536 AD has been called the worst year in human history. A blanket of ash and sulfurous gases blotted out the sun for a decade, setting off a chain of devastating events: summer snow, plummeting temperatures, famine, plague. Now, new discoveries suggest this climate catastrophe may have given rise to one of the most powerful myths in Norse culture: the ragnarok.
Ragnarok, when myth meets science
Il National Museum of Denmark he conducted an interesting research that redefines the boundaries between mythology and history. Analyzing the growth rings of over 100 XNUMXth century oak trees, researchers have found concrete evidence of a period of little or no growth, particularly evident in the summers between 539 and 541.
Morten Fischer Mortensen, senior researcher at the museum, underlines the importance of this discovery which is shedding new light on one of the darkest periods in European history, both literally and metaphorically.
Many have speculated about this, but for the first time we can demonstrate that perhaps the greatest climate catastrophe in human history has hit Denmark in a devastating way.
Morten Fischer Mortensen, in a release.
The Winter of 536 AD That Changed the World
Scientific analysis reveals that in that year one or more volcanic eruptions in the Northern Hemisphere triggered a ten-year “volcanic winter.” The impact was global: in China it snowed in the summer, while in Europe the average temperature dropped by 2,5 degrees Celsius. Across the Atlantic, Peru suffered drought, and bubonic plague reached Egypt. in 541. It strikes me particularly how these events could have shaped not only the destiny of the populations, but also their mythology. The fimbulwinter, the “Great Winter” that according to Norse mythology precedes Ragnarok, seems to perfectly reflect this climatic catastrophe.
Traces in gold and wheat
Archaeology offers further interesting clues. During this period several important gold finds appear (the golden hornsor, the Vindelev's treasure and Broholm) while treasures created in later periods are surprisingly scarce. Scholars believe this may indicate that all valuable objects They were sacrificed to the gods in the hope of bringing back the sun.
The climate crisis also changed agricultural practices. Survivors were forced to diversify their crops to ensure greater food security. rye, for example, became increasingly common in the following centuries, probably because it requires less sun than other cereals. In any case, the impact on the population was devastating. As he explains Mortensen:
When trees couldn’t grow, nothing grew in the fields. In a society where everyone lives off agriculture, this has disastrous consequences.
Estimates suggest that up to half the population in Norway and Sweden may be dead, and similar scenarios may have played out in Denmark.
Ragnarok: From Disaster, Innovation
It is fascinating to note how this catastrophe led to lasting changes in Nordic society. Rye, introduced as “insurance” against future famines, became a fundamental part of Scandinavian food culture. Our love of rye bread, in other words, was born from a climate crisis: this helps us understand how survival strategies can transform into lasting cultural traditions.
While there is no definitive proof that the mythological Fimbulwinter is based on these events, the coincidences are remarkable. As he concludes Mortensen:
Myths can be pure imagination, but they can also contain echoes of truth from a distant past. We can now say that there is a great correspondence with what we can demonstrate scientifically.
The study, published in Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports (I link it here), reminds us that ancient myths could preserve the memory of real events, passed down through generations. Ragnarok, more than just a story about the end of the world, could be the coded tale of one of the greatest climate catastrophes in human history. And perhaps it is not the only one.
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