Gunnlaugr Leifsson
Encyclopedia
Gunnlaugr Leifsson was an Icelandic scholar, writer and poet. He was a Benedictine monk at the Þingeyrar monastery (Þingeyrarklaustur) in the north of Iceland.
. Snorri Sturluson
made use of Gunnlaugr's work when composing his Heimskringla
and sections of Gunnlaugr's work were incorporated into Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar en mesta
.
Gunnlaugr also wrote a Latin biography of Bishop Jón Ögmundarson. This work is also lost but Old Norse biographies of Jón are still extant. Gunnlaugr also composed the original Latin version of Þorvalds þáttr víðförla but it is only preserved in an Old Norse translation. Gunnlaugr was also involved in the collection of Þorlákr helgi's miracles. Gunnlaugr is known to have written on Saint Ambrose
and recent research indicates that the extant Old Norse translation of Vita sancti Ambrosii, Ambrósíus saga, may be Gunnlaugr's work.
Gunnlaugr wrote the poem Merlínússpá, a Norse translation of Prophetiae Merlini by Geoffrey of Monmouth
. The imagery in Gunnlaugr's translation testifies to his extensive knowledge of skaldic poetry. The poem is preserved in Hauksbók
and consists of a total of 171 fornyrðislag stanzas.
Biography
Gunnlaugr composed a Latin biography of King Óláfr Tryggvason. This work is now lost but it is believed to have been an expansion of the Latin Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar written by his monastic brother, Oddr SnorrasonOddr Snorrason
The Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar of Oddr Snorrason whose name is also sometimes Anglicized as Odd Snorrason was a Latin royal biography attributed to a 12th century Icelandic Benedictine monk at the Þingeyrar monastery ....
. Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was twice elected lawspeaker at the Icelandic parliament, the Althing...
made use of Gunnlaugr's work when composing his Heimskringla
Heimskringla
Heimskringla is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorri Sturluson ca. 1230...
and sections of Gunnlaugr's work were incorporated into Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar en mesta
Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar en mesta
Óláfs saga Tryggvasonar en mesta or The Greatest Saga of Óláfr Tryggvasonis one of the kings' sagas, an extended biography of King Óláfr Tryggvason....
.
Gunnlaugr also wrote a Latin biography of Bishop Jón Ögmundarson. This work is also lost but Old Norse biographies of Jón are still extant. Gunnlaugr also composed the original Latin version of Þorvalds þáttr víðförla but it is only preserved in an Old Norse translation. Gunnlaugr was also involved in the collection of Þorlákr helgi's miracles. Gunnlaugr is known to have written on Saint Ambrose
Ambrose
Aurelius Ambrosius, better known in English as Saint Ambrose , was a bishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the 4th century. He was one of the four original doctors of the Church.-Political career:Ambrose was born into a Roman Christian family between about...
and recent research indicates that the extant Old Norse translation of Vita sancti Ambrosii, Ambrósíus saga, may be Gunnlaugr's work.
Gunnlaugr wrote the poem Merlínússpá, a Norse translation of Prophetiae Merlini by Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur...
. The imagery in Gunnlaugr's translation testifies to his extensive knowledge of skaldic poetry. The poem is preserved in Hauksbók
Hauksbók
The Hauksbók is one of the few medieval Norse manuscripts of which the author is known. His name was Haukr Erlendsson , and as long back as it is possible to trace the manuscript it has been called the Hauksbók after its author. It was partly written by Haukr himself, partly by assistants...
and consists of a total of 171 fornyrðislag stanzas.
Other sources
- Eysteinn Björnsson (2002). Index of Old Norse/Icelandic Skaldic Poetry. Published online at: http://www.hi.is/~eybjorn/ugm/skindex/skindex.html See in particular "Gunnlaugr Leifsson" at http://www.hi.is/~eybjorn/ugm/skindex/gleifs.html from the editions of Finnur JónssonFinnur JónssonFinnur Jónsson was an Icelandic philologist who made extensive contributions to the study of Old Norse literature.Finnur graduated from Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík in 1878 and went to Denmark for further studies at the University of Copenhagen. He received a doctorate in philology in 1884 with a...
and E. A. Kock. - Guðrún Nordal (2001). Tools of Literacy : The Role of Skaldic Verse in Icelandic Textual Culture of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 0-8020-4789-0 pp. 168–169.
- Katrín Axelsdóttir (2005). "Gunnlaugur Leifsson og Ambrósíus saga" in Skírnir, Autumn 2005:337-349. ISSN 0256-8446
- Oddr Snorrason (translated by Theodore M. Andersson) (2003). The Saga of Olaf Tryggvason. Cornell University Press. ISBN 0-8014-4149-8
- Simpson, Jacqueline (2004). "Olaf Tryggvason versus the Powers of Darkness" in The Witch Figure: Folklore Essays by a Group of Scholars in England, pp. 165–187. Routledge. ISBN 0-415-33074-2