330 



THE STANDARD DICTIONARY OF FACTS 



Fortuna'tjp. Known also as "the Islands of the 

 Blessed." The early Greeks, as we learn from Homer. 

 placed the Ely-Man fields, into which favored heroes \> 

 without dying, at the extremity of the earth, near the 

 River Oceanus. In poems later than Homer, an island is 

 spoken of as theirabode; hence when certain island- 

 discovered in the ocean, off the western coast of Africa, 

 the name of FortunaU- Insula- was applied to them. 

 They are now called the Canary and Madeira Islands. 



Freki and (ieri. 1 he n\o wolves of Odin. When 

 Odin, seated on his throne, overlooks heaven and earth, 

 wolves lie at his 



Frey. (Scandinavian mythology.) The god of the sun 

 and of rain, and hence of fertility and peace. He \\a- 

 one of the most popular of the Northern divinities. 

 -apons were ever allowed in Prey's temple, although 

 oxen and horses were sacrificed to him. His name un- 

 connected with the taking of any solemn oath, a heavy 

 gold ring was dipped in the blood of the sacrifice and 

 the oath sworn upon the ring. One of the most celebrated 

 of the temples built to Frey was at Therva in Iceland. 



I rey'ja. She was the sister of Frey, and the wife 

 of Odur, who abandoned her on her loss of youth and 

 beauty, and was changed into a statue by Odin, as a 

 punishment. She is known as the Northern goddess 

 of beauty and love; plants were called Freya's hair, 

 and the butterfly, Freya's hen. 



Frig'ga. In Scandinavian mythology the wife of 

 Odin, the queen of the gods, and the mother of Baldur, 

 Thor. etc. She sometimes typifies the earth, as Odin 

 does the heavens. The Anglo-Saxons worshiped her 

 as "Frea." The name survives in "Friday." 



Fro'di. The son of Frey, a god of peace. Under his 

 a two giantesses turned a pair of magic mill- 

 stones which ground out gold according to his wish and 

 filled his coffers. Excited by greed he forced them to 

 labor, allowing rest only long enough for the singing of 

 one verse. When Frodi, himself, slept, the giantesses 

 changed their song and proceeded to grind out an army 

 of troops to invade the land. These troops represent 

 the Vikings. 



Furies. Among the divinities of the lower world 

 were three daughters of Acheron and Night, or of Pluto 

 and Proserpine, whose office it was to torment the guilty 

 in Tartarus, and often to inflict vengeance upon the liv- 

 ing. The Greeks called them " Furies." They are also 

 known as Erinnyes and Eumenides.. 



Fylpie. Guardian spirits treated of in Norse my- 

 thology. Besides the Norns or Discs, who were regarded 

 as protective deities, the Norsemen ascribed to each 

 human being a guardian spirit named Fylgie, which 

 attended him through life. 



(iaea. Same as Tellus and Terra, a personification 

 of earth. Sometimes written Ge. 



(alar. One of the dwarfs who, with his fellow dwarf, 

 I-'ialar. slew the giant, Kvasir, and drained every drop 

 of his blood. 



(anga. One of the three Indian River goddesses. 



Ganifler. The gate-keeper in Odin's palace who 

 gave the explanation of the Northern mythology that 

 it might be recorded. 



(iany'mede. A son of Troas, King of Troy, accord- 

 ing to Homer, was the most beautiful of all mortals, 

 and was carried off by the gods that he might fill the cup 

 of Zeus (Jupiter), and live among the immortal gods. 

 Later writers state that Zeus himself carried him off, 

 in the form of an eagle, or by means of his eagle, from 

 Mount Ida. 



Garm. A fierce dog that kept guard at the entrance 

 of Hel's kingdom, the realm of the dead. He could be 

 appeased by the offering of a Hel-cake which always 

 appeared in the hand of one who, on earth, had given 

 bread to the needy. 



(iauta'ma. The chief deity of Burmah. 



Gem'ini. One of the names given to the twins, 

 Castor and Pollux, under which they were transported 

 to dwell among the stars. 



Ge'nii. Protecting spirits or gods. 



Gerda. Wife of Frey, and daughter of the frost 

 giant, Gymer. She is -so beautiful that the brightness 

 of her naked arms illuminates both air and sea. 



Ger'yon was a monster, said to be the offspring of 

 Chrysaor and Ca'lirhpe, and to have three bodies and 

 three heads. His residence was in the island of (lades, 

 where his numerous flocks were kept by the herdsman, 

 Eurythion, and guarded by a two-headed dog, called 

 Orthos. The destruction of this monster formed one 

 of the twelve labors of Hercules. 



Giall. The infernal river of Scandinavian mythology. 



Giallar Bridge. The bridge of death, over which 

 all must pass. 



Giallar Horn, The. Heimdall's horn, which went 

 out into all worlds whenever he chose to blow it. 



According to Northern mythology, he blew a long- 

 expected blast as a rallying call to the battle which 

 ended the reign of the god-;, Odin, Frey, and Tyr. 



(.ian hen Gian. King of the (linns or Genii, and 

 founder of the Pyramids. He was overthrown by Aza'- 

 zil or Lucifer. (Arab superstitions.) 



Giants. Earth united with Heaven produced Oceanos 

 and the giants with fifty heads and a hundred hands 

 by which is meant, the personification of the great powers 

 of nature as their names signify: Cottos (eruption), 

 Briareos (hurricane), and Gyes (earthquake). In fables 

 the giants are beings of monstrous si/.e, with dragons' 

 tails and fearful countenances. They attempted to 

 storm heaven, being armed with huge rocks and the 

 trunks of trees, but were killed by the gods with the 

 assistance of Hercules, and were buried under Mount 

 /Etna and other volcanoes. In Scandinavian mythology 

 they are described as evil genii of various forms and races, 

 enemies of the gods. They dwelt in a territory of their 

 own, called Giant-land. They had the power of assum- 

 ing divers shapes, and of increasing or diminishing their 

 stature at will. 



Ginun'ga-gap. In Norse mythology, the vast 

 chaotic gulf of perpetual twilight, which existed before 

 the present world and separated the region of fog from 

 the region of heat. Giants were the first beings who 

 came to life among the icebergs and filled this vast 

 abyss. 



Glads'-heim. A great hall in the palace of Odin, 

 in which were the twelve seats occupied by the gods 

 when holding council. 



Gla'sir. A marvelous grove in the land of Asgard, 

 in which the leaves were all of shimmering red gold. 



Glendoveer'. In Hindu mythology, is a kind of sylph, 

 the most lovely of the good spirits. 



Gnome. One of a class of spirits or imaginary beings 

 which were supposed to tenant the interior .parts of the 

 earth, and in whose charge mines, quarries, etc., were 

 left. Rubezahl, of the German legends, is often cited as 

 a representative of the class. 



Golden Apples, The. A great treasure which was 

 thought to be altogether unattainable, was the golden 

 apples in the gardens of the' Hesperides. These gardens 

 were watched by a monstrous dragon, and to bring the 

 golden fruit to Eurystheus, was one of the tasks which 

 Hercules was to accomplish. 



Golden Fleece. Ino persuaded her husband, Ath- 

 amas, that his son Phryxos was the cause of a famine 

 which desolated the land, and he ordered him to be 

 sacrificed to the angry gods. Phryxos made his escape 

 over sea on a "ram which had a golden fleece." When 

 he arrived at Colchis, he sacrificed the ram to Zeus, and 

 gave the fleece to King ^Ee'tes, who hung it on a sacred 

 oak. It was afterwards stolen by Jason in his celebrated 

 Argonautic expedition. 



Gor'gons. The three Gorgons were hideous monsters 

 whose faces were so fearful that whoever looked on 

 them became "congealed stone." One of these crea- 

 tures, Medusa, was slain by Perseus, and her head was 

 presented to Minerva, who placed it in her shield, where 

 the face continued to retain its petrifying power. 



Graces. To the retinue of Venus belonged the 

 Graces, servants and companions of the goddess. They 

 were said to be daughters of Jupiter and Kurynome, or. 

 according to others, of Bacchus and Venus herself, and 

 were three in number: Splendor, Pleasure, and Joy. 

 They were honored, especially in Greece, and had tem- 

 ples in the principal cities. Altars were often erected 

 to them in the temples of other gods, especially Mercury, 

 Venus, and the Muses. 



Grid. Wife of Odin and mother of Viclar. She lent 

 Thor her girdle, staff, and glove, warning him to beware 

 of treachery. 



Gripir. A horse- trainer, servant of Odin, who could 

 foretell events of the future. He could teach a young 

 hero all that he might need to know. He is compared 

 to Chiron the Centaur. 



Groves. The Romans were accustomed, like other 

 ancient nations, to consecrate groves and woods to the 

 gods. As many as 230 sacred groves are enumerated, 

 chiefly within the city of Rome. In Greece, the particu- 

 lar tract of land, situated between Athens and Megara, 

 was consecrated to Ceres and Proserpine, and trees were 

 also set apart and with ceremony consecrated to some 

 god. 



Gyes. One of the hundred-handed giants. (Also 

 written Gygc.s.) 



Ha'des. The Greek god of the nether world, the son 

 of Saturn and Rhea, and the brother of Jupiter and Nep- 

 tune. He is the same as Pluto. In ordinary life he 

 was usually called Pluto (the giver of wealth), because 

 people did not like to pronounce the dreaded name of 

 Hades. His wife was Persephone (Proserpine), the 



