The Icelandic Canadian - 01.03.1981, Qupperneq 13

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
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FOUR FAMOUS WOMEN
OF ICELAND'S SAGA AGE
Dr. Valdimar J. Eylands
When Vigdis Finnbogadottir was elected
president of the Republic of Iceland on June
29th, 1980, she became instantly the most
famous woman in Icelandic history, and
attained at the same time preeminence
among women the world over. There have
been, of course — and there are — women
performing as chiefs of State, but they have
inherited the office. But the Icelanders are
the first nation to elect a woman — indeed a
member of the intellectual aristocracy in the
land, a person held in high esteem in the
field of education and drama — to the high-
est office in the country, thus departing from
a timeless universal tradition of masculine
preference.
Such an event is bound to stimulate a
great deal of discussion in the public media,
and among all people who are interested in
social activities and world politics. There
are those who see in this election only a
manifestation of a restless, fumbling age
trying to find its way out of its present pre-
carious predicament. Others regard the elec-
tion of a woman to an office such as this a
long overdue recognition of the equal rights
of women, and a most welcome emancipa-
tion from their centuries-old confinement to
the Germanic concept of “a children-
cooking-church” programme. It is now
high time for the “fair sex” to come forth
with their “fair play”. Let women show on
the national level their domestic specialty of
justice, loving concern and tactful leader-
ship. Congratulations to Iceland for its
courage and initiative. They were path-
finders in the democratic way of life among
the northern nations, and now, after eleven
hundred years they have reaffirmed their
faith in the democratic process and the basic
principle of equal rights for all people re-
gardless of sex, social or economic status.
The many people of Icelandic extraction
living in North America are very much in-
terested in this unique event in the history of
the old mother land. The Editor of the Ice-
landic Canadian, has taken due cognizance
of it by planning to place a photograph of
Her Excellency on the front cover of the
summer issue 1981 of the magazine, and by
requesting a short essay on four specified
women of the Saga age, namely Audur
(Unnur) Ketilsdottir, Hallgerdur Ho-
skuldsdottir, Bergthora Skarphedins-
dottir and Gudrun Osvidfursdottir. This
may perhaps be considered as a Toast to the
women of Iceland. It is obvious that Iceland
has throughout its history had women who
were loved and adored in their generation,
but also those who were hated and feared.
But the four named above tower like moun-
tain peaks in the ancient sagas, which furn-
ish the only information we have concerning
them.
It should be noted that the ancient sagas
purport to relate events which are supposed
to have taken place eight or nine generations
before they were put in writing. We may
assume that the basic events and personali-
ties existed, but also that the oral tradition
on which the stories are based, were
kneaded and variously moulded by the
writers to suit their taste and purpose. It
should also be observed that we of today can
not judge the conduct and conversations of
the Saga people by modem standards of
social conduct. The people of the Saga age
lived in a period of transition from paganism
to Christianity. This is very well illustrated
in the sayings of Njal at the time of the
burning of Bergthorsvoll. To the offer to
leave the burning house and thus saving his
life, he replies: “I have no wish to go out-
side for I am an old man now and ill-