Viking Magazine - February 2019 - 20

would stop harrying England (a promise
he kept, the chronicle notes). But the
pleasure of reading the Old Norse saga
version of those events is that the kernels
of history are spiced with anecdote,
making for lively reading.
Saga History
The sagas are some of the world's
greatest literary treasures. " Saga " means
" story, " often a narrative with historical
content. It is derived from the Old Norse
verb segja, which means to say or tell.
During the Viking age, the sagas were
passed down orally from generation
to generation. In the 13th century,
educated Icelandic men, including Snorri
Sturluson, started writing down the
sagas so they wouldn't be lost. Though
many contain fantastical themes and
creatures, the stories are grounded in
reality and depict the life of Icelandic
settlers in the 9th, 10th and 11th
centuries. They give readers a chance
to see the world through the eyes of the
Vikings and form the basis of what we
know about Norse myths and legends.
But are the sagas real? Since they weren't
written down until hundreds of years
after they were shared, many believe
they are a combination of truth and
fiction.
Kirsten Wolf, a professor of Old
Norse and Scandinavian linguistics at
the University of Wisconsin-Madison,
says there is an ongoing discussion
among scholars about how trustworthy
the sagas are as a guide to what really
happened.
" Obviously, there is some historical
truth in the sagas, but there is also quite
a bit of fiction, " Wolf says. " I don't
think that one can fully rely on the sagas
as historical truth. However, they are an
important source of information about
the time in which they were composed. "
20 VIKING FEBRUARY 2019 sonsofnorway.com
And for the reader who cares about
the Nordic world, they are infinitely
rewarding.
" I admit that some of them are
difficult to read. They are overcrowded
with names, details and events. But they
are so interesting, " she says.
For example, Wolf notes, what the
sagas tell about certain customs is
known to be authentic. These include
going to an island to fight a duel
( " Gisli's Saga " ) and staging a duel
on a stretched-out robe ( " Kormak's
Saga " ). Another historically accurate
custom that came from the sagas is the
process of relocating: In sagas such as
" Eyrbyggja Saga, " Norwegians settling
in Iceland used the tried-and-true
method of throwing the pillars of their
local temple's high seat overboard and
building their new homes where the
pillars washed ashore.
" The settlers wanted the pagan gods
to direct them to the place in Iceland
where they should settle. The most
famous example is probably that of
Ingolf (the first settler) in the 'Book of
Icelanders,' " Wolf says.
For those with Norwegian ancestry,
the sagas are rich in stories about events
that happened in the old country.
" Most of the Icelandic sagas involve
Norway, since they explain the
emigration of Norwegians to Iceland, "
Wolf says. " The kings' sagas deal
mostly with Norway. 'Heimskringla' is
almost exclusively about Norway and
Norwegian kings. It has been said that
in Norway, Norwegian translations
of 'Heimskringla' were more popular
than the Bible. " Where can readers
begin if they want to learn about the
sagas and what they tell us about
Viking Age Norway? Here are some
recommendations.
(Above): Map of Iceland by Abraham
Ortelius (c. 1590). (Below): Kringlublaðið
from 1260 is the only leaf to survive
from a manuscript called " Kringla. "
Sturluson's Classics
Icelandic poet and historian Snorri
Sturluson wrote two of the best-known
sagas. " Heimskringla " tells the history
of the kings of Norway. It begins with
the shadowy world of Norse myths and
recounts history through the reign of
Olaf Haraldsson, who became Norway's
patron saint.
Sturluson describes the changing
society, along with new fashions of
dress such as " court breeches " laced
tight around the legs. And in the days of
Haakon the Good, when the king made
the sign of the cross over a sacrificial
beaker at a pagan feast, his followers
avoided trouble by assuring the locals he
TOP TO BOTTOM: ISLANDIA MAP BY ABRAHAM ORTELIUS (CA 1590), COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL AND UNIVERSITY LIBRARY OF ICELAND

http://www.sonsofnorway.com

Viking Magazine - February 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Viking Magazine - February 2019