Halldórr ókristni (''The Unchristian'') was a Norse

skald A skald, or skáld (Old Norse: ; , meaning "poet"), is one of the often named poets who composed skaldic poetry, one of the two kinds of Old Norse poetry in alliterative verse, the other being Eddic poetry. Skaldic poems were traditionally compo ...

, active around the year 1000. The only thing known about him is that he was one of the court poets of Earl

Eiríkr Hákonarson Erik Hakonsson, also known as Eric of Hlathir or Eric of Norway (; 960s – 1020s), was Earl of Lade, Governor of Norway and Earl of Northumbria. He was the son of Earl Hákon Sigurðarson and brother of the legendary Aud Haakonsdottir of Lade. ...

. Eight ''

dróttkvætt Old Norse poetry encompasses a range of verse forms written in the Old Norse language, during the period from the 8th century to as late as the far end of the 13th century. Old Norse poetry is associated with the area now referred to as Scandinav ...

'' verses by him are extant, preserved in the

kings' sagas Kings' sagas (, , ) are Old Norse sagas which principally tell of the lives of semi-legendary and legendary (mythological, fictional) Nordic kings, also known as saga kings. They were composed during the twelfth through the fourteenth centuries, ...

. They contain a lively description of the

battle of Svolder The Battle of Svolder (''Svold'' or ''Swold'') was a large naval battle during the Viking age, fought in September 1000 in the western Baltic Sea between King Olaf of Norway and an alliance of the Kings of Denmark and Sweden and Olaf's enemies ...

. ''

Heimskringla () is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland. While authorship of ''Heimskringla'' is nowhere attributed, some scholars assume it is written by the Icelandic poet and historian Snorri Sturluson (117 ...

'' attributes at least some of those stanzas to a '' flokkr'' on Earl Eiríkr and scholars sometimes refer to them as ''Eiríksflokkr''. The following is one of the eight verses. The extant sources do not explain the epithet "ókristni" (''unchristian'') but it is known that although Earl Eiríkr adopted Christianity, at least nominally, he was tolerant of paganism and his court poets praised him in traditional pagan terms.Christiansen 2002, p. 273.

Notes

References

Halldór ókristni: Eiríksflokkr
Preservation and text, including Finnur Jónsson's edition * Christiansen, Eric (2002). ''The Norsemen in the Viking Age''. Blackwell Publishing. *Finlay, Alison (editor and translator) (2004). ''Fagrskinna, a Catalogue of the Kings of Norway''. Brill Academic Publishers. * Thunberg, Carl L. (2012). ''Att tolka Svitjod'' 'To interpret Svitjod'' Göteborgs universitet. CLTS. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Halldorr okristni 10th-century Norwegian poets