Abstract
In the late sagas of Icelanders, old women are usually portrayed in the role of sorceresses. They are not witches of the fairy tale type - in the sagas, these women do not live in mysterious cottages, but are integrated in the society as mothers or foster-mothers of influential or less influential men, whom they assist by their magic.
Nevertheless, their magic places them on the border between the human world and the supernatural world, and they mediate contact between both worlds. In this context it is noteworthy that their opponents in the stories are outlaws, who are also on the border between the human society and the wilderness.
The chapter deals with the connection between these two types of literary characters and with the significance of the liminal position of the sorceresses for their meaning in the texts.