Magic in Old Icelandic Prose Texts

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

Andrea Maraschi ( Universita Degli Studi di Bari)

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), Sven Hakon Rossel (Universitat Wien), Herbert Rowland (Purdue University), Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen (University College London)

Dates

Date of occurrence c.1150-

Places

Iceland (Location)

Genres and Modes

Prose Fiction Narrative

Resources

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“Magic” is a highly problematic term which scholars are gradually discarding in favour of terminology reflecting internal perspectives. This is because our modern notion of “magic” is burdened by bias, and has historically represented “the religion of the other” (Davies, 41). The most recurrent terms to identify magic practices in Old Icelandic texts are

fjölkynngi

galdr

seiðr, trolldómr

(Maraschi, “Magic, Miracles, and Rituals”; Meylan, “The Magical Power of Poetry”, 46). For instance, the medieval Icelandic law code known as

Grágás

(written down in 1117) punishes “galldra…gørningar…fiolkýngi” with lesser outlawry, and sometimes with permanent banishment (

Grágás

, 22; Mitchell, 347). According to this law code,

fiolkýngi

consists of…

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2270 words

Citation: Maraschi, Andrea. "Magic in Old Icelandic Prose Texts". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 June 2023 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=19719, accessed 21 November 2024.]

Magic in Old Icelandic Prose Texts

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