Ongenteyov

Information from medieval sources

According to modern historians, information about Ongentheova is contained in several medieval sources . Under this name, he is referred to as the ruler of sveis in the epos Vidsid and Beowulf . According to linguists , the name of the Ongentheans is phonetically the closest to the Old Norse name Angantur. Perhaps some of the facts of the biography of the Svei ruler (for example, the circumstances of his death) could be reflected in the legends about this legendary “king of the Goths”, the father of the virgin warrior Herver ^{[1] [2]} . An analysis of Ongenteyov’s family ties cited in the sources made it possible to establish that he is also mentioned in the Scandinavian sagas (for example, in the “ Ingling Saga ”), where he corresponds to the king of the Egil swine ^{[3] [4]} .

Information from Anglo-Saxon sources

The earliest of the sources that have come down to our time about Ongentheova is the poetic work Vidsid, created no later than the 7th century ^[1] . Written in Old English , it contains a list of heroes and rulers of barbarian Europe , among which the ruler of the Ongenthei svei is mentioned ^[5] .

More detailed information about Ongentheova is found in the poem Beowulf, written a little later (at the end of the 7th or first third of the 8th century). One of the plot lines of this poem is the story of the wars of the Svei with the Gautas ^[6] . According to the poem, the conflict was initiated by the raids of the sons of the Svei king of the “old warrior” Ongenteyov , Okhthere and Onela , on the possessions of the Hautkyun king of Gauts. In response, the Gautas made a trip to the land of the Svei, captured the royal residence, captured the treasury and captured the wife of the ruler of the Svei. Pursuing the kidnappers, Ongenteyov defeated the Gaut army in Raven Grove. King Hadkyun and most of his warriors died in battle, and the surviving Gauts, after dark, took refuge in a nearby forest, where they were surrounded by light. However, the next morning reinforcements arrived at the Gauts, which was brought by the brother and heir of the deceased King Higelak . In a new battle, the sveis were defeated, Ongenteyev fled to the settlement of Hrefnesholt and died during his assault by the Higelak army. The mortal blow to the king of the Svei was dealt by the warrior Eowor , who subsequently received the only daughter of King Higelak as his wife ^[7] .

Scandinavian sources

From medieval Scandinavian sources, the most detailed story about the life of King Aigil is contained in the Ingle Saga, which is part of Snorri Sturluson 's Circle of the Earth ^[4] . In this source, Egil is called "king in Sweden ", the youngest son of Aun the Old and the father of Ottar. It is reported that "he did not like to fight and sat peacefully at home." A rebellion rose against him, led by Tunny, a slave, the former treasurer of Aun. Gathering the army, Tunny began to ruin the possession of Aigil and eight times defeated the king's army in battles. The defeat forced Aigil to seek refuge with the king of the Danes, Frody the Bold . Only after receiving an army from Frody, Egil could defeat Tunny in a battle in which the head of the rebels died. In gratitude for the help, Egil promised to pay tributes every six months. Although he did not fulfill this promise, Egil and Frody remained friendly. However, three years after the victory over Tunny, Egil died: on the hunt he was mortally wounded by a wild bull. According to the saga, Egil was buried in one of the mounds in Old Uppsala , and his son Ottar became the new ruler of the svei ^[8] .

The same data are also contained in the Latin-language History of Norway compiled in the 12th century. Perhaps, to describe the history of the early Ingling, its author used the same source as Snorri Sturluson (it is assumed that this could be Tyodolva's “ List of Ingling ” from Hvinir ). Here, the information about Egil that is not mentioned in the Ingle Saga is only a testimony of the king’s nickname - Wendel Raven. This is also reported in the “ Book of Icelanders ” by Ari Torgilsson ^[9] , but other sources refer this epithet to the son of Aigil Ottar ^{[3] [4]} . The Ingling List and the Book of Icelanders call Aigil the seventeenth ruler of the Ingling dynasty, the successor of Aun the Old and the predecessor of Ottar.

Modern research

When studying the whole complex of information from historical sources about Ongenteyov, modern historians came to the conclusion that the legends about this person were based on the recollections of medieval authors about the Wendel period of the history of Scandinavia. Since the Gautian king Higelak is mentioned as a real person in the History of the Francs by Gregory of Tours ^[10] , it is possible that other persons associated with him in the legends could be really existing rulers ^[11] . It is assumed that Ongenteyov was an early representative of the Ingling dynasty (Skilfingov), who ruled the saints in the late V - early VI centuries. Based on the story of Grigory Tursky about the death of Higelak in 515 or 516, the death of Ongentov is dated by the time shortly before this event. The place of his burial is the eastern mound in Old Uppsala ^[12] . During excavations carried out in 1846-1847, a rich burial was discovered here dating back to the beginning of the VI century. A person buried in a burial mound was cremated . Several items were preserved in the burial, including fragments of brocade clothes , gold jewelry, glass vessels, as well as bone figures of birds ^[13] . After the death of Ongenteyov, the throne of svejs was inherited by his eldest son, named Okhtere in Anglo-Saxon sources, and Ottar in the Scandinavian sources ^{[4] [14]} .

Sources do not allow us to unambiguously establish what the name of the Svei ruler who died in the war with Higelak really was: the arguments are expressed in favor of each of the three names - Ongenthey, Angantyur and Egil. Modern historians consider the differences in the descriptions of the death of Ongenteyov and Egil to be the mistake of the Scandinavian author of the essay, which served as a common source for the Ingles Saga and the History of Norway. It is assumed that the original text of the legend was written in Old English, and when retelling it first in Old Swedish and then in Old Icelandic, the name Eowor ( other English Eofor - hog ) was misinterpreted by the translators as the word " farra " meaning animal ^{[14 ]} .