Anglo-Saxon Heathenry

Ragnvold Thorsson

There are very few sources on the subject of Anglo-Saxon Heathenry. There few books, mostly by the same authors, and even few web sources. Although the Kindred Hall of Hammerhof is not truly an Anglo-Saxon Theod I thought it necessary to give a brief history and explanation of the practices of Anglo-Saxon Heathens.

Anglo-Saxon Heathenry is a modern religion based on the ancient heathen tribal religions of the Germanic tribes that moved into what is today known as England. In the 5th century after the Romans left Britain the tribes of the Angles, Jutes, and Saxons migrated from northern Europe to southern and eastern parts of the island. Their initial intent may have been plundering the island for its riches, but they soon began to settle on the island.

Anglo-Saxon Heathenry is a polytheistic religion, which is it has many Gods and Goddesses Anglo-and is closely related to the ancient Norse Heathen religion commonly known as Ásatrú. The ancient Anglo-Saxon heathens shared many of these deities with the Norse and Germanic peoples. Deities such as Odin (AS - Woden) and Thor (AS - Thunor) are commonly accepted as the same. Others like Eostre seem to have only been worshiped by the Anglo-Saxons. These Gods and Goddesses are not like those of the Roman and Greek pantheons. They do not have specific things that they are the deity of. That is while you may turn to Thor (Thunor for rain, he is not only the God of rain. Modern Anglo-Saxon Heathenism worships all the deities the ancient pagan Anglo-Saxons did with a few Norse additions. Anglo-Saxon Paganism has many beliefs that it shares with Ásatrú including wassailing, the rite of symbel, many of the Holy Tides (celebrations/holidays) and ways of worship. The belief in Wyrd and such concepts as frith, and codes defining social behavior are also a common thread between Anglo-Saxon Heathenry and Ásatrú, which are generally drawn from ideas of ancient Anglo-Saxon and Germanic culture.

Unfortunately there is a lack of information on ancient Anglo-Saxon heathenism, thus modern Anglo-Saxon Heathenism is a blend of Norse and Anglo-Saxon practices. Since the Norsemen and the Anglo-Saxons come from a common Germanic culture, such borrowing was deemed necessary to fill out religious practice. The beliefs of the Kindred Hall of Hammerhof also follow this practice. We use the Norse names of the deities and a blend of Saxon-Norse holy Tides.

History of Modern Anglo-Saxon Heathenry

Anglo-Saxon Heathenry was first revived by Garman Lord in 1976, and for years he remained its main advocate. After several attempts with groups such as the Witan Coven, he founded the Wínland Ríce which for several years remained the major Anglo-Saxon Heathen organization. In 1996, the Angelseaxisce Ealdriht was founded and it took the lead in Anglo-Saxon Heathenism and this remained so until 2004 when it dissolved. Today there are several Anglo-Saxon Heathen organizations, among them White Marsh Theod and Geleafawær Fyrnsida.