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13i EELIGION OF THE NOETHMEIT.
Frey drives with his golden-bristled Boar—the
symbol of the productiveness of the fields ;—ror he
sails in his serial ship SkiSblaSnir,* over the light
clouds. He dwells in Alfheim, and rules over the
Light-Elves (Ljosalfar)—the bland spirits which
hover about the fruitful earth. His love for the
Jotun maiden GerSaf—the Emhradng, Swrrounding—expresses
the longing of Fruitfulness to impart
its blessings to the wintry Earth.:|: To gain the
object of his longing he gives away his good sword,
and therefore he alone is weaponless among the
warlike ^sir,—the culture of the earth is an employment
of peace ; it thrives only where weapons
are at rest.
Freyja's abode is the People's Fields or Habita-
tions (F61kvd.ngar) ;§ in her hall there is room for
many seats.|| The Goddess of Love journeys among
* Skis, a tUn shingle, or a sheath ; cognate with the Ban.
Skede; Oerm. Scheide; A.-8. sceaS. BlaS; Dan. Blad; Qerm.
Blatt; eogn. with Engl, blade. The word denotes the property
of the ship, that although it was so large as to hold all the ^sir
yet it was so skillfully made, that when it was not wanted its leaf-
like planks could be folded up like a cloth and the whole affair
carried in the pocket (see L. Edda, Gylf. 43).
t GerSr signifies a girth, inclosure, from girSa, to gird, which
is cognate with garSrJ^see Chap. 8, MiBgarSr). Both gerd and gard
are common terminations of female names, as Hildigard, Thorgerd
&c.
% Pet. Danm. Hist. III., p. 178.
§ F^lk; A.-S. folc; 8w., Dan. and Sngl. folk; Germ. Volk.
VSngr, pi. vfingaB, an inclosure, field ; cogn. with Oerm. Woh-
nnng, a habitation.
II Sessr^mnir, from sess {Dan. Stede ; Oerm. Sitze), a seat, and
r^ma, to make room— ^literally, the Seat-roona>y.
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