Friday, June 22, 2007

Ormurin Langi by Tyr



The group 'Tyr' is from the Faroe Islands. The song evidently is well-known in different forms throughout Scandinavia. It recounts the tale of a famous battle at Svolder as follows: Olaf Tryggvason, King of Norway was on his way home from an expedition when he was met by a large hostile force. An alliance had been made between the Kings of Denmark and Sweden as well as Norwegians hostile to Olaf. The Ormen Lange was the name of one of his ships. Olaf was victorious against the Swedes and Danes, but could not defeat his own countryman. When he realised he could not emerge victorious, he and his men leapt overboard, never to be seen again.

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