Скандинавия заң шешендері

Scandinavian legal office

A lawspeaker or lawman (Swedish: lagman, Old Swedish: laghmaþer or laghman, Danish: lovsigemand, Norwegian: lagmann, Icelandic: lög(sögu)maður , Faroese: løgmaður, Finnish: laamanni, ) is a unique Scandinavian legal office. It has its basis in a common Germanic oral tradition, where wise people were asked to recite the law, but it was only in Scandinavia that the function evolved into an office. At first, lawspeakers represented the people, and their duties and authority were connected to the assemblies (things). For most of the last thousand years, however, they were part of the king's administration. Snorri Sturluson (1179–1241) of Iceland was a famous lawspeaker. He wrote about an 11th century lawspeaker named Torgny, but historians doubt the account. The historical lagtings and the office of lawspeaker were abolished in 1797, but the title was reinstituted in 1887 together with the introduction of the jury system.

In Iceland, the office was introduced in 930, when the Althing was established. He was elected for three years. Besides his function as the president of the thing, his duties were restricted to counselling and to reciting the law. It was the sole government office of the medieval Icelandic Commonwealth. The lawspeaker was elected for a term of three years and was supposed to declaim the law at the Althing, a third of it each summer. In fact, Grímr Svertingsson's term was cut short, not because of incompetence or illness, but because his voice was too weak for the job. Apart from his function as a lawsayer and chairman of the court, the lǫgsǫgumaðr had no formal power, but he would often be appointed as an arbitrator in the frequently arising disputes. The office lingered on for a few years in the transitional period after 1262, after which it was replaced with a lǫgmaðr. The traditional date for the founding of the Althing is 930 with Úlfljótr appearing as a founding figure and the original author of the laws. After the union with Norway in 1264, two royal lawspeakers were appointed who had an important influence on the legal processes at the thing. The office was abolished together with the Althing in 1800.

Scholars are suspicious of the fact that Úlfljótur's first two successors have been assigned a period in office of exactly 20 summers each, but from Þorkell máni on, the chronology is probably correct; names are given in their modern Icelandic form. LögsögumaðurTerm in office Úlfljóturc. 930 Hrafn Hængsson930–949 Þórarinn Ragabróðir Óleifsson950–969 Þorkell máni Þorsteinsson970–984 Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði Þorkelsson985–1001 Grímur Svertingsson1002–1003 Skafti Þóroddsson1004–1030 Steinn Þorgestsson1031–1033 Þorkell Tjörvason1034–1053 Gellir Bölverksson1054–1062 Gunnar hinn spaki Þorgrímsson1063–1065 Kolbeinn Flosason1066–1071 Gellir Bölverksson1072–1074 Gunnar hinn spaki Þorgrímsson1075 Sighvatur Surtsson1076–1083 Markús Skeggjason1084–1107 Úlfhéðinn Gunnarsson1108–1116 Bergþór Hrafnsson1117–1122 Guðmundur Þorgeirsson1123–1134 Hrafn Úlfhéðinsson1135–1138 Finnur Hallsson1139–1145 Gunnar Úlfhéðinsson1146–1155 Snorri Húnbogason1156–1170 Styrkár Oddason1171–1180 Gissur Hallsson1181–1202 Hallur Gissurarson1203–1209 Styrmir hinn fróði Kárason1210–1214 Snorri Sturluson1215–1218 Teitur Þorvaldsson1219–1221 Snorri Sturluson1222–1231 Styrmir hinn fróði Kárason1232–1235 Teitur Þorvaldsson1236–1247 Ólafr hvítaskáld Þórðarson1248–1250 Sturla Þórðarson1251 Ólafr hvítaskáld Þórðarson1252 Teitur Einarsson1253–1258 Ketill Þorláksson1259–1262 Þorleifur hreimur Ketilsson1263–1265 Sigurður Þorvaldsson1266 Jón Einarsson1267 Þorleifur hreimur Ketilsson1268 Jón Einarsson1269–1270 Þorleifur hreimur Ketilsson1271