Jötunn

Meaning of Old Norse word "jötunn" (or jǫtunn)

As defined by the Cleasby & Vigfusson Old Norse to English dictionary:

jötunn (jǫtunn)

m., dat. jötni, pl. jötnar; [this word, so popular in Icel. and still preserved in the form jutel of the Norse legends, hardly occurs in Germ. or Saxon, except that A. S. eoten, ent, and entisc occur perhaps ten or a dozen times, see Grein]:—a giant, Vþm. passim, Vsp. 2; jötuns brúðr, a giant’s bride, Hdl. 4; jötna synir, the giants’ sons, opp. to ‘sons of men,’ Vþm. 16; jötna vegir, the giants’ ways, the mountains, Hm. 106; jötna rúnar, the giants’ mysteries, the mysteries of the world, Vþm. 42, 43; jötna garðar, the giants’ yard or home, Skm. 30; jötna mjöðr, the giant’s mead, poetry, see Edda 47, 48; jötuns hauss, the giant’s skull = the heaven (cp. Vþm. 21), Arnór; jötuns und, the giants’ wound = the sea, Stor. 2; gold is called the speech of giants (orð, munntal jötna), Lex. Poët.; Thor is the bane of giants, jötna-bani, -dólgr, Lex. Poët. For the genesis of the Jötnar see Edda. Famous giants of whom the Edda records tales were, Ýmir, Hýmir, Hrungnir, Þjazi, Örvandill, Gýmir, Skrýmir, Vafþrúðnir, Dofri, see Edda (Gl.): for appearances of giants in the Sagas see Nj. ch. 134, Hkr. i. 229, Landn. 84, Fb. i. ch. 453–455.

Orthography: The Cleasby & Vigfusson book used letter ö to represent the original Old Norse vowel ǫ. Therefore, jötunn may be more accurately written as jǫtunn.

Possible runic inscription in Younger Futhark:ᛁᚢᛏᚢᚾᚾ
Younger Futhark runes were used from 8th to 12th centuries in Scandinavia and their overseas settlements