**Preface to "Medieval Monasticism in Northern Europe"**

This Special Issue brings together scholars from different fields of medieval studies with the goal to portray current approaches in studies on monastic houses operating in Northern Europe during the Middle Ages. By highlighting Northern Europe specifically, the issue aims to place medieval monasticism in a broader geographical and cultural context as being one of the active agents that formed the Christian worldview of the Middle Ages. The overall ambition of this Special Issue is, at the same time, to emphasize and introduce novel approaches to the reciprocal formation of the pan-European monasticism through its shifting localities and temporality. The book is addressed to scholars working with history of religion, archaeology and related disciplines.

> **Steinunn Kristj´ansd ´ottir** *Editor*
