SSNS Seminar – Maryann Pierse – Two Cases of Interpretatio Norroena: Saturn and the Vanir in Fourteenth-Century Iceland

The SSNS Seminar Series continues on Tuesday 10th November 2026 with Maryann Pierse for her talk Two Cases of Interpretatio Norroena: Saturn and the Vanir in Fourteenth-Century Iceland

This is a free, ticketed event; please register below.

Abstract:

In interpretatio norroena foreign concepts, especially mythological beings, are glossed or translated as Old Norse ones. Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture and wealth, is interpreted as several Norse figures in the extant corpus, but most often as one of the Vanir: Njǫrðr, the Norse god of the sea, or his son Freyr. This paper explores the interpretation of Saturn as the Vanir Njǫrðr and Freyr in two fourteenth-century Icelandic manuscripts. The Wormianus Codex recension of Snorra Edda uses Njǫrðr as a by-name for Saturn, whereas the Hauksbók recension of Trójumanna saga equates Saturn with Freyr. The flexible nature of interpretatio norroena provides a unique insight to medieval Icelandic engagement with Latinate culture and its integration with Norse traditions.

Bio:
Maryann Pierse (she/her) is a lecturer in Academic English at Masaryk Unizersity, Czech Republic. She submitted her PhD thesis, on the medieval reception of the classical deity Saturn, to the University of Aberdeen in September 2026. She previously completed her BA and MSt in English Literature at the University of Oxford. Her research interests include comparative studies, classical reception, and wisdom literature.

Registration below. Details for the Zoom meeting will be emailed in advance of the seminar.