Norse Mythology, Lindow’s intro. 1-42. Focus on the following:

“gods and giants” ~ aesir and jötnar

 outline main chronology

          Boat-Ax culture

          Bronze Age (in Scandanavia)

          rise of the Germanic peoples

          migration period/Germanic Iron Age

          Viking Age

contact with England (Harald Fairhair and Athalstan)

migration to Iceland

Thing and Althing

coming of Christianity

Runic alphabet

Edda and ‘Eddic poetry’

          Voluspa, Havamal, etc.

skalds and skaldic poetry

    ‘kennings’, e.g. 'Otter's Ransom'

Snorri Sturluson

          his theory on the origins of Aesir

          preview of Gylfaginning and Ynglinga saga

Saxo Grammaticus

G. Dumézil

myth and cult (goði, etc.; note a few items of interest)

Tacitus Germania

Mythic Time and Space (pp. 39-42)