The Untold Truth Of Valhalla

May 2024 · 2 minute read

The name "Valhalla" evokes a glorious image of an afterlife for the mighty, and its meaning is equally glorious in its simplicity. "Valhalla" is a Latinization of the Old Norse "Valhöll," which, according to the Online Etymology Dictionary, means "hall of the battle-slain," which is ... what Valhalla is. The first element of the word, "valr," is the term for those slain in battle and can also be seen as the first part of the word "valkyrie," who are the choosers of the slain. The word "valr" also shares an ancestor with the Latin word "vulnus," meaning "wound," the source of the English word "vulnerable." 

While it doesn't take an etymological genius to recognize that the "höll" or "halla" portion of the name is pretty directly related to the English word "hall," with which it shares a meaning, the two words share another relative that is both fitting and surprising. The ultimate source for these words is the Proto-Indo-European root "kel-," which means "cover" or "hide" and which gives us such English words as "conceal," "cellar," "helmet," and "hole." It's also responsible for "apocalypse," which only makes sense if you remember that word literally means an unveiling or, you know, a revelation. Anyway, "hall" and "höll" are both related to another word for a covered, hidden place, which, like Valhalla, is also an abode of the dead: Hell, or as the Norse called it, Hel.

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