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Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Anon (Sv) 5II

Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Anonymous Lausavísur, Lausavísur from Sverris saga 5’ 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. 846-7.

Anonymous LausavísurLausavísur from Sverris saga
456

Mánadag kvaddi níðingr sína
menn; drífu hart til vápna sennu
— Þúfuskíter þrífisk eigi —
þann morgin til Sverrisborgar.
Ýtar reistu merki at móti
margar stengr, ok bǫrðusk lengi;
Baglar standa í banni allir;
brunnu skip, þás kappar runnu.

Mánadag kvaddi níðingr menn sína; drífu hart til {sennu vápna} þann morgin til Sverrisborgar; Þúfuskíter þrífisk eigi! Ýtar reistu merki at móti, margar stengr, ok bǫrðusk lengi; allir Baglar standa í banni; skip brunnu, þás kappar runnu.

On Monday, the wretch summoned his men; they gathered quickly to {the quarrel of weapons} [BATTLE] that morning, to Sverresborg; may Þúfuskíter (‘Hillock-shit’) never thrive! People raised standards against them, many poles, and they fought for a long time; all Baglar are excommunicated; ships burned, when champions fled.

Mss: 327(78v), Flat(160rb), 304ˣ(234v), E(117r) (ll. 7-8), 81a(44vb) (Sv)

Readings: [1] níðingr: mildingr Flat, 304ˣ    [3] ‑skíter: so 304ˣ, ‘‑skitr’ 327, 81a, ‘skitur’ Flat, 81a    [5] at: á 81a    [7] standa: stóðu E    [8] kappar runnu: so 304ˣ, E, 81a, ‘.k.r.’ 327, ‘.k.r’ Flat

Editions: Skj AI, 596, Skj BI, 596-7, Skald I, 291, NN §2124, 2991B; ÍF 30, 231 (ch. 151), Sv 1920, 159, Flat 1860-8, II, 669, E 1916, 401, Sv 1910-86, 202.

Context: This st. is recited by the Birkibeinar in response to Anon (Sv) 4 above.

Notes: [All]: The st. contains quite a few metrical violations, and Kock (Skald; NN §§2124, 2991B) suggests a number of emendations against all ms. witnesses. — [1] níðingr ‘the wretch’: The l. lacks alliteration and Kock (NN §2124) emends to mígingr ‘the pisser’, which he juxtaposes to Þúfuskíter ‘Hillock-shit’ (l. 3). — [3] Þúfuskíter þrífisk eigi ‘may Þúfuskíter (“Hillock-shit”) never thrive’: As the l. stands in 327 and 81a (Þúfuskítr þrífisk eigi), it is hypometrical (7 syllables) and the last internal rhyme falls on the fourth rather than on the penultimate syllable. The spelling of the last element of the cpd pers. n. in Flat and 81a (‘-skitur’) reflects C14th spelling with excrescent -u. The 304ˣ variant ‘-skijter’, which has been adopted in this edn, is peculiar, because the excrescent vowel is otherwise rendered as <u> in that ms. As it stands, <e> can either represent [e] or [i], and it is unclear whether this spelling represents a later attempt to achieve the correct number of syllables in the l. or an original spelling. For excrescent -e- in Norw., see ANG §161b. This is admittedly early for desyllabification to occur in Norway (see ANG §161; Seip 1955, 137-9), but not unlikely, given the fact that the l. must have been recited with much emphasis. Kock (NN §§2124, 2991B) gives the following emendation: Þúfuskítr enn eigi þrífisk ‘may Þúfuskítr yet never thrive’. That reading violates the w. o. in independent clauses (finite verb in position 4 rather than in position 2). Þúfuskítr (or -skíter) ‘Hillock-shit’ was the nickname of the Baglar king, Ingi (see Note to Lv 4/3 above). The Baglar claimed that Ingi was the son of Magnús Erlingsson, while the Birkibeinar maintained that he was a Dane called Þorgils þúfuskítr (see ÍF 30, 194). The nickname refers to manure being carted away and left on hillocks (so Finnur Jónsson 1907, 299). — [4] Sverrisborgar ‘Sverresborg’: See Note to Lv 4/4 above. — [7] Baglar ‘the Baglar’: See Note to Lv 4/7 above. — [7] banni ‘excommunicated’: Lit. ‘in excommunication’. Kock (NN §2124) suggests a secular meaning ‘be damned’ rather than the clerical excommunicatio, anathema, but that is an unlikely interpretation (see Fritzner: bann). — [7] allir ‘all’: The l. lacks internal rhyme, and Kock (NN §2124) emends to eglir which he takes in the sense ‘odious’ in keeping with Goth. agls ‘loathsome’, OE egle ‘hideous, loathsome, painful’. Such an adj. is not attested in ON.

References

  1. Bibliography
  2. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
  3. NN = Kock, Ernst Albin. 1923-44. Notationes Norrœnæ: Anteckningar till Edda och skaldediktning. Lunds Universitets årsskrift new ser. 1. 28 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
  4. ANG = Noreen, Adolf. 1923. Altnordische Grammatik I: Altisländische und altnorwegische Grammatik (Laut- und Flexionslehre) unter Berücksichtigung des Urnordischen. 4th edn. Halle: Niemeyer. 1st edn. 1884. 5th unrev. edn. 1970. Tübingen: Niemeyer.
  5. Sv 1920 = Indrebø, Gustav, ed. 1920. Sverris saga etter Cod. AM 327 4°. Christiania (Oslo): Dybwad. Rpt. 1981. Oslo: Norsk historisk kjeldeskrift-institutt.
  6. Flat 1860-8 = Gudbrand Vigfusson [Guðbrandur Vigfússon] and C. R. Unger, eds. 1860-8. Flateyjarbók. En samling af norske konge-sagaer med indskudte mindre fortællinger om begivenheder i og udenfor Norge samt annaler. 3 vols. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
  7. 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.
  8. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
  9. Finnur Jónsson. 1907. ‘Tilnavne i den islandske oldlitteratur’. ÅNOH, 161-381.
  10. ÍF 30 = Sverris saga. Ed. Þorleifur Hauksson. 2007.
  11. Seip, Didrik Arup. 1955. Norsk språkhistorie til omkring 1370. 2nd edn. Oslo: Aschehoug.
  12. Sv 1910-86 = Kjær, Albert and Ludvig Holm-Olsen, eds. 1910-86. Det Arnamagnæanske haandskrift 81a fol. (Skálholtsbók yngsta) indeholdende Sverris saga, Bǫglungasǫgur, Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar. Oslo: Den norske historiske kildeskriftkommission and Kjeldeskriftfondet.
  13. Internal references
  14. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Anonymous Lausavísur, Lausavísur from Sverris saga 4’ 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. 845.
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