Surt is a fire giant who leads his kin into battle against the Aesir and Vanir gods during Ragnarok, the destruction of the cosmos. His particular destiny is to kill the god Freyr and be killed by him in turn. He arrives from Muspelheim, the southernmost region of heat and fire, carrying his weapon of choice, a flaming sword, with which he destroys the world before it sinks into the sea.
Surt is the supernatural force corresponding to the “(volcanic) fire of the underworld,” a character who would surely have had a deep emotional resonance for any primitive Icelander, given the great amount of volcanic activity that characterizes that island.
A book in the Prose Edda provides additional information about Surt, including that he is stationed guarding the border of the fiery realm of Múspell, that he will lead the “sons of Múspell” into Ragnarok, and that he will defeat Freyr. Surt has been the subject of place names and artistic representations, and scholars have proposed theories about the elements of Surt’s descriptions and his possible origins.
Surt is mentioned twice in the poem Voluspá, where a volva divulges information to the god Odin. The volva says that during Ragnarok, Surt will come from the south with flames, carrying a very bright sword.
1. Myths
The following stanza recounts that Odin will be killed by the wolf Fenrir, and that Surt will go into battle against the “doom of Beli,” a symbol of the god Freyr, who killed the giant Beli. No further details about the fight between Surt and Freyr are given in the poem. In the verses that follow, a number of gods and their opponents are described as fighting in Ragnarok, and the world will be consumed in flames, but then a new world will rise from the sea, fertile and full of life, and the surviving gods will meet again.
In the poem, the wise man asks Odin (disguised as “Gagnráor”) “what is the name of the plain where Surt and the sweet gods will meet in battle.” Odin replies that the “orderly field” is Vígríor, and that it extends “a hundred leagues” in all directions. Later in the poem, Odin, still in disguise and now questioning Vafpruonir, asks which of the AEsir “will rule over the possessions of the gods when Surt’s fire is extinguished.”
In the poem Fáfnismál, the hero Sigurd asks the mortally wounded dragon Fáfnir the name of the island where Surt and the AEsir “will mix sword and liquid.” Fáfnir says that the island is called Oskopnir, that all the gods will go there carrying spears, and that on their way the Bifrost bridge will break beneath them, causing their horses to “stagger in the great river.”
The lost Eddic poem Fjolsvinnsmál, stanza 24, contains the line “Surt sinn mautu” or “surt sinn mantu,” according to the best manuscripts. The last two words, which are otherwise meaningless, are sometimes amended to “Sinmoru,” and the entire phrase is interpreted to mean that Surt has a companion named Sinmara. Based on the same passage, Lee Hollander tentatively identifies Sinmara as Surt’s wife, stating that she is “unknown elsewhere.”
2. Historical Legends
In chapter 4 of the book Gylfaginning of the Prose Edda, the enthroned figure of Third tells Gangleri (described as King Gylfi in disguise) about the location of Múspell. Third says that the bright and fiery region of Múspell existed before Niflheim, and that it is impassable to those who are not native to the region. To defend Múspell, Surt is stationed at its border.
Third adds that Surt has a flaming sword, and that “at the end of the world he will go to war and defeat all the gods and burn the whole world with fire.” The stanza from Voluspá predicting Surt moving from the south is then quoted . In chapter 18, Gangleri asks what will protect the hall Gimlé “when Surt’s fire burns the sky and the earth.”
In chapter 51 of Gylfaginning, the events of Ragnarok are described. High says that “in the midst of this confusion, the sky will open and the sons of Muspell will ride out. Surt will ride in front, and both in front of him and behind him there will be burning fire. His sword will be very sharp.
The light will shine brighter than the sun.” High continues that when the sons of Muspell ride over the Bifrost bridge, it will break, and they will continue on to the field of Vigrior. The wolf Fenrir and the serpent Midgard will also arrive there. By then, Loki will have arrived with “all the people of Hel,” Hrym, and all the frost jotnar; “but the sons of Muspell will have their own battle arsenal; it will be very bright.”
Later in the chapter, High describes that a fierce battle will break out between these forces and the AEsir, and that during this, Surt and Freyr will enter into battle “and there will be a hard conflict before Freyr falls.” The cause of Freyr’s death will be that Freyr lacks “the good sword” that he once gave to his servant Skírnir.
As High predicted later in chapter 51 of Gylfaginning, once Heimdallr and Loki fight (and kill each other), Surt will “throw fire upon the earth and burn the whole world. “ High quotes ten stanzas from Voluspá in support, and then proceeds to describe the rebirth and new fertility of the reborn world, and the survivors of Ragnarok, including several gods and the two humans named Líf and Lífthrasir who will have hidden from “Surt’s fire” in the forest Hoddmímis holt.
In the Epilogue section of the book Skáldskaparmál, a euhemerized monologue states that “what they called Surt’s fire was when Troy burned.” In chapter 2, a work by the skald Eyvindr skáldaspillir is quoted that mentions “The deep valleys of Surt,” using the name Surt as a common name for a jotunn, with “deep valleys” referring to the depths of the mountains (specifically Hnitbjorg). In chapter 75, Surt is included in a list of “very powerful” jotnar.
3. Historical Theories
Some scholars theorize that “the concept of Surt is undoubtedly ancient,” citing examples of Surt’s mention in works by 10th-century scholars, in poems collected in the Poetic Edda, and that the name of the volcanic caves of Surtshellir in western Iceland was already recorded in the Landnámabók manuscript.
The jotnar are usually described as living in the east in ancient Norse sources, but Surt is described as being from the south, and that this “surely has to do with his association with fire and heat.” Simek says that “in Iceland, Surt was obviously considered a powerful giant who ruled the (volcanic) fire powers of the underworld,” but the notion of Surt as an enemy of the gods probably did not originate in Iceland.
Scholars theorize that the figure of Surt was inspired by Icelandic eruptions and that he was a volcanic demon. Scholar Andy Orchard theorizes that the description of Surt found in Gylfaginning “seems to owe something to biblical and patristic notions of the angel with a flaming sword who expelled Adam and Eve from paradise and guards the Garden of Eden.” The name Surt may imply Surt’s charred appearance.
4. Place names and modern influence
Surtshellir, a group of volcanic tunnels in western Iceland recorded in the Landnámabók manuscript, is named after Surt. In modern Iceland, the notion of Surt as a fire giant lives on; Surtsey (“Surt’s island”), a volcanic island that appeared in 1963 in Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland, is named after Surt.
The description found in Gylfaginning of Surt guarding the border of Múspell. He is depicted in John Charles Dollman’s painting The Giant with the Flaming Sword. Surtur, a natural satellite of the planet Saturn, and Surt, a volcano on the moon of the planet Jupiter, are both named after Surt.
The Pagana Motorcycle Club uses Surt as its mascot: he is depicted on their leather jackets, typically in red embroidery, crouching and wielding a flaming club or spear.
Surt, a demon from the Megami Tensei franchise, is based on Surt and comes with the signature move Ragnarok.
Surt, a tyrannical king who shares his name from Norse mythology (as well as his kingdom Múspell), appears as a major antagonist during the second story of the Fire Emblem spin-off game Fire Emblem Heroes.
A malformed manifestation of Surt appears as a boss that Senua must defeat in the game Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. He is notably referred to as a fire god rather than a giant.
Surt is the god of the planet Tormance in A Voyage to Arcturus, a science fiction novel by David Lindsay (novelist). Also known as Shaping and Crystalman.
