An Introduction to Old Norse

Blurb

An Introduction to Old Norse is an English textbook written by E. V. Gordon, arising from his teaching at the University of Leeds and first published in 1927 in Oxford at the Clarendon Press. It has been reprinted several times since. The Second Edition was revised by A. R. Taylor, Gordon's former student and, indirectly, his Leeds successor. The book is commonly accepted as a standard text in the English-speaking world for studying Old Norse. It includes a long introduction, a short grammar of Old Norse, a glossary, an index of names and selections from the Elder Edda as well as a number of other sagas.
The introduction of the text traces the literary history of Old Norse, and describes the literary merits, historical accuracy, and compositional style of Old Norse texts. In it, Gordon draws comparisons to other Medieval languages and texts, such as the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf.
The central part of the book is composed of selections of Old Norse texts, including the entire text of Hrafnkels saga in the Second Edition. Other selections include the Eddic poem Þrymskviða, and parts of Hrólfs saga kraka.