Thunor and the Fylfot

A 5th-6th century Anglo-Saxon cremation urn from North Elmham, Norfolk.


There is a clear link between the fylfot (swastika) and the Germanic thunder God Thunor/Thor/Donar and this is via His hammer Mjolnir. Christopher R. Fee in his Gods, Heroes, & Kings The Battle for Mythic Britain refers to the 'image' of the Mjolnir 'spinning end-over-end' in the heavens, resembling a swastika.


When Thunor throws His mighty hammer it gives the appearance of a rotating fylfot. The hammer represents one of the four arms of this sacred Aryan symbol. So when followers of the heathen faith wear the hammer of Thunor around their necks they are also in effect carrying a fylfot or swastika.
Stephen Taylor in his book The Fylfot File also draws on this connection, referring to the fylfot as a stylised version " of Mjolnir.


The association of the hammer with a sky God is to be found amongst other Indo-European cultures. The Baltic thunder God Perkons also carried a hammer called Milna which may very well be linked linguistically to Mjolnir along with the Russian molnija and the Welsh mellt which both mean 'lightning'.

The Slavic thunder God Perun carried an axe which fulfills a similar function in mythology to the hammer. Indeed sometimes Mjolnir is referred to as an axe or a club and we must not forget that the Greek Herakles and the Roman Hercules both carried a club. Other Indo-European sky or thunder Gods such as the Greek Zeus or the Roman Jupiter had a thunderbolt as their primary weapon but we must not forget that Mjolnir is the source of lightning in Germanic mythology. The Indian Indra also carried a thunderbolt as his primary weapon.

Not only is the concept of the thunder and sky God a pan Aryan mythological concept but so also is the fylfot or swastika and no doubt this connection between the two is via the thunder God's weapon whether it be axe, club, hammer or thunderbolt.