axel kristinsson's web
I am an independent historian, attached to the Reykjavik Academy, with an interest in macro-history, complexity theory and an evolutionary approach.
Projects
Some projects I have been working on, am presently working on or will (probably) work on in the near future.
Indo-European Expansions
The early spread of the Indo-European languages represents a prehistoric expansion of monumental proportions. The expansion cycle model, developed in my recent book, suggests how the Indo-European expansion might be explained and the evidence from archaeology, linguistics and genetics could be reconciled in a new hypothesis of the Indo-European homeland. A paper on this subject is now practically finished and I'll be looking for a publisher.
Evolution, History and Competition
A paper that discusses how the theories of evolution and complexity can be utilized in the study of history and how this may possibly change the nature of historical study. Based on a lecture held for the Icelandic Science Society (Vísindafélag Íslendinga - Societas Scientiarum Islandica) on March 24th 2011. The paper is in Icelandic. Looking for a publisher.
The Evolution of Inequality
A book-sized project I have been working on, on and off, for about two decades and has metamorphosized several times. It began as a rather traditional study of the survival of the Icelandic aristocracy ca. 1100-1800 AD. In its present form it is more of a study of why most human societies tend to develop upper classes with the aristocracy in Iceland as a case study. As usual, I approach this matter from the standpoint of complexity and evolutionary theory. I am currently rewriting the manuscript for the third (and hopefully last) time.