Out of the many captivating and exciting Early Scandinavian Sagas, it is perhaps the Laxdæla Saga, set in the northwest of Iceland that is the most historically and culturally compelling, providing an incredibly insightful view of Early Icelandic people as well as different facets of their society and culture. Dividing naturally into three parts, the Laxdæla Saga tells the historical tale of the settlement of Iceland under a woman named Unn the Deep Minded, a daughter of Ketill Flatnose, a king of Norway who fled the country as a result of Harald Fairhair rise to power. At the very beginning of the story Unn, with great wealth a large retinue of kinsmen, friends, and slaves, sails to the strange new world of Iceland and creates a settlement,
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The island, located significantly to the northwest of all of Scandinavia, as both these accounts claim was surely discovered by accident, with travelers being blown off their original course, which was likely another smaller known island of the North Atlantic. It is known, that the first endeavor to settle the Island was undertaken by the Norwegian, Floki Vilgerdason (sometimes known as ‘Raven’ Floki because of his raven sacrifice to Odin, which resulted in great his navigation skills), who spent two harsh winters there and gave the place its lasting name, Iceland. These ventures most likely took place sometime in the 860s with the Íslendingabók, or Book of the Icelanders, recording the first true settlement of the island began in the early 870s with the Norwegian foster brothers, Ingolf and Leif. Multiple texts including Book of the Settlements, Book of the Icelanders, and even the Laxdæla Saga cite Harald Fairhair’s rise to power in Norway as the reason for late Ninth Century migration to and colonization of Iceland. As the first king of a united Norway, Harald created a new noble class …show more content…
Immediately establishing a degree of historical accuracy, the Saga begins with an introduction of the historical figure, Ketill Flatnose and his family, a powerful Norwegian, who, threatened by King Harald Fairhair’s rise to power calls a meeting with his kinsmen during which they decided to leave the country rather than submit to the new king. After the death of her father and brothers, Unn, Ketill’s daughter who had accompanied him in his journey to and settlement in Scotland, decides to head to the Northwest, taking her wealth and a large retinue with her to Iceland, where she settled in Breiðafjörður, a bay area in the northwest of the island. Once settled in Iceland Unn generously gave away lands to her kinsmen and followers. Nicknamed the Deep Minded, Unn was certainly a wise and confident woman and maintained a position of leadership in the community until her death, after which, at her command, power to her grandson, Olaf
The island, located significantly to the northwest of all of Scandinavia, as both these accounts claim was surely discovered by accident, with travelers being blown off their original course, which was likely another smaller known island of the North Atlantic. It is known, that the first endeavor to settle the Island was undertaken by the Norwegian, Floki Vilgerdason (sometimes known as ‘Raven’ Floki because of his raven sacrifice to Odin, which resulted in great his navigation skills), who spent two harsh winters there and gave the place its lasting name, Iceland. These ventures most likely took place sometime in the 860s with the Íslendingabók, or Book of the Icelanders, recording the first true settlement of the island began in the early 870s with the Norwegian foster brothers, Ingolf and Leif. Multiple texts including Book of the Settlements, Book of the Icelanders, and even the Laxdæla Saga cite Harald Fairhair’s rise to power in Norway as the reason for late Ninth Century migration to and colonization of Iceland. As the first king of a united Norway, Harald created a new noble class …show more content…
Immediately establishing a degree of historical accuracy, the Saga begins with an introduction of the historical figure, Ketill Flatnose and his family, a powerful Norwegian, who, threatened by King Harald Fairhair’s rise to power calls a meeting with his kinsmen during which they decided to leave the country rather than submit to the new king. After the death of her father and brothers, Unn, Ketill’s daughter who had accompanied him in his journey to and settlement in Scotland, decides to head to the Northwest, taking her wealth and a large retinue with her to Iceland, where she settled in Breiðafjörður, a bay area in the northwest of the island. Once settled in Iceland Unn generously gave away lands to her kinsmen and followers. Nicknamed the Deep Minded, Unn was certainly a wise and confident woman and maintained a position of leadership in the community until her death, after which, at her command, power to her grandson, Olaf