# Snorri Sturluson

> Icelandic historian, poet and politician (AD 1179–1241)

**Wikidata**: [Q102323](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q102323)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snorri_Sturluson)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/snorri-sturluson

## Summary
Snorri Sturluson (AD 1179–1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, skald and politician known for authoring Heimskringla, a collection of kings' sagas. He is a prominent figure in 13th‑century Norse literature and is identified in reference sources as a writer, diplomat and important historiographical voice from medieval Iceland.

## Biography
- Born: AD 1179 (died AD 1241)
- Nationality: Iceland — a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean (country inception entries in the source note 1918-12-01 for the Kingdom of Iceland and 1944-06-17 for the founding of the Republic of Iceland)
- Entity type: human
- Known for: Heimskringla — collection of kings' sagas, written by Snorri Sturluson
- Field(s): historian; poet; skald (poet in the courts of Scandinavian rulers); politician; diplomat; writer
- Aliases: Snorre Sturlusson; Snorri Sturlason; Snorre Sturleson
- Identifiers: wikipedia_title — "Snorri Sturluson"; sitelink_count — 79; wikidata_description — "Icelandic historian, poet and politician (AD 1179–1241)"

## Contributions
- Heimskringla (inception circa +1225): A collection of kings' sagas explicitly described in the source as written by Snorri Sturluson. This work is cited in the source material as a principal literary contribution.
- Prose Edda (inception circa +1225): Listed in the provided material as a 13th‑century Norse work of literature written in Iceland (inception +1225) and presented in the same contextual grouping of works related to Snorri Sturluson in the source material. The Prose Edda is identified as part of the corpus of 13th‑century Norse literature connected to Snorri's milieu and timeframe.

## FAQs
Q: Who was Snorri Sturluson?
A: Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic human who lived AD 1179–1241 and served as a historian, poet, skald, politician and diplomat; he is best known for his literary work Heimskringla.

Q: What major works are associated with Snorri Sturluson?
A: Heimskringla is explicitly attributed to Snorri in the provided material; the Prose Edda is also presented in the same 13th‑century Icelandic literary context and is listed among related works in the source data.

Q: When did Snorri Sturluson live?
A: He lived from AD 1179 until AD 1241.

Q: What is Snorri’s nationality and cultural context?
A: He was Icelandic; the source describes Iceland as a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and gives modern inception notes for the Kingdom (1918-12-01) and Republic (1944-06-17) of Iceland as contextual country data.

Q: Are there things named after Snorri Sturluson?
A: The source lists namesakes/related names including "Snorre" (a Norwegian oil field) and "Snorri" (a crater on the planet Mercury), indicating the personal name appears in other, distinct contexts.

Q: Under what other names might Snorri Sturluson be found in reference sources?
A: He appears under the aliases Snorre Sturlusson, Snorri Sturlason, and Snorre Sturleson, and his main reference entry carries the wikipedia_title "Snorri Sturluson" with a sitelink_count of 79.

## Why They Matter
Snorri Sturluson is foundational to the preservation and shaping of medieval Norse history and literature in the early 13th century. Heimskringla, identified in the source as his work, compiles kings' sagas and thus serves as a key written record of Scandinavian royal narratives. The association of Snorri with the major 13th‑century Icelandic literary corpus (including the Prose Edda in the same dataset) situates him at the center of Norse mythic and historical transmission; without those works ascribed to his circle, later access to kings' sagas and certain strands of Norse literary tradition would be diminished in the surviving corpus. His combined roles as historian, skald and politician highlight a figure who bridged literary creativity and public life in medieval Iceland, influencing how subsequent generations encounter Norse kingship, poetry and historiography.

## Notable For
- Authorship of Heimskringla — explicitly described in the source as a collection of kings' sagas written by Snorri Sturluson (inception circa +1225).
- Central presence in 13th‑century Icelandic literary tradition (the Prose Edda is listed among related 13th‑century Norse works written in Iceland, inception +1225).
- Multifaceted roles recorded in reference data: historian, poet, skald, politician and diplomat.
- Multiple recorded aliases: Snorre Sturlusson; Snorri Sturlason; Snorre Sturleson.
- Reference identifiers: wikipedia_title "Snorri Sturluson"; sitelink_count of 79; wikidata_description matching "Icelandic historian, poet and politician (AD 1179–1241)."
- Name appears as inspiration/namesake in other contexts: a Norwegian oil field named Snorre and a crater on Mercury named Snorri are listed in the related entities.

## Body

### Early life and identity
- Born AD 1179 and died AD 1241, as recorded in the provided material.
- Identified in reference sources as Icelandic and as a member of the human species (entity type: human).
- Reference descriptors classify him as a historian, poet, politician, diplomat, skald and writer — indicating both literary and political roles in medieval Iceland.

### Roles and fields of activity
- Historian: The source labels him a historian, situating him within the practice of recording and presenting history in medieval Icelandic contexts.
- Poet and skald: The material identifies him as a poet and skald (a skald being a poet in the courts of Scandinavian rulers during the Viking Age), placing his poetic role within the Norse skaldic tradition.
- Politician and diplomat: The provided data categorizes him as a politician and diplomat, indicating engagement with governance and statecraft alongside literary activity.
- Writer: Reference data includes the general category of writer among his associated roles.

### Major works and literary contributions
- Heimskringla:
  - Described in the source as a "collection of kings' sagas, written by Snorri Sturluson."
  - Inception/period: cited as +1225 in the source metadata.
  - Significance: Presented in the material as a primary authored work; it is explicitly connected to Snorri and to the corpus of Norse kings' sagas.
- Prose Edda:
  - Listed as a 13th‑century Norse work of literature written in Iceland with inception +1225 in the source material.
  - Contextual relationship: The Prose Edda appears among the works and entities related to Snorri's literary milieu in the provided dataset. The source lists it as a 13th‑century Icelandic literary work, aligning it temporally and culturally with Snorri's activity.

### Names, aliases and reference data
- Aliases recorded: Snorre Sturlusson; Snorri Sturlason; Snorre Sturleson.
- Bibliographic/reference identifiers in the source:
  - wikipedia_title: "Snorri Sturluson"
  - sitelink_count: 79 (a metric supplied in the provided material)
  - wikidata_description: "Icelandic historian, poet and politician (AD 1179–1241)"

### National and cultural context
- Nationality: Iceland. The source describes Iceland as a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and provides two inception entries relevant to the country's modern constitutional history: 1918-12-01 (Kingdom of Iceland) and 1944-06-17 (founding of the Republic of Iceland). These country entries situate Snorri within the geographical and cultural origin listed in the dataset.

### Namesakes and related entities
- The provided material lists other items bearing related name forms:
  - Snorre — a Norwegian oil field (country: Norway in the source metadata).
  - Snorri — a crater on the planet Mercury.
- These entries indicate that the proper name forms tied to Snorri Sturluson appear in other domains and geographies as recorded in the dataset.

### Legacy and continued reference
- The source frames Snorri as a key figure linked to major works of 13th‑century Icelandic and Norse literature, with Heimskringla explicitly attributed to him and the Prose Edda present in the same corpus context.
- Reference metadata (aliases, wikipedia title, sitelink count and wikidata description) confirms enduring bibliographic and encyclopedic attention to his life and works in modern reference systems.

(End of entry.)

## References

1. Integrated Authority File
2. Virtual International Authority File
3. Geni.com
4. Library of the World's Best Literature
5. Cassell's Dictionary of Norse Myth & Legend (2002 edition)
6. International Standard Name Identifier
7. BnF authorities
8. CiNii Research
9. MusicBrainz
10. [Source](http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/550523/Snorri-Sturluson)
11. Czech National Authority Database
12. Internet Speculative Fiction Database
13. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013
14. [Source](https://www.bartleby.com/library/bios/index15.html)
15. CONOR.SI
16. Autoritats UB
17. CERL Thesaurus
18. LIBRIS. 2013
19. Golden
20. Bibliography of the History of the Czech Lands
21. Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts
22. Catalogo of the National Library of India