Home › Glossary › Letter N

Nat

Mythology
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Personification of Night, daughter of Nórfi and mother of Day with Dellingr.

Detailed Definition
Nótt rides the horse Hrímfaxi, whose mane creates dew. She is part of the cosmic cycle of time. In poetry, she embodies the gentle yet inevitable passage of darkness, often contrasted with day to explore balance, rest, and mystery.
Example
Example in poetry:
A cosmic cycle poem might state, “Nótt rides Hrímfaxi—her cloak, the stars; her path, the sky’s curve”; In lyrical tone: “Nótt kisses Dagr at dawn, then departs, veiled and vast”; A stanza could evoke, “Nótt is not absence of light, but its necessary cradle”; Modern metaphor: “My Nótt is the quiet that holds my dreams like jewels”.
Additional Notes
Nótt (“Night”) is personified as a goddess riding Hrímfaxi (“frost-mane”), whose drool becomes dew (Vafþrúðnismál, Gylfaginning). She is daughter of Nórfi, mother of Dagr (Day) with Dellingr. In poetry, Nótt embodies cyclical time, gentle transition, and maternal darkness. Her repeated journey across the sky offers rich imagery for poets exploring rest, mystery, or the necessary balance between light and dark. Her lineage (giant-born, mother of day) reflects Norse integration of opposites in cosmic order.
Also Known As
Nótt Night
Skip to main content