Á R
V A R
A L D A
A MONTHLY READING CIRCLE in Olympia, WA & PORTLAND, OR
Ár Var Alda (ÁVA) is a reading circle that meets every month in Olympia, WA and Portland, OR.
Recommended editions
ÁVA provides all necessary materials. However, if you’d like to bring your own editions, we recommend the following:
Poetic Edda:
Prose Edda:
Introductory and overview texts
For more, see Mimisbrunnr.info’s Getting Started with Norse Mythology.
"Ár Var Alda"?
Ár Var Alda is a phrase found early in the Old Norse poem Vǫluspá (recorded in the 13th century). In modern English, the phrase may be roughly translated to 'in days of yore' or even 'once upon a time'. As the phrase has cognates (words that are 'born from the same mother') in a few other ancient Germanic texts, it appears to have played a role in an early Germanic cosmological formula.
In Vǫluspá, an undead vǫlva (a pagan North Germanic seeress) tells the wisdom-seeking god Odin what has been and what will be, including the primordial dissection of the enormous being Ymir, the endless reach of the cosmic tree Yggdrasil, and the creation of mankind from wood by three gods—all topics discussed in past and future ÁVA sessions.
“ancient Germanic studies”?
Ancient Germanic studies, sometimes called Germanic philology, is an interdisciplinary field frequently featuring a combination of historical linguistics, folklore studies, and histories of religious focused on the history of the early speakers of Germanic languages, including Old Norse (ancestral to modern languages like Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, and Icelandic), Old English (ancestral to modern English), and a variety of other closely related languages, like Old High German, Gothic, and others.
While aimed at a general audience, this reading circle retains its original focus on exploring the historic record applying an interdisciplinary lens. If you’re interested in topics like historical linguistics and folklore studies, ÁVA is a good place to start.
Ymir logo
ÁVA’s logo depicts the dissection of Ymir, an ancient entity mentioned in Old Norse sources. For example, from the Old Norse poem Vafþrúðnismál:
from Ymir’s flesh was FORMED THE EARTH;
out of bones, the hills;
the hoarfrost jötun’s skull, the heavens;
and from ymir’s blood, the sea.
(trans.: hopkins, 2018)
The image consists of three elements: a skull, three large stars, and nine smaller points of light. The skull represents that of Ymir, which the gods formed into the heavens. Representing the three deities who dissected Ymir (the three brothers Odin, Vili, and Vé). Like three, the number nine occurs frequently in Norse mythology (three thrice). Like Mimisbrunnr.info’s original logo, Estel·la Juvanteny rendered ÁVA’s Ymir logo.
History
ÁVA I
The first incarnation of ÁVA (then Ár Var Alda: The Ancient Germanic Studies Society at UGA) met from January 2012 until June 2015. ÁVA gathered the second week of every month, generally in Joseph "Joe" E. Brown Hall on the University of Georgia campus but also in various cafes and bars throughout the Athens, Georgia area. While primarily aimed at students, ÁVA welcomed all. The group held all meetings in English and provided all necessary materials.
ÁVA's original logo at the University of Georgia (2012—2015)
At ÁVA meetings, members read aloud and discussed English translations of texts originally composed in Old English, Old Norse, Old High German, and an array of related languages. While AVÁ primarily focused on ancient texts, the group frequently touched on modern folklore and modern popular culture.
ÁVA I flyers ready for distribution, 2014 (Hopkins)
Joseph S. Hopkins and Geoffrey Adams, at the time both students at UGA, founded ÁVA. The group was sponsored by Alex Sager, then-Associate Professor of German at the Department of Germanic Slavic Studies at the University of Georgia. You can read an interview with Sager as part of Mimisbrunnr.info's Six Questions feature here.
In use from 2012 to 2015, ÁVA's original logo displayed something of a brief history of the English language. The logo consisted of the initials ÁVA from three different periods. Á appears represented with the Elder Futhark rune *ansuz meaning '(a) god' occurring during the Proto-Germanic period, V appears represented with the Old English and Middle English character wynn (descendant of Elder Futhark *wunjo), and the final A appears as we'd see it today.
ÁVA II: 2019-2020
ÁVA II flyer featuring a photo of the Olympic Mountains from Hurricane Ridge, 2019. (Hopkins)
The second incarnation of ÁVA, ÁVA II, began in Ballard, a historically Scandinavian neighborhood of Seattle, near the National Nordic Museum.
ÁVA II met at Skål Beer Hall, a Viking Age-themed bar. This incarnation of ÁVA ceased operation at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
ÁVA III: 2023-Present
ÁVA’s third incarnation, ÁVA III revived in Olympia, Washington, a part of the greater Seattle area and the southernmost region of the Puget Sound.