Gunnlaugr ormstunga (

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 ...

: ; ; "serpent-tongue") was an

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

skald A skald, or skáld (Old Norse: ; , meaning "poet"), is one of the often named poets who composed skaldic poetry, one of the two kinds of Old Norse poetry in alliterative verse, the other being Eddic poetry. Skaldic poems were traditionally compo ...

. His life is described in '' Gunnlaugs saga ormstungu'', where several of his poems are preserved. Gunnlaugr was born ca. 983. From an early age he proved himself impetuous, audacious, brave, and tough. He was also a skilled author of mostly derogatory poems, which earned him the cognomen ''ormstunga'' "serpent-tongue". After a quarrel with his father, Illugi, Gunnlaugr left his home at the age of twelve to stay for some time at

Borg The Borg are an alien group that appear as recurring antagonists in the ''Star Trek'' fictional universe. They are Cyborg, cybernetic organisms (cyborgs) linked in a Group mind (science fiction), hive mind called "The Collective". The Borg co- ...

with Þorsteinn Egilsson, the son of

Egill Skallagrímsson Egil Skallagrímsson ( ; Modern Icelandic: ; 904 995) was a Viking Age war poet, sorcerer, berserker, and farmer.Thorsson, 3 He is known mainly as the anti-hero of '' Egil's Saga''. ''Egil's Saga'' historically narrates a period from approx ...

. There, he became acquainted with Þorsteinn's daughter, Helga the fair, reputedly the most beautiful woman on Iceland. Her hair was so ample that she could hide herself in it. When Gunnlaugr was eighteen, he went abroad. At that time, Helga became his fiancée, on the condition that she would wait no more than three years for Gunnlaugr. He visited the courts of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

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and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and

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. In Sweden, he visited the court of King Óláfr Skötkonung where he met his rival, the Icelandic champion and skald, Hrafn Önundarson. Gunnlaugr's stay in the service of King Æthelred of England delayed his return to Iceland and Helga. He did not return until four years had passed (ca. 1005). Since Gunnlaugr had been gone longer than his allotted three years, Helga was forced into an unhappy marriage to Gunnlaugr's rival, Hrafn Önundarson. Gunnlaugr and Hrafn met at the

Althing The (; ), anglicised as Althingi or Althing, is the Parliamentary sovereignty, supreme Parliament, national parliament of Iceland. It is the oldest surviving parliament in the world. The Althing was founded in 930 at ('Thing (assembly), thing ...

and Gunnlaugr challenged Hrafn to a ''hólmganga'' or duel of honour. The duel ended in a draw and was the last one allowed in Iceland. From that time, ''hólmgǫngur'' were forbidden by the

Gray Goose Laws The Gray Goose Laws ( {{IPA, is, ˈkrauːˌkauːs}) are a collection of laws from the Icelandic Commonwealth period. The term ''Grágás'' was originally used in a medieval source to refer to a collection of Norwegian laws and was probably mi ...

. In order to settle their dispute in blood, the two champions met in the

Kingdom of Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of Norway. Bouvet I ...

in the spring of 1008. There, Gunnlaugr defeated Hrafn, but was fatally wounded. After a short time he died. He was 25. Helga later remarried, but never recovered from Gunnlaugr's death. Her greatest pleasure was to rest her eyes on a sumptuous coat that Gunnlaugr had given her. One evening, she rested her head on her husband's shoulder, spread the coat in front of her, and watched it for a while. Thereafter, she fell back into her husband's embrace and was dead.

References

Other sources

*Whaley, Diana (2002) ''Sagas of Warrior-Poets'' (Penguin) *Hreinsson, Vidar (1997) ''The Complete Sagas of Icelanders'' (Leifur Eiriksson Publishing)

External links

"The Saga of Gunnlaug the Worm-Tongue and Rafn the Skald"
1901 English Translation by

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was an English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditiona ...

and

Eiríkr Magnússon The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Nor ...

Article from ''Nordisk Familjebok'' (in Swedish) on ''Projekt Runeberg''.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunnlaugr Ormstunga 11th-century Icelandic poets Viking warriors 980s births 1008 deaths 11th-century Vikings Duellists