Icelandic Marrige Customs
Icelandic Marrige CustomsMy father is originally from Iceland. He was born and raised in Iceland, and all of our relatives on his side of the family still live in Iceland. The current traditions for an Icelandic wedding ceremony follow the traditions of the Lutheran church, which is the religion of about 98% of the population in Iceland. While the Lutheran practice is also beautiful, I found the historical marriage customs to be much more interesting to study than a common Christian wedding. Historically Iceland was inhabited by Vikings, which populated the country. The marriage rituals of the Vikings are told in many of the Icelandic sagas, which the Icelandic people hold dearly as their history.
The function of marriage in society is to control human sexuality, and as a form of socioeconomic associations between groups. In Iceland, there was a double standard for men and women. The ideal woman was to be chaste and devoted to her husband, and a virgin was a commodity to a family bringing wealth through her bride price. A man on the other hand, was free to have concubines as bed slaves without and within a marriage. Since the Viking laws made provisions for extramarital activity and illegitimate children, the Vikings saw marriage more as a means for forging alliances rather than the limitations of sexuality. The Icelandic Viking’s wife served as a promise of economic gain, political advantage, and/or reconciliation between formerly feuding parties. Marriages were arranged in the Viking age, and love was considered a thing to grow after a marriage. Love was insignificant compared to the bride price, dowry, or political maneuverings. While the men were not consulted on his match, fathers of the brides usually asked her for her approval. If a bride did not approve, the sagas show that the marriage, if continued, would usually end in disaster or death for the husband. In general, most brides went with their father’s choice for a husband. If in any case the union did not work out in the end, Viking law had many provisions for divorce of an unhappy couple, and the families always stood to gain in some way.
Because Vikings considered marriage to be a legal contract of sorts, it was appropriate that the place to find a suitable bride was at the Thing. The Thing was a place for social gatherings of law. The law codes show that negotiating a marriage followed the same sort of rules as formation of any other contract or legal agreement, and was appropriately conducted at the Thing where other legal events. As if going to court for trial, the families negotiating a marriage often took with them men of power to act as brokers or advocates to making the proposal. These sponsors were the witnesses the formal agreement by the hand-clasp (handsal), and...
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