Edward Oswald Gabriel Turville-Petre (25 March 1908 – 17 February 1978) was an English philologist who specialized in Old Norse studies. Born at Bosworth Hall, Leicestershire to a prominent Roman Catholic family, Turville-Petre was educated in English at the University of Oxford under the tutelage of J. R. R. Tolkien. He eventually became Professor of Ancient Icelandic Literature and Antiquities at the University of Oxford and a leading member of the Viking Society for Northern Research. He was the husband of fellow philologist Joan Turville-Petre, who was a scholar of Anglo-Saxon and Old Norse studies at Oxford. Turville-Petre was the author of numerous works on Old Norse literature and religion which have remained influential up to the present day. Early life Gabriel Turville-Petre was born at his family's ancestral home of Bosworth Hall, Husbands Bosworth, Leicestershire on 25 March 1908. He was the youngest of the five children of Lieutenant-Colonel Oswald Henry Philip Turville-Petre (1862–1941) and Margaret Lucy Cave (1875–1954). The family belonged to the Roman Catholic landed gentry of England and his father was sheriff of Leicestershire in 1912–13. His elder brother was the archaeologist Francis Turville-Petre. Turville-Petre received a traditional Catholic upbringing. As a child, he developed a strong interest in Iceland and its people which he would retain throughout his life. Education Turville-Petre was educated at Ampleforth College and entered Christ Church, Oxford University, in 1926, taking a Third in 1930. He studied for a B.Litt in English from 1931 to 1934 and was supervised by J. R. R. Tolkien, graduating in 1936. Along with Alan S. C. Ross, he was strongly influenced by Charles Leslie Wrenn. Turville-Petre made his first of many visits to Iceland as an undergraduate in 1931. He spent much time on the remote farms in the northern and eastern parts of the island, and developed a strong fascination with the traditional way of life of the Icelanders. During his studies, Turville-Petre also travelled to Scandinavia and Germany, where he befriended many influential scholars of Old Norse studies. Þórbergur Þórðarson was among his most important teachers. Throughout his career, he would make many visits to Scandinavia, particularly to Uppsala and Odense. Turville-Petre became fluent in Icelandic, Faroese, Norwegian, Swedish and German, and was also proficient in French. During his studies, he also acquired proficiency in Irish and Welsh, which enabled him to study Celtic literature. His knowledge of Celtic literature would prove indispensable