Wise dwarf, connected to runes and the mead of poetry.
Dvalin (Old Norse Dvalinn) is a dwarf who appears in several Eddic contexts. In Hávamál 143 he is named as the one who gave the dwarfs the runes, in parallel with Odin who gave them to the gods. Dvalin's name appears in Dvergatal (Völuspá 11) among the first dwarfs, and in Grímnismál 33 Dainn and Dvalinn are named as deer at Yggdrasil.
Dvalin emerges as one of the most wisdom-bearing of the dwarfs. His name, which probably means 'the lingering one' or 'the one in slumber', suggests a connection to sleep or trance. In Fáfnismál 13, 'Dvalin's daughters' appears as a kenning for norns, which further reinforces his cosmological significance.
Sources in the Eddas
- Hávamál 143
- Dvalin gave the runes to the dwarfs, as Odin gave them to the gods.
- Völuspá 11
- Dvalin is named among the first dwarfs in Dvergatal.
Interpretive traditions
A What we know
Dvalin gave the dwarfs the runes (Hávamál 143) and is named in Dvergatal (Völuspá 11).
'Dvalin's daughters' is a kenning for norns (Fáfnismál 13).
B What we think we know
Whether the deer Dvalinn at Yggdrasil (Grímnismál 33) is identical to the dwarf is debated.
C What we do not know
Dvalin's possible role as a cosmological figure beyond the individual source passages lacks firm support.