Note to Anon Nkt 8II
[7, 8] einkadóttir ǫðlings ‘the only daughter of the chieftain [Loptr] <= Loki> [= Hel (hel ‘death’)]’: This must be a kenning for Hel ‘death’, Loki’s daughter, but the construction is obscure. In the present edn einkadóttir ǫðlings is treated as an ofljóst ‘too transparent’ construction: the chieftain alluded to must be Loptr Sæmundarson, Jón Loptsson’s father, as Loptr is another name for Loki (see LP: Loptr). Skj B replaces lofðung ‘lord’ (l. 5) with Loka and reads áðr Loka | lífi at ræna | ǫðlings kom | einkadóttir ‘before Loki’s only daughter came to steal the chieftain’s life’. Loka makes the l. unmetrical, however. Kock emends ǫðlings to the otherwise unattested andljúgs ‘the one who lies in return’ (NN §2272) or andstyggs ‘the evil one’ (NN §2119), i.e. ‘Loki’.
References
- Bibliography
- Skj B = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15b. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. B: Rettet tekst. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1973. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
- NN = Kock, Ernst Albin. 1923-44. Notationes Norrœnæ: Anteckningar till Edda och skaldediktning. Lunds Universitets årsskrift new ser. 1. 28 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
- LP = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1931. Lexicon poeticum antiquæ linguæ septentrionalis: Ordbog over det norsk-islandske skjaldesprog oprindelig forfattet af Sveinbjörn Egilsson. 2nd edn. Copenhagen: Møller.