Remembering Auðr/Unnr djúp(a)uðga Ketilsdóttir: construction of cultural memory and female religious identity
Medieval Icelandic literature recounts stories of both pagans and Christians settling in Iceland. Most of these stories focus on a male protagonist. However one of these tales centres around a female settler, namely Auðr/Unnr djúp(a)úðga Ketilsdóttir. Her story is unique in two senses: firstly, she...
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| Other Authors: | , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
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Jyväskylän yliopisto
2013
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| Online Access: | https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/4142019 http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-4142019 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/4142019/file/6802987 |
| Summary: | Medieval Icelandic literature recounts stories of both pagans and Christians settling in Iceland. Most of these stories focus on a male protagonist. However one of these tales centres around a female settler, namely Auðr/Unnr djúp(a)úðga Ketilsdóttir. Her story is unique in two senses: firstly, she is one of the few female protagonists among the many male ones in these accounts; secondly, the question of Auðr’s religion is an interesting one and a puzzle at that as two religious traditions exist parallel to one another. According to the first, she converts to Christianity. In the other, she remains true to the pagan faith of her Norwegian ancestors. These alternative traditions form a good example of how cultural memory and representations of a ninth century female Viking and her religious identity are transmitted in literary form. This article will investigate how these religious identities were created focusing on religious and funerary practices. I will briefly mention what effect these changes have on the depiction of Auðr/Unnr djúp(a)úðga Ketilsdóttir and how she is remembered from the Middle Ages to the nineteenth century. |
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