Kings' sagas (, , ) are
Old Norse sagas which principally tell of the lives of semi-legendary and legendary (mythological, fictional) Nordic
king
King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
s, also known as
saga kings. They were composed during the twelfth through the fourteenth centuries, primarily in
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 ...
, but with some written in
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
.
Kongesagaer på norsk (Heimskringla.no)
/ref>
Kings' sagas frequently contain episodic stories known in scholarship as '' þættir'', such as the '' Íslendingaþættir'' (about Icelanders), '' Styrbjarnar þáttr Svíakappa'', '' Hróa þáttr heimska'', and '' Eymundar þáttr hrings'' (about people from elsewhere).
List of Kings' sagas
Including works in Latin, and in approximate order of composition (though many dates could be off by decades)
*A Latin work by Sæmundr fróði, , lost.
*The older version of '' Íslendingabók'' by Ari fróði, , lost.
*'' Hryggjarstykki'' by Eiríkr Oddsson, , lost.
*'' Historia Norvegiæ'', .
*''Historia de Antiquitate Regum Norwagiensium '' by Theodoricus monachus, .
*'' Skjöldunga saga'', , badly preserved.
*'' Oldest Saga of St. Olaf'', , mostly lost.
*'' Ágrip af Nóregskonungasögum'', .
*A Latin ''Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar'' by Oddr Snorrason, , survives in translation.
*A Latin ''Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar'' by Gunnlaugr Leifsson, , lost.
*'' Sverris saga'', by Karl Jónsson, .
*'' Legendary Saga of St. Olaf'', .
*'' Morkinskinna'', but before ''Fagrskinna''.
*'' Fagrskinna'', .
*''Óláfs saga helga'' by Styrmir Kárason, , mostly lost.
*'' Böglunga sögur'', .
*'' Separate Saga of St. Olaf'', by Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of th ...
, .
*'' Heimskringla'' by Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of th ...
, .
*'' Knýtlinga saga'', probably by Ólafr Þórðarson, .
*'' Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar'', by Sturla Þórðarson, .
*'' Magnúss saga lagabœtis'', by Sturla Þórðarson, , only fragments survive.
*'' Hulda-Hrokkinskinna'', .
*'' Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar en mesta'', .
Sometimes counted among the Kings' sagas
*'' Jómsvíkinga saga''
*'' Orkneyinga saga''
*'' Færeyinga saga''
*'' Brjáns saga''
Editions and translations
In Norwegian
* Storm, Gustav; Bugge, Alexander (ed. & tr.) ''Norges Kongesagaer'' (Christiania: I. M. Stenersen's Publishing, 191
* Peter Andreas Munch, Munch, Peter Andreas; Þórðarson, Sturla ''Norges Konge-Sagaer Fra De Aeldste Tider Indtil Anden Halvdeel Af De 13 De Århundrede Efter Christi'' Fødsel (Nabu Press. 2010 )
References
Other sources
* Ciklamini, Marlene ''Snorri Sturluson'' (Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1978)
* Hermannsson, Halldó ''Bibliography of the sagas of the kings of Norway and related sagas and tales'' (BiblioBazaar. 2009)
* Jakobsson, Ármann; McTurk, Rory (ed.) ''A Companion to Old Norse-Icelandic Literature and Culture'' (Blackwell Publishing, 2004)
* Thorsson, Örnólfur (ed.) ''The Sagas of the Icelanders: A Selection'' (Penguin Putnam. 2000)
* Whaley, Diana ''Heimskringla: An Introduction'' (Viking Society for Northern Research Text, 1991)
* Wolf, Kirsten ''The Legends of the Saints in Old Norse-Icelandic Prose'' (University of Toronto Press. 2013)
External links
Old Norse Sagas
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kings' Sagas