Gizurr svarti (gullbrárskáld) (Gizsv)

11th century; volume 1; ed. Diana Whaley;

Lausavísa (Lv) - 1

III. Fragment (Frag) - 1

It is not certain whether Gizurr svarti ‘the Black’ (Gizsv) is the same man as Gizurr gullbrá(r) (‘Gold-eyelash’) or gullbrárskáld (‘Gold-eyelash’s poet’) or Gullbrárfóstri (‘Foster-kinsman of Gullbrá’, Flat 1860-8, II, 226). Skáldatal in the 761aˣ redaction (SnE 1848-87, III, 252, 253) lists Gizurr svarti as poet to Óláfr sœnski ‘the Swede’ Eiríksson and Gizurr Gullbrá as poet to Óláfr inn helgi Haraldsson (S. Óláfr), while the U redaction (ibid., 261 and n. 2) lists ‘Gizurr gullbr.’ under Óláfr Tryggvason, which has been taken as an error. A helmingr preserved in SnE and edited in SkP III (Gizsv Frag^III) is attributed merely to ‘Gizurr’ and celebrates ‘Óláfr’, which does not help to disentangle the Óláfrs but may suggest that there is only one Gizurr, and this is supported by the fact that Gizurr svarti in ÓHLeg equates with Gizurr gullbrár elsewhere, and that the chronology is compatible. Gizurr gullbrá is introduced in ÓHHkr (ÍF 27, 358) as the foster-father of Hofgarða-Refr, which, as Finnur Jónsson mentions (LH I, 567), would make him a man of at least fifty when he followed King Óláfr Haraldsson to Garðaríki (Russia) in the late 1020s (Flat 1860-8, II, 315) and fought for him at Stiklastaðir (Stiklestad) in 1030. Gizurr’s death in the battle is mentioned along with that of his fellow skald Þorfinnr munnr (ÓHHkr, ÍF 27, 381), and his heroic defence is commemorated in Refr Giz 1^III.