Iceland, the saga island, lying on the very borders of the unknown, has attracted much attention ever since the time when the enigmatic name Thule was the only knowledge possessed of a land in this distant region of the earth. In modern times commercial intercourse with Iceland has grown rapidly, and numerous travelers are visiting the island because of its literary fame, its picturesque scenery, and the charming hospitality and simple rural life of the people. Numerous books have been written about Iceland, but most of these have been written from the tourist's point of view. But now that Iceland is a sovereign state, the world may want to know something of the history of this island nation living apart within the lonely shadows of the arctic circle. Scarcely anything which could be written about Iceland could be of more real interest than the people's own saga, the story of their national development, their unique political institutions, their social life, their literary achievements, their economic struggles, their patient sufferings, their hard won victories in their distant and inhospitable island kingdom which they have loved so dearly and built so well." - Knut Gjerset, from the Preface.