Norwegian Influence on Icelandic Literary Language: An Examination of Seventy-Five Scribal Hands

Abstract

Icelandic manuscripts from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries show several linguistic, orthographic, and palaeographic features that are thought to be characteristic of Norwegian dialects. These features, commonly referred to as ‘Norwegianisms’, have traditionally been attributed to Norwegian influence at that time. While it is often noted that the rate of Norwegian characteristics decreased in the late fourteenth century, this has never been systematically studied. It has also not been understood what social circumstances may have caused or contributed to the disappearance of the Norwegian features in Icelandic manuscripts, nor what influence they may have had on the Icelandic language and script. As the first comprehensive and longitudinal analysis of selected Norwegianisms in Icelandic manuscripts and charters from the early fourteenth century until the Reformation, this study combines advanced statistical methods with approaches from historical sociolinguistics not previously applied to the study of language change in Iceland. The project is based on case studies of the occurrence of nine of the most prominent Norwegianisms in Icelandic literary language from 1300 to 1530, with a particular focus on their presumed decline after 1400. It also explores possible motivations behind the adoption of specific linguistic features in the broader social, political, economic, and cultural contexts of the period. Additionally, the study investigates how the use of Norwegianisms may have varied across social milieus and authors and assesses whether any orthographic shifts in the manuscripts indicate underlying linguistic changes, as well as the extent to which these changes may have influenced spoken Icelandic. The examination draws on a dataset of approximately 165,000 tokens collected from 75 scribal hands in manuscripts from around 1300 to around 1530 in addition to 187 hands in Icelandic original charters. The data were filtered, compared, visualised, and analysed with regard to feature and token frequencies, changes in spelling variants over time, statistical significance, and correlations. Key linguistic aspects such as lexical differences, phonological contexts, and inflectional patterns were also examined. Emphasis was also placed on shifts within medieval Icelandic society and intercultural relations. Specifically, differences were examined regarding the use of Norwegianisms in different genres and text types, as well as variation within and between co-occurring hands and their scribal milieus. The analysis yielded two key findings: First, the orthographic representation of the examined Norwegianisms primarily depends on linguistic or graphemic restrictions, variation in different genres, and the socio-regional context. Norwegianisms are most prevalent in the context of law, Church, and secular administration. Regionally, they are often linked to scribal milieus in west and north Iceland, which may hint at the possibility of diverging socio-regional orthographic conventions or the emergence of certain formal styles or registers. Second, Norwegianisms in Icelandic manuscripts seem to have developed in two distinct waves (cf. Kjartan G. Ottósson 1990–1991, 115; 1992, 164), challenging previous assumptions of a permanent ousting of these features. They were regularly used until around 1400 and declined significantly shortly after, but several features resurged intermittently in the late fifteenth century. Their eventual disappearance appears to have been mainly caused not by decreasing contact, but rather by the shift in locations and agents of literacy, evolving literary tastes, and the growing influence of new and competing transnational trade in the fifteenth century. As such, this study provides reliable data with broad applications in historical linguistics, manuscript studies, and sociolinguistics. It underscores the impact of cultural and educational institutions on linguistic development and scribal practice. By applying statistical methods from Digital Humanities, this study moves beyond traditional qualitative analyses of individual hands or manuscripts.

Þessi langsniðsrannsókn miðar að því að gefa ítarlegt yfirlit yfir útbreiðslu norskra máleinkenna, svokallaðra „norvagisma“, í íslenskum handritum og fornbréfum og þróun þeirra frá fyrri hluta fjórtándu aldar fram að siðaskiptum. Við rannsóknina var bæði beitt aðferðum ályktunartölfræði og félagslegra málvísinda sem hingað til hafa ekki verið notaðar við rannsóknir á málbreytingum í íslensku á þessu tímabili. Engin kerfisbundin rannsókn hefur hingað til verið gerð á þessu efni, þó að fræðimenn hafi veitt því athygli að tíðni þessara einkenna hafi minnkað verulega í kringum 1400. Jafnframt hefur því verið haldið fram að íslenskir skrifarar hafi tekið upp „norvagisma“ við uppskriftir texta eftir norskum forritum, þó að ástæður sem gætu hafa stuðlað að hvarfi þeirra séu ekki skýrar. Einnig er óljóst hvort og að hve miklu leyti þessi einkenni hafi haft áhrif á íslenskt mál eða skrifaravenju á Íslandi. Greiningin byggir á gagnasafni sem inniheldur um það bil 165.000 tákn (e. token), sem safnað var úr verkum 75 skrifara frá um 1300 til um 1530, ásamt 187 íslenskum fornbréfum. Gögnin voru síuð, borin saman og metin með tilliti til tíðni og þróunar „norvagismanna“, tölfræðilegrar marktektar og fylgni. Sérstök áhersla var lögð á samfélagsbreytingar og fjölmenningarleg samskipti auk megindlegrar greiningar. Kannaður var munur á notkun ákveðinna „norvagisma“ í mismunandi textategundum sem og breytileiki innan og á milli rithanda. Nánast allir „norvagismar“ urðu algengari á milli 1300 og 1350, en þeim tók svo að fækka í kringum aldamótin 1400. Frá síðari hluta fimmtándu aldar varð tíðni „norvagismanna“ óstöðugri. Í ljósi þess má álykta að þróun þeirra hafi ekki einkennst af hnignun og hvarfi, heldur virðist hún hafa farið fram í tveimur aðgreindum bylgjum (sbr. Kjartan G. Ottósson 1990–1991, 115; 1992, 164): Á fjórtándu öld og fram um 1400 var notkun einkennanna regluleg og svo fylgdi önnur óregluleg bylgja þar sem sumir „norvagismar“ efldust aftur. Helstu niðurstöður þessarar kerfisbundnu greiningar benda til þess að þrír þættir hafi haft mest áhrif á notkun „norvagismanna“ í ritmáli, einkum fyrir 1400: málfræðilegar og/eða stafsetningarlegar takmarkanir, textategund og félagslegt og staðbundið samhengi. Niðurstöður þessarar rannsóknar gefa því alveg nýja innsýn í virkni málbreytinga í málsambýli og þær munu gagnast við frekari rannsóknir í sögulegum félagsmálvísindum og handritafræðum.