title: "Pur sarripu pursa trutin": monster-fighting and medicine in early medieval Scandinavia.
abstract: This paper seeks evidence among our extensive Scandinavian mythological texts for an area which they seldom discuss explicitly: the conceptualisation and handling of illness and healing. Its core evidence is two runic texts (the Canterbury Rune-Charm and the Sigtuna Amulet) which conceptualise illness as a "purs" ("ogre, monster"). The article discusses the semantics of "purs," arguing that illness and supernatural beings could be conceptualised as identical in medieval Scandinavia. This provides a basis for arguing that myths in which gods and heroes fight monsters provided a paradigm for the struggle with illness.
authors.affiliation: Univ. of Leeds
authors.forename: Alaric
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hall
mesh_terms: D009008:Abnormalities, Severe Teratoid / Q000208:ethnology / Q000266:history / Q000523:psychology; D000884:Anthropology, Cultural / Q000193:education / Q000266:history; D029221:Faith Healing / Q000193:education / Q000266:history / Q000523:psychology; D006666:History of Medicine; D049691:History, Medieval; D055809:Illness Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D007802:Language; D008092:Literature, Medieval / Q000266:history; D008519:Medicine, Traditional / Q000266:history; D009014:Morals; D009229:Mythology / Q000523:psychology; D012067:Religion / Q000266:history; D012537:Scandinavian and Nordic Countries / Q000208:ethnology; D012924:Social Conditions / Q000266:history