Wahya Circle
Tuesday Travels

World Studies 101
Greenland

As we have already studied, the indigenous peoples of Greenland are Inuit (Plural form of Inuk/Anuk) and they make up a majority of the Greenlandic population. Greenland is a self-governing country within the Danish Realm, and although Denmark has adopted the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Greenland's population continue to face challenges on all fronts.

Historically, the Inuit lived in Greenland for long periods of time and at other times, Greenland was uninhabited. Many believe this was because of Greenland's remoteness and climate made survival there extremely difficult. Over the course of centuries, one culture — or tribe, succeeded another as groups died out and were replaced by new ones.

The first people to live in Greenland for an extended period were the Saqqaq people who lived there from about 2,500 BCE to about 900 BCE, when there was much volcanic activity around Greenland, Iceland and the North Atlantic Ocean. Greenland has not had an active volcano in over 5 million years. The indigenous may have felt this as a safe place to be during such tumultuous times as Greenland was a large mass of land that did not volcanically form, nor did it generally stay over a volcanic chain such as the Hawaiian Islands do.

The practices of the Inuit did not change over the course of travel with this northern land mass despite it being considered the world’s largest island. One of the beliefs held fast is that humans, as well as our Animal & Plant Allies, have both soul (intangible) and body (tangible) that make up a whole Being. The soul performs the “breathing” (has the “breath of life”)  and is independent of the body. In this sense, the Inuit believe that the soul continues to live even after physical death. Why do they think this? Many have interacted with Spirit as well as the spirits of others, have learned to not fear death as many other Paths do.

World Studies 101
Iceland

The formation of Iceland started about 60 million years ago when the mid-Atlantic ridge (the boundary between the North American tectonic plate and the Eurasian tectonic plate) started to give way and mantle plumes appeared. Iceland does not go back as far as Greenland because the island remained actively volcanic for thousands of years. Even today, there is a constant threat of volcanic activity.

The landmass is still growing by about 5 cm per year because of this activity and due to its continued splitting wider at the points where the two tectonic plates meet. But, because global climate changes continually, and there was a time of settling volcanic activity, Iceland was able to be occupied by North Germanic peoples.

Around 930 CE, the Althing Parliament met for the first time in Iceland, establishing the country.  Although the people descend from a North Germanic ethnic group, they were able to establish a nation as they were the native, first, inhabitants of the volcanic island. (They would not receive global recognition until much later.) But technically, Iceland is the only Arctic State that does not have an Indigenous population in the traditional sense of the word. From the start of settlements in the ninth century CE to today, Iceland inhabitants have mostly come from Northern Europe.

The origin of the Icelandic language is one that descends from West-Nordic, Indo-European and Germanic languages. Its roots can be traced back to the oldest Nordic languages which were spoken in Scandinavia between 200 and 800 CE, commonly referred to as “the Viking Age”, year 793 CE to 1066 CE. (Remember, “viking” is a neutral term for one who is a “pirate” or “raider”. The full origin has yet to be discovered.)

The language split into the East and West at that time. Norwegian and Icelandic were almost the same when spoken until around 1400 when a global colonization was occurring and land was the commodity. Around that time, the languages changed enough to be recognized as two different tongues. The differences would continue to grow.

Beyond language, the Icelandic tribes also brought Indigenous Nordic/Teutonic practices with them when they settled the land. The Icelanders have some of the more preserved Magicks and Medicines of the Earth Religions in the world due to their isolation and the fortune of not being colonized by an outside dogma.

Look at their language, which they brought with them from the main land and they have refused to take up western terminology. This so far as to touch the modern naming of their offspring. One must submit to the naming council for approval.


”The Icelandic Naming Committee (Icelandic: Mannanafnanefnd; pronounced [ˈmanːaˌnapnaˌnɛmt])—also known in English as the Personal Names Committee—maintains an official register of approved Icelandic given names and governs the introduction of new given names into Icelandic culture.”

There are also other laws that govern most activities that we as Westerners have taken for granted. By acting in this way towards Change, they preserved their practices, but at what cost? We often wonder if there is a cost to their cultural evolution due to this resistance. As such, we know they are of Teutonic descent, and understand many practices are similar across the Nordic European countries.

Lest we forget, “change” is a Universal constant.

World Studies 101
What is Ásatrú?

We will only touch on this practice as it is not indigenous to these volcanic islands.

As you recall, we have already discussed the practices of the Inuit as they walked the Pacific Ocean for thousands of years and let the Spirit of Wahya (Wolf), Golanv (Raven) and Yona (Bear) guide them.

PRONUNCIATION OF PRACTICE
The Icelandic pronunciation of Ásatrú is:
“Ow – suh –tru” (trilling the ‘r’, or “rolling” it)
You can bet your soul that if someone pronounces the first part “ass”, they are not speaking of this Patriarchal ‘God faith’ of Iceland. As it is recognized across the land, The Eddas are something that is read in what is equivalent to our high school level in most Nordic countries as it is part of their history lessons.

To many, this has been a modern creation and equivocates to Americans having to include the Bible in every classroom, despite many Paths being accepted at a secular school funded by taxation of everyone.

Until it is found to be rooted otherwise, Ásatrú is a modern religion that revives, reconstructs, and reimagines the ancient polytheism of Northern Europe. The new religious movement began in 1972, when Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson and eleven other Icelanders decided to bring back public worship of the Norse Gods, Goddesses, and Land Spirits.

Across the world we have bastardized versions of these practices co-opted by extremists, nationalists, and white supremacists. We have further breakdown of these practices in gangs and the prison system. Those are often recognized by derogatory terms such as “prison-tru” by those who practice their Path from brith. They recognize that the individuals who learns these practices in prison do not quite understand the value system that is behind one born in an Icelandic community.

It is a form of cultural appropriation.

It is no different than assuming the role of a Cherokee Medicine Woman (a SPECIFIC title) and having no Tsalagi in your bloodline or having not been raised under the tribal Path and taught accurately.

You can call yourself Norse Pagan, but Asatru is questionable.

You can call yourself a Medicine Woman, but a Cherokee Medicine Woman is questionable.

Make sense?

Even today, many Practitioner Leaders encourage us to do what we feel, BUT learn your family, learn your genetic tree, learn what is there that aligns with you. Magick and Medicine go deeper than simply waking up and choosing to be a certain way on a whim.

This is a trusted source, and a very nice young lady from Iceland who has not yet studied Arcane Arts Prior to 1400, but, the pronunciations are correct.

Give her a “like” or “follow” if you find a pearl, Wahya!

Enjoy! VIDEO LINK 

Think About It
Island Nations

What do you think of these two island nations? Do you, or have you, read more about these locations? What did you learn? Are you familiar with Iceland being the first in the world to open an Ásatrú temple dedicated to the Norse pantheon? Hof Ásatrúarfélagsins is a religious building in Reykjavík. It is Iceland's first major hof to the Norse Gods since the Viking Age.

Tuesday WS1

General - Journal - Book of Shadows

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