Papey... by KarmaSong
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 It is usually said that the first inhabitants of Iceland were Norsemen from Scandinavia, which is proved by some archeological artefacts, but funny enough, The Icelandic Landnámabók (the Book of Settlements) mentions that the first settlers of Iceland were Irish, as shown in the name of a tiny island called 'Papey',near the east coast of the island, which in Icelandic means 'the island of the Papar', the word 'papar' itself derived from Latin and Old Irish, meaning 'fathers or monks'(popes)....The Landnámabók (the Book of Settlements), dating from the 11th century, clearly states on page 1 that Irish monks designated 'papar', had been living in Iceland before the Norse settlers arrived.Another question comes to mind : why did Irish monks leave Ireland to settle so far up north ? The answer here comes from Ireland where it is said that most early monks had actually been converted to Christianity but deep down had remained partly faithful to the ancient religion of the Celts-druidism. What written or oral tradition that is left from the Druids points to the... ' isles at the North of the world', or 'Tir na n-Og' , the Land of Youth, otherwise called the paradise of the Celts. This might explain why those Irish monks had left Ireland and found themselves in Iceland before the Norsemen arrived there...
 On dit d'habitude que les premiers habitants de l'Islande furent les Scandinaves, ce qu'atteste l'archéologie,mais curieusement, le 'Landnámabók', le Livre islandais des Conquêtes, indique dès sa première page que les premiers colons de l'Islande furent les moines irlandais, comme l'indique la petite île de Papey, qui signifie ' l'île des moines irlandais' , le mot 'papar' dérivé lui même du latin et du celtique pour désigner les pères ou les moines ( le mot pape est de même origine).Le 'Landnámabók', le Livre islandais des Conquêtes datant du 11ème siècle affirme dans sa première page que des moines irlandais s'étaient installés en Islande avant l'arrivée des Vikings. Une autre question se pose: pourquoi ces moines avaient-ils quitté l'Irlande pour aller aussi loin et au nord? La réponse se trouve en Irlande où il est démontré que la plupart des premiers moines irlandais convertis au christianisme étaient restés, pour certains d'entre eux, fidèles à l'ancienne religion des Celtes, le druidisme. Ce qui est attesté du druidisme de nos jours indique que le paradis celtique, appelé aussi Tir na n-Og, ou la Terre de la Jeunesse, se trouvait dans des 'îles au nord du monde', pour reprendre l'expression. Ceci explique peut-être pourquoi ces moines irlandais avaient quitté l'Irlande pour se retrouver en Islande, avant que les premiers Scandinaves y débarquent à leur tour.
 ...This is what I've tried to illustrate with this picture composed and modelled in Bryce5, and postworked in PSP... Thank you very much for your nice comments,support and tokens of friendship in my gallery. Have a nice week-end ! Please zoom in !
Comments (40)
bebert
magnifique représentation !!
virginiese
Wow ! Excellentissime ! Les informations qui complètent ton image m'expliquent beaucoup de choses et je comprends mieux ce que j'avais lu dans certains livres d'écrivains islandais! Du très bon boulot JL, On en veut encore plus !
danob
A very eloquent description of the history so well researched, and wonderful artwork.. Bravo my friend! Being monks they would not have left any of my forebears.. ;-)
kgb224
Outstanding work my friend. God Bless.
peedy
Fantastic image! Great snow and lighting. Thank you for the info. Corrie
gaius
Quelle merveille ! On voit peu d'images aussi porteuses de message, d'un certain mysticisme aussi (avec le moine en fond). Une solitude propice à la prière, avec la grandeur sauvage des paysages alentour...Bravo et grand merci pour les informations fort utiles ; il n'est jamais trop tard pour s'enrichir intellectuellement.
starfire777
Excellent work!!!
BorisB
A great presentation!!
magnus073
Jean-Luc, You did an outstanding job is always and your attention to detail can be seen in both the image and the history you provided. Having a lot of Irish in me, I found myself fascinated with the history of Papey. Your detailed explanation of why the Irish monks came to be there was truly intriguing. Also you did a fantastic job of sharing with us what Papey looks like through your eyes.
Jean_C
Superbe paysage nordique et magnifique présentation! Ainsi la recherche du paradis les aurait conduits vers le nord... intéressantes explications, merci!
grafikeer
Excellent lighting,textures and overall image!
MarciaGomes
Extraordinária obra meu amigo a paisagem é incrível parece real adoro os detalhes a iluminação é fantástica.++++++++++++++5 Obrigado pelo texto.
GrayCloudDesign
Beautiful work!
Leije
Magnifique composition et infos intéressantes sur l'Islande !
FredNunes
SO impressive!
sandra46
beautiful! great work!
mgtcs
Wonderful portrayal. It really conveys the feeling regarding the history of Papey as you told it. Really, really good.
flavia49
very beautiful
GrandmaT
Excellent job!
jocko500
what I understand it was not as cold there before 1000ad it got cold after that time
rainbows
Beautiful work, dear Jean-Luc. Brilliant write up too. I have learned something new today from you. Hugs and Bisous. DCi. xx
Badsue
Beautiful snowy scene!
Darkwish
Fantastic work, very well done!
fallen21
Amazing scene, nice work!
Umbetro38
more than excellent Friend - wow
soffy
Excellent and so beautiful work and thanks for sharing the info****
VDH
Very nice landscape image!!
Flint_Hawk Online Now!
The illustration is great & the information fascinating & new!
SIGMAWORLD
Sehr schön!
MagikUnicorn
Magnifique bryce une superbe scène hivernale