The Sacred Flame

About The Sacred Flame

The Sacred Flame Podcast is about the pre-Christian traditions of Northern Europe hosted by Mathias Nordvig and Amina Otto. It's available on Buzzsprout and most podcasting platforms. The Sacred Flame Podcast comes out twice a month with information and perspectives on Northern European traditions, mythology, history, and philosophy. Mathias Nordvig has a PhD in Old Norse mythology and teaches Scandinavian studies at the University of Colorado-Boulder. Amina Otto has an MA in Old Norse and Gaelic studies and is doing a PhD in Norse-Gaelic Viking culture at Glasgow University.

Publisher

Mathias Nordvig and Amina Otto

Category

society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

12 Feb 2023

Latest episode

6 Feb 2026

Latest episodes

34 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   6 Feb 2026

   Songleikr - Nordic folk music with Maria Franz, Ingrid Galadriel, and Kasia

   Did you know that Heilung's Maria Franz has been deeply involved with the coolest Nordic folk music project for over 20 years? Together with her co-singers, Ingrid Galadriel and Kasia, Maria joined Amina and Mathias for a fun conversation about how to make Nordic folk music, singing in obscure Norwegian dialects, creating songs about widows wearing chastity belts, and awakening the trolls in northern Norway.

2. 

   23 Jan 2026

   Tattooing in Ancient Northern Europe with Sean Parry from Sacred Knot Tattoo

   Amina and Mathias join Sean Parry from Sacred Knot Tattoo in a fascinating conversation about tattooing in ancient northern Europe. Sean is a Welsh tattoo artist and a veritable well-spring of knowledge about history and culture in the British Isles and Ireland. Our host and guest have fruitful conversations about the possibility that Vikings may have tattooed, and what might have happened with art in ancient Britain. They also bat around a couple of tattoo ideas...

3. 

   16 Jan 2026

   Elves, Fairies, Hidden Folk, and Dwarfs - All the little people in the North

   Amina and Mathias sit down and talk about elves, fairies, hidden folk, dwarfs, and all the different "minor" entities in Nordic and Gaelic mythology and folklore. They dig deep into folktales about elves, what the names of these categories of beings mean, and how people have related to them in pre-Christian times.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.9 / 5

81 ratings

Spotify

4.9 / 5

225 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 22 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

8

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

92

Contact The Sacred Flame

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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