In the best-known interpretation of Norse mythology, Skuld is the Norn associated with the future. She forms a trio with Urðr, linked with the past, and Verðandi, linked with the present.
The three Norns are fate-shaping figures who determine the destinies of people. Their names are often used as a memory aid: Urðr is associated with what has become, Verðandi with what is happening, and Skuld with what is due or still to come. This past-present-future arrangement is widely repeated in modern accounts of Norse mythology.
The surviving medieval sources are less tidy than that popular summary suggests. In the Poetic Edda and Prose Edda, Skuld is clearly identified as a Norn, but she is also described as a Valkyrie. In the Prose Edda, she rides with Valkyries to select the slain and decide battles. Her name can mean “debt” or “obligation,” sharing an etymological connection with the English word “should.”
Thus, Skuld’s future role is a useful traditional shorthand, while her original mythic identity also includes fate, obligation, and battlefield choice.