Ím

Ím (also Imr) is a jötunn in Norse mythology, and the son of Vafthrudnir.

Name

The Old Norse name Ím has been translated as 'dust' (compare with Norw. īm 'smell', Far. ím 'soot [on a kettle]'; also Icel. ima 'heat', Swed. imme 'steam').

Attestation

According to the stanza 5 of the poem Vafthrudnismal from the Poetic Edda:

"Then Odin went to try the wisdom

of the all-wise giant [Vafthrudnir];

to the hall he came which Im's father owned;

Odin went inside."

— Larrington trans.

Ím is also mentioned in a list of giants in the Skaldskaparmal section of the Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson.

References

Bibliography

• de Vries, Jan (1962). Altnordisches Etymologisches Worterbuch (1977 ed.). Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-05436-3.
• Faulkes, Anthony, trans. (1987). Edda (1995 ed.). Everyman. ISBN 0-460-87616-3.
• Larrington, Carolyne (transl.) (1996). The Poetic Edda. Oxford World's Classics. ISBN 0-19-283946-2.
• Orchard, Andy (1997). Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend. Cassell. ISBN 978-0-304-34520-5.