biærköærætter (OSw) bjarkeyjarréttr (ON) bjarkeræt (ODan) noun

A general name for town or municipal laws during the Middle Ages in the North, particularly in Norway and Sweden. It has been speculated that the name likely derived from a lost set of laws from a particular Bjarkey (‘birch island’), one candidate being Birka in Lake Mälaren. Two of the most cited bjarkeyjarréttir are the so-called ‘Elder Bjarkey Law’ for Trondheim/Niðarós and the ‘Younger Bjarkey Law’ for Bergen and subsequently other Norwegian towns.

Bjarkey law OIce Grg Misc 248
ONorw FrL Rgb 32
town law ODan SkBL
OSw BjR Refs:

CV s.v. bjarkey-; Fritzner; GAO s.v. Bjarkörecht; Hagland & Sandnes 1997:XII; Hertzberg; KLNM s.v. bjärköarätt; LexMA s.v. Björkö, Ding; ONP