HAWKDALE SAGA

HAUKDÆLA ÞÁTTR

1

ABOUT KETILBJÖRN THE ELDER, TEITR, AND GIZURR THE WHITE

Ketilbjörn Ketilsson, a famous Norse man, traveled to Iceland when the land was widely settled near the sea. His mother was Æsa Grjótgarðsdóttir, the sister of Hákon Hlaðajarl. He married Helga, the daughter of Þórðr Skeggja Hrappsson, and they spent the winter south of Bláskógaheiði before setting out to explore the land in the spring. This is what Teitr relates. They built a hut for themselves, where they had their lodging, and called it Skálabrekka. As they traveled a short distance from there, they reached a river, chopped a hole in the ice, and named it “Öxará” because of that incident. This river was later connected to Almannagjá and now flows near Þingvellir. They continued their journey until they arrived at Reyðarmúli. They found red berry bushes there, which they had brought with them, and named the place Reyðarmúli after them. Ketilbjörn settled in the area called Mosfell and claimed as much land around him as he desired. The descendants of Ketilbjörn and Helga are known as Mosfellingar.

Their son was Teitr, who was the father of Gizurr the White and Jórunn, the mother of Ásgrímr Elliði-Grímsson and Sigfús, the father of Þorgerðr of Oddi, and the grandfather of Grímr and Sigfús, the father of the wise priest Sæmundr. There were more children of Teitr than those mentioned here.

Gizurr the White was the father of Bishop Ísleifr, and there is a great saga about him, which is mentioned in the saga of King Óláfr Tryggvason, including his journey to Iceland to spread Christianity along with Hjalti Skeggjason from Þjórsárdalur.

2

ABOUT BISHOP ÍSLEIFR

Ísleifr was consecrated as a bishop during the reign of King Harald Sigurðarson. The chieftains in Iceland noticed that Bishop Ísleifr was much more beneficial than other teachers on the island. As a result, many people entrusted their sons to him for education and to be ordained as priests. Two of these men later became bishops themselves: Kolr, who was in the east at Vík, and Jón, who later became the bishop at Hólar.

Ísleifr was consecrated as a bishop when he was fifty years old. At that time, Pope Leo, the ninth to bear that name, was in Niðarós (Nidaros, now Trondheim) and then traveled to Iceland. He passed away in Skálaholt, after serving as a bishop for twenty-four years and eight decades. This occurred seven nights after the feast of St. Peter and St. Paul, eighty-eight years after the fall of King Óláfr Tryggvason.

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ABOUT BISHOP GIZURR

Gizurr, the son of Bishop Ísleifr, was consecrated as a bishop during the reign of King Óláfr the Peaceful, two years after his father’s death. He was consecrated both in Iceland and in Gautland (Götaland, a region in Sweden). However, his true name was Gisröðr, as he revealed to Priest Ari.

Gizurr the Bishop was highly regarded by all the people of Iceland, surpassing other men on the island. His close relationship with Sæmundur the priest, the counsel of Lawspeaker Markús, and other wise men led to an important decision being enacted into law. It was established that every Icelander who hadn’t already done so should declare and honor his property and possessions, whether it was in land or liquid silver, and pay tithes thereafter. This was accompanied by significant signs of approval from the people, and they willingly complied whenever Gizurr appeared, recognizing the legitimacy of the law. This law still stands, as long as Iceland is inhabited.

Gizurr the Bishop also legislated that the bishop’s seat would be located in Skálaholt and granted it as an endowment, along with many other estates and liquid silver. Later, when he noticed that this site was prospering with wealth, he donated more than a quarter of his bishopric to establish two bishop’s seats in Iceland. Before this decision, he had already counted the number of farmers in Iceland, revealing that there were seven hundred in the Eastern Fjords, one thousand in the Southern Peninsula, nine hundred in the Western Fjords, and twelve hundred in the Northern Peninsula. However, the actual number of people who didn’t pay the annual fee for attending the Althing assembly was countless.

After Markús, Úlfheðinn Gunnarsson held the position of Lawspeaker for nine summers, and Bergþórr Hrafnsson for six summers.

During the first summer when Bergþórr declared the laws at the Althing assembly, Gizurr the Bishop was unable to attend. He sent a message to his friends at the Althing, asking Þorlákr Runólfsson, the son of Þorleikur and brother of Hall in Haukadalur, to be ordained as a bishop. Those who received the message acted accordingly, and Þorlákr was ordained that summer. Gizurr was consecrated as a bishop when he was forty years old. At that time, Pope Gregory the Seventh held the papal office. Gizurr later traveled to Denmark and returned to Iceland the following summer. By then, he had served as a bishop for twenty-four years, four years longer than his father, and it was during this period that Jón was consecrated as a bishop when he was over fifty years old. Twelve years later, when Gizurr had been a bishop for thirty-six years, Þorlákr was consecrated as a bishop in Skálaholt while Gizurr the Bishop was still alive. Gizurr the Bishop passed away in Skálaholt.

In that same year, Pope Paschal also passed away, prior to Gizurr’s death. Additionally, Baldwin, the King of Jerusalem, and Arnald, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, as well as Philip, the King of Sweden, and Alexius, the King of Greece, all passed away. This was one hundred and eighteen years after the fall of King Óláfr Tryggvason and two hundred and fifty years after Ingólfr, the settler, came to Iceland.

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ABOUT THE HALL IN HAUKDAL AND HAUKDAL CLAN.

Bishop Ísleifr had three sons, all of whom were chieftains: Gizurr the Bishop, Þorvaldr, and the third one was named Teitr. Teitr was raised in Haukadalur by the generous Hall. I arrived when he was seven years old, a winter after Gellir Þorkelsson passed away. Hall told Wise Priest Ari that Teitr was baptized at the age of three winters, a winter before Christianity was officially accepted in Iceland. Teitr lived for thirty-four years and resided in Haukadalur for sixty-four years. He died at the age of one hundred and twenty years, ten years after Bishop Ísleifr’s death.

After Hall’s passing, Teitr, his foster son and the son of Bishop Ísleifr, lived in Haukadalur and became a prominent figure, from whom many people descended. They are known as the Haukdæla Clan. Teitr passed away at the age of one thousand one hundred and five years, one year after the birth of Christ and five years before Hvamm-Sturla was born.

Teitr’s son was Hall, who was a significant chieftain. He lived in Haukadalur after his father’s death and died at the age of one thousand one hundred and fifty-five years since Christ’s birth.

Hall Teitsson married Þuríðr, the daughter of Þorgeir of Mýri. They had a son named Gizurr, who became a lawman (lögsögumaður). Gizurr lived in Haukadalur after his father. He was both wise and eloquent in speech. He served as the steward of King Sigurður, the father of King Sverrir. He was also the best cleric known in Iceland, and his reputation extended far beyond the country. He was better esteemed in Rome for his education and accomplishments than any other Icelander. He was widely recognized in the southern countries, and based on his experiences, he wrote the book called “Flos peregrinationis” (The Flower of Pilgrimage). Gizurr married Álfheiðr, the daughter of Þorvald, the wealthy son of Guðmundur. They had children named Þorvaldr, Hall the Abbot, and Bishop Magnús. They also had a daughter named Þuríðr, who married Tumi Kolbeinsson, Kolfinna, who married Ari the Strong, and later, Garða-Snorri. Halldóra was the daughter of Gizurr and Þuríðr Árnadóttir, who married Bersi Halldórsson. Their children were Teitr, who was a bishop candidate, and Þorgerðr. Vilborg was the daughter of Gizurr and Þorbjörg Hreinsdóttir, who married Teitr Súgandason. Valgerðr was the daughter of Gizurr and Þórný Vigfúsdóttir, who married Teitr Ásláksson. Þórdís was another daughter of Gizurr and Þórný. She married Þorsteinn Jónsson. Hallr, the son of Gizurr and Halldóra Sveinbjarnardóttir, had a daughter named Hallfríðr. Magnús was the adopted son of Hallr, and he married Steinvör Sámsdóttir. Their son was Sámr.

Bishop Magnús married Halldóra Hjaltadóttir, and their sons were Hjalti and Gizurr.

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ABOUT THE MARRIAGE OF OLDER ÞÓRA AND YOUNGER ÞÓRA.

Þorvaldr, the son of Gizurr, lived in Hruna and was married to Jóra, the daughter of the bishop. They had five sons: Guðmundr, Klængr, Björn, Einarr, and Teitr.

During this time, Guðmundr gríss lived at Þingvellir, and he was married to Solveig, the daughter of Jón Loftsson. They had two daughters, and both were named Þóra, but they were distinguished as older Þóra and younger Þóra. Both were renowned for their elegance and refinement, and they were considered the best choices for marriage among unmarried women.

They often went to Almannagjá with their laundry to wash it in the river.

One day, while they were there to enjoy themselves by the river, older Þóra spoke up, saying, “Sister, what do you think will happen? How long will it be before men come to propose to us? Or do you think we’ll end up being neglected?”

“I don’t give it much thought,” replied younger Þóra, “because I am content with things as they are.”

“That’s true,” said older Þóra, “it’s respectable to stay with our parents, but there’s no joy or pleasure in it.”

“That’s certainly true,” said younger Þóra, “but it’s uncertain that you’d be happier if things were different.”

“Now,” said older Þóra, “let’s play a game and test our wisdom. Tell me, if any man were to propose to you, who would you choose, the one who likes you the most?”

“I don’t feel the need to think about that,” replied younger Þóra, “as everything will be decided beforehand, and I don’t want to carry any burden or gossip about it.”

“True, it’s said that lesser matters are decided by fate,” said older Þóra, “but still, I’d like you to tell me who you’d choose, and then I’ll tell you who I’d choose.”

“You’re ahead of us,” said younger Þóra, “and you must tell me first, as you wish to avoid any misunderstandings.”

“I’d like it if Jón Sigmundarson rode here and both you and I were offered to him,” said older Þóra.

Younger Þóra responded, “You know well that we shouldn’t let such an opportunity pass by, especially when he’s considered the best man available. But if I were to choose, I’d prefer that Jóra, the bishop’s daughter, passed away and Þorvaldr Gizurarson came here to marry me.”

“Let’s stop this conversation,” said older Þóra, “and not discuss it further.” Then they returned home.

Ten years had passed since Archbishop Guttormr had granted Þorvaldr and Jóra the right to marry each other. He told them that he had never loved her more than at that moment, but he wasn’t sure if he could keep his promise to marry her, as he had previously vowed to become an archbishop. However, during the same year, Jóra passed away.

In the spring, Þorvaldr and Jón traveled west to Borgarfjörður for an errand. They rode together and stayed at Þingvellir. As they rode west, many people mentioned their thoughts about the daughters of Guðmundr. Both sisters often rested in the same bed, with older Þóra lying beside a log. When Þorvaldr and Jón arrived from the west, they stayed again at Þingvellir.

Then older Þóra spoke to her sister, saying, “Tonight, I will arrange that Þorvaldr and Jón share the same bed with us. And since they are now proposing to us, I will choose the one who lies beside me, and you will choose the one beside you.”

She knew that Þorvaldr was accustomed to resting by a log and wanted to keep him for herself.

“Why do you decide such things?” said younger Þóra, “You must determine how we share the beds. But I fear it may lead to misfortune, as before.”

When evening came and Þorvaldr and Jón arrived at the beds, Jón asked Þorvaldr the farmer, “Would you like to rest by the log or the plank?”

Þorvaldr replied, “I’m used to resting by the log, but now you can choose.”

“Then I’ll rest by the log this time,” said Jón, and so he did.

The next morning, they had their marriage arrangements settled, and it happened that older Þóra married Jón, while younger Þóra married Þorvaldr. The children of Þorvaldr Gizurarson and younger Þóra were Halldóra, Gizurr jarl, and Kolfinna. Halldóra, the daughter of Þorvaldr, married Ketill, the lawman and son of Þorlákr.