​Dwarves are certainly some of the most memorable characters in Fantasy. Foremost among them is stubborn Gimli from J.R.R. Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings and proud Thorin Oakensheild from The Hobbit. Others include courageous Tungdil from Marcus Heintz’s The Dwarves or one of the dwarven characters of Margret Wies and Tracy Hickman’s Dragonlance series. Outside fantasy literature, dwarves feature heavily in popular roleplaying games such as the expansive world of Dungeons & Dragons where they are one of the most popular playable classes.  ​ "Dwarves are certainly some of the most ​memorable characters in Fantasy."

"At one time they had supposedly been maggots wriggling in the dirt which were given the wits of men..."
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The dwarven brothers Galar and Fjalar murder wise Kvasir and use his blood to brew the Mead of Poetry.

The most infamous of all Norse dwarves are Fjalar and Galar. A wise Vanir by the name of Kvasir once travelled throughout the nine realms from hall to hall to give advice and counsel. He struck awe in the Aesir, Vanir, and Dvergur (dwarves) alike with his unmatched wisdom. Jealous of such a gift, the wicked brothers Fjalar and Galar devised a scheme to steal it by luring Kvasir to their cave. As wise as he was, Kvasir was less prudent than he should have been. The dwarven brothers tied him to the chair and cut his throat so they could catch his blood in a vat. This they mixed with honey to brew what would later be called The Mead of Poetry. The potency of Kvasir’s wisdom was held in those drops and any who drank it gained wisdom and the ability to craft the finest poetry. In a bloody episode of seduction and deceit, Odin later secures the Mead of Poetry for the Aesir from a giant who had, in turn, wrested it from the unfortunate (and by then deceased) Fjalar and Galar.

"The dwarven brothers tied him to the chair and cut his throat so they could catch his blood in a vat.
This they mixed with honey to brew what would later be called The Mead of Poetry."
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However, the gods were not above taking advantage of the skill and pride of the dwarves. Loki famously devised a contest between two pairs of dwarves to (literally) save his own head. While the Ivaldi brothers craft many fine treasures, Brokk and Eitri end up winning the contest (and Loki manages to keep his head). The result of the dwarves' cunning is the forging of Thor’s hammer Mjolnir, the crafting of Odin’s spear Gungnir, and the fabrication of Sif’s golden hair among many other treasures.  ​ "However, the gods were not above taking advantage of the skill and pride of the dwarves." ​

Thor wields the hammer Mjolnir ​(Credit: Jeff Lafferty)

Another important incident involving dwarves is the binding of Fenrir the wolf. When the Fenrir grows too large and strong to be considered a safe pet to keep in Asgard, the gods taunt the wolf to be bound in chains to test his strength. In hopes that they might actually bind him they tie Fenrir up with the thickest, strongest chains they have. To their amazement and horror, Fenrir shatters them all. Mighty Fenrir is brought low when the gods call on the dwarves to craft the strongest chain of all; it is as thin as a strand of silk and is made from things like the beard of a woman and the breathe of a fish. Fenrir cannot break the chains, at least until the doom of Ragnarok, and so the gods praise the cunning of the dwarven smiths.  ​

"Mighty Fenrir is brought low when the gods call on the dwarves to craft the strongest chain of all;
​it is as thin as a strand of silk and is made from things like the beard of a woman and the breathe of a fish."
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​Finally, in the legend of Brísingamen (The Necklace of the Brisings), the lust of the dwarves comes to the fore. Loki spies Freya wandering far and wide until she arrives at the land of the dwarves. There she descends a set of stairs into the dank cave of four dwarven smiths who are admiring their latest creation, Brísingamen,  the most stunning and extravagant gold necklace to have ever been forged. Her lust for such treasure is only exceeded by the dwarves’ lust for her. The only price they will agree to for their shining creation is one night each with her in the depths of their gloomy cave. Freya agrees to their terms and Loki, the devilish trickster, takes note to bring this instance of her infidelity up at a time when it might benefit him.

Finely Forged Viking Artifacts

​There she comes to the dank cave of four dwarven smiths who are admiring their latest creation,
​Brísingamen,  the most stunning and extravagant gold necklace to have ever been forged.

A depiction of Brokk & Eitri who forged Mjolnir

Instead of abandoning the myths to those who would weaponize them for ill purposes, I believe it is extremely important to firmly reclaim them as important historical and cultural artifacts. To do this I have chosen to separate myself from the modern conception of dwarves by using the term nidavel in my books instead; this is derived from the name given to the realm of the dwarves, Nidavellir (Home of the Nidavel). However, I also take care to present a diverse array of nidavel characters so that the typical tropes of Norse dwarves do not doom my dwarven characters to fall into two-dimensional stereotypes.  ​

Instead of abandoning the myths to those who would weaponize them for ill purposes,
​I believe it is extremely important to firmly reclaim them as important historical and cultural artifacts. 
​

Why did Viking skalds tell tales of such creatures as the Norse dwarves? Were they metaphors for human lust and greed? Were they archvillians to flesh out a world full of heroic gods? Though we may never know, the Norse dwarves are a rich part of the perplexing tapestry that makes up the northern myths. If you would like to learn more about these captivating characters and many others I would suggest reading Dr Heather O'Donoghue’s From Asgard to Valhalla: The Remarkable History of the Norse Myths.

Cover art for my upcoming book The Gatewatch (Credit: Helena Rosova)

Were they metaphors for human lust and greed? Were they archvillians to flesh out a world full of heroic gods?
...the Norse dwarves are a rich part of the perplexing tapestry that makes up the northern myths. 
​