Jotunheim: where Tyr hid the last giants

Jotunheim, also known as Jotunheimr and Utgard, was one of the Nine Realms of the World Tree and the home of the ancient race of Jotnar, the giants. It was the final destination of Kratos and Atreus on their journey to scatter the ashes of Faye, and the place where Atreus discovered his heritage. Its mountains rose so high their peaks stood above the clouds, and time itself ran faster there than in the other realms, so that those capable of aging did so more quickly within its bounds. (God of War (2018); God of War Ragnarök)

Sanctuary of the Jotnar#

In Norse myth, Bergelmir and his wife were the only giants to survive when Odin and his brothers killed their forefather Ymir, and the later giants descend from them. (Prose Edda)

In the games Jotunheim was the sanctuary of the Jotnar, a home where they could grow and prosper. But fearing his own downfall and Asgard's at the hands of the giants come Ragnarok, Odin and the Aesir began to slaughter the Jotnar throughout the Nine Realms. On the verge of extinction, the giants retreated to Jotunheim with the help of Tyr, who took no part in the killings and instead aided their escape by removing access everywhere except for two paths in Midgard. One lay atop Midgard's tallest peak and required a sacred rune to activate, while the other was hidden in the Realm Between Realms. (God of War (2018); God of War Ragnarök)

After the withdrawal of nearly all the giants who remained in Midgard, Jotunheim became the tomb of the Jotnar, their corpses littering its mountains as they awaited the return of their guardian. The other realms believed the survivors had gathered there as an army, priming for the day they would take their revenge against the Aesir, an eventuality that fed Odin's paranoia, since he and the Aesir had no means of setting foot there again. (God of War (2018); God of War Ragnarök)

The journey of Kratos and Atreus#

When Kratos and Atreus finally reached Jotunheim to scatter Faye's ashes, their guardian was at last reunited with her people, for Faye had been a Jotunn. It was here that Atreus discovered his own heritage, realizing that he and the World Serpent Jormungandr were the last living Jotnar in Midgard. Within a great room carved into a hand-shaped mountain, the highest peak in the Nine Realms, statues, carvings, and written prophecies adorned the walls, including a mural depicting the story of Loki. After returning to Midgard, Kratos and Atreus did not go back, since repeated travel risked Odin realizing that Mimir's eyes were the key to reaching it. (God of War (2018))

Ironwood and the surviving giants#

In Ragnarök, Jotunheim returned and could be reached through a mystic gateway modified by Brok and Sindri. Its region of Ironwood was revealed as a lush and grand sweep of stone trees, rivers, and abundant wildlife, brighter and warmer than it had once seemed, and both Mimir and Freya admired its beauty. There the giantess Angrboda, one of the last living Jotnar, had created wards to keep the wildlife at bay and remain hidden from Asgard. When Atreus found himself in Jotunheim, Angrboda showed him a copy of the mural carved in the Giants' Fingers, which revealed the prophecy that Kratos would die at the hands of Thor and that Atreus would go to serve Odin. (God of War Ragnarök)

Angrboda later revealed a bag containing the souls of the surviving giants, who had hidden their souls inside spirit stones to escape Odin's wrath, and she entrusted Atreus with looking after them. The two also confronted Angrboda's grandmother Gryla, destroying the magic cauldron she used to steal animal souls. The faster passage of time there was made plain when a visit that felt brief to Atreus had cost him two days in Midgard, a quirk it shared with the Light of Alfheim. After Ragnarok, Kratos could visit Jotunheim with Freya and Mimir, who thanked Angrboda for saving them in Asgard and praised her paintings, finding her still its keeper. (God of War (2018); God of War Ragnarök)