The Man, with the Norse Myths and Legends: Dr. Jackson Crawford

Since we took over Noco Date Nights back in January 2024, an event would pop up every month that seemed so different from anything else happening in NOCO. Every month, I would try to place it on the schedule for people to attend. But without fail, every month, the event was sold out before the schedule came out. 

Who is this guy, and what is he talking about? 

That guy was Dr. Jackson Crawford, and those events were his monthly talks at Meadkrieger about Norse Mythology. We had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Crawford and learn a little bit about the man behind the legendary monthly talks. What I was not expecting was to be sitting down with a consultant on Norse culture for projects like Frozen and Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, someone who walked away from being a professor to bring this culture to the masses! 

Dr. Jackson Crawford may cover topics as far and wide as historical linguistics, Norse language, and myth, but he is a Colorado guy at heart. While he did not grow up in NOCO, I think we can call a few miles down the road in Golden local enough. The history in Golden, or underneath golden could be said inspired him into his career path, when I asked him what made him interested in historical linguistics I was not expecting him to say “Well I really loved dinosaurs as a kid” but  his love of dinosaurs led him to a Latin class, which led him to a Spanish class, which led him to a Phd in historical linguistics (okay there were a few more steps in there) 

After receiving his Master's in linguistics from the University of  Georgia and this Ph.d in Scandinavian Studies from the University of  Wisconsin- Madison he went on to find the flourishing job market for someone with a doctorate in linguistics, okay no he realized while this may be an exciting educational path, it was not as open of a career path. But instead of having to abandon his love of language and history, he found his way to some prestigious universities, including UCLA, UC Berkley, and CU Boulder. 

In 2020, while teaching at U.C. Berkley, he thought, "Why couldn’t I bring this topic to the public?" There has been such a surge of interest in Vikings and Norse history that so many people outside of the academic world want to learn about this topic, but not that many people have the knowledge to share. Dr. Jackson Crawford knew that he did so with that in mind, and he began his YouTube career.

Since then, he has made videos covering many topics in Norse mythology and language, but don’t ask him what topic is coming next because he knows the material so well that it is all off the cuff, including his monthly talks at Meadkreigar here in Loveland! He makes content that his followers are interested in, something he brought up in the last video that needs to be expanded on, or something he is thinking about that day. We had the privilege of hearing him speak on Runes last month, and you could tell this work comes so naturally to him that no notes were needed to cover a topic well and without feeling stiff. This natural presence is a core tenet of his videos as well, often shot in the nature of Colorado wearing a flannel and Cowboy hat, he embodies the idea that education is for all. There is nothing pretentious about the “Norse Cowboy,” no matter where you start in your interest. Dr. Crawford speaks at a level for everyone. 

From Frozen to Vallaha 

Bringing true Norse insights to everyone extends past his talks and videos as a consultant on many projects including Disney’s Frozen,( if you ever get the chance to meet him as him about why there is an arch during the wedding scene with the trolls)  to consulting on Assassian’s Creed: Valhalla, even though he has never played the game he was instrumental in the historical accuracies within the game. His episode of Ancient Aliens has not premiered yet, but we can all thank Lauren for that one when it does! And he was recently interviewed on Mystery Science Theatre’s podcast! 

Where can I become a Viking? 

One of the coolest things Dr. Crawford talked about during our interview was the fact that you don’t need to be anything except yourself and can still learn and be interested in any number of things, including Norse mythology. I honestly thought the cowboy hat and outdoor setting were a part of an aesthetic, a hook to get people to tune in and hear what he has to say, which definitely would have gotten me interested. But when I asked him how he came up with his brand as sort of a cowboy viking, he surprised me with a heartfelt answer. The cowboy hat? That is just who he is. Growing up, his hero was his grandfather, who always proudly wore a Stetson, so that is just what heroes wore, and once he grew up, that style evolved into what we see today. 

But on another level, not being styled in traditional (or costume) Norse clothing during his presentations and videos allows people to see that what you study, your career, and even what you love, does not define who you are. These things can be totally separate; you can be a lawyer, teacher, or electrician by day and study the history of the Romans as a passion. Or you can be a leading expert on Norse mythology and not have your whole identity be that of a Viking. 

So much of what Jackson does is bringing education to all, and this is just one more subtle reminder that education and interests are truly for anyone; there is no entry requirement to what you are passionate about. One of the beautiful things about the internet and content creation is exactly this, education is for all, whether you are Dr. Jackson Crawford bringing Norse legends to life or if you are bringing your local community together through This is NOCO we have found that while the internet can be very divisive, it also has the power to be equalizing. 

Sign Me Up! 

So if you are ready to check out all the things this local legend has to offer, you can find him online at Jacksonwcrawford.com, on YouTube @jacksoncrawford.  He has books available: The Saga of the Volsungs, The Poetic Edda, and The Wander’s Havamal and the Cowboy Havamal, with a second edition coming out in September. When asked what he was most proud of accomplishing, he noted this book,so definitely a great place to start!  This book gives a unique voice to the Wander’s Havamal, as Jackson describes it ““The Cowboy Hávamál” is a condensation of the wisdom of the first, most down-to-earth part of Hávamál (often called the Gestatháttr, it includes stanzas 1-79, give or take a few) into mostly five-line stanzas of a Western American English dialect. I have not endeavored to render this dialect phonetically in a thoroughly consistent way, but only to present an “eye dialect” of sorts, to suggest the dry tones of the accent behind the words.  “The Cowboy Hávamál” was translated from the Old Norse in one night, on January 11, 2012. Nothing I have done before or since has matched the strange and moving experience of channeling my grandfather’s voice in that way.” 

And be sure to say hello on the last Wednesday of the month at Meadkreigar in Loveland, but be sure to buy your tickets early, as we all know now they sell out every month!