Eastern Europe in Icelandic Sagas

Description

Based on the material of the Old Norse Icelandic sources written down in the twelfth to fourteenth centuries, this book demonstrates how medieval Scandinavians imagined Eastern Europe. It reconstructs the system of medieval Scandinavian perception of space in general, and the eastern part of the 'oecumene' in particular. It also examines the unique information of these sources, of which the Russian chronicles were unaware: namely, the saga and skaldic poetry data concerning the visits of the four Norwegian kings to Old Rus in the late-tenth and mid-eleventh centuries. Preface vii Introduction: Sources, Aims, Conventions 1 PART 1: EASTERN EUROPE IN THE OLD NORSE 'WELTBILD' 19 Chapter 1. 'Austrhálfa' on the Mental Map of Medieval Scandinavians 21 Chapter 2. 'Austrvegr' and Other 'aust-' Place- names 25 Chapter 3. 'Austmarr', “the Eastern Sea,” the Baltic Sea 33 Chapter 4. Traversing Eastern Europe 43 Chapter 5. East European Rivers 53 Chapter 6. 'Garðar'/'Garðaríki' as a Designation of Old Rus’ 65 Chapter 7. 'Hólmgarðr' (Novgorod) and 'Kænugarðr' (Kiev) 71 Chapter 8. 'Aldeigja'/'Aldeigjuborg' (Old Ladoga) 85 Chapter 9. 'Hǫfuð garðar' in 'Hauksbók', and Some Other Old Russian Towns 93 Chapter 10. 'Bjarmaland' 107 PART 2: FOUR NORWEGIAN KINGS IN OLD RUS’ 115 Chapter 11. Óláfr Tryggvason 117 Chapter 12. Óláfr Haraldsson 131 Chapter 13. Magnús Óláfsson 145 Chapter 14. Haraldr Sigurðarson 155 Conclusion 171 Bibliography 173 Index 207 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure 1. Trade routes of the eighth through the tenth centuries 44 Figure 2. Old Norse- Icelandic sources on matrimonial ties of the Russian princely family with the ruling houses of Scandinavia (eleventh to mid- twelfth centuries) 120