Þórbergur Þórðarson

Soffía Auður Birgisdóttir (University of Iceland)

Ed. by Ármann Jakobsson, University of Iceland
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.3.4: Icelandic Writing and Culture.
Vol. editors: Ármann Jakobsson (University of Iceland), Nicole Kennedy (University of Newcastle), Sven Hakon Rossel (Universitat Wien), Herbert Rowland (Purdue University), Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen (University College London)

Dates

Born 12 Mar 1888
Died 12 Nov 1974

Places

Active in Iceland

Activities

Primary

Writer / Author

Resources

Þórðarson's Works

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The Icelandic author Þórbergur Þórðarson was born on 12 March 1888 at the farm Hali in Suðursveit in South-East Iceland. He died in Reykjavík on 12 November 1974. Þórbergur is considered one of the major prose writers of 20th century Iceland. His book

Bréf til Láru

[A Letter to Lára], first published in 1924, heralded the beginning of modern Icelandic prose writing, along with the publication of Halldór Laxness’

Vefarinn mikli frá Kasmír

[The Great Weaver from Kashmir] in 1927. The works of Þórbergur are diverse and resist genre classification; he is recognised for his stylistic genius, as well as his great sense of humour and irony. Most of his works have autobiographical roots but are mixed with fictional components and coloured by his vivid imagination. This makes…

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3251 words

Citation: Birgisdóttir, Soffía Auður. "Þórbergur Þórðarson". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 April 2025 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=14859, accessed 19 April 2025.]