Ragnarok

In Norse mythology, Ragnarok ("doom of the gods" note: the oft-heard translation of "twilight of the gods" is incorrect, but is a more correct translation of Götterdämmerung) is the battle at the end of the world. It is immediately preceded by the Fimbulwinter.

Presaged by Heimdall blowing the Giallar horn on the Bifrost Bridge, and the roosters Fjalar and Gullinkambi's crowing, Yggdrasil, the world ash, is shaken from root to summit. Odin rides from Asgard to consult Mimer at the Well of Wisdom[?]. Jormungandr, the Midgard serpent, rises from the depths and causes the seas to boil over and flood the world. The giant Hrym appears on the far horizon, sailing the ship Naglfar, the ship of nails. The Bifrost Bridge shatters. Garm, the guardian hell-dog of Helheim, breaks his bonds. Hati and Skoll will devour Mani and Sol, the moon and the sun, respectively.

Odin leads the hosts of Asgard and his companions from Valhalla, the hall of the noble dead, onto the battlefield of Vigrid, against the assembled armies of giants, headed by Fenris, Garm, Jormungandr (the serpent of Midgard), and Loki, who at the last betrays his erstwhile comrades.

Odin is eaten by Fenris, who in turn is rent in twain by Vidar, the silent god and son of Odin. Heimdall and Loki kill each other. Thor kills the Midgard Serpent with his hammer, Mjollnir, but dies of its poison. Skoll the wolf consumes the sun. In the aftermath of the battle, the fire-giant Surtr (who also kills Freya, unarmed) destroys the world with flames, and it sinks into the sea.

In the aftermath, a new world is born, and the god Baldur who died prior to Ragnarok, is resurrected. Honir is one of the few gods that survived the entire ordeal. The only part of Earth not destroyed by Surtr is Hodmimir's Forest, which Surtr's sword can not destroy. Lif and Lifthrasir, two humans, emerge from this forest and restart the human race.

Other spellings

• Common Swedish form: Ragnarök

Alternative: Ragnarokr, Ragnarøk

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Ragnarok is also the name of a MMORPG.