Eadgils is presented in the genealogical Ynglingalatal and later saga compilations as a son of Óttarr/Ohthere and a member of the Yngling (Skilfing/Scylfing) royal line of Sweden. Narrative episodes conserved in Beowulf and Norse sources relate that Eadgils and his brother Eanmund were driven into exile by their uncle Onela/Áli, sought refuge with the Geatish king (reported in Beowulf), and that Eadgils later returned with foreign aid to defeat and kill Onela and claim the Swedish throne. Later Scandinavian traditions link him into the corpus of stories about Hrólfr Kraki/Hroðulf and describe conflicts and character judgments (for example, portrayals of him as wealthy and grasping in saga summaries).
The sources portray Eadgils as a human king and give no consistent physical description. Skaldic verse (Ynglingatal) uses violent poetic imagery when recounting his death—stating that he fell from his horse and that 'the sea [fluid] of the brains of the son of the ruler was blended with mud'—but no canonical details of stature, dress, or distinctive features are recorded in the cited materials.
Eadgils' recorded 'abilities' are political and martial: he functions as an exemplar of dynastic kingship who experiences exile, secures patrons and military aid (Beowulf is said to have provided weapons and warriors), and conducts warfare to regain the throne by killing his rival Onela. No supernatural powers are attributed to him in the provided sources; his actions are those of a historical-legendary monarch.
Weaknesses
- conditiondeath by fall while attending sacrifices (attested)
- otherpoetic attribution of death to a 'creature of charms' / sorceress (Ynglingatal; uncertain interpretation)
Wards
None recorded.
Abdiel
Abdiel (Hebrew עֲבְדִּיאֵל) is primarily a theophoric Hebrew personal name meaning "servant of El/servant of God," attested once in the Hebrew Bible (1 Chronicles 5:15). In later literature—most notably John Milton's Paradise Lost—Abdiel is reimagined as a faithful seraph who opposes Satan's revolt. The provided sources do not treat Abdiel as an autonomous folkloric spirit type or record rituals or wards associated with the name.
Abiel
Abiel is attested in the supplied sources only as a male given name — borne by several historical American individuals and listed as two minor biblical figures. The provided materials contain no evidence presenting Abiel as a supernatural, mythological, or folkloric entity.
Abigail
Abigail is a female figure in the Hebrew Bible portrayed in 1 Samuel 25 as the intelligent and beautiful wife of Nabal who intervenes to prevent David from committing violence; later tradition regards her as one of the Tanakh's seven female prophets and as a model of beauty and wisdom.
Accolon
Accolon is a mortal knight of the Arthurian court, presented in the Post-Vulgate Merlin tradition and Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur as Morgan le Fay's paramour and instrument in a plot to supplant King Arthur; his tale centers on enchanted weapons (Excalibur and its scabbard), love-manipulation, and a tragic duel with Arthur.
Adils
Adils (Old Norse Aðils; also Eadgils, Adillus, Athisl, Adhel) is a semi‑legendary sixth‑century Swedish king attested in Old Norse saga material and later medieval traditions. He appears in saga episodes as a storied royal figure involved in warfare, court acts, and marriage suits rather than as a supernatural being.
Adsullata
Adsullata is attested as a Continental Celtic river goddess associated with the River Savus (modern Sava) in the Roman province of Noricum. Later traditions record her presence in Brittany as a goddess of hot springs and present her as an antecedent or origin-form of the Anglo‑Celtic sun goddess Sul.
Afaon fab Taliesin
Afaon fab Taliesin is a medieval Welsh warrior-counsellor, named as a son of the bard Taliesin and recorded among Arthur’s retinue in Welsh tradition. He appears in the Welsh Triads and in the tale Breuddwyd Rhonabwy (The Dream of Rhonabwy) as a notable martial figure and proverb-speaker rather than as a supernatural being.
Agilaz (Egil)
Agilaz (reconstructed Proto-Germanic) — commonly recorded in medieval sources as Egil or Ægil — is a legendary archer attested in Germanic heroic tradition. He appears as the brother of Völund (Wayland/Weland) in the Old Norse poem Völundarkviða and in the Thidreks saga, and his name is also inscribed on early medieval objects (Franks Casket, Pforzen buckle). The attested material presents him as a named heroic human archer within saga and inscriptional contexts rather than as a recurrent supernatural species.
Aglovale
Aglovale (also Agloval, Aglovan, Aglovaus, Acglavael) is a human knight of Arthurian romance, presented as the eldest legitimate son of King Pellinore and a Knight of the Round Table in the Vulgate/Post‑Vulgate cycles, Malory, and later adaptations. He brings his long‑lost brother Perceval to Camelot, takes part in military actions (including slaying Agrippa in one account), and his death is related in varying ways across traditions (accidental at Gawain's hand, deliberate murder by Orkney kin, or killed during Lancelot's rescue of Guinevere).
Agnarr Geirröðsson
Agnarr Geirröðsson is a mortal prince attested only in the Poetic Edda poem Grímnismál; he aids Odin (disguised as Grímnir) during Geirröðr's torture and, after Odin reveals himself and King Geirröðr dies, Agnarr succeeds as king.
Agne
Agne (also attested Agni, Hogne, Agni Skjálfarbondi) is a semi-legendary king of Sweden in Old Norse saga tradition, preserved in the Ynglingatal corpus and prose expansions such as Snorri Sturluson's Ynglinga saga. He is portrayed as a mighty and famous warrior-king whose campaign in Finland, marriage to Skjalf, and death by hanging form a remembered episode connected to local place-names and a burial mound.
Agravain
Agravain is a literary knight of Arthurian romance cycles: one of the sons of King Lot of Orkney, a member of the Round Table, and a recurring figure in French and English medieval prose and verse. He is portrayed as a skilled but morally problematic courtly knight whose jealousy, malice, and intra-familial violence drive key narrative conflicts (notably the slaying of Lamorak and the exposure of Guinevere).
Community Record
- [1]Eadgils — Wikipedia. Wikipedia article 'Eadgils' summarizing Beowulf, Ynglingatal, saga accounts, and onomastic discussionwiki
- [2]Wikidata: Eadgils. Wikidata entry for Eadgils (semi-legendary Swedish king)wiki
- [3]Beowulf, stanza summaries and translations. Beowulf stanza summaries reporting Eadgils' exile, refuge with the Geats, and restoration aided by Beowulfliterary
- [4]Ynglingatal (as cited in saga summaries) and Historia Norwegiæ. Quotations and summaries of Ynglingatal stanza and Historia Norwegiæ noting death at sacrifices and poetic 'creature of charms' passage (as collected in the cited Wikipedia article)literary
- [5]Eadgils of the Myrgings — Wikipedia (additional medieval references). Brief attestation and discussion of medieval references related to the name and figurewiki