The Wolves & The Ravens - Geri, Freki, Hugin & Munin

Their Creation and Purpose

In Old Norse Mythology, Geri and Freki were created by the All-Father Odin, the chief god of the Aesir. Odin was fond of wandering for years on his own, exploring, and learning, as he is mentioned doing so many times across poems. After a time, he began to grow lonely, which caused him to bring to life his two wolf companions. They resided in Asgard with Odin, too, and feasted alongside Odin in Valhalla – where of which Odin would sip his wine and lend the meat scraps over to them (Grímnismál, Poetic Edda).

 Although believed to have been created after Odin’s ravens, Hugin and Munin, there is much more evidence that says it was the other way around. The wolves were fierce hunters, but their scouting abilities were limited – and this was where the ravens’ abilities came into play, and one of their reasons of being created. While Odin wandered the lands, admiring the newly birthed Midgard and the sprouting of mankind, his raven and wolf pairs helped one another to stalk, hunt and eat. The ravens flew and scouted distant lands, and the wolves used their strength.

These were not their only uses, however. In Old Norse, and all the cousin pagan tribes such as the Celtics, Germanics Tribes, and Pre-Christian Saxons, believed wolves held the role of helping the fallen warriors travel across to Valhalla, just like the Valkyries did. It is said that Geri and Freki in particular partake a large role in this and is part of the reason they are constantly on the hunt for the corpses of mankind to gnaw off. Hugin and Munin, on the other hand, had the job of freely flying across the mortal realm, Midgard, constantly observing and bringing all and every bit of knowledge of the current happenings back to Odin. These two ravens were the primary source of Odin’s knowledge of the mortal realm, which makes them one of the most important beings in all of Norse Mythology. If it weren’t for them, many things would have occurred differently.

Name Origins

Reflecting and mirroring Odin’s unquenchable thirst for all knowledge, the names ‘Geri’ and ‘Freki’ both derive from the meanings of greed, ravenous and similar. Geri, meaning ‘the greedy one’ in Old Norse, originates from the adjective ‘geraz’ which, in Proto-Germanic, means ‘greedy’ and/or gluttonous. Freki, ‘the ravenous one’, originates from the adjective ‘frekaz’ meaning covetous, covetous, and gluttonous. Freki can also be connected with the Gothic word ‘faihufriks’ and the Old English word ‘Frec’ meaning ‘desirous, greedy, gluttonous, and audacious’ and Old High German ‘freh’ which simply translates to ‘greedy.’ The ravens’ name, Hugin, translates through Old Norse to ‘thought’, whilst Muninn translates to either ‘memory’ or ‘mind’.

Symbolic Meanings

Although their names are derived from ‘greed’ and are renowned corpse-eaters, Geri and Freki also symbolise loyalty, courage, and wisdom, which is quite a common mantle given to wolves in general across all Old European Paganism, but most importantly in Viking culture. Warriors also believed that, during battle, if they happened to spot a fierce grey wolf, it was a sign that Odin was there on the battlefield and if the warrior was fated to die, it was assurance that he would be taken off to Valhalla. Whilst the wolves symbolise more so the mortal realm, Hugin and Munin represent the mind and soul, hence the meanings of their names. Both of the pairs seem to represent two halves of Odin, too – the ravens represent his wide range of knowledge, his freedom being the chief of all the gods and his powerful mind. Whilst Geri and Freki symbolise his more sinister nature, being the god who’s often scheming behind other gods’ backs with little to no limits of what he’ll do to feed his endless hunger for more and more knowledge, hoping to one day bend fate itself.

The Ulfhednar

Freki and Geri held a large influence over the Ulfhednar, or ‘Wolf Coats’, they were a type of Berserker that were so Odin-centric that it was nearly zealot-like. The mythos of these Viking wolf warrior bands was inspired by the two wolves, and the ferocity, loyalty and fearlessness associated with the Beserkers mirrored Odin’s most trusted companions. To embody them in battle, they would don themselves in wolf pelts or helmets styled as a wolf. It was also said, that the Ulfhednar never once slayed a wolf to obtain its pelt. They only ever acquired skins of wolves who were already dead in the wilds and were scavenged and given to new members as a sort of initiation ritual. The Ulfhednar was also inspired by the tale of the Volsung clan creation, where Odin took the form of a wolf, mated with a human, and in turn created the great Volsung lineage of half-wolf and half-men, which later brought to life the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok.

One of the Vendel era Torslunda plates found on Öland, Sweden. It probably depicts one-eyed Odin guiding a Berserker.

The Symbiotic Connection Between Raven & Wolf

Odin’s wolves’ and ravens’ symbiotic relationship is rooted in real-life studies, showing wide-ranged communication, interaction and understandings between raven and wolf. Like many other predators and scavengers, crows will often flutter nearby wolves to pick off any meat scraps left behind after a hunt. It does not stop with that though. Ravens are known to dwell nearby wolves, and even playfight with pups such as tug-of-war with sticks and branches. They will caw and alert wolves of nearby prey or other predators and will even guide them to living prey and carcasses with flesh to thick for the ravens themselves to puncture through. Some ravens have even been seen to form strong bonds with wolves who it has known since it was a pup, and even accompany one if they were to leave the pack.

Wolf at Blacktail Pond. NPS / Jim Peaco

References

(Vianna, 2022) – Geri and Freki: Odin’s Wolves Who Inspired the Ulfhednar Warriors: https://norsemythologist.com/geri-and-freki/

(Grunge 2023) - THE UNEXPECTED RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WOLVES AND RAVENS: https://www.grunge.com/299709/the-unexpected-relationship-between-wolves-and-ravens/

(Yellowstone 2023) – NATURALIST NOTES: WOLVES AND RAVENS: https://www.yellowstone.org/naturalist-notes-wolves-and-ravens/

(Wiki 2023) – Berserker: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berserker