Saga Stories #4: Njáls Saga

Join Dr Matthew Roby on a trip to the countryside around the town of Hvolsvöllur in south-east Iceland, as he walks you through three stories from perhaps the most famous Icelandic saga of them all: Brennu-Njáls saga. This saga is extremely long and complex, featuring a dizzying array of characters and storylines. We hope this video will give you a sense of the intricate way in which the saga weaves all these narrative threads together to produce a masterpiece of epic proportions.

The first story is that of Gunnarr’s feuds and last stand, which is told at the site of his farmstead, Hlíðarendi, about 15km east of Hvolsvöllur. The second tells of the killing of Þráinn Sigfússon on the frozen Markarfljót river, about 15km south of Hlíðarendi. The third and final story is that of the burning of Njáll and his family at their farmstead, Bergþórshvoll, about 20km south of Hvolsvöllur.

To watch, hear, and read more about the sagas, you can find Dr Matthew Roby’s blog

Facebook: @MatthewHRoby
Twitter: @MatthewHRoby
Instagram: @MatthewHaroldRoby

If you are struggling to understand the Icelandic names of people or places in this video, don’t forget to turn on closed captioning.

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