Meaning

A kind of spear-like polearm used by the Norse, conventionally translated as halberd, but of uncertain precise nature..

Example Sentences

See 'Social and Political Structure'. halberd atgeir: Atgeir is translated as 'halberd', which it seems to have resembled even though no specimens of this combination of spear and axe have been found in archaeological excavations in[…]

The Atgeir The Atgeir was a 'spearlike spear' that was used before and through the Viking Age. One reference to the atgeir comes from Icelandic Sagas about the Viking hero Gunnar Hámundarson whom used an atgeir in Njál's Saga that would “sing” by making a ringing sound when it anticipated 'bloodshed' when it was used in battle.

Beyond description from old records and sagas, there have not been any atgeirs discovered by archeologists to get a clear picture as to what one was beyond the assumption of it being a spearheaded type of polearm.

In Laxdaela saga one of the characters, twelve years old Hardbein Helgason, pierces with an atgeir a steel helmet on the head of his opponent (App. 19). Another reference to using an atgeir in a fight can be found in Landnámabók […] Gunnar lifted him on the atgeir and hurled into the river” (App. 21). This technique is described in the saga three times. The atgeir piercing through a shield and splitting it in two: “Gunnar threw the atgeir to him and hit the shield,[…]"

Word Forms

• atgeirs

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When Should You Use Atgeir?

Use atgeir when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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