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skaldic

Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Arn Þorfdr 2II

Diana Whaley (ed.) 2009, ‘Arnórr jarlaskáld Þórðarson, Þorfinnsdrápa 2’ 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. 232.

Arnórr jarlaskáld ÞórðarsonÞorfinnsdrápa
123

Orms felli drakk allan
alkostigr fen hrosta
— rausn drýgði þá ræsir —
Rǫgnvalds niðr í gǫgnum.

{Alkostigr niðr Rǫgnvalds} drakk {fen hrosta} í gǫgnum {allan felli orms}; ræsir drýgði þá rausn.

{The excellent descendant of Rǫgnvaldr} [= Þorfinnr] drank {the swamp of malt} [ALE] through {all the serpent’s slayer} [WINTER]; the ruler practised bounty then.

Mss: 332ˣ(32), R702ˣ(39r), 325III β(1r), 48ˣ(346v marg) (Orkn); 743ˣ(101v) (LaufE)

Readings: [1] Orms felli: ‘Ormspelle’ 743ˣ    [2] fen: ‘fan’ 325III β    [3] drýgði: so R702ˣ, 325III β, 743ˣ, dugði 48ˣmarg;    ræsir: so R702ˣ, 325III β, 743ˣ, ræsis 332ˣ, 48ˣmarg    [4] Rǫgn‑: ‘rg‑’ 743ˣ

Editions: Skj AI, 334, Skj BI, 316, Skald I, 160, NN §824; Orkn 1913-16, 53, ÍF 34, 52 (ch. 20); LaufE 1979, 403; Whaley 1998, 221-2.

Context: In Orkn, the st. is quoted to corroborate a statement that Þorfinnr kept his retainers and other magnates (ríkismenn) in food and drink all through the winter, unlike other rulers who usually restricted such bounty to Yule. In LaufE, it is the first item in an appendix of skaldic extracts; the three kennings are underlined in ms. 743ˣ.

Notes: [All]: Further LaufE mss. have copies of ll. 1-2: see LaufE 1979, 112, 115-16. — [2] fen hrosta ‘swamp of malt [ALE]’: The variant fen ‘marsh, swamp’ is required here, as seemingly also in Egill St 19/1, 3V: fen hrosta ‘swamp of mash [ALE]’ (with ms. fanst emended to fens). See the Note on hrosta in st. 1/3-4, where the ‘ale’ is elevated as part of a poetry-kenning. — [3] ræsir drýgði rausn ‘the ruler practised bounty’: Or, as suggested by the Context, ‘practised splendid hospitality’. The variant rausn dugði ræsis ‘the ruler’s bounty availed/was fitting’ would also make good sense, praising Þorfinnr (the ræsir) by means of understatement. — [4] niðr Rǫgnvalds ‘descendant of Rǫgnvaldr [= Þorfinnr]’: This Rǫgnvaldr is Þorfinnr’s ancestor, Rǫgnvaldr inn ríki Eysteinsson, jarl of Møre (Mœrr) in Norway, traditionally the first Nordic possessor of Orkney and Shetland (e.g. HhárfHkr ch. 22, ÍF 26, 122).

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. LaufE 1979 = Faulkes, Anthony, ed. 1979. Edda Magnúsar Ólafssonar (Laufás Edda). RSÁM 13. Vol. I of Two Versions of Snorra Edda from the 17th Century. Reykjavík: Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, 1977-9.
  5. Whaley, Diana, ed. and trans. 1998. The Poetry of Arnórr jarlaskáld: An Edition and Study. Westfield Publications in Medieval Studies 8. Turnhout: Brepols.
  6. ÍF 34 = Orkneyinga saga. Ed. Finnbogi Guðmundsson. 1965.
  7. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
  8. Orkn 1913-16 = Sigurður Nordal, ed. 1913-16. Orkneyinga saga. SUGNL 40. Copenhagen: Møller.
  9. Internal references
  10. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Orkneyinga saga’ 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. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=47> (accessed 29 March 2024)
  11. Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2022, ‘Egils saga Skalla-Grímssonar 90 (Egill Skallagrímsson, Sonatorrek 19)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross, Kari Ellen Gade and Tarrin Wills (eds), Poetry in Sagas of Icelanders. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 5. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 318.
  12. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Laufás Edda’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=10928> (accessed 29 March 2024)
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