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The word appears in Old Norse, Old English, and modern Icelandic as þing, [b] in Middle English (as in modern English), Old Saxon, Old Dutch, and Old Frisian as thing (the difference between þing and thing is purely orthographical), in German as Ding, in Dutch and Afrikaans as ding, and in modern Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Faroese, Gutnish, and Norn as ting. [1]
Medieval Scandinavian law, also called North Germanic law, [1] [2] [3] was a subset of Germanic law practiced by North Germanic peoples.It was originally memorized by lawspeakers, but after the end of the Viking Age they were committed to writing, mostly by Christian monks after the Christianization of Scandinavia.
Besides his function as the president of the thing, his duties were restricted to counselling and to reciting the law. It was the sole government office of the medieval Icelandic Commonwealth. The lawspeaker was elected for a term of three years and was supposed to declaim the law at the Althing, a third of it each summer.
The name literally means "Law Thing"—that is, a law assembly—and derives from Old Norse lǫgþing, which was a name given to ancient assemblies. A ting or þing has existed on the Faroe Islands for over a millennium and the Løgting was the highest authority on the islands in the Viking era. From 1274 to 1816 it functioned primarily as a ...
the 13th-century Västgötalagen (Westrogothic law), is a fragment from a unknown late Viking Age law document from Västergötland, Sweden, which stipulates the conditions for a type of judicial duel, either referring to holmgang or einvigi (trial by combat):
The contact between these languages in the Danelaw caused the incorporation of many Norse words into the English language, including the word law itself, sky and window, and the third person pronouns they, them and their. [33] Many Old Norse words still survive in the dialects of Northern England. [34] [35] [36]
19th-century rendering of the Law Rock in Þingvellir.. The Althing claims to be the longest-running parliament in the world. [1] [2] Its establishment as an outdoor assembly or thing held on the plains of Þingvellir ('Thing Fields' or 'Assembly Fields') from about 930, laid the foundation for an independent national existence in Iceland.
Gulating (Old Norse: Gulaþing) was one of the four ancient popular assemblies or things (lagting) of medieval Norway. Historically, it was the site of court and assembly for most of Western Norway, and assembled at Gulen. It functioned as a judicial and legislative body, resolving disputes and establishing laws.