Tarrin Wills and Stefanie Gropper (eds) 2007, ‘Anonymous Poems, Hugsvinnsmál 123’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 434.
Íþróttir margar þótt þú öðlaz hafir,
kosta þú at vinna vel;
erfiði drýgja þurfu alda synir,
meðan þeir heilsu hafa.
Kosta þú at vinna vel, þótt þú hafir öðlaz margar íþróttir; alda synir þurfu drýgja erfiði, meðan þeir hafa heilsu.
‘Try to work well, even if you have attained many accomplishments; the sons of men need to endure hardship while they have their health.’
Lat. parallel: (Dist. IV, 21) Exerce studium, quamvis perceperis artem: / ut cura ingenium, sic et manus adiuvat usum ‘Practise zeal in whatever art you have taken up, that care and attention may aid talent, and practise likewise the hand’.
Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.
Íþróttir margar
þótt þú eignaz hafir,
kosta þú at vinna vel;
erfiði drýgja
þurfa alda synir,
meðan sína heilsu hafa.
jþrotter margar þo þu eignast hafer. kosta þu ad | vinna vel. Erfidi drýgia þurfa alldasýner, medan sijna heilsu hafa.
(VEÞ)
Íþróttir margar
þótt þú öðlaz hafir,
kosta þó at vinna vel;
erfiði drýgja
þurfa alda synir,
meðan þeir heilsu hafa.
Jþrőttir margar þőtt | þu audlast hafir· kosta þő ath winn wel | erfidí drygia þurfa alldar Synir medan þeir // heylsu hafa |
(TW)
Íþróttir margar
þótt þú öðlaz hafir,
kosta vel at vinna vel;
erfiði drýgja
þurfa allir manns synir,
þeir eð heilsu hafa.
Jþrötter marger þö þu ódlast hafer kosta vel ad | vinna erfide drýgia þurfa aller manns syner þeir ed heilsu hafa.
(TW)
Íþróttir margar
ef þú öðlaz hefir,
kosta þú at vinna vel;
erfiði drýgja
þurfu alda synir,
meðan þeir heilsu halda.
Jþrotter margar ef þv avdlaz hefer kosta | þv at vínna vel erfidi drygia þurfv alda syner medan þeir hleilsv ha | llda ·
(VEÞ)
Jþrötter margar ef þu | ódlast hefer, kosta þu ad vinna vel, erffide ⸝drijgia,⸜ || drijgia þurfu allda syner, medan þeir heilsu hall | da.
(VEÞ)
Skj: Anonyme digte og vers [XIII], [C. E/5]. Hugsvinnsmál 124: AII, 193, BII, 206, Skald II, 108; Hallgrímur Scheving 1831, 29, Gering 1907, 34, Tuvestrand 1977, 140, Hermann Pálsson 1985, 115.
Use the buttons at the top of the page to navigate between stanzas in a poem.
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.
This is the text of the edition in a similar format to how the edition appears in the printed volumes.
This view is also used for chapters and other text segments. Not all the headings shown are relevant to such sections.