Here’s What Loki Gave Birth to & How Many Children He Has

Loki is one of the most fascinating characters in Marvel Comics, and it’s well known that most of the character’s aspects are drawn directly from Nordic Mythology that inspired most of the Asgardian pantheon in the comics. There are plenty of stories in the comics also roughly adapted from Mythology in order to give Loki more background and character development, and one such story involved Loki giving birth and “mothering” a horse. I know it sounds strange, but bear with me as we discover who exactly Loki gave birth to and how many children he has. 

Loki gave birth to an eight-legged steed called Sleipnir. He once shapeshifted into a beautiful white mare to lure Frost Giant’s steed away from him while the Giant was working so as not to lose a wager he made with him. Sleipnir grew up to be one of the fastest and most respected steeds in Asgard and was well-known to be Odin’s favorite mount. Besides Sleipnir, Loki has seven biological children that we know of, but he only gave birth to Sleipnir. 

Now that we’ve summarized how exactly Loki gave birth to a horse, it’s time to analyze it in more detail. Like most mythological stories regarding Loki, the story of Sleipnir is also full of metaphors and trickery, so if you’re interested in more, stay with us and keep reading! 

How did Loki give birth to Sleipnir?

Sleipnir is one of the most famed Asgardian steeds, and he actually has two origin stories in the comics. However, since we’re writing about Loki at this moment, we’re going to recount Sleipnir’s origin story as it was told on the pages of ‘Marvel Pets Handbook’ #1. 

Odin was aware that Asgard needed to have its walls reinforced, and Loki, being a trickster, proposed to Odin that such a thing could be done in six months’ time if only they could find a stonemason worthy enough of the undertaking. Loki also convinced Odin to offer Freya the sun and the moon to incentivize the job to be finished on time. 

Odin accepted, and Loki found the stonemason, who turned out to be Frost Giant in disguise. The Frost Giant worked tirelessly, and as the seasons passed, it was becoming more and more obvious that the job would be finished in six months’ time. And Odin was naturally furious with Loki and demanded that the God of Mischief set things right. 

Loki observed how the Frost Giant was working and noticed that he had a noble steed with him, who did most of the heavy lifting and hauling of stone. The steed in question was Svadilfari. To sabotage the Frost Giant, Loki was supposed to sabotage Svadilfari first.

Just as Frost Giant was about to lay the last stone to complete the Asgardian walls, Loki used his shapeshifting abilities and transformed into a beautiful white mare. He lured Svadilfari away from the Frost Giant, stopping him from finishing the job on time. 

Svadilfari and Loki ran across the pastures for some time, and when Loki next returned to Odin, he had an eight-legged colt with him named Sleipnir. He gifted the steed to Odin, and due to its might, it became the All-Father’s favorite mount. Sleipnir was fast enough that he could allow Odin to travel to different dimensions on his back. 

Sleipnir’s other origin story involves Thor 

Sleipnir’s other origin story was told on the pages of ‘Thor: Reign of Blood,’ and it’s significantly less weird than the story involving Loki. 

During the war, when the Enchantress summoned Legions of Undead to attack Midgard, Thor appeared on the battlefield with his legendary steeds: Slaughterbit, Swamptooth, Snow Harpy, Smokemare, Stormbringer, Mudbrute, Firegnaw, and Warhoof.

Mortals soon asked Thor to pilot the Blood Colossus, and he accepted but under one condition. If his horses are to fall in battle, the mortals shouldn’t eat them. Instead, they should be brought to the funeral pyre because that’s the only thing that will allow them to reincarnate the following morning.

But while Thor was piloting the Blood Colossus, mortals, being deprived of real food for so long due to the war, ate the horses as soon as they fell in combat.

Thor was enraged beyond belief, and he returned to Asgard with what was left of his former steeds. He used the remains and ancient Asgardian magic to create Sleipnir from the remains of his eight steeds, and this is why Sleipnir has eight legs instead of the usual four. 

How did Loki give birth to a horse? 

Loki gave birth to a horse because of his genderfluidity and shapeshifting abilities. Loki is probably among the most famous shapeshifters both in the comics, and when it comes to Nordic Mythology, and over the course of his ancient stories, he shapeshifted into salmon, flea, and fly.

He often took on the guises of other humans to illicit even more confusion, and his shapeshifting wasn’t limited to his male sex. He once took on the form of an old woman called Thökk or Þökk in Old Norse.

 How many children did Loki have in total?

Loki had seven biological children in the comics in total, eight if you count Hela, whom he adopted as his daughter. With his Asgardian wife, Sigyn, Loki had one son, Narvi, who was murdered at the hands of Odin. With his Jotunheim wie Angerboda, Loki had two children, a genderfluid wolf under the name Fenris & legendary Jormungand the Midgard Serpent. Loki also had several short-term affairs with mortal women and women of otherwise unknown origins. They, in turn, gave birth to The Son of Satan, Vali Halfling and Tess Black. 

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