History of Deserted Medieval Settlements

The aim of this work package is to create a more detailed understanding of the demographic, economic and social status of the deserted settlements in the Middle Ages. The key sources are Diplomatarium Islandicum and Jarðabók, which record such farms across all parts of the country except the east of Iceland. We know that all main farms (lögbýli) were officially members of a parish and were often registered in parish muniments. If most deserted medieval settlements were excluded from parishes and hreppar, as evidence suggests, does this suggest that they were sub-tenant farms? 

We will also analyse historical documents to better understand the settlement dynamics during the medieval period. For example, what insight do the written sources from the 12th-15th  centuries give us regarding the process of medieval settlement expansion that ultimately led to the farms’ abandonment?