Note to Sturl Hrafn 7^II

[8] dalreyðar ‘of the valley-char’: Reyðr ‘char’ (Salvelinus alpinus), a fish of the salmon species (ModIcel. reyður, ModNorw røye). This cpd occurs in Anon (Sǫrl) l. 5^VIII, which is composed in Haðarlag metre as well. See also ESk Øxfl 1^III and ÞBrún Lv 4^V. Reyðr is also a whale (see Note to Steinn Óldr 11/7), but it appears that the word originally denoted ‘char’, because it was borrowed into Saami (rav’do ‘char’) from Proto Scandinavian (*rauðiō) in that sense (see Nielsen 1908, 228). In LP: reyðr 2, both ‘whale’ and ‘char’ are listed as possible meanings of the word in the present kenning, while Meissner (p. 109; so also Konráð Gíslason 1895-7, I, 96) takes it in the sense ‘char’. That interpretation is more likely, because the kenning clearly imitates such circumlocutions for ‘snake’ as attested in dalmiskunn fiska, i.e. miskunn dalfiska ‘the mercy of the valley-fish’ [SNAKE > SUMMER], Egill Lv 8/4^V. In general, if reyðr is excluded from the list, fish-names are far more common than whale-names in snake-kennings (see Meissner 112-13). See also Note to Sturl Hákfl 2/1.

References

1. Bibliography
2. Meissner = Meissner, Rudolf. 1921. Die Kenningar der Skalden: Ein Beitrag zur skaldischen Poetik. Rheinische Beiträge und Hülfsbücher zur germanischen Philologie und Volkskunde 1. Bonn and Leipzig: Schroeder. Rpt. 1984. Hildesheim etc.: Olms.
3. 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.
4. Konráð Gíslason. 1895-7. Efterladte skrifter. 2 vols. I: Forelæsninger over oldnordiske skjaldekvad. II: Forelæsninger og videnskablige afhandlinger. Copenhagen: Gyldendal.
5. Nielsen, Konrad. 1908. ‘En gruppe urnordiske laanord i lappisk’. In Sproglige og historiske afhandlinger viede Sophus Bugges minde, 225-31. Kristiania (Oslo): Aschehoug.
6. Internal references
7. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2017, ‘Einarr Skúlason, Øxarflokkr 1’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 141.
8. Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2022, ‘Egils saga Skalla-Grímssonar 12 (Egill Skallagrímsson, Lausavísur 8)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross, Kari Ellen Gade and Tarrin Wills (eds), Poetry in Sagas of Icelanders. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 5. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 185.
9. Rory McTurk (forthcoming), ‘ Anonymous, Sǫrlastikki’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=3124> (accessed 24 April 2024)
10. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Steinn Herdísarson, Óláfsdrápa 11’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 376-7.
11. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Sturla Þórðarson, Hákonarflokkr 2’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 747.
12. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2022, ‘Heiðarvíga saga 8 (Þorbjǫrn Brúnason, Lausavísur 4)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross, Kari Ellen Gade and Tarrin Wills (eds), Poetry in Sagas of Icelanders. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 5. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 994.
13. Not published: do not cite ()