Settlement of Iceland
The settlement of Iceland (
On the basis of
Traditionally, the Icelandic Age of Settlement is considered to have lasted from 874 to 930, at which point most of the island had been claimed and
History of settlement
Pre-Norse settlement
History of Iceland |
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This article or section appears to contradict itself.(April 2023) |
Controversial results of recent carbon dating work, published in the journal
The oldest known source which mentions the name "Iceland" is an 11th-century
A cabin in Hafnir was abandoned between 770 and 880 CE, showing that it was built well before the traditional settlement date of 874. It is thought to have been an outpost only inhabited part of the year, but it is not known whether it was built by people from Scandinavia, Ireland or Scotland.[6]
Norse settlement
Written sources consider the age of settlement in Iceland to have begun with settlement by Ingólfr Arnarson around 874, for he was the first to sail to Iceland with the purpose of settling the land. Archaeological evidence shows that extensive human settlement of the island indeed began at this time, and "that the whole country was occupied within a couple of decades towards the end of the 9th century."[7] Estimates of the number of people who migrated to the country during the Age of Settlement range between 4,300 and 24,000,[8] with estimates of the number of initial settlers ranging between 311 and 436.[9]
While the written sources emphasise settlement from Norway, genetic evidence shows that the founder population of Iceland came from Ireland, Scotland, and Scandinavia: studies of
Though the notion that population pressure drove migration to Iceland remains unsupported in the academic literature, a number of reasons have been offered for the settlement of Iceland:[12]
- Available land would have been attractive to Viking Age Scandinavians, especially given the relatively warm climate in Iceland at the time.
- The observation of valuable resources, such as walrus ivory, made Iceland attractive to those looking to profit on trade.
- Greater resistance to Viking incursions in the British isles and continental Europe in the late ninth century pushed Vikings to seek more peaceful opportunities.
- Medieval written sources emphasize how Harald Fairhair's centralization of Norway and imposition of burdensome taxes on farmers encouraged farmers to migrate to Iceland.
Written sources say some settlers took land freely, others bought lands from earlier settlers, some were gifted land by earlier settlers, and that some settlers took lands from others through the use of force or threat of force. Lands were likely not rented during the Age of settlement. Medievalist Hans Kuhn argued that lands were given away or taken freely because earlier settlers had no need for such extensive lands. Historian Gunnar Karlsson notes that it could be rational for earlier settlers to encourage new settlers to settle lands nearby so as to ease maintenance of cattle and slaves, and as insurance in times of crisis.[13]
Age of settlement ends
Ari Thorgilsson claims in Íslendingabók that the country had been "fully settled" by 930. Correspondingly, Landnámabók suggests that within about sixty years, all the usable land had been taken; it mentions 1,500 farm and place names, and more than 3,500 people, arranged in a geographical fashion.[10]
In the periodisation of Icelandic history, therefore, the age of settlement is considered to have ended in the year 930 with the establishment of Alþingi; at this point the Icelandic Commonwealth period is considered to begin.[12] Archeological evidence shows, however, "that immigrants continued to arrive in Iceland throughout the 10th century".[7] The authors of one study speculate that "continued immigration may have been needed to sustain the population".[7]
Theories
Naddoddr and Garðar
Hrafna-Flóki
The next Norseman to arrive in Iceland was named
He landed in Vatnsfjörður in the Westfjords after passing what is now Reykjavík. One of his men, Faxi, remarked that they seemed to have found great land—the bay facing Reykjavík is therefore known as Faxaflói. A harsh winter caused all of Flóki's cattle to die—he cursed this cold country, and when he spotted a drift ice in the fjord he decided to name it "Ísland" (Iceland). Despite difficulties in finding food, he and his men stayed another year, this time in Borgarfjörður, but they headed back to Norway the following summer. Flóki would return much later and settle in what is now known as Flókadalur.
Ingólfur Arnarson
There was a man of the North [Norway], Ingólfr, who is truly said to be the first to leave it for Iceland, in the time when Haraldr the Fair-Haired was sixteen winters of age [...] he settled south in Reykjavík.[14]
Another Norseman, by the name of
In the meantime, Hjörleifr had been murdered by his Irish slaves. Ingólfr hunted them down and killed them in the
As winter approached, Ingólfur's slaves found the pillars by Arnarhvoll [ˈa(r)tnarˌkʰvɔtl̥]. When summer came, he built a farmstead in Reykjavík and claimed all the land west of the rivers of Ölfusá, Öxará and Brynjudalsá [ˈprɪnjʏˌtalsˌauː]. His slave Karli did not care for the location, and said to Ingólfur: "How ill that we should pass good land, to settle in this remote peninsula."
Environmental effects
Prior to the deforestation of Iceland in the Middle Ages, some 40% of the land was forested.[16] Today, the country is about 2% forested, with the Icelandic Forest Service aiming to increase that share to 10% through reforestation and natural regrowth.[17] Scholars have argued that the settlers caused soil erosion through extensive deforestation and overgrazing.[12] One study suggests that the primary motive for the deforestation was "clearance for pastures and home-fields", not the "settlers’ requirements for fuel and building material".[18]
See also
References
Footnotes
- ISBN 9789935231130.
- ^ "Ríkisútvarpið vefur". Archived from the original on 2011-05-11. Retrieved 2009-11-09.
- ISBN 095125734X.
- OCLC 463215746.
- ^ Kristinsson, Axel (5 March 2011). "Is there any tangible proof that there were Irish monks in Iceland before the time of the Viking settlements?". Icelandic Web of Science. Translated by Jones, Nicholas. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
- ^ "New View on the Origin of First Settlers in Iceland". Iceland Review Online. 4 June 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2012.
- ^ S2CID 163350541.
- ^ Karlsson 2016, pp. 251–254.
- ^ Karlsson 2016, pp. 245–252.
- ^ PMID 29853688.
- ^ Ebenesersdóttir et al. 2018, p. 1030.
- ^ ISBN 9780199935413.
- ^ Karlsson 2016, p. 224.
- ^ Thorgilsson, Ari (c. 1200). Íslendingabók. Retrieved 9 January 2018 – via Wikisource.
- ^ "Ingólfr Arnarson". Store norske leksikon. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ "Iceland is replanting its forests 1,000 years after vikings razed them". 6 April 2018.
- ^ "Spades, saplings and sheep: Iceland battles to restore long-lost forests".
- ISBN 978-9935-9260-6-7. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
Bibliography
- Árni Daníel Júlíusson, Jón Ólafur Ísberg, Helgi Skúli Kjartansson Íslenskur sögu atlas: 1. bindi: Frá öndverðu til 18. aldar Almenna bókafélagið, Reykjavík 1989
- Byock, Jesse; Medieval Iceland: Society, Sagas and Power. University of California Press (1988) ISBN 0-226-52680-1
- Smith, Alfred P. (1984). Warlords & Holymen: Scotland AD 80-1000. Edward Arnold. pp. 141–174. ISBN 0-7131-6305-4.