Jackson Crawford
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Jackson W. Crawford (born August 28, 1985) is an American scholar, translator and poet who specializes in
Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
. He previously taught at
University of Colorado, Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University o ...
(2017-2020),
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
(2014-17) and
University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...
(2011–14). Crawford has a
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel focused on
Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
language, literature and
mythology Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...
.


Life and career

Jackson Crawford is a former Instructor of Nordic Studies, and Coordinator of the Nordic Program. Crawford taught courses in the Old Norse language,
Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology, is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia as the Nordic folklore of the modern period. The ...
, and the history of the
Scandinavian languages The North Germanic languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages—a sub-family of the Indo-European languages—along with the West Germanic languages and the extinct East Germanic languages. The language group is al ...
. He received
B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...
in Classics and Classical Languages, Literatures, and
Linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...
from
Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public university, public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the flagship instit ...
; an M.A. in Linguistics from the
University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...
(focusing on
Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...
historical linguistics Historical linguistics, also known as diachronic linguistics, is the scientific study of how languages change over time. It seeks to understand the nature and causes of linguistic change and to trace the evolution of languages. Historical li ...
); and a Ph.D. in
Scandinavian Studies Scandinavian studies or ''Scandinavistics'' is an interdisciplinary academic field of area studies, mainly in the United States and Germany, that primarily focuses on the Scandinavian languages (also known as North Germanic languages) and cultura ...
from the
University of Wisconsin, Madison A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...
(specializing in
Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
). He was a consultant for the Disney movies Frozen (2013) and
Frozen 2 ''Frozen 2'', stylized as ''Frozen II'', is a 2019 American animated Musical film, musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures as the sequel to ''Frozen (2013 film), Frozen'' (2013). The ...
(2019). In 2015 he published a translation of the ''
Poetic Edda The ''Poetic Edda'' is the modern name for an untitled collection of Old Norse anonymous narrative poems in alliterative verse. It is distinct from the closely related ''Prose Edda'', although both works are seminal to the study of Old Norse ...
''. His stated goal was to make an accessible translation for readers primarily interested in mythology rather than poetry or textual scholarship. The translated poems are rendered in
free verse Free verse is an open form of poetry which does not use a prescribed or regular meter or rhyme and tends to follow the rhythm of natural or irregular speech. Free verse encompasses a large range of poetic form, and the distinction between free ...
. In 2017 he published his translations of the '' Saga of the Volsungs'' and the '' Saga of Ragnar Lothbrok'' in one volume. His book ''The Wanderer's Hávamál'' (2019) includes the Old Norse text of the poem ''
Hávamál ''Hávamál'' ( ; Old Norse: ''Hávamál'',Unnormalised spelling in the Codex Regius:''Title'': hava mal''Final stanza'': Nv ero Hava mál q''ve''ðin Háva hꜹ''l''lo i ..classical pron. , Modern Icelandic pron. , ‘Words of Hávi he H ...
'' with Crawford's page-facing English translation along with commentary, a few brief Old Norse texts about Odin, and the ''Cowboy Hávamál'', which is Crawford's translation of ''Gestaþáttr'' into his grandfather's dialect. Matthew Coker, reviewing the volume in ''The Medieval Review'', called the ''Cowboy Hávamál'' a "refreshingly unique take on the poem" that brings "its hard natural and human world to life". Crawford has also contributed to the 2020 video game '' Assassin's Creed: Valhalla'', where he consulted on topics mainly centered around linguistics. Crawford is a public educator on his
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel where he lectures on
Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
language and discusses literature and mythology. He says there is a great interest in Old Norse material, but much of what can be found on the Internet is unreliable, and he wants to provide accessible information that is separate from both popular culture and mystical practices. Most of his YouTube videos are filmed in the natural outdoors of
Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
or
Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
with him wearing a
cowboy hat The cowboy hat is a high-crowned, wide-brimmed hat best known as the defining piece of attire for the North American cowboy. Today it is worn by many people, and is particularly associated with ranch workers in the United States, Canada, Mexico, C ...
.


Bibliography

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References


External links


Official website
*
Tattúínárdǿla saga: If Star Wars Were an Icelandic Saga

Colorado.edu

YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crawford, Jackson 1985 births Living people Old Norse studies scholars Translators from Old Norse University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni University of California, Berkeley College of Letters and Science faculty University of California, Los Angeles faculty University of Colorado Boulder faculty Translators of the Poetic Edda 21st-century American translators Texas Tech University alumni University of Georgia alumni Educational and science YouTubers YouTubers from Houston