Native religions = Native American religions?

[AndreasWinsnes]

Is the concept "native religions" normally used as a synonym for Native American religions, or can it be used to cover all indigenous religions? I ask, because I don't want to mislead anyone if I write that Norse religous beliefs, for example, is a native religion.

[AlaskaGrl]

Hello Andreas,

I see you are in Norway have you been to the Viking Museum there? ? always wanted to go there. ? My hubbies family history is from that area of the world. ? I located the following for you... ?  ? I have not heard (read) of Viking or Norse beliefs (what we know of them) referred to as a Native Religion per sae. ? I have heard /read them referred to as Traditions gleaned from Sagas and Myth. ? I did locate the following for you from Caltech.edu regarding their makeup: ?  I fear today with the New Age movement that actual history often gets lost in the re-write and some things just plain made up.

http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~cherryne/mythology.html
Norse mythology, Scandinavian mythology, Viking mythology; all refer to the pre-Christian religion of the Norwegian, Swedish, Icelandic, and Danish peoples. A few books group Finnish mythology in with the Norse but the old beliefs of Finland form a separate tradition although there are some interesting parallels. ? The Norse mythological system as we currently have it comes down to us mainly from the Icelandic Eddas and sagas which were written down a few centuries after the christianization of the north. [highlight]There has been much research trying to discern the true ancient religion as practiced by the people of the Scandinavian countries as opposed to the representation we are given in the written sources. [/highlight]
Aside from any influence Christianity might have played, Norse mythology presents us with a multilayered, often contradictory, world view with a myriad of parallels in other mythological systems. It is a playground for the comparative mythology researcher, rich with elements from Indo-European, Shamanistic, and other belief systems. Many people are familiar with J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings or Wagner's The Ring of the Nibelung, but they are not familiar with Norse mythology to which both of these works are heavily indebted.

Tolkien was very well acquainted with Norse mythology, as can be seen by the use of it in his books. The name of one of his main characters, Gandalf, is found in The Poetic Edda. Gandalf is, in some ways, reminiscent of Odin, the leader of the Norse pantheon. Even the name Middle-earth, the setting for Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, comes from Norse mythology. Wagner also referred to Norse tales. When he composed The Ring of the Nibelung, he combined the Norse The Saga of the Volsungs with the German epic The Nibelungenlied. Wagner relied less heavily on the The Nibelungenlied than some believe, and instead turned to the more pagan Volsung saga with its tale of Sigurd the Dragon Slayer and the valkyrie Brynhild.

There are many ways to spell the names of the Norse mythological figures. I have chosen the most common. In some places I have supplied alternative spellings and the original Old Norse form. I have also supplied some translations which are mainly from Hollander's The Poetic Edda in brackets.
This site is intended to provide basic information and to inspire people to want to learn more about the ancient northern tradition. For further study please refer to the listed sources.

[AndreasWinsnes]

Hi Lindaa,

Thank you for your reply. I don't live far from the Viking museum, so I have been there a couple of times. I have studied Åsatru extensively, but in my post I only used it as an example. I just wondered if "native religions" can be used to cover any indigenous religion, or has it more or less become a synonym for Native American religions? You know, if someone speak about "aboriginal religion", then that concept is usually associated with the indigenous people of Australia. But it can in principle be used as a synonym for ethno-religions in general. So will English speaking people misunderstand me if I use the concept "native religions" in this general sense?  Will they think that I am talking about Native Amcericans religions?

[Barnaby_McEwan]

So will English speaking people misunderstand me if I use the concept "native religions" in this general sense?  Will they think that I am talking about Native Amcericans religions?

It all depends on the context in which you use it, just like lots of other phrases in English and, I guess, Norwegian. If I remember correctly you've studied the philosophy of law: you should know how to introduce a semi-technical term or phrase without causing confusion.

[AndreasWinsnes]

I certainly do. Thank you.