Víðópnir
{{Short description|Mythological bird in Norse mythology}}
In Norse mythology, Víðópnir ({{IPA|non|ˈwiːðˌoːpnez̠}}) is a mythological bird inhabiting the top of the Norse world tree, Yggdrasil — sometimes positioned on the brow of another cosmic bird.
Representation
According to the eddic poem, Fjölsvinnsmál, Víðópnir or Víðófnir {{IPA|non|ˈwiːðˌoːvnez̠|}} is a rooster that inhabits the crown of the world tree, variously represented as a falcon, sitting between the eyes of the cosmic eagle Hræsvelgr at the top of the tree of life, Mímameiðr (Mimi's Tree), a vast tree taken to be identical with the World Tree, Yggdrasil.
Sources
Viðópnir occurs in one Norse medieval source aside from Fjölsvinnsmál, a tiny phrase in Snorri Sturluson's Eddu-brot, where it guards the gate to the lands where in Hél's Hel or Hell lies, the six-metre high Icelandic waterfalls of Gjallandi (literally, "the yelling").{{cite web |url=https://onp.ku.dk/onp/onp.php?c713423 |title=víðópnir in SnEFrg¹ 494 |work=ONP: Dictionary of Old Norse Prose |access-date=2022-11-01}} Hel was one of the children of the trickster god Loki, and her kingdom was said to lie downward and northward.{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hel-Norse-deity |title=Hel, Norse Deity |work=Britannica |access-date=2022-11-01}}
Viðópnir seems rather identical to Veðrfölnir and the eagle.