Medieval Icelandic Sagas are one of the most interesting and profound forms of literature available from the medieval time period for the modern reader. The period in which Saga literature flourished was from about 1100 to about 1300 AD. Many sagas live on in modern translations, although few are preserved in their original form. The sagas, written in the Icelandic (Old Norse) language, were copied by hand into various manuscripts and collections. In many cases different versions and translations exist of a single Saga. The original sagas came mainly out of Iceland, but others appeared in Norway and Ireland, two countries that had ties with the island and its people.

Heidarvarssaga (The Saga of the Heath-Slayings), generally contended to be the oldest of the sagas, talks of events which took place around 1020 AD. Other, sagas written later provide insight into earlier time periods. For example, Laxdaela Saga (c.1245) tells of events which occurred as early as 865 AD, while Egil’s Saga (c. 1230) goes even earlier to about 850 AD. Obviously the writers of these two narratives had no personal knowledge of the times about which they wrote. The knowledge to write these sagas came from oral as well as written traditions. In some narratives, as is the case of the Vinland sagas, authors and/or scribes changed the stories to reflect the honor of their own ancestors or disgust of those of their enemies.

The political and religious turbulence apparent in Iceland during the time period of these literary works is a good indication of why they may have been so popular. Iceland was discovered in 860 AD, earned its independence from Norway in 930 AD, and was converted to Christianity in 1000 AD. Greenland was settled by Eirik the Red and other Icelanders in about 982 AD. By the change of the millennium, Icelandic laws, cultures, and religious practices were being challenged, dismissed, and updated. All of these events are commemorated in sagas written early in the First Millennium AD.

Legal

The institution of Icelandic law and politics during the 10th and 11th centuries occurred during a meeting of leaders called the Althing. The Althing took place in the southwest corner of the island in an area known as Thingvellir. The Althing was held yearly, on the eleventh Thursday of each summer. The first Althing occurred in 930 AD, the same year Iceland became independent. Icelandic law gave specific instructions for how the Althing was to be used. The Logsogumadr, or Law Speaker, was head of the proceedings. His primary duty was to recite one third of the code of laws each year of his 3-year term. He also was called upon to settle questions in legal process. The Logsogumadr elections were held every 3 years with the priest-chieftains casting votes. The same man could hold successive terms as Law-Speaker.

The courts of the Althing where held on Friday evening at a central point called the Law Rock. Cases were divided into four Quarter (district) Courts, according to where the involved parties lived. Originally, if final settlement could not be made in the Quarter Court nothing could be done. In 1005, this problem was alleviated by the initiation of a Fifth Court to take care of those cases which were previously left unsettled and to handle accusations of procedural irregularity in Quarter Court cases. Four dozen judges presided over this court, of which only 36 could decide any case, the others being challenged and disqualified by the participants. All lawsuits had to be announced at the Law Rock before being heard, and a summons had to be presented at least four weeks prior to the trials.

Jurymen were required to make findings about a case. However, they did not decide the innocence or guilt of the accused as modern jurors do. The job of these jurymen was to decide whether or not an accusation had been properly phrased and announced. Nine jurymen were present at every trial, as was the Icelandic law. Before these jurymen were given a chance to make their decision, the defendant in the action could challenge them. In order to be allowed on a jury, these men had to have several qualifications. Those who were related through kin or religious ties (i.e. godparents) to the plaintiff in a lawsuit could not hold the office. This may have caused problems since families were so large and intermingled. Other conditions the jurors had to meet were that: they had to be householders, or own three hundreds of land, or own milch animals (animals which gave milk); and they had to live closest to the scene of the crime.

Disputes were not always settled at court, however. More often than not they were settled on the spot using impartial mediators who were usually the most revered men in the area. Sometimes also people were given the right to assess their own compensation. Compensation for murder varied according to the status of the victim and was paid to his kin. Recompense for murdering a slave was normally valued at 12 ounces of silver, a freeman at 100 ounces, and a man of standing at 200 ounces of silver. Compensations paid for retaliatory murders were often made to mirror those paid for the murder that was being avenged, so that no money really exchanged hands. Increased penalties were charged of those who killed by dishonorable means, as with Njal’s killers in Njal’s Saga who were charged 600 ounces of silver for burning him alive in his home, along with 400 ounces for his wife. Compensation could also be charged for wounds that were not fatal. Sometimes challenges were settled by duels in which the winner took all. In cases where a challenge was made and declined, the man who made the challenge was considered the winner.

Many legal technicalities and loopholes allowed a guilty man to go free in the Icelandic legal system. One of these was that charges had to be repeated exactly several times by the plaintiff and the jurymen in order to be admitted. The disqualification of a juror was grounds for dismissing the entire case. The same was true if fewer than nine jurors were present for any reason. Pleading a case in the wrong Quarter Court could also lead to the charge being invalidated, and the plaintiff being charged with committing a procedural irregularity. In the fifth court, a total of 12 judges had to be dismissed for a ruling to stand. If the plaintiff failed to ensure this and the ruling went in his favor, the defendant could have the case thrown out.

Many Icelandic legal practices would seem strange to a modern reader. For instance, murder was to be announced and admitted immediately. If not, it was considered secret murder (mord) which carried much graver penalties.

Social

The social lives of Medieval Icelanders might be considered strange to modern readers. Some social necessities would even be considered foolish by American standards. For example, enemies were shown the same hospitality as friends outside of battle. In addition, heroes were sometimes buried upright as a sign of honor.

Marriage is an excellent indicator of this society’s social trend. In Medieval Iceland, the marriage of young girls to much older men was not uncommon. An older woman marrying a younger man was not unheard of either. As in many other medieval cultures, the groom asked a maiden’s father for her hand. Unlike many others, however, the bride usually had her choice whether or not to follow her father’s wishes. Of course there are exceptions to this, most

notably Gudrun Osvif’s daughter in Laxdaela Saga, who was forced to marry the best friend of the man she loved. Other women made demands of their husbands to make sure they were worthy of marriage. In Njal’s Saga, Hildigunn forces her betrothed Hoskuld to become a chieftain before she will marry him, although this is an extreme example.

As marriage can show a lot about this society, so too can divorce. Divorce was easy and quick in 9th century Iceland. This is not to say that it was done frequently, however. Marriages usually ended with death, even though divorce was an option for both men and women. In one passage from Njal’s Saga, Thrain divorced his wife and was married to his nephew’s daughter-in-law a few hours later; the girl was 14 years old. This divorce was easily accomplished; Thrain and his first wife Thorhild simply declared before witnesses that they were no longer married.

Women were treated more fairly in Iceland than in almost any other medieval culture. They had the opportunity not only to have some say as to their husband, but also to end marriages through a declaration of divorce. In several instances, women performed illegal acts or had others do so. In all of these cases, the blame was placed on either her father or her husband. At the same time, women were given equal value in the household. As Bergthora stated, "I am Njal’s wife, and I have as much to say in hiring servants as he." (Njal’s Saga, Chapter 36)

The family unit was one of the most important aspects of an Icelandic person’s life. Legally, it was the family who was responsible for avenging a murder, either by bringing charges or by retaliating physically. Family was relied upon to support a man whether in court or in battle.

The nuclear family was certainly important to this medieval people, but so were the religious family, foster parents/children, and illegitimate relations. The religious family consisted of priests and religious leaders, as well as those present when a child is baptized. Fostering the children of a friend was a very common practice. Some men even fostered the children of their slain enemies in order to end a feud or show respect to the dead. In either case, these bonds were commonly seen as important as those of blood. In addition, illegitimate children were usually given the same respect as those born to a married couple. The wife of the child’s father would often accept him as one of her own. An attack on any of these family members or on in-laws was seen just as seriously as an attack on one’s own household. This led to families being on both sides of a conflict at times. Conflict between religious or family responsibilities and contractual obligations were frequently a cause of feuds.

Icelandic Saga literature tells a lot about the history and culture of the about the history and culture of the Scandinavian people. It can teach while entertaining and is invaluable to a student of the Middle Ages.

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