.

In the Final Fantasy XI MMORPG, Mjollnir is the strongest (relic) weapon that a White Mage can wield.

In the Ambrosia game Escape Velocity: Nova, Mjolnir is a system of the Polarians.

In the GunBound online game, a large satellite that shoots out beams of lightnings as players battle down below is called Thor's Hammer.

In the Ragnarok Online MMORPG, Mjolnir is a high level, legendary hammer that only players of levels 98 and 99 are able to wield(with 99 being the highest level).

In the adventure game God of Thunder.

In the game Halo, the main character's personal recharagble shield is called MJOLNIR.

Other spellings

• Common Danish and Norwegian form: Mjølner
• Icelandic and German: Mjölnir
• Swedish: Mjölner

da:Mjølner de:Mjölnir fr:Mjölnir it:Mjölnir nl:Mjölnir ja:ミョルニル no:Mjølner sv:Mjölner

Internal Links

Uru (Marvel Comics)