In Norse mythology, Hel ruled the realm of the dead that also bears her name.
The Prose Edda describes Hel as a daughter of Loki and the giantess Angrboða. Her siblings include Fenrir, the monstrous wolf, and Jörmungandr, the Midgard Serpent. Odin cast Hel into the underworld, where she received many of those who died from sickness or old age.
Hel is often pictured in modern culture as simply an evil devil-like figure, but the surviving Norse sources present a more complicated character. Her realm was not identical to the Christian idea of hell, and not every dead person went there. Warriors who died in battle could be associated with Odin’s Valhalla or Freyja’s Fólkvangr, while the sources describe different destinations for the dead.