Hygelac

Hygelac (Old English: Hygelāc; Old Norse: Hugleikr; Proto-Germanic: *Hugilaikaz;^[1] Latin: Ch(l)ochilaicus or Hugilaicus;^[2] died c. 516 or 521) was a king of the Geats according to the poem Beowulf. It is Hygelac's presence in the poem which has allowed scholars to tentatively date the setting of the poem as well as to infer that it contains at least some points of historical fact.^[3] Beowulf gives Hygelac's genealogy: according to the poem, he was the son of Hrethel and had two brothers Herebeald and Hæþcyn, as well as an unnamed sister who was married to Ecgtheow and was the mother of the hero Beowulf. Hygelac was married to Hygd, and they had a son Heardred and an unnamed daughter who married Eofor. When Hygelac's brother Hæþcyn was fighting with the Swedes, Hygelac arrived at Hrefnesholt one day too late to save his brother Hæþcyn, but he managed to rescue the surviving Geatish warriors, who were besieged by the Swedish king Ongentheow and his three sons. The Swedes found refuge at a hill fort but were assaulted by the Geats. In the battle, the Swedish king was slain by Eofor. After the death of his brother Herebeald, Hygelac ascended the Geatish throne. After he was killed during a raid on Frisia, Hygelac was succeeded by Heardred, according to Beowulf.

^ Peterson, Lena (2007). "Lexikon över urnordiska personnamn" (PDF). Swedish Institute for Language and Folklore. p. 39. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-27. (Lexicon of Nordic Personal Names Before the 8th Century); from hyg "courage" and -lac.
^ Haubrichs, Wolfgang (2000). "Ein Held für viele Zwecke. Dietrich von Bern und sein Widerpart in den Heldensagenzeugnissen des frühen Mittelalters". In Haubrichs, Wolfgang (ed.). Theodisca. Beiträge zur althochdeutschen und altniederdeutschen Sprache und Literatur in der Kultur des frühen Mittelalters. Eine internationale Fachtagung in Schönmühl bei Penzberg vom 13. bis zum 16. März 1997 (in German). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 332. ISBN 978-3-11-016316-2.
^ Sam Newton (2004). The Origins of Beowulf and the Pre-Viking Kingdom of East Anglia. DS Brewer. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-85991-472-7.

[1] Peterson, Lena (2007). "Lexikon över urnordiska personnamn" (PDF). Swedish Institute for Language and Folklore. p. 39. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-27. (Lexicon of Nordic Personal Names Before the 8th Century); from hyg "courage" and -lac.

[2] Haubrichs, Wolfgang (2000). "Ein Held für viele Zwecke. Dietrich von Bern und sein Widerpart in den Heldensagenzeugnissen des frühen Mittelalters". In Haubrichs, Wolfgang (ed.). Theodisca. Beiträge zur althochdeutschen und altniederdeutschen Sprache und Literatur in der Kultur des frühen Mittelalters. Eine internationale Fachtagung in Schönmühl bei Penzberg vom 13. bis zum 16. März 1997 (in German). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 332. ISBN 978-3-11-016316-2.

[Newton2004-3] Sam Newton (2004). The Origins of Beowulf and the Pre-Viking Kingdom of East Anglia. DS Brewer. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-85991-472-7.

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