Anonymous, Þorsteins þáttur stangarhöggs [The Tale of Thorstein Staff-Struck]

Ármann Jakobsson (University of Iceland)

Ed. by Ármann Jakobsson, University of Iceland
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.3.4: Icelandic Writing and Culture.
Vol. editors: Ármann Jakobsson (University of Iceland), Kjerstin Moody (Gustavus Adolphus College), Sven Hakon Rossel (Universitat Wien), Herbert Rowland (Purdue University), Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen (University College London)

Dates

First circulation or publication c. 1400

Places

Iceland (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Non-fictional prose

Resources

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Þorsteins saga stangarhǫggs

is among the shortest of the sagas of Icelanders. Often referred to as

Þorsteins þáttr

, it is in fact atypical of the

þættir

since these are mostly narratives from the kings’ sagas published in the twentieth century as independent narratives, whereas

Þorsteins saga

always stood alone, although it is closely linked to other sagas from Eastfjords of Iceland and preserved along with them in manuscripts.

Þorsteins saga stangarhöggs exists in only a single vellum manuscript, AM 162 C fol. dating from the fifteenth century. Only one page of the episode is extant there, but this preserves over half the episode. The episode’s main manuscripts are two paper manuscripts from the seventeenth century, AM 156 fol. and AM 496 4to. Þorsteins saga can be dated

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1020 words

Citation: Jakobsson, Ármann. "Þorsteins þáttur stangarhöggs". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 19 April 2023 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=40995, accessed 04 May 2024.]

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