What does Hodor mean?

[hnv]

hodor means everything

when they are all at the tower at wolfswood hodor says his name in an number of ways like it means something

"hodor hoodor hodoro hodoooro hooodoooor" it seems that in his mind it means something

probably "damm meera turn around baby and show me the goods"

[Night Watchman]

I think Hodor means 'I saw Rheager and Lyanna Stark doing it.'

[sio]

I remember asking a guy on another forum if he liked Song (his screen name was Hodor) and he told me that in a language he was constructing it meant "water".

Random tidbit for the day.

[cjfshaw]

Hod killed Balder with the tip of a small shrub, the name of which I can't remember at the moment, but for some reason I'm thinking mistletoe, it's been awhile since I've read my myths. He could only die to this bush b/c his mother spoke a every other thing is existence and they all swore not to harm him, but she overlooked a harmless shrub. Loki tricked him by first having him throw a spear, then an axe, then a rock, and then a tiny dart w/ this plant on it saying if an axe can't hurt him how will this? Then he died. So they put him in a ship and burned it at sea as was Norse tradition. Then the world's grief for Balder was so great that Hel, the goddess of the underworld and one of Loki's 3 children, said she would resurrect him if everything in the world agreed they loved Balder. Only one giantess in a remote cave did not agree, this giantess is thought to be Loki though it is not revealed 100% in any myths. This is what gets Loki kicked out of Asgard and bound up in a mountain until Ragnarok.

BTW Loki wasn't associated with fire until the Christians came and corrupted Norse gods into becoming 'saints' and Loki became their interpretation of the devil. Before that Loki was primarily associated with nature, particularly animals, more specifically birds and horses. Oh and he wasn't a god Loki was a giant who became blood brother to Odin, king of norse gods.

P.S. One of Loki's kids was a gigantic wolf named Fenrir, who devoured Odin only to be killed by Odin's son right afterwards. He also bit off a hand off of the brave god, Tyr, who sacrificed it in order to bind Fenrir with a magic ribbon until Ragnarok.

[Nightflyer]

Looking over this thread and thinking tangentially, I came up with an interesting possibility. Old Walder Frey has good genetics that give him longevity (at least we assume that is good). Suppose he had a sister? What would she be like?

She would be similarly long-lived and older than dirt. In short she would closely resemble Old Nan. And Old Nan's grandchild Hodor's real name is Walder? Names tend to run in families. You have to consider the possibility that Hodor is actually a Frey. With an imbecility similar to Jingle-Bells, perhaps that trait also runs in the Frey family.

What significance could this possibly have if true? Well the Freys are long overdue for a dose of Stark vengeance, we are all sure it will happen sometime. Catelyn has gotten a few, but so far they have gotten off lightly. Imagine when Bran has a chance to repay the Freys, and how he might do it using Hodor.

[shadowbinding shoe]

Old Walder Frey has good genetics that give him longevity (at least we assume that is good). Suppose he had a sister? What would she be like?

There is a Frey connection somewhere here, true enough. I assumed it was one of Nan's children/grandchildren/grandgrandchildren that married a Frey and made Hodor a Walder in honor of old Frey, but what you suggest is an interesting possibility. Could Old Walder have tried to make peace with his neighbors the frog-men and gave his sister to one of their men? Old Nan could have ended up in Winterfell eventually but wouldn't Walder Frey ask Catelyn: "How's my big sis doing? Haven't heard from her in ages, heh, heh. I heard she named ones of her tykes after me but I have a fat Walda here that weighs more than he, heh, heh."

[cjfshaw]

so what you're saying is, Hodor is going to take old Walder Frey's place and become the new lord of the crossing just to spite all those Freys, excellent idea

[shadowbinding shoe]

so what you're saying is, Hodor is going to take old Walder Frey's place and become the new lord of the crossing just to spite all those Freys, excellent idea

Hey this would be the realization of the Troll Under the Bridge (asking for the toll) I haven't thought about it.

[MTGAP]

I'm always very disturbed when I read about Bran warging into Hodor, he may be (not sure what's politically correct now a days) simple minded, but that doesn't make him less of a human being. He isn't an animal.

Technically, although they don't like to think of themselves in that way, humans are animals. They just happen to be the smartest species of animal.

I don't think Hodor has any secret past or anything like that. It's possible though, there isn't a whole lot of evidence either way.

[Szar]

Hod killed Balder with the tip of a small shrub, the name of which I can't remember at the moment, but for some reason I'm thinking mistletoe, it's been awhile since I've read my myths. He could only die to this bush b/c his mother spoke a every other thing is existence and they all swore not to harm him, but she overlooked a harmless shrub. Loki tricked him by first having him throw a spear, then an axe, then a rock, and then a tiny dart w/ this plant on it saying if an axe can't hurt him how will this? Then he died. So they put him in a ship and burned it at sea as was Norse tradition. Then the world's grief for Balder was so great that Hel, the goddess of the underworld and one of Loki's 3 children, said she would resurrect him if everything in the world agreed they loved Balder. Only one giantess in a remote cave did not agree, this giantess is thought to be Loki though it is not revealed 100% in any myths. This is what gets Loki kicked out of Asgard and bound up in a mountain until Ragnarok.

BTW Loki wasn't associated with fire until the Christians came and corrupted Norse gods into becoming 'saints' and Loki became their interpretation of the devil. Before that Loki was primarily associated with nature, particularly animals, more specifically birds and horses. Oh and he wasn't a god Loki was a giant who became blood brother to Odin, king of norse gods.

P.S. One of Loki's kids was a gigantic wolf named Fenrir, who devoured Odin only to be killed by Odin's son right afterwards. He also bit off a hand off of the brave god, Tyr, who sacrificed it in order to bind Fenrir with a magic ribbon until Ragnarok.

Mistletoe is correct. Höder, who was blind, killed Balder with an arrow of mistletoe. He was given the arrow (or dart) by Loki, who guided the shot.

It was Hermod, one of Odin's sons, who travelled to Hel to beg for Balder's life. Hel was amused and said if everything in the world -- rocks, trees, the sea, everything, dead or alive -- grieved for Balder so, she would let him live. But if even one thing refused, so would she.

The jotun who refused to grieve for Balder was called Thökk, and likely was Loki in disguise. "Giant" is a misnomer of epic proportions, by the way -- there are many giant jotun, true, but there are even more who are not. There are monstrous jotun as well -- Fenrir, Jormungand, just to name a few -- but the "normal" jotun by far outnumber them. The gods did not always fight them either; Norse mythology is far from black and white. Another example is Loki -- for all the troubles he caused the Æsir, he also gave them many of their most powerful weapons and magical items.

There were also jotun who married the gods and became gods themselves. Odin himself was the son of jotun.

It's not entirely correct that it was the Christians who corrupted Loki into being a god of fire -- "Logi" was the incarnation of flame. He fought Loki in an eating contest while visiting Utgard-Loki with Thor. I imagine the similarity between the two names has given birth to the confusion.

[cjfshaw]

I don't know how to do that blue quote box so...

""Logi" was the incarnation of flame. He fought Loki in an eating contest while visiting Utgard-Loki with Thor. I imagine the similarity between the two names has given birth to the confusion."

If you're referring to the trip into Jotunheim, where Loki loses and eating contest, Thor loses a drinking contest (by drinking a large part of the ocean), and Thor's servant boy (whose name I can't remember started with a T) loses a race b/c he races wind, that's one of my favorite stories. Although I remember the 'fire giant' as it were being named something else.

Where'd you read about this, there seem to be slight variations in the stories we've read. Mine was from a book called The Norse Myths. Dont remember who wrote.

[twolf]

There is a Frey connection somewhere here, true enough. I assumed it was one of Nan's children/grandchildren/grandgrandchildren that married a Frey and made Hodor a Walder in honor of old Frey, but what you suggest is an interesting possibility. Could Old Walder have tried to make peace with his neighbors the frog-men and gave his sister to one of their men? Old Nan could have ended up in Winterfell eventually but wouldn't Walder Frey ask Catelyn: "How's my big sis doing? Haven't heard from her in ages, heh, heh. I heard she named ones of her tykes after me but I have a fat Walda here that weighs more than he, heh, heh."

I think there is something to this. I know through the books GRRM keeps reminding us that Hodors real name is Walder. I think he does it too many time for it to be a red herring.

[Szar]

I don't know how to do that blue quote box so...

""Logi" was the incarnation of flame. He fought Loki in an eating contest while visiting Utgard-Loki with Thor. I imagine the similarity between the two names has given birth to the confusion."

If you're referring to the trip into Jotunheim, where Loki loses and eating contest, Thor loses a drinking contest (by drinking a large part of the ocean), and Thor's servant boy (whose name I can't remember started with a T) loses a race b/c he races wind, that's one of my favorite stories. Although I remember the 'fire giant' as it were being named something else.

Where'd you read about this, there seem to be slight variations in the stories we've read. Mine was from a book called The Norse Myths. Dont remember who wrote.

A variety of Danish books -- I cannot recall the names. (And a small correction -- the servant's name is Thjalfi, but he races against Hugi -- "thought" -- not wind.)

ETA: Oh, and you do the blue quote box by hitting the "Reply" button in the lower right corner of the post you want to quote from.

[cjfshaw]

like i said, slight variations, in my book he raced against wind

[Gray Snow]

Hodor – The name is Hodor. You can forget that Walder bullshit.

HODOR – Right, M’Lord, I’m on it!

HOdor – Watch your head

HoDOR? – Why do I get the #%& jobs around this castle?

HOOOOOdor – Cowabunga! Clear the Godswood pool; I’m coming in!

HoDOOOOOOR – Grab your direwolf; we’re rolling!

Ho Door – Where HOs go

[Crazydog7]

Hodor=why yes I do have some giant blood in me after all...see?

[TrueMetis]

what if Hodor isn't completly simple minded but he got wanged on the head and now all he can say is Hodor maybe the meaning of Hodor changes depending on the contexts ranging from "watch your head" to "I don't like this place" and Maybe because he couldn't say anything buy Hodor his mind diddn't completly develop expalins why he gets distracted so easy, is afraid of thunder, and why he can take directions

[sheriffkiller]

It means red herring

[MinotaurWarrior]

I have a crackpot theory that old nan was a wildling woman (hence her vast knowledge of the supernatural) and at some point, one of her sons mated with a giantess. The offspring of that union mated with a human, thus producing Hodor the quarter giant. Because humans and giants use different parts of their brain to handle various tasks, such as language, he ended up with a bunch of sets of two half-developed specialized areas in his brain. That's why he has aphasia, and looks like a 'simpleton' but is intelligent enough to 'only need to be shown how to do things once' and seems to understand verbal commands.

Hodor is, I think, just a mispronounciation of his name, Walder. Also, its a really nice sounding word.

[Cora Stark]

The meaning of the word Hodor is unknown. His real name is Walder, but since he always said "Hodor" he was named for it.