A thyle (
OE ''þyle'',
ON ''þulr'') was a member of the court associated with
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
n and
Anglo-Saxon royalty and
chieftains in the
Early Middle Ages
The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...
, whose precise role is uncertain but probably had to do with the
preservation of knowledge of the past and the judging of present statements against it.
Most literary references are found in
Icelandic and
Old English literature like the ''
Hávamál'', where the term ''Fimbulþulr'', "the great thyle", presumably refers to
Odin himself, and ''
Beowulf''. In ''
Gautreks saga'',
Starkad is referred to as a þulr after he sacrifices a king.
[Michael J. Enright, "The Warband Context of the Unferth Episode", ''Speculum'' 73.2 (1998) 297–337, , .] The word also appears on the runic inscription of the
Snoldelev Stone.
Frederiksberg's original name was ''Tulehøj'' ("Thyle Hill").
The Old English term is glossed as Latin ''histrio'' "orator" and ''curra'' "jester"; ''þylcræft'' means "
elocution". ''Zoëga's Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic'' defines ''þulr'' as "wise-man, sage," cognate to Old Norse ''þula'' (verb) "to speak" and ''þula'' (noun) "list in poetic form". The
Rundata project translates ''þulr'' as "reciter". From this it appears that the office of thyle was connected to the keeping and reproducing of orally transmitted lore like the ''
Rígsþula'', "Lay of Rígr".
Unferð holds the role of thyle in the poem ''Beowulf''; it has been suggested that he was also the ''
scop'' who is mentioned reciting poetry at the feast. It might be seen as a legitimate function of a guardian of the knowledge of the past to challenge boasts, judging them against the heroic past.
[Paul C. Bauschatz, ''The Well and the Tree: World and Times in Early Germanic Culture'', Amherst: University of Massachusetts, 1982, {{ISBN, 0-87023-352-1, note 22, pp. 215–16.] This may have played a role in preserving the luck of the group. Alternatively the thyle's role, including Unferth's, has also been envisaged as part of the ''
comitatus'' (war-band), channeling rage into concerted action.
[
Some modern scholars view the role of the thyle as being usurped by monks after Christianization, and being reduced to the modern caricature of the jester (hence the Latin gloss of ''curra'').
]
See also
* Skald
* Symbel
References
Anglo-Saxon paganism
Medieval literature
Germanic paganism