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The lögsögumaður (pl. lögsögumenn, Old Norse lǫgsǫgumaðr, -menn) was the sole government official of the mediaeval Icelandic Republic. He was elected for a term of three years and was supposed to declaim the law at Alþingi, a third of it each summer. In fact, Grímur Svertingsson's term was cut short, not because of incompetence or illness, but because his voice was too weak for the job. Apart from his function as a lawsayer and chairman of the court, the lögsögumaður had no formal power, but he would often be appointed as an arbitrator in the frequently arising disputes. The office lingered on for a few years in the transitional period after 1262, after which it was replaced with a lögmaður. The traditional date for the founding of Alþingi is 930 with Úlfljótur appearing as a founding figure and the original author of the laws. Scholars are understandably suspicious of the fact, that his first two successors have been assigned a period in office of exactly 20 summers each, but from Þorkell máni on, the chronology is probably correct. Names are given in their modern Icelandic form.
| Lögsögumaður | Term in office |
|---|---|
| Úlfljótur | ca. 930 |
| Hrafn Hængsson | 930-949 |
| Þórarinn Ragabróðir Óleifsson | 950-969 |
| Þorkell máni Þorsteinsson | 970-984 |
| Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði Þorkelsson | 985-1001 |
| Grímur Svertingsson | 1002-1003 |
| Skafti Þóroddsson | 1004-1030 |
| Steinn Þorgestsson | 1031-1033 |
| Þorkell Tjörvason | 1043-1053 |
| Gellir Bölverksson | 1054-1062 |
| Gunnar hinn spaki Þorgrímsson | 1063-1065 |
| Kolbeinn Flosason | 1066-1071 |
| Gellir Bölverksson | 1072-1074 |
| Gunnar hinn spaki Þorgrímsson | 1075 |
| Sighvatur Surtsson | 1076-1083 |
| Markús Skeggjason | 1084-1107 |
| Úlfhéðinn Gunnarsson | 1108-1116 |
| Bergþór Hrafnsson | 1117-1122 |
| Guðmundur Þorgeirsson | 1123-1124 |
| Hrafn Úlfhéðinsson | 1135-1138 |
| Finnur Hallsson | 1139-1145 |
| Gunnar Úlfhéðinsson | 1146-1155 |
| Snorri Húnbogason | 1156-1170 |
| Styrkár Oddason | 1171-1180 |
| Gissur Hallsson | 1181-1202 |
| Hallur Gissurarson | 1203-1209 |
| Styrmir hinn fróði Kárason | 1210-1214 |
| Snorri Sturluson | 1215-1218 |
| Teitur Þorvaldsson | 1219-1221 |
| Snorri Sturluson | 1222-1231 |
| Styrmir hinn fróði Kárason | 1232-1235 |
| Teitur Þorvaldsson | 1236-1247 |
| Ólafur hvítaskáld Þórðarson | 1248-1250 |
| Sturla Þórðarson | 1251 |
| Ólafur hvítaskáld Þórðarson | 1252 |
| Teitur Einarsson | 1253-1258 |
| Ketill Þorláksson | 1259-1262 |
| Þorleifur hreimur Ketilsson | 1263-1265 |
| Sigurður Þorvaldsson | 1266 |
| Jón Einarsson | 1267 |
| Þorleifur hreimur Ketilsson | 1268 |
| Jón Einarsson | 1269-1270 |
| Þorleifur hreimur Ketilsson | 1271 |