Frozen Theory: Elsa Inherited Her Powers From Her Mother

Disney’s Frozen 2 explores the origins of Elsa’s powers, and it’s possible they weren’t just given to her, but inherited from her mother. Taking place three years after the events of Frozen, the sequel takes Elsa north, following a mysterious voice to the Enchanted Forest, home of the Northuldra people. She discovers that the four elemental spirits – air, water, fire, and earth – have been lost, and the forest is trapped in an enchanted mist.

There, she finds out that her mother was Northuldra, one of the indigenous people who exist among magic. Elsa’s presence in the forest attracts the agitated wind and fire spirits, but she manages to calm them, and realizes they are also being called north by the mysterious voice. She follows the voice to Ahtohallan, a magical glacier said to hold the answers about the past. In Ahtohallan, the glacier reveals that Elsa is the missing fifth spirit, and the link between the human and spirit world.

The movie provides a deep mythological backstory for Arendelle, expanding the magic already in the story and further developing the four elemental spirits. However, Frozen 2 only alludes to the origin of Elsa’s powers, raising more questions than it attempts to answer. One theory that the film seems to support is that Elsa’s ice powers are inherited from her mother.

The Voice Calling To Elsa Is Her Mom’s

The Disney+ documentary Into the Unknown: Making Frozen 2 identifies the voice calling her as Elsa’s mother. Co-director of Frozen 2 Jennifer Lee confirms this in episode 3 of the docuseries, saying, “We all agreed definitively, we’re going to answer that the voice is the mother.” Frozen 2 attempts to unravel the central mystery of who is calling Elsa, and why they are leading her to Ahtohallan to uncover the truth. Explicitly identifying the voice as Queen Iduna centers the relationship between Elsa and her mother, and connects that relationship to the frozen magic of the glacier.

In the climatic song “Show Yourself,” her mother is shown in memories calling out to the spirits, singing the same melody that has been calling Elsa throughout the film. “Show Yourself” was almost cut from the film entirely, largely due to narrative confusion about who the voice belongs to. While Frozen 2 introduces a number of questions that it never manages to answer, identifying the voice as Elsa’s mother deliberately emphasizes the magical connection between Iduna, Elsa, and the glacier. By suggesting that Elsa inherited her powers from her mother, confirming the voice as Queen Iduna solidifies the magical bond between the two. Ahtohallan’s connection with the mother also explains Elsa’s familiar pull to the glacier – as though she is returning home.

Iduna Being The Source Of Elsa’s Powers Explains Her Memories In Ahtohallan

Ahtohallan is repeatedly referred to as a magical river said to hold the answers about the past. When Elsa arrives at Ahtohallan after following her mother’s voice, she finds not only her memories but her mother’s as well, linking them both to the frozen magic of the glacier. Elsa is shown a memory of her mother using air magic in the forest, and interacting with the elemental spirits. She is also shown a memory of Iduna saving King Agnarr, by calling out to the spirits with the same melody that Elsa has been chasing.

The best explanation for why Iduna’s memories are in the glacier is that Elsa’s magic was inherited from hers. Elsa’s desire to learn the source of her powers are answered with specific memories of Iduna’s use of magic, implying that Iduna’s power relates directly to the origin of Elsa’s. Still, Iduna’s connection to the glacier goes beyond that. When she died, Iduna was travelling to Ahtohallan to discover the source of Elsa’s magic, and her lullaby at the beginning of the film is what sets Elsa on the path to the glacier. When Elsa returns to discover her own answers, it’s her mother’s voice – and the source of her power – that guides her way.

Elsa’s Mother Already Comes From A Magical Background

Frozen 2 introduces the Northuldra, an indigenous tribe of people that live within the Enchanted forest. Before the four elemental spirits vanished, trapping the forest in an enchanted mist, the Northuldra co-existed alongside the spirits, and were deeply connected with the magic of the forest. While the original Frozen implies that Elsa is the only magical member of her family, she discovers that her mother was one of the Northuldra in Frozen 2, and likely interacted with magic regularly.

One of the memories Elsa is shown in Ahtohallan is of Queen Iduna interacting with the air spirit as a child. Frozen 2 doesn’t confirm Iduna’s magical powers, but makes a pointed effort to highlight her magical background. In addition, by placing Iduna’s memories inside of the glacier that has promised to reveal the truth about Elsa, it draws an explicit line between Iduna’s magic and her daughter’s powers. Iduna’s magical background as a member of the Northuldra tribe suggests that the queen herself could have had her own powers – powers that her daughter later inherited.

Elsa Inheriting Her Mom’s Powers Makes Frozen 2 Better

One of the biggest failings of Frozen 2 is that, while it created a rich magical backstory for Arandelle, Frozen 2 built up mysteries it never explained, or left deliberately unclear. By identifying Queen Iduna as the mysterious voice Elsa has been following, and establishing a strong narrative connection between Iduna’s implied magic and the origin of Elsa’s powers, Frozen 2 suggests an answer to one of those mysteries that would have made the movie stronger. Elsa’s arc through Frozen and Frozen 2 is about coming to terms with her powers – in the first movie, with her ice magic, and in the second with her role as the fifth spirit.

Frozen 2 does state that Elsa’s powers were likely a gift from the spirits, in exchange for Iduna saving King Agnarr’s life. However, this explanation for the origin of Elsa’s powers makes little sense – it doesn’t answer the question of why Anna has no magic, or why Iduna didn’t receive those powers herself. If Elsa’s magic was inherited from her mother instead of the spirits, it would significantly strengthen this explanation: the true gift from the spirits is Elsa’s role as the fifth spirit and the bridge between the worlds.

While Frozen 2 never clarifies the origin of Elsa’s magic, it makes a point to draw strong connections between Elsa’s ice powers and Iduna, most plainly with her mother’s voice leading her to Ahtohallan and the truth about her powers. The reveal that Queen Iduna is Northuldra establishes a deeper connection between Elsa and her magic, by rooting it within her mother. If Elsa inherited her powers from her mother, it makes a stronger and more coherent ending – both for Elsa, and for Frozen 2. Elsa finally embracing her ice magic and her role as the fifth spirit honors her relationship with her power. More importantly, the abdication of her throne and her choice to rejoin her mother’s people honors the woman who likely gave her that power.

More:Even Frozen 2’s Creators Didn’t Understand The Voice Calling To Elsa

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