Home > Giant (mythology)
Giants are humanoid creatures of prodigious size and strength, a type of legendary monster that appear in the tales of many different races and cultures. They are often stupid or violent and are frequently said to eat humans, especially children; others, however, like Oscar Wilde's giants, are intelligent and friendly.
The Cyclopes of Homer's Odyssey were giants, as was Goliath who strove with King David in the Bible. The Bible also records a race of giants called " Nephilim". Genesis states that "There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men and they bore children to them, the same became mighty men who were of old, men of renown." (Gen. 6:4 KJV); here "giants" is a translation of the Hebrew "Nephilim". Post-biblical tradition holds that NimrodNimrod ( Hebrew ''Nimrod or Nimrodh was a king of Assyria mentioned in the Book of Genesis in the Bible. According to Hebrew traditions, he was of Mizraim by mother but came from Cush son of Ham and expanded Asshur which he inherited. His name has become was a member of this race.
In GermanicThe term Germanic peoples may refer to: the Germanic tribes that in the first millennium were seen as a barbarian threat by the Roman Empire and its successors; the Germanic Christianity that in the second millennium came to dominate much of Northern Euro mythologies (see Norse mythologyArdre image stones from Gotland, ca. 750 AD Norse mythology Viking mythology or Scandinavian mythology refer to the pre- Christian religion, beliefs and legends of the Scandinavian people. It is the best-known version of the ancient Germanic mythology, wh), giants ( JotunIn Norse mythology, Jotuns or Jotunn of Utgard, Jotunnheim were the race of giants, separated into categories such as frost giants (rime giants, hrimthurs), fire giants sea giants and storm giants . The first race drowned in Ymir's blood, and were repopuls) are often opposed to the gods. In particular, the Wodin/ OdinWotan Wodan Woden Oden Odin or dinn is usually considered the supreme god of Germanic and Norse mythology. His role, like many of the Norse pantheon, is complex: he is god of both wisdom and war, roles not necessarily conceived of as being mutually sympat-derived mythologies of Northern Europe feature frost giants, who are eternally opposed to the AesirThe Aesir ( Old Norse sir singular ss feminine synja feminine plural synjur are the principal pantheon of gods in Norse mythology. They include many of the major figures, such as Odin, Frigg, Thor, Balder and Tyr. A second clan of gods, the Vanir is also. The Aesir themselves emerged from the race of giants, and in the eventual, apocalyptic battle of RagnarokFor the MMORPG see Ragnarok Online, for the manhwa see Ragnarok (manhwa In Norse mythology, Ragnarok ( "fate of the gods" 1) is the battle at the end of the world. It will be waged between the gods (the Aesir, led by Odin) and the evils (the fire giants, the frost giants will storm AsgardThis article is about the realm of Norse Mythology. For other uses, see Asgard (disambiguation). Asgard is the realm of the gods, the Aesir, in Norse Mythology, thought to be separate from the realm of the mortals, Midgard. The walls surrounding Asgard we, home of the gods, and defeat the gods in war, bringing about the end of the world. In the mature form of this mythology recorded in the Edda poetry and prose, giants inter-marry with the gods and are the origin of most of the monsters in Nordic mythology (e.g., the Fenris Wolf), so relations between the Aesir and the giants are sometimes cordial and sometimes adversarial.
Tales of combat with giants were a common feature in the folklore of Wales and Ireland. From here, giants got into Breton and Arthurian romances, and from this source they spread into the heroic tales of Torquato Tasso, Ludovico Ariosto, and their follower Edmund Spenser. The giant Despair appears in John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. Norse and Anglo-Saxon mythology are also rich in tales of giants, which seem there to be a separate race akin to the gods, and strove often with Thor. Ogres and trolls are giant-like humanoid creatures that occur in various sorts of European folklore.
In Basque mythology , giants appear as jentilak ( Gentiles) and mairuak ( Moors).
They are who made dolmens and menhirs.
After Christianization, the giants were driven away.
The only remaining one is Olentzero, a coalmaker that brings gifts on Christmas Eve.
Giants figure in a great many fairy tales and folklore stories, such as Jack and the Beanstalk and Paul Bunyan.
