20 - Diaspora Sagas

Summary

This chapter discusses a group of texts which can be categorized as ‘diaspora sagas’: sagas which take place largely in Greenland, Vínland, the Faroe Islands and Orkney, regions settled as a result of migration westward from Norway in the Viking Age. This group comprises four sagas, Orkneyinga saga, Færeyinga saga, Grœnlendinga saga and Eiríks saga rauða, and two þættir, Helga þáttr ok Úlfs and Grœnlendinga þáttr. The chapter discusses the rationale for considering these texts as a group, arguing that they are distinctive for their close focus on the diasporic experience and identifying the most prominent shared themes in these sagas, including settlement and voyaging, the political evolution of the diasporic communities and their relationship with the Norwegian kings, and the process of conversion to Christianity. It suggests that these sagas share an interest in the complex identities of their characters, which are explored in relation to Scandinavia, other regions of Europe and indigenous inhabitants encountered in the Vínland sagas. Finally, the chapter discusses the narrative mode of the diaspora sagas and outlines what is known of their origins, authorship and preservation.