Thor is the red-bearded god of thunder, the strongest of the Æsir, and the tireless defender of Asgard and Midgard against the giants who press at their borders. He wields the hammer Mjölnir, forged by the dwarf brothers Brokkr and Eitri, which never misses its mark and returns to his hand; he wears a belt, Megingjörð, that doubles his already vast strength, and iron gloves to grip the hammer’s short haft. He travels the sky in a chariot drawn by two goats, Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr, and the sound of its wheels is heard as thunder.
Thor’s adventures are the most frequently told in Norse myth: he retrieves his stolen hammer disguised as a bride at a giant’s wedding, and, fishing with the giant Hymir, hooks the Midgard Serpent Jörmungandr on an ox-head bait and hauls it to the surface before the line is cut. Their rivalry is settled only at Ragnarök, where the two finally kill each other.
drepr af móði Miðgarðs véurr, munu halir allir heimstöð ryðja; gengr fet níu Fjörgynjar burr neppr frá naðri níðs ókvíðnum
“In anger smites the warder of earth, — / Forth from their homes must all men flee; — / Nine paces fares the son of Fjorgyn, / And, slain by the serpent, fearless he sinks.” — Völuspá 56, tr. Bellows
Farmers and seafarers alike invoked Thor for protection, and his hammer, worn as an amulet, was the most common symbol of Norse belief.
