Jotunheim
;)
was the land given to the frost giants by Odin and his brothers at the Creation. With its stronghold of Utgard, it was one of the nine worlds sheltered by the cosmic tree Yggdrasil. The others were Asgard, the home of the Aesir, one branch of the gods; Vanaheim, the home of the Vanir, the other branch of the divine family; Alfheim, the land of the light elves; Nidavellir, the land of the dwarfs; Midgard, the home of humankind; Svartalfheim, the land of the dark elves; Hel, the realm of the unworthy dead; and cold Niflheim beneath Yggdrasil's roots. A mountainous region of freezing cold, Jotunheim was variously described as being inside Midgard, the land of mortals, or over the sea.