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{{short description|Old Norse skaldic poem}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2016}}
{{Italic title}}

'''''Ynglingatal''''' or '''''Ynglinga tal''''' ([[Old Norse]]: 'Enumeration of the Ynglingar'){{Sfn|Lindow|2001|p=16}} is a [[Skald]]ic poem cited by [[Snorri Sturluson]] in the ''[[Ynglinga saga]]'', the first saga of Snorri's ''[[Heimskringla]]''. [[Þjóðólfr of Hvinir]] (Thjodolf), who was a poet for [[Harald Fairhair]] (r. 872–930), is traditionally credited with its authorship. Snorri quotes frequently from this poem and cites it as one of the sources of the saga. The composition of the poem is dated to the 9th century.

The poem lists the partly mythical and partly historical ancient Swedish kings; twenty-seven of whom are mentioned in the poem, along with details about their deaths and burial places. The title ''Ynglingatal'' alludes to [[Yngling]], who had the name Yngve-Frey—another [[List of names of Freyr|name for Frey]], the god who was worshipped in [[Sweden]]. Yngling allegedly descended from Frey's son [[Fjölnir]]. Snorri portrayed Harald Fairhair as a descendant of the Ynglings.<ref>Snorri, Ynglingesaga, ch. 49-50</ref> The poem was written on behalf of [[Ragnvald Heidumhære]], a cousin of King Harald Fairhair, and its last stanza is about [[Ragnvald]].

==Verse forms and text history==
[[File:Rökstenen 1.JPG|thumb|The [[Rök runestone]], the stone that may have inspired the bard who wrote Ynglingatal]]
Ynglingatal is composed in ''kviðuháttr'' (modern [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]] ''kviduhått''); this genealogical verse form is also used in ''Son loss'' (Sonatorrek) in [[Egils saga]].<ref>Paasche (1957): 207</ref> In this form of verse, the lines alternate between three and four syllables—the first line has three syllables, the next has four, the next three, and so on. For example:
:Ok Vísburs 
:vilja byrði 
:sævar niðr 
:svelgja knátti, [...]

:‘And the kinsman of the sea [FIRE] swallowed the ship of the will [BREAST] of Vísburr [...]’<ref>Marold et al. (2012): 14</ref>

''Ynglingatal'' has also makes extensive use of [[Theme (linguistics)|acquaintance]], such as rewriting and metaphors that give life to the poem, which  otherwise contains much [[litany]].<ref>Paasche (1957): 182-183</ref>

The Icelandic [[Philology|philologist]] [[Finnur Jónsson]] believed the eight-line stanza defines ''Ynglingatal'''s structure, while [[Walter Akerlund]] believed the four-line helming—the half-stanza as in the example above—defines the poem's structure.<ref>Krag (1991): 85</ref> Akerlund has also said the bard Thjodolf learned the verse-form ''kviðuháttr'' by studying the [[Rök runestone]] in present-day Sweden, which dates from around the year 800.<ref>Åkerlund (1939), paraphrased in Paasche (1957): 224</ref>

=== The Ynglings in other sources ===
''Ynglingatal'' is preserved in its entirety in Snorri's ''[[Ynglinga saga]]'', which Snorri wrote based on the poem. In the saga, Snorri expanded his text by quoting from the poem in addition to his own text. A stanza from ''Ynglingatal'' is also quoted in [[Þáttr Ólafs Geirstaða Alfs]].<ref>Þáttr Ólafs Geirstaða Alfs: 209-210</ref> Stories that build on the poem are found in the Norwegian history, ''[[Historia Norvegiæ]]'',<ref>Historia Norvegiæ: 27-28</ref> which was written in [[Latin]] in the late 1100s, and in the short saga ''[[Af Upplendinga konungum]]'' (About the upplander-kings). ''Ynglingtal'' is also indirectly preserved as a list of names in ''[[Íslendingabók]]'' from the early 1100s.<ref>Íslendingabók: Chapter 12</ref> A few of the characters in ''Ynglingatal'' are also mentioned in the [[Old English]] poem [[Beowulf]].<ref>Krag (1991): 211</ref>

== About the author ==
According to Snorri, ''Ynglingatal'' was composed by the [[Scaldic poetry|scald]] [[Þjóðólfr of Hvinir]], who was from [[Kvinesdal]] in what is now [[Vest-Agder]], Norway. In the preamble to the ''Heimskringla'', Snorri writes that Thjodolf, in addition to composing the poem ''Ynglingatal'', was poet at Harald Fairhair's ''[[hird]]'' (royal [[retinue]]).<ref>Snorre Snorre Sturlassons preamble, p. 1</ref>

Thjodolf also appears in the [[Saga of Harald Fairhair]], in the mythical story of Harald and the [[Sami people|Sami]] girl [[Snæfrithr Svásadottir]], who cursed Harald to marry her. According to the saga, Harald and Snøfrid had four sons but Harald sent them away when he woke up from the curse. Thjodolf raised one of these sons, Gudrod Ljome. When Thjodolf learned Harald had disowned his sons, he sided with the boys and said to Harald, "They probably would have liked better ancestry, if you had given them that".<ref>Snorre, Harald Fairhair saga, ch. 26</ref> The saga contains no information about Thjodolf being Harald's scald; that is only mentioned in Snorri's preamble. In the saga he is only referred to as a friend of Harald and as the son whom Godred fostered. Snorri also quotes several other poems of Thjodolf in Harald Fairhair's saga.<ref>Snorri, Harald Hårfagres saga, ch. 26, 35</ref>

The historian [[Claus Krag]] proposes that the connection between Harald Fairhair and Thjodolf was constructed by Snorri, probably because Thjodolf would have been an important person in the development of scaldic art, while according to tradition, Harald was Norway's first national king. To create a connection between them would thus enhance both their reputations.<ref>Krag (1991): 35-36</ref> According to [[Finnur Jonsson]], Thjodolf was Harald's scald without dwelling much on the subject. Finnur said Thjodolf was not a hird scald,<ref>A hird scald is a scald that stayed with the hird, the kings army, to "document" the kings battles</ref> but a scald who mostly stayed home on the farm, where in another saga we meet Thjodolf's grandson.<ref>Finnur Jonsson: 2. Afsnit: SKJALDEKVAD § 6 Norwegian Skjalda</ref> Snorri mentions a man named Torgrim from Kvine, "son" to Thjodolf in the Olav Tryggvasson saga.<ref>Snorre, Olav Tryggvasson saga, ch. 94</ref> Beyond this there are no more references to Thjodolf in the sagas in ''Heimskringla''. Snorri wrote the preamble and the saga in the 1220s, over 300 years after Thjodolf should have lived, so any information about him is uncertain.

== Author myth and royal ideology ==
According to the ''Ynglinga saga'', Fjolne, the first king described in ''Ynglingatal'', was the son of the [[Deity|god]] Frey and a [[Giants (Norse mythology)|giantess]] named Gerd. The actual poem mentions nothing about this, but since it only survives in citation it may have been mentioned in a lost verse. Frey, the great [[Fertility rite|fertility god]] in the [[Nordic countries]], entered into a [[Hieros gamos|sacred wedding]] (''Hiero Gamos'') with Gerd, which is retold in the poem ''[[Skírnismál]]''. The mythological purpose of the holy wedding is to bear a child who is the child of both the parents but is neither god or giant but something completely different that will be the first of a "new" species; a new royal family. With effort and tensions from this, the king, who has high status, is valued above all other people. The author of the myth gives the king a special destiny as the main symbol within the ruling ideology in the Norse-thought universe.<ref>Steinsland (2005):405</ref>

Both major ruling families in Norway, the [[Ynglings]] and [[Earls of Lade]], legitimized their statuses by using a wedding myth. Just as Yngling had their legitimacy reinterpreted in ''Ynglingatal'', the ''Ladejarlsætt'' got its equivalent in the poem ''[[Háleygjatal]]'', which was written by the Norwegian poet [[Eyvindr skáldaspillir]] at the end of the 900s. In Háleygjatal it is [[Odin]] and the giantess [[Skade]] were of mythological origin, and their son [[Sæming]] is the ancestor of Hákon jarl. Both poems were thus used as genealogies and served as mythological propaganda, poetry, and grounds for alliances.<ref>Steinsland (1991): 216-217</ref>

According to religious historian [[Gro Steinsland]], the myth also has an erotic element and is thus a fertility myth that tells of the relationship between the ruler and his "territory"; the scalds describe the land as a sexual, longing giantess who rested in the earl's arms. The prince guarantees growth and prosperity in their territory.<ref>Steinsland (2005): 406</ref> There may have been a special connection between the king and the fertility goddess in times of crisis he was sacrificed to her. This is seen in ''Ynglingatal'' where Swedes sacrificed King [[Domalde]] after a prolonged famine. This is illustrated in [[Carl Larsson]]'s controversial monumental picture ''[[Midvinterblot]]'', but there are no other sources supporting the sacrificing of a king.<ref>Sacrification of a king is only present in Ynglingatal, not in onther poems or sagas.</ref>

== Content ==
''Ynglingatal'' consists of 27 stanzas and a litany of different kings and how they died. It starts with [[Fjölnir]], who according to the Ynglinga saga was the son of Frey.<ref>Snorre, Yngling Saga: 19 (Chapter 11)</ref> This relationship is not mentioned in the actual poem. Fjolne drowned in a mead tub. The poem continues with his son [[Sveigðir]], who followed a dwarf into a rock and never came out again.<ref>Ynglingatal, st. 1-2</ref> Then comes Sveigde's son [[Vanlande]], who was strangled by a [[mare]].<ref>Ynglingatal, st. 4-5</ref> Vanlande's son [[Visbur]] was burned alive and his son [[Domalde]] was sacrificed by the Swedish chiefs to get a good year's harvest.<ref>Ynglingatal, st. 6-9</ref> Domalde had his son [[Domar]], who died of illness in [[Uppsala]].<ref>Ynglingatal, st. 10</ref> Domar's son [[Dyggve]] also died of illness, and his son [[Dag the Wise]] was killed by a slave with a [[pitchfork]] when he was out to avenge the death of a sparrow.<ref>Ynglingatal, st. 11-14</ref> Dag's son [[Agne]] was hung by his wife [[Skjålv]], and Agne's sons [[Alaric and Eric]] killed each other with a bridle when they were out riding.<ref>Ynglingatal, st. 16-19</ref> Their sons Yngve and Alf killed each other after being incited by Alf's wife Bera.<ref>Ynglingatal, st. 21</ref>

[[File:Ynglingesaga 27 Gerhard Munthe.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Gudrød the Hunter|Gudrod]]'s death. Vignette by [[Gerhard Munthe]]]]

The poem continues with varying degrees of mythical ways to die. Eventually the Yngling kings walked through the woods from the Svea kingdom to Norway. Here there is a clear break in the series and it is possible Thjodolf is linked here to the Norwegian seed in the Swedish genealogies to provide the Norwegian kings with a divine origin and thus greater legitimacy.<ref>Myhre (2015): 120</ref> The first breeding of the kings of Norway was supposed to have been [[Halfdan Hvitbeinn]], who died in his bed at [[Toten]]. According to the poem, his son [[Eystein Halfdansson|Eystein]] was killed on a ship; he was beaten by the boat's vessel and fell into the sea. Eystein's son [[Halfdan the Mild|Halfdan]] died in his bed in [[Borre, Norway|Borre]], where he was buried. Halfdan's son [[Gudrød the Hunter|Gudrød]] was killed by the servant of his wife [[Åsa, wife of Gudrød|Åsa]]. The poem ends with Halfdan's son [[Olaf Geirstad-Alf]] and grandson [[Ragnvald Heidumhære]]. Tjodolv dedicated ''Ynglingatal'' to Ragnvald. The last stanza reads:<ref>Snorre, Yngling Saga: 48 (chapter 50), The information in this section about the contents of Ynglingatal is taken from Snorri's Ynglinga Saga, and it is this variation of the stanza about Ragnvald reproduced here.</ref>

{{poemquote|Þat veitk bazt
und blôum himni
kenninafn,
svát konungr eigi,
es Rǫgnvaldr,
reiðar stjóri,
heiðumhôr
of heitinn es.<ref name=skplastverse>Marold et al. (2012): 58</ref>}}

: ‘I know that nickname to be the best under the blue sky that a king might have, that Rǫgnvaldr, the steerer of the carriage [RULER], is called ‘High with Honours’.’<ref name=skplastverse />

According to Snorri's ''Ynglinga Saga'', Harald Fairhair's father [[Halfdan the Black]] was the half-brother of Olav Geirstadalv and Harald, and was thus Ragnvald's cousin, but neither Harald nor his father Halfdan are mentioned in the poem, so this is probably an attempt by Snorri and other writers to make Harald look more royal. It may have been the Icelandic poet [[Ari Þorgilsson]] who constructed the genealogy of the Ynglings and connected Harald Fairhair's seed to Ynglingatal.<ref>Krag (1990): 183</ref> Snorri later developed this to the Ynglinga Saga.<ref>Snorri wrote Ynglingasaga aroundt 1230, based on Ynglingatal. See Snorris preamble.</ref>

== Debate on the dating ==
The content of Ynglingatal has been interpreted and discussed, mostly during the [[National Romanticism|National Romantic]] period of the 1800s. Norwegian historians [[Rudolf Keyser]] and [[Peter Andreas Munch]] held the traditional dating to the late 800s.<ref>Krag (1991): 13-14</ref> The same applies to the historian [[Gustav Storm]] and the Icelandic philologist Finnur Jonsson.<ref>Krag (1991): 20-21</ref> Around the time of [[World War I]], saga literature was subjected to much criticism as a historical source, in Sweden by the brothers [[Lauritz Weibull|Lauritz]] and [[Curt Weibull]], and in Norway by [[Halvdan Koht]] and [[Edvard Bull, Sr.|Edvard Bull]].<ref>Krag (1991): 94</ref> In 1908, German philologist [[Gustav Neckel]] said Ynglingatal had to be a construction from the 1100s; Norwegian historian Claus Krag also said this in his book ''Ynglingatal and Yngling Saga. A study of historical sources'', and joins Neckel's hypothesis.<ref>Krag (1991): 24</ref>

=== The late hypothesis ===
[[File: Populaire wetenschap.PNG| thumbnail | upright | Krag found a literary pattern of [[Classical element|elements]] in the kings' deaths]]
Claus Krag claimed in 1990 that ''Ynglingatal''{{'s}} origin should be dated to the 1100s and that it was based on other royal lists. In a research project during the 1980s Krag's attempt to justify the doubt regarding ''Ynglingatal''{{'s}} age began to take shape, disregarding the traditional, uncritical acceptance. Krag studied the Yngling tradition's place in folklore and the Yngling's genealogy in relation to other European royal genealogies and scholarly genealogical works in [[Iceland]].<ref>See Krag's "Ynglingatal og Ynglingesaga, en studie i historiske kilder". (In English: Ynglingatal and Ynglingesaga, a study of historical sources).</ref>

As an argument, Krag proposed that the first four kings' deaths represent the cosmology of [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] philosopher [[Empedocles]], with the four [[classical element]]s Earth, Water, Air, and Fire, and thus that a [[euhemerism|euhemeristic]] vision influenced the description of the first few generations.<ref>Myhre (2015): 150-151 in a summary of the historiographic tradition concearning Ynglingatal and Ynglingesaga</ref> Krag's hypothesis has received serious criticism on several points,<ref>Sundquist, O. "Freyr's offspring. Rulers and religion in ancient Svea society". (2004)</ref> and so far "a convincing case has not been made against the authenticity of the poem as a ninth-century creation".<ref name="skaldic">[https://skaldic.abdn.ac.uk/m.php?p=text&i=1440&v=intro ''Ynglingatal'' at Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages], [[University of Aberdeen]].</ref>

=== The early dating===

Krag's late dating has been challenged. If the saga is a late work of propaganda, it should reasonably have been concluded with Norwegian king Harald Fairhair and not by his largely unknown cousin Ragnvald Heidrumhære, whose meaning seems otherwise to have been lost after 1000. There are places and names in the poem that archeology has shown to have had great importance until the [[Viking Age]], but not later, and thus should not have been stated in a more recent saga. Archeologist [[Dagfinn Skre]] is an advocate for these arguments.<ref>Skre (2007): 428</ref>

According to Swedish researcher [[Olof Sundquist]], Krag bypasses clear signs of ''Ynglingatal'' on a tradition of Swedish area visible in [[kenning]], place names and personal names. Cultural phenomena such as a king who goes to holy places and the memory of a warrior elite can point to ancient [[human migration]]s. Sundquist posits the theory that Thjodolf from Kvine composed his works in the 900s and based them on an extant tradition. He also said Empedocles' cosmology can hardly be argued as evidence of late dating; in that case it would be influenced by [[Britannia]] or [[Franks]].<ref>Catharing Ingelman-Sundberg: [http://www.svd.se/kulturnoje/news/artikel_137033.svd "Snorre Sturlasson återupprättas"]; Svenska Dagbladet, 14 March 2004</ref>

The fact Snorri has reproduced the poem suggests he would probably have known about any falsification a century earlier and refrained from reproducing the erroneous text. ''Ynglingatal'' also inspired Eyvindr skáldaspillir's ''[[Háleygjatal]]'', which demonstrably was written in the late 900s.<ref>Mats G. Larsson (2005), ''Minnet av vikingatiden: De isländska kungasagorna och deras värld''. Stockholm: Atlantis, p.37-38. {{ISBN|91-7353-065-4}}</ref>

Another argument for early dating comes from the Icelandic philologist [[Bergsveinn Birgisson]], whose doctoral thesis said ''Ynglingatal'' is not supposed to be a praising poem but an entertainment poem and a warning. He asserts this partly based on the grotesque and often ridiculous ways the kings in the poem die—they often appear to be dishonorable, which is clearly in breach of customs of the praising poem.<ref>Bergsveinn Birgisson (2008) 206, 212-215</ref> Bergsveinn says the poem is old but the meaning of the praising poem is constructed by Snorri and other scholars of the [[Middle Ages]]. He also says ''Ynglingatal'' was not originally a genealogy, but is about different [[Seed|families]]. According to Bergsveinn, the perception or construction of the poem as genealogy originates from the [[High Middle Ages]].<ref>Bergsveinn Birgisson (2008): 190, 199, 223</ref>

=== A middle ground ===
Swedish archeologist [[Svante Norr]] argues for an intermediate position for dating ''Ynglingatal''. He said it is neither an authentic poem of the Viking Age nor a text from the Middle Ages. Norr accepts the traditional dating of poems ''origin'', but says the poem was sung for the more than 300 years until it was written down gradually, and must have undergone major changes to fit it into contemporaneous social conditions. According to Norr, genealogical poems cannot be used as historical sources because they depend on extant ideological, political and social conditions. He says the poem must be viewed as a development and a result of a long process of change.<ref>Norr (1988), paraphrased in Myhre (2015): 122</ref> The Norwegian archaeologist [[Bjørn Myhre]] joins largely to Norr's standpoint.<ref>Myhre (2015): 122</ref>

== Yngling ==
The meaning of term "yngling" is usually interpreted as "descendants of Yngve", but as in modern [[North Germanic languages|Nordic]], it can also mean "young man".<ref>Krag (1991): 208</ref> In skaldic poems, the word ''yngling'' is only used in the singular; only in the sagas has it has been used in the plural ''Ynglings''; thus the ynglings of the poem cannot be defined  as one family. The term may be a kenning, a euphemism, for the prince or king and not something connected with a particular family.<ref>Krag (1991): 210-211</ref> Bergsveinn Birgisson says ''Ynglingatal'' is not a genealogy, but a poem about people from different clans. Not all sources agree; in ''Historia Norvegiæ'', ''About Uplanders kings'' and ''Íslendingabók'', several of the kings of other names than in ''Ynglingatal'' or are said to live on or be buried elsewhere. Finnur Jonsson said the various descriptions stem from the kings mentioned in ''Ynglingatal''; all have different traditions handed down by word of mouth. He said Thjodolf's poem is an attempt at a synthesis of different oral traditions about different kings.<ref name="finnur jonsson">Finnur Jonsson (1920): 2. Afsnit: SKJALDEKVAD § 6 Norwegian Skjalda</ref>

===Euhemerism===
According to Snorri, the Yngling stemmed from the gods Yngve-Frey and Odin. This kinship, a euhemerism, is not left in the poem; only Snorri's words support this. Finnur Jonsson said he thought this song originally contained several verses and started with Yngve.<ref name="finnur jonsson" /> Religion historian [[Walter Baetke]] said ''Yngligatal'' was free of euhemerism—the notion of lineage of gods was added in the Christian era.<ref>Baetke, in Krag (1991): 86</ref> Claus Krag said the first kings of the poem are historicized gods, and that the hypothesis of lost stanzas may be rejected.<ref>Krag (1991): 86-87</ref>

===Historical accuracy===
Opinions differ on whether breedings were historical figures. If all the kings in this poem really existed, the first of them must have lived in the [[Migration Period]]. It is usually only the "Norwegian" part of Ynglings—from Halfdan Hvitbeinn—that scientists have tried to prove or disprove were real, historical persons. They partly reasoned that people in [[Norsemen|Norse]] times kept track of their genus for six generations, thus it is possible to follow Harald Fairhair's ancestors back to Halfdan Hvitbeinn. Norwegian historians and archeologists have traditionally held the Norwegian Ynglings to be historical people.<ref>Krag (1991): 232</ref>

Because of problems with dating, it is problematic to work out when these people might have lived. [[Are Frode]], in the 1100s, was probably the first person who tried to convert the dates from relative time stamps to absolute chronological dates on the basis of Jesus' birth; the reckoning began to be used during the Middle Ages and is still in use. Are dated Harald Fairhair's birth to 848, and until the 1920s historians used Are's reckoning to calculate the composition time stamp for different people and events. In 1921 historian [[Halvdan Koht]] introduced generation counting and his method became the dominant one. In 1964, Icelandic historian [[Ólafía Einarsdóttir]] found the old Icelandic reckoning more accurate; with adjustments this has since been the most commonly used approach.<ref>Myhre (2015) 115</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: left;"
! !! Date of birth<br />according to Ólafía Einarsdóttir !! Date of birth<br />according to Halvdan Koht<ref>Table after Myhre (2015): 116</ref>
|-
| [[Halfdan Hvitbeinn]] || 660 || 695
|-
| [[Eystein Halfdansson]] || 695 || 730
|-
| [[Halfdan the Mild]] || 725 || 760
|-
| [[Gudrød the Hunter]] || 760 || 795
|-
| [[Olaf Geirstad-Alf]] || 795 || 830
|-
| [[Ragnvald Heidumhære]] || 825 || 860
|-
| [[Halfdan the Black]] || 818 || 830
|-
| [[Harald Fairhair]] || 848 || 865
|-
|}

Traditionally, historians have attributed great source value to scaldic poems  because of the tight form that made them easier to remember than narratives. If ''Ynglingatal'' is really from the late 800s, recent events would be relatively close in time to the scald, and there is a high likelihood the poem renders information about real people and events. Nevertheless, there is a distance of 500 years from Halfdan Hvitbeinn to Snorri, and 250 years from the poem's composition to the time Snorri wrote it down. Whether the original poem is preserved is uncertain.<ref>Myhre (2015): 116</ref> If ''Ynglingatal'' is younger, perhaps dating from the end of the 1100s as Krag says, its value as a source of real events shrinks further. According to Fidjestøl, the scald's main task was to express the Kingdom's official ideology, not necessarily render the facts.<ref>Fidjestøl (1976): 15</ref>

Archeologists, particularly [[Anton Wilhelm Brøgger]] in the early 1900s, have made many attempts to "place" the various youth kings and their wives in [[Tumulus|barrows]] in [[Vestfold]]. The most famous examples are the Queen Åsa in [[Oseberghaugen]] outside [[Tønsberg]] and Olaf Geirstad-Alf in [[Gokstadhaugen]] outside [[Sandefjord]]. In addition, archeologists have said the remains of Eystein Halfdansson, Halfdan the Mild, Gudrød the Hunter, and Halfdan the Black are located at [[Borre mound cemetery|Borrehaugene]] outside [[Horten]].<ref>Myhre (1992): 50</ref> When the issue of ''Ynglingatal''{{'}}s value as a source and recent archeological methods including [[C14 dating]] and [[dendrochronology]] are taken into account, finding out who was buried in the various barrows on the basis of information in this poem is at best educated guessing.<ref>Myhre (1992 ): 277</ref>

=== Yngling as common European tradition ===
In 1943, Danish historian [[Niels Lukmann]] said the Nordic folklore tradition, of which Yngling is a part, originated from the migration period and that people have historically not been Nordic figures. According to Lukmann, poems and legends about the Danish clans [[Scylding]] and [[Skilfings]], which have much in common with the Ynglings, are part of a tradition from the migration period that really dealt with [[Huns]] and [[Heruli]] kings, and which has gradually evolved into legends known from the Norse period. Krag says this also fits with the Ynglings and he argues for many similarities in names, people and events.<ref>Krag (1991): 232-233</ref>

== Line of kings ==
The line of kings according to Ynglingatal:
* [[Fjölnir]]
* [[Sveigder|Sveigðir]]
* [[Vanlande|Vanlandi]]
* [[Visbur]]r
* [[Domalde|Dómaldr]]
* [[Domar|Dómarr]]
* [[Dyggve|Dyggvi]]
* [[Dag the Wise|Dagr Spaka]]
* [[Agne|Agni]]
* [[Erik and Alrik|Eiríkr and Alrekr]]
* [[Yngvi and Alf]]r
* [[Jorund|Jörundr]]
* [[Aun]]
* [[Ongenþeow|Egil]]
* [[Ohthere|Óttarr]]
* [[Adils|Aðils]]
* [[Eysteinn]]
* [[Ingvar Harra|Yngvarr]]
* [[Anund|Braut-Önundr]]
* [[Ingjald|Ingjaldr hinn illráði]]
* [[Olof Trätälja|Óláfr trételgja]]
* [[Halfdan Hvitbeinn|Hálfdan hvítbeinn]]
* [[Eystein Halfdansson|Eysteinn Hálfdansson]]
* [[Halfdan the Mild|Hálfdan hinn mildi]]
* [[Gudrød the Hunter|Guðröðr veiðikonung]]
* [[Olaf Geirstad-Alf|Óláfr]]
* [[Ragnvald Heidumhære|Rögnvaldr heiðum hæra]]

== References ==

{{Reflist|30em}}

=== Bibliography ===
{{div col|colwidth=35em}}
* Bergsveinn Birgisson: ''[http://hdl.handle.net/1956/2732 Inn i skaldens sinn. Kognitive, estetiske og historiske skatter i den norrøne skaldediktningen]''. Doctoral thesis, [[Universitetet i Bergen]] 2008
* Fidjestøl, Bjarne: Kongeskalden frå Kvinesdal og diktinga hans. In: Try, H. (red.): ''Rikssamling på Agder''. Kristiansand 1976, s. 7-31
* Krag, Claus: ''[http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2007100104023 Ynglingatal og Ynglingesaga: en studie i historiske kilder]''. Rådet for humanistisk forskning; Universitetsforlaget, Oslo 1991.
* {{Cite book|last=Lindow|first=John|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KlT7tv3eMSwC|title=Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs|date=2001|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-983969-8|language=en|author-link=John Lindow}}
* [[Edith Marold]] with the assistance of [[Vivian Busch]], [[Jana Krüger]], [[Ann-Dörte Kyas]] and Katharina Seidel, translated from German by John Foulks 2012, ‘Þjóðólfr ór Hvini, ''Ynglingatal''’ in [[Diana Whaley]] (ed.), ''Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035''. [[Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages]] 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p.&nbsp;3. [https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=1440] (accessed 18 December 2021)
* Myhre, Bjørn: Diskusjonen om Ynglingeættens gravplasser. In: Christensen, A. E. (red.): ''Osebergdronningens grav: Vår arkeologiske nasjonalskatt i nytt lys'', Schibsted, Oslo 1992. p.&nbsp;35-50.
* Myhre, Bjørn: Kronologispørsmålet og Ynglingeættens gravplasser. In: Christensen, A. E. (red.): ''Osebergdronningens grav: Vår arkeologiske nasjonalskatt i nytt lys'', Schibsted, Oslo 1992. p.&nbsp;272-278.
* [[Bjørn Myhre|Myhre, Bjørn]]: ''Før Viken ble Norge, Borregravfeltet som religiøs og politisk arena''. Norske oldfunn XXXI. Vestfold Fylkeskommune 2015
* Skre, Dagfinn: «The dating of Ynglingatal». In: Skre, D (Red.): ''[http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-48416 Kaupang in Skiringssal]''. Kaupang Excavation Project, Århus/Oslo 2007. s. 407-429 (Norske oldfunn; 22) (Kaupang Excavation Project publication series; 1) {{ISBN|978-87-7934-259-0}}
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== Further reading ==
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* Finnur Jonsson: ''Den oldnorske og oldislandske litteraturs historie. Første Bind''. G. E. C. Gads Forlag. København 1920
* Hägerdal, Hans: «Ynglingatal.: Nya perspektiv på en kanske gammal text» I: ''[http://lnu.se/polopoly_fs/1.105249!Nr_15.pdf HumaNetten] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150502012409/http://lnu.se/polopoly_fs/1.105249!Nr_15.pdf |date=2 May 2015 }}''; nr 15, 2004. Published by Institutionen för humaniora, Växjö universitet
* Janson, Henrik: ''Templum nobilissimum, Adam av Bremen, Uppsalatemplet och konfliktlinjerna i Europa kring år 1075''. Doctoral thesis, Göteborgs universitet 1998. {{ISBN|9188614263}}
* Krag, Claus: «[http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-nb_digitidsskrift_2015020581004_001 Vestfold som utgangspunkt for den norske rikssamlingen]». In: ''[[Collegium Medievale]]'' (3), 1990. s. 179-195
* Krag, Claus: «[http://uaex.com/index.php/MOM/article/view/298 Ynglingatal str. 4 – omskrivningen “viljes borg” som dateringskriterium] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151126065221/http://uaex.com/index.php/MOM/article/view/298 |date=26 November 2015 }}» In: ''Maal og minne'' nr 2, 2009
* Lönnroth, Lars: «Dómaldi's Death and the Myth of Sacral Kingship», i J. Lindow et al. (red.), ''Structure and Meaning in Old Norse Literature'' (Odense 1986). (The Viking collection; 3) {{ISBN|87-7492-607-1}}
* [[Hallvard Magerøy|Magerøy, Hallvard]]: «Ynglingatal», i ''[http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2014110506005 Kulturhistorisk leksikon for nordisk middelalder; bind 20]'' (Malmö 1976), page 362-363.
* Paasche, Fredrik: ''Norges og Islands litteratur inntil utgangen av Middelalderen'', Aschehoug, Oslo 1957
* Sapp, C.D.: «Dating Ynglingatal. Chronological Metrical Developments in Kviduhattr». In: ''Skandinavistik'' 2002:2, side 85-98
* Schück, H.: «De senaste undersökningarna rörande ynglingasagan» I: ''[Svensk] Historisk tidskrift'' 1895:1, side 39-88.
* Snorre Sturlasson: ''Norges kongesagaer'', translated by Anne Holtsmark and Didrik Arup Seip. Gyldendal, Oslo 1979
* Steinsland, Gro: ''[http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-nb_digibok_2010111808075 Det hellige bryllup og norrøn kongeideologi : en analyse av hierogami-myten i Skírnismál, Ynglingatal, Háleygjatal og Hyndluljóð]''. Solum forlag, 1991. Doctoral thesis, [[Universitetet i Oslo]] 1989
* Steinsland, Gro: ''Norrøn religion. Myter, riter, samfunn.'' Oslo 2005. {{ISBN|82-530-2607-2}}
* Sundquist, Olof: ''Freyr's offspring. Rulers and religion in ancient Svea society''. Uppsala Universitet 2002. (Historia religionum; 21) {{ISBN|91-554-5263-9}} (Avisomtale: [http://www.svd.se/snorre-sturlasson-aterupprattas «Snorre Sturlasson återupprättas»]; Svenska Dagbladet, 14 March 2004)
* Wallette, Anna: ''Sagans svenskar, synen på vikingatiden och de isländska sagorna under 300 år''. Doctoral thesis, Lunds universitet 2004 {{ISBN|91-9752-220-1}}
* Ynglingatal
* Þáttr Ólafs Geirstaða álfs. In: ''Fornmanna sögur, volum I''. Konungliga norræna forfreda felags, Kaupmannahøfn 1835
* Åkerlund, Walter: ''Studier över Ynglingatal'' (Lund 1939) (Skrifter utgivan af Vetenskaps-societeten i Lund; 23)
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== External links ==
{{Portal|Arts|Society|Literature|Norway|Sweden}}

* [http://heimskringla.no/wiki/FJ-Litteraturhist.Bd.1_-_%C3%9Ej%C3%B3%C3%B0%C3%B3lfr_%C3%B3r_Hvini Finnur Jonsson about Thjodolf from Kvine], from the website heimskringla.no (Norwegian)
* [http://www.heimskringla.no/wiki/Ynglingatal_ (B1) Ynglingatal] in Old Norse at the website heimskringla.no (Norwegian
* [http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Ynglinger%C3%A6kken Ynglingatal] in Danish translation on the website heimskringla.no
* [http://www.hi.is/~eybjorn/ugm/skindex/yt.html Þjóðólfr or Hvini: Ynglingatal 1-38] - Two editions of the Norse text

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[[Category:Skaldic poems]]