Ásumablót

Ásumablót, in Old Norse Ásuma-blót, is a term used in scholarship to describe a possible sacrificial rite or festival addressed to the Æsir, the principal deities of the Norse pantheon. The exact form and date of such rites are uncertain; surviving sources from the Viking Age and early medieval period rarely name a distinct festival by this designation. The concept is inferred from references to blót as a general form of sacrifice and from later Icelandic and Scandinavian lore that speaks of sacrifices to the gods collectively (the Æsir) rather than to individual deities alone.

Etymology: Ásumablót combines Ása- (referring to the Æsir) with -blót, a ritual sacrifice or ceremony. The term emphasizes a sacrifice directed at the collective Æsir.

Historical sources: Explicit mentions of blót occur in skaldic poetry, the Prose Edda, and sagas, but a dedicated, named Ásumablót is not consistently attested as a separate annual holiday. Some scholars interpret scattered hints as evidence of regional or seasonal rites honoring the Æsir, while others treat the term as a modern reconstruction or umbrella label in lieu of a clearly attested rite.

Practices: Blót typically included offerings of animals, libations, feasting, and public ritual, sometimes followed by toasts (symbel) and additional rites depending on tradition. If Ásumablót existed as a distinct rite, it would have centered on the Æsir and likely been a communal event.

Modern reception: In neopagan and reconstructionist movements, Ásumablót may be referenced as a general or seasonal sacrifice to the Æsir; practices vary and are not standardized.

See also: Blót, Dísablót, Ásatrú, Norse paganism.