Report by Maja Bäckvall, Uppsala University

From Runes to Script: Orality and Literacy in Viking and Medieval Scandinavia, held in July, was the third Old Norse summer school at Aarhus University’s Scandinavian department, but the first on this theme. It consisted of two weeks of lectures and workshops 9 to 4, including Saturdays and a heavy-duty reading list – this is not a summer school for the lazy. The hard work did pay off, however. For one thing, the course was nicely varied, beginning with runes and ending with Íslendingasögur, covering different kinds of poetry and prose as well as the more theoretical aspects of orality and literacy. Add to this the impressive collection of teachers: Michael Lerche Nielsen, Terry Gunnell, Karl G. Johansson, Daniel Sävborg, Rolf Stavnem and Pernille Hermann, with special appearances by Karen Bek-Pedersen and Stephen Mitchell. This might look like almost too many teachers for a two-week course, but since most of them sat in on each other’s lectures, the result was continuity rather than confusion. They were able to comment on, and often disagree with, what was said the previous day, showing the complexity of the subject.

Most practical matters worked fine. Students from outside Aarhus were housed at a dorm 45 minutes’ walk/ 15 minutes’ bus ride from the university – shared kitchen and bath rooms (for most) and not overly expensive. Between the application deadline in April and the weeks leading up to the course, the level of information felt rather low. I remember wondering what and when and where and even if something would happen for a month or so. Once that information started coming, though, most questions were answered. The only thing I could have wished for was to have been able to buy the reading materials on paper as well as the CD-ROM we got. Studying from a screen is annoying, and we were many who did not have the means to print out almost 1000 pages at home. This said, I highly recommend going to Aarhus on similar courses, and will do so myself.