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Snorri Thorfinnsson (
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 ...
and Icelandic: Snorri Þorfinnsson or Snorri Karlsefnisson; most likely born between 1004 and 1013, and died ''c.'' 1090) was the son of explorers Thorfinn Karlsefni and Gudrid Thorbjarnardóttir. He is considered to be the first child of European descent to be born in
the Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.'' Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sin ...
, apart from
Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...
. He became an important figure in the
Christianisation of Iceland Iceland was Christianized in the year 1000 AD, when Christianity was legally adopted as the official religion by decision of the Althing. In Icelandic, this event is known as the (literally, "the taking of Christianity"). The vast majority of ...
.


Name

''Snorri'' is an
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 ...
name derived from the word '' snerra'', meaning "a fight." ''Þorfinnsson'' is a
patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...
, meaning "son of Þorfinnr", (see '' Icelandic naming conventions''). Snorri was named for his great-grandfather, Snorri Þórðarson, or after Snorri Þorbrandsson who was not a kinsman but a participant in Karlsefni's expedition


Family

There is speculation about the birth date of Snorri Thorfinnsson. Birth years such as 1005, 1009, and 1012 have been postulated, but all sources agree that he was born between 1004 and 1013. According to the Vinland sagas, when Snorri was 3 years old, his family left
Vinland Vinland, Vineland, or Winland () was an area of coastal North America explored by Vikings. Leif Erikson landed there around 1000 AD, nearly five centuries before the voyages of Christopher Columbus and John Cabot. The name appears in the V ...
because of hostilities with
indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...
(called ''Skrælingar'' by the settlers, meaning "barbarians"). The family returned to the Glaumbær farm in Seyluhreppur. Snorri Thorfinnsson had two children; a daughter named Hallfrid, and a son named Thorgeir. Hallfrid was the mother of Thorlak Runolfsson, bishop of
Skálholt Skálholt (Modern Icelandic: ; ) is a historical site in the south of Iceland, at the river Hvítá, Árnessýsla, Hvítá. History Skálholt was, through eight centuries, one of the most important places in Iceland. A bishopric was established ...
in the south of Iceland. One of the descendants of Snorri's brother Thorbjorn, Bjorn Gilsson, was also a bishop of
Hólar Hólar (; also Hólar í Hjaltadal ) is a small community in the Skagafjörður district of northern Iceland. Location Hólar is in the valley Hjaltadalur, some from the national capital of Reykjavík. It has a population of around 100. It is t ...
. Thorgeir was the father of Yngvild who was the mother of Brand Sæmundarsson, bishop of Hólar. (1983 ed., p.71) The sculptor
Bertel Thorvaldsen Albert Bertel Thorvaldsen (; sometimes given as Thorwaldsen; 19 November 1770 – 24 March 1844) was a Danes, Danish-Icelanders, Icelandic Sculpture, sculptor and medallist, medalist of international fame, who spent most of his life (1797–183 ...
claimed descent from Snorri Thorfinnsson in the 19th century.


Christianisation of Iceland

In the 13th century texts Snorri Thorfinnsson and Snorri Thorrgrimsson are considered the two main figures responsible for the early
Christianisation of Iceland Iceland was Christianized in the year 1000 AD, when Christianity was legally adopted as the official religion by decision of the Althing. In Icelandic, this event is known as the (literally, "the taking of Christianity"). The vast majority of ...
. Consequently, they were portrayed by various writers of the 13th and 14th century as "Christian chieftain models". According to ''
Grœnlendinga saga ''Grœnlendinga saga'' () (spelled ''Grænlendinga saga'' in modern Icelandic and translated into English as the Saga of the Greenlanders) is one of the sagas of Icelanders. Like the ''Saga of Erik the Red'', it is one of the two main sources on t ...
'', Snorri had built the first church of Glaumbaer, which would later increase Christian influence in the area. His descendants became the first Bishops of Iceland, and published the first Christian Code of Iceland.


Legacy

*Snorri Thorfinnsson was purported to be born in
Vinland Vinland, Vineland, or Winland () was an area of coastal North America explored by Vikings. Leif Erikson landed there around 1000 AD, nearly five centuries before the voyages of Christopher Columbus and John Cabot. The name appears in the V ...
(North America), making him the first European child known to be born in the Americas, provided that
Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...
is defined as being outside the Americas. *In 2002, American archaeologists discovered the remains of a thousand-year-old
longhouse A longhouse or long house is a type of long, proportionately narrow, single-room building for communal dwelling. It has been built in various parts of the world including Asia, Europe, and North America. Many were built from lumber, timber and ...
located on Iceland's northern coast. It is believed that it was Snorri Thorfinnsson's farmhouse. The longhouse was found near the Glaumbær Folk Museum, at the Skagafjörður Heritage Museum outside the coastal village of
Sauðárkrókur Sauðárkrókur () is a Localities of Iceland, town on the Skagafjörður in northern Iceland. It is the seat of both the Skagafjörður (municipality), Sveitarfélagið Skagafjörður ('Municipality of Skagafjörður') and the Northwestern Re ...
. The museum was once thought to have been built on the site of Snorri's farmhouse. According to archaeologists it was "a classic Germanic fortress longhouse like the
Great Hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages. It continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great cha ...
of
Beowulf ''Beowulf'' (; ) is an Old English poetry, Old English poem, an Epic poetry, epic in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 Alliterative verse, alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and List of translat ...
". *There is a non-profit organisation called The Snorri Program that focuses on the history of Icelandic settlers in North America and regularly runs exchange programs for youth and adults.


Genealogy

Below is the genealogy of descendants of Snorri, as given in the close of each saga, ''Grœnlendinga saga'' ch. 9 and ''Eiríks saga'' ch. 14.The saga texts obviously do not bother to reiterate the patronymic form in nominative case at every instance. For the English forms of the patronymics, is consulted. It is supplemented with further ancestral information from (''Eiríks saga'' ch. 7 and ''
Landnámabók (, "Book of Settlements"), often shortened to , is a medieval Icelandic written work which describes in considerable detail the settlement () of Iceland by the Norse in the 9th and 10th centuries CE. is divided into five parts and ov ...
''), a more complete family tree for which, see Thorfinn Karlsefni.


Family tree

The following stemma is drawn from the genealogy appended to the last chapter of '' Eiríks saga rauða'' in Hauk's own recension (in the ''Hauksbók'', supplemented with additional information from the ''Landnámabók'').


Footnotes


References

Texts *. For ''Eiríks saga rauða'' A=Hauksbók, B=AM 557=Skálholtsbók. * Translations * * * * Studies *


External links


Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''Snorri ThorfinnssonGuðríðr Eiríksdóttir
{{DEFAULTSORT:Snorri Thorfinnsson 11th-century births 11th-century deaths Viking Age in Canada 11th-century Icelandic people 11th-century North American people Year of death unknown History of Christianity in Iceland Scandinavian diaspora in Canada Icelandic diaspora in Canada