A Study On The Inheritance Of Women’s Family Property In Sweden In The Viking Age

During the Viking Age,women in Scandinavia had certain rights to inherit their family property.Among Denmark,Norway,and Sweden,the situation of female family property inheritance in Sweden is the most special one.For example,the number and characteristics of female heirs are more pronounced,but it has not received much attention from the academic community.As an important link among the family members,the family property maintains the stability and development of the whole family.This thesis analyzes the background,principles,and characteristics of female inheritance in Swedish society during the Viking Age,and further explores the impact of female inheritance in Sweden by using primary historical sources and the works of relevant researchers.In addition to the introduction and conclusion,this thesis is divided into four parts:The first part explores the background of female family property inheritance in Viking Sweden.In this part,this thesis will examine the background of women’s family inheritance in Viking Sweden,and introduces the development of Swedish society during this period in terms of agricultural and pastoral commerce,family unions,religious beliefs,and the custom of tracing the relationship between two parents.And this thesis points out that the Viking Swedish society created a relatively good environment for women to inherit the family property.The second part presents a comprehensive overview of the inheritance situation of women in Viking Sweden.In Sweden,there are two main principles of inheritance: the principle of local place’s inheritance and the principle of lineal inheritance.Based on the principles of Viking Swedish women’s family inheritance,this text captures the basic situation of their inheritance at a macro level,while carrying out a case study and group analysis at a micro level.The third part explores the characteristics of Viking Swedish women’s family inheritance.Based on the overall and case-by-case analysis,it summarizes the quantitative characteristics of the regional distribution of female family inheritance in Viking Sweden from the southwest to the northeast,and describes the characteristics of two types of female inheritance in the region covered in this thesis: single female inheritance and joint female and male inheritance.The fourth part analyzes the impact of female family property inheritance in Viking Sweden.Women inherited the family property,and further accumulating wealth.This become a financial support for them to take part in economic or social activities.Some women were involved in commercial trade;others had an impact on politics directly or indirectly;and still others had a significant cultural influence.From the Swedish inheritance laws written in the Middle Ages,it can be seen that in the Viking patriarchal society,women and men in Sweden were essentially opposed to each other in terms of inheritance of family property.However,the combination of a bitterly cold existence,the Viking Swedish social environment,and the need for family lineage continuity led Swedish men to agree with women on the inheritance of family property.Eventually,the economic status of the local women had been improved,and to some extent,their social status had been raised.