This multi-disciplinary volume draws on the combined expertise of specialists in the history and literature of medieval Ireland, Iceland, Norway, and Scotland to shed new light on the interplay of Norse and Gaelic literary traditions. Through four detailed case-studies, which examine the Norwegian 'Konungs skuggsjá', the Icelandic 'Njáls saga' and 'Landnámabók', and the Gaelic text 'Baile Suthach Sith Emhna', the volume explores the linguistic, cultural, and political contacts that existed between Norse and Gaelic speakers in the High Middle Ages, and examines the impetus behind these texts, including oral tradition, transfer of written sources, and authorial adaptation and invention. Crucially, these texts are not only examined as literary products of the thirteenth century, but also as repositories of older historical traditions, and the authors seek to explore these wider historical contexts, as well as analyse how and why historical and literary material was transmitted. The volume contains English translations of key extracts and also provides a detailed discussion of sources and methodologies to ensure that this milestone of scholarship is accessible to both students and subject-specialists.
Author(s): Colmán Etchingham, Jón Viðar Sigurðsson, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Elizabeth Ashman Rowe
Series: Medieval Texts and Cultures of Northern Europe, 29
Publisher: Brepols
Year: 2019
Language: English
Pages: 452
City: Turnhout
List of Illustrations vii
Note on Orthography of Names ix
Preface xi
Chapter 1. Norse–Gaelic Contacts in a Viking World: Concept and Context 1
Defining Norse–Gaelic Contacts 1
Channels of Contact across the Norse–Gaelic Interface 11
Multilingual Literacy and Textual Transmission 26
Specific Textual Reflexes of Norse–Gaelic Contact 36
Conclusion 40
Chapter 2. The 'Wonders of Ireland' in 'Konungs skuggsjá': Text, Sources, Context 43
Introduction 43
'Wonders of Ireland': Text and Translation 45
The 'Wonders of Ireland' in 'Konungs skuggsjá' and Three Other Texts 61
The 'Wonders of Ireland' in 'Konungs skuggsjá' Analysed 66
Selectivity and the 'Wonders of Ireland' in 'Konungs skuggsjá' 83
Date and Context of 'Konungs skuggsjá': Hákon IV's Ambitions and Interest in Ireland 95
Textual Transmission and Compilation 105
Appendix 115
Chapter 3. 'Baile Suthach Síth Emhna', a Poem to Raghnall, King of Man: Text and Context 123
Introduction 123
'Baile Suthach Síth Emhna': Text and Translation 125
The Literary Context of 'Baile Suthach Síth Emhna' 142
The Literary Depiction of Raghnall, King of Man 147
Raghnall and Ulster 158
Raghnall and Dublin 164
Raghnall as Viking 175
Raghnall and Norway 181
Raghnall as Norse-Gaelic Leader 188
'Baile Suthach Síth Emhna': Raghnall's Perspective 190
'Baile Suthach Síth Emhna': Ideal and Reality 194
Chapter 4. The Battle of Clontarf in Icelandic Sources 197
Introduction 197
Textual Analysis 198
The Case for a '*Brjáns saga' 226
The Provenance of '*Brjáns saga' 240
The Battle of Clontarf in Old Norse Sources: Historical Function and Literary Perspectives 256
Conclusion 263
Chapter 5. Kjarvalr 'Írakonungr' and Gaelic Ancestry in Iceland 265
Introduction 265
References to Ireland in the Introduction to 'Landnámabók' 268
Gaelic Names in 'Landnámabók' 272
Royal and Aristocratic Gaelic Ancestry in 'Landnámabók' 319
The Case of Kjarvalr 'Írakonungr' 325
The Perception of Gaelic Ancestry in Thirteenth-Century Iceland 343
Conclusion 356
Conclusion 365
Works Cited 379
Index 411
