Death and donation: different channels of property transfer in late medieval Iceland

Agnes S. Arnórsdóttir There were two main principles of marital property division in Europe during the late Middle Ages. In northern Europe, property was based on a communal principle, aiming at the maintenance of the household after the death of either the husband or the wife. The other principle, more common in southern Europe, was kin-based, which meant that the property should be transferred either to the female or male lines as soon as one spouse died, especially if they did not have children.1