Gróa

Gróa
Gróa
Queen of the Danes
Predecessor	Alfhild
Successor	Signe
Consort	Gram
Issue	daughter; Guthorm
Father	Sigtryg
Religion	Pagan

Legendary Finnish princess

In Norse mythology, Gróa (possibly from Old Norse "growing"^[1]) is a völva (seeress) and practitioner of seiðr. She is the wife of Aurvandil the Bold.

Attestations

Prose Edda

Gróa appears in the Prose Edda book Skáldskaparmál, in the context of Thor's battle with the jötunn Hrungnir. After Thor has dispatched Hrungnir with the hammer Mjollnir, Gróa is asked to help magically remove shards of Hrungnir's whetstone which became embedded in Thor's head. Unfortunately while Gróa was about her work, Thor distracted her by telling her of how he had earlier helped Aurvandil cross the river Élivágar, and had saved her husband's life by snapping off his frost-bitten toe. Gróa's spell miscarried and the pieces of whetstone remained permanently embedded in Thor's head.

Poetic Edda

Gróa is also a völva (or seeress), summoned from beyond the grave, in the Old Norse poem Grógaldr, (a section of Svipdagsmál), by her son Svipdagr. In death she has lost none of her prophetic powers, and is able to assist him in a successful conclusion of the task which he has been set by his cruel stepmother. It is possible that this second Gróa is the same as the first one, but the poem is a late 17th-century imitation of the Edda. The interaction between Groa and her son Svipdag also offers insight into how necromantic practices were carried out. We see Svipdag waking his mother at the door of her burial mound by calling her name. Because Svipdag merely calls out his mother’s name and beseeches her for help, it appears as though the magic is not tin the words themselves but that he spoke them at the entrance of her grave mound. ^[2] Groa’s skill as a volva is apparent when she speaks nine magical charms over Svipdag to help him survive the ordeal his stepmother has set before him. They include one that calms storms at sea, one that blunts the edges of his enemies' weapons, and one that frees him from fetters if he breathes on the restraints. ^[3]

Gesta Danorum

In Gesta Danorum, Gro is a woman saved from marrying a giant by King Gram. She is the daughter of Sigtrygg, King of Sweden, and the mother of Guthorm (and possibly Guthorm's sister) by Gram.

In Viktor Rydberg's elaborate theories on Norse mythology, this Gro is identified with the seeress described in other sources.^[4]

The family tree of legendary Kings of the Danes, according to the Gesta Danorum (Books I to VII)

Kings of the Danes are in bold and marked with a crown (♕). Kings of the Swedes are marked with a dagger (†). Superscript numbers before a name indicate in which books of Gesta Danorum the individual is mentioned.

⁽¹⁾ Humble

KEY

⁽¹⁾ Angul

⁽¹⁾ Dan ♕

⁽¹⁾ Grytha

Marriage or coupling

Parent and child

The Angles

⁽¹⁾ Humble ♕

⁽¹⁾ Lother ♕

⁽¹⁾ King of the Saxons

Succession by other or unclear means

⁽¹⁾ Roar

⁽¹⁾ Sigtryg, King of the Swedes†

⁽¹⁾ Skiold ♕

⁽¹⁾ Alfhild

⁽¹⁾ daughter of Roar

⁽¹⁾ Bess

⁽¹⁾ sister of Gram

⁽¹⁾ Gróa

⁽¹⁾ Gram ♕†

⁽¹⁾ Sumble, King of the Finns

⁽¹⁾ Wagnhofde

⁽¹⁾ Signe

⁽¹⁾ Henry, King of the Saxons

⁽¹⁾ Hakon, King of the Nitherians

⁽¹⁾ Hardgrep

⁽¹⁾ Swipdag ♕†, King of Norway

⁽¹⁾ sister of Guthorm

⁽¹⁾ Guthorm ♕

^(1,2,5) Hadding ♕

⁽¹⁾ Ragnhild

⁽¹⁾ Asmund†

⁽¹⁾ Gunnhild

⁽¹⁾ Guthorm

^(1,2) Ulfhild

⁽²⁾ Ubbe ♕

⁽¹⁾ Henry

⁽¹⁾ Uffe†

^(1,2) Hunding†

⁽²⁾ Thorhild

⁽²⁾ Scot

⁽¹⁾ daughter of Uffe

⁽²⁾ Ragnar†

⁽²⁾ Swanhwid

⁽²⁾ sisters of Swanhwid

⁽²⁾ Handwan

⁽²⁾ Thorwald

^(2,5) Frode ♕

⁽²⁾ daughter of Handwan

^(2,3) Hothbrodd†

⁽²⁾ Halfdan ♕

⁽²⁾ Ro

⁽²⁾ Skat

⁽²⁾ Thora

^(2,3) Helge ♕

⁽²⁾ Ro ♕

^(2,3) Athisl†

⁽²⁾ Urse

^(2,3) King Gewar

^(2,3) Rolf Krage ♕†

⁽²⁾ Rute

⁽²⁾ Bjarke

⁽²⁾ Skulde

^(2,3) Hiartuar †♕

^(2,3) Hother †♕

⁽³⁾ Nanna

⁽³⁾ Herlek

⁽³⁾ Gerit

⁽³⁾ former King of Britain

⁽³⁾ mother of the King of Britain

⁽³⁾ a slave

⁽³⁾ a bondmaid

⁽³⁾ Rorik Slyngebond ♕

⁽³⁾ Gerwendil

^(3,4) King of Britain

^(3,4) Queen of Britain

^(3,4) Gerutha

^(3,4) Horwendil

^(3,4) Feng

^(3,4) foster sister of Amleth

^(3,4) daughter of the King of Britain

^(3,4) Amleth

⁽⁴⁾ Hermutrude, Queen of Scotland

⁽⁴⁾ Wiglek ♕

⁽⁴⁾ son of Amleth

⁽⁴⁾ Wermund ♕

⁽⁴⁾ Frowin, governor of Sleswik

⁽⁴⁾ Uffe ♕, aka Olaf the Gentle

⁽⁴⁾ daughter of Frowin

⁽⁴⁾ Ket

⁽⁴⁾ Wig

⁽⁴⁾ Dan ♕

⁽⁴⁾ Hugleik ♕

⁽⁴⁾ Frode the Vigorous ♕

⁽⁴⁾ Dan ♕

⁽⁵⁾ Kraka

⁽⁵⁾ Ragnar

⁽⁵⁾ Brak

^(4,5) Fridleif the Swift ♕

⁽⁵⁾ Hun, King of the Huns

⁽⁵⁾ Hun

⁽⁵⁾ Gotar, King of Norway

⁽⁵⁾ Westmar

⁽⁵⁾ Koll

⁽⁵⁾ Gotwar

⁽⁵⁾ Roller

^(5,6) Erik† Shrewd-spoken

⁽⁵⁾ Gunwar the Fair

⁽⁵⁾ Alfhild

^(5,6) Frode ♕

⁽⁵⁾ Hanund

⁽⁵⁾ Grep (eldest of three)

⁽⁵⁾ 11 other sons (two named Grep)

⁽⁶⁾ Hythin, King of Tellemark

⁽⁵⁾ Alf

⁽⁵⁾ Eyfura

⁽⁵⁾ Arngrim

⁽⁶⁾ Grubb

⁽⁶⁾ Hiarn ♕

⁽⁶⁾ Amund, King of Norway

⁽⁶⁾ child of Hythin

⁽⁶⁾ Halfdan†

⁽⁵⁾ 12 sons, including Anganty

⁽⁶⁾ Ane

⁽⁶⁾ Juritha

⁽⁶⁾ Fridleif ♕

⁽⁶⁾ Frogertha

⁽⁶⁾ Hanef, King of Saxony

⁽⁶⁾ Swerting, King of Saxony

⁽⁶⁾ Olaf

⁽⁶⁾ Frode ♕

^(6,7) Siward†

⁽⁶⁾ sons of Swerting

⁽⁶⁾ sister of the sons of Swerting

^(6,7) Ingild ♕

⁽⁶⁾ Helga

⁽⁶⁾ Helge

⁽⁶⁾ Asa

^(6,7) Frode

^(6,7) Fridleif

^(6,7) Ingild

^(6,7) Olaf ♕

⁽⁷⁾ Karl, governor of Gothland

⁽⁷⁾ Ulfhild

⁽⁷⁾ Frode ♕

⁽⁷⁾ Hather, a chief

⁽⁷⁾ Harald ♕

⁽⁷⁾ Signe

⁽⁷⁾ Erik†

⁽⁷⁾ Thorhild

⁽⁷⁾ Halfdan Biargramm ♕†

⁽⁷⁾ Harald

⁽⁷⁾ Asmund

Kings of Norway

Name spellings are derived from Oliver Elton's 1905 translation, The First Nine Books of the Danish History of Saxo Grammaticus, via Wikisource.

Notes

^ Orchard (1997:63).
^ Eriksen, Marianne (December 2013). "Doors to the dead. The power of doorways and thresholds in Viking Age Scandinavia". Proquest.com. Retrieved November 26, 2025.
^ Luyster, Robert (Summer 1998). "The wife's lament in the context of Scandinavian myth and ritual". Proquest.com. Retrieved November 26, 2025.
^ Rydberg's Teutonic Mythology, Chapter 24

References

Orchard, Andy (1997). Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend. Cassell. ISBN 0-304-34520-2

[ORCHARD63-1] Orchard (1997:63).

[2] Eriksen, Marianne (December 2013). "Doors to the dead. The power of doorways and thresholds in Viking Age Scandinavia". Proquest.com. Retrieved November 26, 2025.

[3] Luyster, Robert (Summer 1998). "The wife's lament in the context of Scandinavian myth and ritual". Proquest.com. Retrieved November 26, 2025.

[4] Rydberg's Teutonic Mythology, Chapter 24

Characters of Gesta Danorum
Danish kings (family tree)
Dan I Humble Lother Skiold Gram Guthorm Hading
Foreign rulers
Olimar Skat Sigtrygg Asmund Uffe Gusonis Svipdagr Sumble Henry Handwan Loker
Other men
Bess Lysir Roar
Women
Grytha Alfhild Gróa Signe
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