Birch Grove

In Norse mythology, the sun is associated with the female. Scholars (and laypeople) have speculated that this is because of the long, dark winters in Scandinavia and that the coming of the sun was associated with warmth, light, life, and fertility.

That gives us Sol, or Sunna, her name varies and means “sun.” It is she who carries the sun on her chariot as she is chased by Skoll, the supernatural wolf who will catch her with the coming of Ragnarok. Ocassionally, Skoll gets close enough to snap at the sun, which causes solar eclipses. Her brother is Mani, bearer of the moon, who is chased by the wolf Hati. Her chariot is drawn by the horses Alsvid (“all swift”) and Arvak (“early riser”), who have bellows between their shoulder-blades to keep them cool. There is a shield (sometimes called a Goddess) Svalin, that keeps the full heat of the sun from scorching the earth.

That is about all we know about Sunna, so allow me to elaborate in my own way.

In my mind, Sunna is a young woman with brilliant, white-blonde hair and blue eyes the color of the sky. She wears a simple, sleeveless dress of bright white silk and a long blue cloak. Alsvid and Arvak are like very large palaminos with golden coats and white manes and tails. She is always warm, from her proximity to the sun, though in winter she travels afar and does not bless the North with her presence as often. So, even when she does arrive, the light and warmth she gives are weaker than in summer.

She loves golden honey and the intense and golden cloud berries of late summer. Fire is her element, gold her metal.  

She does not fear Skoll, the wolf who chases her. She knows his limits, and hers, and she knows that one day the time will come when his strength will overcome hers. But that day has not yet arrived, and until then, she can trust in her knowlege.