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)