: The Power of the Poets: Extempore Incantations in Iceland and Ireland
Unique to Iceland and Ireland is the belief in the poet’s ability to achieve supernatural effects through extemporated verses. Unlike ordinary magic formulas these were effective only once, for a specific occasion. Such beliefs were current until recently in both areas and can be traced more than thousand years back. This lecture surveys the two traditions and the relation between them.
: Rumours and Reality? Gaels in Greenland and America in the Viking Age
This lecture deals with a number of episodes attached to people reputed to have been in Greenland or America, included in Old Icelandic sources, in particular The Saga of the Greenlanders and The Saga of Eric the Red. Their possible prototypes in older Irish literature are analysed and the amount of invention and realism in these episodes explored. (N.B. This is a new date for this lecture.)
: The Vikings in Irish Folk Tradition
Historical sources furnish much information on the Viking era in Ireland, and archaeological excavations cast spectacular light on the Norsemen’s achievements there. However, little has been done to explore the reputation they left behind them. This lecture gives a survey of stories, sayings and beliefs about Vikings until recently to be heard from the lips of Irish country people. (N.B. This is a new date and room for this lecture.)