Names
In the Scandinavian sources they are the descendants of Yngvi- Frey of Vanaheim. ''Yngling'' means ''descendant of Frey'', and in the ''Gesta Danorum'' of Saxo Grammaticus they are called the ''sons of Frey''. Several of these kings appear in ''Beowulf'': Eadgils (Adils), Onela (Ale), and Ohthere (Ottar Vendelkråka), but here they are called ''Scylfings'' (see the Beowulf section below). Snorri Sturluson hints at a less divine origin in '' Skáldskaparmál'' for this dynasty: ''One war-king was named Skelfir; and his house is called the House of Skilfings: his kindred is in the Eastern Land.'' In '' Ynglinga Saga'' in 1220 AD, Snorri Sturluson discusses marriages between Swedish and Finnish royal families. In 1220 AD (c.), in the Skáldskaparmál section of Edda, Sturluson discusses King Halfdan the Old, Nór's great-grandson, and nine of his sons who are the forefathers of various royal lineages, including ''"Yngvi, from whom the Ynglings are descended"''. According to '' Orkneyinga Saga'' in 1230 AD, ''Nór'' founded Norway. He was a direct descendant of Fornjótr, the King of ''"Gotland, Kvenland and Finnland"''. In traditional Scandinavian lineages we find Halfdan the Old as the Great-grandfather of Ragnvald Eysteinson Jarl of Møre, the father of Rollo, called Gengu-Hrolf in Norse sources, the Viking conqueror who founded Normandy, who Dudo of Saint-Quentin testifies took the name Robert after converting to Christianity. He is also known as Count Rou of Rouen famous for beingFrom Sweden to Norway
According to Snorri Sturluson, the dynasty led the settlement of the Swedish provinces and established themselves as the kings of its provinces, accepting the overlordship of the Swedish king at Uppsala, until the dynasty all but exterminated itself with Ingjald Ill-Ruler and his downfall. A survivorRemaining in Sweden
However, both Snorri (as in the earlier quote) and Saxo described the clan as remaining in Sweden after this date. Saxo on the Battle of Bråvalla (ca 750): :''Now the bravest of the Swedes were these: Arwakki, Keklu-Karl (Kelke-Karl), Krok the Peasant, (from Akr), Gudfast and Gummi from Gislamark. These were kindred of the god Frey, and most faithful witnesses to the gods. Ingi (Yngwe) also, and Oly, Alver, Folki, all sons of Elrik (Alrek), embraced the service of Sigurd Hring; they were men ready of hand, quick in counsel, and very close friends of Ring. They likewise held the god Frey to be the founder of their race. Amongst these from the town of Sigtun ( Old Sigtuna) also came Sigmund, a champion advocate, versed in making contracts of sale and purchase; besides him Frosti surnamed Bowl: allied with him was Alf the Lofty (Erect?spear-thrower?) from the district of Upsala ( Old Uppsala); this man was a swift spear-thrower, and used to go in the front of the battle.'' Moreover, both in Icelandic sources and in the ''Gesta Danorum'', King Sigurd Hring would become the ancestor of the houses of Ragnar Lodbrok and would thus be the semi-legendary ancestor of the House of Munsö through Björn Ironside, and the Danish royal house through Sigurd Snake-in-the-Eye. Ragnar's eldest son Ivar the Boneless was the leader of the Great Heathen Army and appears to have been the founder of the Uí Ímair dynasty of the Kingdom of York and Kingdom of Dublin.The line
The family tree
This is the mythic Yngling family tree based on '' Historia Norwegiæ'', '' Ynglinga saga'', '' Beowulf'' and otherThe name Scylfing
InBeowulf
In the Old English poem ''Beowulf'', the word ''Scylfing'' occurs twice in the singular and twice in the plural. For alliterative purposes the name could be extended, such as the form ''Heathoscylfing'' 'Battle-Scylfing', which occurs once in the singular and twice in the plural. A Scylfing whose name is partly missing but ends in ''-ela'' married the sister of Hrothgar and Halga. Specifically identified as Scylfings are Ongentheow, king of Sweden, and by extension his subject Wiglaf son of Weohstan. Wiglaf and Weohstan belonged to the family of the Wægmundings to which Beowulf and his father Ecgtheow also belonged. Another extended form is ''helm Scylfinga''. This literally means 'Scylfings'-helmet'; it is a kenning meaning both "ruler of the Scylfings" and "protector of the Scylfings". The ''Beowulf'' poet uses it to refer to Ongentheow's son Onela.In Norse tradition
From the ''Hyndluljóð''
The eddic poem '' Hyndluljóð'', in stanza 16 speaks of descendants of an ancient king named Halfdan the Old:Hence come the Skjöldungs, hence the Skilfings,
Hence the Ödlings 'Ǫðlingar'' hence the Ylfings, .
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From the ''Skáldskaparmál''
In the '' Skáldskaparmál'', Snorri Sturluson speaks of the second group of nine sons of Halfdan the Old, from whom many families of legend descend, one of these sons being Yngvi, purported ancestor of the Yngling lineage. But neither Skylfings or Skjöldungs are specifically derived from these sons. Snorri continues with examples of famous descendants of three of those lineages, followed by: "Of the house of theYlfing The Wulfings, Wylfings or YlfingsWord initial ''w'' was lost before rounded vowels in Proto-Norse, e.g. ''wulf'' corresponds to ''ulf'', and ''Wulfing''/''Wylfing'' corresponds to ''Ylfing'', because the ''i'' in the second syllable causes an uml ...s was Eirík the Eloquent (''Eiríkr inn málspaki'')." But Ylfings have not been previously mentioned. Then follows the names of four ancestors of four lineages not descended from Halfdan, which include Yngvi and the Ynglings a second time. There is obvious confusion or corruption in this passage or its source. The fourth lineage is identified:One war-king was named Skelfir; and his house is called the House of Skilfings: his kindred is in the Eastern Region.A connection with the east might mean a connection to Sweden, but the vagueness of expression suggests Snorri knows no more about these Skilfings than he has written. Snorri also gives ''Skilfing'' as a kenning for "king" and it appears as a kenning for "sword" in the ''thulur'' found in some versions of the ''Skáldkskaparmál''.
From the ''Ættartǫlur''
The Ættartǫlur connected to ''Hversu Noregr byggdist'' are a longer variant of the genealogical passages in the ''Skáldskaparmál'', also speaking of Halfdan the Old and lineages descended from him and of other notable lineages, but in much greater detail. In this list of the sons of Halfdan, Yngvi the ancestor of the Ynglings is missing and Skelfir the ancestor of the Skilfings appears in his place. This might be a remembrance of an earlier identity or connection of the Swedish Ynglings and the Swedish Scylfings in ''Beowulf''. But nothing in the following genealogy is ''necessarily'' Swedish though possible Swedish parallels do appear, particular the names Alrek and Eirík as discussed below. There are many oddities in this account. It claims Skelfir was king of Vörs (''Vǫrs''), modern Voss in northernHordaland Hordaland () was a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland was the third largest county, after Akershus and Oslo, by population. The county government was the Hordaland County Municipa ...in southwestern Norway, but Halfdan's inheritance was in southeastern Norway. Skelfir was the father of Skjöld (''Skjǫldr''). The account ends by saying that lineage of Skelfir was called the Skilfing lineage or the Skjöldung lineage, seemingly identifying the two. But Skjöldungs are normally the legendary royal family of the rulers ofDenmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...and no connection with Denmark is made here. Indeed, the ''Ættartǫlur'' later twice gives a quite different list of descendants of the Danish Skjöld who is there made a son of Odin as commonly in Norse texts. Skjöld as son of Skelfir might be related to English traditions of Scyld being a son or descendant of Sceafa (as discussed under Sceafa), though here too (at least in ''Beowulf'') the connection is to Danish matters, not to Norway. This Norwegian Skjöld, ancestor of the Norwegian Skjöldungs, is father of Eirík, father of Alrek (''Alrekr''), father of Eirík the Eloquent, whom the ''Skáldskaparmál'' presented as an Ylfing. These two mentions are the only occurrences of Eirík the Eloquent in Norse texts. But what seems to be the same figure appears prominently in book 5 of Saxo Grammaticus' '' Gesta Danorum'' as Ericus disertus. This Ericus disertus is indeed a Norwegian, but his father is not named Alrek but rather Regnerus pugilex, that is Ragnar the Champion. The ''Gesta Danorum'' then somewhat forcibly identifies Ericus disertus with Eirík, a legendary king of Sweden, a king who in the ''Ynglinga saga'' and elsewhere has an elder brother (rather than a father) named Alrek. See Alrek and Eirík for details. In the ''Ynglinga saga'' the mother of the Swedish kings Alrek and Eirík is named Skjálf, which might also be an eponym for Skilfing. Returning to the ''Ættartǫlur'', there Eirík the Eloquent is father of Alrek, father of Víkar (''Víkarr''), father of Vatnar. This Víkar is the famous Víkar, king of Hördaland, who was sacrificed to Odin by Starkad. The chain of descent from Alrek to Víkar to Vatnar is also found in ''Hálfs saga ok Hálfsrekka'' ('The saga of Hálf and his heroes'). However '' Gautreks saga'' gives an entirely different ancestry and different descendants to Víkar. See Víkar for details. This genealogy may have been based on attempts to ascribe a Norwegian origin to both Swedish Scylfings and Danish Skjöldungs and also be related to Saxo's account of the Norwegian Ericus desertus. If so, as it stands, it has been edited to remove material that would obviously conflict with the standard genealogies of the Skjöldungs and Ynglings which also appear in the ''Ættartǫlur''.
Variant spellings
''Other anglicized spellings:'' Eirík: ''Eirik'' ; Eirík the Eloquent: ''Eirik the Eloquent'', ''Eiríkr the Wise in Speech'' ; Halfdan the Old: ''Hálfdan the Old'' ; Skjöld: ''Skjold'', ''Skiold'', ''Scyld'' ; Starkad: ''Starkath'' ; Víkar: ''Vikar'' ; Vörs: ''Vor''.
See also
*Saxo's kings of Sweden The legendary kings of Sweden () according to legends were rulers of Sweden and the Swedes who preceded Eric the Victorious and Olof Skötkonung, the earliest reliably attested Swedish kings. Though the stories of some of the kings may be embell ...* Fairhair dynasty
References
{{Authority control Mythological kings of Sweden Semi-legendary kings of Sweden Freyr Norwegian monarchy * Norse clans Legendary royal families