Þul Á 6III
Elena Gurevich (ed.) 2017, ‘Anonymous Þulur, Á heiti 6’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 850.
Nyt ‘Nyt’
[1] Nyt: nit Tˣ
notes
[1, 2] Nyt ... Nǫt: The same pair of alliterating names is found in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33) and Grí 28/4 (NK 63) Nyt oc Nǫt lit. ‘profit and wet one’. Finnur Jónsson (1933-4, 263) argues that the river-name Nyt is the same as ON nyt f. ‘use, enjoyment, produce’, and hence the implied meaning of this heiti might be ‘one rich in fish’. Such river-names as ModSwed. Nytteström may, according to Hale (1983, 177-8), support this interpretation. ON nyt f. also means ‘milk’, however, and it is possible that the river-name Nyt could refer to the colour of the water (Hale loc. cit. mentions Mjølkeelven lit. ‘milk river’ in Norway). For Nǫt, cf. ModSwed. Naten, a lake in Södermanland, and OS nat, OHG naz ‘wet’, Goth. ganatjan ‘to wet’, Sanskrit nadi ‘river’ (AEW: nǫt 2). According to Finnur Jónsson (1933-4, 263), Nǫt might mean ‘shaking one’. Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 199) connect it with the spear-heiti nǫt (see Þul Spjóts l. 1) and interpret this river-name as ‘stinging or burning one’ (see also Hale 1983, 178). These and other mythical names recorded in ll. 1-2 are names of rivers flowing from the spring Hvergelmir.
Hrǫnn ‘Hrǫnn’
(not checked:)
hrǫnn (noun f.; °; dat. -um): wave
notes
[1] Hrǫnn: See Note to st. 4/1 above.
ok ‘and’
(not checked:)
3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
nauð ‘need’
(not checked:)
nauð (noun f.; need, distress)
notes
[1] nauð (f.) ‘need’: Or ‘necessity’. This river-heiti is not known from other sources.
notes
[1, 2] Nyt ... Nǫt: The same pair of alliterating names is found in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33) and Grí 28/4 (NK 63) Nyt oc Nǫt lit. ‘profit and wet one’. Finnur Jónsson (1933-4, 263) argues that the river-name Nyt is the same as ON nyt f. ‘use, enjoyment, produce’, and hence the implied meaning of this heiti might be ‘one rich in fish’. Such river-names as ModSwed. Nytteström may, according to Hale (1983, 177-8), support this interpretation. ON nyt f. also means ‘milk’, however, and it is possible that the river-name Nyt could refer to the colour of the water (Hale loc. cit. mentions Mjølkeelven lit. ‘milk river’ in Norway). For Nǫt, cf. ModSwed. Naten, a lake in Södermanland, and OS nat, OHG naz ‘wet’, Goth. ganatjan ‘to wet’, Sanskrit nadi ‘river’ (AEW: nǫt 2). According to Finnur Jónsson (1933-4, 263), Nǫt might mean ‘shaking one’. Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 199) connect it with the spear-heiti nǫt (see Þul Spjóts l. 1) and interpret this river-name as ‘stinging or burning one’ (see also Hale 1983, 178). These and other mythical names recorded in ll. 1-2 are names of rivers flowing from the spring Hvergelmir.
Slíðr ‘Slíðr’
(not checked:)
Slíðr (noun f.)
notes
[2] Slíðr ok Hríð ‘Slíðr and Hríð’: Lit. ‘fearful one and storm’. The first name also occurs as f. Slíð, which agrees better with the other heiti for ‘river’, since most of them are in the f. Cf. Slíð oc Hríð in Grí 28/6 (NK 63), but Slíðr oc Hríð in Gylf (SnE 2005, 9) and Slíðr in Vsp 36/4 (NK 8). See also CVC 780.
notes
[2] Slíðr ok Hríð ‘Slíðr and Hríð’: Lit. ‘fearful one and storm’. The first name also occurs as f. Slíð, which agrees better with the other heiti for ‘river’, since most of them are in the f. Cf. Slíð oc Hríð in Grí 28/6 (NK 63), but Slíðr oc Hríð in Gylf (SnE 2005, 9) and Slíðr in Vsp 36/4 (NK 8). See also CVC 780.
Hríð ‘Hríð’
(not checked:)
hríð (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): time, storm
[2] ok Hríð: ‘[…]rid’ B, ‘hrid’ 744ˣ
notes
[2] Slíðr ok Hríð ‘Slíðr and Hríð’: Lit. ‘fearful one and storm’. The first name also occurs as f. Slíð, which agrees better with the other heiti for ‘river’, since most of them are in the f. Cf. Slíð oc Hríð in Grí 28/6 (NK 63), but Slíðr oc Hríð in Gylf (SnE 2005, 9) and Slíðr in Vsp 36/4 (NK 8). See also CVC 780.
Kǫrmt ‘Kǫrmt’
(not checked:)
Kǫrmt (noun f.): [Karmøy]
[3] Kǫrmt: ‘kaurm’ Tˣ, ‘k[…]mt’ B, ‘ko᷎rmt’ 744ˣ
notes
[3-4] Kǫrmt … ok Ǫrmt, tvær Kerlaugar ‘Kǫrmt … and Ǫrmt, two Kerlaugar’: Cf. Grí 29/1-2 (NK 63) Kǫrmt oc Ǫrmt | oc Kerlaugar tvær (also cited in Gylf, SnE 2005, 17). According to Grí 29/3-6, these are the rivers Þórr crosses on his way to the legal assembly at the ash Yggdrasill. Kǫrmt is also an island in Rogaland, Norway (Karmøy; see Þul Eyja 3/2), but it is uncertain whether there is any connection between that island and the river-heiti. According to Olsen (1925), the pair Kǫrmt ok Ǫrmt is most likely to be derived from karmr and armr, which are terms for ‘pen in a sheep-fold’, denoting two parallel parts of a sheep-fold (the same as fjárhúskró or kró í fjárhúsi ‘corner in a cowshed/sheep cote’). He suggests that, as names for rivers, they have their origin in the myth about Þórr’s encounter with the daughters of the giant Geirrøðr in a goat-shed (see SnE 1998, I, 25). There have also been other attempts to explain the name Ǫrmt. According to Cleasby and Vigfusson (CVC 780), this could be the river Armet in Scotland, while Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 200) argue that the possible sense of the name is in arme sich teilend, ein delta bildend ‘dividing itself into armlets, forming a delta’ (from armr ‘arm’). The name Kerlaug (here f. nom. pl. Kerlaugar) translates as ‘tub-washing’.
notes
[3] Leiptr (f.): Lit. ‘lightning’. The name might refer either to the movement or to the glow of the river (S-G I, 199). This is one of the mythical rivers that flow from the spring Hvergelmir (Grí 28/10; Gylf, SnE 2005, 9). Cf. also HHund II 31/6 where Leiptr is a river where oaths are sworn.
notes
[3-4] Kǫrmt … ok Ǫrmt, tvær Kerlaugar ‘Kǫrmt … and Ǫrmt, two Kerlaugar’: Cf. Grí 29/1-2 (NK 63) Kǫrmt oc Ǫrmt | oc Kerlaugar tvær (also cited in Gylf, SnE 2005, 17). According to Grí 29/3-6, these are the rivers Þórr crosses on his way to the legal assembly at the ash Yggdrasill. Kǫrmt is also an island in Rogaland, Norway (Karmøy; see Þul Eyja 3/2), but it is uncertain whether there is any connection between that island and the river-heiti. According to Olsen (1925), the pair Kǫrmt ok Ǫrmt is most likely to be derived from karmr and armr, which are terms for ‘pen in a sheep-fold’, denoting two parallel parts of a sheep-fold (the same as fjárhúskró or kró í fjárhúsi ‘corner in a cowshed/sheep cote’). He suggests that, as names for rivers, they have their origin in the myth about Þórr’s encounter with the daughters of the giant Geirrøðr in a goat-shed (see SnE 1998, I, 25). There have also been other attempts to explain the name Ǫrmt. According to Cleasby and Vigfusson (CVC 780), this could be the river Armet in Scotland, while Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 200) argue that the possible sense of the name is in arme sich teilend, ein delta bildend ‘dividing itself into armlets, forming a delta’ (from armr ‘arm’). The name Kerlaug (here f. nom. pl. Kerlaugar) translates as ‘tub-washing’.
notes
[3-4] Kǫrmt … ok Ǫrmt, tvær Kerlaugar ‘Kǫrmt … and Ǫrmt, two Kerlaugar’: Cf. Grí 29/1-2 (NK 63) Kǫrmt oc Ǫrmt | oc Kerlaugar tvær (also cited in Gylf, SnE 2005, 17). According to Grí 29/3-6, these are the rivers Þórr crosses on his way to the legal assembly at the ash Yggdrasill. Kǫrmt is also an island in Rogaland, Norway (Karmøy; see Þul Eyja 3/2), but it is uncertain whether there is any connection between that island and the river-heiti. According to Olsen (1925), the pair Kǫrmt ok Ǫrmt is most likely to be derived from karmr and armr, which are terms for ‘pen in a sheep-fold’, denoting two parallel parts of a sheep-fold (the same as fjárhúskró or kró í fjárhúsi ‘corner in a cowshed/sheep cote’). He suggests that, as names for rivers, they have their origin in the myth about Þórr’s encounter with the daughters of the giant Geirrøðr in a goat-shed (see SnE 1998, I, 25). There have also been other attempts to explain the name Ǫrmt. According to Cleasby and Vigfusson (CVC 780), this could be the river Armet in Scotland, while Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 200) argue that the possible sense of the name is in arme sich teilend, ein delta bildend ‘dividing itself into armlets, forming a delta’ (from armr ‘arm’). The name Kerlaug (here f. nom. pl. Kerlaugar) translates as ‘tub-washing’.
Kerlaugar ‘Kerlaugar’
(not checked:)
kerlaug (noun f.): [cup-liquid]
[4] Kerlaugar: ‘[…]ar’ B, ‘kerlaugar’ 744ˣ
notes
[3-4] Kǫrmt … ok Ǫrmt, tvær Kerlaugar ‘Kǫrmt … and Ǫrmt, two Kerlaugar’: Cf. Grí 29/1-2 (NK 63) Kǫrmt oc Ǫrmt | oc Kerlaugar tvær (also cited in Gylf, SnE 2005, 17). According to Grí 29/3-6, these are the rivers Þórr crosses on his way to the legal assembly at the ash Yggdrasill. Kǫrmt is also an island in Rogaland, Norway (Karmøy; see Þul Eyja 3/2), but it is uncertain whether there is any connection between that island and the river-heiti. According to Olsen (1925), the pair Kǫrmt ok Ǫrmt is most likely to be derived from karmr and armr, which are terms for ‘pen in a sheep-fold’, denoting two parallel parts of a sheep-fold (the same as fjárhúskró or kró í fjárhúsi ‘corner in a cowshed/sheep cote’). He suggests that, as names for rivers, they have their origin in the myth about Þórr’s encounter with the daughters of the giant Geirrøðr in a goat-shed (see SnE 1998, I, 25). There have also been other attempts to explain the name Ǫrmt. According to Cleasby and Vigfusson (CVC 780), this could be the river Armet in Scotland, while Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 200) argue that the possible sense of the name is in arme sich teilend, ein delta bildend ‘dividing itself into armlets, forming a delta’ (from armr ‘arm’). The name Kerlaug (here f. nom. pl. Kerlaugar) translates as ‘tub-washing’.
tvær ‘two’
(not checked:)
tveir (num. cardinal): two
notes
[3-4] Kǫrmt … ok Ǫrmt, tvær Kerlaugar ‘Kǫrmt … and Ǫrmt, two Kerlaugar’: Cf. Grí 29/1-2 (NK 63) Kǫrmt oc Ǫrmt | oc Kerlaugar tvær (also cited in Gylf, SnE 2005, 17). According to Grí 29/3-6, these are the rivers Þórr crosses on his way to the legal assembly at the ash Yggdrasill. Kǫrmt is also an island in Rogaland, Norway (Karmøy; see Þul Eyja 3/2), but it is uncertain whether there is any connection between that island and the river-heiti. According to Olsen (1925), the pair Kǫrmt ok Ǫrmt is most likely to be derived from karmr and armr, which are terms for ‘pen in a sheep-fold’, denoting two parallel parts of a sheep-fold (the same as fjárhúskró or kró í fjárhúsi ‘corner in a cowshed/sheep cote’). He suggests that, as names for rivers, they have their origin in the myth about Þórr’s encounter with the daughters of the giant Geirrøðr in a goat-shed (see SnE 1998, I, 25). There have also been other attempts to explain the name Ǫrmt. According to Cleasby and Vigfusson (CVC 780), this could be the river Armet in Scotland, while Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 200) argue that the possible sense of the name is in arme sich teilend, ein delta bildend ‘dividing itself into armlets, forming a delta’ (from armr ‘arm’). The name Kerlaug (here f. nom. pl. Kerlaugar) translates as ‘tub-washing’.
Gǫmul ‘Gǫmul’
(not checked:)
Gǫmul (noun f.)
notes
[5, 6] Gǫmul … ok Geirvimul ‘Gǫmul … and Geirvimul’: Mythical rivers, lit. ‘old one and spear-swarming one’. See Gǫmul oc Geirvimul in Grí 27/7 (NK 62) and the same pair in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33). According to Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 198), Gǫmul is most likely a substantivised f. form of the Old Norse adj. gamall ‘old’ and this name may refer to an old river bed (cf. such river names as ModGer. Alter Rhein ‘Old Rhine’ or Gamlelva in Norway). For another, less convincing interpretation, see Hale (1983, 172).
notes
[5, 6] Gǫmul … ok Geirvimul ‘Gǫmul … and Geirvimul’: Mythical rivers, lit. ‘old one and spear-swarming one’. See Gǫmul oc Geirvimul in Grí 27/7 (NK 62) and the same pair in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33). According to Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 198), Gǫmul is most likely a substantivised f. form of the Old Norse adj. gamall ‘old’ and this name may refer to an old river bed (cf. such river names as ModGer. Alter Rhein ‘Old Rhine’ or Gamlelva in Norway). For another, less convincing interpretation, see Hale (1983, 172).
notes
[5] yn: See Note to st. 5/6 above.
ok ‘and’
(not checked:)
3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
Geir ‘Geir’
(not checked:)
(unknown) < Geirvimul (noun f.)
notes
[5, 6] Gǫmul … ok Geirvimul ‘Gǫmul … and Geirvimul’: Mythical rivers, lit. ‘old one and spear-swarming one’. See Gǫmul oc Geirvimul in Grí 27/7 (NK 62) and the same pair in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33). According to Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 198), Gǫmul is most likely a substantivised f. form of the Old Norse adj. gamall ‘old’ and this name may refer to an old river bed (cf. such river names as ModGer. Alter Rhein ‘Old Rhine’ or Gamlelva in Norway). For another, less convincing interpretation, see Hale (1983, 172). — [6] Geirvimul (f.): This mythical name translates as ‘spear-swarming one’ (for -vimul, cf. Vimur in st. 1/3 above) and refers to a river filled with pointed weapons, such as the dangerous underworld river Slíðr (l. 2 above) filled with sǫxom oc sverðom ‘knives and swords’ mentioned in Vsp 36 (NK 8; see ll. 5, 6 above) and the weapon-filled river which Hadingus had to cross in Saxo’s Gesta Danorum (Saxo 2005, I, 1, 8, 14, pp. 124-5). See also Hale (1983, 172). For the suffix ‑ul, see Note to st. 4/2-3 above.
Geir ‘Geir’
(not checked:)
(unknown) < Geirvimul (noun f.)
notes
[5, 6] Gǫmul … ok Geirvimul ‘Gǫmul … and Geirvimul’: Mythical rivers, lit. ‘old one and spear-swarming one’. See Gǫmul oc Geirvimul in Grí 27/7 (NK 62) and the same pair in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33). According to Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 198), Gǫmul is most likely a substantivised f. form of the Old Norse adj. gamall ‘old’ and this name may refer to an old river bed (cf. such river names as ModGer. Alter Rhein ‘Old Rhine’ or Gamlelva in Norway). For another, less convincing interpretation, see Hale (1983, 172). — [6] Geirvimul (f.): This mythical name translates as ‘spear-swarming one’ (for -vimul, cf. Vimur in st. 1/3 above) and refers to a river filled with pointed weapons, such as the dangerous underworld river Slíðr (l. 2 above) filled with sǫxom oc sverðom ‘knives and swords’ mentioned in Vsp 36 (NK 8; see ll. 5, 6 above) and the weapon-filled river which Hadingus had to cross in Saxo’s Gesta Danorum (Saxo 2005, I, 1, 8, 14, pp. 124-5). See also Hale (1983, 172). For the suffix ‑ul, see Note to st. 4/2-3 above.
vimul ‘vimul’
(not checked:)
-vimul (noun f.) < Geirvimul (noun f.)
[6] ‑vimul: ‘v[…]m[…]’ B, ‘vímo᷎l’ 744ˣ
notes
[5, 6] Gǫmul … ok Geirvimul ‘Gǫmul … and Geirvimul’: Mythical rivers, lit. ‘old one and spear-swarming one’. See Gǫmul oc Geirvimul in Grí 27/7 (NK 62) and the same pair in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33). According to Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 198), Gǫmul is most likely a substantivised f. form of the Old Norse adj. gamall ‘old’ and this name may refer to an old river bed (cf. such river names as ModGer. Alter Rhein ‘Old Rhine’ or Gamlelva in Norway). For another, less convincing interpretation, see Hale (1983, 172). — [6] Geirvimul (f.): This mythical name translates as ‘spear-swarming one’ (for -vimul, cf. Vimur in st. 1/3 above) and refers to a river filled with pointed weapons, such as the dangerous underworld river Slíðr (l. 2 above) filled with sǫxom oc sverðom ‘knives and swords’ mentioned in Vsp 36 (NK 8; see ll. 5, 6 above) and the weapon-filled river which Hadingus had to cross in Saxo’s Gesta Danorum (Saxo 2005, I, 1, 8, 14, pp. 124-5). See also Hale (1983, 172). For the suffix ‑ul, see Note to st. 4/2-3 above.
vimul ‘vimul’
(not checked:)
-vimul (noun f.) < Geirvimul (noun f.)
[6] ‑vimul: ‘v[…]m[…]’ B, ‘vímo᷎l’ 744ˣ
notes
[5, 6] Gǫmul … ok Geirvimul ‘Gǫmul … and Geirvimul’: Mythical rivers, lit. ‘old one and spear-swarming one’. See Gǫmul oc Geirvimul in Grí 27/7 (NK 62) and the same pair in Gylf (SnE 2005, 33). According to Sijmons and Gering (S-G I, 198), Gǫmul is most likely a substantivised f. form of the Old Norse adj. gamall ‘old’ and this name may refer to an old river bed (cf. such river names as ModGer. Alter Rhein ‘Old Rhine’ or Gamlelva in Norway). For another, less convincing interpretation, see Hale (1983, 172). — [6] Geirvimul (f.): This mythical name translates as ‘spear-swarming one’ (for -vimul, cf. Vimur in st. 1/3 above) and refers to a river filled with pointed weapons, such as the dangerous underworld river Slíðr (l. 2 above) filled with sǫxom oc sverðom ‘knives and swords’ mentioned in Vsp 36 (NK 8; see ll. 5, 6 above) and the weapon-filled river which Hadingus had to cross in Saxo’s Gesta Danorum (Saxo 2005, I, 1, 8, 14, pp. 124-5). See also Hale (1983, 172). For the suffix ‑ul, see Note to st. 4/2-3 above.
Ylgr ‘Ylgr’
(not checked:)
ylgr (noun f.; °acc. -i): she-wolf
notes
[7] Ylgr (f.): Lit. ‘she-wolf’ (see Note to Sylgr l. 5 above). There are semantically parallel geographical names such as the Norwegian river Ulva (Rygh 1904, 285) and a Swedish lake called Ulven, mentioned by Hale (1983, 180), both derived from ON úlfr m. ‘wolf’. Alternatively, Ylgr might be related to ModIcel. ylgja f. and ólga f. ‘sea swell’ (Hale loc. cit.).
notes
[7] Vǫð (f.): Perhaps the same as vað n. ‘ford, wading-place’ (AEW: Vǫð). Most likely the name of a mythical river, cf. Grí 28/7-8 (NK 63) Sylgr oc Ylgr | Víð oc Vað (so ms. A, but Víð oc Ván in the Codex Regius version of this stanza). Finnur Jónsson (1933-4, 268), however, doubts that vǫð = vað, because the latter word never denotes ‘river’ elsewhere, and he argues that the correct form is f. væð (cf. ‘vavð’ in R, but ‘vad’ in Tˣ) from væðr, which he translates as farbar ‘one that might be waded’.
Jorðán ‘Jordan’
(not checked:)
Jórdán (noun f.): River Jordan
es ‘is’
(not checked:)
2. vera (verb): be, is, was, were, are, am
á ‘the’
(not checked:)
3. á (prep.): on, at
lesti ‘last’
(not checked:)
lesti (noun n.): end, the last
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Most of the river-names enumerated in this stanza are mythical names taken from Grí 27-9. The content of the two versified lists coincides and there are many structural similarities (noted below). Aside from Jorðán ‘the Jordan’ (l. 8), none of these names is found elsewhere in skaldic verse.
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