Icelanders' sagas
Encyclopedia
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
mostly describing events that took place in Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
in the 10th and early 11th centuries, during the so-called Saga Age
Saga Age
The Saga Age is the period in Icelandic history during which the majority of the sagas of Icelanders are set. It runs from the settlement of Iceland in 870 until about 1056 when the first bishop in Iceland founded a church at Skálaholt....
. They are the best-known specimens of Icelandic literature
Icelandic literature
Icelandic literature refers to literature written in Iceland or by Icelandic people. It is best known for the sagas written in medieval times, starting in the 13th century. As Icelandic and Old Norse are almost the same, and because Icelandic works constitute most of Old Norse literature, Old Norse...
.
The Icelanders' sagas are a literary phenomenon of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. They are focused on history, especially genealogical and family history. They reflect the struggle and conflict that arose within the societies of the second and third generations of Icelandic settlers.
The authors of these sagas are unknown. One, Egils saga
Egils saga
Egils saga is an epic Icelandic saga. The oldest transcript dates back to 1240 AD. The saga is centered on the life of Egill Skallagrímsson, an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald...
, is believed by scholars to have been written by Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was twice elected lawspeaker at the Icelandic parliament, the Althing...
, a descendant of the saga's hero, but this remains uncertain. The standard modern edition of Icelandic sagas is known as Íslenzk Fornrit
Íslenzk Fornrit
Hið íslenzka fornritafélag, or The Old Icelandic Text Society, is the standard publisher of Old Icelandic texts with thorough introductions and comprehensive notes....
.
List of Icelanders' sagas
- Bandamanna sagaBandamanna sagaBandamanna saga is one of the sagas of Icelanders.The story starts with the relationship between Odd son of Ufeig and Uspak son of Glum; Uspak is the nephew of Grettir. Odd, with little help from his father, became rich and Uspak was known for his difficult character...
- Bárðar saga SnæfellsássBárðar saga SnæfellsássBárðar saga Snæfellsáss is one of the sagas of Icelanders. It takes place in Snæfellsnes in Iceland. The main character is Bárður Snæfellsás. He saved Ingjaldur from Ingjaldshvoll when he was in danger at sea....
- Bjarnar saga HítdœlakappaBjarnar saga HítdœlakappaBjarnar saga Hítdælakappa is one of the sagas of Icelanders. Björn is a relative of Egil from Egil's tale and grows up where he had lived. It is notable for a passage that appears to describe a man being found to possess primitive pornography; a woodcutting depicting anal sex between two men.Þess...
- Brennu-Njáls sagaNjál's sagaNjáls saga is one of the sagas of Icelanders. The most prominent characters are the friends Njáll Þorgeirsson, a lawyer and a sage, and Gunnarr Hámundarson, a formidable warrior...
- considered by some the greatest of Icelandic prose sagas - Droplaugarsona sagaDroplaugarsona sagaDroplaugarsona saga is one of the Icelanders' sagas, probably written in the early 15th century. It tells the story of Grímr and Helgi sons of Droplaug as grown men. These are a pair of brothers who also appear in Fljótsdæla saga, and in fact some of the storyline of Droplaugarsona saga overlaps...
- Egils saga Skalla-GrímssonarEgils sagaEgils saga is an epic Icelandic saga. The oldest transcript dates back to 1240 AD. The saga is centered on the life of Egill Skallagrímsson, an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald...
- tells of the adventures of Egill Skalla-Grímsson, the warrior-poet and adventurer - Eiríks saga rauða
- Eyrbyggja sagaEyrbyggja sagaEyrbyggja saga is one of the Icelanders' sagas. The name means the saga of the inhabitants of Eyrr, which is a farm on Snæfellsnes on Iceland. The name is slightly misleading as it deals also with the clans of Þórsnes and Alptafjörðr. The most central character is Snorri Þorgrímsson or Snorri goði...
- Færeyinga sagaFæreyinga SagaThe Færeyinga Saga , the Norse saga of Faroemen, is the story of how the Faroes were converted to Christianity and became a part of the Kingdom of Norway.-Summary:It was written in Iceland shortly after 1200...
- Finnboga saga rammaFinnboga saga rammaFinnboga saga ramma is an Icelandic saga that tells about the life and growing up of Finnbogi hinn rammi. The story takes place in Flateyjardalur in Suður-Þingeyjarsýsla and in more places in Iceland, as well as in Norway. It is supposed to happen in the 10th century-External links:**...
- Fljótsdæla sagaFljótsdæla sagaFljótsdæla saga is one of the Icelandic sagas. It is probably the last one written, perhaps from about 1500, probably by an author in the East Fjords, and is a sequel to Hrafnkels saga....
- Flóamanna sagaFlóamanna saga-External links:*...
- Fóstbrœðra sagaFóstbrœðra sagaFóstbrœðra saga or The Saga of the Sworn Brothers is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It relates the deeds of the sworn brothers Þorgeirr and Þormóðr in early 11th century Iceland and abroad....
(two versions) - Gísla saga SúrssonarGísla sagaGísla saga Súrssonar is one of the Sagas of Icelanders. It tells the story of Gisli, a tragic hero who must kill one of his brothers-in-law to avenge another brother-in-law. Gisli is outlawed and forced to stay on the run for thirteen years before he is finally hunted down and killed...
, (two versions) of an outlaw poet. - Grettis sagaGrettis sagaGrettis saga is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It details the life of Grettir Ásmundarson, a bellicose Icelandic outlaw.- Overview :...
- Grœnlendinga sagaGrœnlendinga sagaThe Grœnlendinga saga is an Icelandic saga. Along with Eiríks saga rauða it is one of the two main literary sources of information for the Norse exploration of North America. It relates the colonization of Greenland by Erik the Red and his followers...
- Gull-Þóris sagaGull-Þóris saga-External links:*...
- Gunnars saga KeldugnúpsfíflsGunnars saga Keldugnúpsfífls-External links:*...
- Gunnlaugs saga ormstungu
- Hallfreðar sagaHallfreðar sagaHallfreðar saga vandræðaskálds is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It relates the story of Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld, an Icelandic poet active around the year 1000. The saga has some resemblance to the sagas of other poets, such as Kormáks saga and Gunnlaugs saga, but in Hallfreðar saga there is less...
(two versions) - Harðar saga ok HólmverjaHarðar saga ok HólmverjaHarðar saga ok Hólmverja or Harðar saga og Hólmverja is one of the sagas of Icelanders. It is preserved in two medieval, vellum manuscripts, Reykjavík, Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, AM 556a, ff. 70r-88r , and the fragment AM 564A, 4:o , f. 7...
- Hávarðar saga ÍsfirðingsHávarðar saga ÍsfirðingsHávarðar saga Ísfirðings is one of the sagas of Icelanders.It tells of 'Howard' who had been a Viking great in his youth and was wounded in Scotland and has walked with a limp ever since. Howard has a disagreement with his neighbor Thorbjørn and in the altercation, Howard's son is killed.Howard...
- Heiðarvíga sagaHeiðarvíga sagaHeiðarvíga saga or The Story of the Heath-Slayings is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It is badly preserved; 12 leaves of the only surviving manuscript were destroyed along with their only copy in the fire of Copenhagen in 1728...
- Hrafnkels sagaHrafnkels sagaHrafnkels saga or Hrafnkels saga Freysgoða is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It tells of struggles between chieftains and farmers in the east of Iceland in the 10th century. The eponymous main character, Hrafnkell, starts out his career as a fearsome duelist and a dedicated worshiper of the god...
- Hrana saga hringsHrana saga hringsHrana saga hrings is one of the sagas of Icelanders, existing only in manuscripts from the nineteenth century.-External links:*...
- Hænsna-Þóris sagaHænsna-Þóris sagaHænsna-Þóris saga is one of the sagas of Icelanders. It tells the story of Hænsna-Thorir , a wealthy but unpopular Icelandic farmholder who refuses his neighbours hay for the winter. When his neighbours take the hay anyway, he burns them alive in their farmstead. A vendetta ensues in which...
- Kjalnesinga sagaKjalnesinga saga-External links:**...
- Kormáks sagaKormáks sagaKormáks saga is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It tells of the tenth-century Icelandic poet, Kormákr Ögmundarson, and Steingerðr, the love of his life. The saga preserves a significant amount of poetry attributed to Kormákr, much of it dealing with his love for Steingerðr. Though the saga is...
- Króka-Refs sagaKróka-Refs sagaKróka-Refs saga or the Saga of Ref the Sly is one of the Icelanders' sagas. Written in the 14th century the saga relates the adventures of Ref Steinsson, a "coal-biter" or "male Cinderella", whose unpromising origins lead him to greatness in both combat and subterfuge.-External...
- Laxdæla saga
- Ljósvetninga sagaLjósvetninga saga-External links:**...
(three versions) - Reykdœla saga ok Víga-Skútu
- Svarfdœla saga
- Valla-Ljóts sagaValla-Ljóts saga-Edition:* Peter A. Jorgensen : Valla-Ljóts Saga. Bilingual Edition of MS AM 161 fol. Saarbrücken, AQ-Verlag 1991. ISBN 978-3-922441-59-5.-External links:*...
- Vatnsdœla saga
- Víga-Glúms sagaVíga-Glúms sagaVíga-Glúms saga is one of the Icelanders' sagas. It tells of a chieftain who kills several people and tries to cover his guilt. It is believed to have been written in the 13th century.-External links:****...
- Víglundar sagaVíglundar saga-External links:*...
- Vápnfirðinga sagaVápnfirðinga sagaVápnfirðinga saga or Vopnfirðinga saga , named after Vopnafjörður, Iceland, is one of the sagas of Icelanders. It in basic terms tells of Helgi Þorgilsson, relative to Erik red, of his murder and subsequent retaliation.-External links:**...
- Þorsteins saga hvítaÞorsteins saga hvíta-External links:**...
- Þorsteins saga Síðu-HallssonarÞorsteins saga Síðu-Hallssonar-External links:**...
- Þórðar saga hreðuÞórðar saga hreðu-External links:* Full text at the...
- Ölkofra sagaÖlkofra sagaÖlkofra þáttr, or "Ölkofra tale" is a þáttr, a minor Old Norse prose genre related to the sagas of Icelanders. It is a satire on the judicial system of the medieval Icelandic Commonwealth and tells the story of an ale-brewer who accidentally sets fire to some valuable woodland belonging to six...
External links
- Icelandic Saga Database A website with all the Icelandic sagas, along with translations into English and various other languages
- Proverbs and Proverbial Materials in the Old Icelandic Sagas
- Icelandic sagas - a selection in Old Norse
- Sagnanet Photographs of some of the original manuscripts