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Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Þul Øxna 1III

Elena Gurevich (ed.) 2017, ‘Anonymous Þulur, Øxna heiti 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. 885.

Anonymous ÞulurØxna heiti
12

Enn ‘In addition’

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2. enn (adv.): still, yet, again

[1] Enn skal segja: Ek man skýra A, ‘[…]k mun skýra’ B, Ek mun skýra 744ˣ;    Enn: Ek C

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skal ‘I shall’

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skulu (verb): shall, should, must

[1] Enn skal segja: Ek man skýra A, ‘[…]k mun skýra’ B, Ek mun skýra 744ˣ

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segja ‘say’

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segja (verb): say, tell

[1] Enn skal segja: Ek man skýra A, ‘[…]k mun skýra’ B, Ek mun skýra 744ˣ;    segja: telja C

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øxna ‘for oxen’

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oxi (noun m.; °-a; yxn/øxn/oxar): ox

[2] øxna heiti: fyrir skata mengi allramligra yxna heiti A, skata mengi allramligra øxna heiti B;    øxna: yxna C

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heiti ‘names’

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Heiti (noun m.): Heiti

[2] øxna heiti: fyrir skata mengi allramligra yxna heiti A, skata mengi allramligra øxna heiti B

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árvakr ‘alert one’

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2. Árvakr (noun m.): alert one

[3] árvakr: árvǫrðr A, B

notes

[3] árvakr (m.) ‘alert one’: Or ‘one who is awake early’. This heiti is known from other sources as the mythical name of one of the horses of the Sun (see Þul Hesta 3/4 and Note there). As an ox-heiti the name occurs only in the present þula. The A, B variant árvǫrðr ‘early-guardian’ is not attested elsewhere.

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drjóni ‘bellower’

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drjóni (noun m.)

notes

[3] drjóni (m.) ‘bellower’: A hap. leg. This heiti probably means ‘bellower’ (from the same root as OE drēam ‘joy’, OS drōm ‘rejoicing’; so Holthausen 1942, 275; see also AEW: drjóni).

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ok ‘and’

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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also

[4] ok: om.

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jǫrmunrekrjǫrmunrekr

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jǫrmunrekr (noun m.)

notes

[4] jǫrmunrekr: Otherwise the Old Norse name of the Gothic king, Ermanaric the Great (d. 375; see Bragi Rdr 3, Note to [All]). As a heiti for ‘ox’ the word occurs only in the present stanza. The first element in the cpd (jǫrmun-) is an intensifier and the second (-rekr) is either derived from the strong verb reka ‘chase, drive away’ or it is the same as ON rekkr m. ‘man, warrior’ (since the second element in the pers. n. was associated with ‑rekkr ‘man’; see AEW: Jǫrmunr, Jǫrmunrekr). Jǫrmunrekr would then mean either ‘mighty driver’ or ‘mighty warrior’.

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simisimi

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1. simi (noun m.)

[5] simi: ‘sune’ B

notes

[5] simi: An obscure word not found elsewhere. Cf. simir (st. 2/1), simull (st. 2/4) and forsimi (st. 2/6).

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Freyr ‘Freyr’

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Freyr (noun m.): (a god)

notes

[5] Freyr: As an ox-name Freyr is mentioned only in this list. The heiti could reflect the relations between Freyr as the god of fertility and one of the animals dedicated to him (cf. the stories in Víga-Glúms saga ch. 9, ÍF 9, 34 and Brandkrossa þáttr ch. 1, ÍS III, 2102, in which oxen are sacrificed to Freyr; see Turville-Petre 1964, 168).

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Reginn ‘Reginn’

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reginn (noun m.): reginn

notes

[5] Reginn: It is impossible to say whether there is any connection between this ox-heiti and the name of the legendary dwarf and smith Reginn. Alternatively, this word could be interpreted as a m. derivative of ON regin n. pl. ‘gods’, hence possibly ‘potent one’. It is more likely, however, that the original heiti was the ox-name Rekinn ‘driven one’ mentioned in Anon Þorgþ II l. 4 (see Note there; see also rekningr ‘driven one’ in l. 7 below), and that this heiti was confused with the name of the smith Reginn, possibly influenced by the next heiti in this stanza, smiðr ‘smith’ (l. 6).

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smiðr ‘smith’

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smiðr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-; -ar/-ir, acc. -a/-i/-u): smithy, something crafted

notes

[6] smiðr (m.) ‘smith’: In the present þula, this heiti could perhaps mean ‘maker, creator’. As a name for ‘ox’ the word occurs only in this list, but cf. eikismiðr (st. 2/8 below).

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eyþvari ‘island-borer’

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eyþvari (noun m.)

notes

[6] eyþvari (m.) ‘island-borer’: The first element in eyþvari is either ey f. ‘island’ or the adv. ey ‘always, continually’, and the second is þvari m. ‘gimlet, bit, drill’. The cpd is not found elsewhere.

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Rauðr ‘Rauðr’

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Rauðr (noun m.)

notes

[7] Rauðr ok rekningr ‘Rauðr and driven one’: Cf. Rauðs ok … Rekinn in Anon Þorgþ II ll. 3-4 (see Note there). The name Rauðr translates as ‘red one’ (cf. the adj. rauðr ‘red’), and the second heiti, rekningr m. (from the strong verb reka ‘chase, drive away’), is most likely a variant of Rekinn in Anon Þorgþ II (see also Note to Reginn in l. 5 above). None of these heiti for ‘ox’ is known from other sources.

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ok ‘and’

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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also

[7] ok: om.

notes

[7] Rauðr ok rekningr ‘Rauðr and driven one’: Cf. Rauðs ok … Rekinn in Anon Þorgþ II ll. 3-4 (see Note there). The name Rauðr translates as ‘red one’ (cf. the adj. rauðr ‘red’), and the second heiti, rekningr m. (from the strong verb reka ‘chase, drive away’), is most likely a variant of Rekinn in Anon Þorgþ II (see also Note to Reginn in l. 5 above). None of these heiti for ‘ox’ is known from other sources.

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rekningr ‘driven one’

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rekningr (noun m.; °;-ar): sword, driven one

notes

[7] Rauðr ok rekningr ‘Rauðr and driven one’: Cf. Rauðs ok … Rekinn in Anon Þorgþ II ll. 3-4 (see Note there). The name Rauðr translates as ‘red one’ (cf. the adj. rauðr ‘red’), and the second heiti, rekningr m. (from the strong verb reka ‘chase, drive away’), is most likely a variant of Rekinn in Anon Þorgþ II (see also Note to Reginn in l. 5 above). None of these heiti for ‘ox’ is known from other sources.

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ok ‘and’

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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also

[8] ok: om.

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røkkvirøkkvi’

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Rǫkkvi (noun m.): Rǫkkvi < røkkvihliðr (noun m.)

notes

[8] røkkvihliðr (m.): A hap. leg. whose meaning is unclear. It is also possible that we are dealing with two names here, røkkvi m. ‘dark one’ and hliðr ‘ox’ (see the latter word in st. 2/5 below).

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hliðr ‘hliðr

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hliðr (noun m.): [hliðr] < røkkvihliðr (noun m.)

[8] ‑hliðr: ‑liðr C, A, B

notes

[8] røkkvihliðr (m.): A hap. leg. whose meaning is unclear. It is also possible that we are dealing with two names here, røkkvi m. ‘dark one’ and hliðr ‘ox’ (see the latter word in st. 2/5 below).

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viggiviggi

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viggi (noun m.)

[9] viggi: ‘vigi’ B

notes

[9] viggi (m.): Several interpretations of this hap. leg. have been suggested. It could be related to the strong verb vega ‘fight’ (hence, lit. ‘fighter’). See also AEW: vigg. Faulkes (SnE 1998, II, 428) suggests the meaning ‘wedged’, referring to the shape of a bull’s horns, but he provides no explanation in support of that translation. Cf. also vigg ‘horse’ in Þul Hesta 2/7, as well as Note to Anon Þorgþ I 2/1.

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bautuðr ‘striker’

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bautuðr (noun m.)

[9] bautuðr: so B, ‘bꜹrvðr’ R, ‘baurudr’ Tˣ, ‘baurrudr’ C, bautaðr A

notes

[9] bautuðr (m.) ‘striker’: So B (the R, , C variants ‘bꜹrvðr’, ‘baurudr’ and ‘baurruðr’ must have been caused by a scribal error at some point in the ms. transmission). Bautuðr is also listed among the heiti for ‘horse’ in mss A and B (see Note to Þul Hesta 3/7), but the word does not occur elsewhere. According to de Vries (AEW: bauta(ða)rsteinn, bautuðr), this was originally an ox-heiti, since an ox strikes with its horns.

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Vingnis ‘Vingnir’s’

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Vingnir (noun m.; °-s): Vingnir

[10] Vingnis: vingnir A, B

notes

[10] stjóri Vingnis ‘Vingnir’s guide’: The name could allude to a lost legend. Alternatively, Vingnir m. and stjóri m. may be two separate heiti (so mss A and B, and adopted in Skj B and Skald). Vingnir is also a giant’s name, as well as a name for Óðinn and Þórr (Þul Jǫtna I 5/8, Þul Óðins 5/8). As to stjóri ‘leader, guide’, Kock (NN §2158B) argues that, despite possible associations with the weak verb stýra ‘steer, guide’, in the present context the word is a weak form of ON stjórr m. ‘steer, young bull’ (cf. OE steor, Goth. stiur, ModGer. Stier ‘bull’).

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stjóri ‘guide’

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stjóri (noun m.; °-a; -ar): steerer

notes

[10] stjóri Vingnis ‘Vingnir’s guide’: The name could allude to a lost legend. Alternatively, Vingnir m. and stjóri m. may be two separate heiti (so mss A and B, and adopted in Skj B and Skald). Vingnir is also a giant’s name, as well as a name for Óðinn and Þórr (Þul Jǫtna I 5/8, Þul Óðins 5/8). As to stjóri ‘leader, guide’, Kock (NN §2158B) argues that, despite possible associations with the weak verb stýra ‘steer, guide’, in the present context the word is a weak form of ON stjórr m. ‘steer, young bull’ (cf. OE steor, Goth. stiur, ModGer. Stier ‘bull’).

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None of the heiti for ‘oxen’ listed in this stanza is found in poetry and many are not attested elsewhere. — [1-2]: See Introduction above.

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