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Svartalfaheim, in Norse mythology, the underground realm of the dwarfs, trolls,
and gnomes. According to Norse mythology, the gods created the world after
they had defeated the giants in an ancient struggle for supremacy. The three
sons of the god Buri--Odin, Vili, and Ve--joined their father in the battle
against the giants, and they were able at last to slay their greatest foe,
Ymir, the father of the giants. The three brothers then took Ymir's body
and placed it in the middle of Ginnungagap, the great abyss. From his flesh
they created the earth, from his bones the mountains, from his teeth and
broken knuckles the boulders and rocks, from his blood the seas and lakes
and rivers, and from his hair the trees and the grass. They mounted his skull
high above the earth to serve as the sky, and to support the sky, they placed
dwarfs at the skull's four corners and named them East, West, South, and
North. Then the gods scattered Ymir's brains throughout the space as clouds.
As the gods were creating the world, maggot-like creatures were breeding
in Ymir's remaining flesh. When the gods noticed their existence, they endowed
these creatures with intelligence and human appearance. Some of these creatures
became fair and good. The gods named them fairies and elves, and they were
sent to Alfheim, a realm that existed between heaven and earth. Others became
dark and treacherous beings called dwarfs, trolls, and gnomes, and the gods
banished them to Svartalfaheim, the underground realm of the dwarfs. They
dwelt under the ground and in the mountains, and could not come forth during
the day for fear of turning into stone. The dwarfs of Svartalfaheim were
most useful to the gods. The dwarfs were small and ugly, but clever miners
and metalsmiths, and no one could equal them at this. All fine weapons and
precious stones were made by the dwarfs. However, true to their nature, the
dwarfs hated both gods and mortals, and when they were forced to work for
them, they usually tried to make the objects in such a way that they would
harm the owner.
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