ABSTRACT
The main groups of ‘barbarians,’ as perceived by the medieval Icelanders, are introduced, and references collected to each people in the Íslendingasögur, suggesting the literary conventions applied to each in the sagas. The four main groups of non-Germanic peoples that Icelanders come into contact with in the Íslendingasögur are treated separately: Skotar (Scottish), Írar (Irish), Skrælingar (First Peoples and Inuit) and Finnar (Sámi). There is a discussion of who the Icelanders were actually referring to when they used these designations, and the problems with using direct modern translations for peoples who have changed hugely in the millennium since. For the Skotar and Írar, to whom there are many references, there is a quantitative analysis of these references that sets out their frequency and distribution and divides the references into categories. These categories reflect the types and locations of interactions and establish the stereotypes which qualitative analysis in subsequent chapters explore. As Skrælingar feature extensively in only two sagas the approach here is different, with a focus on the variety of features used to portray them as the most barbaric foreigners of all. The Finnar, who appear only occasionally, are considered similarly.
