In Norse mythology, Angrboda is a giant known as the hag of the ironwood of Jotunheim. She is Loki’s mate and the mother of the three monsters. Her companions often see her as a tall, muscular woman with red hair. She is the head of the wolf clan and the most powerful of the nine clans of the ironwood, as she has won many fights. She is a fiery warrior-woman, passionate, very wise, seer, a magician. She is highly skilled in divination and prophecies, hunt magic, shapeshifting, and some types of sex magic. As the most vital being in the ironwood, she knows everything that happens within its borders. However, she does not interfere in issues outside the ironwood borders. She prefers male clothing to women’s and wears skirts only in celebrations while perming her role as the divine priestess; as the warrior of her people, she is always armed.
Family of Angrboda
For a while, Angrboda was linked to the giant Loki who lived among the Asgardian gods. He was portrayed as a friend of mighty gods Odin and Thor, aiding them with his tricky plans. Loki had another wife called goddess Sigyn. Polygamy was a norm among the giants, so Angrboda did not have any issues with Loki’s marriage. She sired three kids for Loki, namely Hel, Jormungandr, and Fenrir, the chained wolf-shaped god of destruction. These children are monsters. None of them closely resembles the other. They are some of the evilest creatures ever to exist, and it is believed they will bring great suffering ad destruction across the nine worlds. These three children were responsible for the deadly flames of Ragnarök, the end of gods. Though they were chained and separated, Loki and his family united on the brink of Ragnarök. They built up a great army with dead warriors led by Hel. Loki’s army destroyed everything when they came to Asgard, where they had a bloody battle with the Gods.
The serpent Jormungandr
Jormungandr is a giant sea serpent prone to anger and hates god Thor. The Aesir cast a young Jormungandr into the Midgard Sea as they feared the destruction that he might bring forth. He became so large that he could surround the whole world. The serpent’s fate is to fight with Thor to death during Ragnarök. Although Thor will kill Jormungandr, the serpent will spit a lot of poison unto Thor, that the god will die. Moreover, the serpent will also spit his poison to Norse mythology’s nine worlds, poisoning them as well.
Fenrir
Fenrir is the most destructive of the offspring. The giant wolf’s fate is to destroy the nine worlds at Ragnarök. In an effort to make Fenrir compliant, Odin and The Aesir authorize the dwarves to make a chain that the wolf cannot break . the dwarves make an enchanted ribbon which the Aesir use to tether Fenrir. They tricked him into putting the ribbon as he was very robust for them to handle. They also rammed a sword into his mouth to control his jaws after biting off the hand of god Tyrin in retaliation for the trick. The Aesir successfully bind Fenrir, and although Fenrir manages to cut off god Tyr’s hand, the cunning wolf will stay chained till the battle of Ragnarök. Chained next to Hel, Fenrir will break his shackles and devours the sun and his howl signals the rise of Ragnarök and kills god Tyr. Fenrir also kills Odin, and then god Vidarr avenges Odin by killing Fenrir.
Hel
Hel was the only daughter. She was half-beauty, half-corpse hence the name Hel. She holds the shades of death until Ragnarök . The bones of half of her body were fully exposed and thus, sometimes she is described as partly white and partly black. The Aesir sent her to Helheim to be a ruler of the of the dead. She decides on who to pass into and out of Helheim . When the time for Ragnarök is due, she will move to Asgard with her father Loki and an army of the deceased to fight against the Asgardian gods.
Angrboda and the end of days
Though there are no records for giantess Angrboda’s role in the Ragnarök, chances are she joined forces with the giants’ army that battled Asgard. She loved her children and being a mother, she desired to revenge for the maltreatment his children faced from the Asgardian gods. Angrboda’s children play a vital role in fulfillment of Ragnaroks prediction about the last days implying she might still be considered the origin of the catastrophe .
