FWIW (Wiki):
Etymology The Old Norse http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Norse compound ragnarok has a long history of interpretation. Its first element, ragna, is unproblematic, being the genitive plural of regin (n. pl.) "the ruling powers, gods". The second element is more difficult, as it occurs in two variants, -rök and -røkkr. Zoega's Old Icelandic Dictionary treats the two forms as two separate compounds, glossing ragnarök as "the doom or destruction of the gods" and ragnarøkkr as "the twilight of the gods" (1910). The plural noun rök, has several meanings, such as "development, origin, cause, relation, fate."[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-2 The word ragnarök as a whole is then usually interpreted as the "final destiny of the gods."[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTESimek2007259-3 The singular form ragnarøk(k)r is found in stanza 39 of the Poetic Edda poem Lokasenna http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lokasenna, and in the Prose Edda. The noun røkr, røkkr means "twilight" (from a verb røkkva "to grow dark"), suggesting a translation "twilight of the gods". This reading was widely considered a folk-etymological corruption, or a learned reinterpretation, of the original term due to the merger of /ǫ/ and /ø/ in Old Icelandic after ca. 1200[4] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBjordvandLindeman2007856.E2.80.93857-4 (nevertheless giving rise to the concept of Götterdämmerung http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%B6tterd%C3%A4mmerung "Twilight of the Gods" in the German reception of Norse mythology[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTELindow2001254-5). Nevertheless, Haraldur Bernharðsson in a 2007 paper suggested that the singular form -røkr "twilight" (from a Proto-Germanic *rekwa) might have been the original reading.[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBernhar.C3.B0sson200730.E2.80.9332-6 Haraldur Bernharðsson argues instead that the words ragnarök and ragnarøkkr are closely related, etymologically and semantically, and suggests a meaning of "renewal of the divine powers."Ragnarök - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBernhar.C3.B0sson200735-7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBernhar.C3.B0sson200735-7 Ragnarök - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBernhar.C3.B0sson200735-7 In Norse mythology, Ragnarök is a series of future events, including a great battle foretold to ultimately result in the death of a number of major fi... View on en.wikiped... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragnar%C3%B6k#cite_note-FOOTNOTEBernhar.C3.B0sson200735-7 Preview by Yahoo
