Kvæði

The Faroese ballads ( Faroese: kvæði ) go partially back to the Middle Ages and were handed down orally over the centuries. They play a central role in preserving the Faroese language to our own time.

One of the methods of probatesten cultures for preservation of stories and the wisdom of the past is to transcribe it into rhyme, or to pack as in the case of the Faroe Islands, even in songs, which are then passed down from generation to generation.

The huge amount of old Faroese ballads (before 1700 by unknown authors ) might not have survived if not the Faroese have held simultaneously at the medieval Faroese chain dance - even long after it had already gone out of fashion everywhere in Europe. To dance, you need songs, and the long ballads (some with over 150 verses ) need a theme. The favorite subjects of the ancient ballads poets were legends, myths and folk tales, as well as religious legends. These have been preserved by generations of folk dancers in our time. The best-known stories are the ballad of Sigurd the Dragon Slayer and the series of ballads over Charles the Great.

The first scholar to the value of these folk tunes clearly, was Jens Christian Svabo. In addition to his collection of ballads he also wrote the first Faroese dictionary ( Faroese - Danish - Latin). Nólsoyar Páll and Jens Christian Djurhuus compacted late 18th century / early 19th century popular ballads in an old style.

After VU Hammershaimb began in 1850 to write the ballads in the neufäröischen written language, there is now a new band to the end of the 19th century were made complete collection of Faroese ballads by him, Svend Grundtvig and Jørgen Bloch.

Even in the 20th century, new ballads were added according to the old pattern. The most famous author Poul F. Joensen.

The Faroese ballads are now distributed internationally by musicians such as Eivør Pálsdóttir ( Í Gotu a dag ) or the metal group Týr (including Long Serpent Langi and Regin Smiður ).