Viðvík

Viðvík is a farm in Viðvíkursveit on the eastern side of Skagafjörður, Iceland right at the opening of Hjaltadalur valley, and south of Hjaltadalsá river. It was home the area's manor in past centuries.

Description

There has been a church site in Viðvík for a long time; the first mention of the church was in 1189 and Guðmundur "the good" Arason was the home priest there. The parsonage was located there for a time, but now the church is served by priests from Hólar. The current church was built in 1886 and the tower in 1893.
Viðvík was the homestead of Öndóttur who settled Viðvíkursveit, but later, Þorbjörn "the fishhook" Þórðarson, who killed Grettir "the strong" Ásmundarson, lived there. Accordingly, Grettis saga mentions that Þorbjörn moved Grettir's head to his home in Viðvík and preserved it in salt during the winter in a storehouse, which was later called Grettisbúr.
In the Age of the Sturlungs, Þorgils skarði Böðvarsson lived in Viðvík for a time and the land there is often mentioned in the Sturlunga saga including, among other things, the lively social scene of 1255: