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Glite Dictionary
seidhr

seidhr

9.9
A Norse type of magic that uses rituals and trance to see the future
  • noun
  • /seɪðər/
  • Archaic
: seidhr
  • The sagas describe how powerful women would perform seidhr to see into the future.

Examples

  • The ancient Norse practiced seidhr for divination.

  • Many modern practitioners of Norse paganism study seidhr to connect with their ancestral traditions.

  • Interest in seidhr has grown among scholars studying ancient Scandinavian beliefs.

  • Many tales describe the power of seidhr in Viking culture.

  • The sagas describe how powerful women would perform seidhr to see into the future.

  • Many modern practitioners of Norse paganism study seidhr to connect with their ancestral traditions.

  • Interest in seidhr has grown among scholars studying ancient Scandinavian beliefs.

Synonyms

seithr
vsseidhr
  • Archaic
9.9

A kind of magic in old Norse times used to see the future and make people enter a trance

is framed as ritual involvement with prophecy and altered conscious states
seith
vsseidhr
  • Archaic
9.9

Magic used by ancient Norse people in rituals to tell the future

places more emphasis on altered mental states during prophetic rituals
seidr
vsseidhr
  • Archaic
9.9

A kind of Old Norse magic used for telling the future and changing events

focuses instead on inner altered consciousness rather than outward reality change
seidh
vsseidhr
  • Archaic
9.9

An Old Norse magic ritual often performed by women who told the future

stresses prophecy and altered consciousness more than general shamanic techniques
seid
vsseidhr
  • Literature
9.9

Old Norse magic used in ceremonies to enter trance and see the future

refers specifically to practices limited to the Late Scandinavian Iron Age period

Surface Forms

seidhr singular
seidhrs plural

Etymology

Seidhr comes from the Old Norse seiðr, a kind of 'magic' in ancient Scandinavia used to see the future in trance rituals. A helpful way to remember it is to think of a seer—someone who 'sees' the future—because seiðr often meant using ritual to look into or change what will happen.