"Widsith" (Old English: Wīdsīþ, "far-traveller", lit. "wide-journey"), also known as "The Traveller's Song", is an Old English poem of 143 lines. It survives only in the Exeter Book (pages 84v–87r), a manuscript of Old English poetry compiled in the late-10th century, which contains approximately one-sixth of all surviving Old English poetry. "Widsith" is located between the poems "Vainglory" and "The Fortunes of Men". Since the donation of the Exeter Book in 1076, it has been housed in Exeter Cathedral in southwestern England. The poem is for the most part a survey of the people, kings, and heroes of Europe in the Heroic Age of Northern Europe.
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👉 Widsith in the context of Hrólfs saga kraka
Hrólfs saga kraka, the Saga of King Rolf Kraki, is a late legendary saga on the adventures Hrólfr Kraki, a semi-legendary king in what is now Denmark, and his clan, the Skjöldungs. The events can be dated to the late 5th century and the 6th century. A precursor text may have dated to the 13th century, but the saga in the form that survived to this day dates to c. 1400. Forty-four manuscripts survive, but the oldest one of them is from the 17th century, although a manuscript is known to have existed c. 1461 at the monastery of Möðruvellir in Iceland.
The saga elaborates on the same matter as several other sagas and chronicles in Scandinavian tradition, and also in the Anglo-Saxon poems Beowulf and Widsith. In Beowulf and Widsith, many of the same characters appear in their corresponding Old English forms: Hrólfr Kraki appears as Hroðulf, his father Helgi as Halga, his uncle Hróarr as Hroðgar, his grandfather Halfdan as Healfdene and their clan, the Skjöldungs, as the Scyldings. Moreover, some of their enemies also appear: Fróðo as Froda and king Aðils of Sweden as the Swedish king Eadgils. There are similarities between Bödvar Bjarki killing the beast at the king's court and the killing of Grendel in Beowulf.
In this Dossier
Widsith in the context of Hrothgar
Hrothgar (Old English: Hrōðgār [ˈr̥oːðɡɑːr]; Old Norse: Hróarr) was a semi-legendary Danish king living around the early sixth century AD.
Hrothgar appears in the Anglo-Saxon epics Beowulf and Widsith, in Norse sagas and poems, and in medieval Danish chronicles. In both Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian tradition, Hrothgar is a Scylding, the son of Halfdan, the brother of Halga, and the uncle of Hrólfr Kraki. Moreover, in both traditions, the mentioned characters were the contemporaries of the Swedish king Eadgils; and both traditions also mention a feud with men named Fróði and Ingeld. The consensus view is that Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian traditions describe the same person.
Widsith in the context of Hrólfr Kraki
Hrólfr Kraki (Old Norse: [ˈhroːlvz̠ ˈkrɑke]), Hroðulf, Rolfo, Roluo, Rolf Krage (early 6th century) was a semi-legendary Danish king who appears in both Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian tradition.
Both traditions describe him as a Danish Scylding, the nephew of Hroðgar and the grandson of Healfdene. The consensus view is that Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian traditions describe the same people. Whereas the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf and Widsith do not go further than treating his relationship with Hroðgar and their animosity with Froda and Ingeld, the Scandinavian sources expand on his life as the king at Lejre and on his relationship with Halga, Hroðgar's brother. In Beowulf and Widsith, it is never explained how Hroðgar and Hroðulf are uncle and nephew.
Widsith in the context of Ingeld
Ingeld or Ingjaldr (Old Norse: [ˈiŋɡjɑldz̠]) was a legendary warrior who appears in early English and Norse legends. Ingeld was so well known that, in 797, Alcuin wrote a letter to Bishop Higbald of Lindisfarne questioning the monks' interest in heroic legends with: 'Quid enim Hinieldus cum Christo?' - What has Ingeld to do with Christ?
The legends that survive tell of Ingeld as an enemy of Hroðgar, Halga and Hroðulf. The conflict between the Scyldings Hroðgar and Hroðulf on one side, and the Heaðobards Froda and Ingeld on the other, appears both in Beowulf and in Widsith. Scholars generally agree that these characters appear in both Anglo-Saxon (Beowulf) and Scandinavian tradition (Norse sagas and Danish chronicles). However, in the Norse tradition the Heaðobards had apparently been forgotten and the conflict is instead rendered as a family feud, or as a conflict with the Saxons, where the Danes take the place of the Heaðobards.
Widsith in the context of Etymology of Denmark
The etymology of the name Denmark (Danish: Danmark), especially the relationship between Danes and Denmark and the unification of Denmark as a single kingdom, is the cause of some debate. In Old Norse, the country was called Danmǫrk, referring to the Danish March, viz. the marches of the Danes.
According to medieval origin legend, the name Denmark refers to the mythological King Dan. There are also a number of references to various Dani people in Scandinavia or other places in Europe in Greek and Roman accounts (like Ptolemy, Jordanes, and Gregory of Tours), as well as some medieval literature (like Adam of Bremen, Beowulf, Widsith and Poetic Edda).
Widsith in the context of Heathobards
The Heaðobards (Old English: Heaðubeardan, Old Saxon: Headubarden, "war-beards") were possibly a branch of the Langobards, and their name may be preserved in toponym Bardengau, in Lower Saxony, Germany.
They are mentioned in both Beowulf and in Widsith, where they are in conflict with the Danes. However, in the Norse tradition the Heaðobards, also called Hadubards, had apparently been forgotten and the conflict is instead rendered as a family feud, or as a conflict with the Saxons, where the Danes take the place of the Heaðobards.