Óttarr svarti (Ótt)
11th century; volume 1; ed. Matthew Townend;
1. Hǫfuðlausn (Hfl) - 20
2. Knútsdrápa (Knútdr) - 11
3. Lausavísur (Lv) - 3
III. Óláfsdrápa sœnska (Óldr) - 6
The Icelandic poet Óttarr svarti ‘the Black’ (Ótt) was remembered in the twelfth century (ESk Geisl 12) as one of the hǫfuðskǫld ‘chief skalds’ of the late Viking Age. His nickname would seem to locate him within the tradition of poets being ‘dark’ in either appearance or temperament (see Clunies Ross 1978b; Finlay 2000). According to Styrmir Kárason (ÓH 1941, II, 688), the poet Sigvatr Þórðarson (Sigv) was a mikill vinr ‘great friend’ of Óttarr, and indeed Óttarr’s Hǫfuðlausn (Ótt Hfl) is greatly indebted to Sigvatr’s Víkingarvísur (Sigv Víkv, see Introduction to Hfl). Snorri Sturluson (ÍF 27, 144; ÓH 1941, I, 203) further describes Óttarr as Sigvatr’s maternal nephew, and if this is correct he would have been the grandson of Þórðr Sigvaldaskáld ‘Poet of Sigvaldi’ (see Biography of Sigvatr Þórðarson). Óttarr features in the various sagas of Óláfr Haraldsson, but the only major anecdote about him is the story surrounding his Hfl (see Introduction).
Skáldatal, in one or both of its recensions (SnE 1848-87, III, 252, 253, 258, 260, 261, 267, 269), lists Óttarr as having composed for six patrons: the Danes Sveinn tjúguskegg ‘Fork-beard’ Haraldsson and his son Knútr inn ríki Sveinsson (Cnut the Great); Óláfr sœnski ‘the Swede’ Eiríksson and his son Ǫnundr Óláfsson; and the Norwegian King Óláfr inn helgi Haraldsson (S. Óláfr), and the Norwegian magnate Dala-Guðbrandr (‘Guðbrandr of the Dales’, on whom, see ÍF 27, 183-90; ÓH 1941, I, 271-82). For Sveinn and Dala-Guðbrandr, Óttarr is the only poet listed in Skáldatal. Panegyric poetry by Óttarr is certainly extant for three of these patrons: Óláfsdrápa (ÓldrIII) for Óláfr Eiríksson (preserved only in SnE and therefore edited in SkP III), Hfl for Óláfr Haraldsson, and Knútsdrápa (Knútdr) and Lv 2 for Knútr. It has, moreover, been suggested that one stanza in Knútdr may have been misplaced from an earlier poem for Sveinn (see Note to st. 9 [All]). No poetry survives for Ǫnundr or Dala-Guðbrandr. From all the evidence, it is likely that Óttarr visited, and composed, for, his patrons in this order: Sveinn until his death in 1014; Óláfr Eiríksson until his death c. 1021 (though ÓHLeg 1982, 130-1, has Óttarr, a young man fresh from Iceland, approaching him as his first patron), then his son Ǫnundr; Óláfr Haraldsson in the early 1020s, and Dala-Guðbrandr in the same period; Knútr by c. 1027 for an unknown period (Knútr died in 1035). For previous discussions of Óttarr’s career, see SnE 1848-87, III, 326-33, LH I, 574-7 and Poole (1993b).
|
Hǫfuðlausn (‘Head-ransom’)
—
Ótt HflI
Matthew Townend 2012, ‘(Introduction to) Óttarr svarti, Hǫfuðlausn’ 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. 739.
stanzas: 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Skj: Óttarr svarti: 2. Hǫfuðlausn, o. 1023 (AI, 290-6, BI, 268-72); stanzas (if different): 5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
13 |
14 |
15 |
16 |
17 |
18 |
19 |
20
SkP info: I, 763 |
old edition
introduction
edition
manuscripts
transcriptions
concordance
search
files
| 18 — Ótt Hfl 18I
edition
interactive
full text
transcriptions
old edition
references concordance
Cite as: Matthew Townend (ed.) 2012, ‘Óttarr svarti, Hǫfuðlausn 18’ 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. 763.
Braut hafið, bǫðvar þreytir, branda rjóðr, ór landi — meir fannsk þinn an þeira þrekr — dǫglinga rekna. Stǫkk, sem þjóð of þekkir, þér hverr konungr ferri; heptuð ér en eptir orðreyr, þess’s sat norðast.
Braut hafið, bǫðvar þreytir, branda rjóðr, ór landi — meir fannsk þinn an þeira þrekr — dǫglinga rekna. Stǫkk, sem þjóð of þekkir, þér hverr konungr ferri; heptuð ér en eptir orðreyr, þess’s sat norðast.
Þreytir bǫðvar, rjóðr branda, hafið rekna dǫglinga braut ór landi; þrekr þinn fannsk meir an þeira. Hverr konungr stǫkk ferri þér, sem þjóð of þekkir; en eptir heptuð ér orðreyr, þess’s sat norðast.
|
text
prose order
{Wager of battle}, [WARRIOR] {reddener of swords}, [WARRIOR] you have driven the rulers away from the land; your courage was more in evidence than theirs. Each king fled far from you, as the people know; afterwards you restrained {the word-reed} [TONGUE] of the one who dwelt furthest north. |
context: See Context to st. 17 above.
texts: ‹Flat 473›,
‹ÓH 65 (63)›,
‹ÓHHkr 60 (II 60)›,
‹Hkr 261 (II 60)› editions: Skj Óttarr svarti: 2. Hǫfuðlausn 17 (AI, 295; BI, 271-2); Skald I, 139, NN §§620, 731, 732, 1417D, 1853A; Hkr 1893-1901, II, 130-1, IV, 129, ÍF 27, 106 (ÓHHkr ch. 75); ÓH 1941, I, 155 (ch. 58), Flat 1860-8, II, 67.
sources
AM 36 folx (Kx) |
281v, 16 - 281v, 23 |
(Hkr) |
 |
 |
| |
Holm perg 1 fol (Bb) |
146rb, 33 - 146va, 33 |
(Hkr) |
|
 |
| |
Holm perg 9 II fol (J) |
2ra, 1 - 2ra, 1 [8-8] |
(Hkr) |
|
|
| |
AM 38 folx (J2x) |
149v, 14 - 149v, 21 |
(Hkr) |
|
 |
| |
Holm perg 2 4° (Holm2) |
20r, 9 - 20r, 12 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
AM 325 V 4° (325V) |
26ra, 21 - 26ra, 26 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
AM 75 a fol (75a) |
12va, 23 - 12va, 23 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
AM 73 a folx (73ax) |
52r, 15 - 52r, 15 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
AM 68 fol (68) |
19r, 31 - 19r, 31 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
AM 61 fol (61) |
90rb, 18 - 90rb, 21 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
Holm perg 4 4° (Holm4) |
11va, 6 - 11va, 10 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
AM 325 VII 4° (325VII) |
9r, 32 - 9r, 34 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
GKS 1005 fol (Flat) |
86vb, 24 - 86vb, 27 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
GKS 1008 fol (Tóm) |
108r, 35 - 108r, 35 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
AM 321 4°x (321x) |
79, 22 - 79, 24 |
(ÓH) |
 |
|
| |
AM 761 b 4°x (761bx) |
272r, 1 - 272r, 8 |
|
|
 |
| |
Holm papp 20 I 4°x (papp20 Ix) |
2ra, 1 - 2ra, 1 |
(HjǪ) |
|
|
| |
Thott 972 folx (972x) |
141va, 15 - 141va, 22 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
UppsUB R 686x (R686x) |
40r, 7 - 40r, 11 |
(ÓH) |
|
 |
| |
|
|