"i don't know how they diagnose someone as being berserk" Wearing bear or wolf cloaks Fighting without armor Crazed as a dog or wolf Immune to iron or fire Biting their shield.
Amazing. -I'm norwegian and I have never studied old norse, but to give an example of how much or how little modern norwegian has deviated from old norse, let me say this: The little piece from ynglinge saga was easy to understand. I understood 90% of it with ease.
I wonder what factors cause languages to change such that old english is incomprehensible to modern speakers while the opposite is (mostly) true for old norse.
@@gst8410 Actually, modern Norwegians can understand Old English to quite a degree. Probably because Norwegian has changed less from old germanic, and because norwegians are quite proficient in modern english.
ɅRCHE TYPE Invasions,trade,mixing of different peoples with different dialects or languages. (a grammatically simplified language that adopts words from the different languages may emerge ,a lingua franca,a trade language).
I read a book called "Achilles in Vietnam" I forget who it was by but it references a study done on veterans who were perpetually exposed to harsh and traumatic conditions in war. They reached what was described as the apex of PTSD where they could not properly discern ally from enemy once in this trance like state of awareness. And they would just take the initiative kill indiscriminately without a care for personal safety. Maybe this is the same as what the Norse were talking about? I wouldn't think the Norsemen would want bunch of violent fanatics who could pop off if they saw a sword drawn.
During my service in Northern Ireland I was involved in riot control at Londonderry's infamous Bogside. I was firing rubber bullets like they were going out of fashion. My gun's barrel was smoking hot but I had little knowledge of my actions at that time. All I can remember was a desire to hurt or kill someone. I had lost it but after the event I was as cool as a cucumber, as if nothing had happened. The thing that I think set me off was my sergeant-major shouting for us to fire and "hit the fuckers".
Since I discovered your channel, I’ve watched virtually nothing else. Every single video of yours I’ve watched has been truly excellent. Many thanks for producing this content. I found you because I started auditing Signum U’s Old Norse course, which I’m supplementing with your own ON videos, and they are really helping.
I've always been very intrigued by the mystery behind the "berserker" and the "berserker-gang" phenomenon. Thank you for the fascinating video, Dr. Crawford.
You do pick the spots for these videos JC! I like the content, but I would watch for the sake of the background alone. I must seek out this place in udgård called Colorado one day. It´s on my bucket list.
I expect that the mushroom theory about berserkers stems from the fact that in Iceland we have a mushroom called berserkjasveppur, or berserker mushroom that if partaken of lends people the feeling of being invincible. in bigger doses it can be fatal though, so stay away!
Mushroom in general are an important part of many shamanic practices. Certainly not limited to that, there's a wide array of ethneogenic plant species. Shapeshifting and wearing animal skins is also common, which is essentially where you'd find a bear or wolf skinned man. As far as I know there have been no finds of anyone carrying any preserved mushrooms, there was a volva found with cannabis seeds and henbane seeds.
I am from sweden and i have heard that in the old days they dried what we call redwhitefliesmushroom and ate just a little bit of it to take on the clothes of a bear if engaging in a one on one fight. But as said in the video, it probably doesnt matter, you could act crazy without.
A champion was given an animal pelt, wolf, boar or bear to show that they are great warriors. It is needed to see the difference of historical "berserkers" and mythological "berserkers", however the lines can be blurred most times.
I wonder what you are really like. I wish I knew you. I often wonder if you are putting us on. Not about Old Norse subjects but about your professorial persona. I smiled and laughed out loud when you put your cowboy hat on and and said goodby. It's a good feeling.
This is one of your best videos. Snappy, engaging, and the framing of the shot is quite lovely. I was hoping you would mention the tale of the Berserkers in Eyrbyggja Saga, but alas, I guess I need to do my homework. ;)
Ecstatic trance warriors are a commonality amongst all Indo-European cultures. I also strongly suspect a genetic predisposition for some to be more likely candidates for the condition. It has been theorized in some circles that it is an ancient evolutionary survival trait shared by much of humanity that dates back to prehistoric times. Another modern labeling for this is Somafera, "the body wild."
It's a known fact that a form of trance is a much more likely explanation as we still see it today, but it's usually induced by hypnosis or called "the zone"/the flow state nowadays. For all I know, it was just warriors entering "the zone" forcefully 😂.
There was three known hunting magic cults where Nordic warrior tradition are belkeved to be born. Bear, Wild Boar and Wolf cults. Úlfheðnar berserkergang are the Wolf-cultists and were Odins favorites. Bear-cultists were most widely spread and longest survived cult. Historical Bear-cults has spread across northern hemispheres forests land from North Europe, throughout Siberia to North America. Finnish Bear-cult that shares at least close geographical location with Scandinavian Bear-cult, was well and kicking at least until 18th century, and still is in hunting traditions. Wild Boar-cult was some Vanir thing... But they most definitely weren't bare chest or unarmored. Although might have torn them off in rage induced trance where they bit their shields and howled like animals etc, according to contemporary eyewitness accounts. Really strange and awkward men...
Hello Jackson, I was wondering, in the video you said the úlfhéðnar are not considered heros. Is there a name for a norse warrior that is considered a hero? Also, I am curious about the connection between the úlfhéðnar and their gift from Odin. Why would Odin bestow such a power on a villian type? Was there a special reason or was there some sort of transition to being a villan after the power was gifted from Odin?
Thank you so much for this video! I've always been fascinated by them (I feel like extra pulled to the Úlfhéðnar). I wonder, being an "anti hero" kinda person...is there any documentation of the Berserkir and/or Úlfhéðnar being anti-heroes and not straight up bad dudes?
Lindybeige made a video where he suggested that a berserker was akin to a champion, someone a noble would hire to fight for them in trial by combat or holmgang. That's why they're viewed negatively, because they enabled weak and cowardly nobles to settle disputes with the sword. What are your thoughts on that Dr. Crawford?
SevenStringShredHead But also you must understand that,the word berserker (bear shirts) could have been used in two different ways. In One way, just like what you've said, would be a highly skilled Norse warrior to whom the king gives him a bear shirt to make others identify that warrior as a "champion". And, yes of course. The kings or lords used these champions in duels or "Holmgang" in order to challenge other people and to acquire possessions of those defeated people. Yep. You maybe right. The writers of the sagas could have actually mistaken those "champions" for the actual Berserkers(shamanistic warriors) as cruel people who would engage in duels for their desire in other people's possessions like women,houses and property. The other way of using the word is referring to a tribal shamanistic warrior who wears bear or wolf skin as they consider bears and wolves as their sacred and totem animals.They would try to possess the spirit of that animal by wearing the skin and doing ritualistic practices. As a result, they will acquire the "berserkergang" or the berserker rage. Lindybeige has made a terrible mistake regarding about Berserkers by not mentioning the saga accounts which mention correctly about those true animal shamanistic warriors. And also , those saga accounts mention about Berserkers( I'm referring to sagas and old Norse texts written after the end of the Viking age i.e. 13th century) as villains, just like what Dr. Jackson has said in this video. In fact these sagas contain only stories which are for most of the time, are not historically accurate but stories written with imagination. So, the description about Berserkers in these sagas belonging to 13th century as ruthless men who killed many people and pillaged villages, as a result disrupting peace could be wrong. It could be due to the fact that Christianity considered the Berserkir and Ulfhednar as well as their ritualistic practices as demonic and magical i.e. it was greatly hated by the Christians.
Hey Doc, I just checked my local Barnes and Noble to see if they had a copy of either of your books. Unfortunately, they do not and claim they cannot order such at this time... Oddly enough, there were a bunch of cookbooks listed under the same name. You don't have a fondness for recipes do you? 😂
Hi Jackson. Thank you for your work - It's very interesting. I'm trying to find sources for knowledge about these mentioned warriors. Is there anything you can share with me incl. the sages that mention these?
I read about some ethno botanist who studied the possibility of mushroom use, who concluded the effects was more of a delerious agressive state like maybe wolfsbane. I dont remember correctly but the symptoms of both fly agaric and psilocybin mushrooms do not promote the agressive and delerious behaviour of berserk
Lindybeige has a video on the topic of berserkers. His conclusion (or rather his friend who wrote his doctors thesis on berserkers) was that berserkers were probably champions of some type of lord. Apparently when a french legend "Yvain, le Chavalier au Lion" was translated as Ivan Saga in the 13th century the word "champion" was translated into Norse as "berserker". th-cam.com/video/PBUGQkpk3RE/w-d-xo.html
Beserkers / ulfhednar have a form of hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia. Before battle they refrained from eating protein (meat) and consumed a lot of bread and other starchy foods and mead that caused their blood sugar to rise which leads to an and insulin surge, which in turn leads to an adrenaline surge invoking rageful behavior. This also leads to the wiped out condition of the beserkers after battle.
Hoping for some further detail. From what I've read elsewhere, it is claimed the Ulfhedinn were the Berserkir who wore Wolf Pelts with a more association to Odin and had the same attributes of the Bear Pelt wearing Berserkir but were essentially better and crazier than the Bear Pelt wearing Berserkir. Is there any difference, and were the Ulfhedinn a tier stronger, or better than the Bear Pelt wearing Berserkir?
I read in an old Norse online dictionary the south had a Lion version of beserkr. What would they have been called, I haven't found a whole lot about them. Would it be like ljonhedinn ,lēonhedinn or something like that?
On the word "berserk" ... it's a completely normal word where I grew up, and it typically means that type of guy who gets into fights all the time. We even used the word "holmgang" for mano-a-mano standoffs between guys who were pissed off at eachother (as in a more "ritualized" type of fight where the parties agree to "go outside" and duke it out).
Thanks so much Dr. Jackson! Based on your presentation, let's just say "ber-" means 'skin/hide' which is close to 'bare' and I think this will be the most accurate use of the word. It implies they wear a 'skinned/hide shirt'. They wore bear, wolf and boar skins if I'm not mistaken. I think the belief it means 'bear' is modern English's fault.
What is your opinion on the idea that a Berserker was a person's personal champion? That is the way in which the word is used in a translation of "Yvain, the Knight of the Lion" into Norwegian in the 13th century.
I wonder if those berserkers possibly suffered from an adrenal issue, I had an ex who dumped adrenaline and I saw him act in a way that can only be adequately described as "berserk." He'd rage out, break things (ripped a table out of a floor), I once saw him push a quadcon weighing well over a ton (tare weight was 1 ton, payload weight was 9,436 lbs, unsure on how packed it was) the distance of about 25 meters on his own (scraping across an asphalt paved yard). Just a thought on something other than the mushroom idea.
Isn't it also possible that it's intended to be a dual-interpretation pun, of sorts? in the same way Ragnarokkr can be taken two ways? The law code opposing Berserkir reminds me of the argument Georges Dumézil advances in Mitra-Varuna about warrior cults being inherently opposed to the lawful everyday civilization led by the judiciary type priests. He puts the latter under Mitra, Tyr, etc. and the warrior cults under Varuna, Odin, etc. He also uses the example of the Luperci in Rome.
Berserkers went berserk from time to time. After the rage or battle they would fall into a completely opposite state of lethargy and exhausted sleep until they recovered. Another clue was biting their shields.
The legendary Bodvar (from Hrolf Kraki's Saga) is an interesting character in this "bear" context, with a possible correlation to other myths and legends from other cultures, such as shapeshifters and "skin walkers" in old Native American stories.
I've got a bluff behind my house with a bunch of native American paintings on it and one is a wolf headed creature with its arms out stretched and it's the biggest painting there, vid on my channel if you wanna see
One of the biggest ironies that I have found about Old Norse society was how much emphasis they placed on man-hood and the masculine ideal (known as "Dreiger") as well as on honor (that is to say, "reputation")... ...and it appears that the elite warrior / shock-troop class know as "Beserkers" and "Ulfhednar" had a very fierce reputation as such. Yet... it is known that this elite class of shock-troop warriors were often enough ostricised to the fringe of society until Berserkers were eventually altogether outlawed and / or sentenced to outlawry if they continued in the practise. Which is saying alot... especially coming from such a "manly" society like the Old Norse.
Berserkgangur gets a bit lost in translation because its really mean going "berserk" meaning this was somehow a shift form normalsy, referring to the wolf skin its sometimes referred to as að fara í ham or hamur menning a costume of sorts but also could mean mood or going into a state of mind that its like you left your self and became a beast. In my opinion after reading all the Icelandic sagas that it's a way for people who have no knowledge of mental illness and berserkir were psychopaths and would believe they could turn to Wolf's and commit brutal crimes and just say I can't control it. Like the saga he was refreshing Egills sagas Skalla-Grímsönar. When Egill in about 12 him and his friend Þórður Granason are playing knatleik a ice hockey of sorts with Egills father Skalla-Grími and the boy are winning but then its start getting dark out so skalla-Grímur because better at the game and starts being aggressive and at the end so aggressively that he grabs Þórð and drives him so hard down in the ice that þórðs head brakes open and he dies instantly. Skalla-Grimur was a know berserk and his father Kveld-Úlfur before him. In the sagas there berserksgangur was described like werewolves but were mostly likely severely mentally ill. I permit my self say this about Egill and his family because I am 32 direct link to Egill skallagrímsson trough his daughter Þorgerður.
In Age of Mythology they're called "Ulfsark/Ulfsarks"; does this word appear anywhere historically or was it probably just made up in 2002 as some combination of úlfhéðinn and berserkir? (The same game does use "berserkergang" as an upgrade for this unit.)
just curious, was woad ever used as war paint that could have been construed as the tattoo's that have been implied but to my knowledge not proven in the norse texts or sagas. Would love to know, thanks!
Tattoos are never specifically mentioned in the sources. Some sources say norsemen had signs or pictures on them, but it is usually just a single sentence or verse without any depth. So we have no way of knowing whether it's pendants, tattoos, bodypaint, branding, deliberate scarring, some woven material maybe. We have no way of knowing; unless we find a new source with more specifics or a bog body from that period with a symbol preserved on his skin.
Hello Dr. Crawford, my name is Timothy Henegar. Today I like to debate with you on your view points and findings regarding the Berserkir, and the Ulfhedinn or Ulfhednar. First you argue that the Berserkir or Ulfhednar claim to be "villains" in the sagas. Yet I like to make the argument that the Ulfhednar in the sagas were viewed as "Warriors of Odin". Plus if we consider the fact that the Ulfhednar played a pivotal role with Harold the I Fairhair in unifying Norway in the mid or late 800s AD. This is clearly outlined in the sagas. Also they served along with him as elite warriors or today called Special Forces. Next there is reference that the tradition of the Ulfhednar did not exactly die out as some might claim. Around 874 AD under Emperor Basil the II of the Byzantine Empire a deal was struck between him an Vladmir the I of the Russ sending Norseman and Anglo Saxons as mercenaries to Constantinople for service of the Byzantine Empire. This group would go on to become the formation of the Varangian Guard. There are references where these men at nights would dance around fire with animal pelts clashing weapons. Sound familiar? Well possibly so. So in factoring 872 AD which was the time of Harold the I Fairhair who ruled from 872 AD - 930 AD. Then factor the early beginnings of the Varangian Guard around 874 AD to the official formation of 988 AD. It is plausible to conclude that yes the Ulfhednar were brutal in combat yes, but the idea of being villains is a matter of perspective. Though understandable that the Ulfhednar or Ulfhedinn are at times associated to the Berserkirs. Again Warriors of Odin.
I prefer the bare shirt explanation myself, as you can see from my avatar. I think the berserkers were men blessed with a certain type of metabolism, full of energy and little inhibition, truly fearsome opponents.
In terms of it being ruled illegal as per the mentioned Gragas, is it then certain behaviours that are being ruled illegal (for example initiating violence in duels without good cause) or some sort of social state of being a berserker (although that makes it sound like being an outlaw of some sort, which I presume it isn't)?
I think it's bear shirt. My dad is a berserkir and he is very bear-like even without a bearskin or shrooms. (Thankfully he's old now.) I think these days they get diagnosed as BPD or antisocial.
In the Wikipedia article about Berserkers it talks about three types: Berserkers Ulfhe∂nar and Svinfilking. There's a suggestion by some that these are animal totems. What do you think about that?
There are many animal cults that share ecstatic trance warriors, and they are found across the globe. I would say yes they existed, just like the mirror of these cults exist everywhere, and most describe virtually the same sort of berserk behavior and/or capabilities. This is especially apparent in the oldest cultures.
I believe in some sagas they talk about svinefylkning as a military formation, a triangle shape of warriors intended to break the enemies lines. I believe when Signys farther come to visit her and her husbans in sweden, the farthers hird make a svinefylkning og go through the enemy lines 3 times before being beaten. In old(er) Danish fylkning is a ‘gathering’. Svin is a hog
You said it yourself. “In early Christian law codes “ I cannot help but notice that christianity viewed the berserker as dangerous and therefore outlawed the practice.
They also literally viewed *all* other gods, gods of both the world's and human *nature* , as *demons* ; they literally demonize *nature itself* . That's what *tyrants* do.
Hej do you know if the svinfylking where a type of berseaker or if it was a formation of soldiers. Im funding different answers on google and in the danish history books i have access to
yeah i thouth so too but some say it was like the berserkers but with wild boars as their spiret animal like the celts would use them as symbols of war. But you are probably right.
So, questions, is the word ulf-werenar just ulfehedhinn in another language? Q2 : I thought the ulf-werenar were also behind (part of) the myth of the were-wolf, as the word were (changer?) seems to be in both words. Just fictional etymologies or do I remember correctly?
"Were" definitely doesn't mean "changer". "Were" could be derived from Old-English "Wer" which means "Man", or from "War" or "Warrior". or from "Wearing". "Hedhinn" means "Skin". "Huid" in dutch and "Haut" in german. Also very similar Hud, Húð in Scandinavian languages.
Looked int egil's saga. the chapter i found mentioning fight with a Berserkr was the chapter mentioning the duel with Ljot. but the story ended with Egil cutting Ljot's leg off. is this the wrong chapter?
Berserking surely was not a nice thing for a long time but with modern computer games, this term has gained new respect. For example, in games of skill and accumulation of points, going berserk may earn double the bonus points. Berserking is rewarded rather than punished. Kids love the word now and has no negative connotation whatsoever. --Just an update from the trenches of modern life.
What I don't understand is all this info we have globally, and the ONLY information we have about "going berserk" is simply that it happened. How do we not know HOW? "Warrior Shamans"? Okay, fair, but expand on that. What shamanistic rituals did they do? What religious / spiritual practices did they believe and follow and conjure? Why is this not seen elsewhere, and if it is, how or can we connect it?
I've heard of Continental Germans being called berserks during the battles with the Roman legions. This could be true because they had the same belief system as their Scandinavian brothers.
So the berserkir and great people (usually not the hero), but what about the Ulfheđnar? It was said that they defended the King's ship, so are they possibly heroes?
Maybe not necessarily. Odin is exactly the kind of god who would bestow favours on madmen and outlaws. There are good reasons as to why Thor was by far the most popular god to pray to and not Odin; mainly because Thor is actually interested in protecting the common people.
I actually wrote my thesis on this very topic. You cannot blame Christianity solely -- doing so discounts Norse society's own role in the outlawing of the berserkir and the berserksgangr post 1000A.D (yes, both were specifically outlawed). When you read the Sagas and other related materials, it becomes quite clear that the berserkir where such a liability in peacetime that it eventually outweighed their worth in war (Dr. Jackson listed some of the reasons in the video). Christianity merely provided the final justification that could be used to rid society of their chaos once and for all.
I am norweigian one time i was with my grandpa in de woods to pick mushrooms he told me that there were mushrooms that grew in the Forest that had hallucinatory effects and that this was known at least since the viking age by the natives and he told me that there are stories of warriors using them them in battle I don't know if it is really accurate but it is something that was at least known by the scandinavians and I am kinda convinced that they actually did use them but I am not an expert just a native who has heard it from mouth tradition does anyone else know more about this topic?
Wow. Was thought that I had a wrong theory that I have learnt. Don't remember where from. Swedish Wikipedia says that the thought that "Berserk" came from the Swedish words for "wore shirt" is an 1800s idea that is now deemed false.
"Takes the sword from her zombie berserk father" That's so metal
Why can't we get THIS as a Disney Movie?
There’s a very entertaining book series based on this saga. I think it’s called “shield maiden: hunters moon”…
@@tmac2744 Disney might not be the right choice for this one
"i don't know how they diagnose someone as being berserk"
Wearing bear or wolf cloaks
Fighting without armor
Crazed as a dog or wolf
Immune to iron or fire
Biting their shield.
Amazing. -I'm norwegian and I have never studied old norse, but to give an example of how much or how little modern norwegian has deviated from old norse, let me say this:
The little piece from ynglinge saga was easy to understand. I understood 90% of it with ease.
I wonder what factors cause languages to change such that old english is incomprehensible to modern speakers while the opposite is (mostly) true for old norse.
@@gst8410 Actually, modern Norwegians can understand Old English to quite a degree. Probably because Norwegian has changed less from old germanic, and because norwegians are quite proficient in modern english.
@@gst8410 I know. I was just pointing out that stangely enough, Norwegians are better equipped to inderstand Old English than the English themselves..
@@gst8410 And before them the Danes, as before them the Angles and Saxons..
ɅRCHE TYPE
Invasions,trade,mixing of different peoples with different dialects or languages.
(a grammatically simplified language that adopts words from the different languages may emerge ,a lingua franca,a trade language).
Berserkness can be cured! Please donate to the Berserkness Rehabilitation center near you.
Call 1800 - Valhalla
NEVER! I SHALL DINE IN VALHALLA
That Isle of Lewis Shield Biter is just about my favorite.
Love the effect that the Rocky Mountains have on you. The scenery is a plus as well.
The scenery in all of your videos is absolutely breathtaking and beautiful.
Great video. I love content covering the Ulfhednar and Berserkir. It's so rare to find videos with accurate historical information about them.
Dr. Crawford, thank you for your videos and your knowledge!
I read a book called "Achilles in Vietnam" I forget who it was by but it references a study done on veterans who were perpetually exposed to harsh and traumatic conditions in war. They reached what was described as the apex of PTSD where they could not properly discern ally from enemy once in this trance like state of awareness. And they would just take the initiative kill indiscriminately without a care for personal safety. Maybe this is the same as what the Norse were talking about? I wouldn't think the Norsemen would want bunch of violent fanatics who could pop off if they saw a sword drawn.
During my service in Northern Ireland I was involved in riot control at Londonderry's infamous Bogside. I was firing rubber bullets like they were going out of fashion. My gun's barrel was smoking hot but I had little knowledge of my actions at that time. All I can remember was a desire to hurt or kill someone. I had lost it but after the event I was as cool as a cucumber, as if nothing had happened. The thing that I think set me off was my sergeant-major shouting for us to fire and "hit the fuckers".
@@colinp2238 HeHeHe Ha
A great book.
The Berserker is the bad guy! First time I ever heard that.Thanks for the education, Professor. Looking forward to reading your books.
We still say in Iceland that "Eitthver gekk berserksgang" or "someone went crazy" basicly
Thank you for another video! I honestly can't believe these videos don't have more views, subscribers and likes. They're amazing.
Since I discovered your channel, I’ve watched virtually nothing else. Every single video of yours I’ve watched has been truly excellent. Many thanks for producing this content.
I found you because I started auditing Signum U’s Old Norse course, which I’m supplementing with your own ON videos, and they are really helping.
Thats a nice backgrounds love the mountain n trees beautiful
I've always been very intrigued by the mystery behind
the "berserker" and the "berserker-gang" phenomenon.
Thank you for the fascinating video, Dr. Crawford.
Funny how in the video about berserkir Dr. Crawford is rather animated and high-energy - getting into character? :P
What a beautiful place, just stunning..! And thank you, great info as always. Hugs & sunshine 🌞 N
You do pick the spots for these videos JC!
I like the content, but I would watch for the sake of the background alone. I must seek out this place in udgård called Colorado one day. It´s on my bucket list.
I expect that the mushroom theory about berserkers stems from the fact that in Iceland we have a mushroom called berserkjasveppur, or berserker mushroom that if partaken of lends people the feeling of being invincible. in bigger doses it can be fatal though, so stay away!
Mushroom in general are an important part of many shamanic practices. Certainly not limited to that, there's a wide array of ethneogenic plant species. Shapeshifting and wearing animal skins is also common, which is essentially where you'd find a bear or wolf skinned man. As far as I know there have been no finds of anyone carrying any preserved mushrooms, there was a volva found with cannabis seeds and henbane seeds.
In America we have something similar. It is whiskey and bears the same fruits. May you have a good Yule.
I am from sweden and i have heard that in the old days they dried what we call redwhitefliesmushroom and ate just a little bit of it to take on the clothes of a bear if engaging in a one on one fight. But as said in the video, it probably doesnt matter, you could act crazy without.
A champion was given an animal pelt, wolf, boar or bear to show that they are great warriors.
It is needed to see the difference of historical "berserkers" and mythological "berserkers", however the lines can be blurred most times.
thank yew dr. crawford. i'm not berserk. i'm just pissed. haha. have fun
Gary Chynne Imagine my surprise when I found my archery guru here lol!! Heavy sarcasm implied.
⚔️👊🏻👊🏻⚔️
I wonder what you are really like. I wish I knew you. I often wonder if you are putting us on. Not about Old Norse subjects but about your professorial persona. I smiled and laughed out loud when you put your cowboy hat on and and said goodby. It's a good feeling.
Love your videos as always
Are you filming this in a tree? :/
yES. Wind blows stronger above? xD He needs to breath it in to speak nicely! xD xaxaxa.
Looks like he was climbing a cliff face and half way through said ya know what I'm gonna record a quick video.
Dr. Jackson Crawford, please make a video on top of Mount Everest. 😆 You seem to find the best places to do your videos.
This is one of your best videos. Snappy, engaging, and the framing of the shot is quite lovely. I was hoping you would mention the tale of the Berserkers in Eyrbyggja Saga, but alas, I guess I need to do my homework. ;)
I would love to hear your thoughts on the ulfberth sword and the meaning of the word.. maybe to shed some light on the origins of the swords
Very informative video! I just finally learned how to pronounce those properly.
Ecstatic trance warriors are a commonality amongst all Indo-European cultures. I also strongly suspect a genetic predisposition for some to be more likely candidates for the condition. It has been theorized in some circles that it is an ancient evolutionary survival trait shared by much of humanity that dates back to prehistoric times. Another modern labeling for this is Somafera, "the body wild."
Ah. Another follower of Wayland Skallagrimsons' work?
It's a known fact that a form of trance is a much more likely explanation as we still see it today, but it's usually induced by hypnosis or called "the zone"/the flow state nowadays. For all I know, it was just warriors entering "the zone" forcefully 😂.
@@oceanberserker Wayland and I were once in the same kindred. There weren't many of us, perhaps 10 at that time.
Fascinating !! Thank you
There was three known hunting magic cults where Nordic warrior tradition are belkeved to be born. Bear, Wild Boar and Wolf cults.
Úlfheðnar berserkergang are the Wolf-cultists and were Odins favorites.
Bear-cultists were most widely spread and longest survived cult. Historical Bear-cults has spread across northern hemispheres forests land from North Europe, throughout Siberia to North America.
Finnish Bear-cult that shares at least close geographical location with Scandinavian Bear-cult, was well and kicking at least until 18th century, and still is in hunting traditions.
Wild Boar-cult was some Vanir thing...
But they most definitely weren't bare chest or unarmored. Although might have torn them off in rage induced trance where they bit their shields and howled like animals etc, according to contemporary eyewitness accounts.
Really strange and awkward men...
Hello Jackson, I was wondering, in the video you said the úlfhéðnar are not considered heros. Is there a name for a norse warrior that is considered a hero? Also, I am curious about the connection between the úlfhéðnar and their gift from Odin. Why would Odin bestow such a power on a villian type? Was there a special reason or was there some sort of transition to being a villan after the power was gifted from Odin?
Thank you so much for this video! I've always been fascinated by them (I feel like extra pulled to the Úlfhéðnar). I wonder, being an "anti hero" kinda person...is there any documentation of the Berserkir and/or Úlfhéðnar being anti-heroes and not straight up bad dudes?
Lindybeige made a video where he suggested that a berserker was akin to a champion, someone a noble would hire to fight for them in trial by combat or holmgang. That's why they're viewed negatively, because they enabled weak and cowardly nobles to settle disputes with the sword.
What are your thoughts on that Dr. Crawford?
SevenStringShredHead
But also you must understand that,the word berserker (bear shirts) could have been used in two different ways. In One way, just like what you've said, would be a highly skilled Norse warrior to whom the king gives him a bear shirt to make others identify that warrior as a "champion".
And, yes of course. The kings or lords used these champions in duels or "Holmgang" in order to challenge other people and to acquire possessions of those defeated people.
Yep. You maybe right. The writers of the sagas could have actually mistaken those "champions" for the actual Berserkers(shamanistic warriors) as cruel people who would engage in duels for their desire in other people's possessions like women,houses and property.
The other way of using the word is referring to a tribal shamanistic warrior who wears bear or wolf skin as they consider bears and wolves as their sacred and totem animals.They would try to possess the spirit of that animal by wearing the skin and doing ritualistic practices. As a result, they will acquire the "berserkergang" or the berserker rage. Lindybeige has made a terrible mistake regarding about Berserkers by not mentioning the saga accounts which mention correctly about those true animal shamanistic warriors.
And also , those saga accounts mention about Berserkers( I'm referring to sagas and old Norse texts written after the end of the Viking age i.e. 13th century) as villains, just like what Dr. Jackson has said in this video. In fact these sagas contain only stories which are for most of the time, are not historically accurate but stories written with imagination. So, the description about Berserkers in these sagas belonging to 13th century as ruthless men who killed many people and pillaged villages, as a result disrupting peace could be wrong. It could be due to the fact that Christianity considered the Berserkir and Ulfhednar as well as their ritualistic practices as demonic and magical i.e. it was greatly hated by the Christians.
@@sameerhasan8101 I read your comment in its entirety. It was informative and, for me, insightful. Thanks.
@@jacobberry5138 You are welcome!
Seems like Lindybeige is the default 'appeal to authority' fallacy when it comes to the middle ages on youtube. That's my take on it, Seven.
@@kimsey0000 he's been given the role of 'the authority' for good reason. Have a look at the video.
I wish I could take your course
Hey Doc, I just checked my local Barnes and Noble to see if they had a copy of either of your books. Unfortunately, they do not and claim they cannot order such at this time... Oddly enough, there were a bunch of cookbooks listed under the same name. You don't have a fondness for recipes do you? 😂
Acidic Æsthetics i did the exact same thing. I ended up just ordering the ebook instead
Hi Jackson. Thank you for your work - It's very interesting. I'm trying to find sources for knowledge about these mentioned warriors. Is there anything you can share with me incl. the sages that mention these?
Have read Kettil Bärsärk's saga? It's my favourite saga.
Can't imagine a prettier place to be in, colorado is such beautiful country
I read about some ethno botanist who studied the possibility of mushroom use, who concluded the effects was more of a delerious agressive state like maybe wolfsbane. I dont remember correctly but the symptoms of both fly agaric and psilocybin mushrooms do not promote the agressive and delerious behaviour of berserk
Lindybeige has a video on the topic of berserkers. His conclusion (or rather his friend who wrote his doctors thesis on berserkers) was that berserkers were probably champions of some type of lord.
Apparently when a french legend "Yvain, le Chavalier au Lion" was translated as Ivan Saga in the 13th century the word "champion" was translated into Norse as "berserker".
th-cam.com/video/PBUGQkpk3RE/w-d-xo.html
Beserkers / ulfhednar have a form of hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia. Before battle they refrained from eating protein (meat) and consumed a lot of bread and other starchy foods and mead that caused their blood sugar to rise which leads to an and insulin surge, which in turn leads to an adrenaline surge invoking rageful behavior. This also leads to the wiped out condition of the beserkers after battle.
Were you climbing up a cliff and thought ya know what I'm gonna make a quick video?
Ever seen a hockey fight , o to a hundred in a split second .
How berserkr (single, not plural) can be written in old norse runes? Asking for cool tattoo, please help to find out someone
Hoping for some further detail. From what I've read elsewhere, it is claimed the Ulfhedinn were the Berserkir who wore Wolf Pelts with a more association to Odin and had the same attributes of the Bear Pelt wearing Berserkir but were essentially better and crazier than the Bear Pelt wearing Berserkir. Is there any difference, and were the Ulfhedinn a tier stronger, or better than the Bear Pelt wearing Berserkir?
Is there a way to know the most correct way to write ulfhednar in old norse runes?
I read in an old Norse online dictionary the south had a Lion version of beserkr. What would they have been called, I haven't found a whole lot about them. Would it be like ljonhedinn ,lēonhedinn or something like that?
I wonder if "serkr" was ever used as meaning some form of armor, or whether it always refers to a cloth shirt.
On the word "berserk" ... it's a completely normal word where I grew up, and it typically means that type of guy who gets into fights all the time. We even used the word "holmgang" for mano-a-mano standoffs between guys who were pissed off at eachother (as in a more "ritualized" type of fight where the parties agree to "go outside" and duke it out).
Thanks so much Dr. Jackson!
Based on your presentation, let's just say "ber-" means 'skin/hide' which is close to 'bare' and I think this will be the most accurate use of the word. It implies they wear a 'skinned/hide shirt'. They wore bear, wolf and boar skins if I'm not mistaken.
I think the belief it means 'bear' is modern English's fault.
What is your opinion on the idea that a Berserker was a person's personal champion? That is the way in which the word is used in a translation of "Yvain, the Knight of the Lion" into Norwegian in the 13th century.
Very interesting!
How do I write this passage from Ynglingasaga with Younger Futhark? Some vowels are missing in the alphabet.
I wonder if those berserkers possibly suffered from an adrenal issue, I had an ex who dumped adrenaline and I saw him act in a way that can only be adequately described as "berserk." He'd rage out, break things (ripped a table out of a floor), I once saw him push a quadcon weighing well over a ton (tare weight was 1 ton, payload weight was 9,436 lbs, unsure on how packed it was) the distance of about 25 meters on his own (scraping across an asphalt paved yard). Just a thought on something other than the mushroom idea.
Isn't it also possible that it's intended to be a dual-interpretation pun, of sorts? in the same way Ragnarokkr can be taken two ways?
The law code opposing Berserkir reminds me of the argument Georges Dumézil advances in Mitra-Varuna about warrior cults being inherently opposed to the lawful everyday civilization led by the judiciary type priests. He puts the latter under Mitra, Tyr, etc. and the warrior cults under Varuna, Odin, etc. He also uses the example of the Luperci in Rome.
Dr Crawford, how is Úlfhéðnar written in Runes?
My first wife suffered from Berserkness
Berserkers went berserk from time to time. After the rage or battle they would fall into a completely opposite state of lethargy and exhausted sleep until they recovered. Another clue was biting their shields.
The legendary Bodvar (from Hrolf Kraki's Saga) is an interesting character in this "bear" context, with a possible correlation to other myths and legends from other cultures, such as shapeshifters and "skin walkers" in old Native American stories.
I've got a bluff behind my house with a bunch of native American paintings on it and one is a wolf headed creature with its arms out stretched and it's the biggest painting there, vid on my channel if you wanna see
henbane or other solanaceous/tropane herbs of the region ?????
speaking of shirts, man, i wanna know where you got the one (shirt/jacket) that you've got in this vid. it looks awesome, and i want one.
Yes, finally the real low down on Berserkir!
Where in Colorado are you roughly? If I ever visit the US I would want to go there.
where can u study this amazing beautifull language?
One of the biggest ironies that I have
found about Old Norse society
was how much emphasis they placed
on man-hood and the masculine ideal
(known as "Dreiger") as well as
on honor (that is to say, "reputation")...
...and it appears that the
elite warrior / shock-troop class
know as "Beserkers" and "Ulfhednar"
had a very fierce reputation as such.
Yet...
it is known that this elite
class of shock-troop warriors
were often enough ostricised
to the fringe of society until
Berserkers were eventually
altogether outlawed and / or
sentenced to outlawry
if they continued
in the practise.
Which is saying alot...
especially coming from
such a "manly" society
like the Old Norse.
Any chance you can go into the úlfhéðnar any more in depth?
Berserkgangur gets a bit lost in translation because its really mean going "berserk" meaning this was somehow a shift form normalsy, referring to the wolf skin its sometimes referred to as að fara í ham or hamur menning a costume of sorts but also could mean mood or going into a state of mind that its like you left your self and became a beast. In my opinion after reading all the Icelandic sagas that it's a way for people who have no knowledge of mental illness and berserkir were psychopaths and would believe they could turn to Wolf's and commit brutal crimes and just say I can't control it. Like the saga he was refreshing Egills sagas Skalla-Grímsönar. When Egill in about 12 him and his friend Þórður Granason are playing knatleik a ice hockey of sorts with Egills father Skalla-Grími and the boy are winning but then its start getting dark out so skalla-Grímur because better at the game and starts being aggressive and at the end so aggressively that he grabs Þórð and drives him so hard down in the ice that þórðs head brakes open and he dies instantly. Skalla-Grimur was a know berserk and his father Kveld-Úlfur before him. In the sagas there berserksgangur was described like werewolves but were mostly likely severely mentally ill. I permit my self say this about Egill and his family because I am 32 direct link to Egill skallagrímsson trough his daughter Þorgerður.
There are probably lots of conflated things associated with it by the time it was written down.
In Age of Mythology they're called "Ulfsark/Ulfsarks"; does this word appear anywhere historically or was it probably just made up in 2002 as some combination of úlfhéðinn and berserkir?
(The same game does use "berserkergang" as an upgrade for this unit.)
just curious, was woad ever used as war paint that could have been construed as the tattoo's that have been implied but to my knowledge not proven in the norse texts or sagas. Would love to know, thanks!
Tattoos are never specifically mentioned in the sources. Some sources say norsemen had signs or pictures on them, but it is usually just a single sentence or verse without any depth. So we have no way of knowing whether it's pendants, tattoos, bodypaint, branding, deliberate scarring, some woven material maybe. We have no way of knowing; unless we find a new source with more specifics or a bog body from that period with a symbol preserved on his skin.
Hello Dr. Crawford, my name is Timothy Henegar. Today I like to debate with you on your view points and findings regarding the Berserkir, and the Ulfhedinn or Ulfhednar.
First you argue that the Berserkir or Ulfhednar claim to be "villains" in the sagas. Yet I like to make the argument that the Ulfhednar in the sagas were viewed as "Warriors of Odin". Plus if we consider the fact that the Ulfhednar played a pivotal role with Harold the I Fairhair in unifying Norway in the mid or late 800s AD. This is clearly outlined in the sagas. Also they served along with him as elite warriors or today called Special Forces.
Next there is reference that the tradition of the Ulfhednar did not exactly die out as some might claim. Around 874 AD under Emperor Basil the II of the Byzantine Empire a deal was struck between him an Vladmir the I of the Russ sending Norseman and Anglo Saxons as mercenaries to Constantinople for service of the Byzantine Empire. This group would go on to become the formation of the Varangian Guard. There are references where these men at nights would dance around fire with animal pelts clashing weapons.
Sound familiar? Well possibly so. So in factoring 872 AD which was the time of Harold the I Fairhair who ruled from 872 AD - 930 AD. Then factor the early beginnings of the Varangian Guard around 874 AD to the official formation of 988 AD.
It is plausible to conclude that yes the Ulfhednar were brutal in combat yes, but the idea of being villains is a matter of perspective. Though understandable that the Ulfhednar or Ulfhedinn are at times associated to the Berserkirs. Again Warriors of Odin.
I prefer the bare shirt explanation myself, as you can see from my avatar. I think the berserkers were men blessed with a certain type of metabolism, full of energy and little inhibition, truly fearsome opponents.
Do you know of any good English translations of the Faroe-Islander saga?
In terms of it being ruled illegal as per the mentioned Gragas, is it then certain behaviours that are being ruled illegal (for example initiating violence in duels without good cause) or some sort of social state of being a berserker (although that makes it sound like being an outlaw of some sort, which I presume it isn't)?
GRIFFITH!!!
I think it's bear shirt. My dad is a berserkir and he is very bear-like even without a bearskin or shrooms. (Thankfully he's old now.) I think these days they get diagnosed as BPD or antisocial.
In the Wikipedia article about Berserkers it talks about three types: Berserkers Ulfhe∂nar and Svinfilking. There's a suggestion by some that these are animal totems. What do you think about that?
I wouldn't trust wikipedia to tell me what's inside a glass of water.
There are many animal cults that share ecstatic trance warriors, and they are found across the globe. I would say yes they existed, just like the mirror of these cults exist everywhere, and most describe virtually the same sort of berserk behavior and/or capabilities. This is especially apparent in the oldest cultures.
Warrior wearing boar standards or helmets are found in many indo-european cultures.
I believe in some sagas they talk about svinefylkning as a military formation, a triangle shape of warriors intended to break the enemies lines. I believe when Signys farther come to visit her and her husbans in sweden, the farthers hird make a svinefylkning og go through the enemy lines 3 times before being beaten. In old(er) Danish fylkning is a ‘gathering’. Svin is a hog
Could "ber-" also be from the verb "að bera" - to wear/to carry?
Is this a memory of the bronze age Koryos??
did berserkers and werewolves/werecreature seem to have a connection?
You said it yourself.
“In early Christian law codes “
I cannot help but notice that christianity viewed the berserker as dangerous and therefore outlawed the practice.
They also literally viewed *all* other gods, gods of both the world's and human *nature* , as *demons* ; they literally demonize *nature itself* . That's what *tyrants* do.
Hej do you know if the svinfylking where a type of berseaker or if it was a formation of soldiers. Im funding different answers on google and in the danish history books i have access to
mikei86 I'm pretty sure it was a battle formation. It was used by many germanic tribes and even the romans.
yeah i thouth so too but some say it was like the berserkers but with wild boars as their spiret animal like the celts would use them as symbols of war. But you are probably right.
Fylking literally means formation in old Norse. Had it been referring to a person they would have used masculine Galti, not Svin, which is neuter.
Didn't Harald Fairhair have a berserker troop?
So, questions, is the word ulf-werenar just ulfehedhinn in another language? Q2 : I thought the ulf-werenar were also behind (part of) the myth of the were-wolf, as the word were (changer?) seems to be in both words. Just fictional etymologies or do I remember correctly?
"Were" definitely doesn't mean "changer". "Were" could be derived from Old-English "Wer" which means "Man", or from "War" or "Warrior". or from "Wearing".
"Hedhinn" means "Skin". "Huid" in dutch and "Haut" in german. Also very similar Hud, Húð in Scandinavian languages.
... and what are the laws in the Grágás law code?
well, the fly-amanita is called berserkjaveppur in modern Icelandic.... Dunno what inspired what, but i'd say that's at least some very strong hint...
Do you have a Instagram acc, love'd to chat with you about Norse Paganism and get deeper into the subject
Looked int egil's saga. the chapter i found mentioning fight with a Berserkr was the chapter mentioning the duel with Ljot. but the story ended with Egil cutting Ljot's leg off. is this the wrong chapter?
Berserking surely was not a nice thing for a long time but with modern computer games, this term has gained new respect. For example, in games of skill and accumulation of points, going berserk may earn double the bonus points. Berserking is rewarded rather than punished. Kids love the word now and has no negative connotation whatsoever. --Just an update from the trenches of modern life.
What I don't understand is all this info we have globally, and the ONLY information we have about "going berserk" is simply that it happened. How do we not know HOW? "Warrior Shamans"? Okay, fair, but expand on that. What shamanistic rituals did they do? What religious / spiritual practices did they believe and follow and conjure? Why is this not seen elsewhere, and if it is, how or can we connect it?
Bärsärkar skiftade hamn. Det är ett tillstånd. Inga svampar :-)
I've heard of Continental Germans being called berserks during the battles with the Roman legions. This could be true because they had the same belief system as their Scandinavian brothers.
So the berserkir and great people (usually not the hero), but what about the Ulfheđnar? It was said that they defended the King's ship, so are they possibly heroes?
"So Egil's pretty berserk himself from my perspective." x-D
Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't there positively-viewed berserks in the saga of Hrolf Kraki? So they're not always bad guys in the old stories.
I think that the berserkir were demonised with the coming of Christianity bc they were related to Oðinn
Maybe not necessarily. Odin is exactly the kind of god who would bestow favours on madmen and outlaws. There are good reasons as to why Thor was by far the most popular god to pray to and not Odin; mainly because Thor is actually interested in protecting the common people.
I actually wrote my thesis on this very topic. You cannot blame Christianity solely -- doing so discounts Norse society's own role in the outlawing of the berserkir and the berserksgangr post 1000A.D (yes, both were specifically outlawed). When you read the Sagas and other related materials, it becomes quite clear that the berserkir where such a liability in peacetime that it eventually outweighed their worth in war (Dr. Jackson listed some of the reasons in the video). Christianity merely provided the final justification that could be used to rid society of their chaos once and for all.
correct
Nordic Similar to the Samurai of Japan.
If you read Mitra-Varuna by Dumezil I think it's likely the Berserkers held a similar position to Óðinn as the Luperci had to Romulus/Jupiter.
I am norweigian one time i was with my grandpa in de woods to pick mushrooms he told me that there were mushrooms that grew in the Forest that had hallucinatory effects and that this was known at least since the viking age by the natives and he told me that there are stories of warriors using them them in battle I don't know if it is really accurate but it is something that was at least known by the scandinavians and I am kinda convinced that they actually did use them but I am not an expert just a native who has heard it from mouth tradition does anyone else know more about this topic?
Wow. Was thought that I had a wrong theory that I have learnt. Don't remember where from. Swedish Wikipedia says that the thought that "Berserk" came from the Swedish words for "wore shirt" is an 1800s idea that is now deemed false.