Many in computer games or when watching movies came across a term such as “berserker” or “berserker”. The meaning of this word is not clear to everyone. In this regard, the question arises: what is a "berserker"? Where this word came from, its meanings and features will be described in this review.
Dictionaries
Considering what a "berserker" is, you should turn to the dictionary. It says that these are warriors from the tribes of the Norse Vikings and the Old Germanic tribes. These warriors dedicated their lives and served the supreme deity - Odin.
According to ancient sources, before the start of the battle, the berserkers changed their minds and brought themselves to a state of extreme aggression and ferocity. In this they were helped by a special tincture of fly agaric, prepared in a special way. In addition to making warriors very aggressive, she lowered her sensitivity to injuries. Such soldiers in battle were distinguished by great strength, fearlessness and quick reaction.
A translation of a word
Continuing to consider what a berserker is, one should pay attention to the origin of this word. It is formed from the Old Norwegian noun berserkr, which in translation means "bear skin" or "shirtless". The root ber is literally “bear” or “naked”, and serk is “silk”, “skin”, “fabric”.
In Russian, the term "berserker" is most often used, which, as scientists suggest, arose from the English language. In English, this word means - "furious", "frantic."
Berserkers in tradition
Continuing to study what a "berserker" is, we turn to ancient legends. In legends and epics, berserkers are presented as fearless and ferocious warriors who fight with amazing fury and are almost invulnerable. In his work “Germany”, the ancient Roman historian and scholar Tacitus writes about the Hutt and Garia tribes, which, by all their characteristics, fit the description of berserkers. It should be noted that Tacitus was never in Germany and compiled his description from the words of Roman soldiers, who, as you know, were defeated by Germanic tribes.
For the first time, the fearless berserkers, the warriors of Odin, are mentioned in a victory song about the battle of Hafsfjord, which took place around 872. It is written by the skald T. Hornklovi (skald - a type of Old Norse poetry and poet).
Scandinavian literature
In the largest literary monument of Scandinavian literature, “The Circle of the Earth”, created by the Icelandic historian, politician, prose writer and skald Snorri Sturluson, in the 13th century berserkers are at all attributed magical abilities.
This epos says that berserkers could make enemies blind or deaf in battle. Or the rivals were filled with horror, and their weapons did almost no harm.
Thanks to the Scandinavian sagas, now you can get an idea of ​​berserkers. So, for example, they include the hero of the mythology of Scandinavia - Starkada. According to Danish chronicler Saxon Grammar, Sarkad served the illustrious king of Denmark, Frodo.
Place in society
Based on information obtained from the Scandinavian sagas and other ancient literary sources, today you can find out how berserkers lived in society, and also what position they occupied.
During the campaigns and wars, the berserkers came to the service of the kungs (supreme ruler, king) or jarls (the highest titled representatives of the nobility in the ancient Scandinavian countries). They became warriors or guarded the commander in chief. Berserkers received quite a high salary for their service, as they were considered elite warriors. In the peace period, at best they became bodyguards of the nobility, at worst they turned into outcasts, as they could not find use for themselves.
This conclusion can be drawn based on one of the ancient sagas, which states that the berserkers were very wayward and unsociable. Most often they talked only among themselves. They were very furious in anger, nothing could stop them. They also did not like to work, but preferred war and battles.
Aggressiveness
As mentioned earlier, berserkers - warriors of the Viking tribe and the ancient Germans, were extremely aggressive. According to the common version, it is explained by the fact that they used various psychotropic decoctions prepared on the basis of fly agaric and other poisonous mushrooms. Also, some researchers say that these warriors were lovers of excessive drinking, because of which they suffered from a hangover, which caused their aggression.
However, there are other points of view, for example, those scientists who are committed to traditional science suggest that the cause of their aggressive behavior was ailments. Their probable diseases are hysteria, epilepsy, and also poor heredity. It should be noted that these are just assumptions that do not have a serious evidence base.
An interesting theory is voiced by some researchers who compare the unusual aggressive state of berserkers with the so-called amok. Amok, translated from Malay, is a state that means "fall into a rage and start killing." In the Malay and Indonesian traditions, this condition was considered painful.
However, in fairness, it must be said that such an unusual state can be explained by the special combat trance that the berserkers reached before the battle without using any psychotropic and narcotic substances. A modern analogue of such a military trance is “ram muay”. Before the start of the match between Thai boxers, athletes enter this state on their own and are believed to increase their chances of winning the battle.
Conclusion
In order to have a more complete picture of berserkers, it is recommended that you read the Saga of the Egil. This is a work of the Icelandic epic, attributed to Snorri Sturluson. This saga, written approximately in the years 1220-1240, tells not only about the life of Egil Skallagrimsson, who was considered a berserk, but also about the life of the peoples of Scandinavia from 850 to 1000 years.
In addition to the handwritten text, engravings depicting people of that time, including Egil himself, have survived to this day. In fairness, it is worth noting that in this epic the main character is represented by a rather ambiguous figure for the layman of the present. It is difficult to say, but perhaps at that time the behavior described in the book was quite common.
Regardless of what heroes berserkers are shown in the legends and sagas of Scandinavia, what they can not take away is fearlessness, strength and violent aggression, which led to confusion of their enemies. These warriors went down in history as legendary, which had no equal. Currently, films are quite popular in which the Vikings and other Scandinavian warriors appear, among which berserkers are spoken of as elite fighters.