Oddi at Rangárvellir was a center of learning in South Iceland during the Middle Ages.
For centuries it was the central home of the powerful family, Oddaverjar. The two best known leaders in Oddi were Sæmundur Sigfússon the Learned (1056-1133) and his grandson Jón Loftsson (1124-1197). The famous historian Snorri Sturluson (1178-1241) was brought up and educated in Oddi by Jón Loftsson. It has been suggested that the name of the Edda is derived from Oddi.1
