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Jarl was a rank of the nobility in Scandinavia during the Viking Age and Early Middle Ages. The institution evolved over time and varied by region. In Old Norse, it meant "chieftain", specifically one appointed to rule a territory in a king's stead. It could also denote a sovereign prince. For example, during the Viking age, the rulers of several of the petty kingdoms of Norway held the title of jarl, often wielding no less power than their neighboring kings. In later medieval Sweden and Norway, there was typically only one jarl in the kingdom, second in authority only to the king. The title became obsolete in the Middle Ages and was replaced by the rank of duke ( hertig/ hertug/ hertog). The word is etymologically related to the English earl.
Some scholars have suggested that jarl shares a connection with the Old Germanic erilaze.g. Järsberg Runestone (6th century) ek erilaz ... runor waritu... and the Latin heruli or erular, terms that once referred to a Germanic peoples who, according to some scholars, once lived on Danish islands and the Scania region (see Heruli). However, this connection has been dismissed by others.
In Eddic poetry, a jarl is often a free man of good standing, but not necessarily of high office. The concept of the jarl also appears in the poem Rígsþula. According to the myth, the god Ríg fathers three sonsThrall, Karl, and Jarlwho become the ancestors of the social classes: , peasants, and the warrior nobility. Jarl marries Erna, daughter of hersir (local chieftain), and their youngest son is named Konr or Konr ungr (king). Based on Rígsþula, German historian Konrad Maurer traced the concept of jarl back to the legendary Norwegian king Harald Fairhair (c. 850 – c. 932). During those times, jarl would have meant a member of the aristocratic class. This is supported by Old English laws, in which eorl refers to a noble person. However, some scholars date the composition of Rígsþula to 12th century or later, in which case it cannot be considered a good source for a 10th century concept.
During the Merovingian period, jarl developed into an office of independent chieftains. According to the Saga of Harald Fairhair, King Harald set a jarl in each county to collect taxes:
The most powerful of the Norwegian jarls were the jarls of Lade who ruled over Trøndelag and Hålogaland.
In later medieval Norway, the title of jarl was the highest rank below the king. There was usually no more than one jarl in mainland Norway at any one time, and sometimes none. The ruler of the Norwegian dependency of Orkney held the title of jarl, and after Iceland had acknowledged Norwegian overlordship in 1261, a jarl was sent there, as well, as the king's high representative. In mainland Norway, the title of jarl was usually used for one of two purposes:
In 1237, jarl Skule Bårdsson was given the rank of duke (hertug). This was the first time this title had been used in Norway, and meant that the title jarl was no longer the highest rank below the king. It also heralded the introduction of new noble titles from continental Europe, which were to replace the old Norse titles. The last jarl in mainland Norway was appointed in 1295.
The sveajarls of 12th and 13th centuries were powerful men, such as Birger Brosa, Ulf Fase, and Birger Jarl (Magnusson), and often the true rulers of the Swedish kingdom. After the death of Birger Jarl, the title was replaced by that of a duke () in the 13th century. The first duke was Birger Jarl's son Magnus (later known as Ladulås).
The last jarl of Southern Jutland, Canute Lavard (died in 1131), became the first Danish hertug (duke), with the title "Hertug af Slesvig" ("Duke of Schleswig"). Thus the title hertug (duke) came to replace the old Norse title jarl.
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