“The sons of Hildirid went to Thórólf and presented their claim to the property of their father Björgólf. Thórólf answered: ‘I know of Brynjolf, and still better of Bárd, that they were men of such generosity that they would have given you of the inheritance of Björgólf as much as they knew you had a right to. I was present when you pressed this same claim against Bárd, and I heard that he thought there were no proofs for it, for he called you sons of a concubine.’ Harek said they would get witnesses that their mother was bought with mund. ‘But it is true that we did not first present this claim to our brother Brynjolf. There was also to be a division between kinsmen, and from Bárd we expected honourable treatment in every respect, but our dealings with him were not long. Now this inheritance has come into the hands of unrelated men, and we cannot be altogether silent with regard to our loss. It may be that there yet is as before such difference in power that we may not get our rights from thee, if thou wilt hear none of the witnesses, whom we can bring forth that we are odal-born men.’ Thórólf answered harshly: ‘I count you the less legitimate as I am told your mother was taken away by force and brought home as a captive’” (Egil’s Saga, c. 9).

Mund was originally the name for all the conditions in regard to the property of both, especially that of the wife. This agreement was the most important thing at the _festar_[6] (betrothal, fastening). Children born without the payment of it were not inheritance-born—in a word, were considered illegitimate.

If the wife was poor and entirely without property the husband had to give a mund of twelve aurar, in order that the marriage should be regarded as fully legal.

“Next we must know how we shall buy women with mund, so that the child is inheritance-born. The man shall give that woman a poor man’s mund, amounting to 12 aurar, and have witnesses (at the ceremony). He shall have bridesmen, and she bridesmaids, and he shall give her a gift in the morning when they have been together one night, as large as the one at the betrothal. Then the child born thereafter is inheritance-born” (Gulath., 5).

“All men are not inheritance-born though they are free-born. The man whose mother is not bought with mund, with a mark, or still more property, or not wedded, or not betrothed, is not inheritance-born. A woman is bought with mund when a mark consisting of aurar, of the value of 12 feet of vadmal,[7] or more property, is paid or stipulated by hand-shaking. A wedding is lawfully made if the lawful man betroths the woman, and six men at least are present” (Gragas, i. 75).[8]

If a man married a girl without the consent of her parents or guardians, or made a runaway match, the husband was outlawed.

“Björn, the son of a hersir at Aurland in Sogn, was a great seafaring man; sometimes he was on Viking expeditions, sometimes on trade-journeys. One summer he was in Firdafylki at a feast where there were many people. There he saw a handsome maiden whom he liked much. He asked of what family she was. He was told that she was the sister of Thórir hersir, son of Hróald, and was named Thora Hladhönd (lace-hand). Björn asked her in marriage, but Thorir refused her to him, and so they parted; but the same autumn Björn got men and went with a full-manned _skuta_[9] north to Firdafylki, and arrived at Thórir’s when he was not at home. He took Thora away, and carried her home with him to Aurland.

“In the autumn ships arrived at Iceland from Norway, bringing the report that Björn had run away with Thora, without the consent of her kinsmen, and that the king had for that reason outlawed him from Norway” (Egil’s Saga, c. 32, 34).

The first matter settled was the heimanfylgja (home-following, or dowry), which follows the bride as given by the parents, or by those who had the right to give her away; and then what the man had to set against the dowry of his intended, which was called tilgjöf, or counter gift. This latter stood in a certain proportion to the former, and generally formed a third of the whole coming to the wife. It was occasionally decided at the same time what _linfé_[10] (linen fee) the husband should give to his wife on the morning after their wedding.

“The king (Svein of Denmark) and the jarl agreed that Thyri (Svein’s sister) should have the possessions in Vindland which Gunnhild (deceased wife of Svein, daughter of Búrisleif) had owned, and also other large possessions as dower (tilgjöf). Thyri wept sorely, and went, very much against her will. When they came to Vindland Búrisleif made his wedding-feast and married Thyri, but she would neither take food nor drink from the heathens for seven days” (Olaf Tryggvason’s Saga, c. 99).

The dowry included movable property and lands.

“The mother shall take as much property if her daughter dies childless as she has given her from home, and also the mund without interest. She and her children shall get this in preference to the father. Every man who has given anything for the heimanfylgja shall get it back if the wife dies childless, and also get the mund, if he has declared it at the betrothal or the wedding” (Gragas, i. 174).

The givers-away of the bride were called giptingar-men, and were either parents, kinsmen, or guardians.

After the preliminaries to the marriage had taken place, and the agreement had been announced to the witnesses, the festar or betrothal followed, when the parties became festarmadr or betrothed man, and festarkona or betrothed woman. This was a legal tie which could not be broken with impunity. The suitor went over to the father or guardian of the woman, and the latter betrothed her to him with a “handsal” (hand-shaking); at the same time both parties also named their witnesses to their betrothal. Gragas gives the formula used at this ceremony, which is as follows:—

“A woman is betrothed according to law if a man recites the agreement about the mund; then the guardian and the man to whom the woman is betrothed shall name witnesses to it. The man who is betrothed shall say: ‘We name witnesses that thou N. N. betrothest thyself to me N. N. with a lawful betrothal, and givest me the heimanfylgja with hand-shaking, as the fulfilment and performance of the whole agreement which was a while ago recited between us without fraud and tricks.’ This is a complete and lawful match. It is lawful when the betrother is the one who has the right to betroth according to law; and it is complete if the betrothed is in such health that she would be bought at no less price if she was a bondmaid, or has no other faults or blemishes which would make her cost less or which she had when sixteen winters old. But if these faults are found in the woman, the man who knowing it betrothed the woman is liable to lesser outlawry for it, and the wedding may be prevented if the man betrothed wishes it, provided he had before pronounced the words, ‘a complete and lawful match’—but not otherwise. Now if the betrothed man wants to demand the mund he shall summon the guardian, because he has betrothed the woman knowing such faults in her that she would cost less if she were a bondmaid. He shall summon him to lesser outlawry, and summon nine of his neighbours to the Thing. If the witnesses are against him he is to be outlawed, and the mund cannot be claimed. If the witnesses say that the guardian knew not the faults of the woman he can defend himself, but he cannot claim the mund unless he can get five dwellers at the farm of the woman as witnesses that she has not these faults; then the mund is to be paid back” (Gragas, i. 316).[11]

If the betrothed woman was injured or wronged in any way the man had the same right to gain redress as if she were his wife.

“Every man has full rétt on the behalf of his betrothed as well as his wife, as long as it is due; but if she sits at home in the house of a father or brother they have the full rétt on her behalf which her betrothed would otherwise have had” (Frostath., xi. 12).

“If a man runs away with a betrothed woman he shall pay full rétt to the betrothed man and also to her father” (Bjarkey law, 125).

The virtue of a betrothed woman was very carefully guarded.

“If the father dies before the wedding within the twelve months, and the child is begotten, then that child shall take its father’s inheritance as if its mother were bought with mund. But in no other way is a man inheritance-born unless his mother is bought with mund, or he is led lawfully into the family (adopted). Though a man betroth his concubine in order that according to this law his children be inheritance-born, or delays the wedding on account of this, it does not matter, for neither shall inheritance-fraud be committed, nor the wedding be dishonoured by this” (Frostath., 13).

The breaking of a betrothal by either party was severely punished, and the laws on the subject were strict.

“If a man will not take his betrothed he shall be summoned home to take her, and a day be fixed. Thereupon he shall be summoned to the Thing because he flees from his betrothed. Then the thingmen shall make him an outlaw, and he is called a runaway (fudflogi)” (Gulath., 51).