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Home thoughts of abroad: Ohthere’s Voyage in its Anglo‐Saxon context
Author(s) -
Allport Ben
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
early medieval europe
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.1
H-Index - 24
eISSN - 1468-0254
pISSN - 0963-9462
DOI - 10.1111/emed.12395
Subject(s) - context (archaeology) , norwegian , anglo saxon , ideology , history , inclusion (mineral) , key (lock) , literature , genealogy , linguistics , classics , art , archaeology , sociology , gender studies , political science , politics , computer science , philosophy , law , computer security
The Old English text known as Ohthere’s Voyage is regarded as a key source for Norwegian history. Consequently, the context of its composition and inclusion in the Old English Orosius has often been overlooked. This article demonstrates that the text cannot be separated from the processes that shaped it during its early transmission. Continental geographical traditions of the peoples of the north governed the preconceptions of Ohthere’s audience. Furthermore, the individual who included the account in the Orosius edited the latter text to anticipate it and tailored the sailor’s account to support the West Saxon ideological underpinnings of its new context .