Dragons, or worms, are present in Germanic mythology and wider folklore, where they are often portrayed as large venomous serpents. Especially in later tales, however, they share many common features with other dragons in European mythology.
Origin, appearance and terminology
In early depictions, as with dragons in other cultures, the distinction between Germanic dragons and regular snakes is blurred, with both being referred to as Old Norse ormr or Old English wyrm from Proto-Germanic *wurmiz. Wyrm has since been borrowed back into modern English to mean "dragon", while the descendent term worm remains used in modern English to refer to dragons, especially those lacking wings.
In Fáfnismál, the dragon Fáfnir is described as flightless and snake-like, and is referred to as an ormr. In the later Völsunga saga, however, he has shoulders, suggesting legs, wings or both, and is referred to as both a dreki and an ormr. Similarly, the dragon in Beowulf is referred to as both a wyrm and a draca, although in some sources such as Ketils saga hœngs and the 14th century romance saga Konráðs saga keisarasonar, ormar and drekar are portrayed as distinct beings, with winged dragons sometimes specified as flogdreka (flying dragons). Old Norse dreki and Old English draca mean "dragon, sea serpent or sea monster" and are in turn derived from Proto-Germanic *drakō, an early borrowing from Latin draco "huge serpent or dragon".
The evolution of wingless and legless worms and lindworms to flying, four-legged romanesque dragons in Germanic folklore and literature is most likely due to influence from continental Europe that was facilitated by Christianisation and the increased availability of translated romances. It has thus been proposed that the description in Völuspá of Níðhöggr with feathers and flying after Ragnarök is a late addition and potentially a result of the integration of pagan and Christian imagery.
To address the difficulties with categorising Germanic dragons, the term drakorm has been proposed, referring to beings described as either a dreki or ormr.
List of Germanic dragons
Main article: List of dragons in mythology and folklore § European dragons
• Níðhöggr is a dragon attested in the Eddas that gnaws at the roots of Yggdrasil and the corpses of Náströnd.
• Jörmungandr, also known as the Midgard Serpent, is described as a giant, venomous beast and the child of Loki and Angrboða.
• Fáfnir is a widely attested dragon that has a prominent role in the Völsung Cycle. Fafnir took the form of a dragon after claiming a hoard of treasure, including Andvaranaut, from his father. He was later killed by Sigurd (Sigfried) who hid in a pit and stabbed him from underneath with a sword.
• The Gesta Danorum contains a description of a dragon killed by Frotho I. The dragon is described as "the keeper of the mountain." After Frotho I kills the dragon, he takes its hoard of treasure. The Gesta Danorum describes another dragon fight where a dragon is slain by Friðleifr and it is similar to the story of Frotho I.
There are several sagas with dragons in them, including Þiðreks saga, Övarr-Odds saga, and Sigrgarðs saga frækna, among others.
Common traits
Guarding treasure
The association between dragons and hoards of treasure is widespread in Germanic literature.
In the Völsung Cycle, Fáfnir was a dwarf who, upon claiming a hoard of treasure, including the ring Andvaranaut, transforms into a dragon. Fáfnir's brother, Regin reforges the sword Gram from broken shards and gives it to the hero Sigurd who uses it to kill the dragon by waiting in a hole until the worm slithers over and exposes his underbelly. While dying Fáfnir speaks with Sigurd and shares mythological knowledge. Sigurd then cooks and tastes the dragon's heart, allowing the hero to understand the speech of birds who tell him to kill Regin, which he does and then takes the hoard for himself. In Beowulf, it is Sigmund (the father of Sigurd in Old Norse tradition) who kills a dragon and takes its hoard.
In Beowulf, the dragon that the poem's eponymous hero is awoken from the burial mound in which it dwells when a cup from its hoard is stolen, leading it to seek vengeance from the Geats. After both the dragon and Beowulf die, the treasure is reinterred in the king's barrow. The Old English poem, Maxims II further states:
