Fórnarlamb

Fórnarlamb is the Icelandic term for a lamb offered as a sacrifice to a deity or spirit. The word combines elements meaning sacrifice and lamb and is used in historical and literary discussions of religious practices in the Norse and Icelandic tradition, as well as in cross-cultural references to ritual sacrifice.

In ancient Norse religion and pre-Christian Icelandic practice, animal sacrifice, or blot (blót), played a role in rites intended to seek favor, protection, or success from the gods. A fórnarlamb would be selected for the ceremony and slain at an altar. The meat and other materials were handled according to ritual custom, with portions sometimes burned on the altar as offerings to the gods and other portions shared among participants in a communal feast.

The practice declined with Christianization in the medieval period, and today the term is primarily encountered in historical, linguistic, or scholarly contexts rather than as an ongoing religious ritual. It appears in saga literature and in translations or descriptions of ancient rites, where it is used to illustrate how communities organized offerings and communal meals around sacred events.

Beyond Icelandic usage, the concept of a sacrificial lamb appears in many cultures as a symbolic or liturgical element, often representing themes such as devotion, innocence, or atonement. In scholarly discussions, fó narlamb is treated as a specific instance of such sacrificial practices within the broader study of ancient religious rituals.