Sturlunga saga

Sturlunga saga or in abbreviated form Sturlunga is the name of a compilation of Icelandic sagas. The Sturlungasaga is expected to samtíðasögur (Eng. " contemporary sagas "). Samtíðasögur stand out from other genera mainly by Saga from that its contents are secular, and the time difference between plot and writing is low.

Content

It is about the power struggle of some of Iceland's best known families of the middle ages, but especially of the poet Snorri Sturluson and politician family. Relations with the Norwegian king and the role of the church are described as well as the end of the Icelandic Free State time and integration into the Kingdom of Norway. The events described cover the period 1117-1264.

Title

The title stems from the gender of the Sturlungar, the descendants of Sturla Þórðarson from the settlement farm Hvammur í Dölum.

Authors

The questions of the compiler is the Sturlungasaga has not yet been clearly established. Considered likely Sturla Þórðarson (1214 - 1284) and Þórðr Narfason.

Importance

The saga is seen as an important source regarding the history of medieval Iceland and provides insight into the thinking and lifestyles of the Icelanders in the 13th century.

As some of the most important Icelandic sagas, it was written at that time. On the other hand, the described in the Sturlunga events of the 12th and 13th centuries are much more timely for the authors as the described in the Icelandic Sagas events which thereafter usually at the time of colonization or short, ie, relate to events in the 9th and 10th centuries, which also is very likely handed down only orally and demonstrably strong with fabrications such as folk tales elements ( see, eg, Saga of Grettir the Strong ) were embellished.

In most sources of secondary literature, the presentation of events is described as very factual, but some authors also see a partisanship in favor of the current power constellation at the time of resignation, namely in favor of ( Norwegian ) King and Church and thus against the oligarchy of the Goden.

Emergence of the compilation

This is a compilation that was put together from bits and pieces of different, partly no longer of traditional, Sagas. She is survived in various manuscripts.

In this form the Sturlunga Saga but not from the beginning, was present.

In contrast, individual sagas were written in the 13th century, which were combined in 1300 to form a coherent story. In the secondary literature is Þórður Narfason (d. 1308), jurist from Skarð á Skarðsströnd, known as a publisher. He wanted to prove obviously with the composition of the work, as it came to the connecting Iceland to the Norwegian Kingdom in 1262.

Single sagas

The most important sagas contained are: The " Íslendinga saga" written by Sturla Þórðarson, the saga of Thorgil and Hafliði that Prestssaga of Guðmundar Arasonar, Þórður kakali, Thorgils skarði and Svínfellinga saga. Also, would be to call the heljarskinn Sturla saga, Geirmundur, Guðmundar dyra saga and the saga vonHrafn Sveinbjarnarson.

The individual sagas of the band are quite different in style. Some of them were also published separately, about 1946.

Manuscripts

The most important surviving manuscripts of the saga are Sturlunga Króksfjarðarbók and Reykjafjarðarbók, both from the 14th century.