Thorstein the Red or Thorstein Olafsson was a
viking chieftain who flourished in late ninth-century
Scotland.
Biography
He was born around 850 AD and was the son of
Olaf the White,
King of Dublin, and
Aud the Deep-minded, who was the daughter of
Ketil Flatnose.[1] After the death of Olaf, Aud and Thorstein went to live in the
Hebrides, then under Ketil's rule.[2]
Thorstein eventually became a warlord and allied with the
Jarl of Orkney,
Sigurd Eysteinsson.[1] Together Thorstein and Sigurd waged a series of campaigns in
Caithness,
Sutherland,
Ross,
Moray, and a number of other regions, eventually receiving tribute from half of
Scotland.[3] However, the Scottish chieftains plotted against Thorstein, and he was killed; the exact nature of his death is unknown but it probably took place around 880 or 890. After Thorstein's death Aud left Caithness, sojourning for a while in
Orkney before settling with other members of her clan in
Iceland.[4]
Thorstein married
Thurid, the daughter of
Eyvind the Easterner. Thorstein and Thurid had a son,
Olaf Feilan, and a number of daughters, including Groa, Thorgerd, Olof, Osk, Thorhild, and Vigdis.[5]
A woman named Unn, wife of
Thorolf Mostur-beard, claimed to be the daughter of Thorstein, but this claim was viewed by other Icelanders with scepticism.[6]