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Hallgerðr Höskuldsdóttir was a 10th-century Icelandic woman and is a major character in ''
Njáls saga ''Njáls saga'' ( ), also ''Njála'' ( ), or ''Brennu-Njáls saga'' ( ) (Which can be translated as ''The Story of Burnt Njáll'', or ''The Saga of Njáll the Burner''), is a thirteenth-century Icelandic saga that describes events between 960 a ...
''. According to ''
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 ov ...
'', she was the daughter of Höskuld Dala-Kollson and the sister or half-sister of Þorleikr, Olaf the Peacock, Helgi, Þúriðr and Þorgerðr. Her nickname there is ''snúinbrók'' (‘twisted breeches’).


In ''Njáls saga''

Hallgerðr is the daughter of Höskuld, living at Höskuldstaðir in Laxárdal. Her mother is absent from the narrative, but it is mentioned that she has a maternal uncle who is a sorcerer. When she is a child, her uncle Hrútr predicts that many will suffer because of her beauty and offends her father by saying that she has “thief’s eyes”. As an adult, she is described as beautiful, with hair “so long that it could veil her whole body.” She is tall, resulting in her nickname ''longbrók'' (‘long breeches’). Her personality is “impetuous and wilful.” She is said to have been negatively influenced by her violent and intransigent foster-father, Þjóstólfr. Part of the saga follows Hallgerðr’s multiple marriages. First, she is unwillingly married to Þorvaldr Osvifsson; Þjóstólfr kills him. Her second husband is Glúmr Olafsson, with whom she has a daughter, Þorgerðr. After Glúmr slaps her, Þjóstólfr also kills him, against Hallgerðr’s wishes. Her third husband is
Gunnar Hámundarson Gunnar Hámundarson () was a 10th-century Icelandic chieftain. He lived in Hlíðarendi in Fljótshlíð and is probably better known as Gunnar of Hlíðarendi (). He features prominently in the first half of Njáls saga, which tells of the ...
, a major protagonist of ''Njáls saga'', whom she meets at 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 ...
. They have two sons, Högni and Grani. Hallgerðr is one of the main instigators in the saga’s central feud between Gunnar and
Njáll Þorgeirsson Njáll Þorgeirsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ) was a 10th and early-11th-century Icelandic lawyer who lived at Bergþórshvoll in Landeyjar, Iceland. He was one of the main protagonists of ''Njáls saga'', a medieval Icelandic saga which ...
. Although the two men try to settle the feud with compensation, Hallgerðr and Njáll’s wife
Bergþóra Skarphéðinsdóttir Bergþóra Skarphéðinsdóttir (anglicised as Bergthora Skarphedinsdottir) was a 10th-century Icelandic woman who appears as a character in ''Njáls saga'' as an inciter of its main feud. ''Njáls saga'' Bergþóra is introduced in the saga as ...
make a series of escalating retaliatory strikes against each other, sending people to murder members of each other’s households. Finally, Gunnar is besieged in his house after breaking the terms of his outlawry. Gunnar, defending himself with a bow, asks Hallgerðr for a strand of her hair to repair his bowstring. Reminding him of the time that he slapped her in a dispute over stolen provisions, Hallgerðr refuses, and Gunnar is killed. After the death of her third husband, Hallgerðr settles at Grjotár with her son Grani.


Reception

Hallgerðr has received critical attention as the instigator of the main feud in ''Njáls saga''. Maxwell repeatedly stresses her role as 'the root of evil' and 'the cause of evil', while Dronke understands her behaviour as 'her response to progressive disappointment in marital life.' For Clark and Hamer, Hallgerðr's nature is to be understood according to the description given by Hrútr before her marriage: it is 'very mixed,' with 'potential for honour or disgrace.' Hallgerðr ('Hallgerd') was voiced by Lisa Hammond on the
BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...
drama ''The Saga of Burnt Njal'', adapted by Hattie Naylor, in 2021.


References


Cited texts

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External links


Full text of ''Njáls saga'' with translation into English and other languages
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoskuldsdottir, Hallgerdr 10th-century Icelandic people 10th-century Icelandic women Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown