Anonymous, Gunnlaugs saga ormstungu

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. 1300

Places

Iceland (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Prose Fiction Narrative

Resources

Save to Bookshelf

Gunnlaugs saga ormstungu

is one of the most popular sagas of Icelanders, not least outside Iceland. It is a relatively brief family saga that takes place in one generation with one main plot. The oldest attestation of the saga is in Holm perg 18 4to that dates from the beginning of the fourteenth century, the second oldest is in AM 557 4to from the second quarter of the fifteenth century, and a seventeenth century paper manuscript, AM 552 I 4to, is also of value.

The saga is believed to be composed in the late thirteenth or early fourteenth century by an unknown author. The plot concerns the grand-daughter of Egill Skalla-Grímsson, Helga the beautiful, and her two suitors, Gunnlaugr ormstunga (serpent-tongue) and Hrafn the poet who eventually duel in Norway for her affections, killing

Please log in to consult the article in its entirety. If you are a member (student of staff) of a subscribing institution (see List), you should be able to access the LE on campus directly (without the need to log in), and off-campus either via the institutional log in we offer, or via your institution's remote access facilities, or by creating a personal user account with your institutional email address. If you are not a member of a subscribing institution, you will need to purchase a personal subscription. For more information on how to subscribe as an individual user, please see under Individual Subcriptions.

726 words

Citation: Jakobsson, Ármann. "Gunnlaugs saga ormstungu". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 October 2023 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=41261, accessed 04 May 2024.]

Save this article