Swanson School of Engineering

Throughout our journey around the island, our fantastic tour guide, Olaf, has filled the time between excursions on the bus with stories and facts. Almost everywhere of the habitable places have tales stretching back hundreds of years. The most interesting one for me has been the blending of paganism and Christianity, and the unique products of it. Whenever the King of Norway around the year 1000 blackmailed the chieftains to convert to christianity, Iceland had a new religion forced upon them. This resulted in pagan beliefs being mixed in with those of Christianity. Holy sites for paganism had churches installed to not break rhythm for those converting. The holy sites spread across the island and can be identified by the prefix “Hof” in the name. The names outlasted the structures so historians aren’t sure what they looked like, just that they were there. A great example of the blending revolves around each one’s idea of the afterlife. The pagans believed at death that the body and spirit completely separated, while Christians believe the two are still linked after death. This culminated in draugr. Draugr are reanimated corpses that can do ones bidding if a ritual is completed and the one perform the ritual is able to beat the draugr in a fight. Then it will do whatever you say and can “live” quite long, past the lifetime of the summoner. This is only the tip of the iceberg of all the unique culture/history Olaf has shared with us. A single passing question can turn into learning tales that grow in their own regard as well as off others spread on the island. It gives each area something unique about it and ensures there is always more to see and hear. Having such a fantastic guide has elevated the experience so much more and I can’t recommend it enough.