Eur. Phys. J. B (2013) 86: 407
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjb/e2013-40583-3

Regular Article

Network analysis of the Íslendinga sögur – the Sagas of Icelanders

Applied Mathematics Research Centre, Coventry University, Coventry, CV1 5FB, England

^a e-mail: maccarrp@coventry.ac.uk

Received: 17 June 2013
Received in final form: 16 August 2013
Published online: 1 October 2013

Abstract

The Íslendinga sögur – or Sagas of Icelanders – constitute a collection of medieval literature set in Iceland around the late 9th to early 11th centuries, the so-called Saga Age. They purport to describe events during the period around the settlement of Iceland and the generations immediately following and constitute an important element of world literature thanks to their unique narrative style. Although their historicity is a matter of scholarly debate, the narratives contain interwoven and overlapping plots involving thousands of characters and interactions between them. Here we perform a network analysis of the Íslendinga sögur in an attempt to gather quantitative information on interrelationships between characters and to compare saga society to other social networks.