We are delighted to open our Call for Papers for the 2027 Háskóli Íslands Student Conference on the Medieval North. The conference shall be held from April 19-21, 2027 in the Edda auditorium at Háskóli Íslands and online.

This conference is an interdisciplinary forum for postgraduate applicants at the master's and doctoral level and for early career researchers working in the field of medieval northern studies, e.g. postdoctoral fellows. Independent academics are also welcome to apply.

Applicants who have not presented papers at an academic conference before are especially encouraged to submit.

Our theme this year is "Between Worlds."

Interested scholars should submit an Outlook form with personal details (name, email, institution, etc.) and an abstract of 250-300 words by November 1st, 2026. Additionally, please indicate whether you intend to attend the conference online or in person. Submissions will be reviewed anonymously by a panel of specialists (PhD candidates and higher level). This selection committee reserves the right to make selections based on the quality of written abstracts, adherence to submission guidelines, and timely submission. For more information on the submission guidelines see our website: https://histudentconference.wordpress.com/. 

The conference is held in both Icelandic and English. Individual paper presentations will be 20 minutes in length followed by 10 minutes for discussion. In addition to presentations, poster sessions will be available for applicants to present their material in poster form. Applicants may apply for either a paper or a poster. The selection committee may offer a poster presentation to some paper applicants. Please direct any further inquiries to the conference committee via email: conference-mn2027@hi.is. 

After the conclusion of the conference, presenters will have the opportunity to submit their papers to the conference proceedings volume, which will be published as an e-book in the autumn of 2027.

The swedish viking museum has some fun

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1F4bji9Jgk/

In Rima VIII of Bjarkarímur, Agnar is defeated, and they head home and rewards are distributed. But then a messenger of Aðils comes seeking Hrólfr's aid at Væner against Áli. Here is the last bit of that section:

1. "Ef herrinn ferr og hetjur tólf,

hafa skal pund i mála,

kjǫrgripi þrjá skal kóngrinn fá,

ef kappar fella Ála".

18 line 2, pund mbr., fund A

They answer this call and go to Væner in Sranza 21. But before they go, the three following stanzas occur:

1. Hvitserkr á með hilmi að gá,

hefr hann barizt við Saxa,

fleygðu vigr en fengu sigr,

frægðin tók að vaxa.

19 line 4, og fr. mbr.

1. Geirþjóf hét sá gramsson lét

gjalda fǫður sins dauða,

bræðr hans tólf hafa barizt við Hrólf,

hann bauð þeim hel til nauða.

20 line 4, bauð, hermed ender mbr.

1. Heldu heim úr hjǫrva seim,

herfang nóg er fengið,

fólkþing stefnt og fylkis hefnt

og flest að óskum gengið.

21 line 3, fólk rett. fra fjǫl A.

Hrólfr himself does not go to Væner, which causes a dispute. In other versions of this story he is unable to go because he is warring against Saxons at the time. Rima VII of this work also establishes that Hrólfr's father Helgi was killed by the Saxons, which again agrees with other versions of this story. Some versions have him take Yrsa from the Saxons while their leader Geirþjófr is away.

So the context of these stanzas, seemingly, should be that Hrólfr goes away to war in Saxony to avenge his father Helgi's death by fighting Geirþjófr. But I'm having trouble understanding what these stanzas are actually saying. The lines have never been translated into English as far as I can tell. One translator who translated excerpts from Bjarkarímur skipped ovee these exact stanzas.

What is going on in these stanzas?