Laxdæla saga
Icelandic saga
Laxdæla saga or The Saga of the People of Laxárdalur is one of the sagas of Icelanders. Written in the 13th century, it describes events that took place among the Laxdælir (i.e. the people of Laxárdalur in western Iceland) between the 9th and 11th centuries. The saga particularly focuses on a love triangle between Guðrún Ósvífrsdóttir, Kjartan Ólafsson and Bolli Þorleiksson. Kjartan and Bolli grow up together as close friends, but the love they both have for Guðrún causes enmity between them.
Second only to Njáls saga in the number of medieval manuscripts preserved, Laxdæla saga remains popular and appreciated for its poetic beauty and pathos.
Authorship and sources
As is the case with the other Icelanders' sagas, the author of Laxdæla saga is unknown. Since the saga has often been regarded as an unusually feminine saga, it has been speculated that it was composed by a woman. The author's extensive knowledge of locations and conditions in the Breiðafjörður area show that the author must have lived in western Iceland. Internal evidence shows that the saga must have been composed sometime in the period 1230–1260.
“Laxdæla saga” enters the record as icelandic saga. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Laxdæla, saga and Icelandic can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Laxdæla saga” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Laxdæla, saga and Icelandic provides the most credible route into that argument.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q122708. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1230 and 1260.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
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The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Laxdæla saga”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Laxdæla saga primary sources, Laxdæla saga archive and Laxdæla research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
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This entry incorporates text from “Laxdæla saga” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.