Onela

Onela was according to Beowulf a Swedish king, the son of Ongentheow and the brother of Ohthere. He usurped the Swedish throne, but was killed by his nephew Eadgils, who won by hiring foreign assistance. In Scandinavian sagas a Norwegian king by the same name exists, Áli (the Old Norse form of Onela, also rendered as Ole, Åle or Ale), who had the cognomen ("from Oppland"). Etymology The name stems from the Proto-Norse *Anula (diminutive with l-suffix to a name starting with *Anu-, or directly of an appellative , "ancestor"). Beowulf In the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, Onela plays a central part in the Swedish-Geatish wars. Onela and his brother Ohthere were the sons of the Swedish king Ongenþeow. When the Geatish king Hreðel died, Onela and Ohthere saw the opportunity to pillage in Geatland starting the Swedish-Geatish wars: