RvHbreiðm Hl 67III/3 — skóðs ‘of the weapon’
Sveinn framði gný grimman
— guðr heitir svá — peitu;
hagl brast skóðs á Skǫglar
— skjǫld nefnik svá — tjaldi.
Sóknbjartar skar snyrtir
— sverð nefnik svá — ferðir;
hringr brá horskra drengja
— hjǫr nefnik svá — fjǫrvi.
Sveinn framði grimman gný peitu; guðr heitir svá; hagl skóðs brast á tjaldi Skǫglar; svá nefnik skjǫld. Snyrtir – svá nefnik sverð – skar sóknbjartar ferðir; hringr – svá nefnik hjǫr – brá fjǫrvi horskra drengja.
Sveinn performed a grim clamour of the spear [BATTLE]; battle is called thus; hail of the weapon [ARROWS] crashed against the tent of Skǫgul <valkyrie> [SHIELD]; thus I name the shield. The polished one – thus I name the sword – cut battle-cheerful companies; the ringed one – thus I name the sword – ended the life of wise warriors.
readings
[3] skóðs: ‘scọ\ḳ/g̣s’ papp25ˣ, ‘scogs’ R683ˣ
notes
[3] skóðs ‘of the weapon’: The readings of both mss can be normalised as skógs (m. gen. sg.) ‘of the forest’ (for that gen. form, see Finnur Jónsson 1901, 9-10), but the form of the word in papp25ˣ (‘scọ\ḳ/g̣s’) shows that Rugman was uncertain of the transcription. Skj B and Skald retain skógs and take it to mean ‘bow’ (see LP: 2. skógr). However, the word is otherwise not attested in that meaning (see the discussion in Hl 1941), and retention of the word also causes the line to have three internal rhymes. Holtsmark (Hl 1941) suggests a tentative emendation to skass ‘troll-woman’ (hagl skass ‘the hail of the troll-woman’, i.e. ‘arrows’), while Jón Helgason (ibid.) supplies skóðs ‘dangerous weapon’ i.e. ‘bow’, which is closer to the ms. reading and preferred in the present edn.
kennings
- hagl skóðs — hail of the weapon [ARROWS]