Valgerður Erna Þorvaldsdóttir (ed.) 2007, ‘Anonymous Poems, Brúðkaupsvísur 6’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 533-4.
Æstri unni meyju mest
Máríu siðknár,
og mætri sig snót
sjálfan gaf, bóka álmr.
Húfa vandiz hreint líf
halda vel skíð-Baldr
(brúða hiet því brandrjóðr
blóma) með sveindóm.
{Siðknár álmr bóka} unni mest æstri meyju, Máríu, og gaf sjálfan sig mætri snót. {{Húfa skíð}-Baldr} vandiz halda vel hreint líf með sveindóm; {brandrjóðr} hiet {blóma brúða} því.
‘The well-behaved elm-tree of books [MAN] loved most the highest Virgin, Mary, and gave himself to the glorious woman. The Baldr <god> of the plank of hulls [(lit. ‘plank-Baldr of hulls’) SHIPS > SEAFARER] was accustomed to follow fully a chaste life with virginity; the sword-reddener [WARRIOR] promised it to the flower of brides [= Mary].’
Sts 6-7, and to a lesser extent st. 5, suggest that the young man may be a klerkr, although this does not appear to affect his marriageability. Schottmann (1973, 355-6) sees this rather mixed representation of the protagonist as a consequence of the poet’s drawing upon more than one version of the miracle story, but it may rather reflect the uncertain status of marriage, and clerical marriage in particular, in Iceland in the later Middle Ages (Auður Magnúsdóttir 2001). The justification for his eventual reneging on his secular marriage in D turns on the fact that he had dedicated himself to Mary in chastity for his whole life before he entered into a betrothal arrangement with an earthly woman, even though he had not declared this to his family (Mar 1871, 120).
Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.
Æstri unni meyju mest
Máríu siðknár,
og mætri sif snót
sjálfan gaf, bóka álmr.
Húfa vandiz hreint líf
halda vel skíð-Baldr
(brúði hiet því brandrjóðr
blóma) með sveindóm.
Æztri unní meyív mest marív síd knar · ok mætri sífsnot · síalfan gaf boka almur · hufa ⸌⸌vandízt hrei | nt líf · hallda vel skídballdur · brvdí híet ⸌þvi⸍ brandríodur · bloma med sveín dom · |
(VEÞ)
Æstri unni meyju mest
Máríu siðknár,
og mætri sif snót
sjálfan gaf, bóka álmr.
Húfa vandiz hreint líf
halda vel skíð-Baldr
(brúða hiet því brandrjóðr
blóma) með sveindóm.
Æztri unní meyív mest | marív síd knar | ok mætri síf snot | síalfan gaf boka almvr | hrifa vandízt hreint líf | hallda vel skídballdvr | brvdí hiet þvi brandríodvr | bloma med sveíndom. |
(VEÞ)
Æstri unni meyju mest
Máríu siðknár,
og mætri sif snót
sjálfan gaf, bóka álmr.
Húfa vandiz hreint líf
halda vel skíð-Baldr
(brúða hiet því brandrjóðr
blóma) með sveindóm.
Æztri unni meyju mest | Máríu siðknár | ok mætri sif snót | sjálfan gaf bóka álmr | hrífa vandist hreint líf | halda vel skíðbaldr | brúði hꜵt því brandrjóðr | blóma með sveindóm. |
(VEÞ)
Æstri unni meyju mest
Máríu siðknár,
og mætri sig snót
sjálfan gaf, bóka álfr.
Húfa vandiz hreint líf
halda vel skíð-Baldr
(brúða hiet því brandrjóðr
blóma) með sveindóm.
Æztri unni mey mest | Máríu siðknár, | ok og af mætri sik snót | sjálfan gaf bóka álfr | hrífa vandist hreint líf | halda vel skíðbaldr, | brúði hét því brandrjóðr | blóma með sveindóm. |
(VEÞ)
ÍM II, 130.
Use the buttons at the top of the page to navigate between stanzas in a poem.
The text and translation are given here, with buttons to toggle whether the text is shown in the verse order or prose word order. Clicking on indiviudal words gives dictionary links, variant readings, kennings and notes, where relevant.
This is the text of the edition in a similar format to how the edition appears in the printed volumes.
This view is also used for chapters and other text segments. Not all the headings shown are relevant to such sections.