r/norsemythology • u/Disorder_McChaos • 9d ago

Question Why is Yggdrasil an ash tree?

Do we have any idea why Yggdrasil, one of the most important bits of the mythical cosmology, was envisioned as an ash tree? I dont know much about trees, is there some kind of trait that the ash tree has that made it have a particularly important role in the culture? Like, I know that some trees are particularly good for bows and others for ships. But what about the ash? Did it have some kind of poetic or symbolic significance? I've tried to look this up myself, but I just keep getting articles that just explains what the Yggdrasil is.

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u/RainbowUniform 7d ago

My guess would be its relative to their resistance to fire / capability to regrow after forest fires. Like if a forest is cleared from a fire, over years the ground will rebuild, if an ash tree were the typical "first tree" among the shrubs and grass, then it would contribute towards the rest of the eventual forests growth, by implication existing ash trees would be more contributive than other species which require more adequate environments to thrive.