Úlfr Uggason (
Modern Icelandic: ) was an
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
ic
skald who lived in the last part of the tenth century.
The ''
Laxdæla saga'' tells how he composed his ''
Húsdrápa
''Húsdrápa'' (Old Norse: 'House-Lay') is a skaldic poem partially preserved in the Prose Edda where disjoint stanzas of it are quoted. It is attributed to the skald Úlfr Uggason. The poem describes mythological scenes carved on kitchen panels. ...
'' for a wedding. Geirmundr married Þuríðr, whose father,
Óláfr pái ("peacock") Höskuldsson, had a magnificent hall built in his farm in
Hjarðarholt (Iceland), with paintings representing legends on the walls and ceiling:
:The wedding feast was a very crowded one, for the new hall was finished. Ulf Uggason was of the bidden guests, and he had made a poem on Olaf Hoskuldson and of the legends that were painted round the hall, and he gave it forth at the feast. This poem is called the "House Song," and is well made. Olaf rewarded him well for the poem.
:
::—The ''Laxdæla saga''
(29)Muriel Press's translation
Three myths are described in the twelve stanzas and half-stanzas of Úlfr's ''Húsdrápa'':
Baldr's funeral,
Thor
Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...
fishing for
Jörmungandr
In Norse mythology, Jörmungandr ( non, Jǫrmungandr, lit=the Vast gand, see Etymology), also known as the Midgard Serpent or World Serpent ( non, Miðgarðsormr), is an unfathomably large sea serpent or worm who dwells in the world sea, encir ...
, the Midgard serpent, and
Heimdall
In Norse mythology, Heimdall (from Old Norse Heimdallr) is a god who keeps watch for invaders and the onset of Ragnarök from his dwelling Himinbjörg, where the burning rainbow bridge Bifröst meets the sky. He is attested as possessing forekno ...
's fight with
Loki for the
Brísingamen.
Apart from this episode, little is known about Úlfr. ''
Landnámabók
(, "Book of Settlements"), often shortened to , is a medieval Icelandic written work which describes in considerable detail the settlement () of Iceland by the Norse in the 9th and 10th centuries CE.
is divided into five parts and ove ...
'' gives the name and the lineage of his wife, Járngerðr. He also appears twice in the ''
Brennu-Njáls saga''. In chapter 60, on the occasion of a suit (which he loses), he is challenged to a duel by
Gunnar of Hlíðarendi
Gunnar is a male first name of Nordic origin (''Gunnarr'' in Old Norse). The name Gunnar means fighter, soldier, and attacker, but mostly is referred to by the Viking saying which means Brave and Bold warrior (''gunnr'' "war" and ''arr'' "warrior ...
. In chapter 102, the
skald Þorvaldr veili, who has gathered a troop to slay
Þangbrandr (a missionary sent to Iceland by
Óláfr Tryggvason
Olaf Tryggvason (960s – 9 September 1000) was King of Norway from 995 to 1000. He was the son of Tryggvi Olafsson, king of Viken (Vingulmark, and Rånrike), and, according to later sagas, the great-grandson of Harald Fairhair, first King of No ...
) and his companion Guðleifr Arason, asks him to kill the priest, but Úlfr refuses to be involved. He then composes the ''
lausavísa In Old Norse poetry and later Icelandic poetry, a ''lausavísa'' (pl. ''lausavísur'') is a single stanza composition, or a set of stanzas unconnected by narrative or thematic continuity.
Lausavísur are often introduced in the text of sagas
...
'' that is, along with ''Húsdrápa'', all that survives of his work.
External links
Ulfr's poetry at Skaldic artsBiography of Úlfrby Edith Marold at the Skaldic Project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulfr Uggason
Viking Age poets
Icelandic poets
Skalds
10th-century Icelandic people
10th-century Icelandic poets
Year of birth unknown
Year of death unknown