Oddi ( Icelandic: ) is a small village and church at Rangárvellir in

Rangárvallasýsla Iceland was historically divided into 23 counties known as ''sýslur'' (), and 23 independent towns known as ''kaupstaðir'' (). Iceland is now split up between 24 sýslumenn (magistrates) that are the highest authority over the local police ( ...

, Iceland. Oddi at Rangárvellir was a cultural and learning center in South Iceland during the Middle Ages. There has been a church at Oddi since the introduction of Christianity. The current church at Oddi dates from 1924. For centuries Oddi ( Old Norse: ) was the central home of the powerful family, Oddaverjar. The two best known leaders in Oddi were Sæmundur Sigfússon the Learned (1056-1133) and his grandson

Jón Loftsson Jón Loftsson (1124–1197; Modern Icelandic: ; Old Norse: ) was chieftain of Oddi at Rangárvellir in the south part of Iceland. Jón Loftsson was a member of the Oddaverjar family clan. His parents were Loftur Sæmundsson and Þóra M ...

(1124-1197). The famous historian

Snorri Sturluson Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of the ...

(1178-1241) was brought up and educated in Oddi by Jón Loftsson. It has been suggested that the name of the Edda is derived from Oddi. The derivation of ''Edda'' from ''Oddi'' proposed in 1895 by Eiríkr Magnússon is discussed and rejected by Anatoly Liberman, "Ten Scandinavian and North English Etymologies,
''Alvíssmál'' 6 (1996): 63–98
here pp. 67–70. On the derivation of ''Edda'' see also Anatoly Liberman, "An Addendum to 'Ten Scandinavian and North English Etymologies' (''Edda'' and ''glide/gleiten''),
''Alvíssmál'' 7 (1997): 101–4
here pp. 101–2. Iceland's patron saint Þorlákur Þórhallsson received his education at Oddi from the age of nine (1142-1147) and looked upon the priest Eyjólfur Saemundsson as his foster-father. Þorlákur received Holy Orders in the Diaconate at the age of fifteen and then the Catholic priesthood at age eighteen.

References

Medieval Iceland Geography of Iceland {{Iceland-geo-stub