Þul Sjóvar 1III
Elena Gurevich (ed.) 2017, ‘Anonymous Þulur, Sjóvar 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. 833.
notes
[1] sær, sílægja ‘sea, ever-lying one’: The same pair of heiti from ‘the language of men’ and ‘the language of gods’ opens the list of the sea-names in Alv 24/1-2 (NK 127) Sær heitir með mǫnnom, | enn sílægia með goðom ‘It is called sær among men and sílægja among the gods’, but the latter name is not found elsewhere. Presumably, the word is a euphemism and most likely means ‘one ever-lying still’, from sí- ‘ever’ (intensifying prefix) and the strong verb liggja ‘lie’ (cf. AEW: silægja; Meissner 1924, 136), alternatively interpreted as sil-ægja, from sil ‘slowly flowing water’ and ægir ‘sea’. Cf. also Shetland Norn sjologa ‘mist lying over the sea’ (< *sjá-lægja lit. ‘sea-lying’); however, in compounds sjór/sær never occurs as si-/sí- (see Kommentar III, 352-3).
notes
[1] sær, sílægja ‘sea, ever-lying one’: The same pair of heiti from ‘the language of men’ and ‘the language of gods’ opens the list of the sea-names in Alv 24/1-2 (NK 127) Sær heitir með mǫnnom, | enn sílægia með goðom ‘It is called sær among men and sílægja among the gods’, but the latter name is not found elsewhere. Presumably, the word is a euphemism and most likely means ‘one ever-lying still’, from sí- ‘ever’ (intensifying prefix) and the strong verb liggja ‘lie’ (cf. AEW: silægja; Meissner 1924, 136), alternatively interpreted as sil-ægja, from sil ‘slowly flowing water’ and ægir ‘sea’. Cf. also Shetland Norn sjologa ‘mist lying over the sea’ (< *sjá-lægja lit. ‘sea-lying’); however, in compounds sjór/sær never occurs as si-/sí- (see Kommentar III, 352-3).
salt ‘salt’
(not checked:)
salt (noun n.; °-s): sea, salt
ægir ‘the main’
(not checked:)
Ægir (noun m.): Ægir, sea
notes
[2] ægir (m.) ‘the main’: This heiti for ‘sea’ is also the name of the personification of the sea, the sea-giant Ægir, in Old Norse myth (see Note to st. 4 [All] and Introduction to Þul Waves).
haf ‘ocean’
(not checked:)
haf (noun n.; °-s; *-): sea
lǫgr ‘liquid’
(not checked:)
lǫgr (noun m.; °lagar, dat. legi): sea
notes
[3] sumr (m.) ‘the swim’: A hap. leg. Perhaps from the strong verb svimma ‘swim’ (cf. New Norw. sum ‘swam’, Shetland Norn sum ‘flood, swimming’), or else related to ODan. sum ‘quiet’ (see AEW: sumr; ÍO: sum(u)r 1). If the latter, sumr would mean ‘calm one’ (cf. sílægja ‘ever-lying one’, l. 1 above and the next heiti, lœgir ‘calm one’, derived from the strong verb liggja ‘lie’).
lagastafr ‘waters’ foundation’
(not checked:)
lagastafr (noun m.)
[4] lagastafr: so A, ‘lꜹgr stop’ R, ‘laugr stop’ Tˣ, ‘stop’ C, lagstafr B
notes
[4] lagastafr (m.) ‘waters’ foundation’: In R and Tˣ this obscure cpd is treated as two words, lǫgr and ‘stop’ which must be incorrect, since lagastafr is also known from Alv 24/5 and 32/5 (NK 127, 129), where it is given as a name for both ‘sea’ and ‘barley’ (bygg) in the language of the elves (álfar). This polysemy is difficult to understand, and it has been suggested that the name possibly refers to the components of beer prepared from water and barley, and hence means ‘water/drink-substance’ (from lǫgr ‘liquid’ and stafr ‘substance’; Güntert 1921, 147-8). However, stafr never occurs in this sense. Thus the meaning is perhaps rather ‘liquid-foundation’, referring to the sea as a source of all sorts of water (Grundlage der Flüssigkeiten; see Kommentar III, 353-6 for a detailed discussion of this heiti).
ok ‘and’
(not checked:)
3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
vágr ‘bay’
(not checked:)
vágr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-; -ar): sea, wave
[4] vágr: corrected from vargr above the line Tˣ, vǫgr B
notes
[5] gjallr (m.) ‘clamouring one’: As a term for ‘sea’ the heiti does not occur elsewhere, but it is also mentioned in Þul Skjaldar 2/1 and Þul Sverða 1/6.
gnap ‘towering one’
(not checked:)
gnap (noun n.): towering
[5] gnap: gnap gap A, ‘gna[…] gap’ B, ‘gnap gap’ 744ˣ
geimi ‘extensive one’
(not checked:)
geimi (noun m.): ocean
notes
[6] svífr (m.) ‘rocker’: A hap. leg. derived from the strong verb svífa ‘drift’ (LP: svífr translated as den bølgende ‘the rocking one’).
súgr ‘sucker’
(not checked:)
súgr (noun m.): [sucking]
sog ‘sucking one’
(not checked:)
sog (noun n.; °; sagir): [keels, sea]
[7] sog sami: so C, A, ‘sogsami’ R, Tˣ, ‘sogsa[…]e’ B, ‘sogsame’ 744ˣ
notes
[7] sog, sami ‘sucking one, unchanging one’: So C, A. These heiti are given as one word in mss R and Tˣ and B (744ˣ). For sog n., cf. aðsog and útsog ‘inrush and outsuck of the surf’ (CVC: sog), from the strong verb súga ‘suck’. Sami m. is a hap. leg. which most likely means ‘unchanging one’ (from the adj. samr ‘same’; cf. inn sami ‘the same’).
sami ‘unchanging one’
(not checked:)
2. sami (noun m.)
[7] sog sami: so C, A, ‘sogsami’ R, Tˣ, ‘sogsa[…]e’ B, ‘sogsame’ 744ˣ
notes
[7] sog, sami ‘sucking one, unchanging one’: So C, A. These heiti are given as one word in mss R and Tˣ and B (744ˣ). For sog n., cf. aðsog and útsog ‘inrush and outsuck of the surf’ (CVC: sog), from the strong verb súga ‘suck’. Sami m. is a hap. leg. which most likely means ‘unchanging one’ (from the adj. samr ‘same’; cf. inn sami ‘the same’).
svelgr ‘swallower’
(not checked:)
svelgr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -; dat. -jum): swallower
notes
[8] svelgr (m.) ‘swallower’: Perhaps a whirlpool or current (= rǫst ‘current’; the next heiti), but the word does not occur in poetry as a sea-heiti. See also Þul Sverða 9/6.
rǫst ‘current’
(not checked:)
2. rǫst (noun f.; °; gen. rasta): current
fjǫrðr ‘fjord’
(not checked:)
fjǫrðr (noun m.): fjord
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Stanza/chapter/text segment
Use the buttons at the top of the page to navigate between stanzas in a poem.
Information tab
- text: if the stanza has been published, the edited text of the stanza and translation are here; if it hasn't been published an old edition (usually Skj) is given for reference
- sources: a list of the manuscripts or inscriptions containing this stanza, with page and line references and links (eye button) to images where available, and transcription where available
- readings: a list of variant manuscript readings of words in the main text
- editions and texts: a list of editions of the stanza with links to the bibliography; and a list of prose works in which the stanza occurs, allowing you to navigate within the prose context
- notes and context: notes not linked to individual words are given here, along with the account of the prose context for the stanza, where relevant
Interactive tab
The text and translation are given here, with buttons to toggle whether the text is shown in the verse order or prose word order. Clicking on indiviudal words gives dictionary links, variant readings, kennings and notes, where relevant.
Full text tab
This is the text of the edition in a similar format to how the edition appears in the printed volumes.
Chapter/text segment
This view is also used for chapters and other text segments. Not all the headings shown are relevant to such sections.