#Saint Olaf of Norway

[dreamconsumer]

Olaf II of Norway (Saint Olaf; 995-1030) by Andrei Kiryuta.

[maypoleman1]

29th July

St Olaf’s Day

Wooden Statue of St Olaf by Ferdinand Stuflesser. Source: stuflesser.com

Today is St Olaf’s Day. Olaf (995-1039) was a fervently Christian king of Norway who was not above using force and repression to convert the remaining Norse pagans to Christianity. The resentment this campaign caused enabled King Canute, the Danish conqueror of England, to stimulate a revolt against Olaf in Norway, leading to the king’s overthrow. In the civil war that followed Olaf’s attempt to regain his kingdom, he was killed. This greatly pleased Canute, who held a long standing grievance against his fellow Scandinavian monarch because Olaf had supported the Anglo-Saxon king Aethelred the Unready against Canute’s invasion. When Canute was then invited to take the vacant throne of Norway, thus creating a vast Scandinavian empire, the Danish/English king’s revenge on Olaf was complete.

Olaf’s extreme Christianity led to his canonisation and he became particularly popular in those parts of the British Isles settled by the Vikings. The saint became associated with cures and miracles, the waters of wells dedicated to his name being believed to be curative.

[thorraborinn]

Today is the first of Heyannir, the fourth month of summer on the Icelandic calendar. It normally occurs on whatever Sunday falls from the 23rd and 29th, but this is a rímspillisár, a year where the calendar "breaks" (a regular but infrequent confluence of a leap year and the month starting early the year before). Months for the next year will also start uncommonly late.

The first of Heyannir is sometimes called midsummer (miðsumar), most often just this day itself but sometimes a longer span of time in the beginning of the month or sometimes even the month itself. I seem to remember, but can't find a source now, that it is sometimes called "old midsummer" (gamla miðsumar) to differentiate it from St. John's Mass on June 24th, as the custom of calling this time "midsummer" came to Iceland from Scandinavia but did not fully supplant the later midsummer in July.

Heyannir means 'hay-working' and traditionally signaled the time for farmers in Iceland to start a number of tasks, making hay paramount among them but also including gathering some herbs, dulse (an edible sea plant), and ferns which were used for food preservation.

Old Midsummer falls near or on Ólafsmessa, the Mass of St. Ólafur (Olaf/Olav), on July 29th which is considered the day of his death. St. Ólafur was one of the most celebrated saints in Iceland while the country was Catholic and was prayed to as a protective figure in ways that might resemble how people related to beings like Thor in pre-Christian times. According to Árni Björnsson, toasts were drunk to him at weddings and other major feasts in Norway. He was also a patron of guild members generally. Some modern heathens have incorporated traditions associated with St. Ólafur into their conception of Thor.

Most heathens recognize midsummer at the summer solstice or on St. John's Eve but since I didn't grow up with St. John's Eve, I tend to think of the solstice as the beginning of a countdown to my midsummer. Where I live currently, and also in Iceland, the hottest day of the year usually falls some time in the last week of Sólmánuður (the previous month) to the first week of Heyannir. Today, the heat has broken, and today's projected heat index high is a full 20 degrees lower than two days ago. I am grateful for the relief.

Some upcoming dates on the Icelandic calendar:

Tvímánuður begins: August 28

Haustmánuður begins: September 28

Winternights: October 26th and 27th (imo it makes sense to say it begins on the evening of the 25th and ends evening of the 27th).

Gormánuður begins: October 28

Sources are http://almanak.hi.is/, Saga Daganna by Árni Björnsson, and Icelandic Wikipedia.

[catie-does-things]

Partial List of Royal Saints

Saint Abgar (died c. AD 50) - King of Edessa, first known Christian monarch 

Saint Adelaide of Italy (931 - 999) - Holy Roman Empress as wife of Otto the Great

Saint Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury (died 944) - Queen of the English as wife of King Edmund I

Saint Æthelberht of Kent (c. 550 - 616) - King of Kent

Saint Æthelberht of East Anglia (died 794) - King of East Anglia

Saint Agnes of Bohemia (1211 - 1282) - Bohemian Princess, descendant of Saint Ludmila and Saint Wenceslaus, first cousin of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary

Saint Bertha of Kent (c. 565 - c. 601) - Frankish Princess and Queen of Kent as wife of Saint Æthelberht

Saint Canute (c. 1042 - 1086) - King of Denmark

Saint Canute Lavard (1096 - 1131) - Danish Prince

Saint Casimir Jagiellon (1458 - 1484) - Polish Prince

Saint Cormac (died 908) - King of Munster

Saint Clotilde (c. 474 - 545) - Queen of the Franks as wife of Clovis I

Saint Cunigunde of Luxembourg (c. 975 - 1033) - Holy Roman Empress as wife of Saint Henry II

Saint Edmund the Martyr (died 869) - King of East Anglia

Saint Edward the Confessor (c. 1003 - 1066) - King of England

Saint Edward the Martyr (c. 962 - 978) - King of the English

Saint Elesbaan (Kaleb of Axum) (6th century) - King of Axum

Saint Elizabeth of Hungary (1207 - 1231) - Princess of Hungary and Landgravine of Thuringia

Saint Elizabeth of Portugal (1271 - 1336) - Princess of Aragon and Queen Consort of Portugal

Saint Emeric (c. 1007 - 1031) - Prince of Hungary and son of Saint Stephen of Hungary

Saint Eric IX (died 1160) - King of Sweden

Saint Ferdinand (c. 1199 - 1252) - King of Castile and Toledo

Blessed Gisela of Hungary (c. 985 - 1065) - Queen Consort of Hungary as wife of Saint Stephen of Hungary

Saint Helena (c. 246 - c. 330) - Roman Empress and mother of Constantine the Great

Saint Henry II (973 - 1024) - Holy Roman Emperor

Saint Isabelle of France (1224 - 1270) - Princess of France and younger sister of Saint Louis IX

Saint Jadwiga (Hedwig) (c. 1373 - 1399) - Queen of Poland

Saint Joan of Valois (1464 - 1505) - French Princess and briefly Queen Consort as wife of Louis XII

Blessed Joanna of Portugal (1452 - 1490) - Portuguese princess who served as temporary regent for her father King Alfonso V

Blessed Karl of Austria (1887 - 1922) - Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, King of Croatia, and King of Bohemia

Saint Kinga of Poland (1224 - 1292) - Hungarian Princess, wife of Bolesław V of Poland and niece of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary

Saint Ladislaus (c. 1040 - 1095) - King of Hungary and King of Croatia

Saint Louis IX (1214 - 1270) - King of France

Saint Ludmila (c. 860 - 921) - Czech Princess and grandmother of Saint Wenceslaus, Duke of Bohemia

Blessed Mafalda of Portugal (c. 1195 - 1256) - Portuguese Princess and Queen Consort of Castile, sister of Blessed Theresa of Portugal

Saint Margaret of Hungary (1242 - 1270) - Hungarian Princess, younger sister of Saint Kinga of Poland and niece of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary

Saint Margaret of Scotland (c. 1045 - 1093) - English Princess and Queen Consort of Scotland

Blessed Maria Cristina of Savoy (1812 - 1836) - Sardinian Princess and Queen Consort of the Two Sicilies

Saint Matilda of Ringelheim (c. 892 - 968) - Saxon noblewoman and Queen of East Francia as wife of Henry I

Saint Olaf (c. 995 - 1030) - King of Norway

Saint Olga of Kiev (c. 900 - 969) - Grand Princess of Kiev and regent for her son Sviatoslav I, grandmother of Saint Vladimir the Great

Saint Oswald (c. 604 - 642) - King of Northumbria

Saint Radegund (c. 520 - 587) - Thuringian Princess and Frankish Queen

Saint Sigismund of Burgundy (died 524) - King of the Burgundians

Saint Stephen of Hungary (c. 975 - 1038) - King of Hungary

Blessed Theresa of Portugal (1176 - 1250) - Portuguese Princess and Queen of León as wife of King Alfonso IX, sister of Blessed Mafalda

Saint Vladimir the Great (c. 958 - 1015) - Grand Prince of Kiev and grandson of Saint Olga of Kiev

[glorytoukraine2022]

In honor of my Swedish heritage, I wish all Scandinavians a happy Saint Lucia’s Day!!!

Glad Lucia!

Saint Lucia's Day, December 13th (the winter solstice in the Julian calendar) is a celebration of light in the Nordic countries, mostly in Sweden, Denmark and Norway.

The tradition is named after the Italian Saint Lucia of Syracuse.

[nimblermortal]

Fine we can talk about the English

So. King Knut (Canute) was ruling in England, at least the York area. He conquered him some Denmark. He conquered him some Norway too, and drove Olaf and son Magnus to outlawry. Olaf made a bid to reclaim his kingdom, failed. Knut installed his sons as kings in England, Denmark, and Norway, and, being an old man, promptly died. (Charles take note.)

So in England, Knut's son Harald takes over, but then he dies and Knut's next son Hortha-Knut comes back from Scandinavia to rule, and he sticks around for a few years. Long enough for Magnus Olafsson to come back from Kiev and retake his country, and make a deal with Hortha-Knut that they are such good buddies that if one of them dies without a male heir, the other will inherit.

Ynglings are. Very accustomed to sharing crowns, I have discovered.

So Hortha-Knut dies. Magnus is a bit busy with this dude Svein who keeps trying to conquer Denmark on the grounds that Magnus gave it to him as jarl and who cares if Svein declares himself king and independent, it's his now, don't you know who his father is?? Anyway Edward (Eadward) takes over in England.

Magnus gets shut of Svein, finally, largely by inspiring his army with stories of how Svein's daddy might be a king but Magnus's daddy is a saint, and God is on their side, the daddy of all daddies. So once he's feeling confident in his hold over Norway and Denmark, he sends a message back to England all, "Hey, remember this deal I had with Hortha-Knut?"

And Eadward, that badass pushover, sends a message back, saying, "Look. My dad was king of England, and I was well. When he died my eldest brother Eadmund was king, and I was well. After him my stepfather Knut ruled England, and I was well. And when he died my brother Harald ruled, and I was well. And when he died my brother Hortha-Knut ruled, and I stood by, and all was well, but let me remind you that I yet of the brothers had no kingdom to govern.

"So now you want to come over here and declare yourself king? Let me just say, over my dead body.

"And I will make it easy for you. If you come, I will not raise an army, you can march right in. But you will very much have to kill me with your own hands."

Which Magnus abstains to do.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 8.3 (before 1940)

8 – Roman Empire general Tiberius defeats the Dalmatae on the river Bosna. 435 – Deposed Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Nestorius, considered the originator of Nestorianism, is exiled by Roman Emperor Theodosius II to a monastery in Egypt. 881 – Battle of Saucourt-en-Vimeu: Louis III of France defeats the Vikings, an event celebrated in the poem Ludwigslied. 908 – Battle of Eisenach: An invading Hungarian force defeats an East Frankish army under Duke Burchard of Thuringia. 1031 – Olaf II of Norway is canonized as Saint Olaf by Grimketel, the English Bishop of Selsey. 1057 – Frederick of Lorraine elected as Pope Stephen IX. 1342 – The Siege of Algeciras commences during the Spanish Reconquista. 1492 – Christopher Columbus sets sail from Palos de la Frontera, Spain. 1527 – The first known letter from North America is sent by John Rut while at St. John's, Newfoundland. 1601 – Long War: Austria captures Transylvania in the Battle of Goroszló. 1645 – Thirty Years' War: The Second Battle of Nördlingen sees French forces defeating those of the Holy Roman Empire. 1678 – Robert LaSalle builds the Le Griffon, the first known ship built on the Great Lakes. 1778 – The theatre La Scala in Milan is inaugurated with the première of Antonio Salieri's Europa riconosciuta. 1795 – Treaty of Greenville is signed, ending the Northwest Indian War in the Ohio Country. 1811 – First ascent of Jungfrau, third highest summit in the Bernese Alps by brothers Johann Rudolf and Hieronymus Meyer. 1829 – The Treaty of Lewistown is signed by the Shawnee and Seneca peoples, exchanging land in Ohio for land west of the Mississippi River. 1852 – Harvard University wins the first Boat Race between Yale University and Harvard. The race is also known as the first ever American intercollegiate athletic event. 1859 – The American Dental Association is founded in Niagara Falls, New York. 1900 – The Firestone Tire and Rubber Company is founded. 1903 – Macedonian rebels in Kruševo proclaim the Kruševo Republic, which exists for only ten days before Ottoman Turks lay waste to the town. 1907 – Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis fines Standard Oil of Indiana a record $29.4 million for illegal rebating to freight carriers; the conviction and fine are later reversed on appeal. 1914 – World War I: Germany declares war against France, while Romania declares its neutrality. 1921 – Major League Baseball Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis confirms the ban of the eight Chicago Black Sox, the day after they were acquitted by a Chicago court. 1936 – Jesse Owens wins the 100 metre dash, defeating Ralph Metcalfe, at the Berlin Olympics. 1936 – A fire wipes out Kursha-2 in the Meshchera Lowlands, Ryazan Oblast, Russia, killing 1,200 and leaving only 20 survivors.

[silvestromedia]

9 Things to Know About Saint Olaf, Martyr and King of Norway

[enginesed]

The London Bridge in the US isn't the London Bridge that is falling down, however.

The falling-down London Bridge was replaced by the London Bridge now in Arizona - to the great chagrin of the man who bought it when he found out.

And anyway, the London Bridge that is probably the source of the rhyme got pulled down by King (later Saint) Olaf of Norway in the 900s...

literally traumatizing to learn that the london bridge is in fucking arizona

[brookston]

Holidays 7.29

Holidays

Air Force Service Day (Indonesia)

Armed Forces Day (Peru)

Americans For Prosperity National Day of Action

Army Chaplin Corps Day

Bonalu (Telangana, India)

Buckinghamshire Day (UK)

Chincoteague Pony Round Up (Chincoteague & Assateague Islands, Virginia)

Constitution Day (Moldova)

Don’t Be A Dick Day

Emancipation Day (Bermuda)

Eunomia Asteroid Day

Festival of the Polymorphously Perverse

Fiery Night Festival (Elder Scrolls)

Four Tops Day (Michigan)

International Butler Day

International Tiger Day (UN)

Life Stories Day (UK)

Manchester Day (UK)

Mary Prince Day (Bermuda; 2nd Day of Cup Match)

Mohun Bagan Day (India)

NASA Day

National Anthem Day (Romania)

National Challenged Champions and Heroes Awareness Day

National Harold Day

National Lipstick Day

National Thai Language Day

Odesza Day (Washington)

Ólavsøkudagur (a.k.a. Ólavsøka; Faroe Islands)

Oslok (a.k.a. St. Olaf's Day; Norway)

Pardon of the Birds Day (Quimperle, Brittany, France)

Photograph Your Children When They’re Not Looking Day

Prescribed Harm Awareness Day

Rain Day (Waynesburg, Pennsylvania)

Special Operations Forces Day (Ukraine)

SSGN 729 Day

Switchgrass Day (French Republic)

World Oral Rehydration Salts Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Cheese Sacrifice Purchase Day

Chicken Wings Day (Buffalo, NY)

Gnocchi Day (Argentina)

National Chicken Wing Day

National Lasagna Day

Independence & Related Days

Peru (from Spain, 1821) [observed]

Territory Day (Wallis and Fortuna)

Wendatia (Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

New Year’s Days

Egyptian New Year Feast Day of Wedjet of Buto (Fire-Spitting Cobra Goddess; Ancient Egypt)

5th & Last Monday in July

Carnival Monday (Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba) [Last Monday]

Festivals Beginning July 29, 2024

Douglas County Fair (Lawrence, Kansas) [thru 8.3]

Festival of Santa Marta de Ribarteme (Neves, Spain)

Flamingo Republic (Novalja, Croatia) [thru 8.1]

Feast Days

Birthday of Set (Ancient Egypt)

The Bookworms (Muppetism)

Brigham Young Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Cnoc Aine (Celtic Book of Days)

Dave Stevens Day (Artology; Humanism)

Eastman Johnson (Artology)

Feast of Cherries (Medieval Hamburg, Germany)

Feast of Martha the Dragon-Slayer

Felix II (Christian; Saint)

Francesco Mochi (Artology)

Jenny Holzer (Artology)

International Beer Day (Pastafarian) [also 8.7]

Ivan Aivazovsky (Artology)

Lazarus of Bethany (Christian; Saint)

Lupus of Troyes (Christian; Saint)

Martha of Bethany (Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran Church) [Innkeepers]

Mary of Bethany (Christian; Saint)

Olaus, King of Sweden (Christian; Saint)

Olaf II, King of Norway (Christian; Martyr)

Olsok (a.k.a. ... 

St. Olaf’s Day (Norway)

The Day of the Wheat (Everyone Dresses as Sandwiches; Golden Girls)

Everybody Hide the Corn Day

Hay Day

Day of the Princess Pig

Raphael (Positivist; Saint)

Simplicius, Faustinus and Beatrix (Christian; Sibling Martyrs)

Stanley Kunitz (Writerism)

Stikklestad (Honoring Asatru Martyrs)

Susanoo’s Day (Pagan)

Tarasque (Fire-Breathing Dragon Festival; Ancient Tarascon, France)

Thor’s Day (Norse)

William of Brittany (Christian; Saint)

William Pinchon (Christian; Saint)

Ximena Armas (Artology)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Taian (大安 Japan) [Lucky all day.]

Premieres

The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, by J.R.R. Tolkien (Poetry; 1962)

Another Country, by James Baldwin (Novel; 1962)

Aristocrats (Documentary Film; 2005)

Attack the Block (Film; 2011)

(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes, by Elvis Costello (Song; 1977)

Bad Moms (Film; 2016)

Barcelona (Film; 1994)

Bosko’s Mechanical Man (WB LT Cartoon; 1933)

Cocktail (Film; 1988)

Compressed Hare (WB MM Cartoon; 1961)

Cowboys & Aliens (Film; 2011)

DC League of Super-Pets (Animated Film; 2022)

Eliza Runs Again (Terrytoons Cartoon; 1938)

Enter Sandman, by Metallica (Song; 1991)

The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien (Novel; 1954) [Book 1 of The Lord of the Rings trilogy]

The Fox Hunt (Disney Cartoon; 1938)

Help! (Film; 1965)

Jason Bourne (Film; 2016)

Kiki’s Delivery Service (Studio Ghibli Animated Film; 1989)

Krull (Film; 1983)

Little Red Riding Hood (Ub Iwerks Disney Cartoon; 1922) [1st Disney Short]

Lt. Robinson Crusoe USN (Film; 1966)

The Mask (Film; 1994)

Must Love Dogs (Film; 2005)

National Lampoon’s Vacation (Film; 1983)

The Negotiator (Film; 1998)

Old King Cole (Silly Symphony Disney Cartoon; 1933)

Private School (Film; 1983)

Renaissance, by Beyoncé (Album; 2022)

The Shindig (Disney Cartoon; 1930)

The Smurfs (Animated Film; 2011)

Snowman’s Land (WB MM Cartoon; 1939)

Stardust (Film; 2007)

The Trumpet Artistry of Chet Baker, by Chet Baker (Album; 1954)

Whenever I Call You Friend, by Kenny Loggins and Stevie Nicks (Song; 1978)

Women, by Charles Bukowski (Novel; 1978)

You Try Somebody Else (Betty Boop Cartoon; 1932)

Today’s Name Days

Landislaus, Martha, Lucilla, Olaf (Austria)

Kalin (Bulgaria)

Flora, Lazar, Marta, Urban, Vilim (Croatia)

Marta (Czech Republic)

Oluf (Denmark)

Olaf, Olav, Olavi, Olev (Estonia)

Olavi, Olli, Oula, Uolevi, Uoti (Finland)

Beatrix, Loup, Marthe (France)

Olaf (Germany)

Kallinikos (Greece)

Flóra, Márta (Hungary)

Marta (Italy)

Dzilis, Edmunds, Edzus, Vidmants (Latvia)

Beatričė, Mantvydas, Mantvydė, Morta (Lithuania)

Ola, Olav, Ole (Norway)

Beatrice, Beatrycze, Beatryks, Cierpisław, Faustyn, Konstantyn, Lucylla, Maria, Marta, Olaf, Serafina, Urban (Poland)

Alevtina, Valentina (Russia)

Marta (Slovakia)

Beatriz, Marta (Spain)

Olof (Sweden)

Seraphim, Seraphina (Ukraine)

Bea, Beatrice, Beatriz, Beattie, Marta, Martha, Olaf, Olav, Serafina, Trixie (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 211 of 2024; 155 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of Week 31 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Tinne (Holly) [Day 24 of 28]

Chinese: Month 6 (Xin-Wei), Day 24 (Jia-Wu)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Hebrew: 23 Tammuz 5784

Islamic: 22 Muharram 1446

J Cal: 1 Purple; Oneday [1 of 30]

Julian: 16 July 2024

Moon: 34%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 14 Dante (8th Month) [Raphael]

Runic Half Month: Thorn (Defense) [Day 6 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 40 of 94)

Week: Last Week of July

Zodiac: Leo (Day 8 of 31)

Calendar Changes

Purple (Month 8 of 12; J Calendar)

[jamieroxxartist]

Today, July 29th, our #Catholic & #Christian Friends are celebrating the Feasts Day of:

● Saint #Olaf, the ‘Viking Saint’ (patron of #Norway, the #FaroeIslands, #carvers and #difficultmarriages)

( www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=4899 )

● Saint #Lupis (patron against #stomachaches)

(www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=712)

● Saint #Martha (patron of #innkeepers, #cook, #housekeepers, #butlers, #dietitians, #waitresses)

( https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=79 )

[daily-coat-of-arms]

Våler , Solør, Innlandet, Norway (August 17,1987-Tosay)

The arms are based on a story where Saint Olaf, in order to solve a disagreement, shot an arrow into the sky and wherever it landed a church would be built. The arrow with wings is already a heraldic symbol and it makes "V" shape to represent the first letter of the municipalitys name.

[urbanhermit]

Blessed Eystein Erlandssön (Died 1188) Bishop. Born in the 12th century in Norway and died in 1188 in Nidaros, (modern Trondheim), Norway of natural causes. Also known as - Augustine Erlandsön, Augustinus Nidrosiensi, Øystein Erlendsson.

Eystein Erlendsson was from Trøndelag, probably born just before 1130. On his mother's side he descended from Erling Skjalgsson and he was related to most of the local nobility.

Eystein was educated at Saint-Victor, in Paris, where we presume he was Ordained too. As a Priest he served as sChaplin to King Inge Krokrygg of Norway. When Archbishop Jon Birgersson died on 24 February 1157, the King Inge appointed Eystein as the new Archbishop.

Eysteinn then travelled to Rome, where his appointment was confirmed by Pope Alexander III in 1161. He returned to Norway and attempted to strengthen the ties between Rome and the Norwegian Church. He established the communities of Augustinian Canons regular and consecrated Saint Thorlak as the Bishop of Iceland.

This was a time of tension between Royal power and the Church. During this conflict Eystein sided with Erling Skakke and his son Magnus. When Sverre Sigurdsson eventually gained control over large regions of the realm Eystein was forced into exile. He stayed in Suffolk in England for around three years before returning to Norway in the summer of 1183.

On the political level the Archbishop was forced to agree to several compromises, which included coming to terms with King Sverre (whom he had excommunicated).

From his final years, history knows Eystein best as the grand strategist during the initial great period of building Nidaros Cathedral. He had brought ideas from England about the new Gothic style and he let this style dominate the further plans for the Cathedral.

Eystein also left a lasting mark in the form of Passio Olavi, a hagiographical work written in Latin relating to the life and works of Saint Olaf, with particular emphasis on his missionary work. The title is an abbreviation for Passio Et Miracula Beati Olaui, meaning Holy Olav's sufferings and miracles.

Eystein died in 1188. He was proclaimed a saint in 1229 but Papal approbation was not forthcoming. Eystein Erlendsson has ,nevertheless, been accepted as a Norwegian Saint – one of four. 1 Blessed Eystein's cult was finally approved by the Vatican and he is now entered in the register of saints and the beatified. . Blessed Eystein is commemorated on the date of his death, 26 January.

[nkengdi]

Deaths On This Day – December - 22

Pre-1600

AD 69 – Vitellius, Roman emperor (b. 15)

731 – Yuan Qianyao, official of the Chinese Tang Dynasty

1012 – Baha' al-Dawla, Buyid amir of Iraq

1060 – Cynesige, Archbishop of York

1100 – Bretislav II of Bohemia (b. 1060)

1115 – Olaf Magnusson, King of Norway (b. 1099)

1419 – Antipope John XXIII

1530 – Willibald Pirckheimer, German lawyer and author (b. 1470)

1554 – Alessandro Bonvicino, Italian painter (b. 1498)

1572 – François Clouet, French miniaturist (b. c. 1510)

1601–1900

1603 – Mehmed III, Ottoman sultan (b. 1566)

1641 – Maximilien de Béthune, Duke of Sully, 2nd Prime Minister of France (b. 1560)

1646 – Petro Mohyla, Ruthenian metropolitan and saint (b. 1596)

1660 – André Tacquet, Flemish priest and mathematician (b. 1612)

1666 – Guercino, Italian painter (b. 1591)

1681 – Richard Alleine, English minister and author (b. 1611)

1767 – John Newbery, English publisher (b. 1713)

1788 – Percivall Pott, English physician and surgeon (b. 1714)

1806 – William Vernon, English-American merchant (b. 1719)

1828 – William Hyde Wollaston, English chemist and physicist (b. 1766)

1853 – Manuel María Lombardini, Mexican general and politician. President (1853) (b. 1802)

1867 – Jean-Victor Poncelet, French mathematician and engineer (b. 1788)

1870 – Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, Spanish journalist, poet, and playwright (b. 1836)

1880 – George Eliot, English novelist and poet (b. 1819)

1891 – Paul de Lagarde, German biblical scholar and orientalist (b. 1827)

1899 – Dwight L. Moody, American evangelist and publisher, founded Moody Publishers (b. 1837)

1901–present

1902 – Richard von Krafft-Ebing, German-Austrian psychiatrist and author (b. 1840)

1915 – Rose Talbot Bullard, American medical doctor and professor (b. 1864)

1917 – Frances Xavier Cabrini, Italian-American nun and saint (b. 1850)

1918 – Aristeidis Moraitinis, Greek lieutenant and pilot (b. 1891)

1919 – Hermann Weingärtner, German gymnast (b. 1864)

1925 – Amelie Beese, German pilot and engineer (b. 1886)

1939 – Ma Rainey, American singer (b. 1886)

1940 – Nathanael West, American author and screenwriter (b. 1903)

1941 – Karel Hašler, Czech actor, director, composer, and screenwriter (b. 1879)

1942 – Franz Boas, German-American anthropologist and linguist (b. 1858)

1943 – Beatrix Potter, English children's book writer and illustrator (b. 1866)

1944 – Harry Langdon, American actor, comedian, and vaudevillian (b. 1884)

1950 – Frederick Freake, English polo player (b. 1876)

1957 – Frank George Woollard, English engineer (b. 1883)

1959 – Gilda Gray, Polish-American actress and dancer (b. 1901)

1960 – Ninian Comper, Scottish-English architect (b. 1864)

1962 – Ross McLarty, Australian politician, 17th Premier of Western Australia (b. 1891)

1965 – Richard Dimbleby, English journalist (b. 1913)

1968 – Raymond Gram Swing, American journalist (b. 1887)

1969 – Enrique Peñaranda, 45th President of Bolivia (b. 1892)

1971 – Godfried Bomans, Dutch journalist and author (b. 1913)

1974 – Sterling North, American author and critic (b. 1906)

1979 – Darryl F. Zanuck, American director and producer (b. 1902)

1985 – D. Boon, American singer and musician (b. 1958)

1986 – Mary Burchell, English author and activist (b. 1904)

1986 – David Penhaligon, Cornish Liberal Politician (b. 1944), Member of Parliament (MP) for Truro (1974-1986)

1987 – Luca Prodan, Italian-Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1953)

1988 – Chico Mendes, Brazilian trade union leader and activist (b. 1944)

1989 – Samuel Beckett, Irish author, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1906)

1992 – Harry Bluestone, English violinist and composer (b. 1907)

1992 – Frederick William Franz, American religious leader (b. 1893)

1993 – Don DeFore, American actor (b. 1913)

1995 – Butterfly McQueen, American actress and dancer (b. 1911)

1995 – James Meade, English economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1907)

1996 – Jack Hamm, American cartoonist and television host (b. 1916)

1997 – Sebastian Arcos Bergnes, Cuban-American dentist and activist (b. 1931)

2001 – Ovidiu Iacov, Romanian footballer (b. 1981)

2001 – Walter Newton Read, American lawyer and second chairman of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission (b. 1918)

2002 – Desmond Hoyte, Guyanese lawyer, politician and President of Guyana (b. 1929)

2002 – Joe Strummer, English singer-songwriter (b. 1952)

2004 – Doug Ault, American baseball player and manager (b. 1950)

2006 – Elena Mukhina, Russian gymnast (b. 1960)

2006 – Galina Ustvolskaya, Russian composer (b. 1919)

2007 – Charles Court, Australian politician, 21st Premier of Western Australia (b. 1911)

2007 – Adrian Cristobal, Filipino journalist and playwright (b. 1932)

2009 – Luis Francisco Cuéllar, Colombian rancher and politician (b. 1940)

2009 – Albert Scanlon, English footballer (b. 1935)

2010 – Fred Foy, American soldier and announcer (b. 1921)

2012 – Chuck Cherundolo, American football player and coach (b. 1916)

2012 – Ryan Freel, American baseball player (b. 1976)

2012 – Cliff Osmond, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1937)

2012 – Lim Keng Yaik, Malaysian physician and politician (b. 1939)

2013 – Diomedes Díaz, Colombian singer-songwriter (b. 1956)

2013 – Hans Hækkerup, Danish lawyer and politician (b. 1945)

2013 – Oscar Peer, Swiss author, playwright, and philologist (b. 1928)

2014 – John Robert Beyster, American physicist and academic (b. 1924)

2014 – Christine Cavanaugh, American actress (b. 1963)

2014 – Joe Cocker, English singer-songwriter (b. 1944)

2014 – Bernard Stone, American lawyer and politician (b. 1927)

2015 – Peter Lundblad, Swedish singer-songwriter (b. 1950)

2015 – Freda Meissner-Blau, Australian activist and politician (b. 1927)

2016 – Chad Robinson, Australian rugby league player (b. 1980)

2017 – Gonzalo Morales Sáurez, Costa Rican painter (b. 1945)

2018 – Simcha Rotem, last survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (b. 1924)

2018 – Herman Sikumbang, Indonesian guitarist (b. 1982); casualty during 2018 Sunda Strait tsunami

2019 – Ram Dass, American spiritual teacher and author (b. 1931)

[nimblermortal]

Hmm. I seem to have attracted internet attention I am unprepared to deal with. You know what that means.

How many namesakes can we fit into one battle?

We're killing off Olaf Tryggvason! Hurrah!

(We don't like Olaf because his MO is to demand people convert to Christianity, and if they refuse, commit war crimes until they agree. Creative war crimes.)

So Olaf has himself three very fancy ships: Crane, which I think he stole from someone else, Serpent, which he made to be super big and fancy, and Long Serpent, which he made to be even bigger and fancier, and staffed with all of the handsomest redshirts in Norway. I'm counting Short Serpent and Long Serpent as double names.

Arrayed against Olaf are King Olaf of Sweden (note: neither King Olaf has a nickname), King Svein of Denmark, and Jarl Eirik of Nowhere-Anymore-Thanks-Olaf-Tryggvason. Formerly of Trondheim, which: Note to self, look up whether Snorri Sturluson's ancestors came from Trondheim, because Trondheim farmers sure are the heroes of the Heimskringla a lot.

Ultimately, after Olaf is affirmed dead, Norway will be divided up among the winning parties, with Olaf of Sweden delegating responsibility for his part of Norway to Eirik's brother Svein. So that gives us three namesakes (Serpents, Olafs, and Sveins).

Other questions:

-Is Snorri Sturluson descended from Trondheim farmers? Answer: Difficult to trace this Wikipedia path; it goes to Gerimundur Heljarskinn, but at that point I need to read Icelandic rather better than I do.

-Where did Harald Grenland come form? (Grenland, obviously, I mean his ancestry) Answer: The son of Guthröth Bjarnarson, fostered in Grenland (not Greenland). Bjorn was a Haraldson and - HE WAS THE CHAPMAN, NOT OLAF?? I thought they were distinct, the one who was Kaupma∂r and the one who had the makings of a good ruler but got killed first! But no, Olaf is just Tryggvi's father and Guthröth's foster father. So yes, Saint Olaf is an Yngling by Harald Fairhair -> Bjorn -> Harald Grenski -> Olaf. Direct patrilineal line, birth order doesn't matter when you have as many sons all killing each other as Harald Fairhair did.

-What happened to the Ynglings here? The direct descent from Harald Fairhair has gotten a bit tangled. I suspect that we are now interested in Jarl Eirik's ancestry, but also Olaf the Saint's. Answer: Hakon the Good: Yngling. Eirikssons: Ynglings. Olaf Tryggvason: Yngling. Saint Olaf: Yngling. So we're still working with Ynglings here, and in principle I could hold another Yngling Death Battle for the post Ynglingasaga deaths. Side note: Gold-Harald, only an Yngling matrilineally - the nephew of Harald Greycloak and the son of Knut Gormsson. (For a while we were doing namesakes with Hakons and Haralds, now we're on to Olafs.)

-How come Olaf Tryggvason (son of Tryggvi, son of Olaf the Chapman, which I suspect is written Kaupma∂r, yes I am still using a partial derivative as an approximation of an eth) sucks so much when his granddad was so great? Answer: Harald Fairhair had too many sons, so the instant he died they started scrapping with/murdering each other, and Olaf never got to know his granddad.

-What happened to that kid who got ferried across the country when he was less than a year old, is that Olaf Tryggvason? Answer: Yep, that's Olaf Tryggvason. Smuggled across the country, then smuggled out of Sweden, then taken as a slave and raised by masters for six years, then made a practice of standing in markets looking beautiful until progressively more powerful men recognized/adopted him. Worked his murder spree way from Eastern Europe to the British Isles and back until he became War Crime Champion of Norway. Note: I haven't actually checked whether things like 'calling people to a truce and then threatening to murder them if they don't convert' or 'that thing with the snake' is a war crime, it just. Seems like it should be.

-Why is Gunnhild called the Kingmaker when all of her sons sucked so badly and couldn't hang on to a country? Answer: Because all of her sons were co-kings after they killed Hakon the Good (even though they lost the battle in which he died), so even though they sucked and couldn't hold Norway for long (three years? four? nine apparently, though by a steady whittling down of the sons) she qualifies as Mother of Kings.

-Is all the poetry from Icelandic skalds because Icelanders are better poets, or because Snorri Sturluson has nationalism?

-What word are the ships using for Serpent? á∂r, wyrm, something else? Answer: Ormr

-What's the name of the gate busting thingy in LotR and is it Garm after the hellhound mentioned in one of these poems? Answer: No, that's Grond. Did Tolkein... make something up for once? Hard to tell with my linguistic proficiency!

[cvbarroso]

Hodie XXIX julii… Sancti Olavi a Norvegia