What Is a Valkyrie?

What the name means: "valkyrie" comes from Old Norse valkyrja, literally "chooser of the slain" (from valr, "the slain," and kjósa, "to choose").

Their role in the mythology

• They ride into or over battlefields, sometimes described riding on horseback or through the air, selecting which fallen warriors are worthy of Valhalla.
• Chosen warriors, called the einherjar, are brought to Valhalla to feast and train for Ragnarök, the mythological final battle at the end of the world, where Odin will need them to fight alongside the gods.
• Some sources also describe valkyries serving mead to warriors in Valhalla and acting as attendants to Odin.
• In some stories, valkyries are also linked to specific named heroes as protectors or, in a few tales, romantic partners (as in parts of the Völsunga Saga).

Where the mythology comes from: valkyries appear throughout Old Norse poetry and prose, most notably in the Poetic Edda and Prose Edda, medieval Icelandic texts that preserved much of what's known about Norse mythology today.

Modern pop-culture use: the term is widely used today detached from its original mythological detail — notably the Marvel character Valkyrie (played by Tessa Thompson in the Thor films), and as a recurring class, unit, or item name across many video games and fantasy franchises, generally borrowing the "warrior woman who deals with the fate of the fallen" theme rather than the specific Norse lore.

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