1 40 Norivay and the Norwegians 



always separable from addenda of a later date ; and of 

 the third only an abridgment remains. These books 

 are — 



Landnama-hdh, the Book of the Settlement of Iceland, 

 of which we spoke on a previous page. 



Konunga-hdk, the Lives of the Kings of Norway. 

 Ari's work is believed to be contained in the later and 

 larger collection of ' Kings' Lives,' taken from older 

 Sagas. It probably includes the kings' lives down to 

 the accession of Olaf Tryggvason. 



Islcndinga-hdh. This is the work which, in its original 

 and expanded form, has perished. 



Other names in the literary history of TSTorway, con- 

 temporary with or subsequent to Ari, are — 



Ssemund, also called hinn Frodi, the Wise or Learned. 

 It is to him that the Poetic Edda was ascribed, but 

 without foundation. Saemund had a great reputation 

 among his contemporaries, as he was thought to be a 

 magician. We have no extant works which can with 

 certainty be ascribed to him, and it is very likely that 

 he did not write in the vernacular, but in Latin. 



Kolskegg Asbjornsson. He, too, has the appellation 

 Frodi. He was a contemporary of Ari, and assisted the 

 latter in compiling the Landnama. 



Brand, called the Prior or Bishop. 



Later in Norse history, after the heroic age has quite 

 passed, we have — 



Erik Oddsson, who wrote lives of two rivals for the 

 tlu'one of Norway, Harald Gilli and Sigurd Slembi- 

 djakn. 



Karl Jousson wrote the life of King Sverri, of whom 

 we shall speak in a later chapter. 



