Emily Lethbridge (ed.) 2012, ‘Bjarni byskup Kolbeinsson, Jómsvíkingadrápa 18’ 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. 974.
Þá buðu þeir á móti
þeim, er sunnan kómu,
til geirhríðar greppum
gǫrla, Nóregs jarlar.
Þar var mestr á méli
(morðremmandi) skǫmmu
(margr var at Laufa leiki)
landherr saman fundinn.
Þá buðu þeir jarlar Nóregs gǫrla greppum til {geirhríðar} á móti þeim, er kómu sunnan. Mestr landherr var fundinn saman þar á skǫmmu méli; {margr morðremmandi} var at {leiki Laufa}.
Then those jarls of Norway forcefully bade [their] men to {the spear-storm} [BATTLE] against those who came from the south. The greatest force from the land was brought together there in a short time; {many a battle-strengthener} [WARRIOR] was at {the play of Laufi <legendary sword>} [BATTLE].
Mss: R(53v); 61(19va), 53(16ra), 54(15vb), Bb(26ra) (ÓT)
Readings: [1] á: at all others [2] kómu: kœmi 61 [3] greppum: greipum 61 [5] var: varð all others; méli: so 61, Bb, mæli R, 53, 54 [6] ‑remmandi: ‑rennandi Bb [8] saman: so all others, om. R; fundinn: bundinn 53, 54, Bb
Editions: Skj AII, 4, Skj BII, 4-5, Skald II, 3; Fms 11, 168, Fms 12, 244, Jvs 1879, 110-11, 132; Fms 1, 169, Fms 12, 41, ÓT 1958-2000, I, 186 (ch. 90), Ólafur Halldórsson 2000, 24-5, 78.
Context: Acting on partially false intelligence that Hákon jarl is in Hǫrundarfjǫrðr (Hjørundfjorden), and is unaware of them and accompanied by small forces, Búi and his companions prepare to go there. Meanwhile, Hákon and his son Eiríkr have assembled a force of 180 ships in Hallkelsvík (Hallkjellsvik). They learn that the ships of the Jómsvíkingar are lying off the island of Hǫð (Hareid), and head north in search of them.
Notes: [4] jarlar Nóregs ‘the jarls of Norway’: Hákon jarl and his son, Eiríkr Hákonarson. According to Jvs (1879, 69) Hákon’s sons Sveinn, Sigurðr and Erlingr also commanded ships at Hjǫrungavágr. — [7] Laufa ‘of Laufi <legendary sword>’: The name of the legendary Danish hero Bǫðvarr bjarki’s sword. The name is etymologically related to lauf n. ‘leaf, foliage’: see further Note to Þul Sverða 2/2III. — [8] fundinn saman ‘brought together’: Lit. ‘found together’. This makes most immediate sense, but the variant reading in the three other mss, bundinn (p. p. of binda ‘bind’), would also make sense if taken metaphorically. In CVC: binda II the verb is glossed ‘to make, contract a league, friendship, affinity’ etc., and cf. m. v. bindask ‘to engage oneself, enter a league’.
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