Frey Tattoo Meaning
Fertility, sunshine, abundance, and the god who traded his sword for love.
Frey is the god of sunshine, fertility, and abundance — the most beloved of the Vanir among farmers, the bringer of good harvests, fair weather, and prosperity, and the god who famously gave away his magic sword for love, choosing present happiness over the weapon that would have saved him at the end of all things. To carry Frey is to carry fertility, sunshine, abundance, and the god who traded his sword for love — the lord of the harvest and of peace and plenty, the god of the beautiful, irreversible choice of love over power.
Frey (also Freyr, meaning 'Lord') is one of the Vanir, the gods of fertility and the earth — the brother of the goddess Freyja and the son of Njörðr, the sea god. Frey governs the things that make life flourish: sunshine and rain, fertility and prosperity. His blessings produce good harvests, healthy livestock, and human happiness and increase; where Frey is honored, the fields bear, the herds thrive, and the people prosper. For this reason he is the most beloved of all the Vanir among farmers — the god whose favor means the difference between abundance and want.
His sacred symbols all speak of life and increase. His sacred animal is the boar — Gullinbursti, the golden-bristled boar that can run through air and water and lights the dark with its shining bristles. His sacred object is the phallus, the emblem of fertility and generative power; images of Frey emphasized his role as the bringer of fruitfulness. And his sacred act is the love that produces life itself — the union that brings forth new generations, the fertile coupling that makes the world go on. Frey is the warm, generous god of everything that grows and thrives: sun, rain, harvest, herds, and the love that fills the world with life. The Norse Frey is the beloved Vanir god of sunshine, fertility, and the harvest, whose blessings make all things thrive. The Norse Frey is the lord of sunshine and harvest — one of the Vanir gods, brother of Freyja, son of Njörðr, governing sunshine, rain, fertility, and prosperity; his blessings produce good harvests, healthy livestock, and human happiness, making him the most beloved of the Vanir among farmers; his sacred animal is the boar, his sacred object the phallus, and his sacred act the love that produces life — the warm, generous god of everything that grows and thrives.
Frey's sword is described in the Prose Edda (Skáldskaparmál) as 'hann mun sjálfr berjast, er hann kemr í mannfólk' — 'it will fight by itself when a wise man owns it.' By giving it to Skírnir, Frey ensured he would be unarmed at Ragnarök — where he is killed by the fire giant Surtr because he lacks his sword. The Eddic poem Skírnismál documents the wooing of Gerðr in full — Skírnir threatens Gerðr with a magical carved staff (tamsvondr) and curses that become increasingly disturbing; she agrees to meet Frey. Skiðblaðnir (Frey's ship) was made by the dwarves the Sons of Ivaldi — it can sail any sea with a favorable wind, can be folded up like a cloth and placed in a pouch, and always has favorable winds when its sail is raised. Gullinbursti ('Golden Bristles,' Frey's boar) was also made by dwarves — its bristles glow and illuminate wherever it runs. The Uppsala temple (described by Adam of Bremen c. 1070 CE) had three idols: Thor, Odin, and Frey — Frey's statue was phallic.
Frey across cultures
The Tattoo Concept Builder walks you from feeling to symbol to a concept you can take to your artist — built from your story, not a Pinterest board.
Build your concept →