Íslands kvennalof (‘In Praise of Icelandic Women’) : cultural memories of Auðr djúpauðga in praise poetry of the Icelandic enlightenment

• Main Author: Vanherpen, Sofie
• Other Authors: Pedersen, Anne, Sindbæk, Søren
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: Aarhus University Press 2020
• Subjects: Languages and Literatures; Iceland; Enlightenment; praise poetry; cultural memory; Árni Böðvarsson (1713-1776); Ingjaldur; Kvenna; Múli
• Online Access: https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8639914; http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-8639914; https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8639914/file/8677215

Hvarfsbók (ÍB 815-816 8vo) is a two-volume collection of poems and poetic fragments by various authors that was compiled by Þorstein Þorkelsson (1831-1907) in 1890. This compilation contains two eighteenth-century praise poems of specific interest here, Sprundahrós and Kvennaríma. Sprundahrós (‘Women’s praise’), a long poem attributed to both Jón Jónsson að Kvíabekk (1739-1785) and Ingjaldur Jónsson of Múli (1739-1832), is claimed to be the first Icelandic poem in praise of famous women. It is a catalogue of women, including six featured in sagas, who were notable by virtue of their good qualities. A similar and much less known poem on the same theme, yet one without a satisfactory edition, is Kvennaríma (‘Women’s rhyme/ballad’) by the reverend Þorsteinn Hallgrímsson (1752-1791). Like Sprundahrós, it lists and glorifies several biblical women as well as saga-heroines. These poems exhibit features reminiscent of the “gynaecea,” a literary historical genre from the Renaissance which was well represented in Denmark and Sweden during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, but non-existent in Iceland. However, these praise poems might offer an Icelandic alternative to the Danish and Swedish gynaecea. The above-named poems may have created a precedent by mentioning some saga women, but Íslands kvenna lof (‘Icelandic women’s praise’), written by the poet Árni Böðvarsson (1713-1776) is the first Icelandic poem dedicated entirely to the praise of Icelandic women. This paper examines the presentation of Viking Age women in eighteenth century Icelandic praise poetry. It will argue that these poems make for a new picture of female saga characters representing the strong Icelandic woman, a symbol of pride in the Icelandic community.