Description
Book SynopsisThe making, eating, and sharing of food throughout society represents an important and exciting area of study with the potential to advance the field of scholarship, particularly in the context of Scandinavian Studies. This book analyses the historical, legal, and literary sources of the region during the medieval period to explore different aspects of Scandinavian culture relating to food and drink: production, consumption (including feasts), trading (distribution), and the associated social rituals. Using new and innovative approaches, this collection of studies offers broad insights into a great variety of social practices and includes fresh information on not only social history but also traditional topics such as trade, commercial exchange, legal regulation, and political organisation. The book unites contributors from a variety of backgrounds, further enriching the content of a collection that promises to make a significant contribution to the state of current research.
Table of ContentsContributors
Acknowledgements
Notes
List of common abbreviations
Part I: Food Production: Natural and Supernatural Strategies.
(Andrea Maraschi) Magic, miracles and rituals to fight famine in Old Norse Literature
(Karoline Kjesrud) Divine intervention in the preparations of food and drink in Old Norse Culture
(Stefan Figenschow) The Rise and Extent of Commercial Stockfish Production and Trade in Medieval north-Norwegian Coastal Society
Part II: Food Trade, Distribution, and Commercial Activities
(Marion Poilvez) Food and Exclusion: Beer, Chicken and Social Mobility in the Saga World
(Erik Opsahl) What Did the Norwegians Drink?
(Magne Njåstad) Stockfish Distribution: Getting Stockfish to the Consumer
(Helen Leslie-Jacobsen) The Theft of Food in Thirteenth Century Norway and Iceland
Part III: Food Spaces, Consumption, and Feasting
(Philip Lavender) The Semiotics of Hanging Around in the Kitchen in Late Sagas and Rímur
(Andrew McGillivray) Consumption and Intoxication in an Old Norse Legendary Saga
(Viktória Gyönki) Conflicts Regarding Hospitality in Old Norse Sources
(Martina Ceolin) The Practice of Feasting in Medieval Iceland
