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Nibelungen

Nibelungen is a term from Germanic mythology and medieval literature that designates a legendary race of dwarfs and their world of wealth. In various traditions the Nibelungs are described as a clan or dynastic line who guard a vast hoard of gold, often accompanied by magical items, and whose fortunes intersect with human heroes.

The best-known medieval narrative is the Nibelungenlied, composed around the 12th or 13th century. It centers

In Norse and other Germanic sources, the tale appears in versions such as the Völsunga saga and

Modern theater and music have given the legend lasting prominence through Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen,

The Nibelungen story has influenced literature, film, and popular culture, and remains a central reference in

on
the
Burgundian
kings
Gunther,
Gernot,
and
Giselher
and
the
dragon-slayer
Siegfried.
Siegfried
acquires
the
Nibelung
treasure
from
the
dwarf
Alberich
and,
with
the
aid
of
magical
items,
assists
Gunther
in
his
marriage
to
Brünhild.
After
Siegfried
is
treacherously
slain
by
Hagen,
the
treasure
and
the
oath-bound
vengeance
set
off
a
chain
of
events
that
leads
to
the
ruin
of
the
Burgundians.
the
Poetic
Edda.
Here
the
treasure
springs
from
the
dwarf
Andvari;
the
hoard,
and
especially
the
ring,
drive
a
cycle
of
love,
murder,
and
fate
that
mirrors
the
later
German
narratives
and
resonates
in
later
adaptations.
a
four-opera
cycle.
Wagner
reinterprets
the
myth
to
explore
power,
wealth,
and
destiny,
beginning
with
the
Rhine
gold
stolen
by
the
dwarf
Alberich
and
culminating
in
the
destruction
of
the
gods
and
the
return
of
the
ring
to
the
Rhine.
the
study
of
Germanic
myth
and
medieval
epic.