In the Prose Edda we find details about Nótt including records of her three marriages. Nótt's third marriage was with the god Dellingr and resulted in their son Dagr, the personified day. So, according to Norse mythology day is born out of night - night always precedes day.
Both in Poetic and Prose Edda (written in the 13th century), Nótt is associated with the horse Hrímfaxi ("rime mane" or "frost mane"). It was believed that the foam created when Hrímfaxi was chewing on the bit as he ran over the nightly sky, gave us morning dew in the summer and frost in the winter. The morning dew/frost was also the only food for Lif (which is the origin of my name, Live) and Liftharsir, the two sole survivors of Ragnarok (Doom of the Gods, end of the world).
Nótt’s son Dagr is associated with the horse Skinfaxi ("shining mane"). It was believed that Skinfaxi pulled Dagr’s chariot across the sky every day and that it was Skinfaxi’s shining mane that lit up the sky and the earth below. The myth of Skinfaxi and Hrimfaxi is believed to have its roots in Nordic Bronze Age religion, from which there is strong evidence of beliefs involving a horse pulling the sun across the sky (see: The Trundholm Sun Chariot). Both the sun and the precious metal gold are symbols closely connect to the horse in various cultures.
Source: Wikipedia, Lexikon der Symbole - Hans Biedermann
Painting by Peter Nicolai Arbo
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