Járnsaxa

Járnsaxa (/jɑːrnˈsæksə/; Old Norse: [ˈjɑːrnˌsɑksɑ], ("iron dagger") is a jötunn in Norse mythology. In Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda, she is portrayed as Thor's lover and as the mother of Magni, a child with supernatural powers.^[1]

Járnsaxa
Norse mythology character
In-universe information
Species	Jötunn
Gender	Female
Significant other	Thor
Children	Magni

Name

The Old Norse name Járnsaxa has been translated as 'iron dagger',^[2] or 'armed-with-an-iron-sword'.^[1]

Attestations

In Hyndluljóð, Járnsaxa is named as one of the Nine Mothers of Heimdallr.^[1]

In Skáldskaparmál, Thor's wife the goddess Sif is either herself called "Járnsaxa" or called by a kenning meaning "the rival of Járnsaxa",^[3] throwing confusion on whether Sif is or is not distinct from Járnsaxa the mother of Magni.^[4] At the end of the story, Odin argues that Thor did wrong to offer the splendid horse Gullfaxi to Magni, the son of a giantess, rather than to himself, the father of Thor.^[1]