Norse Mythology Coloring Pages for Kids
The Norns Coloring Pages
The Norns are the women who shape fate in Norse mythology. They live by a sacred well at the roots of Yggdrasil and decide the lives of gods and people alike.
Jump to: The Three Norns | Yggdrasil | Well of Urðr | Weaving Fate
The Three Norns
The three best-known Norns are Urðr, Verðandi and Skuld. Their names are often translated as past, present and future. Urðr (or Urd) comes from the Old Norse word for fate and what has already happened. Verðandi means something like "becoming" or "what is happening now." Skuld means "what shall be" and is also the word for a debt that has to be paid. The old stories say there are many other norns too. Some are kind and some are cruel. A norn visits every baby at birth to set the shape of its life, which explains why some people have happy lives and others hard ones. The informational page sums up their story in a few short facts kids can read while they color.
The Norns and Yggdrasil
The Norns live at the foot of Yggdrasil. This giant ash tree holds the nine realms of Norse mythology together. Their hall stands beside the root that reaches toward Asgard. The gods ride over the rainbow bridge Bifrost every day to hold their council in the same spot.
The Well of Urðr
Every day the Norns draw water from the Well of Urðr. They pour it over Yggdrasil's roots along with white clay from around the well. This keeps the tree from rotting even while the dragon Nidhogg gnaws at it from below.
The water is so holy that anything dipped in it turns white. Two swans swim on the well and the old stories say every swan in the world comes from that pair.
Weaving Fate
Most people picture the Norns spinning or weaving the threads of fate. That's how most of these pages show them. In the oldest poem they actually carve runes into wood to set down the laws and lives of people. Skuld also turns up in one list of Valkyries, riding out to choose who falls in battle.
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