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yngvar ikea

We found some references about yngvar ikea. Check them out below.

Is this the same as Ivar the Boneless? I have been told he was called Ingvar and was king in Ireland and had children who reigned there after him. Where is Serkland?

Góða kvöldið, vinur,

I do not believe they refer to the same person. Ivar the Boneless is best known for feats in the West, as you have mentioned, but he was also active in the late ninth century. This Ingvar is referred to as Yngvarr hinn víðförli, or Yngvar the Far-Traveler, whom was active in the early eleventh century [1]. The name can be spelled both ways (the “y” sound in Old Norse was more like an “ee” sound) [2]. It is said that Yngvar met his death in 1041, though many sources provide different reasons [3]. There is even an Icelandic saga for this Yngvar, called Yngvars saga víðförla.

Serkland lies to the East. It means “the land of the Saracens” [4]. The term “Saracens” was apparently common in the medieval period to refer to anyone who was Arabic or Turkish. Thus, the land resides in the Middle East or parts of northern Africa.

I hope that helped!

Skál og ferð vel!

Sources and Notations

[1] Angus A. Somerville and R. Andrew McDonald, The Viking Age: A Reader (Second Edition). (University of Toronto Press, 2014), 288.

[2] Jesse L. Byock, Viking Language 1: Learn Old Norse, Runes, and Icelandic Sagas. (Jules William Press, 2013), 331.

[3] Angus A. Somerville and R. Andrew McDonald, The Viking Age: A Reader (Second Edition). (University of Toronto Press, 2014), 288-89. Here are the various sources and their interpretations of Yngvar’s death: Västmanland 1 (runestone) - Yngvar reaches as far as Khwārsum (modern day Khiva); Arab sources - Yngvar’s expedition ended disastrously at Asīb on the 11th of February, 1014; others say - Yngvar was defeated at the Battle of Sasireti (in Georgia) in 1042; The Icelandic Annales Regii, Lögmanns annáll, and the Flateyarbók Annaler all give 1041 as the year for his death.