ABSTRACT
Ynglinga saga (“The Saga of the Ynglingar”) is the first section of Snorri Sturluson’s Heimskringla. It is a quasi-historical work, in which Snorri gives an account of the mythical and legendary ancestors of the Ynglingar, the kings of Sweden. These kings were thought to descend from the pagan Norse gods, and Snorri traces in detail their mythical ancestry, expressing the same euhemeristic views as in his Prose Edda, although here he carries them even further. He tells how Óoinn had led the gods from Asia to Scandinavia, where he distributed dominions among his sons and followers. After Óoinn’s death, Njprōr became the ruler of Sweden, followed by his son, FreyT (Yngvi-Freyr), after whom the kings were called “Ynglingar.” Covering a period from the end of the 3rd century to the mid-9th century, Snorri provides a systematic and concise account of events during the reigns of these kings.
