Diana Whaley (ed.) 2012, ‘Stefnir Þorgilsson, Lausavísur 1’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 448.
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munu (verb): will, must
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3. eigi (adv.): not
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munu (verb): will, must
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3. ei (adv.): not
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mega (verb): may, might
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munu (verb): will, must
[1] Munkat: máka Holm18, ei mun 62, eigi mun Flat
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2. nefna (verb): mention, name, call
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nærr (adv.)
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munu (verb): will, must
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2. stefna (verb): aim, summon
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niðrbjúgr (adj.): [down-curved]
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2. er (conj.): who, which, when
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nef (noun n.; °-s; -, gen. -ja): nose, beak
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sem (conj.): as, which
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níðingr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-; -ar): villian, scoundrel
[4] níðingi ‘the traitor’: The unnamed target of the stanza is Sigvaldi jarl Strút-Haraldsson, one of the leaders of the Jómsvíkingar and present at the famous battle of Hjǫrungavágr (Liavågen), c. 985.
[5] þanns (‘þann er’): ‘þenn er’ FskAˣ, sá er 61, þeim er 53, 54, Bb, 62, Flat
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2. Sveinn (noun m.): Sveinn
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konungr (noun m.; °dat. -i, -s; -ar): king
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svíkja (verb): betray, deceive
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3. ór (prep.): out of
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land (noun n.; °-s; *-): land
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4. en (conj.): than
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tryggr (adj.; °tryggan/tryggvan; compar. -ari/-vari; superl. -jastr/-astr): loyal
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tryggja (verb)
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sonr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. syni; synir, acc. sonu, syni): son
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3. á (prep.): on, at
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1. tál (noun f.; °-ar; -ar): deceit
[8] tálar ‘a trap’: The noun is f. acc. pl. (nom. sg. tôl ‘deceit’); it frequently occurs in the pl. (see LP: tôl).
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ÓTOdd cites the stanza as part of the long-term build-up to the battle of Svǫlðr, in the context of a meeting in which Óláfr Tryggvason accepts an assurance from Sigvaldi jarl of Jómsborg that there is no plan to ambush him. In Fsk too, the setting is the prelude to the battle of Svǫlðr, but the immediate context is the moment when Óláfr Tryggvason finds his ships hemmed in by those of Sigvaldi jarl. In Kristni and ÓT the stanza is spoken when Stefnir has travelled to Rome and back to Denmark following the loss of his liege Óláfr Tryggvason. ÓT specifies that he comes upon Sigvaldi jarl and on seeing him speaks the stanza. Kristni and ÓT follow the stanza by saying that Sigvaldi thought he recognised an allusion to himself in it and had Stefnir executed (solely for that reason, according to ÓT); Kristni adds, svá hefir Ari enn gamli sagt ‘so Ari the Old has said’. In ÓTOdd (Holm18) the retribution is not immediate; Sigvaldi resolves to trap Stefnir, and this leads into the episode containing Stefnir Lv 2.
For the sea-battle at Svǫlðr (c. 1000) and other skaldic poetry associated with it, see the entry on Óláfr Tryggvason in ‘Ruler biographies’ in Introduction to this volume. — In this reading, acc. sg. þanns ‘the one who’ (l. 5) is object of munkat nefna ‘I will not name’ (l. 1). The dat. sg. variant þeim er (normalised þeims) would have níðingi ‘traitor’ (l. 4) as its antecedent, giving a smoother construction in which ll. 2-4 are not intercalated, and qui in the Lat. version gives the same construction (see Note to OSnorr Lv 1 [All]). The intercalary, however, has the fortunate effect of imitating an aside. — [7-8]: Cf. OSnorr Lv 1/7-8 et filium Tryggva | traxit in dolo ‘and drew the son of Tryggvi on treacherously’ (and see Note). Sigvaldi jarl plots with Óláfr’s Norwegian, Danish and Swedish enemies to persuade Óláfr Tryggvason that no forces are gathering against him; as a result Óláfr disbands his army (ÍF 25, 306-11). He is therefore undermanned when battle comes at Svǫlðr.
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