For future reference part 2
Oct. 10th, 2005 10:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stellar_muddlePart 2
Bibliography of Arabic Sources Relating to the Vikings
------------------------------------------------------
* D.M. Dunlop. The History of the Jewish Khazars. Princeton Oriental Studies
16. Princeton. 1954.
* M. Reinaud, trans. Geography of Abu al-Fida'. Paris. 1848. Describes the
Norse ca. early 14th century under the heading "Northern Regions of the
World"
* Allen, W. E. D., trans. The Poet and the Spae-Wife: An Attempt to
Reconstruct Al-Ghazal's Embassy to the Vikings. Dublin: Allen Figgis & Co.
1960.
[A translation of the Arabic text describing al-Ghazal's visit to Turgeis,
ruler of the Vikings in Ireland ca. 845. This account dates to the early
1200's.]
* Al-Mas'udi. Meadows of Gold. trans. A. Sprenger. London. 1941.
[Describes the Rus market of Bulghur prior to 947.]
* Al-Mas'udi. Les Praries d'Or. trans. C. Barbier de Meynard and P. de
Courtielle. Paris. 1863.
[Describes the Rus market of Bulghur prior to 947.]
* Al-Mas'udi. The Meadows of Gold: The Abbasids. Paul Lunde and Caroline
Stone, trans and eds. Kegan Paul International. 1989. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0710302460/thevikinganswerl
* Al-Muqaddasi. Descripto Imperii Moslemici. ed. M.J. de Goeje. Leiden.
1877.
[Account ca. 985 of Viking trade practices in Bulghur.]
* Arne Haegstad, "Har at-Tartushi besogt Hedeby (Slesvig)?" Aarboger for
Nordisk Oldkyndighed og historie. 1964.
[Ibrahim ben Ya'qub Al-Turtushi, a Spanish Jew from Cordova, chronicled his
encounters with the Vikings of Salsawig during the tenth century, presumably
the Danish town of Hedeby or Slesvig, although some scholars make a case for
the account to have been describing the Slavic Jumme or Wolin.]
* Ibn Athir. "Les Mosafirides de l'Adherbaidjan." A Volume of Oriental
Studies Presented to E.G. Browne. trans. C. Huart. Cambridge. 1922.
* Ibn Battuta. The Travels of Ibn Battuta. trans. H.A.R. Gibb. Hakluyt
Society 2. Cambridge. 1962. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/812150614X/thevikinganswerl
* S. Janicsek. "Ibn Battuta's Journey to Bulghar." Journal Royal Asiatic
Society. 1929. pp. 792-800.
* Smyser, H. M., trans. "Ibn-Fadlan's Account of the Rus with Some
Commentary and Some Allusions to Beowulf." Franciplegius: Medieval and
Linguistic Studies in Honor of Francis Peabody Magoun Jr. eds. Jess B.
Bessinger and Robert P. Creed. New York: University Press. 1965. pp. 92-119.
[A translation of the Arabic text describing ibn-Fadlan's journey among the
Rus or Russian Vikings ca. 921. This account dates to the early 1200's.]
* Freahn, Christian Martin Joachim. Ibn Foszlan's und anderer Araber
Berichte euber die Russen ealterer Zeit. St. Petersberg. 1923. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/3871182168/thevikinganswerl
[The Arbic text of Ibn Fadlan's Risala, with German Commentary.]
* Ibn Hauqual. Le Livre de l'avertissement. B. Carrera de Vauz, trans.
Paris. 1896. Describes the Rus market at Bulghur. ca. 965
* Ibn Isfandiyar. trans. E.G. Browne. London. 1905.
Bibliography of Clerical Accounts Relating to the Vikings
---------------------------------------------------------
* Adam of Bremen. Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum. Hannoverae et
Lipsiae 1917. (Scriptores rerum germanicarum in usum scholarum).
[Written ca. 1070. A history of the See of Hamburg and of the Christian
missions in the North from A.D. 788 to 1072.]
* Adam of Bremen. Adam of Bremen's History of the Archbishops of
Hamberg-Bremen. Tschan, Francis J., trans. New York, 1959.
* Aggeson, Sven. Brevis Historia Regum Dacie (Scriptores Minores Historiae
Danicae Medii Aevi).
[History of Denmark, ca. 1180's.]
* Kristnisaga. Thattr Thorvalds ens Vidforla. Thattr Isleifs Biskups
Gizurarsonar. Hungarvaka. Hrsg. von B. Kahle. Halle a.S. 1905. (ASB 11).
* Rimbert. Vita Sancti Anskarii. Hannoverae. 1884.
[Chronicles the Conversion of Sweden in the Life of St. Ansgar by Rimbert
ca. 870.]
* Saxo Grammaticus. Gesta Danorum. Rec. J. Olrik et H. Raeder. Tomus I:
Textum Continens. Copenhagen: Levin and Munksgaard. 1931.
[Saxo's History of the Danes.]
* Saxo Grammaticus. Vademecum in opus Saxonis et alia opera Danica
compendium ex indice verborum. (The text of Gesta Danorum in Latin with
Glossary). Accessed 9 September 2000. http://www.rostra.dk/latin/saxo.html
* Saxo Grammaticus. The Danish History, Books I-IX. Online Medieval and
Classical Library Release #28b. Accessed 9 September 2000.
http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/OMACL/DanishHistory/
Scandinavian Law
-----------------
Dennis, Andrew, Peter Foote and Richard Perkins, trans. Laws of Early
Iceland: Gragas. Vol. I. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press. 1980.
[Until this translation was made available, the only was to get any idea of
Icelandic law was by gleaning short, individual passages quoted in various
works, or by learning to read Old Norse yourself. This volume contains the
Christian Laws, Assembly Procedures, Treatment of Homicide, Weregild Ring
List, the Lawspeaker's Section and the Law Council Section. Very useful,
contains notes and explanations as well as an excellent translation.]
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0887551157/thevikinganswerl
Dennis, Andrew, Peter Foote and Richard Perkins, trans. Laws of Early
Iceland: Gragas. Vol. II. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press. August
2000.
[Volume II includes Truce and Peace Speeches, Inheritance, Incapable
Person's Section, Betrothal and General Family Law, Land-claims, General
Commercial Law, Stolen Goods and Theft, Duties of Communes, and
Miscellaneous Provisions regarding poetry, biting dogs, bulls and tame
bears, value of silver, prices, relations with Norway, legal procedure etc.]
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0887551580/thevikinganswerl
* Larson, Laurence, ed. The Earliest Norwegian Laws, Being the Gulathing Law
and the Frostathing Law, Translated from the Old Norwegian. (Records of
Civilization 20) New York: Columbia Univ Press. 1935.
* Friedman, David D. " Private Creation and Enforcement of Law -- A
Historical Case." Journal of Legal Studies March 1979. pp. 399-415.
http://www.best.com/~ddfr/Academic/Iceland/Iceland.html
* Danmarks Gamle Landskabslove Med Kirkelovene. Udg. under ledelse af Johs.
Brondum-Nielsen i forbindelse med Poul Johs. Jorgensen. 8 vols. Copenhagen:
Gyldendal. 1933-1961.
[Early Danish Laws, including early Church Law.]
* Gragas. Islandernes Lovbog I Fristatens Tid. Udg. efter Det Kongelige
Biblioteks Haandskrift og Oversat af Vilhjalmur Finsen for Det Nordiske
Literatur-Samfund. 4 vols. Copenhagen. 1852-1870.
[The Konungsbok version of the Icelandic Lawcode, compiled ca. 1117-1118.]
* Gragas efter det Arnamagnaeanske Haandskrift, nr. 334 fol. Stadarholsbok.
Copenhagen: Gyldendal. 1879.
[The Stadarholsbok version of the Icelandic Lawcode, compiled ca.
1117-1118.]
* Gutalag och Gutasaga. Jamte Ordbok. Utgifna for Samfund til Udgivelse af
Gammel Nordisk Litteratur af Hugo Pipping. Copenhagen. 1905-1907.
[Law of the island of Gotland, ca. 1200's.]
* Norges Game Love Indtil 1387. Udgivne ved R. Keyser og P.A. Munch. 5 vols.
Christiania: 1846-1895.
[The Gulathing Law.of Norway, dates from 1150 with amendments as late as
1164.]
Viking Mythology and Religion
-----------------------------
Viking Myths and Legends
------------------------
* Benedikz, B.S. "The Master Magician in Icelandic Folk-Legend." Durham
University Journal. pp. 22-34.
* Branston, Brian. Gods and Heroes from Viking Mythology. New York:
Schocken. 1982. To order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0872269051/thevikinganswerl
[Brian Branston has written other well-received books on Viking and
Anglo-Saxon mythology, and his retelling of the myths reflects that
background. The lavish, full-color illustrations and pen-and-ink work by
artist Giovanni Caselli are lovely, however they convey the flavor and not
the substance of Viking Art, as his source materials seem to have been
German Romantic painters and Wagnerian set-builders.]
* Buchholz, Peter. "Shamanism -- the Testimony of Old Icelandic Literary
Tradition". Medieval Scandinavia 4 (1971), pp. 7-20.
* Crossley-Holland, Kevin. The Norse Myths. New York: Pantheon. 1980. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0394748468/thevikinganswerl
[Crossley-Holland has collected and consolidated the various sources of
Norse mythology, then produced clear and concise re-tellings of those myths
for this book. Norse myth can be very difficult to grasp when reading the
scattered pieces in the Eddas, but this book provides easily understandible
stories, suitable for reading aloud to children but also enjoyable for
adults. The introduction, notes and glossary make this book even more
attractive as a source. This is an excellent place to start when learning
about the Norse myths.]
* Dumezil, Georges. From Myth to Fiction: the Saga of Hadingus. Derek
Coltman, trans. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1970. To order from
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0226169723/thevikinganswerl
* Dumezil, Georges. Gods of the Ancient Northmen. Berkeley: University of
California Press. 1973. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0520035070/thevikinganswerl
[This work is in translation, and as a result the language is sometimes a
bit difficult to follow. Provides a thoughtful, in-depth analysis of the
powers and relationships of the Norse gods.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda R. "Hostile Magic in the Icelandic Sagas." In: The
Witch Figure: Folklore Essays by a Group of Scholars in England Honouring
the 75th Birthday of Katharine M. Briggs. ed. Venetia Newall. Boston:
Routledge & Kegan Paul. 1973. To buy from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0710076967/thevikinganswerl
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Gods and Myths of Northern Europe.
Harmondsworth: Penguin. 1964. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0140136274/thevikinganswerl
[An excellent general work on the myth and religion of the pagan Vikings.
More detailed analyses are available in Dr. Ellis-Davidson's other, numerous
works, however this provides an excellent introduction to the topic. This is
a great place to start for a unified summary of Norse myth.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Myths and Symbols in Pagan Europe: Early
Scandinavian and Celtic Religions. Syracuse: University Press. 1988.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815624417/thevikinganswerl
[An excellent study of early religion, comparing Viking and Celtic belief
systems and practices.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda. Roles of the Northern Goddess. New York: Routledge.
1998. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0415136113/thevikinganswerl
[This book appears to have been marketed specifically to the New Age press.
Dr. Ellis-Davidson has an amazing range of scholarship, but here she
presents whole drifts of information by goddess-role, rather than by
time-period or by region, while simultaneously comparing the information to
southern and Near Eastern religious and mythological data. There is good
material here, but it's not a good book for the basic beginner.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Scandinavian Mythology. New York: Paul
Hamlyn. 1969. To order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0600036375/thevikinganswerl
[An excellent survey of Norse myth and religion, covering the Bronze Age
predecessors of the Viking deities, the cult of Odin, Thor/Tyr, the Vanir
and Aesir, cosmology and the coming of Christianity.]
* Ellmers, Detlev. "The Ship as a Symbol". In: Valhalla and the Gotland
stones. 1995. pp. 165-171.
[The horses and the ships are the vehicles of the deceased male person to
the memory of whom the picture stones were dedicated. They would mark the
transition or entrance to Valhalla, the home of Odin and the dead warrior
aristocracy.]
* Fjeld, Ellen. "Gatefullt funn pa Hov i Tangen. Betraktninger rundt et
hesteformet hengelas funnet i vann- og kloakktraseen varen 1996 (Mysterious
find at Hov in Tangen [Hedmark]. Thoughts around a horse shaped padlock
found in the water and sewer ditch in spring 1996. In Norwegian.)" Gammalt
fra Stange og Romedal 1996, pp 123-130.
[A bronze horse-shaped padlock found within an area of prehistoric graves is
discussed in terms of origin, function and possible dating. The function of
the lock and the form of a horse are connected to a magic and symbolic
aspect with parallels to Oriental and Norse religious practice.]
* Fuglesang, Signe Horn. "Viking and Medieval Amulets in Scandinavia."
Forvannen 84 (1989) pp. 15-25.
* Grant, John. An Introduction to Viking Mythology. London: Quintet. 1990.
Available used from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1555215610/thevikinganswerl
[This is exactly what the title says: an introduction. Most useful to the
beginner for its encyclopedic listing of the various gods, goddesses and
other figures from Norse mythology.]
* Jon Hnefill A?alsteinsson. Under the Cloak: the Acceptance of Christianity
in Iceland with Particular Reference to the Religious Attitudes Prevailing
at the Time. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. 1978. To buy from
Amzon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/915540815X/thevikinganswerl
* Krappe, Alexander H. "The Sending." Scandinavian Studies 17:8 (1943) pp.
297-304.
* Liden, Hans-Emil. "From pagan sanctuary to Christian church: The
excavation of Mare Church in Trondelag". Norw. Arch. Review 1969/2, pp.
22-32.
[The discussion on cult continuity in connection with the finds of the
excavation in 1966 of a possible pagan cult house under the Med church of
Mare is actualized by ongoing research projects in Norw and Sw on the
conversion from pagan religion to Christianity. The reason for depositing
gold-foil figures at a pagan site is discussed, and it is argued that the
questions on the character and function of the pagan site are still not
settled.]
* Magnusson, Magnus. Hammer of the North. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
1976. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/039911744X/thevikinganswerl
* Motz, Lotte. "The Winter Goddess: Percht, Holda, and Related Figures."
Folklore 95:2 (1984) pp. 151-166.
* Naastrom, Britt-Mari. Freyja - the Great Goddess of the North. Lund
Studies in the History of Religions 5. Lund: Department of History of
Religions, University of Lund. 1995. To buy from Amzon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/9122016945/thevikinganswerl
[Nasstrom's book is very good. She reviews all the source materials and
prior scholarship about Freyja. She goes on to look at Freyja in comparison
to Frigg and other goddesses, both among the Norse and other Indo-European
peoples. Naastrom's central argument is that Freyja is not simply a
fertility goddess, but rather with her ties to the dead, and to fate, etc.
she stands in the role of a Great Goddess, not a minor figure in the
pantheon.]
* Nilsen, Gunnar. "Blixtguden Tors ringar ur en arkeologisk belysning (The
rings of Thor, the God of lightning, from an archaeological point of view.
In Swedish)". Aktuell arkeologi 5 (1996) pp 77-88.
[Discussion on the distribution, use and symbolism of the Thor's-hammer
rings.]
* Page, R.I. "Lapland Sorcerers." Saga Book of the Viking Society 16
(1963-1964): 215-232.
* Poulsen, Grete S. "The Complementarity of Magic in Nordic Mythology and in
Archaeological Sources." In: Words and Objects: Towards a Dialogue between
Archaeology and History of Religion. ed. Gro Steinsland. Oslo: Norwegian
University Press. 1986. pp. 168-179.
* Simpson, Jacqueline. "Olaf Tryggvason versus the Powers of Darkness." In:
The Witch Figure: Folklore Essays by a Group of Scholars in England
Honouring the 75th Birthday of Katharine M. Briggs. ed. Venetia Newall.
Boston: Routledge & Kegan Paul. 1973. pp. 165-187. pp. 20-41. To buy from
Amzon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0710076967/thevikinganswerl
* Steffensen, Jon. "Aspects of Life in Iceland in the Heathen Period."
Saga-Book of the Viking Society. 17:2-3 (1967-1968) pp. 177-205.
* Turville-Petre, E.O.G. "Fertility of Beast and Soil in Old Norse
Literature", in Edgar C. Polome (ed.), Old Norse Literature and Mythology: A
Symposium. Austin: University of Texas Press. 1969.
Asatru, the Modern Reconstruction of Pagan Norse Religion
----------------------------------------------------------
I have included this section as an aid to further persona development, as
well as for those who have a modern interest in pagan Norse religion. One
does have to take some care in using these works, as "New Age" publishers do
not generally require high standards of authority or historicity in the
manuscripts they accept for publishing.
* Aswynn, Freya. Leaves of Yggsdrasil: A Synthesis of Runes, Gods, Magic,
Feminine Mysteries and Folklore. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875420249/thevikinganswerl
[History is not the focus of Aswynn's book.]
* Blum, Ralph. The Book of Runes. New York: St. Martin's Press. 1982. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312097581/thevikinganswerl
[This was the first mass-market book on the runes, recently re-issued. The
original edition came with an attatched set of ceramic rune-tiles. While the
rune-tiles may be useful, the book itself is not, as Blum has used the
I-Ching to determine the "meanings" of the individual runes, totally
ignoring all tradition and scholarship. Not very useful.]
* Blum, Ralph. The Book of Rune Cards. New York: St Martin's Press. 1989. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312169922/thevikinganswerl
[This Blum effort comes with a deck of paste-board "rune-cards" with
tarot-like illustrations. Blum continues with his I-Ching inspired meanings,
while adding North American Indian and Taoist traditions as well. Not very
useful.]
* Conway, D. J. Norse Magic. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875421377/thevikinganswerl
[A really bad book purporting to be "Norse Religion". This is actually a
book of Wiccan ritual, in which the names of the deities have had their
Norse equivalents substituted, sometimes incorrectly. An exercise in shoddy
research, containing gross inaccuracies. Conway also commits plagarism,
stealing her illustrations from Kevin Crossley-Holland's Norse Myths. Not
very useful.]
* Fitch, Ed. The Rites of Odin. St Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875422241/thevikinganswerl
[This book is useful only for the really nice illustrations of Thor, Loki,
Freyja, and Sif (pp. 5-13). Particularly laughable are the use of Dungeons
and Dragons "runes" for the various gods, and the attribution of a Bronze
Age women's outfit as "Viking summer wear". Fitch is a well-known Wiccan,
and as the introduction warns the reader, this book is really "Nordicized
Wicca". I call it, "The Wrongs of Odious". Not very useful.]
* Gundarsson, Kveldulfr. Teutonic Magic: the Magical and Spiritual Practices
of the Germanic Peoples. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875422918/thevikinganswerl
Now available as an e-Book for ~$6 at
http://www.aswynn.runeschool.org/recommended.html
[This book is primarily concerned with the magical and divinatory uses of
runes, but also provides some information on cosmology, religion, and
mythology. Gundarsson's books tend to have more of a historical grounding
than others in this genre. Be aware that Gundarsson often brings a
background of "ceremonial magick" to his work with runes, which I find
dubious in relationship to this Norse tradition.]
* Gundarsson, Kveldulfr. Teutonic Religion: Folk Beliefs & Practices of the
Northern Tradition. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1993. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875422608/thevikinganswerl
Now available as an e-Book for ~$6 at
http://www.aswynn.runeschool.org/recommended.html
[This is one of the better books explaining the actual form of worship of
the Viking peoples. There are some problems, primarily with overscripting of
his sample rituals, but by and large this book provides a sound introduction
to Germanic religious practices.]
* Pennick, Nigel. Practical Magic in the Northern Tradition. N.p.:Aquarian
Press. 1989. To order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1870450167/thevikinganswerl
[Combines folklore and folk practice from the Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic
peoples. Very useful in personna development as it gives calendaric
information, discusses perceptions of space and time, herb-lore, ceremonies,
superstitions. It is important that one try to cross-refence the information
found here with other sources, however, since Pennick doesn't discuss the
sources of his scholarship well and I have found that he makes stuff up at
times.]
* Thorsson, Edred. FUTHARK: A Handbook of Rune Magic. York Beach, ME: Samuel
Weiser. 1984. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0877285489/thevikinganswerl
* Thorsson, Edred. Runelore: A Handbook of Esoteric Runology. York Beach,
ME: Samuel Weiser. 1988. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0877286671/thevikinganswerl
* Thorsson, Edred. Runecaster's Handbook: The Well of Wyrd. York Beach, ME:
Samuel Weiser. 1999. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/157863136X/thevikinganswerl
* Thorsson, Edred. Northern Magic: Rune Mysteries & Shamanism. Llewellyn's
World Magic Series. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. Paperback 2nd ed. 1998.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1567187099/thevikinganswerl
* Tyson, Donald. Rune Magic. St. Paul, MN: Llewelyn. 1988. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875428266/thevikinganswerl
The Conversion to Christianity
--------------------------------
Although most people tend to think of the Vikings as heathen peoples, the
Conversion to Christianity made an enormous impact on the Viking Age,
especially as nations were forming.
* Adalsteinson, Jon Hnefill. Under the Cloak: The Acceptance of Christianity
in Iceland with Particular Reference to the Religious Attitudes Prevailing
at the Time. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. 1978. ISBN
91-554-0815-X.
[Outstanding discussion of the famous decision by Thorgeirr Lawspeaker that
Iceland should henceforth be Christian, recounted in full by Ari the Wise in
Islendingabok, a decision which took place at the Thing of the year 1000. ]
* Browner, Jessica A. " 'Viking' Pilgrimage to the Holy Land: fram! fram!
cristmenn, crossmenn, konungsmenn! (Olafs saga helga, ch. 224.)" Essays in
History 34. University of Virgina. 1992. Accessed 14 Nov 2000.
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/journals/EH/EH34/browne34.html
* Christiansen, Eric. The Northern Crusades: the Baltic and the Catholic
Frontier, 1100-1525. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. 1980.
* Cormack, Margaret. The Saints in Iceland: their Veneration from the
Conversion to 1400. Bruxelles: Societe des Bollandistes. 1994.
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Scandinavian Mythology. New York: Paul
Hamlyn. 1969.
[An excellent survey of Norse myth and religion, covering the Bronze Age
predecessors of the Viking deities, the cult of Odin, Thor/Tyr, the Vanir
and Aesir, cosmology and the coming of Christianity.]
* Finnestad, Ragnhild Bjerre. "The Study of Christianization of the Nordic
Countries: Some Reflections." in: Old Norse and Finnish Religions and Cultic
Place-Names. ed. Tore Ahlback. Scripta Instituti Donneriana Aboensis 13.
Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell. 1990. pp. 256-272.
* Foote, Peter. Observations in "Syncretism" in Early Icelandic
Christianity. Reykjavik 1975. (Arbok Visindafelags Islendinga 1974, pp.
69-86).
* Fuglesang, Signe Horn. "Crucifixion Iconography in Viking Scandinavia."
in: Proceedings of the Eighth Viking Congress, Arhus, 24-31 August 1977.
Odense: Odense University Press. 1981.
* Gislason, Jonas. "Acceptance of Christianity in Iceland in the Year 1000
(999)." in: Old Norse and Finnish Religions and Cultic Place-Names. Based on
papers read at the Symposium on Encounters between Religions in Old Nordic
Times and on Cultic Place-Names, held at Abo, Finland, on the 19th-21st of
August 1987. ed. Tore Ahlback. Abo: Donner Institute for Research in
Religious and Cultural History. 1990. pp. 223-255.
* Knox, E.L. Skip. The Destruction and Conversion of the Wends. Masters
Thesis. 1980.
* Lange, W. Studien zur Christlichen Dichtung der Nordgermanen 1000-1200.
Gottingen. 1958.
* Ljungberg, H. Den nordiska religionen och kristendomen. Stockholm 1938.
(Nordiska texter och undersokningar 11).
* Olsen, Olaf. Horg, Hov Og Kirke. Historiske og Arkaeologiske Vikingetids
Studier.
Copenhagen: Gad. 1966.
* Paasche, Fredrik. Motet mellom hedendom og kristendom i Norden. Utgitt ved
Dag Stromback. Stockholm. 1958.
[Throughout Northern Europe Christianity did not easily displace paganism.
Missionaries were often well received, for all the peoples of Northern
Europe held hospitality and a hosts' duty towards his guests in high honor.
Later, however, when the missionaries proved to be poor guests by attempting
to disrupt their way of life, the ordinary people clung stubbornly and
violently to their ancestral faith.]
* Sawyer, Birgit, and Peter Sawyer. Medieval Scandinavia from Conversion to
Reformation ca. 800-1500. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. 1993.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0816617392/thevikinganswerl
* Sawyer, Birgit, Peter Sawyer and Ian Wood. The Christianization of
Scandinavia. Report of a Symposium held at Kungalv, Sweden, 4-9 August 1985.
Alingsas, Sweden: Viktoria Bokforlag. 1987. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/918670804X/thevikinganswerl
* Sawyer, Peter. "The Process of Christianization in the Tenth and Eleventh
Centuries." in: The Christianization of Scandinavia. Report of a Symposium
held at Kungalv, Sweden, 4-9 August 1985. Alingsas, Sweden: Viktoria
Bokforlag. 1987. pp. 68-87. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/918670804X/thevikinganswerl
* Stromback, Dag. The Conversion of Iceland: A Survey. Translated and
annoted by Peter G. Foote. London. 1975.
* Wood, Ian. 1987. "Christians and Pagans in Ninth-Century Scandinavia." in:
The Christianization of Scandinavia. Report of a Symposium held at Kungalv,
Sweden, 4-9 August 1985. Alingsas, Sweden: Viktoria Bokforlag. 1987. pp.
36-67.
Women's Studies
----------------
* Anderson, Sarah M. and Karen Swenson, eds. Cold Counsel: Women in Old
Norse Literature and Mythology. New York & London: Routledge. 2002.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815319665/thevikinganswerl
[This collection of essays draws upon the disciplines of history, sociology,
feminism, ethnography, and psychoanalysis in order to raise fresh question
about such new subjects as gender, class, sexuality, family structure, and
ideology in medieval Iceland. Essays include: (1) Introduction: "og eru kold
kvenna ra?"; (2) "En hon er blandin mjok": Women and Insults in Old Norse
Literature; (3) Hildigunnr's Lament; (4) Women's Voices in Old Norse
Literature: The Case of Trojumanna saga; (5) Taming the Shrew: The Rise of
Patriarchy and the Subordination of the Feminine in Old Norse Literature;
(6) The Re-emergence of Women's Voices in Icelandic Literature, 1500-1800;
(7) Vikings Westward to Vinland: The Problem of Women; (8) "?egi ?u, ?orr!":
Gender, Class, and Discourse in ?rymskvi?a; (9) Fathers, Mothers, and
Daughters: "Hver er a? ra?a?"; (10) A Good Day's Work: Laxdoela saga, ch.
49; (11) Women's Counsel in the Riddarasogur: The Case of Parcevals saga;
(12) The Woman Who Knows: Female Characters of Eyrbyggja saga; (13) Male
Bonding, Female Body: The Absenting of Woman in "Bisclaretz ljo?"; (14)
Ambiguously Gendered: The Skalds Jorunn, Au?r and Steinunn; (15) Women
Outside: Discourse of Community in Havamal; (16) Saga World and
Nineteenth-Century Iceland: The Case of Women Farmers.]
* Andersson, Theodore M. The Legend of Brynhild. Islandica 43. Ithaca NY:
Cornell Univ. Press. 1980. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0801413028/thevikinganswerl
* Benidictow, Ole Jorgen. "The Milky Way in History: Breast Feeding,
Antagonism Between the Sexes, and Infant Mortality in Medieval Norway,"
Scandinavian Journal of History. 10 (1985): 19-53.
* Clover, Carol J. "Maiden Warriors and Other Sons," Journal of English and
Germanic Philology (JEGP), 85 (1986):35-49.
[This is an excellent article examining the theme of the Viking warrior
woman. Clover has determined by examination of the laws, particularly the
Baugatal section of Gragas, the sagas and Saxo Grammaticus's depictions of
women warriors, as well as ethnological comparisons, that the woman warrior
was a rare and specialized role. The only case in which a woman was allowed
to take up arms was if (1) she was never married, (2) she had no living male
relatives in the degrees listed in Baugatal who would have received weregild
for the death of a family member, and (3) a crime had been perpetrated
against her family that required vengeance by the social code of the day,
often the murder of her last male relative. This role was temporary, but for
its duration conferred the social role on the warrior woman as "son".
Excellent and insightful essay.]
* Clover, Carol J. "The Politics of Scarcity: Notes on the Sex Ratio in
Early Scandinavia." Scandinavian Studies 60 (1988): 147-188.
[An interesting and insightful article, hypothesizes that women were
extremely scarce in Viking Scandinavia (particularly Iceland) due to several
factors, including higher rate of mortality due to childbirth and
preferential exposure of female infants. If Clover is correct, her
explanation completely reconciles the apparent gap between women's status as
reflected in the laws versus women's status as shown in the sagas.]
* Clover, Carol J. "Regardless of Sex: Men, Women, and Power in Early
Northern Europe," In: Studying Medieval Women, ed. Nancy F. Partner.
Cambridge: Medieval Academy of America. 1993. pp. 61-85. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0915651068/thevikinganswerl
* Damico, Helen. Beowulf's Wealhtheow and the Valkyrie Tradition. Madison:
Univ. of Wisconsin Press. 1984. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0299095002/thevikinganswerl
[Damico does an excellent job of reviewing the early Germanic literature for
tales of valkyries, warrior women, and women as agents of fate. The weakness
in this work is that she basically reads every female figure encountered
everywhere as a valkyrie, which is rather overstating things. Still, this is
a useful and interesting book.]
* Damsholt, Nanna. "The Role of Icelandic Women in the Sagas and the
Production of Homespun Cloth," Scandinavian Journal of History. 9 (1984):
75-90.
[An insightful discussion of the implications of the fact that the gross
national product of Viking Age Iceland was homespun, a cottage industry
managed entirely by women, and how this affected the status of these women.]
* Enright, Michael J. Lady With a Mead Cup: Ritual Prophecy and Lordship in
the European Warband from La Tene to the Viking Age. Dublin: Four Courts
Press. 1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1851821880/thevikinganswerl
[An examination of the role of women in defining and maintaining social
order through the ritual of drinking.]
* Fell, Christine. "Viking Women in Britain." Women in Anglo-Saxon England.
Bloomington: Indiana University Press. 1984. 129-147. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0631149244/thevikinganswerl
[Included as a chapter in Fell's excellent book on women in Anglo-Saxon
England. Provides a brief summary of the status and historical position of
women in the areas of England settled by the Vikings.]
* Frank, Roberta. "Marriage in Twelfth- and Thirteenth-Century Iceland."
Viator 4 (1973): 473-484.
[Discusses the marriage laws of Gragas as well as the portrait of marriage
presented by the sagas. An excellent paper on women and marriage in medieval
Iceland.]
* Frank, Roberta. "Why Skalds Address Women," In: Poetry in the Scandinavian
Middle Ages. Atti del 12 Congresso Internationale di Studi sull'alto
medioevo. Spoleto: Centro Italiano di Studi sull'alto medioevo. 1990. pp.
67-83.
* Jacobsen, Grethe. The Position of Women in Scandinavia During the Viking
Period. (MA Thesis, University of Wisconsin, 1978.)
[Presents a comprehensive look at Viking women as reflected in law and
literature, with separate discussions of conditions in Iceland, Norway,
Denmark and Sweden. An excellent source, and surprisingly, quite readable.]
* Jacobsen, Grethe. "Sexual Irregularities in Medieval Scandinavia." Sexual
Practices and the Medieval Church. eds. Vern L. Bullough and James Brundage.
Buffalo: Prometheus Books. 1982. 72-85. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0879752688/thevikinganswerl
[A survey of the attitudes of medieval Scandinavians toward non-marital sex,
with good discussions of how those attitudes reflect the role of women in
Scandinavian society.]
* Jesch, Judith. Women in the Viking Age. Woodbridge: Boydell. 1991. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0851153607/thevikinganswerl
[Jesch's book was the first English language book on women in the Viking
Age. She gives an introduction to the scholarship up to 1991 dealing with
women of the period. While the work is not in-depth, it is extremely useful
as a place to begin learning about this topic, and furthermore, Jesch paves
the way here for others to follow in her footsteps. Excellent book.]
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Before the Male Gaze: the Absence of the Female Body in
Old Norse," In: Sex in the Middle Ages. ed. Joyce E. Salisbury. New York:
Garland. 1991. pp. 3-29. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/082405766X/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "The Church and Sexuality in Medieval Iceland." Journal
of Medieval History 6 (1980): 377-392.
[Particularly focused on the concept of clerical marriages, also provides
insights into the status of women and non-marital sex.]
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Consent in Marriage: Old Norse Law, Life, and
Literature." Scandinavian Studies 58 (1986): 142-176.
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Gender and Drinking in the World of the Icelandic
Sagas," In: A Special Brew: Essays in Honor of Kristof Glamann. (Odense
University Studies in History and Social Sciences , Vol 165) Thomas Riis,
Ed. Odense: Odense Univ. Press. 1993. pp. 155-181. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/8774929305/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "The Illicit Love Visit: An Archaeology of Old Norse
Sexuality," JHS 1 (1991): 357-392.
* Jochens, Jenny M. "The Medieval Icelandic Heroine: Fact or Fiction?"
Viator 17 (1986): 35-50.
[A revealing examination of the "Germanic-Nordic model of strong,
independent womanhood" via a comparison of the heroines of the sagas and
evidence drawn from Scandinavian law codes, with special attention to women
and marriage. ]
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Men, Women, and Beasts: Old Norse Sexuality." In:
Handbook in Sexuality. ed. Vern Bullough. New York: Garland Press. 1995.
* Jochens, Jenny M. Old Norse Images of Women. Philadelphia. Univ of
Philadelphia Press. 1996. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0812233581/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Old Norse Magic and Gender: Thattr Thorvalds ens
Vidforla," Scandinavian Studies 63 (1991): 305-317.
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Old Norse Motherhood," In: Medieval Mothering. (Feminea
Medevalia 3) eds. Bonnie Wheeler and John C. Parson. New York: Garland.
1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815336659/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Old Norse Sources on Women," In: Medieval Women and the
Sources of Medieval History, ed. Joel T. Rosenthal. Athens: Univ. of Georgia
Press. 1990. pp. 155-188. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0820312142/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Vikings Westward to Vinland: Problems of Women and
Sexuality." In: Cold Counsel: the Women of Old Norse Literature and Myth.
(Garland Reference Library of the Humanities, V 1894) eds. Karen Swenson and
Saray May Anderson. New York: Garland Press. 1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815319665/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Voluspa: Matrix of Norse Womanhood," Journal of English
and Germanic Philology 88 (1989): 344-362.
* Jochens, Jenny M. Women in Old Norse Society. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press.
1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0801485207/thevikinganswerl
[A fascinating wealth of detail of the lives of women in Viking Age Iceland
and Norway, including work, sexual behavior, marriage customs, reproductive
practices, familial relations, leisure activities, religious practices, and
legal matters relating to women. An outstanding book.]
* Kalinke, Marianne E. "An Arabic Sister of the Icelandic Maiden King." In
Davi?sdiktur 1986, ed. Sigurgeir Steingrimsson. Reykjavik. 1986. pp. 36-38.
* Kalinke, Marianne E. "The Misogamous Maiden Kings of Icelandic Romance."
SI 37 (1986) pp. 47-71.
* Kalinke, Marianne E. Bridal-Quest Romance in Medieval Iceland. Islandica
46. Ithaca, NY:
Cornell University Press. 1990.
[Examines the 13th and 14th century romantic literature of iceland and how
the stereotypical "bridal-quest" theme is used in these works.]
* Karras, Ruth M. "Concubinage and Slavery in the Viking Age," Scandinavian
Studies 62 (1990): 141-162.
[An excellent discussion of the role of the concubine in Old Norse Society.]
* Larrington, Carolyne. "What Does Woman Want? Mar and Munr in Skirnismal."
Alvismal I (1992), pp. 3-16. Online in PDF format at
http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~alvismal/1maer.pdf
* Norrman, Lena. "Woman or Warrior? The Construction of Gender in Old Norse
Myth". Old Norse Myths, Literature and Society: Proceedings of the 11th
International Saga Conference 2-7 July 2000, University of Sydney. Geraldine
Barnes and Margaret Clunies Ross, eds. Sydney: Centre for Medieval Studies,
University of Sydney. 2000. pp. 375-385. ISBN 1864873167. Available online
in PDF format at
http://www.arts.usyd.edu.au/departs/medieval/saga/pdf/375-norrman.pdf
[Explores gender roles and the function of the remarkable phenomenon of the
warrior woman dressed as a man in chain mail and the queen with her own
army; the "maiden king". Looks at gender and transgender ideas, examining
the heroine Hervor.]
* Sorensen, Marie Louise Stig. "Identifying or including: approaches to the
engendering of archaeology". KAN. Kvinner i arkeologi i Norge 21, 1996, pp
51-60.
[Two different approaches to the analysis of women's involvement with
metal-working are outlined. It is argued that instead of finding gender, we
should aim to explore productive technologies by including women and
focusing upon the social context of the production.]
* Sorensen, Marie Louise Stig. "Women as/and metalworkers." In: Women in
industry and technology: From prehistory to the present day. A. Devonshire &
B. Wood, eds. London: Museum of London. 1996.
[Two different approaches to the analysis of women's involvement with
metal-working are outlined. It is argued that instead of finding gender, we
should aim to explore productive technologies by including women and
focusing upon the social context of the production.]
* Strand, Birgit. "Women in Gesta Danorum." Saxo Grammaticus: A Medieval
Author Between Norse and Latin Culture. ed. Kirsten Friis-Jensen.
Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press. 1981. 135-167.
[A comparison of parallel portrayals of women in Saxo's Gesta Danorum and
those in the works of Snorri Sturluson. Contains a good discussion of the
perception of women by Christian authors of widely differing backgrounds:
really points up the differences between medieval Scandinavia and the rest
of Europe.]
Bibliography of Arabic Sources Relating to the Vikings
------------------------------------------------------
* D.M. Dunlop. The History of the Jewish Khazars. Princeton Oriental Studies
16. Princeton. 1954.
* M. Reinaud, trans. Geography of Abu al-Fida'. Paris. 1848. Describes the
Norse ca. early 14th century under the heading "Northern Regions of the
World"
* Allen, W. E. D., trans. The Poet and the Spae-Wife: An Attempt to
Reconstruct Al-Ghazal's Embassy to the Vikings. Dublin: Allen Figgis & Co.
1960.
[A translation of the Arabic text describing al-Ghazal's visit to Turgeis,
ruler of the Vikings in Ireland ca. 845. This account dates to the early
1200's.]
* Al-Mas'udi. Meadows of Gold. trans. A. Sprenger. London. 1941.
[Describes the Rus market of Bulghur prior to 947.]
* Al-Mas'udi. Les Praries d'Or. trans. C. Barbier de Meynard and P. de
Courtielle. Paris. 1863.
[Describes the Rus market of Bulghur prior to 947.]
* Al-Mas'udi. The Meadows of Gold: The Abbasids. Paul Lunde and Caroline
Stone, trans and eds. Kegan Paul International. 1989. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0710302460/thevikinganswerl
* Al-Muqaddasi. Descripto Imperii Moslemici. ed. M.J. de Goeje. Leiden.
1877.
[Account ca. 985 of Viking trade practices in Bulghur.]
* Arne Haegstad, "Har at-Tartushi besogt Hedeby (Slesvig)?" Aarboger for
Nordisk Oldkyndighed og historie. 1964.
[Ibrahim ben Ya'qub Al-Turtushi, a Spanish Jew from Cordova, chronicled his
encounters with the Vikings of Salsawig during the tenth century, presumably
the Danish town of Hedeby or Slesvig, although some scholars make a case for
the account to have been describing the Slavic Jumme or Wolin.]
* Ibn Athir. "Les Mosafirides de l'Adherbaidjan." A Volume of Oriental
Studies Presented to E.G. Browne. trans. C. Huart. Cambridge. 1922.
* Ibn Battuta. The Travels of Ibn Battuta. trans. H.A.R. Gibb. Hakluyt
Society 2. Cambridge. 1962. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/812150614X/thevikinganswerl
* S. Janicsek. "Ibn Battuta's Journey to Bulghar." Journal Royal Asiatic
Society. 1929. pp. 792-800.
* Smyser, H. M., trans. "Ibn-Fadlan's Account of the Rus with Some
Commentary and Some Allusions to Beowulf." Franciplegius: Medieval and
Linguistic Studies in Honor of Francis Peabody Magoun Jr. eds. Jess B.
Bessinger and Robert P. Creed. New York: University Press. 1965. pp. 92-119.
[A translation of the Arabic text describing ibn-Fadlan's journey among the
Rus or Russian Vikings ca. 921. This account dates to the early 1200's.]
* Freahn, Christian Martin Joachim. Ibn Foszlan's und anderer Araber
Berichte euber die Russen ealterer Zeit. St. Petersberg. 1923. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/3871182168/thevikinganswerl
[The Arbic text of Ibn Fadlan's Risala, with German Commentary.]
* Ibn Hauqual. Le Livre de l'avertissement. B. Carrera de Vauz, trans.
Paris. 1896. Describes the Rus market at Bulghur. ca. 965
* Ibn Isfandiyar. trans. E.G. Browne. London. 1905.
Bibliography of Clerical Accounts Relating to the Vikings
---------------------------------------------------------
* Adam of Bremen. Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum. Hannoverae et
Lipsiae 1917. (Scriptores rerum germanicarum in usum scholarum).
[Written ca. 1070. A history of the See of Hamburg and of the Christian
missions in the North from A.D. 788 to 1072.]
* Adam of Bremen. Adam of Bremen's History of the Archbishops of
Hamberg-Bremen. Tschan, Francis J., trans. New York, 1959.
* Aggeson, Sven. Brevis Historia Regum Dacie (Scriptores Minores Historiae
Danicae Medii Aevi).
[History of Denmark, ca. 1180's.]
* Kristnisaga. Thattr Thorvalds ens Vidforla. Thattr Isleifs Biskups
Gizurarsonar. Hungarvaka. Hrsg. von B. Kahle. Halle a.S. 1905. (ASB 11).
* Rimbert. Vita Sancti Anskarii. Hannoverae. 1884.
[Chronicles the Conversion of Sweden in the Life of St. Ansgar by Rimbert
ca. 870.]
* Saxo Grammaticus. Gesta Danorum. Rec. J. Olrik et H. Raeder. Tomus I:
Textum Continens. Copenhagen: Levin and Munksgaard. 1931.
[Saxo's History of the Danes.]
* Saxo Grammaticus. Vademecum in opus Saxonis et alia opera Danica
compendium ex indice verborum. (The text of Gesta Danorum in Latin with
Glossary). Accessed 9 September 2000. http://www.rostra.dk/latin/saxo.html
* Saxo Grammaticus. The Danish History, Books I-IX. Online Medieval and
Classical Library Release #28b. Accessed 9 September 2000.
http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/OMACL/DanishHistory/
Scandinavian Law
-----------------
Dennis, Andrew, Peter Foote and Richard Perkins, trans. Laws of Early
Iceland: Gragas. Vol. I. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press. 1980.
[Until this translation was made available, the only was to get any idea of
Icelandic law was by gleaning short, individual passages quoted in various
works, or by learning to read Old Norse yourself. This volume contains the
Christian Laws, Assembly Procedures, Treatment of Homicide, Weregild Ring
List, the Lawspeaker's Section and the Law Council Section. Very useful,
contains notes and explanations as well as an excellent translation.]
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0887551157/thevikinganswerl
Dennis, Andrew, Peter Foote and Richard Perkins, trans. Laws of Early
Iceland: Gragas. Vol. II. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press. August
2000.
[Volume II includes Truce and Peace Speeches, Inheritance, Incapable
Person's Section, Betrothal and General Family Law, Land-claims, General
Commercial Law, Stolen Goods and Theft, Duties of Communes, and
Miscellaneous Provisions regarding poetry, biting dogs, bulls and tame
bears, value of silver, prices, relations with Norway, legal procedure etc.]
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0887551580/thevikinganswerl
* Larson, Laurence, ed. The Earliest Norwegian Laws, Being the Gulathing Law
and the Frostathing Law, Translated from the Old Norwegian. (Records of
Civilization 20) New York: Columbia Univ Press. 1935.
* Friedman, David D. " Private Creation and Enforcement of Law -- A
Historical Case." Journal of Legal Studies March 1979. pp. 399-415.
http://www.best.com/~ddfr/Academic/Iceland/Iceland.html
* Danmarks Gamle Landskabslove Med Kirkelovene. Udg. under ledelse af Johs.
Brondum-Nielsen i forbindelse med Poul Johs. Jorgensen. 8 vols. Copenhagen:
Gyldendal. 1933-1961.
[Early Danish Laws, including early Church Law.]
* Gragas. Islandernes Lovbog I Fristatens Tid. Udg. efter Det Kongelige
Biblioteks Haandskrift og Oversat af Vilhjalmur Finsen for Det Nordiske
Literatur-Samfund. 4 vols. Copenhagen. 1852-1870.
[The Konungsbok version of the Icelandic Lawcode, compiled ca. 1117-1118.]
* Gragas efter det Arnamagnaeanske Haandskrift, nr. 334 fol. Stadarholsbok.
Copenhagen: Gyldendal. 1879.
[The Stadarholsbok version of the Icelandic Lawcode, compiled ca.
1117-1118.]
* Gutalag och Gutasaga. Jamte Ordbok. Utgifna for Samfund til Udgivelse af
Gammel Nordisk Litteratur af Hugo Pipping. Copenhagen. 1905-1907.
[Law of the island of Gotland, ca. 1200's.]
* Norges Game Love Indtil 1387. Udgivne ved R. Keyser og P.A. Munch. 5 vols.
Christiania: 1846-1895.
[The Gulathing Law.of Norway, dates from 1150 with amendments as late as
1164.]
Viking Mythology and Religion
-----------------------------
Viking Myths and Legends
------------------------
* Benedikz, B.S. "The Master Magician in Icelandic Folk-Legend." Durham
University Journal. pp. 22-34.
* Branston, Brian. Gods and Heroes from Viking Mythology. New York:
Schocken. 1982. To order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0872269051/thevikinganswerl
[Brian Branston has written other well-received books on Viking and
Anglo-Saxon mythology, and his retelling of the myths reflects that
background. The lavish, full-color illustrations and pen-and-ink work by
artist Giovanni Caselli are lovely, however they convey the flavor and not
the substance of Viking Art, as his source materials seem to have been
German Romantic painters and Wagnerian set-builders.]
* Buchholz, Peter. "Shamanism -- the Testimony of Old Icelandic Literary
Tradition". Medieval Scandinavia 4 (1971), pp. 7-20.
* Crossley-Holland, Kevin. The Norse Myths. New York: Pantheon. 1980. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0394748468/thevikinganswerl
[Crossley-Holland has collected and consolidated the various sources of
Norse mythology, then produced clear and concise re-tellings of those myths
for this book. Norse myth can be very difficult to grasp when reading the
scattered pieces in the Eddas, but this book provides easily understandible
stories, suitable for reading aloud to children but also enjoyable for
adults. The introduction, notes and glossary make this book even more
attractive as a source. This is an excellent place to start when learning
about the Norse myths.]
* Dumezil, Georges. From Myth to Fiction: the Saga of Hadingus. Derek
Coltman, trans. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1970. To order from
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0226169723/thevikinganswerl
* Dumezil, Georges. Gods of the Ancient Northmen. Berkeley: University of
California Press. 1973. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0520035070/thevikinganswerl
[This work is in translation, and as a result the language is sometimes a
bit difficult to follow. Provides a thoughtful, in-depth analysis of the
powers and relationships of the Norse gods.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda R. "Hostile Magic in the Icelandic Sagas." In: The
Witch Figure: Folklore Essays by a Group of Scholars in England Honouring
the 75th Birthday of Katharine M. Briggs. ed. Venetia Newall. Boston:
Routledge & Kegan Paul. 1973. To buy from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0710076967/thevikinganswerl
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Gods and Myths of Northern Europe.
Harmondsworth: Penguin. 1964. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0140136274/thevikinganswerl
[An excellent general work on the myth and religion of the pagan Vikings.
More detailed analyses are available in Dr. Ellis-Davidson's other, numerous
works, however this provides an excellent introduction to the topic. This is
a great place to start for a unified summary of Norse myth.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Myths and Symbols in Pagan Europe: Early
Scandinavian and Celtic Religions. Syracuse: University Press. 1988.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815624417/thevikinganswerl
[An excellent study of early religion, comparing Viking and Celtic belief
systems and practices.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda. Roles of the Northern Goddess. New York: Routledge.
1998. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0415136113/thevikinganswerl
[This book appears to have been marketed specifically to the New Age press.
Dr. Ellis-Davidson has an amazing range of scholarship, but here she
presents whole drifts of information by goddess-role, rather than by
time-period or by region, while simultaneously comparing the information to
southern and Near Eastern religious and mythological data. There is good
material here, but it's not a good book for the basic beginner.]
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Scandinavian Mythology. New York: Paul
Hamlyn. 1969. To order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0600036375/thevikinganswerl
[An excellent survey of Norse myth and religion, covering the Bronze Age
predecessors of the Viking deities, the cult of Odin, Thor/Tyr, the Vanir
and Aesir, cosmology and the coming of Christianity.]
* Ellmers, Detlev. "The Ship as a Symbol". In: Valhalla and the Gotland
stones. 1995. pp. 165-171.
[The horses and the ships are the vehicles of the deceased male person to
the memory of whom the picture stones were dedicated. They would mark the
transition or entrance to Valhalla, the home of Odin and the dead warrior
aristocracy.]
* Fjeld, Ellen. "Gatefullt funn pa Hov i Tangen. Betraktninger rundt et
hesteformet hengelas funnet i vann- og kloakktraseen varen 1996 (Mysterious
find at Hov in Tangen [Hedmark]. Thoughts around a horse shaped padlock
found in the water and sewer ditch in spring 1996. In Norwegian.)" Gammalt
fra Stange og Romedal 1996, pp 123-130.
[A bronze horse-shaped padlock found within an area of prehistoric graves is
discussed in terms of origin, function and possible dating. The function of
the lock and the form of a horse are connected to a magic and symbolic
aspect with parallels to Oriental and Norse religious practice.]
* Fuglesang, Signe Horn. "Viking and Medieval Amulets in Scandinavia."
Forvannen 84 (1989) pp. 15-25.
* Grant, John. An Introduction to Viking Mythology. London: Quintet. 1990.
Available used from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1555215610/thevikinganswerl
[This is exactly what the title says: an introduction. Most useful to the
beginner for its encyclopedic listing of the various gods, goddesses and
other figures from Norse mythology.]
* Jon Hnefill A?alsteinsson. Under the Cloak: the Acceptance of Christianity
in Iceland with Particular Reference to the Religious Attitudes Prevailing
at the Time. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. 1978. To buy from
Amzon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/915540815X/thevikinganswerl
* Krappe, Alexander H. "The Sending." Scandinavian Studies 17:8 (1943) pp.
297-304.
* Liden, Hans-Emil. "From pagan sanctuary to Christian church: The
excavation of Mare Church in Trondelag". Norw. Arch. Review 1969/2, pp.
22-32.
[The discussion on cult continuity in connection with the finds of the
excavation in 1966 of a possible pagan cult house under the Med church of
Mare is actualized by ongoing research projects in Norw and Sw on the
conversion from pagan religion to Christianity. The reason for depositing
gold-foil figures at a pagan site is discussed, and it is argued that the
questions on the character and function of the pagan site are still not
settled.]
* Magnusson, Magnus. Hammer of the North. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
1976. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/039911744X/thevikinganswerl
* Motz, Lotte. "The Winter Goddess: Percht, Holda, and Related Figures."
Folklore 95:2 (1984) pp. 151-166.
* Naastrom, Britt-Mari. Freyja - the Great Goddess of the North. Lund
Studies in the History of Religions 5. Lund: Department of History of
Religions, University of Lund. 1995. To buy from Amzon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/9122016945/thevikinganswerl
[Nasstrom's book is very good. She reviews all the source materials and
prior scholarship about Freyja. She goes on to look at Freyja in comparison
to Frigg and other goddesses, both among the Norse and other Indo-European
peoples. Naastrom's central argument is that Freyja is not simply a
fertility goddess, but rather with her ties to the dead, and to fate, etc.
she stands in the role of a Great Goddess, not a minor figure in the
pantheon.]
* Nilsen, Gunnar. "Blixtguden Tors ringar ur en arkeologisk belysning (The
rings of Thor, the God of lightning, from an archaeological point of view.
In Swedish)". Aktuell arkeologi 5 (1996) pp 77-88.
[Discussion on the distribution, use and symbolism of the Thor's-hammer
rings.]
* Page, R.I. "Lapland Sorcerers." Saga Book of the Viking Society 16
(1963-1964): 215-232.
* Poulsen, Grete S. "The Complementarity of Magic in Nordic Mythology and in
Archaeological Sources." In: Words and Objects: Towards a Dialogue between
Archaeology and History of Religion. ed. Gro Steinsland. Oslo: Norwegian
University Press. 1986. pp. 168-179.
* Simpson, Jacqueline. "Olaf Tryggvason versus the Powers of Darkness." In:
The Witch Figure: Folklore Essays by a Group of Scholars in England
Honouring the 75th Birthday of Katharine M. Briggs. ed. Venetia Newall.
Boston: Routledge & Kegan Paul. 1973. pp. 165-187. pp. 20-41. To buy from
Amzon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0710076967/thevikinganswerl
* Steffensen, Jon. "Aspects of Life in Iceland in the Heathen Period."
Saga-Book of the Viking Society. 17:2-3 (1967-1968) pp. 177-205.
* Turville-Petre, E.O.G. "Fertility of Beast and Soil in Old Norse
Literature", in Edgar C. Polome (ed.), Old Norse Literature and Mythology: A
Symposium. Austin: University of Texas Press. 1969.
Asatru, the Modern Reconstruction of Pagan Norse Religion
----------------------------------------------------------
I have included this section as an aid to further persona development, as
well as for those who have a modern interest in pagan Norse religion. One
does have to take some care in using these works, as "New Age" publishers do
not generally require high standards of authority or historicity in the
manuscripts they accept for publishing.
* Aswynn, Freya. Leaves of Yggsdrasil: A Synthesis of Runes, Gods, Magic,
Feminine Mysteries and Folklore. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875420249/thevikinganswerl
[History is not the focus of Aswynn's book.]
* Blum, Ralph. The Book of Runes. New York: St. Martin's Press. 1982. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312097581/thevikinganswerl
[This was the first mass-market book on the runes, recently re-issued. The
original edition came with an attatched set of ceramic rune-tiles. While the
rune-tiles may be useful, the book itself is not, as Blum has used the
I-Ching to determine the "meanings" of the individual runes, totally
ignoring all tradition and scholarship. Not very useful.]
* Blum, Ralph. The Book of Rune Cards. New York: St Martin's Press. 1989. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312169922/thevikinganswerl
[This Blum effort comes with a deck of paste-board "rune-cards" with
tarot-like illustrations. Blum continues with his I-Ching inspired meanings,
while adding North American Indian and Taoist traditions as well. Not very
useful.]
* Conway, D. J. Norse Magic. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875421377/thevikinganswerl
[A really bad book purporting to be "Norse Religion". This is actually a
book of Wiccan ritual, in which the names of the deities have had their
Norse equivalents substituted, sometimes incorrectly. An exercise in shoddy
research, containing gross inaccuracies. Conway also commits plagarism,
stealing her illustrations from Kevin Crossley-Holland's Norse Myths. Not
very useful.]
* Fitch, Ed. The Rites of Odin. St Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875422241/thevikinganswerl
[This book is useful only for the really nice illustrations of Thor, Loki,
Freyja, and Sif (pp. 5-13). Particularly laughable are the use of Dungeons
and Dragons "runes" for the various gods, and the attribution of a Bronze
Age women's outfit as "Viking summer wear". Fitch is a well-known Wiccan,
and as the introduction warns the reader, this book is really "Nordicized
Wicca". I call it, "The Wrongs of Odious". Not very useful.]
* Gundarsson, Kveldulfr. Teutonic Magic: the Magical and Spiritual Practices
of the Germanic Peoples. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1990. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875422918/thevikinganswerl
Now available as an e-Book for ~$6 at
http://www.aswynn.runeschool.org/recommended.html
[This book is primarily concerned with the magical and divinatory uses of
runes, but also provides some information on cosmology, religion, and
mythology. Gundarsson's books tend to have more of a historical grounding
than others in this genre. Be aware that Gundarsson often brings a
background of "ceremonial magick" to his work with runes, which I find
dubious in relationship to this Norse tradition.]
* Gundarsson, Kveldulfr. Teutonic Religion: Folk Beliefs & Practices of the
Northern Tradition. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. 1993. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875422608/thevikinganswerl
Now available as an e-Book for ~$6 at
http://www.aswynn.runeschool.org/recommended.html
[This is one of the better books explaining the actual form of worship of
the Viking peoples. There are some problems, primarily with overscripting of
his sample rituals, but by and large this book provides a sound introduction
to Germanic religious practices.]
* Pennick, Nigel. Practical Magic in the Northern Tradition. N.p.:Aquarian
Press. 1989. To order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1870450167/thevikinganswerl
[Combines folklore and folk practice from the Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic
peoples. Very useful in personna development as it gives calendaric
information, discusses perceptions of space and time, herb-lore, ceremonies,
superstitions. It is important that one try to cross-refence the information
found here with other sources, however, since Pennick doesn't discuss the
sources of his scholarship well and I have found that he makes stuff up at
times.]
* Thorsson, Edred. FUTHARK: A Handbook of Rune Magic. York Beach, ME: Samuel
Weiser. 1984. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0877285489/thevikinganswerl
* Thorsson, Edred. Runelore: A Handbook of Esoteric Runology. York Beach,
ME: Samuel Weiser. 1988. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0877286671/thevikinganswerl
* Thorsson, Edred. Runecaster's Handbook: The Well of Wyrd. York Beach, ME:
Samuel Weiser. 1999. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/157863136X/thevikinganswerl
* Thorsson, Edred. Northern Magic: Rune Mysteries & Shamanism. Llewellyn's
World Magic Series. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn. Paperback 2nd ed. 1998.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1567187099/thevikinganswerl
* Tyson, Donald. Rune Magic. St. Paul, MN: Llewelyn. 1988. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875428266/thevikinganswerl
The Conversion to Christianity
--------------------------------
Although most people tend to think of the Vikings as heathen peoples, the
Conversion to Christianity made an enormous impact on the Viking Age,
especially as nations were forming.
* Adalsteinson, Jon Hnefill. Under the Cloak: The Acceptance of Christianity
in Iceland with Particular Reference to the Religious Attitudes Prevailing
at the Time. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. 1978. ISBN
91-554-0815-X.
[Outstanding discussion of the famous decision by Thorgeirr Lawspeaker that
Iceland should henceforth be Christian, recounted in full by Ari the Wise in
Islendingabok, a decision which took place at the Thing of the year 1000. ]
* Browner, Jessica A. " 'Viking' Pilgrimage to the Holy Land: fram! fram!
cristmenn, crossmenn, konungsmenn! (Olafs saga helga, ch. 224.)" Essays in
History 34. University of Virgina. 1992. Accessed 14 Nov 2000.
http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/journals/EH/EH34/browne34.html
* Christiansen, Eric. The Northern Crusades: the Baltic and the Catholic
Frontier, 1100-1525. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. 1980.
* Cormack, Margaret. The Saints in Iceland: their Veneration from the
Conversion to 1400. Bruxelles: Societe des Bollandistes. 1994.
* Ellis-Davidson, Hilda Roderick. Scandinavian Mythology. New York: Paul
Hamlyn. 1969.
[An excellent survey of Norse myth and religion, covering the Bronze Age
predecessors of the Viking deities, the cult of Odin, Thor/Tyr, the Vanir
and Aesir, cosmology and the coming of Christianity.]
* Finnestad, Ragnhild Bjerre. "The Study of Christianization of the Nordic
Countries: Some Reflections." in: Old Norse and Finnish Religions and Cultic
Place-Names. ed. Tore Ahlback. Scripta Instituti Donneriana Aboensis 13.
Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell. 1990. pp. 256-272.
* Foote, Peter. Observations in "Syncretism" in Early Icelandic
Christianity. Reykjavik 1975. (Arbok Visindafelags Islendinga 1974, pp.
69-86).
* Fuglesang, Signe Horn. "Crucifixion Iconography in Viking Scandinavia."
in: Proceedings of the Eighth Viking Congress, Arhus, 24-31 August 1977.
Odense: Odense University Press. 1981.
* Gislason, Jonas. "Acceptance of Christianity in Iceland in the Year 1000
(999)." in: Old Norse and Finnish Religions and Cultic Place-Names. Based on
papers read at the Symposium on Encounters between Religions in Old Nordic
Times and on Cultic Place-Names, held at Abo, Finland, on the 19th-21st of
August 1987. ed. Tore Ahlback. Abo: Donner Institute for Research in
Religious and Cultural History. 1990. pp. 223-255.
* Knox, E.L. Skip. The Destruction and Conversion of the Wends. Masters
Thesis. 1980.
* Lange, W. Studien zur Christlichen Dichtung der Nordgermanen 1000-1200.
Gottingen. 1958.
* Ljungberg, H. Den nordiska religionen och kristendomen. Stockholm 1938.
(Nordiska texter och undersokningar 11).
* Olsen, Olaf. Horg, Hov Og Kirke. Historiske og Arkaeologiske Vikingetids
Studier.
Copenhagen: Gad. 1966.
* Paasche, Fredrik. Motet mellom hedendom og kristendom i Norden. Utgitt ved
Dag Stromback. Stockholm. 1958.
[Throughout Northern Europe Christianity did not easily displace paganism.
Missionaries were often well received, for all the peoples of Northern
Europe held hospitality and a hosts' duty towards his guests in high honor.
Later, however, when the missionaries proved to be poor guests by attempting
to disrupt their way of life, the ordinary people clung stubbornly and
violently to their ancestral faith.]
* Sawyer, Birgit, and Peter Sawyer. Medieval Scandinavia from Conversion to
Reformation ca. 800-1500. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. 1993.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0816617392/thevikinganswerl
* Sawyer, Birgit, Peter Sawyer and Ian Wood. The Christianization of
Scandinavia. Report of a Symposium held at Kungalv, Sweden, 4-9 August 1985.
Alingsas, Sweden: Viktoria Bokforlag. 1987. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/918670804X/thevikinganswerl
* Sawyer, Peter. "The Process of Christianization in the Tenth and Eleventh
Centuries." in: The Christianization of Scandinavia. Report of a Symposium
held at Kungalv, Sweden, 4-9 August 1985. Alingsas, Sweden: Viktoria
Bokforlag. 1987. pp. 68-87. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/918670804X/thevikinganswerl
* Stromback, Dag. The Conversion of Iceland: A Survey. Translated and
annoted by Peter G. Foote. London. 1975.
* Wood, Ian. 1987. "Christians and Pagans in Ninth-Century Scandinavia." in:
The Christianization of Scandinavia. Report of a Symposium held at Kungalv,
Sweden, 4-9 August 1985. Alingsas, Sweden: Viktoria Bokforlag. 1987. pp.
36-67.
Women's Studies
----------------
* Anderson, Sarah M. and Karen Swenson, eds. Cold Counsel: Women in Old
Norse Literature and Mythology. New York & London: Routledge. 2002.
Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815319665/thevikinganswerl
[This collection of essays draws upon the disciplines of history, sociology,
feminism, ethnography, and psychoanalysis in order to raise fresh question
about such new subjects as gender, class, sexuality, family structure, and
ideology in medieval Iceland. Essays include: (1) Introduction: "og eru kold
kvenna ra?"; (2) "En hon er blandin mjok": Women and Insults in Old Norse
Literature; (3) Hildigunnr's Lament; (4) Women's Voices in Old Norse
Literature: The Case of Trojumanna saga; (5) Taming the Shrew: The Rise of
Patriarchy and the Subordination of the Feminine in Old Norse Literature;
(6) The Re-emergence of Women's Voices in Icelandic Literature, 1500-1800;
(7) Vikings Westward to Vinland: The Problem of Women; (8) "?egi ?u, ?orr!":
Gender, Class, and Discourse in ?rymskvi?a; (9) Fathers, Mothers, and
Daughters: "Hver er a? ra?a?"; (10) A Good Day's Work: Laxdoela saga, ch.
49; (11) Women's Counsel in the Riddarasogur: The Case of Parcevals saga;
(12) The Woman Who Knows: Female Characters of Eyrbyggja saga; (13) Male
Bonding, Female Body: The Absenting of Woman in "Bisclaretz ljo?"; (14)
Ambiguously Gendered: The Skalds Jorunn, Au?r and Steinunn; (15) Women
Outside: Discourse of Community in Havamal; (16) Saga World and
Nineteenth-Century Iceland: The Case of Women Farmers.]
* Andersson, Theodore M. The Legend of Brynhild. Islandica 43. Ithaca NY:
Cornell Univ. Press. 1980. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0801413028/thevikinganswerl
* Benidictow, Ole Jorgen. "The Milky Way in History: Breast Feeding,
Antagonism Between the Sexes, and Infant Mortality in Medieval Norway,"
Scandinavian Journal of History. 10 (1985): 19-53.
* Clover, Carol J. "Maiden Warriors and Other Sons," Journal of English and
Germanic Philology (JEGP), 85 (1986):35-49.
[This is an excellent article examining the theme of the Viking warrior
woman. Clover has determined by examination of the laws, particularly the
Baugatal section of Gragas, the sagas and Saxo Grammaticus's depictions of
women warriors, as well as ethnological comparisons, that the woman warrior
was a rare and specialized role. The only case in which a woman was allowed
to take up arms was if (1) she was never married, (2) she had no living male
relatives in the degrees listed in Baugatal who would have received weregild
for the death of a family member, and (3) a crime had been perpetrated
against her family that required vengeance by the social code of the day,
often the murder of her last male relative. This role was temporary, but for
its duration conferred the social role on the warrior woman as "son".
Excellent and insightful essay.]
* Clover, Carol J. "The Politics of Scarcity: Notes on the Sex Ratio in
Early Scandinavia." Scandinavian Studies 60 (1988): 147-188.
[An interesting and insightful article, hypothesizes that women were
extremely scarce in Viking Scandinavia (particularly Iceland) due to several
factors, including higher rate of mortality due to childbirth and
preferential exposure of female infants. If Clover is correct, her
explanation completely reconciles the apparent gap between women's status as
reflected in the laws versus women's status as shown in the sagas.]
* Clover, Carol J. "Regardless of Sex: Men, Women, and Power in Early
Northern Europe," In: Studying Medieval Women, ed. Nancy F. Partner.
Cambridge: Medieval Academy of America. 1993. pp. 61-85. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0915651068/thevikinganswerl
* Damico, Helen. Beowulf's Wealhtheow and the Valkyrie Tradition. Madison:
Univ. of Wisconsin Press. 1984. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0299095002/thevikinganswerl
[Damico does an excellent job of reviewing the early Germanic literature for
tales of valkyries, warrior women, and women as agents of fate. The weakness
in this work is that she basically reads every female figure encountered
everywhere as a valkyrie, which is rather overstating things. Still, this is
a useful and interesting book.]
* Damsholt, Nanna. "The Role of Icelandic Women in the Sagas and the
Production of Homespun Cloth," Scandinavian Journal of History. 9 (1984):
75-90.
[An insightful discussion of the implications of the fact that the gross
national product of Viking Age Iceland was homespun, a cottage industry
managed entirely by women, and how this affected the status of these women.]
* Enright, Michael J. Lady With a Mead Cup: Ritual Prophecy and Lordship in
the European Warband from La Tene to the Viking Age. Dublin: Four Courts
Press. 1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1851821880/thevikinganswerl
[An examination of the role of women in defining and maintaining social
order through the ritual of drinking.]
* Fell, Christine. "Viking Women in Britain." Women in Anglo-Saxon England.
Bloomington: Indiana University Press. 1984. 129-147. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0631149244/thevikinganswerl
[Included as a chapter in Fell's excellent book on women in Anglo-Saxon
England. Provides a brief summary of the status and historical position of
women in the areas of England settled by the Vikings.]
* Frank, Roberta. "Marriage in Twelfth- and Thirteenth-Century Iceland."
Viator 4 (1973): 473-484.
[Discusses the marriage laws of Gragas as well as the portrait of marriage
presented by the sagas. An excellent paper on women and marriage in medieval
Iceland.]
* Frank, Roberta. "Why Skalds Address Women," In: Poetry in the Scandinavian
Middle Ages. Atti del 12 Congresso Internationale di Studi sull'alto
medioevo. Spoleto: Centro Italiano di Studi sull'alto medioevo. 1990. pp.
67-83.
* Jacobsen, Grethe. The Position of Women in Scandinavia During the Viking
Period. (MA Thesis, University of Wisconsin, 1978.)
[Presents a comprehensive look at Viking women as reflected in law and
literature, with separate discussions of conditions in Iceland, Norway,
Denmark and Sweden. An excellent source, and surprisingly, quite readable.]
* Jacobsen, Grethe. "Sexual Irregularities in Medieval Scandinavia." Sexual
Practices and the Medieval Church. eds. Vern L. Bullough and James Brundage.
Buffalo: Prometheus Books. 1982. 72-85. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0879752688/thevikinganswerl
[A survey of the attitudes of medieval Scandinavians toward non-marital sex,
with good discussions of how those attitudes reflect the role of women in
Scandinavian society.]
* Jesch, Judith. Women in the Viking Age. Woodbridge: Boydell. 1991. To
order from Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0851153607/thevikinganswerl
[Jesch's book was the first English language book on women in the Viking
Age. She gives an introduction to the scholarship up to 1991 dealing with
women of the period. While the work is not in-depth, it is extremely useful
as a place to begin learning about this topic, and furthermore, Jesch paves
the way here for others to follow in her footsteps. Excellent book.]
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Before the Male Gaze: the Absence of the Female Body in
Old Norse," In: Sex in the Middle Ages. ed. Joyce E. Salisbury. New York:
Garland. 1991. pp. 3-29. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/082405766X/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "The Church and Sexuality in Medieval Iceland." Journal
of Medieval History 6 (1980): 377-392.
[Particularly focused on the concept of clerical marriages, also provides
insights into the status of women and non-marital sex.]
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Consent in Marriage: Old Norse Law, Life, and
Literature." Scandinavian Studies 58 (1986): 142-176.
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Gender and Drinking in the World of the Icelandic
Sagas," In: A Special Brew: Essays in Honor of Kristof Glamann. (Odense
University Studies in History and Social Sciences , Vol 165) Thomas Riis,
Ed. Odense: Odense Univ. Press. 1993. pp. 155-181. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/8774929305/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "The Illicit Love Visit: An Archaeology of Old Norse
Sexuality," JHS 1 (1991): 357-392.
* Jochens, Jenny M. "The Medieval Icelandic Heroine: Fact or Fiction?"
Viator 17 (1986): 35-50.
[A revealing examination of the "Germanic-Nordic model of strong,
independent womanhood" via a comparison of the heroines of the sagas and
evidence drawn from Scandinavian law codes, with special attention to women
and marriage. ]
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Men, Women, and Beasts: Old Norse Sexuality." In:
Handbook in Sexuality. ed. Vern Bullough. New York: Garland Press. 1995.
* Jochens, Jenny M. Old Norse Images of Women. Philadelphia. Univ of
Philadelphia Press. 1996. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0812233581/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Old Norse Magic and Gender: Thattr Thorvalds ens
Vidforla," Scandinavian Studies 63 (1991): 305-317.
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Old Norse Motherhood," In: Medieval Mothering. (Feminea
Medevalia 3) eds. Bonnie Wheeler and John C. Parson. New York: Garland.
1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815336659/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Old Norse Sources on Women," In: Medieval Women and the
Sources of Medieval History, ed. Joel T. Rosenthal. Athens: Univ. of Georgia
Press. 1990. pp. 155-188. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0820312142/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Vikings Westward to Vinland: Problems of Women and
Sexuality." In: Cold Counsel: the Women of Old Norse Literature and Myth.
(Garland Reference Library of the Humanities, V 1894) eds. Karen Swenson and
Saray May Anderson. New York: Garland Press. 1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0815319665/thevikinganswerl
* Jochens, Jenny M. "Voluspa: Matrix of Norse Womanhood," Journal of English
and Germanic Philology 88 (1989): 344-362.
* Jochens, Jenny M. Women in Old Norse Society. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press.
1995. Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0801485207/thevikinganswerl
[A fascinating wealth of detail of the lives of women in Viking Age Iceland
and Norway, including work, sexual behavior, marriage customs, reproductive
practices, familial relations, leisure activities, religious practices, and
legal matters relating to women. An outstanding book.]
* Kalinke, Marianne E. "An Arabic Sister of the Icelandic Maiden King." In
Davi?sdiktur 1986, ed. Sigurgeir Steingrimsson. Reykjavik. 1986. pp. 36-38.
* Kalinke, Marianne E. "The Misogamous Maiden Kings of Icelandic Romance."
SI 37 (1986) pp. 47-71.
* Kalinke, Marianne E. Bridal-Quest Romance in Medieval Iceland. Islandica
46. Ithaca, NY:
Cornell University Press. 1990.
[Examines the 13th and 14th century romantic literature of iceland and how
the stereotypical "bridal-quest" theme is used in these works.]
* Karras, Ruth M. "Concubinage and Slavery in the Viking Age," Scandinavian
Studies 62 (1990): 141-162.
[An excellent discussion of the role of the concubine in Old Norse Society.]
* Larrington, Carolyne. "What Does Woman Want? Mar and Munr in Skirnismal."
Alvismal I (1992), pp. 3-16. Online in PDF format at
http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~alvismal/1maer.pdf
* Norrman, Lena. "Woman or Warrior? The Construction of Gender in Old Norse
Myth". Old Norse Myths, Literature and Society: Proceedings of the 11th
International Saga Conference 2-7 July 2000, University of Sydney. Geraldine
Barnes and Margaret Clunies Ross, eds. Sydney: Centre for Medieval Studies,
University of Sydney. 2000. pp. 375-385. ISBN 1864873167. Available online
in PDF format at
http://www.arts.usyd.edu.au/departs/medieval/saga/pdf/375-norrman.pdf
[Explores gender roles and the function of the remarkable phenomenon of the
warrior woman dressed as a man in chain mail and the queen with her own
army; the "maiden king". Looks at gender and transgender ideas, examining
the heroine Hervor.]
* Sorensen, Marie Louise Stig. "Identifying or including: approaches to the
engendering of archaeology". KAN. Kvinner i arkeologi i Norge 21, 1996, pp
51-60.
[Two different approaches to the analysis of women's involvement with
metal-working are outlined. It is argued that instead of finding gender, we
should aim to explore productive technologies by including women and
focusing upon the social context of the production.]
* Sorensen, Marie Louise Stig. "Women as/and metalworkers." In: Women in
industry and technology: From prehistory to the present day. A. Devonshire &
B. Wood, eds. London: Museum of London. 1996.
[Two different approaches to the analysis of women's involvement with
metal-working are outlined. It is argued that instead of finding gender, we
should aim to explore productive technologies by including women and
focusing upon the social context of the production.]
* Strand, Birgit. "Women in Gesta Danorum." Saxo Grammaticus: A Medieval
Author Between Norse and Latin Culture. ed. Kirsten Friis-Jensen.
Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press. 1981. 135-167.
[A comparison of parallel portrayals of women in Saxo's Gesta Danorum and
those in the works of Snorri Sturluson. Contains a good discussion of the
perception of women by Christian authors of widely differing backgrounds:
really points up the differences between medieval Scandinavia and the rest
of Europe.]
