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Tróndur í Gøtu ( Icelandic: Þrándur í Götu,
Blásastova Museum and Tróndur í Gøtu’s Farm
11th-century Faroese people 1035 deaths 940s births Legendary Norsemen 10th-century Vikings 11th-century Vikings {{Faroes-bio-stub
Tróndur í Gøtu ( Icelandic: Þrándur í Götu, Old Norse
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
Þrǫ́ndr í Gǫtu) (c. 945 – 1035) was a Viking era
The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period and the Germ ...
chieftain from the Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...
.
Biography
Tróndur í Gøtu lived at his father's home in the village of Gøta on the island ofEysturoy
Eysturoy (pronounced estroimeaning 'East Island') is a region and the second-largest of the Faroe Islands, both in size and population.
Description
Eysturoy is separated by a narrow sound from the main island of Streymoy. Eysturoy is extremely ...
. Initially Tróndur and his brother Thorlac drew lots to decide who should inherit the estate. After losing, Thorlac went to live in neighbouring islands with his wife. The siblings eventually lived together at Gøta with their children.
Tróndur opposed Christianization
Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...
of the Faroes and pronounced a curse against the religion and rival chieftain Sigmundur Brestisson
Sigmundur Brestisson (961–1005) was a Faroese Viking chieftain, and was responsible for introducing Christianity to the Faroe Islands in 999. He is one of the main characters of the Færeyinga saga.
According to the Færeyinga saga, emigrant ...
who was promulgating it. He and Sigmundur Brestisson
Sigmundur Brestisson (961–1005) was a Faroese Viking chieftain, and was responsible for introducing Christianity to the Faroe Islands in 999. He is one of the main characters of the Færeyinga saga.
According to the Færeyinga saga, emigrant ...
are central figures in the ''Færeyinga saga
The Færeyinga saga (), the saga of the Faroe Islands, is the story of how the Faroe Islanders were converted to Christianity and became a part of Norway.
Summary
It was written in Iceland shortly after 1200. The author is unknown and the original ...
'', which tells the early history of the Faroe Islands and the coming of Christianity to the islands. This is also the subject of the poem "Gandkvæði Tróndar" by the Faroese poet Janus Djurhuus
Jens Hendrik Oliver Djurhuus, called Janus Djurhuus, (26 February 1881, Tórshavn – 1 September 1948, Tórshavn) was the first modern Faroese poet. He and his younger brother Hans Andreas Djurhuus, also a poet, are called the ''Áarstova'' ...
(1881–1948).
Icelandic saying
Færeyinga saga was written in Iceland shortly after 1200. The saga is the oldest recorded source of the history of the Faroe Islands. It is commonly believed to have relied upon oral testimonies from the Faroe Islands. Tróndur í Gøtu himself was probably unknown to mostIcelanders
Icelanders ( is, Íslendingar) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nation who are native to the island country of Iceland and speak Icelandic.
Icelanders established the country of Iceland in mid 930 AD when the Althing (Parliament) met for ...
, explaining why the words ''þrándur'' and ''götu'' may be commonly lower case
Letter case is the distinction between the letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (or more formally ''majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (or more formally ''minuscule'') in the written representation of certain languages. The writing ...
d. Because Tróndur opposed royal taxation, Icelanders might think that ''þrándur'' literally means an obstacle.
The saying
A saying is any concisely written or spoken expression that is especially memorable because of its meaning or style. Sayings are categorized as follows:
* Aphorism: a general, observational truth; "a pithy expression of wisdom or truth".
** Adage ...
in the Icelandic language
Icelandic (; is, íslenska, link=no ) is a North Germanic language spoken by about 314,000 people, the vast majority of whom live in Iceland, where it is the national language. Due to being a West Scandinavian language, it is most closely re ...
, ''vera einhverjum Þrándur í Götu'' (e. being someones Þrándur í Götu) or just ''að ''vera þrándur í götu'' (e. to be a þrándur í götu), means to be an obstacle to somebody.
In popular culture
To present day Faroese Tróndur í Gøtu is considered a national hero. The Faroese music bandTýr
(; Old Norse: , ) is a god in Germanic mythology, a valorous and powerful member of the and patron of warriors and mythological heroes. In Norse mythology, which provides most of the surviving narratives about gods among the Germanic peoples, ...
wrote a song called "Tróndur í Gøtu" in honor of this famous Faroese warrior which was released in 2009 on the album ''By the Light of the Northern Star
''By the Light of the Northern Star'' is the fifth studio album by Faroese folk metal band Týr. It was released on 29 May 2009 through Napalm Records
Napalm Records is an Austrian independent record label focused on heavy metal and hard ...
.''
References
External links
Blásastova Museum and Tróndur í Gøtu’s Farm
11th-century Faroese people 1035 deaths 940s births Legendary Norsemen 10th-century Vikings 11th-century Vikings {{Faroes-bio-stub