Landnámabók

Landnámabók (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈlantnaumaˌpouk], “Book of Settlements”), often shortened to Landnáma, is a medieval Icelandic written work which describes in considerable detail the settlement (landnám) of Iceland by the Norse in the 9th and 10th centuries CE.

Landnáma

Landnámabók is divided into five parts and over 100 chapters. The first part tells of how the island was found. The later parts count settlers quarter by quarter beginning with west and ending with south. It traces important events and family history into the 12th century. More than 3,000 people and 1,400 settlements are described. It tells where each settler settled, and it provides a brief genealogy. Sometimes short anecdote-like stories are also included. Landnámabók lists 435 men as the initial settlers, the majority of them settling in the northern and southwestern parts of the island. It remains an invaluable source on both the history and genealogy of the Icelandic people. Some have suggested a single author, while others have believed it to be put together when people met at things (assemblies).

Surviving versions

The surviving versions of Landnámabók date from the second half of the 13th century or a little later, though it has been suggested that it was composed in an early form by Ari Þorgilsson (1068–1148). The initial settlement of Iceland largely took place during the Viking Age between 870 and 930, but Landnámabók definitely mentions descendants significantly later than the actual settlement period, at least into the 11th century.

There are five surviving medieval versions of Landnámabók.

Sturlubók by Sturla Þórðarson
Hauksbók by Haukr Erlendsson, based on Sturlubók and a lost version by Styrmir Kárason
Melabók
Skarðsárbók
Þórðarbók

External links

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