Árni Magnússon Institute
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The Árni Magnússon Institute (Icelandic: "Stofnun Árna Magnússonar") is an academic institute located in Reykjavík, Iceland. The institute has the task of preserving and studying medieval Icelandic manuscripts containing Landnáma, Heimskringla and the Icelandic sagas.
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[edit] History
When Icelandic received home rule from the Danish government in 1904, the Icelandic parliament (Alþingi) wanted the Danes to give back the considerable body of manuscripts collected by the 17th century scholar Árni Magnússon. In 1927, some of them were returned and the institute was set up under the name "Handritastofnun Íslands" (English: "Icelandic Manuscript Institute"). In 1972, after most of the manuscripts had been returned to Iceland, the laws concerning the institute were changed. It received the name "Stofnun Árna Magnússonar á Íslandi", but is generally referred to as "Árnastofnun". It is an independent institute but has close ties and is administratively associated with the University of Iceland. It is to be merged with a few other institutes in Iceland to create a larger institute of Icelandic studies, but the new institute will keep the name of Árni Magnússon.
[edit] Location
The institute is located in the Árnagarður building on the campus of the University of Iceland by Suðurgata in Reykjavík.
[edit] Manuscripts
The institute contains a number of historically and culturally important manuscripts, amongst them
- AM 113 fol (Íslendingabók)
- AM 371 4to (the Landnámabók)
- AM 738 4to
- GKS 1005 fol (the Flateyjarbók)
- GKS 2365 4to (Codex Regius of the Poetic Edda)
- GKS 2367 4to (Snorra-Edda)
- SÁM 66
