Welcome to the latest installment of my little Norse history lesson, in which I take a look at the stories behind the famous figures who lend their names to Viking River Cruises expansive fleet of Viking Longships. This, time I’m going back to the very beginnings of Norse mythology, as I take a look at the history of Buri.

Who was Buri?

Buri was none other than Norse mythology’s first god.

More about Buri

To be the first god of Norse mythology, you’ve got to have a pretty original creation story and indeed, Buri’s takes some beating.

It’s said that he had no mother or father and was in fact the creation of a giant cow called Audumbla. This cow existed in a place known as Ginnungagap (translated as ‘mighty gap’) which was a primordial void which existed before the creation of the universe. Audumbla was said to have formed Buri from the salty blocks of ice in the void and upon his creation, fed him with her milk.

Appropriately, Buri’s name translates as ‘producer’ and though he had only one son Borr, he was responsible for creating Norse mythology, as Bor in turn had three sons – Vili, Ve and Odin. After Odin’s birth the rest is (Norse) history.

Interesting facts

There are obvious parallels to God’s creation of the universe in six days in the story of Audumbla and Buri. According to Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda, the cow licked the ice blocks daily; on the first day, Buri’s hair appeared, the second his head, the third, his body.

The origin of the phrase ‘licked into shape’ is widely believed to date back to the Middle Ages, when bizarrely, there was a belief that all bear cubs were born shapeless and the parents had to ‘form’ the cub with their tongues. Could it be that this belief was passed down from Norse mythology and the story of Buri’s creation?

The Buri was also the name of a first century Germanic tribe, who indeed took their name from the god.