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Shapeshifting in Old Norse-Icelandic Literature

Shapeshifting in Old Norse-Icelandic Literature

By Lyonel D. Perabo

Roda da Fortuna: Electronic Journal about Antiquity and Middle Ages, Vol.6:1 (2017)

Thingvellir National Park in Iceland

Abstract: This article aims to cast a light upon the colorful yet largely unknown shapechanging motifs found in Old Norse-Icelandic literature as well as in related literary works conceived from Classical times until the middle of the 16th century. This essay analyzes the different sub-types of supernatural transformations and which kinds of texts they most commonly appear in and will posit as to their potential origins, genesis, and development within the context of Medieval Norse-Icelandic literature.

In the past couple of years, the study of magic and supernatural elements in Viking and Medieval Scandinavia seems to have blossomed. All the while numerous key-studies were published within academia, the image of the pagan Viking made new inroads in popular culture.

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During this period, modern medias such as HistoryChannel series Vikings (2013-), Bethesda’s top-tier video-game Skyrim (2011) or Dreamworks’ movie franchise How to Train Your Dragon (2010-) all reached mainstream recognition due in no small-part to their interpretation of Norse supernatural motifs. At the same time in academia, influential works on the subject such as Francois-Xavier Dillman’s Les magiciens dans l’Islande ancienne (2006), Clive Tolley’s Shamanism in Norse myth and magic (2009) or Stephen Mitchell’s Witchcraft and Magic in the Nordic Middle Ages (2011) cast a new, highly analytical light on the subject of magic and the supernatural in the Viking Age.

The present paper aims to follow step by focusing on a much more specific aspect of magic and sorcery in the Norse Middle Ages, namely the way shapeshifting is depicted in Old Norse-Icelandic literature. For the purpose of this article, Norse-Icelandic literature will be defined as referring to the literary corpus of Medieval Scandinavia. In addition, supplemental sources not originating from Scandinavia might be brought up as well in order to strengthen the understanding of specific Norse-Icelandic motifs.

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Click here to read this article from Roda da Fortuna

Click here to read this article from Academia.edu

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