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Snorri Thorfinnsson

11th-century Icelandic explorer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an Icelandic name. The last name is patronymic, not a family name; this person is referred to by the given name Snorri.

Snorri Thorfinnsson (Old Norse and Icelandic: Snorri Þorfinnsson or Snorri Karlsefnisson;[1][2] most likely born between 1004 and 1013, and died c. 1090) was the son of explorers Thorfinn Karlsefni and Gudrid Thorbjarnardóttir. He is considered to be the first child of European descent to be born in the Americas, apart from Greenland. He became an important figure in the Christianisation of Iceland.[3]

Quick Facts Born, Died ...
Snorri Thorfinnsson
Bornc. 1004 - 1013
Vinland
Diedc. 1090
Iceland
Known forChristianisation of Iceland
Children2
Parents
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Name

Snorri is an Old Norse name derived from the word snerra, meaning "a fight." Þorfinnsson is a patronymic, meaning "son of Þorfinnr", (see Icelandic naming conventions). Snorri was named for his great-grandfather, Snorri Þórðarson,[4] or after Snorri Þorbrandsson who was not a kinsman but a participant in Karlsefni's expedition[5]

Family

There is speculation about the birth date of Snorri Thorfinnsson. Birth years such as 1005, 1009, and 1012 have been postulated, but all sources agree that he was born between 1004 and 1013. According to the Vinland sagas, when Snorri was 3 years old, his family left Vinland because of hostilities with indigenous peoples (called Skrælingar by the settlers, meaning "barbarians"). The family returned to the Glaumbær farm in Seyluhreppur.[6][7] [8]

Snorri Thorfinnsson had two children; a daughter named Hallfrid, and a son named Thorgeir. Hallfrid was the mother of Thorlak Runolfsson, bishop of Skálholt in the south of Iceland. One of the descendants of Snorri's brother Thorbjorn, Bjorn Gilsson, was also a bishop of Hólar. Thorgeir was the father of Yngvild who was the mother of Brand Sæmundarsson, bishop of Hólar.[9] The sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen claimed descent from Snorri Thorfinnsson in the 19th century.[10]

Christianisation of Iceland

In the 13th century texts Snorri Thorfinnsson and Snorri Thorrgrimsson are considered the two main figures responsible for the early Christianisation of Iceland. Consequently, they were portrayed by various writers of the 13th and 14th century as "Christian chieftain models".[3] According to Grœnlendinga saga, Snorri had built the first church of Glaumbaer, which would later increase Christian influence in the area. His descendants became the first Bishops of Iceland, and published the first Christian Code of Iceland.[11]

Legacy

  • Snorri Thorfinnsson was purported to be born in Vinland (North America), making him the first European child known to be born in the Americas, provided that Greenland is defined as being outside the Americas.[12][13]
  • In 2002, American archaeologists discovered the remains of a thousand-year-old longhouse located on Iceland's northern coast. It is believed that it was Snorri Thorfinnsson's farmhouse.[14] The longhouse was found near the Glaumbær Folk Museum, at the Skagafjörður Heritage Museum outside the coastal village of Sauðárkrókur. The museum was once thought to have been built on the site of Snorri's farmhouse. According to archaeologists it was "a classic Germanic fortress longhouse like the Great Hall of Beowulf".[15][16]
  • There is a non-profit organisation called The Snorri Program that focuses on the history of Icelandic settlers in North America and regularly runs exchange programs for youth and adults.[17]

Genealogy

Summarize
Perspective

Below is the genealogy of descendants of Snorri, as given in the close of each saga, Grœnlendinga saga ch. 9 and Eiríks saga ch. 14.[20] It is supplemented with further ancestral information from (Eiríks saga ch. 7 and Landnámabók), a more complete family tree for which, see Thorfinn Karlsefni.

Thord of Hofdi
(Þórðr fra Höfða Bjarnarson [is][† 9])
Snorri Thordarson of Hofdi[† 10]Vifil of Vifilsdale[21]Hallveig
Thord Snorrason Horse-headThorbjorn Vifilsson
Thorfinn KarlsefniGudrid Thorbjarnardóttir
Snorri ThorfinnssonThorbjorn Thorfinnsson
Hallfrid Snorradottir[22]Thorgeir Snorrason[22](*) Steinunn[23][† 11]Thorunn Thorbjarnardottir[22]
Thorlak Runolfsson, Bp.[† 12]Yngvild Thorgeirsdottir[† 13]Bjorn Gilsson [is], Bp.[† 12]
Brand Sæmundarsson [is], Bp.[† 12]
Haukr Erlendsson
  1. [† 1]
    Ragnar Hairy-Breeks — Björn Ironside — Aslak — Thorvald Backbone (hryggr) — Björn Butterbox, etc. is the patrilineal lineage given in the Hauksbók
  2. [† 2]
    Áslákssonar, Bjarnarsonar járnsíðu in the Hauksbók
  3. [† 3]
    Hroald Spine (Hróaldr hryggr) is called Thorvald Backbone (Þórvaldr hryggr Ásleiksson) in the genealogy of Hauksbók version[18]
  4. [† 4]
    Björn byrðusmjör
  5. [† 5]
    In the Hauksbók she is indicated as bearing the same name as her mother Fridgerd.
  6. [† 6]
    Thord Gellir or "Yeller", son of Olaf Feilan, grandson of Aud the Deep-Minded
  7. [† 7]
    Þórhildr Rjúpa
  8. [† 8]
    Þórðr hesthöfði
  9. [† 9]
    Eiríks saga Ch. 7, Hauksbók version says "Thord, who lived at Hofdi, son of Bjorn Butter-Box" (Magnusson & Pálsson 1965, p. 91n)which is identifiable with "Thord Bjarnarson (at Hofdi)" in Kunz 2000, Index of Characters. However Thord Bjarnarson does not appear in Kunz's translation of Eiríks saga which does not use the Hauksbók version, and instead, appears only in Vatnsdál saga, another tale in the anthology,
  10. [† 10]
    "of Hofdi" appended in Kunz 2000, Index of Characters, pp. 759–782, to distinguish from a man in Laxdæla saga
  11. [† 11]
    This daughter Steinunn, as well as Haukr's mostly patrilineal line is only given in the Hauksbók manuscript, and his family tree will given under the article Haukr Erlendsson
  12. [† 12]
    Bp.=short for "Bishop". For Bishop Björn and the first Bishop Brand, the patrynomycs are not given in text, but e.g. supplied in Kunz 2000, Index of Characters
  13. [† 13]
    In Grl. she is spelt Yngveld, and this distinction is kept in Kunz's translations (Kunz 2000, pp. 651, 674); Text of Grl. :"Snorre atti son þann er Þorgæirr het hann var fadir Jnguelldar modur Branz byskups" (Storm 1891, p. 73)

Family tree

The following stemma is drawn from the genealogy appended to the last chapter of Eiríks saga rauða in Hauk's own recension (in the Hauksbók, supplemented with additional information from the Landnámabók).

Thorir of Espihill [is]
Thorvald Hook[† 1]Thorfinn Karlsefni
Grundar-KetilSnorri Karlsefnisson
EinarSteinunn
Thorstein the Unjust[† 2]
Jorund of KeldurGudrun
Bjarni Bjarnason[† 3]Halla
Flosi the priest[† 4]Ragnhild[† 4]
Olaf(?)[25][27]Valgerd Flosadottir
Erlend the StrongJorunn[† 5]
Hauk the Lawman
  1. [† 1]
    Þorvaldr krók
  2. [† 2]
    Þorsteinn ranglátr; also in Landnamabók, Part III, Ch. X and translated as "Thorstein Wrongdoer" (Ellwood 1898, , p.136)
  3. [† 3]
    Landnamabók, Part V, Ch. VII (Islandinga sögur, Vol. 1, p.295; Ellwood 1898, p. 202)
  4. [† 4]
    Landnamabók, Part IV, Ch. I (Islandinga sögur, Vol. 1, p.240; Ellwood 1898, p. 165)
  5. [† 5]
    Landnamabók, Part II, Ch. XIX (Islandinga sögur, Vol. 1, p.138; Ellwood 1898, p. 86)

Footnotes

References

External links

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