Dr Hannah Burrows

Biography

My main research interests are in the medieval North, particularly Old Norse-Icelandic literature, language, culture, and society. I studied for a BA (Hons) in English and Linguistics at the University of York, where the city's visible layers of history, Norse-influenced street names, and the opportunity to study unusual things (Old English and Old Norse, among others) all contributed to me falling in love with medieval languages, literatures and cultures. I stayed on for an MA in Medieval Studies, followed by a PhD examining literary-legal relations in early Iceland. I was finally persuaded away from the charms of northern England for a postdoctoral position in sunny Sydney, where I worked on the international research project Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages (2007-12). On my return to the UK I started inching north, with a stint as a Junior Research Fellow at Durham University, before coming to Aberdeen as Lecturer in Scandinavian Studies in September 2014. Since then I have spent time as an ERASMUS Visiting Scholar in the Department of Religious Studies, University of Vienna, and am currently Senior Lecturer and Director of the Centre for Scandinavian Studies.

Research Overview

My main research interests are in the medieval North, particularly Old Norse-Icelandic literature, language, culture, and society. I am increasingly interested in theoretical and critical approaches from the cognitive and environmental humanities and the history of emotions, and their applicability to Old Norse and medieval literature.

My PhD thesis investigated literary-legal relations in medieval Iceland, and I continue to be interested in legal culture. I've researched and published on the use of legal terminology and court scenes in sagas; lawspeakers and lawyers; the impact of literacy on legal knowledge; and the use of poetry in various legal contexts. I am currently working on emotion in Old Icelandic law and legal culture.

Having edited the poetry from Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks for the skaldic project, I became especially interested in the saga's collection of riddles, the world views they represent, and the traditions they play with, which has allowed me to think and write about Old Norse mythology, representations of the natural world, poetic traditions, humour and play, Old Norse bird puns, and lots of other fun and interesting things besides (many of which feed into my current project). During 2017-19 I held an AHRC Leadership Fellowship for a project entitled What Am I?, which examined the language used in Old Norse poetry to express ideas about the natural world. I am also interested in the semantics of humour and laughter in Old Norse, jokes about women, and the genderedness of laughter in medieval Scandinavia, and have published on the translation and adaptation of Old Norse texts.

I am the section editor for Medieval Scandinavia for Routledge Resources Online: Medieval Studies.

Current Research

I am currently working on emotion in medieval Nordic law and legal culture, particularly focusing on Iceland.

Knowledge Exchange

• Interview on medieval humour with the Press and Journal, March 2024: https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/lifestyle/6414496/ellon-comedian-martin-bearne-changing-comedy/
• Mystic Britain, Smithsonian Channel – expert interviewee, 2 episodes, 2020.
• Interview with gaming magazine alt/char, May 2020: https://www.altchar.com/guides/the-truth-behind-the-myth-how-invading-vikings-loved-much-more-than-hack-and-slash-aFUb86i7oh0Q.
• ‘Kenning the Land’ – public lecture and writers’ workshops, Stromness and Stornoway, June 2019.
• ‘So You Think Vikings are Funny Do You?’ – Collaborative project with Aberdeen Performing Arts, performed at Underdog, Aberdeen, 2017.
• ‘Scandinavian Winters of Old Were Less Hygge, More Nordic Noir’. The Conversation, 21/12/16 https://theconversation.com/scandinavian-winters-of-old-were-less-hygge-more-nordic-noir-69386.
• ‘The Saga of the Conspirators’ – Scratch Night sketch with Aberdeen Performing Arts, The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen, 2016.
• Interview with Unwinnable magazine, Dec 2015: https://unwinnable.com/2015/12/17/a-very-viking-christmas-interview/ 
• ‘Rune Carol’ – concept and lyrics for new Christmas carol with The Embassy of Sweden in London and The Financial Times, 2015 (https://www.ft.com/content/e69d7016-9505-11e5-8389-7c9ccf83dceb).
• Modern Poets on Viking Poetry, 2013 (http://www.asnc.cam.ac.uk/resources/mpvp/).

Collaborations

I am Bibliography Editor for the Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages project.
I am a member of the Old Norse Emotions Network.

I was Principal Investigator for the Humours of the Past network.

Funding and Grants

2017-19: What Am I? Riddles, Riddling Language and World View in Old Norse Poetry - AHRC Leadership Fellows Scheme

2017: The Saga of the Conspirators. Impact, Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation award, University of Aberdeen

2016-17: Humours of the Past - AHRC Research Networking Scheme (with Daniel Derrin)

2016: Censured and Censuring: Humour, Laughter and Identity in (early) Scandinavian Society - Royal Society of Edinburgh Small Grants Scheme

2015: Humours of the Past - Principal's Interdisciplinary Fund, University of Aberdeen

Teaching Responsibilities

In addition to the courses above, which I coordinate, in 2024-25 I am involved with the following courses:

HI356J Thinking History
HI5594 Research Preparation in Historical Studies
Undergraduate and MLitt dissertation supervision.

I was nominated for an Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching Award in 2015 and 2017, and as 'Best Undergraduate Dissertation Supervisor' in 2024.