Hålogaland
Encyclopedia
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
provinces in the mediaeval Norse sagas. In the early Viking Age
Viking Age
Viking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the late 8th to 11th centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...
, before Harald Fairhair, Hålogaland was a petty kingdom
Petty kingdom
A petty kingdom is one of a number of small kingdoms, described as minor or "petty" by contrast to an empire or unified kingdom that either preceded or succeeded it...
extending between Namdalen
Namdalen
Namdalen is a traditional district in the central part of Norway, consisting of the municipalities Namsos, Grong, Overhalla, Røyrvik, Fosnes, Nærøy, Høylandet, Namdalseid, Flatanger, Lierne, Leka, Namsskogan, and Vikna, all in Nord-Trøndelag county. The district has two towns: Kolvereid and Namsos...
in Nord-Trøndelag
Nord-Trøndelag
is a county constituting the northern part of Trøndelag in Norway. As of 2010, the county had 131,555 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-least populated county. The largest municipalities are Stjørdal, Steinkjer—the county seat, Levanger, Namsos and Verdal, all with between 21,000 and...
and Lyngen
Lyngen
Lyngen is a municipality and a fjord in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lyngseidet.- General information :...
in Troms
Troms
or Romsa is a county in North Norway, bordering Finnmark to the northeast and Nordland in the southwest. To the south is Norrbotten Län in Sweden and further southeast is a shorter border with Lapland Province in Finland. To the west is the Norwegian Sea...
.
Etymology
Ancient Norwegians said that Hálogaland was named after a royal named Hölgi. The Norse form of the name was Hálogaland. The first element of the word is the genitive pluralPlural
In linguistics, plurality or [a] plural is a concept of quantity representing a value of more-than-one. Typically applied to nouns, a plural word or marker is used to distinguish a value other than the default quantity of a noun, which is typically one...
of háleygr, a 'person from Hålogaland'. The last element is land, as in 'land' or 'region'. The meaning of the demonym
Demonym
A demonym , also referred to as a gentilic, is a name for a resident of a locality. A demonym is usually – though not always – derived from the name of the locality; thus, the demonym for the people of England is English, and the demonym for the people of Italy is Italian, yet, in english, the one...
háleygr is unknown.
The Gothic historian Jordanes
Jordanes
Jordanes, also written Jordanis or Jornandes, was a 6th century Roman bureaucrat, who turned his hand to history later in life....
in his work 'De origine actibusque Getarum' - a.k.a. Getica -, written in Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
in c. 551
551
Year 551 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 551 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Byzantine Empire :* Beirut is destroyed by an...
AD, mentions a people "Adogit" living in the far North. This could be an old form of háleygir and a possible reference to the petty kingdom of Hålogaland, which based on some medieval accounts may have been inhabited by the Kven people in the middle of the first millennium, but also perhaps a long before. Jordanes' Vinoviloth
Vinoviloth
Vinoviloth are one of the tribes in Scandinavia mentioned by Jordanes in De origine actibusque Getarum in the 6th century CE. It has sometimes been speculated that they would have been the same as Kvens or Winnili. Sometimes Vingulmark is also mentioned...
is viewed by many historians as a reference to the Kvens of Northern Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
and Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia and Finland...
:
- And there are beyond these the Ostrogothae (Eastern Geats), Raumarici (Romerike), Aeragnaricii (Rankike), and the most gentle Finni (referring to either Sami or Finns), milder than all the inhabitants of ScandzaScandzaScandza was the name given to Scandinavia by the Roman historian Jordanes in his work Getica, written while in Constantinople around AD 551. He described the area to set the stage for his treatment of the Goths' migration from southern Sweden to Gothiscandza...
(Scandinavia). Like them are the Vinoviloth (Kvens) also.
According to Emeritus Professor Kyösti Julku, in the modern-day Northern Norwegian county of Troms
Troms
or Romsa is a county in North Norway, bordering Finnmark to the northeast and Nordland in the southwest. To the south is Norrbotten Län in Sweden and further southeast is a shorter border with Lapland Province in Finland. To the west is the Norwegian Sea...
alone there are at least 12 prehistoric Kven place names. During Viking Age
Viking Age
Viking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the late 8th to 11th centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...
, Troms formed the northernmost part of Hålogaland.
Alex Woolf
Alex Woolf
Alex Woolf is a medieval historian based at the University of St Andrews. He specialises in the history of the British Isles and Scandinavia in the Early Middle Ages, especially in relation to the peoples of Wales and Scotland. He is author of volume two in the New Edinburgh History of Scotland,...
links the name Hålogaland to the Aurora Borealis - the "Northern Lights" -, saying that Hålogaland meant the "Land of the High Fire", "loga" deriving from 'logi', which refers to fire.
In the medieval accounts of Ynglingatal
Ynglingatal
Ynglingatal is a skaldic poem listing the kings of the House of Ynglings, dated by most scholars to the late 9th century.The original version is attributed to Þjóðólfr af Hvini who was the skald of a Norwegian petty king named Ragnvald the Mountain-High and who was a cousin of Harald Fairhair...
and Skáldskaparmál
Skáldskaparmál
The second part of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda the Skáldskaparmál or "language of poetry" is effectively a dialogue between the Norse god of the sea, Ægir and Bragi, the god of poetry, in which both Norse mythology and discourse on the nature of poetry are intertwined...
, "Logi
Logi
In Norse mythology, Logi or Loge is a fire giant, god and personification of fire. He is son of giant Fornjótr and brother of Ægir and Kári...
" is described as the personification of fire, a fire giant, and as a "son of Fornjót
Fornjót
Fornjót was an ancient giant in Norse mythology and a king of Finland. His children are Ægir , Logi and Kári ....
". In the medieval Orkneyinga saga
Orkneyinga saga
The Orkneyinga saga is a historical narrative of the history of the Orkney Islands, from their capture by the Norwegian king in the ninth century onwards until about 1200...
and the account of Hversu Noregr byggðist ('How Norway was inhabited'), Fornjót is described as the King of Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Kvenland and Gotland
Gotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
. The royal lineages sprung from his children are discussed in these and other medieval accounts.
The beginning of the Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar
Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar
Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar or The Saga of Thorstein, Viking's Son is a legendary saga taking place in the 7th century and it is about the father of Frithjof the Bold. It begins in Norway and Sweden but continues into exotic places such as India. It is not one of the more famous sagas, but it is...
('Saga of Thorstein son of Víking') discusses King Logi who ruled the country north of Norway. Because Logi was larger and stronger than any other man in land, his name was lengthened from Logi to Hálogi, meaning 'High-Logi'. Derived from that name his country became called Hálogaland, meaning "Hálogi's land". Eventually the spelling of the name shaped to the modern-day Hålogaland.
The Hversu Noregr byggðist is an account of the origin of various legendary Norwegian lineages. It traces the descendants of the primeval Finnish ruler Fornjót (Fornjotr) down to Nór
Nór
Nór or Nori is firstly a mercantile title and secondly a Norse man's name. It is stated in Norse sources that Nór was the founder of Norway, from whom the land supposedly got its name...
, who is here the eponym and first great king of Norway, who unites the Norwegian lands (petty kingdoms). The Hversu account then gives details of the descendants of Nór and of his brother Gór
Gor
Gor , the Counter-Earth, is the alternate-world setting for a series of 30 novels by John Norman that combine philosophy, erotica and science fiction...
in the following section known as the Ættartölur ('Genealogies', a.k.a. Fundinn Noregr, 'Founding of Norway'). The Hversu account is closely paralleled by the opening of the Orkneyinga saga.
In 873
873
Year 873 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* The Vikings raid Dorestad.* Al-Andalus: Second uprising of Toledo due to ethnic tensions in two years.- Asia :...
AD, according to the Egil's saga (written in c. 1240 AD) the Kvens and Norse cooperate in battling against the invading Karelians. The chapter XVII of Egil's saga describes how Thorolf Kveldulfsson
Thorolf Kveldulfsson
Thorolf Kveldulfsson was the oldest son of Kveldulf Bjalfasson and the brother of the Norwegian/Icelandic goði and skald Skalla-Grimr. Thorolf is a hero of the early part of Egils saga. According to that work, he served as a retainer of Harald I of Norway and fought on the latter's own ship at the...
(King of Norway's tax chief starting 872
872
Year 872 was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Battle of Hafrsfjord: Harald Fairhair becomes the first king of Norway....
AD) from Namdalen
Namdalen
Namdalen is a traditional district in the central part of Norway, consisting of the municipalities Namsos, Grong, Overhalla, Røyrvik, Fosnes, Nærøy, Høylandet, Namdalseid, Flatanger, Lierne, Leka, Namsskogan, and Vikna, all in Nord-Trøndelag county. The district has two towns: Kolvereid and Namsos...
, located in the southernmost tip of the historic Hålogaland, goes to Kvenland again:
- "That same winter Thorolf went up on the fell with a hundred men; he passed on at once eastwards to Kvenland and met King FaravidFaravidFaravid was a legendary King of Kvenland who is mentioned in the Icelandic Egils saga from the early 13th century. According to the saga, Faravid made an alliance with Norwegians to fight against Karelian invaders. The saga mentions him in a 9th century context, but this is too early to be credible...
."
Based on medieval documents, the above meeting took place during the winter of 873
873
Year 873 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* The Vikings raid Dorestad.* Al-Andalus: Second uprising of Toledo due to ethnic tensions in two years.- Asia :...
-874
874
Year 874 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Ingólfur Arnarson arrives as the first permanent Viking settler in Iceland, settling in Reykjavík ....
AD. Hålogaland's rather close vicinity to Kvenland is also demonstrated in c. 1157 AD in the geographical chronicle Leiðarvísir og borgarskipan
Leiðarvísir og borgarskipan
The geographical chronicle Leiðarvísir og borgarskipan was published in c. 1157 AD by Níkulás Bergsson , the abbot of the monastery of Aþverá in Thingeyrar , Northern Iceland....
by the Icelandic
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
Abbot Níkulás Bergsson (Nikolaos), who provides descriptions of lands around Norway:
- Closest to Denmark is little Svíþjóð (Sweden), there is Eyland (Öland); then is Gotland (Gotland); then Helsingaland (Hälsingland); then Vermaland (Värmland); then two Kvenlönd (Kvenlands), and they extend to north of Bjarmalandi (Bjarmia).
Modern usage
In modern times, the term Hålogaland is used in a variety of senses. For some purposes, all of Nord-NorgeNord-Norge
North Norway or Nord-Noreg , North Sámi: Davvi-Norga) is the geographical region of northern Norway, consisting of the three counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainland. Some of the largest towns in North Norway are Mo i Rana, Bodø, Narvik, Harstad, Tromsø...
plus Svalbard
Svalbard
Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, constituting the northernmost part of Norway. It is located north of mainland Europe, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The group of islands range from 74° to 81° north latitude , and from 10° to 35° east longitude. Spitsbergen is the...
and Jan Mayen
Jan Mayen
Jan Mayen Island is a volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean and part of the Kingdom of Norway. It is long and 373 km2 in area, partly covered by glaciers . It has two parts: larger northeast Nord-Jan and smaller Sør-Jan, linked by an isthmus wide...
are covered under the term Hålogaland. For other purposes the counties of Nordland and Troms constitute Hålogaland. Hålogaland or even Mid Hålogaland are frequent terms covering the smaller districts of Ofoten
Ofoten
Ofoten is a district in North Norway, consisting of the municipalities Tysfjord, Ballangen, Evenes, Tjeldsund, Narvik and Lødingen. It is named after the main fjord Ofotfjord, which is at the center of this landscape...
, Lofoten
Lofoten
Lofoten is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Though lying within the Arctic Circle, the archipelago experiences one of the world's largest elevated temperature anomalies relative to its high latitude.-Etymology:...
and Vesterålen
Vesterålen
Vesterålen is a district and archipelago in Nordland, Norway, just north of Lofoten.-The name:The Norse forms of the name were Vestráll and Vestrálar . The first element is vestr n west, the last element is áll m ' sound, strait'...
, as well as the municipalities Bjarkøy
Bjarkøy
Bjarkøy is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bjarkøy. The municipality is spread across several smaller islands, the biggest being the northern side of Grytøya...
, Gratangen
Gratangen
Gratangen is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. It is part of the Hålogaland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Årstein. The municipality encompasses the land on both sides of the Gratangen fjord. European route E6 runs through the...
, Harstad
Harstad
is the second largest city and municipality by population, in Troms county, Norway – the city is also the third largest in North Norway. Thus Harstad is the natural centre for its district. Situated approximately north of the Arctic Circle, the city celebrated its 100th anniversary in...
, Ibestad
Ibestad
Ibestad is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. It is part of the Hålogaland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hamnvik. Some of the larger villages in Ibestad include Sørvika, Å, and Laupstad....
, Kvæfjord
Kvæfjord
Kvæfjord is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. It is part of the Hålogaland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Borkenes....
and Skånland
Skånland
Skånland is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Evenskjer.- General information :...
of Troms
Troms
or Romsa is a county in North Norway, bordering Finnmark to the northeast and Nordland in the southwest. To the south is Norrbotten Län in Sweden and further southeast is a shorter border with Lapland Province in Finland. To the west is the Norwegian Sea...
county. The term has also been used in this last sense, minus the Lofoten archipelago.
(See Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland
Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland
Nord-Hålogaland is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers Lutheran churches in the counties of Troms, Finnmark and Svalbard. The cathedral city is Tromsø, and the bishop since 2002 is Per Oskar Kjølaas...
, Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland
Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland
Sør-Hålogaland is a diocese in the Church of Norway. The Diocese covers the Lutheran Church of Norway churches located within Nordland county in Norway...
, Hålogaland Court of Appeal
Hålogaland Court of Appeal
Hålogaland Court of Appeal is the court of appeal located in Tromsø, Norway. It serves the counties of Nordland, Troms and Finnmark. In addition to Tromsø, the court may meet in Bodø and Mo i Rana. The court is administrated by the Norwegian National Courts Administration.From the Middle Ages,...
and Hålogaland Teater
Hålogaland Teater
Hålogaland Teater is a regional theatre serving the region of Nord-Norge, the northernmost of Norway. When established in 1971, it was the first regional theatre in Norway, and the first professional theatre in Nord-Norge. Many of its productions are staged in the regional Norwegian dialects...
.)
History
Heimskringla
Heimskringla is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorri Sturluson ca. 1230...
, especially the Ynglinga Saga
Ynglinga saga
Ynglinga saga is a legendary saga, originally written in Old Norse by the Icelandic poet Snorri Sturluson about 1225. It was first translated into English and published in 1844....
and Háleygjatal
Háleygjatal
Háleygjatal is a skaldic poem by Eyvindr skáldaspillir made in honour of Haakon Sigurdsson and his ancestors, in the end of the 10th century.The poem is only partially preserved in disjoint parts quoted in Skáldskaparmál, Heimskringla and two other manuscripts of kings' sagas. It appears to be a...
. It was inhabited by the race of Hölgi (Háleygja ætt) who was the eponymous hero of Hålogaland.
In the saga, Heimskringla
Heimskringla
Heimskringla is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorri Sturluson ca. 1230...
, a man called Gudlög led a number of Norwegian pirates that were fought by the Swedish king Jorund
Jorund
Jorund or Jörundr was a Swedish king of the House of Yngling. He was the son of Yngvi, and he had reclaimed the throne of Sweden for his dynasty from Haki .Snorri Sturluson relates...
and king Godgest of Hålogaland was given a horse by the Swedish king Adils. The first earl of Lade
Lade
Lade may refer to:People* Brendon Lade , Australian rules footballer* Sir John Lade , baronet and Regency horse-breeder* Heinrich Eduard von Lade , German banker and amateur astronomer...
, Håkon Grjotgardsson
Håkon Grjotgardsson
Håkon Grjotgardsson , nicknamed Håkon the Rich was the son and heir of Grjotgard Herlaugsson Lade. Håkon became the ruler of the petty kingdom of Trøndelag, the Earl of Lade in the eastern part of Trondheim, Norway, when he succeeded his father...
, ruler of Trøndelag
Trøndelag
Trøndelag is the name of a geographical region in the central part of Norway, consisting of the two counties Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag. The region is, together with Møre og Romsdal, part of a larger...
, came from Hålogaland, and sought to extend his kingdom southwards. Here, he met with Harald Fairhair, and joined him.
Archaeologists have uncovered the Chieftain House at Borg
Borg, Vestvågøy
Borg is a hamlet near Bøstad, Vestvågøy, Norway. It is the location of Lofotr, a living museum presenting on a reconstruction and archeological excavation of a Viking chieftain's village.The area around Borg has many horses, most of which are Nordlandshester....
in Lofoten
Lofoten
Lofoten is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Though lying within the Arctic Circle, the archipelago experiences one of the world's largest elevated temperature anomalies relative to its high latitude.-Etymology:...
(På Borg på Vestvågøya i Lofoten), a large Viking Era building believed to have been already established around the year 500 AD. Archaeological studies commenced here in 1983 and in 1986-1989, a joint Scandinavian research project was conducted at Borg. Excavations brought to light remains of the largest building ever to be found from the Viking Era in Norway, 83 meters long and 9 meters high. The chieftain's seat at Borg is estimated to have been abandoned around AD 950. Today the site is the location of the Lofotr Viking Museum.
Geography
Hålogaland, in every sense of the word, is drowned coastline containing extensive mountainous fjords and islands. It was an excellent refuge for Viking ships as well as a way station for voyagers to the White SeaWhite Sea
The White Sea is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the northeast. The whole of the White Sea is under Russian sovereignty and considered to be part of...
, which offered access to Russia. Even in modern times, Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
was an important WWII objective. In 2008, the name was proposed as the possible name of an independent Northern Norway.
See also
- Þorgerðr HölgabrúðrÞorgerðr Hölgabrúðr and IrpaIn Norse mythology, Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr and Irpa are goddesses. Þorgerðr and Irpa appear together in Jómsvíkinga saga, Njáls saga, and Þorleifs þáttr jarlsskálds...
- Goddess strongly associated with Hölgi - Ottar from HålogalandOttar from HålogalandOhthere of Hålogaland was a Viking adventurer from Hålogaland. Around 890 AD he travelled to England, where Alfred the Great, king of Wessex, had his tales written down....
- Viking adventurer from Hålogaland - Thorir Hund - Great chief in Hålogaland
- Eirik of Hordaland - King of Hålogaland
- Gyda EiriksdottirGyda EiriksdottirGyda Eiriksdottir of Hordaland, was a legendary Norwegian Viking age queen consort, according to the sagas the first queen of united Norway....
- Queen consort of King Harold Fairhair - Hálfs saga ok HálfsrekkaHálfs saga ok HálfsrekkaHálfs saga ok Hálfsrekka or Hálfssaga is a legendary saga composed in the early 14th century. It is about Halfr who was one of Norway's most famous legendary sea-kings.His champions had to submit to harsh rules...
- Legendary saga about Halfr, one of Norway's most famous legendary sea-kings - Ketils saga hœngsKetils saga hœngsKetils saga hœngs is a legendary saga from Iceland on the North Norwegian chieftain Kettil Trout from Ramsta in Hålogaland. It is one of the sagas called the Hrafnistumannasögur surrounding Ketil Trout and his relatives....
- Legendary saga about chieftain Kettil Trout from Ramsta, NærøyRamsta, NærøyRamsta or Ramstad is a farm area on an island in the municipality of Nærøy in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located about half way between the villages of Abelvær and Steine on an island near the mouth of the Foldafjord....
in Hålogaland
Other sources
- Berglund, Birgitta (1994) Helgeland historie (Mosjøen) ISBN 82-90148-55-0
- Bertelsen, Reidar (1985) Lofoten og Vesteralens historie: Fra den eldste tida til ca. 1500 e (Kommunene i Lofoten og Vesteralen) ISBN 978-8290412376