Norse
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{{Wiktionarypar|Norse}}
'''Norse''' is an adjective relating things to [[Norway]], [[Denmark]], [[Faroe Islands]], [[Greenland]], [[Iceland]] and [[Sweden]]. To refer to the modern people or culture of Norway, use "Norwegian".
The [[etymology]] of the adjective "''[[wikt:norse|norse]]''" is somewhat surprising, as one would expect it to have entered the English language through either the already present native stem "''[[north]]''" or via a [[North Germanic languages|Scandinavian language]]. Yet "''norse''," which entered [[English language|English]] in 1598, derives from the [[Dutch language|Dutch]] word "''noors''", the adjective form of "''[[Norway|Norwegian]]''". The Scandinavian equivalent of the word is ''norrøn'', or ''norrön'' (Icelandic: ''norræn''). The modern English form (which sounds almost identical to the Dutch term) may be used in a number of ways.
Norse may refer to:
In '''history''':
* [[Norsemen]], the Scandinavian people before the [[Christianization of Scandinavia]].
* [[Norse mythology]], ancient Scandinavian beliefs.
* [[Norse paganism]], the religious traditions that were common amongst the Scandinavian people before the [[Christianization of Scandinavia]].
* [[Norse art]], Scandinavian art of the period 400 AD to 1066 AD and sometimes of the pre-historic period 1700 BC to 500 AD.
In '''language''':
* [[North Germanic languages]], through the synonym "Nordic languages," comprises a group of modern languages spoken in Scandinavia and nearby lands.
** [[West Norse]] is a term describing the modern languages of Norwegian, Faroese and Icelandic within the North Germanic language group.
** [[East Norse]] is a term describing the modern languages of Danish and Swedish within the North Germanic language group.
** [[Proto-Norse language]] is the [[Germanic language]] in use from first centuries AD until the 8th century, predecessor of Old Norse.
** [[Old Norse]] language was the [[North Germanic language]] in use from c. 800 AD to c. 1300 AD.
In '''fiction''':
* "Norselands," a fictional land in the ''[[Age of Mythology]]'' computer game series; the "Norse" also comprise one of three playable civilizations within the game.
* The inhabitants of [[Norsca (Warhammer)|Norsca]] are a fictional land in the [[Warhammer Fantasy (setting)|Warhammer Fantasy game setting]].
In '''sports''':
* The Norse are the [[mascot]] of the [[Northern Kentucky University]] athletic teams.
==See also==
*[[Nordic]]
<includeonly>[[Norse (disambiguation)|Norse]]</includeonly>
{{disambig}}
[[eo:Nordia]]
[[es:escandinavo]]
[[ko:노르드]]
[[th:นอร์ส]]