From Spirits to Short People
What does a Dwarf Look Like? Ugnius Mikučionis about dwarfs in the Old Norse tradition
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Ugnius Mikučionis (UiB, LLE): From Spirits to Short People, or What Does a Dwarf Look Like?
In his talk, Ugnius Mikučionis will provide an overview of how dwarfs (Old Norse: 'dvergar') are described, in terms of their physical appearance, in medieval Nordic sources dating mainly from 8th to 13th centuries. Source texts in focus are the runic inscription from Ribe, the Eddas, fornaldarsǫgur, and riddarasǫgur. The most detailed descriptions of the physical appearance of the dwarfs are found in saga literature, where the dwarfs are often (although not always) described as short and ugly. Mikučionis will discuss these sources and the question whether they show a development of the image of the dwarfs.
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