Part 1

Orkney and Shetland Folk 872-1350

BY A. W. JOHNSTON

LONDON Printed for the Viking Society for Northern Research University of London 1914

ORKNEY AND SHETLAND FOLK, 872-1350.

NOTE.--Unless where otherwise stated this paper is founded on _Orkneyinga Saga_ (Rolls Series, text and translation). Page references are to _Orkney and Shetland Records_, Vol. I. Fb., _Flateyjarbók_. Hkr., _Heimskringla_. J.J., Jacob Jakobsen’s works. S.S., _Sturlunga Saga_.

This paper is an attempt to describe the mixed races which inhabited Orkney and Shetland from the foundation of the Norse earldom, in 872, until the end of the rule of the Gaelic earls, _circa_ 1350, and it is a first instalment of the evidence on which a paragraph on “person-names” was founded, in the _Introduction_ to _Orkney and Shetland Records_, vol. I.

The earliest inhabitants, of whom we have any record, were the Picts, and the Irish papas and Columban missionaries, who must have brought some Irish settlers with them.

It has already been suggested that the Norse must have settled in Orkney and Shetland, _circa_ 664, among the aboriginal race, the Picts, who would have become their thralls, and with whom the settlers would have intermarried.

The first Norsemen who came to Orkney and Shetland would have been adventurers, and not settlers with wives, families and thralls, such as later went to Iceland and Orkney. Consequently such adventurers who settled in the islands would naturally have intermarried with the aborigines. This kind of male settlement may have gone on for some time, before the actual _bona fide_ colonisation took place.

It has already been pointed out that Shetland was not so fully colonised as Orkney, at the commencement of the Norse migration, which appears to account for the older Norse dialect forms in Orkney, and for the survival of more Keltic island-names in Shetland.

A stronger Pictish strain is thus, on that account, to be looked for in Shetland. The Norse would select the easiest landing-places, while the Kelts would occupy the inland and inaccessible places, as they did in the Isle of Man. The two inland districts of Hara and Stennes in Orkney are especially rich in the remains of the pre-Norse inhabitants--stone circles, brochs, etc.; and Ireland, the only sea-board of Stennes, is particularly inhospitable for shipping.

Besides the archæological and topographical proof of the continued residence of the Picts in Orkney and Shetland, there is the much more reliable evidence of anthropology, in the existence of a large strain of the small and dark race in both Orkney and Shetland, representing the aboriginal race, the later prisoners of raids and the later settlers from Scotland. Allowance must also be made for thralls brought from Norway.

Queen Auðr djúpauðga (deeply-wealthy) or djúpúðga (deeply-wise), passed through Orkney, in the ninth century, on her way to Iceland, with twenty freed Irish thralls. After this, Einarr, grandson of earl Torf-Einarr, went to Iceland from Orkney with two Vestmenn (Irishmen). _Írar_, Irish, occurs in place-names in Iceland, Orkney and Shetland, in each of which latter there is an _Ireland_.

It will now be proved that there were only three possible pure-bred Norse earls of Orkney and Shetland, viz., the first three--Sigurðr hinn ríki, his son, GuÞormr, and his nephew, Hallaðr.

The first earl of the main line was Torf-Einarr, who was half Norse and half thrall, his mother being probably of the pre-Norse dark race. His son, the next earl, married a Gael, and after this, through repeated Gaelic marriages, the succeeding earls in the Norse male line were never more than a cross between Norse and Gael, sometimes almost approaching pure-bred Gaels, if the rules of a modern breeding society are to be observed. The same holds good of earl St. Rögnvaldr, a Norwegian, who succeeded on the distaff side, his mother being of Gaelic extraction. The Gaelic conversion of the earls was completed on the succession of the Gaelic earls in 1139.

The next step will be to show that the leading families, some of which were related to the earls, were also mainly of Gaelic descent, and in some cases probably in the male line.

As the Gaels did not give up patronymics and begin to assume permanent surnames (usually those of their chiefs), until after 1350, those who settled in Orkney before that, and became Norse in language and customs, of course adopted the Norse, in place of the Gaelic, patronymic, _i.e._, _-son_ for _mac-_. This was done by the Gaelic earls in Orkney, in precisely the same way as had been done by the Irish settlers in Iceland.

In reply to a query, Sir Herbert Maxwell writes: “You ask me to fix a date ‘when patronymics flourished and ceased in the Highlands?’ I think it would be impossible to do so. There were few, if any, fixed surnames in England or Lowland Scotland before the middle of the thirteenth century, other than territorial ones, derived from the feudal tenure of land. In the Highlands, the adoption of fixed names appears to have been indefinitely deferred. Such counties as Perth and Dumbarton, being nearest the frontier of civilisation, their people would find it convenient to conform to the habit of their neighbours. In more remote districts the shifting patronymic prevailed much longer, and when it was abandoned individuals frequently assumed the surname of their chief or the name of his clan, which accounts for the old patronymic ‘Macdonald’ being the third commonest surname in Scotland; Smith and Brown being first and second.”

In the following description particular attention will be called to personal appearance, character, habits, superstitions, etc., as indications of descent.

THE NORSE EARLS.

Earl Torf-Einarr, 875-910, was the illegitimate son of the Norwegian earl Rögnvaldr, by a thrall mother who was thrall born on all sides, _í allar ættir þrælborinn_. He was therefore half Norse and half thrall. His mother was probably of the pre-Norse small dark race, the Finnar or Lappir, which may account for her son being ugly, _ljótr_, one-eyed, _einsýnn_, but keen-sighted, _skygnstr_, an expression which latterly meant second-sighted, and capable of seeing elves, etc. He saw, what others did not, Hálfdán há-leggr, the self-appointed “king of Orkney,” bobbing up and down on another island, and had a _blóð-örn_, blood-eagle, carved on him.

His poetic genius may have been the result of the mixture of Norse and Finn. He died of sickness, _sótt-dauðr_, equivalent to _strá-dauðr_, straw-dead, died in bed, an ignominious death for a víkingr.

Nothing is known of his wife, but, as he had children before he left Norway, she was, probably, a Norwegian.

His children were earls Þorfinnr, Arnkell and Erlendr, and two daughters, Þórdís, born in his youth, in Norway (she was brought up by her grandfather, earl Rögnvaldr, and married Þórgeirr klaufi, whose son Einarr went to Orkney to his kinsmen, and as they would not receive him, he bought a ship and went to Iceland), and Hlíf, who had descendants in Iceland.

Earl Þorfinnr hausakljúfr (skull-cleaver), 910-963, was the son of earl Torf-Einarr and an unknown mother, probably Norwegian, so that he would be three-fourths Norse and one-fourth thrall in descent. He married Grelöð, a daughter of Dungað (Gaelic _Donnchadh_, Duncan), Gaelic earl of Caithness, and Gróa, daughter of Þorsteinn rauðr.[1]

[1] Hkr.

He is described as a great chief and warrior, _mikill höfðingi ok herskár_, and died of sickness, _sótt-dauðr_, and was buried in a mound, _heygðr_, in Rögnvaldsey _á Haugs-eiði_, at Hoxa. The Saga reads _á Hauga-heiði_, wrongly; this isthmus would have been called _Haugs-eið_, how’s isthmus, because the Norse found on it a large mound, which covered the ruins of a pre-Norse round tower, in which the earl may have been buried.

His children were earls Arnfinnr, Hávarðr ár-sæli (of prosperous years), Hlöðver, Ljótr or Arnljótr, and Skúli, and two daughters. Three of his five sons married, in turn, the murdress Ragnhildr, daughter of king Eiríkr blóðöx and the notorious Gunnhildr. She killed her first husband herself. The second husband was killed by his nephew Einarr klíningr (butter), at the instigation of his aunt, who promised to marry him, and for which deed he was thought to be a _níðingr_, dastard. Preparatory to marrying the third brother, she got rid of Einarr at the hands of his cousin Einarr harðkjöptr (hard-jawed), who was in turn slain by the third and last husband.

One cannot wonder at the character of Ragnhildr, considering the antecedents of her mother Gunnhildr, the reputed daughter of Özurr toti, a lord in Hálogaland. She, probably a Finn, was found in a Finmark cot, studying wizardry, and was brought to Eiríkr blóðöx, who, struck with her great beauty, obtained her in marriage. She was held guilty of having poisoned king Hálfdán svarti. Her life was spent in plotting and mischief. She is described in _Heimskringla_: the fairest of women, wise and cunning in witchcraft; glad of speech and guileful of heart, and the grimmest of all folk. Fortunately, her daughter left no descendants in Orkney.

Earl Hlöðver (Ludovick or Lewis), 963-980, was the son of earl Þorfinnr hausakljúfr, and Grelöð, who was half a Gael, and so he was five-eighths Norse, one-eighth thrall and two-eighths Gael. He is described as a mighty chief, _mikill höfðingi_, and died of sickness, _sótt-dauðr_. He married Eðna (Eithne), daughter of the Irish king, Kjarvalr (Cearbhall). She was learned in witchcraft, _margkunnig_, and wove a magic banner, _merki_, in raven form, _hrafns-mynd_, for her son; and predicted that those before whom it was borne should be victorious, _sigrsæll_, but it would be deadly, _banvænt_, to the bearer.

Their children were earl Sigurðr hinn digri, and a daughter, Nereiðr or Svanlaug, who married earl Gilli of Kola (Coll).

Earl Sigurðr hinn digri, 980-1014, was the son of earl Hlöðver and an Irish Gael, and was 5/16 Norse, 1/16 thrall, and 10/16 Gael. He was a mighty chief, _höfðingi mikill_, and a great warrior.[2] He was killed in the battle of Clontarf, _Brjáns-bardagi_, in Ireland in 1014, with the fatal _hrafns-merki_ wound around him, as no one else would bear his _fjándi_, fiend. He was converted to Christianity by the sword-baptism of king Ólafr Tryggvason, although he expressed his preference for the religion and carved gods of his Norse forefathers, notwithstanding any Christian teaching he may have received from his Irish mother beyond witchcraft. He gave up the confiscated óðul to the Orkney bœndr (for one generation) in return for military services rendered against the Scots. The name of his first wife is unknown, and his second one was a daughter of Malcolm, the Scot king. His children by his first wife were Hundi or Hvelpr (Gaelic, _Cuilen_, who was baptised with the name of his grandfather, earl Hlöðver), Einarr rang-muðr, stern, grasping, unfriendly, and a great warrior, Brúsi, meek, kept his feelings well in hand, humble and ready-tongued, and Sumarliði.

[2] Hkr.

Earl Þorfinnr hinn ríki, 1014-1064, was the son of earl Sigurðr digri and his second wife, a Gael, and was 5/32 Norse, 1/32 thrall, and 26/32 Gael in descent. He was _bráðgjörr í vexti, manna mestr ok sterkastr_, early in reaching full growth, tallest and strongest of men; _svartr á hár_, black hair; _skarpleitr ok skolbrúnn_, sharp features and swarthy complexion; _ljótr_, ugly; _nefmikill_, big nose; _kappsmaðr_, an energetic man; _ágjarn bæði til fjár ok metnaðar_, greedy of wealth and honour; _sigrsæll_, lucky in battle; _kænn í orrostum_, skilful in war; _góðr áræðis_, of good courage. King Ólafr found that Þorfinnr was _miklu skapstærri en Brúsi_, much more proud of spirit than his brother, Brúsi. Þorfinnr gladly agreed with all the king’s proposals, but the king doubted that he meant to go back on them, whereas he thought that Brúsi, who drove a hard bargain, would keep his word, and would be a _trúnaðar-maðr_, faithful liegeman. The earl married Ingibjörg, jarla-móðir, daughter of Finnr Árnason. He made a pilgrimage to Rome, got absolution from the Pope, and built the first cathedral in Birsa, Orkney, where he died.

He was liberal, in that he did that _frama-verk_, honourable deed, by which he provided his _hirð_, bodyguard, and many other _ríkis-menn_, mighty men, all winter through, with both _matr ok mun-gát_, food and ale, so that no man required to put up at a _skytningr_, inn; whereas, kings and earls in other lands, merely made a like provision only during Yule. Arnórr jarlaskáld sang to his praise in his _Þorfinns drápa_, and noted his liberal fare.

His children were earls Páll and Erlendr, who were _miklir menn ok fríðir_, mickle men and handsome, and so took after their Norwegian _móðurætt_, mother’s kin, and were _vitrir ok hógværir_, wise and modest; taking after their mother, a Norwegian, is in contrast to their father, who was almost a pure-bred, black-haired, swarthy Gael.

Earl Rögnvaldr Brúsason, 1036-1046, was the son of earl Brúsi Sigurðarson and an unknown mother, and the nephew of earl Þorfinnr hinn ríki. The _fríðastr_, most handsome of all men; _hárit mikit ok gult sem silki_, much hair, yellow as silk; _snimma mikill ok sterkr, manna var hann gjörfiligastr bæði fyrir vits saker ok svá kurteisi_, tall and strong, the most perfect man was he both in wits and courtesy; _fríðastr sjónum_, most handsome in face; _atgervi-maðr mikill svá at eigi fanst hans jafningi_, an accomplished man without an equal. Arnórr jarlaskáld said that he was the _bezt menntr af Orkneyja-jörlum_, the most accomplished and best bred of the earls of Orkney. From this description one would imagine that his unknown mother and grandmother had both been Norwegians. It is not stated whether he was married or had any children.

Earl Páll Þorfinnsson, 1064-1098, was the son of earl Þorfinn hinn ríki and Ingibjörg, a Norwegian, after whom he took--handsome and modest. He was thus 19/32 Norse and 13/32 Gael in descent.

He married a daughter of earl Hákon Ívarsson and Ragnhildr, daughter of king Magnús hinn góði. Their children were earl Hákon, and four daughters, Herbjörg (ancestress of bishop Biarni), Ingiriðr, Ragnhildr (ancestress of Hákon kló), and Þóra.

He was banished to Norway, in 1098, where he died.

From 1098 to 1103, Sigurðr (afterwards king Sigurðr Jórsalafari), the eighty-year-old son of king Magnús berfœttr, was earl of Orkney.

Earl Erlendr Þorfinnsson, 1064-1098, was the son of earl Þorfinnr hinn ríki and Ingibiörg, a Norwegian, and so was 19/32 Norse and 13/32 Gael in descent. He married Þóra Sumarliðadóttir, whose mother and grandmother are not mentioned, but her father was the son of an Icelander. The earl was banished to Norway, in 1098, where he died.

His children were, earl St. Magnús, Gunnhildr, who married Kolr Kalason, whose son Kali became earl Rögnvaldr, and Cecilia who married Ísak, a Norwegian, whose sons were Kolr and Eindriði. He had a thrall-born illegitimate daughter called Játvör (fem. of Játvarðr, the Norse form of Edward), who had a son called Borgar,--the earliest record of this name, which, however, occurs in Norwegian place-names; they were both, mother and son, rather disliked, _úvinsæl_.

Earl Hákon Pálsson, 1103-1122, was the son of earl Páll Þorfinnsson and a Norwegian mother, and was 51/64 Norse and 13/64 Gael in descent.

He was _ofstopamaðr mikill_, a very overbearing man, _mikill ok sterkr_, great and strong; and _vel menntr um alla hluti_, well-bred, accomplished in every way. He would be the _fyrirmaðr_, leader, over his cousins, and thought himself better born, being the great grandson of king Magnús hinn góði. He always wanted the largest share for himself and his friends, and was _öfund_, jealous, of his cousins. When abroad he suffered from _landmunr_, home-sickness, and wanted _at sækja vestr til Eyja_, to seek west to the _Isles_ (Orkney). He consulted a wizard as to his future. He murdered his cousin, St. Magnús, in order to get the whole earldom, and then made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. He ended by being a good ruler, and died in the Isles.

It is not known whom he married, if he was wedded at all; but his son, earl Páll, appears to have had a mother other than his father’s known _frilla_ or concubine. She was a Gael, Helga, daughter of Moddan, a nobleman rolling in wealth, _göfugr maðr ok vell-auðigr_, who lived in Dalir, or Dalr, in Katanes. The Gaelic name _Moddan_ may be connected with the Irish _O’Madadhain_. This man’s family of daughters was a disgrace even to the morals of the twelfth century. After earl Hákon’s death, Helga, aided by her sister Frakök, attempted to murder her step-son, earl Páll, by means of a bewitched garment, white as snow, _línklœði hvitt sem fönn_, which they had sewn and embroidered with gold, but which her own jealous son donned and paid the penalty. Earl Páll, who naturally deemed that this precious article, _gersemi_, had been intended for him, promptly cleared them, and their family and dependents, _skulda-lið_, out of the islands.

It was the opinion of earl Rögnvaldr that Frakök was an old hag who would not do anybody good, _kerling er til einkis er fær_. She was burnt alive in her house by Sveinn Ásleifarson, for having instigated her grandson Ölver rósta to burn Svein’s father in his house. Moddan’s carlines and their offspring wormed themselves into Orkney society. Frakök (a Gaelic name?) married Ljótr níðingr (the dastard) of Sutherland, and their daughter married Þorljótr of Rekavík (in Orkney). Another daughter married Þorsteinn fjaranz-muðr (dreadful mouth). Þorleif Moddansdöttir was the mother of Auðhildr, the frilla of Sigurðr slembi-djákn (the slim or tricky deacon), by whom he had an illegitimate daughter, who married Hákon kló. Sigurðr himself, was the illegitimate son of a priest, Aðalbrigð. When he and Frakök came to Orkney a great faction, _sveitar-dráttr mikill_, took place. He took part in the slaughter of Þorkell fóstri, a man much beloved in Orkney, for which the deacon was promptly deported as an undesirable alien. As the pretended son of king Magnús berfœttr, he, however, met a terrible death with remarkable fortitude. Earl Hákon’s children were: earls Haraldr slétt-máli (smooth-speaking) and Páll úmálgi (the silent), Margrét, who married Maddadh, the Gaelic earl of Atholl, and Ingibjörg, who married Ólafr bitlingr (the morsel), king of Suðreyjar.

Earl St. Magnús Erlendsson, 1108-1116, was the son of earl Erlendr Þorfinnsson and Þóra Sumarliðadóttir. In descent, 51/64 Norse 13/64 Gael. In personal appearance he was, great of growth, _mikill at vexti_; manly, _drengiligr_; intellectual in appearance, _skýligr at yfirlitum_. The saga is voluminous in a description of his good qualities, etc., _e.g._, he was a most noble man, _ágætastr_; of good morals in life, _siðgóðr í háttum_; fortunate in battle, _sigrsæll í orrostum_; a sage in wit, _spekingr at viti_; eloquent and high-spirited and generous, _málsnjallr ok ríklundaðr_; liberal of wealth and magnanimous, _örr af fé ok stórlyndr_; wise in counsel and more beloved than any other man, _ráðsvinnr ok hverjum manni vinsælli_; gentle and of good speech, with kind and good men, _blíðr ok góðr viðmælis við spaka menn ok góða_; hard and unforbearing with robbers and víkingar, _harðr, ok úeirinn við ránsmenn ok víkinga_; he let murderers and thieves be taken and punished, high and low, for robbery and theft and all bad deeds, _lét hann taka morðingja ok þjófa, ok refsaði svá ríkum sem úríkum rán ok þyfsku ok öll úknytti_; impartial in judgment, _eigi vinhallr í dómum_; he valued godly justice, _guðligan rétt_, more than rank, _mann-virðingar_; munificent, _stórgjöfull_, with _höfðingjar ok ríkis-menn_; but ever showed great solicitude and comfort, _huggan_, for poor men, _fátækir menn_. Along with his cousin, earl Hákon, he burnt a Shetlander, Þorbjörn í Borgarfirði, in his house, and they slew their cousin Dufnjáll, without any reason being assigned in either case.

St. Magnús, as a youth, accompanied king Magnús on his expedition in 1098, but refused to fight, because he said he had no quarrel against any man there, and he took a psalter, _saltari_, and sung during the battle. He married an unknown Scotswoman of noble family, he had no children, and was murdered by his cousin, earl Hákon, on April 16th, 798 years ago.

Earl Rögnvaldr Kali hinn helgi, 1136-1158, was the son of Gunnhildr, earl Erlends dóttir and Kolr Kalason, a Norwegian, and thus 115/128 Norse and 13/128 Gael in descent. He is described as a most promising man, _efniligasti maðr_; of average growth, _meðal-maðr á vöxt_; well set, _kominn vel á sik_; best limbed man, _limaðr manna bezt_; light chestnut hair, _ljósjarpr á hár_; a most accomplished man, _atgervi-maðr_. He numbered nine accomplishments, _iþróttir_, viz., _tafl_, chess, _rúnar_, runes, _bók_, book (reading and writing), _smíð_, smith work, _skríða_, _á skíðum_, sliding on snow-shoes, _róðr_, rowing, _hörpu-sláttr_, harp-playing, _brag-þáttr_, versification, to which may be added a tenth, _sund_, swimming, as he frequently _lagðist yfir vatnit_, in dangerous places. The king gave him the name of earl Rögnvaldr Brúsason, because his mother said that he had been the most accomplished, _görviligasti_, of all the earls of Orkney, and that was thought to bring good luck, _heilla-vænligr_.

In 1134, he plotted with his disreputable Gaelic relative, Ölver rósta, to oust earl Páll, but was not successful. Like a good víkingr he was slain in 1158, and was briefly described as _íþrótta-maðr mikill ok skáld gott_, a very accomplished man and a good skáld.

The name and race of his wife are unknown. He had a daughter, Ingigerð, who married Eiríkr stagbrellr, in Sutherland (a grandson of one of Moddan’s carlines, and whose mother had been the frilla of the slim deacon), and their children were, earl Haraldr ungi, who was slain in 1198, Magnús mangi (nobody; _Mangi_ is also a contracted form of _Magnús_, which is sometimes spelt _Mangus_ in Orkney documents), Rögnvaldr, Ingibiörg, Elin, and Ragnhildr.

Margrét, daughter of earl Hákon Pálsson and Helga Moddansdóttir, was 51/128 Norse, 77/128 Gael, and is described as _fríð kona ok svarri mikill_, a beautiful woman and very proud. She married Maddadh, the Gaelic earl of Atholl, as his second wife, and was the mother of Haraldr Maddaðarson, who became earl of Orkney. After her husband’s death she returned to Orkney and had an illegitimate son by Gunni, Svein’s brother, for which he was outlawed. After that she eloped with Erlendr ungi, of whom nothing is known.[3]

[3] He has been unaccountably confused with earl Erlendr, who would thus have run off with his own aunt.

THE GAELIC EARLS.

Earl Haraldr Maddaðarson, 1139-1206, was the son of Margrét Hákons-dóttir and Maddadh, Gaelic earl of Athole (Gaelic, _maddadh_, a dog), and was 51/256 Norse, 205/256 Gael. When about twenty years of age, he was _mikill maðr vexti ok sterkr, ljótr maðr ok vel vitr_, a big man in growth and strong, an ugly man and well-witted. He was a _mikill höfðingi_, great chief; _manna mestr ok sterkastr_, the tallest and strongest of men; _ódæll ok skap-harðr_, overbearing and harsh.

He was twice married, viz., (1) Afreka, daughter of Duncan, Gaelic earl of Fife, whom he repudiated, and (2) Hvarflöð (Gaelic, _Gormflaith_), daughter of Malcolm, earl of Morhæfi (Moray). The names of the children of the first were, Heinrekr (Henry), Hákon, Helena, Margrét, and by the second, Þorfinnr, Davið, Jón, Gunnhildr, Herborg, and Langlíf. He allowed a rebellion, against king Sverrir, to be hatched in Orkney, for which he had Shetland taken from him in 1194, when it was placed under the government of Norway,[4] and was not restored to the earls till 1379.

[4] Fb.