A primeval
frost giant of Norse* mythology, Ymir was formed at the beginning of
creation from rivers of ice that flowed from Niflheim, the land of mist,
into Ginnungagap, the yawning emptiness. Ymir emerged from the ice as it
melted from the heat of Muspelheim, the fire kingdom that lay near these
two regions.
As the evil Ymir slept, other frost giants formed from the sweat of his
body. The first male and female emerged from his left armpit, and another
man came from his legs. Ymir drank milk from a primeval cow, which in turn
licked blocks of ice and released a man called Buri. Buri's grandsons were
the gods Odin*, Vili, and Ve. These three gods eventually attacked Ymir
while he slept and killed him. As Ymir's blood gushed from his body, it
caused a flood that drowned all the frost giants except Bergelmir and his
wife. They escaped in a ship and founded a new race of beings.
