Njáls Saga
The "Burnt Njál", the longest and finest of the Icelandic family sagas, a tragedy of law, honour and fire.
Core Characteristics
- Composed around 1280, telling of the friendship of Gunnar of Hlíðarendi and the lawyer Njál.
- Its centrepiece is the burning of Njál in his hall, and the lawsuit that follows to the Althing.
- No work shows more clearly how medieval Iceland lived by litigation as much as by the sword.
Related Concepts & Sources
Norse, Sacred Law, Grettis Saga