Note to Anon Andr 3VII
[5, 6, 7] hann sjálfr prýðir þjóða ‘he himself adorner of nations’: Kock (NN §1757) would read sjálfr as an indeclinable form modifying the m. acc. sg. noun guð, i.e. as a late equivalent of guð sjálfan. He would likewise read prýðir þjóða as a kenning for God, rather than Andrew, again interpreting the form as acc., which would require further emendation of prýðir to prýði. Kock suggests, further, that frægð is the direct object of bjóðandi in the cl.: sá hann guð sjálfr bjóðandi frægð slík, a late equivalent of sá hann guð sjálfan bjóðanda frægð slíka. Kock’s arguments are not entirely convincing, since he fails to take account of the clear parallelism with st. 1. The epithet prýðir þjóða ‘adorner of nations’ seems appropriate for Andrew, described in st. 1/4 as bjóðandi frið þjóðum ‘offering peace to nations’ (perhaps specifically ‘heathen nations’) (see Fritzner: þjóð 4), a possible allusion to Andrew’s life as a missionary.
References
- Bibliography
- NN = Kock, Ernst Albin. 1923-44. Notationes Norrœnæ: Anteckningar till Edda och skaldediktning. Lunds Universitets årsskrift new ser. 1. 28 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
- Fritzner = Fritzner, Johan. 1883-96. Ordbog over det gamle norske sprog. 3 vols. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske forlagsforening. 4th edn. Rpt. 1973. Oslo etc.: Universitetsforlaget.