Heimskringla

A page of the Eggertson copy ofHeimskringla

Heimskringlais the best known of the old Norse kings'sagas.It was written in Old Norse inIcelandby thepoetandhistorianSnorri Sturluson(1179 – 1242) ca. 1230. The nameHeimskringlawas first used in the 17th century, it comes from the first two words of one of the manuscripts (kringla heimsins-the circle of the world).

Heimskringla is a collection of tales about the Norwegian kings, beginning with the legendary Swedish dynasty of the Ynglingas, followed by accounts of historical Norwegian rulers fromHarald Fairhairof the9th centuryup to1177.

Bibliography

• Monsen, Erling (1990), "Introduction to the Translation of Snorre's History of the Norse Kings",Heimskringla or the Lives of the Norse Kings: Edited with notes by Erling Monsen and translated into English with the assistance of A.H. Smith,Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, Inc.,ISBN0-486-26366-5.A reprint of the 1932 Cambridge edition by W. Heffer.

Other websites

• Heimskringlain Old Norse from "Kulturformidlingen norrøne tekster og kvad" Norway.
• Berkeley page on Snorri Sturluson's textArchived2004-08-03 at theWayback Machine