In 1918 he became Professor of Icelandic Language and Literature at the
University of Iceland. He retained this position until his death but was exempted from teaching duties in 1945. From 1931 to 1932 Nordal held the
Charles Eliot Norton professorship at
Harvard University. From 1951 to 1957 he was the Icelandic ambassador in Copenhagen. He was the editor-in-chief of the
Íslenzk fornrit series from 1933 to 1951. In 1965, he coined the word "
tölva" (a
portmanteau made from
tölu-völva / "numerical
oracle") as the Icelandic word for "computer." His
neologism would become the standard word. Some of Sigurður Nordal's most influential works are: •
Völuspá: A treatise on the Eddic poem
Völuspá, regarding the poem as a coherent work by one poet. •
Íslenzk menning ("Icelandic Culture"): Often considered Nordal's greatest work, this book was used as a standard text in Icelandic colleges. •
Hrafnkatla: A treatise on
Hrafnkels saga, aiming to establish that the saga was a fictional work of art. •
Samhengið í íslenzkum bókmenntum ("The Continuity of Icelandic Literature"). •
Fyrirlestrar um íslenzka bókmenntasögu 1350-1750 ("Lectures on the History of Icelandic Literature 1350-1750"): "In the 1920s, there was a rumour that
Kvaran was considered for the Nobel Prize in Literature, but in response Sigurður Nordal disparaged him as overly focused on forgiveness and thus tolerant of things that should rather be opposed; in the spirit of Icelandic nationalism and contemporary interpretations of Nietzsche, he considered the blood feud a better ethical mode." Sigurður Nordal also published three very influential anthologies:
Íslenzk lestrarbók, 1400-1901 (1924),
Íslenzk lestrarbók 1750-1930 (1st ed. 1975) and
Sýnisbók íslenzkra bókmennta til miðrar átjándu aldar (1953), the latter one in collaboration with Guðrún P. Helgadóttir and
Jón Jóhannesson. They deserve mention since they were required reading in Icelandic gymnasia for the better part of a century. ==Notes==