Thorgerd Brak
Þorgerðr brák (anglicised as Thorgerd Brak) is a character in Egils saga. Skilled in magic, she is the foster-mother of the tenth-century poet and saga hero Egill Skallagrímsson, and she sacrifices her life to save him by intervening when his father, Skalla-Grímr, is about to kill him.
Egils saga[edit]
Þorgerðr is a servant or slave of tenth-century Icelandic warrior and farmer Skalla-Grímr. She foster his young son Egill.[1][2] The saga narrator describes her as 'an imposing woman, as strong as a man and well-versed in the magic arts.'[1][3] Her nickname might come from Old Norse brák, a leatherworking tool.[4] The nickname has also been thought to be Gaelic.[5]
When Egill is twelve, Skalla-Grímr grows enraged while playing a ball game with Egill and his teammate Þorðr. Skalla-Grímr kills Þorðr and then seizes Egill. Þorgerðr accuses him of behaving like a shapeshifter (Skalla-Grímr and his father Kveld-Ulfr are rumoured to be able to take on the shape of wolves).[6] When Skalla-Grímr leaves Egill to pursue her, she tries to escape by swimming, but Skalla-Grímr throws a boulder at her, killing her.[7][8] Egill retaliates by killing Skalla-Grímr's farmhand.[9]
Her namesake, Egill’s daughter Þorgerðr, also saves his life later in the saga when he is pining after the death of his sons.[10]
Legacy[edit]
Þorgerðr brák gave her name to Brákarsund and Brákarey in Iceland, which supposedly mark the spot where she died.[1] In 1997 a sculpture by Bjarni Þór Bjarnason depicting a brák (leatherworking tool) was installed at Borgarnes to commemorate her.[11][12][13]
In 2008, Icelandic playwright Brynhildur Guðjonsdóttir produced a play, Brák, about Þorgerðr brák.[5][14]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Egil's saga (trans. Bernard Scudder), The Sagas of the Icelanders (2007), p. 63.
- ^ Looze, Laurence de; Helgason, Jon Karl; Poole, Russell; Tulinius, Torfi H. (2016-01-28). Egil, the Viking Poet: New Approaches to 'Egil's Saga'. University of Toronto Press. p. 100. ISBN 978-1-4426-2124-4.
- ^ Classen, Albrecht (2017-10-23). Magic and Magicians in the Middle Ages and the Early Modern Time: The Occult in Pre-Modern Sciences, Medicine, Literature, Religion, and Astrology. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. ISBN 978-3-11-055652-0.
- ^ Brink, Stefan (2021-09-23). Thraldom. Oxford University Press. p. 216. ISBN 978-0-19-753235-5.
- ^ a b Iceland – Ireland: Memory, Literature, Culture on the Atlantic Periphery. BRILL. 2022-02-07. p. 171. ISBN 978-90-04-50533-9.
- ^ Lewis-Simpson, Shannon (2008-11-30). Youth and Age in the Medieval North. BRILL. p. 156. ISBN 978-90-474-2404-8.
- ^ McManamon, John M. (2021-02-22), "Conclusion", "Neither Letters nor Swimming": The Rebirth of Swimming and Free-diving, Brill, pp. 333–371, ISBN 978-90-04-44619-9, retrieved 2024-07-11
- ^ Hall, Edith (2006). "Drowning Act: The Greeks, Swimming, and Timotheus' Persians". Theatrical Cast of Athens: 255–287. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199298891.003.0009.
- ^ Smiley, Jane (2005-02-24). The Sagas of the Icelanders. Penguin UK. ISBN 978-0-14-193326-9.
- ^ Egil's saga (trans. Scudder), p. 151.
- ^ "From Iceland — Miss Vanjie Of The North: A Borgarnes Monument To An Insignificant Saga Character". The Reykjavik Grapevine. 2018-08-07. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
- ^ "The Icelandic Sagas | Travel Guide | Iceland Travel". www.icelandtravel.is. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
- ^ "Brákarsund – Iceland Road Guide". Retrieved 2024-07-11.
- ^ "Leikhús - BRÁK eftir Brynhildi Guðjónsdóttur". www.mbl.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 2024-07-11.