Editing Apocalypticism (section)

===Volcanic eruptions===
[[Hilda Ellis Davidson]] theorizes that the events in ''Völuspá'' occurring after the death of the gods (the sun turning black, steam rising, flames touching the heavens, etc.) may be inspired by the volcanic eruptions on Iceland. Records of eruptions on Iceland bear strong similarities to the sequence of events described in ''Völuspá'', especially the eruption at [[Laki]] that occurred in 1783.<ref name =davidsonrag>{{cite book|last=Davidson|first=H. R. Ellis|author-link=Hilda Ellis Davidson|date=1990|title=Gods and Myths of Northern Europe|publisher=[[Penguin Books]]|isbn=0-14-013627-4}}</ref>{{rp|208–209}} [[Bertha Phillpotts]] theorizes that the figure of Surtr was inspired by Icelandic eruptions, and that he was a volcano demon.<ref name =davidsonrag/>{{rp|208–209}} Surtr's name occurs in some Icelandic place names, among them the [[lava tube]] [[Surtshellir]], a number of dark caverns in the volcanic central region of Iceland.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Patel |first1=Samir S. |title=The Blackener's Cave: Viking Age outlaws, taboo, and ritual in Iceland's lava fields |journal=Archaeology |date=2017 |volume=70 |issue=3 |page=36 |issn=0003-8113}}</ref>