an unusual one and there would appear to be a connection with this name and the early roots of the modern French name "Louis". Rule Sigurd was in the fortunate position that on his accession to the earldom there seem to have been no other serious contenders. In this respect his rule was unlike that of the earlier generation of the sons of Earl Thorfinn and of the next generation in that it avoided the bitter feuding that beset the earldom during both of those periods. Sigurd's great-grandfather, Torf-Einarr, lost the udal rights of the Orkney and Shetland farmers as part of a deal he brokered with the Norwegian crown. These rights were restored by Sigurd. The Burray hoard of silver ring-money has been dated to the period 997–1010, during Earl Sigurd's reign. Mainland Scotland Sigurd's domain included not just Orkney itself but also Shetland, which formed part of the earldom and also extensive lands on mainland Scotland. For the latter his overlords were the Kings of Scotland rather than of Norway. The extent of these mainland dominions is uncertain. According to the rather dubious source, Njal's Saga, they included Ross, Moray, Sutherland and the Dales. At the time Moray would have included districts on the west coast including Lochaber. Smyth (1984) notes the density of dalr placenames on Scotland's west coast and it has even been suggested that "the Dales" is a reference to Dalriada, although it is more likely that it means Caithness.Smyth (1984) p. 150 During Sigurd's tenure the earldom approached its high point and his influence was perhaps only exceeded by that of his son Thorfinn. Sigurd's uncle Ljot had been killed in war against the Scots, and Sigurd soon faced trouble from his southern neighbours. According to the Orkneyinga saga "Earl Finnleik" (Findláech of Moray) led an army against him which outnumbered Sigurd's forces by seven to one. The saga then records Sigurd's mother's reply when he went to her for advice: The Raven banner worked just as Sigurd's mother said: he was victorious but three standard-bearers in succession were killed. A battle was fought between Norwegian forces and Malcolm II of Scotland at Mortlach c. 1005 which may have involved or been led by Sigurd. Although victory went to the Scots, the Norwegians had clearly spent some considerable time encamped in Moray and came equipped with a large fleet. However, Orcadian influence in this