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Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Anon Ól 5I

Kate Heslop (ed.) 2012, ‘Anonymous Poems, Poem about Óláfr Tryggvason 5’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 1066.

Anonymous PoemsPoem about Óláfr Tryggvason
456

Varð ‘did’

(not checked:)
1. verða (verb): become, be

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ei ‘not’

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3. ei (adv.): not

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varr ‘aware’

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2. varr (adj.): wary

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fyrr ‘until’

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fyrr (adv.): before, sooner

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sverða ‘of swords’

(not checked:)
sverð (noun n.; °-s; -): sword

kennings

Valdr sverða
‘The ruler of swords ’
   = WARRIOR = Þorkell

The ruler of swords → WARRIOR = Þorkell
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valdr ‘The ruler’

(not checked:)
valdr (noun m.): ruler

kennings

Valdr sverða
‘The ruler of swords ’
   = WARRIOR = Þorkell

The ruler of swords → WARRIOR = Þorkell
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en ‘’

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4. en (conj.): than

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steyft ‘toppled’

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Baldri ‘the Baldr’

(not checked:)
Baldr (noun m.): [Baldr, Baldur]

kennings

Baldri baugs
‘the Baldr of the ring ’
   = MAN = Þorkell

the Baldr of the ring → MAN = Þorkell
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baugs ‘of the ring’

(not checked:)
baugr (noun m.; °dat. -i/-; -ar): ring

kennings

Baldri baugs
‘the Baldr of the ring ’
   = MAN = Þorkell

the Baldr of the ring → MAN = Þorkell
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af ‘off’

(not checked:)
af (prep.): from

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byrjar ‘of the breeze’

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byrr (noun m.; °-jar/-s; -ir, acc. -i/-u(SigrVal 188¹³)): favourable wind

kennings

faxa byrjar
‘the steed of the breeze ’
   = SHIP

the steed of the breeze → SHIP
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faxa ‘the steed’

(not checked:)
faxi (noun m.): steed

kennings

faxa byrjar
‘the steed of the breeze ’
   = SHIP

the steed of the breeze → SHIP
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á ‘into’

(not checked:)
3. á (prep.): on, at

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sildar ‘of the herring’

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sild (noun f.; °;-ar): herring

kennings

lautir sildar.
‘the hollows of the herring. ’
   = SEA

the hollows of the herring. → SEA

notes

[4] lautir sildar ‘the hollows of the herring [SEA]’: Finnur Jónsson (1884-91, 123) thinks this ‘post-classical’ kenning is another sign the poem was composed in the C14th, but it has C11th parallels (see Meissner 96-7).

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lautir ‘the hollows’

(not checked:)
laut (noun f.): dell, hollow

kennings

lautir sildar.
‘the hollows of the herring. ’
   = SEA

the hollows of the herring. → SEA

notes

[4] lautir sildar ‘the hollows of the herring [SEA]’: Finnur Jónsson (1884-91, 123) thinks this ‘post-classical’ kenning is another sign the poem was composed in the C14th, but it has C11th parallels (see Meissner 96-7).

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Þar ‘There’

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þar (adv.): there

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í ‘in’

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í (prep.): in, into

notes

[5, 6] lastvarr í lund ‘faultless in temperament’: Previous eds have taken lund as lundr m. ‘grove of trees’, choosing to see in this phrase a further allusion to the prose sources, according to which Óláfr receives angelic visitors in a rjóðr ‘forest clearing’ (ÓT 1958-2000, II, 235 specifies a fagrt hús ‘beautiful house’ in this clearing). Finnur Jónsson (1884-91, 120; Skj B) emends í ‘in’ to ór ‘out of’ and reads lastvarr harri var kominn þar ór lund af landi ‘the faultless lord had come there out of the grove from the land’, but even with emendation the juxtaposition of two prepositional phrases in ór lund af landi is awkward; nor are a grove and a clearing quite the same thing, to say nothing of ÓT’s fagrt hús. The present interpretation as lund f. ‘mind, temperament’ receives some additional support from the closely similar line ÞjóðA Sex 5/1II, where við lund seems to mean ‘with purpose’, though the helmingr from which it comes is incomplete.

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lund ‘temperament’

(not checked:)
lund (noun f.; °-ar; -ir/-ar(Rém 301³¹)): mind, way

notes

[5, 6] lastvarr í lund ‘faultless in temperament’: Previous eds have taken lund as lundr m. ‘grove of trees’, choosing to see in this phrase a further allusion to the prose sources, according to which Óláfr receives angelic visitors in a rjóðr ‘forest clearing’ (ÓT 1958-2000, II, 235 specifies a fagrt hús ‘beautiful house’ in this clearing). Finnur Jónsson (1884-91, 120; Skj B) emends í ‘in’ to ór ‘out of’ and reads lastvarr harri var kominn þar ór lund af landi ‘the faultless lord had come there out of the grove from the land’, but even with emendation the juxtaposition of two prepositional phrases in ór lund af landi is awkward; nor are a grove and a clearing quite the same thing, to say nothing of ÓT’s fagrt hús. The present interpretation as lund f. ‘mind, temperament’ receives some additional support from the closely similar line ÞjóðA Sex 5/1II, where við lund seems to mean ‘with purpose’, though the helmingr from which it comes is incomplete.

Close

af ‘from’

(not checked:)
af (prep.): from

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landi ‘the land’

(not checked:)
land (noun n.; °-s; *-): land

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last ‘fault’

(not checked:)
last (noun n.; °-): fault, sin, vice < lastvarr (adj.): faultless

notes

[5, 6] lastvarr í lund ‘faultless in temperament’: Previous eds have taken lund as lundr m. ‘grove of trees’, choosing to see in this phrase a further allusion to the prose sources, according to which Óláfr receives angelic visitors in a rjóðr ‘forest clearing’ (ÓT 1958-2000, II, 235 specifies a fagrt hús ‘beautiful house’ in this clearing). Finnur Jónsson (1884-91, 120; Skj B) emends í ‘in’ to ór ‘out of’ and reads lastvarr harri var kominn þar ór lund af landi ‘the faultless lord had come there out of the grove from the land’, but even with emendation the juxtaposition of two prepositional phrases in ór lund af landi is awkward; nor are a grove and a clearing quite the same thing, to say nothing of ÓT’s fagrt hús. The present interpretation as lund f. ‘mind, temperament’ receives some additional support from the closely similar line ÞjóðA Sex 5/1II, where við lund seems to mean ‘with purpose’, though the helmingr from which it comes is incomplete.

Close

varr ‘less’

(not checked:)
2. varr (adj.): wary < lastvarr (adj.): faultless

notes

[5, 6] lastvarr í lund ‘faultless in temperament’: Previous eds have taken lund as lundr m. ‘grove of trees’, choosing to see in this phrase a further allusion to the prose sources, according to which Óláfr receives angelic visitors in a rjóðr ‘forest clearing’ (ÓT 1958-2000, II, 235 specifies a fagrt hús ‘beautiful house’ in this clearing). Finnur Jónsson (1884-91, 120; Skj B) emends í ‘in’ to ór ‘out of’ and reads lastvarr harri var kominn þar ór lund af landi ‘the faultless lord had come there out of the grove from the land’, but even with emendation the juxtaposition of two prepositional phrases in ór lund af landi is awkward; nor are a grove and a clearing quite the same thing, to say nothing of ÓT’s fagrt hús. The present interpretation as lund f. ‘mind, temperament’ receives some additional support from the closely similar line ÞjóðA Sex 5/1II, where við lund seems to mean ‘with purpose’, though the helmingr from which it comes is incomplete.

Close

kominn ‘come’

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koma (verb; kem, kom/kvam, kominn): come

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harri ‘the lord’

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1. harri (noun m.; °-a): lord

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seggr ‘fellow’

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seggr (noun m.; °; -ir): man

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gjalt ‘pay’

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1. gjalda (verb): pay, repay

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sonr ‘son’

(not checked:)
sonr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. syni; synir, acc. sonu, syni): son

kennings

sonr Tryggva,
‘Tryggvi’s son, ’
   = Óláfr

Tryggvi’s son, → Óláfr
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Tryggva ‘Tryggvi’s’

(not checked:)
Tryggvi (noun m.): Tryggvi

kennings

sonr Tryggva,
‘Tryggvi’s son, ’
   = Óláfr

Tryggvi’s son, → Óláfr
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svinnr ‘clever’

(not checked:)
2. svinnr (adj.): wise

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forvitni ‘curiosity’

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1. forvitni (noun f.): [curiosity]

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þinnar ‘for your’

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þinn (pron.; °f. þín, n. þitt): your

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Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses

[1-4]: The man- and warrior-kennings both refer to Þorkell. Judging from the prose sources he seems to have been sitting at the landward end of the gang-plank facing Ormr inn langi, hoping to catch sight of Óláfr leaving the ship. This event is also mentioned in HSt Rst 29.

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