Judith Jesch (born 1954) is a British scholar of

Old Norse language Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

runology Runology is the study of the runic alphabets, runic inscriptions, and their history. Runology forms a specialized branch of Germanic linguistics. History Runology was initiated by Johannes Bureus (1568–1652), who was interested in the ling ...

, and the

Viking Age The Viking Age (about ) was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonising, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. The Viking Age applies not only to their ...

. She is Professor of Viking Age Studies at the

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public research university in Nottingham, England. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. Nottingham's main campus (University Park Campus, Nottingh ...

. Jesch is chair of the international Runic Advisory Group and president of the English Place-Name Society.

Biography

Jesch received her advanced education at

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

and

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. As a student at Durham in 1973 she co-wrote an article for ''Palatinate'' that accused the university of failing to attract candidates from a wide variety of backgrounds, and suggested that Durham was by now seen as a 'finishing school' for the socially privileged. Her research focuses on the relationships of language, texts and contexts in the Viking Age and medieval Scandinavia, with a particular focus on runic inscriptions, skaldic verse and historical sagas. She also writes on questions of orality and literacy, geography, migration and diaspora, and Scandinavian contacts with the British Isles. She was keynote speaker at the 2015 Norse in the North Conference, and is the Director of the Centre for the Study of the Viking Age (CSV

She is a fellow of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

, the

Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...

and the

Society of Antiquaries of Scotland The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is the senior antiquarian body of Scotland, with its headquarters in the National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh. The Society's aim is to promote the cultural heritage of Scotland. The usu ...

Selected publications

* * *''Epigraphic Literacy and Christian Identity''.

Brepols Brepols is a Belgian publishing house. Once, it was one of the largest printing companies in the world and one of the main employers in Turnhout (Belgium). Besides its printing business, Brepols is also active as a publisher. Formerly well known ...

, 2012. (Edited with K. Zilmer) *''Viking Poetry of Love and War''. The British Museum Press, 2013.
"Earl Rögnvaldr of Orkney: A Poet of the Viking Diaspora"
''

Journal of the North Atlantic The ''Journal of the North Atlantic'' is an annual, peer-reviewed, online-only, academic journal covering the archaeology and environmental history of the peoples of the North Atlantic. It was established in 2008 and is published by Eagle Hill Pu ...

'', Special Volume 4, 2013, pp. 154–60. *"Runes and Words: Runic Lexicography in Context", '' Futhark: International Journal of Runic Studies''. 4, 77-100, 2013. * ;Edited *

References

External links

Judith Jesch , University of Nottingham - Academia.edu
Academics of the University of Nottingham Alumni of University College London Fellows of the Royal Historical Society Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland British women historians Living people 1954 births 21st-century English writers 21st-century British women writers Alumni of St Aidan's College, Durham {{UK-academic-bio-stub