Note to Anon Mv I 11VII
[7] tíðum (adv.) ‘frequently’: The ms. reading -tíðin (f. nom. sg.) ‘the time’ makes little sense (manntíðin ‘the man-time’). Skj B gives no translation (Finnur merely notes that the l. is incomprehensible). Kock emends to manntíðni (NN §1683) or mantíðni (NN §2865; so also Wrightson) which he translates as omtyckthet hos människorna ‘the reputation among men’ and en kvinnas omtyckthet ‘the reputation of a woman’ respectively. According to that interpretation, the cl. reads as follows: ‘that harms the reputation among men’ or ‘that harms the reputation of a woman’. However, a noun tíðni (f. dat. sg.?) ‘esteem’ is unattested. While it is certainly true that one would lose esteem by admitting to murder, it is more reasonable to assume that a person will be harmed by readily confessing to an accusation. In this case, the admission of the woman leads to the subsequent charges of murder and the punishment of being burned alive. For the use of the acc. case with meina ‘harm’, see NS §102 d, Anm.
References
- Bibliography
- Skj B = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15b. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. B: Rettet tekst. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1973. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
- NN = Kock, Ernst Albin. 1923-44. Notationes Norrœnæ: Anteckningar till Edda och skaldediktning. Lunds Universitets årsskrift new ser. 1. 28 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
- NS = Nygaard, Marius. 1906. Norrøn syntax. Kristiania (Oslo): Aschehoug. Rpt. 1966.