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Ian Crockatt completed an MLitt in Creative Writing at Aberdeen University in 2010. He is an experienced poet, has been a prize winner in national poetry competitions, and has twice been awarded writer’s bursaries by the Scottish Arts Council. His poem series Original Myths, with etchings by Scottish artist Paul Fleming, was short-listed for the Saltire Society’s Scottish Book of the Year Award in 2000. His latest collection is Skald (Koo Press, 2009), a series of 30 poems using a form derived from Old Norse skaldic poetry of 8th – 12th centuries. He has a selection of translations from Rilke’s poetry due out from Arc Publishing in 2011. His PhD project is titled Poetry, Accuracy and Truth – translating skaldic verse from Orkneyinga Saga.
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Declan Taggart began his PhD at the Centre for Scandinavian Studies in 2010. His project 'Understanding Diversity in Old Norse Religion taking Þórr as a Case Study' focuses on the degree of change and variety in pre-Christian belief, and the consequences for the later production of mythological texts. Prior to his time at the University of Aberdeen, he completed a BA in English Literature at Durham University (2008) where his interest in early Nordic culture prompted further study on an inter-disciplinary MA in Medieval Studies at the University of York (2010).
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Edward Carlsson Browne graduated from Corpus Christi College Cambridge in 2008 with a B. A. in Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic and from University College London in 2009 with an M. A. in Language, Culture and History (Medieval and West Norse), for which he was awarded a Distinction. His previous research has focused on onomastics in Old English royal dynasties; claimants to the throne in 12th century Norway and the expeditions of Magnús berfœttr to the British Isles. For his Ph.D. he is intending to research the role of the half-brothers, step-fathers, foster-fathers and other ‘non-royal kin’ of Norwegian kings in the eleventh and twelfth centuries.
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Lisa Wotherspoon was born and bred in England, and is the first of her immediate family to attend university. She moved to Aberdeen to begin her academic career, graduating with first class honours as an MA in English and Celtic Civilisation. She subsequently undertook an MLitt in Medieval Studies at the University of Aberdeen, culminating in a dissertation exploring the heroic tradition of Beowulf. Her study thus far has led to a growing interest in insular and Scandinavian language and literature, in which areas she hopes to specialise. In particular Lisa is fascinated by the comparative approach, having found the recurrence of similar themes in the literatures of different medieval cultures. She believes that applying the approaches from one field can open up opportunities for further research in another, and as such her thesis will centre on a comparative study of Old Irish and Old Norse literature on the role of status on masculine expression.
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