The allsherjargoði (; plural ''-goðar'') is the chief religious official of the Icelandic

neopagan Modern paganism, also known as contemporary paganism and neopaganism, spans a range of new religious movements variously influenced by the beliefs of pre-modern peoples across Europe, North Africa, and the Near East. Despite some common simila ...

organization

Ásatrúarfélagið (, ''Ásatrú Fellowship''), also known simply as , is an Icelandic religious organisation of Heathenry (new religious movement), heathenry (in Iceland also called , " faith"). It was founded on the first day of summer (Iceland), first day of s ...

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

. Office holders are elected.

Historical background

The title is a modern adoption of the medieval political title ''

allsherjargoði Allsherjargoði (, ''All-People Chieftain''; plural ''-goðar'' ) was an office in the Icelandic Commonwealth, held by the goði who held the ''goðorð'' of the descendants of Ingólfr Arnarson, the first settler of Iceland. The role of the ''all ...

'' which was in use during the

Icelandic Commonwealth The Icelandic Commonwealth, also known as the Icelandic Free State, was the political unit existing in Iceland between the establishment of the Althing () in 930 and the pledge of fealty to the Norwegian king with the Old Covenant in 1262. W ...

from 930 to 1262. A ''

goði Gothi or (plural , fem. ; Old Norse: ) was a position of political and social prominence in the Icelandic Commonwealth. The term originally had a religious significance, referring to a pagan leader responsible for a religious structure and com ...

'' was a local political leader, and ''allsherjargoði'' can be translated as "

all All or ALL may refer to: عرص Biology and medicine * Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a cancer * Anterolateral ligament, a ligament in the knee * ''All.'', taxonomic author abbreviation for Carlo Allioni (1728–1804), Italian physician and pro ...

people The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...

chieftain A tribal chief, chieftain, or headman is a leader of a tribe, tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies There is no definition for "tribe". The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of weste ...

". The original title was held by the ''goði'' who held the ''goðorð'' (an

administrative division Administrative divisions (also administrative units, administrative regions, subnational entities, or constituent states, as well as many similar generic terms) are geographical areas into which a particular independent sovereign state is divi ...

) of the descendants of

Ingólfr Arnarson Ingolfr Arnarson, in some sources named Bjǫrnolfsson, ( – ) is commonly recognized as the first permanent Norse settler of Iceland, together with his wife Hallveig Fróðadóttir and foster brother Hjǫrleifr Hróðmarsson. According to t ...

, the first settler of Iceland. The role of the ''allsherjargoði'' was to sanctify the

Althing The (; ), anglicised as Althingi or Althing, is the Parliamentary sovereignty, supreme Parliament, national parliament of Iceland. It is the oldest surviving parliament in the world. The Althing was founded in 930 at ('Thing (assembly), thing ...

as it began every year.

Elections

When

was founded in 1972, this historical Icelandic title was chosen for the chief official of the organization. Shortly after establishing the organization on the

First Day of Summer First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

of 1972, the founding members chose the poet and farmer

Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson (4 July 1924 – 23 December 1993) was an Icelandic religious leader and singer of rímur who was instrumental in gaining the Icelandic government's recognition of pre-Christian Heathenry (new religious movement), Hea ...

as the first holder of the title. Sveinbjörn remained in office until his death in 1993. An election for a new ''allsherjargoði'' was then held in 1994. The two candidates were the founding member

Jörmundur Ingi Hansen Jörmundur Ingi Hansen (born 14 August 1940) is an Icelandic Modern paganism, neopagan leader, designer, businessman and clothing retailer. Trained as a sculptor and known as a prominent member of Reykjavík, Reykjavík's hippie scene, he co-f ...

, who ran on a platform of continuity, and the artist

Haukur Halldórsson Haukur Halldórsson (4 July 1937 – 30 July 2024) was an Icelandic artist and illustrator. After beginning his career as a graphic designer and illustrator he developed into a visual artist. Halldórsson's work also included sculpture. He wa ...

, who promised more innovation. Jörmundur Ingi won with 59 votes against 34; one vote was blank. In 2002, dissatisfaction with Jörmundur Ingi's way of running the organization resulted in his removal from office and he was replaced by Jónína Kristín Berg as a temporary ''allsherjargoði''. A regular election was held the following year and the musician

Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson (; born 23 April 1958), also known as HÖH, is a musician, an art director, and '' allsherjargoði'' (''chief goði'') of Ásatrúarfélagið ("the Ásatrú Association"). Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson was a pioneer in the use ...

was chosen, with Jörmundur Ingi's approval.Yfirlýsing frá Lögréttu
25 August 2002.

Morgunblaðið ''Morgunblaðið'' (, ''The Morning Paper'') is an Icelandic daily newspaper. ''Morgunblaðið''s website, mbl.is, is the most popular website in Iceland. It is currently the country's only daily printed newspaper and the newspaper of record. Hi ...

List of allsherjargoðar

References

External links

Ásatrúarfélagið's presentations of the ''allsherjargoðar''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allsherjargodi Modern paganism in Iceland Germanic neopaganism Religious titles Icelandic religious leaders Modern paganism-related lists 1970s in modern paganism