Yngling (lineage)

The Ynglings were the oldest known Scandinavian dynasty. It can refer to the clans of the Scylfings (Old Norse Skilfingar), the semi-legendary royal Swedish clan during the Age of Migrations, with kings such as Eadgils, Onela and Ohthere. When Beowulf and Ynglingatal were composed sometime in the eighth to tenth centuries, the respective scop and skald (poet) expected his audience to have a great deal of background information about these kings, which is shown in the allusiveness of the references.

Ynglings also refers to the Fairhair dynasty, descending from the kings of Oppland, Norway. According to surviving early sources, such as Ynglingatal and Íslendingabók, these kings were descended from the Swedish Scylfings of Uppland, Sweden. The House of Munsö, a Swedish dynasty, also falls under the definition of Yngling. The earliest kings of this dynasty that historians generally agree are historical are Eirik the Victorious and Olof Skötkonung.

Some early kings were likely mythical, whereas others may have been real. Egil, Ottar, Ale and Adils are mentioned in several sources and are very likely to be real kings.

In the Scandinavian sources they are the descendants of Yngvi-Frey of Vanaheim. Yngling means descendant of Frey, and in the Gesta Danorum of Saxo Grammaticus they are called the sons of Frey. Several of these kings appear in Beowulf: Eadgils (Adils), Onela (Ale), and Ohthere (Ottar Vendelkråka), but here they are called Scylfings (see the Beowulf section below).

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