English

Baldur by Johannes Gehrts, 1901

Alternative forms

• Balder
• Baldr

Proper noun

Baldur

1. (Norse mythology) The Norse god of light and purity, a son of Odin and Frigg, known for his beauty and near-invulnerability.
   • 1836, The Foreign Quarterly Review, Volume 16, page 443,

     But the fate of Baldur, the most amiable and beloved of Asa gods, is, we think, by far the most pleasing of the Scandinavian Myths, although less characteristic of the warlike temper just mentioned than some of the others.

   • 1993, Rudolf Steiner, Apocalypse of Saint John, page 99,

     In the god Baldur the legend recognizes the god of the earth-sun, the earth force. No being of the earth can approach him with hostility. Hence also the god whom the German legend knew to be a straggler, namely Loki, cannot kill Baldur with anything belonging to the earth; he has to kill him with a branch of mistletoe, because this is a stranger among the creations of the earth, and for this reason can serve the straggler, Loki, who is not related to the earth gods.

   • 1997, Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church, Volume IV: Mediaeval Christianity, A.D. 590—1093, unnumbered page,

     A transition from the myth of Baldur to the gospel of Christ cannot have been very difficult to the Scandinavian imagination; and, indeed, it is apparent that the first ideas which the Scandinavian heathens formed of the “White Christ” were influenced by their ideas of Baldur.

   • 2008, Alan Gregory, Quenching ****: The Mystical Theology of William Law, page 84,

     The variety of myths prohibits a single answer, but of biblical myths and myths such as The Epic of Gilgamesh, Baldur’s death, the love of Isis and Osiris, and Prometheus, it is accurate to say that they "are marked by their relevance to men's questions about their nature and place in the universe."

Faroese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpal.tʊɹ/

Etymology

From Old Norse Baldr, from the adjective baldr ‎(“brave”), compare Faroese baldur ‎(“good, beautiful”).

Proper noun

Baldur m

1. the Norse god
2. A male given name

Usage notes

Patronymics

• son of Baldur: Baldursson
• daughter Baldur: Baldursdóttir

Declension

Related terms

• Baldvin

German

Proper noun

Baldur

1. A male given name.

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse Baldr from the adjective baldr ‎(“brave”), confer the Icelandic adjective baldur ‎(“bold”).

Proper noun

Baldur m ‎(genitive singular Baldurs, no plural)

1. Baldur, one of the Norse gods, son of Odin and Frigg, known for his beauty and near-invulnerability.
2. A male given name

Usage notes

Related terms

• -baldur
• Baldvin
• baldur
• skuggabaldur

Faroese

Adjective

baldur

1. bold

Declension

Icelandic

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -altʏr

Adjective

baldur

1. (rare) bold, alternative spelling of ballur

Synonyms

• (bold): ballur m

Derived terms

• baldursbrá
• baldursflétta
• baldursgull
• -baldur