''Sarpidons saga sterka'' ('the saga of Sarpidon the Strong', also known as ''Sagan af Sarpidon konungi og köppum hans'', 'the saga of King Sarpidon and his champions') is an Icelandic romance-saga by the priest

Jón Oddsson Hjaltalín Jón Oddsson Hjaltalín (1749-25 December 1835) was an Icelandic priest and writer. He composed verse and prose, and his writing was influenced by Icelandic tradition, Christian learning, and Enlightenment thought. Biography Jón graduated from S ...

(1749–1835). The protagonist shares his

name A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. The entity identified by a name is called its referent. A person ...

with a number of heroes of Ancient Greek epic.

Summary

The saga recounts the deeds of the son of an earl from Hungary. He is brought up according to heathen customs, but has to flee his people for destroying their wooden idols. Many adventures follow, testing the strength of the young hero. Eventually, he becomes king of Portugal. ''Inter alia'', the saga mentions the

1755 Lisbon Earthquake The 1755 Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon earthquake, impacted Portugal, the Iberian Peninsula, and Northwest Africa on the morning of Saturday, 1 November, All Saints' Day, Feast of All Saints, at around 09:40 local time. In ...

. A fuller summary is provided by Matthew Driscoll.Matthew James Driscoll, ''The Unwashed Children of Eve: The Production, Dissemination and Reception of Popular Literature in Post-Reformation Iceland'' (Enfield Lock: Hisarlik Press, 1997), pp. 339-41.

Editions

* Bjarni Vilhjálmsson (ed.), ''Riddarasögur'', 6 vols (Reykjavík: Íslendingasagnaútgáfan, 1949–1951), VI, 239-309 (from MS
Lbs 2943 4to
an
Lbs 1502 4to
.

Manuscripts

* Milton S. Eisenhower Library, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Icelandic Collection, MS no. 26 (mid-nineteenth-century) * Bragi Húnfjörð, MS no. 1 in 4to (1883, Friðrik Jónsson, Rifgirðingar) * Reykjavík, National Library
Lbs 2943 4to
(1885, Magnús Jónsson í Tjaldanesi, Tjaldanes) * Reykjavík, National Library
Lbs 1502 4to
(1902, Magnús Jónsson í Tjaldanesi, Tjaldanes) * Böðvar Kvaran (1912, Magnús Jónsson í Tjaldanesi, Tjaldanes)

References

{{Chivalric sagas Chivalric sagas Icelandic literature