ABSTRACT
Christian themes are central to the earliest known sagas. These texts, which were originally composed in Latin but are solely extant in Old Norse translations, focus on the lives of Olafr Tryggvason and Olafr Haraldsson, the kings who according to Old Norse tradition established Christianity in Norway and the North Atlantic colonies. The alignment of the North Atlantic colonies with the Christian world is also a pivotal theme in Fareyinga saga and Orkneyinga saga, which are traditionally dated to the beginning of the thirteenth century. A number of recurring narrative elements linked to Christianity appear throughout the Islendingasogur corpus. The conversion þattir show that thirteenth-century authors were easily able to compose narratives, albeit shorter than the Islendingasogur, in which Christian ideas play a dominating role. The Swedish scholars Lars Lonnroth and Daniel Savborg have debated the role of Christianity in Njals saga.
