Godhood
Gode ( Icelandic Goði for 'priest' or probably also [translated] “king”) was the bearer of government in Iceland until the introduction of the Járnsíða in 1271 .
origin
Etymologically , the word is put to guþ and goþ = God. The term appears in the corpus of the runic inscriptions early in the 4th century in the inscription of the south-western Norwegian stone from Nordhuglo , as well as on two inscriptions from the Viking Age such as the rune stone from Helnæs from the Danish region of Funen .
The word goðorð , on the other hand, is only used in Iceland and shows that a special development has taken place there. In addition, there is an Old High German glossary in the Abba glossary that translates the word goting (or cotinc or goding ) from Latin tribunus (tribune, head): ciliarcus. uueraltkhraft. tribunus. cotinc. qui mille uiros. have. ther thusunt manno. have. edho camano. (Gl I: 88, 15; "Chiliarch: tribune that has 1000 men")
swell
The most reliable sources about the Godenamt are the Grágás , the Landnámabók and the Sturlunga saga . In the 19th century, the Icelandic sagas were also viewed as historical sources. Today, after the saga criticism, people are more skeptical and expect a strong literary revision. The news about godhood comes from the 13th century.
origin
At the beginning there were 36 goðar , also called Höfðingar (chiefs). Their office was called goðorð and the power associated with it was mannaforráð (rule over men) or ríki (power). The origin is in the dark. It is most commonly believed that the Gods' power derived from their temple ownership. It is also argued that Godhood in Iceland was only very loosely linked to the temple priesthood. In the old Icelandic literature the word hofgoði (temple god) occurs more often.
Functions
The fixed order of Goden rule seems to have arisen with the establishment of the Alþing ( Althing ) in 930. The total number of gods (= thing assemblies) was set at 36. In 965 the land was quartered and three gods were added, since the district in the north consisted of four gods. There were now three thing assemblies in the east, west and south quarters and four in the north quarters. Each thing assembly had three gods and each thing association had a main temple. The twelve gods in the north should not have a greater influence than the nine gods in the respective other quarters. So each of the other quarters got a Goden each. In the 12th century, about 100 farms belonged to a Goðorð.
The god power ( goðorð ) was freely alienable , inheritable and also divisible, in that one of the authorized persons should hold his godhood over three thing assemblies (spring thing, autumn thing and all thing ). There were also female gods , the Gyðjar . In the Landnamabók, the most important source for the history of Icelandic settlement, two women with the name Þuriðr Gyðja are mentioned. In the Vatnsdoela Saga there is even a report of a woman named Steinvör, “who was the temple priestess ( hofgyðja ) and presided over the main temple.” In the Eddic Hyndluljoð , a Hlédis Gyðja is mentioned. The right to the courtyard on which the temple stood, the right to the temple and the Goðorð based on it were separate. The Goðorð was an independent and as a pure position of power an abstract negotiable thing. In the Christian tithe legislation, the Goðorð was not regarded as subject to tithing.
The rights and duties of the Goden concerned the state administration on the Allthing and the district administration. The task of national defense did not exist in Iceland. Every Gode had his own people. But they had the right to change the Goden within their Thing district. The Goden's most important task was to represent the interests of his people.
The Goden had to appear on the thing before sunset on the first thing day . They had a seat and vote in the legislative assembly, had to appoint the judges for the court and appoint the law speaker. They took part in the court hearings as a jury and were also justice of the peace in their own district.
The Goden were also dependent on their peasants, because they were the only ones with whom enemies from outside could be repelled. The peasants in turn had to appear at the thing meetings. Every ninth farmer had to accompany his Goden on the thing trip. The Gods also regulated trade. They set the prices that foreigners were allowed to charge for their goods.
development
Concentration began towards the end of the Free State. A Gode took over several Goðorð, so that in the end the entire country was ruled by about 10 men who came from the most powerful families. The direct relationship with the peasants receded. Substructures of power developed among the peasants. This development was stopped when the Norwegian king took power.
literature
- Else Ebel : Gode, Godentum. In: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde (RGA). 2nd Edition. Volume 12, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin / New York 1998, ISBN 3-11-016227-X , pp. 260-263.
- Else Ebel: Regional trade using the example of Iceland at the time of the saga. In: Herbert Jankuhn (Hrsg.): Investigations into trade and traffic in prehistoric times in Central and Northern Europe. Göttingen 1985.
- Hans Kuhn : Old Iceland. Diederichs, Düsseldorf 1971.
- Ólafur Lárusson: Goði og Goðorð. In: Kulturhistorisk leksikon for Nordisk Middelalder. Volume 5, Copenhagen 1960, Col. 363-366.
- Konrad Maurer : The constitutional law of the Icelandic Free State. Lecture on Old Norse Legal History Volume IV. Reprint Osnabrück 1966.
- Herrmann-Josef Seggewiß: Goði and Höfðingi. The literary representation and function of Gode and chief in the Icelandic sagas. Frankfurt 1978.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ goting ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on cis.uni-muenchen.de ( authentication required)
- ↑ Herrmann-Josef Seggewiß: Godi and Höfðingi.
- ^ Kuhn: The old Iceland. P. 109; Ólafur Lárusson: Goði og Goðorð. Sp, 363 f.
- ↑ Konrad Maurer: The constitutional law of the Icelandic Free State. P. 213f .; von See: Old Norse legal words. P. 107ff.
- ↑ Else Ebel: Regional trade using the example of Iceland at the time of the saga.
