Other evidence

Question 1

Sae-Eyndr

Answer 1

Vg186
Västergötland
Sae Eyndr: “May God and God’s Mother help his soul, and the holy Christ in Heaven”

Question 2

Monumental

Answer 2

93 free-standing, monumental, plain and un-ringed crosses have been found in Western Norway (c.950-1030)

Question 3

Veøy

Answer 3

Early Christian burials at Veøy - two 10th cent. cemeteries dating from the 2nd half of the 900s. Håkon den gode.

Question 4

Ágrip

Answer 4

Ágrip - Håkon built churches & installed priests but the people of Møre burnt them down

Question 5

Sighvatr

Answer 5

Snorri reports that in 1019, Sighuatr’s (St. Olaf skald) diplomatic mission to the earl of skara in Västergötland failed because a sacrifice to the elves was being made

Question 6

Kuli

Answer 6

Kuli Stone - N449 - “Tolf vetr hafði kristindómr vent i Nóregi…”

Question 7

First

Answer 7

Kuli Stone

First known use of the word “christianity” in Norway - English Influence

Question 8

verit

Answer 8

Kuli Stone

“verit” maybe should be read as ‘um rétt’ (supplied law and order)

Question 9

Halon

Answer 9

Kuli Stone
Suggested by Nils Halon that the inscription refers to a national event such as Christianity being made law at the Moster thing 1022/24 by Olaf Haraldsson

Question 10

Boardwalk

Answer 10

Kuli Stone

The stone has also been dated to 1034 by its association with a boardwalk (dendrochronology)

Question 11

Christian Triumph

Answer 11

Arnorr Jarlaskáld expressed Magnus Olafsson’s defeat of the Wends in religious terms, framing it as a Christian triumph over ‘herðit folk’

Question 12

Knútr

Answer 12

Galteland, Aust-Agder, N184

Ainsteinn raised the stone after his son who died in the retinue when Knútr attacked England “Einn er Guð”

Question 13

Gulaþing

Answer 13

Gulaþing law (900-1250):

“we should not sacrifice to a pagan god or to mounds or to hörgr”

Question 14

horg

Answer 14

(Linked to Gulaþing) Skaldic poem refers to Olav Trygvason as “horg-breaker”

Question 15

Kenning

Answer 15

Óláfr inn Helgi is associated with 10 Skálds: a christian king consolidating power as an outsider. Kenning for St Óláfr: Einnarr Skúlason, Geisli: “fagran vin tyggja rǫðuls” (beautiful friend of the king of the sun)

Question 16

Satan

Answer 16

Thorwald’s cross, Kirk Andreas, Orkney (10th cent) depicts Odinn with raven & spear being consumed by fenrir. Next to it is Christ triumphing over satan.

Question 17

Bornholm

Answer 17

On the Danish island of Bornholm, memorial stones with runic inscriptions were introduced with the coming of christianity in the 1060s and continued until the end of the century.

Question 18

Ox-head

Answer 18

Scene on an Upplandic rune-stone of Thor using an ox-head to catch the world-serpent = God using christ to bait leviathan

Question 19

Glavendrup

Answer 19

Danish Glavendrup stone (c. 900) DR209, memorialises the preist of a sanctuary & invokes Þórr

Question 20

Lean

Answer 20

Helgi the lean was said to worship Christ on land and Þórr at sea

Question 21

Steinunn

Answer 21

Kristni Saga:
Steinunn, Mother of Skáld-Refr: “Before the bell’s keeper (bonds/ destroyed the beach’s falcon)/ the slayer of giantess-son/ broke the ox of segull’s place/ Christ was not watching, when / the wave-raven drank at the prows/ small guard I think God kept-if any- over Gylfir’s reindeers”

Question 22

Stentoften

Answer 22

Stentoften stone & sparlösa stone as evidence that Swedish kings ‘gafj[ar]’

Question 23

Gunnar

Answer 23

Oklunda inscription, Östergötland: “Gunnar fled under penalty; he sought this holy place (vi)” -> försa rune ring

Question 24

Hrynhent

Answer 24

11th Century, hyrnhent was popularised. It was based on dróttkvaelt but influenced by Latin hymn metres - The new metre has 8-syllabic 4-stress lines, allowing Skalds to move away from syntactic complexity -> Lilja

Question 25

Gudfastsson

Answer 25

Frösön rune stone (1020-30) Östman Gudfastsson claims that he made Jämtland christian. Östman may have been the lawspeaker of the region, indicating popular conversion. Or a royal reeve on comission from sigtuna.

Question 26

White Clothes

Answer 26

7 Uppland inscriptions commemorate someone who died in their white clothes, 2 claim that the individuals were baptised in Denmark.

Question 27

Sonatorrek

Answer 27

Egill Skallagrimsson, sonatorrek “I was in league with the lord of spears, pledged myself loyal to believe in him, before he broke off his friendship with me, the guardian of chariots, architect of victory”

Question 28

Titles

Answer 28

Titles “gode” and “Thul” in Denmark rune stones suggest cultic hierarchy