/icelandic-time-space # Medieval Icelandic Time & Space # NEED TO FINISH TAKING NOTES, SEE PDF OF (k-hastrup1985) Scandinavian topography is not characterized by purely geographical co-ordinates; it is permeated by emotional, religious, and mythic sense. ***veröld*** = *verr* 'man' + ***öld*** 'age' (related to *ala* 'to bear or rear') A 24 hour period was known as a *sólarhringr* 'sun-ring' or 'sun-course' and consisted of the the visible movements of the sun. - It was divded into two 12 hour parts each called *dægr* which was used to indicated both the night and the day. You know which it refers to based on context. Hence: *i degi dægr tvau, i dægri stundir tolf* 'in a day two *dægr*, in a *dægr* 12 hours'. - It was divded into eight parts called *áttir* or *dagsmörk*. - ***áttir*** Each 3 hours. A dægr consisted of 4 a*áttir*.) They were named after the cardinal directions: *norðr átt* (N), *landnorðr* (NE), *austr* (E), *landsuðr* (SE), *suðr* (S), *útsuðr* (SW), *vestr* (W), and *útnorðr* (NW). They were based on Norwegian geography (hence west = out). Each *áttir* = 45º of a circle, hence if you wanted to say exactly west you would need to say *í vestr miðiu* 'in the middle of the west', but they also refered to this using day marks. - ***dagsmörk*** A mix of sun-locations and social-events. Specific times: - 6am *rismál* 'hour or rising'; *miðr-morgun* 'mid-morning' (E) - 9am *dag-mál* 'day-meal' (SE) - 12pm *hádegi* 'high-day'; *miðdegi* 'mid-day' (S) - 3pm *undorn* 'mid-afternoon meal'; *nón* 'nine' (from latin *nona*) (SW) - 6pm *miðr-aptan* 'mid-evening' (W) - 9pm *nátt-mál* 'night-meal' (NW) - 12am *mið-nætti* 'midnight' (N) - 3am *ótta* 'the last part of the night' (NE)  So what you have is a flat static horizontal (cardinal directions), and a rotating verticle circle, which have social (meal time) conotations and together compose the cosmos. Time, Space, and Society converge. We can see this in place names originating in locations called *eyktarmörk* hich were buildings or piles or rocks (anything really) which indicated a time of day when the sun was a above it. Fun fact: The sun was said to be *skaft-há* 'shaft-high' when it could be seen over a vertically placed shaft. ##### Night At night, certain stars were 'leading stars', for example, Arcturus which was known as *dagstjarna* 'day-star' or *stjarna* 'the star'. ##### Weeks Weeks were defined in relation to the year and not to the lunar month. - Sun *sunnudagr* - Mon *mánadagr* - Tues *Týsdagr* - Weds *Óðinsdagr* - Thurs *þórsdagr* - Fri *Frjádagr* 'Frey's-day' - Sat *laugardagr* 'washing-day' ##### Year The solar year was called *sólargangr* 'the course of the sun'. 1y = 52w = 364d = 2 half years. Actually the primary unit was the half year (*misseri*), not the year (*ar* 'harvest'). They were *sumar* 'summer' & *vetr* 'winter', each 26w. Similar bitpartitions of the year are known from a variety of societies Nilsson1920p86 among them the Celts Rees1976p84. The period around the first summer (*Sumarmál* 'summer-meal') & winter day (*vetr-nætr*) were festive occasions. Summers started on Thursdays (between the 9th and 15th or April; except when *rímspillir* occured it fell on the 8th of April) and winters on Saturdays (between the 11th and 18th or October). Winter = 6m; Summer = 6m + additional days *auknætr*. It was the duty of the *lögsögumaðr* 'lawspeaker' at the Althing, and the *goði* 'chiefs' for the upcoming *leið* 'autumn thing', to fiigured it all out and announced it each year.  #### Months *mánuðr* 'month; moon' (on the possibility of an originally lunar calendar see Guðmundsson1924p89) Most of their names have economic or agricultural meanings: ###### Summer - APRIL ***sumar***; ***gaukmánuðr*** 'cuckoo-month'; ***sáðtið*** 'seed-time'; ***harpa*** - MAY ***eggtið*** 'egg-time'; ***stekktið*** 'lamb-fold-time'; ***skerpla*** - JUNE ***sólmánuðr*** 'sun-month'; ***selmánuðr*** 'shieling month'. - JULY ***miðsumar***; ***heyannir*** 'hay-time'; - AUG ***heyannir*** 'hey-time'; ***tvímánuðr*** 'double-month'; ***kornskurðarmánaðr*** 'corn-cutting-month - SEP ***kornskurðarmánuðr*** 'corn-cutting-month'; ***haustmánuðr*** 'harvest-month' ###### Winter - OCT ***gormanuðr*** 'slaughtering month' - NOV ***ylir*** (cognate with *yule*); ***frermánuðr*** 'frost-month' - DEC ***jólmanoðr***; ***mörsugr*** 'fat-sucker'; ***hrútmánaðr*** 'ram-month' - JAN ***þorri***; ***miðvetr*** - FEB ***gói*** - MAR ***einmanuðr*** 'one-month' The last three months of winter, called *útmánaðir* are dervived from *þorrablót* and *góiblót*. Hence connected with sacrifice.  ## Cosmology - [Norse Cosmography](norse-cosmography.md) -