Norse-Gaelic Contacts in a Viking World: Studies in the Literature and History of Norway, Iceland, Ireland, and the Isle of Man

456 Pages·2019·3.612 MB·English

by  Colmán Etchingham, Jón Viðar Sigurðsson, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Elizabeth Ashman Rowe

Norse–Gaelic Contacts
in a Viking World
MEDIEVAL TEXTS AND CULTURES OF NORTHERN EUROPE
General Editor
Rory Naismith, Kings College, London
Editorial Board
Elizabeth Boyle, Maynooth University
Carolyne Larrington, University of Oxford
Erik Niblaeus, Durham University
Emily V. Thornbury, University of California, Berkeley
Previously published volumes in this series are listed at the back of the book.
Volume 29
Norse–Gaelic Contacts
in a Viking World
Studies in the Literature and History of
Norway, Iceland, Ireland, and the Isle of Man
By Colmán Etchingham, Jón Viðar Sigurðsson,
Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, and Elizabeth Ashman Rowe
H
F
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
© 2019, Brepols Publishers n. v., Turnhout, Belgium.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.
D/2019/0095/112
ISBN 978-2-503-57902-3
e-ISBN 978-2-503-57904-7
DOI 10.1484/M.TCNE-EB.5.114808
Printed on acid-free paper.
Contents
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
vi contents
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
List of Illustrations
Figures
Figure 1.1. Map of general area of Norse–Gaelic contacts ...........................................2
Figure 2.1. Map of the Irish places relevant to the ‘Wonders of
Ireland’ in Konungs skuggsjá ..............................................................................................82
Figure 3.1. Map of the places relevant to Baile Suthach Síth Emhna ....................143
Figure 4.1. Map of the places relevant to Icelandic accounts
concerning the Battle of Clontarf .................................................................................225
Figure 5.1. Stemma of the manuscripts of Landnámabók .......................................268
Figure 5.2. Purported Gaelic elite ancestors in Landnámabók ...............................320
Figure 5.3. Pedigrees of Sturla Þórðarson, Snorri Markússon, and
Haukr Erlendsson .............................................................................................................347
Figure 5.4. Pedigree of Snorri Markússon ...................................................................348
Table
Table 2.1. Tabular comparison of four texts .................................................................64