[3] hvítum ‘white’: This is m. dat. sg., qualifying hesti ‘horse’, the base-word in the ship-kenning in l. 4, which according to Olsen (Ragn 1906-8, 219) refers to a ship with a white sail. It is perhaps more likely that it refers to the ship’s hull, thought of as coloured like a white (i.e. a grey) horse. On its red-coloured prow, see Note to l. 8 below.