Blakkr Breiðdr 1II
Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Blakkr, Breiðskeggsdrápa 1’ 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. 647-8.
Bjǫrt ‘bright’
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bjartr (adj.; °compar. -ari, superl. -astr): bright
kveða ‘They say’
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kveða (verb; kveð, kvað, kveðinn): (str.) say, recite, sing
brenna ‘are burning’
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2. brenna (verb; °brennr/brenn; brann, brunnu; brunninn): (strong, intransitive)
kerti ‘candles’
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kerti (noun n.; °-s; -): candle
Breiðskeggs ‘Breiðskeggr’s’
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breiðskeggr (noun m.; °-s): breiðskeggr
yfir ‘above’
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yfir (prep.): over
leiði ‘grave’
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leiði (noun n.; °-s): grave
ljóss ‘in light’
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ljóss (adj.; °compar. -ari, superl. -astr): bright
[3] ljóss: ljós all others
veitk ‘I know’
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1. vita (verb): know
at ‘that’
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4. at (conj.): that
mun ‘may’
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munu (verb): will, must
missa ‘be lacking ’
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2. missa (verb): lose, lack
meir ‘rather’
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meir (adv.): further, again
[4] meir hǫfðingi þeira: meiri þǫrf ok þeira 81a
notes
[4] meir (adv.) ‘rather’: This adv. can mean ‘rather, later, still’ (see Fritzner: meirr). Skj B translates it as senere ‘later’ and takes it to mean that Breiðskeggr will be deprived of heavenly light in the after-life. That interpretation is possible (referring to the impending Judgement day when Breiðskeggr will miss out on eternal life and go to the place of darkness). Alternatively, since he is already dead, the cl. can also refer to the fact that there is no light at the place he is currently (namely, in hell), and that is the interpretation adopted in the present edn.
hǫfðingi ‘chieftain’
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hǫfðingi (noun m.; °-ja; -jar): chieftain
[4] meir hǫfðingi þeira: meiri þǫrf ok þeira 81a
þeira ‘their’
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hann (pron.; °gen. hans, dat. honum; f. hon, gen. hennar, acc. hana): he, she, it, they, them...
[4] meir hǫfðingi þeira: meiri þǫrf ok þeira 81a
Vitumat ‘We [I] do not know’
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1. vita (verb): know
vánir ‘expectations’
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ván (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -/-u; -ir): hope, expectation
betri ‘better’
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betri (adj. comp.; °superl. beztr/baztr; pos. góðr adj.): better, best
vér ‘we [I]’
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vér (pron.; °gen. vár, dat./acc. oss): we, us, our
notes
[6] vér hugðumk brugðit því ‘we [I] thought an end had been put to that’: I.e. an end to the talk about Breiðskeggr’s sanctity.
hugðumk ‘thought’
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2. hyggja (verb): think, consider
[6] hugðumk: hugðusk E, hugðum 325VIII 4 a
notes
[6] vér hugðumk brugðit því ‘we [I] thought an end had been put to that’: I.e. an end to the talk about Breiðskeggr’s sanctity.
því ‘to that’
notes
[6] vér hugðumk brugðit því ‘we [I] thought an end had been put to that’: I.e. an end to the talk about Breiðskeggr’s sanctity.
brugðit ‘an end had been put’
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bregða (verb; °bregðr/brigðr; brá, brugðu; brugðinn/brogðinn): pull, jerk, break; change
[6] brugðit: so Flat, brugðumsk 8, 81a, brugðusk 327, E, 325VIII 4 a
notes
[6] vér hugðumk brugðit því ‘we [I] thought an end had been put to that’: I.e. an end to the talk about Breiðskeggr’s sanctity.
þollr ‘the tree’
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þollr (noun m.): fir-tree
kennings
þollr ǫrþings‘the tree of the arrow-assembly ’
= WARRIOR
the arrow-assembly → BATTLE
the tree of the BATTLE → WARRIOR
fekk ‘was’
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2. fá (verb; °fǽr; fekk, fengu; fenginn): get, receive
illt ‘wretched’
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illr (adj.): bad, evil, unwell
með ‘’
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með (prep.): with
ǫllu ‘in all respects’
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allr (adj.): all
ǫr ‘of the arrow’
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ǫr (noun f.; °dat. -/-u; ǫrvar/ǫrar): arrow < ǫrþing (noun n.)
kennings
þollr ǫrþings‘the tree of the arrow-assembly ’
= WARRIOR
the arrow-assembly → BATTLE
the tree of the BATTLE → WARRIOR
ǫr ‘of the arrow’
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ǫr (noun f.; °dat. -/-u; ǫrvar/ǫrar): arrow < ǫrþing (noun n.)
kennings
þollr ǫrþings‘the tree of the arrow-assembly ’
= WARRIOR
the arrow-assembly → BATTLE
the tree of the BATTLE → WARRIOR
þings ‘assembly’
(not checked:)
þing (noun n.; °-s; -): meeting, assembly < ǫrþing (noun n.)
kennings
þollr ǫrþings‘the tree of the arrow-assembly ’
= WARRIOR
the arrow-assembly → BATTLE
the tree of the BATTLE → WARRIOR
þings ‘assembly’
(not checked:)
þing (noun n.; °-s; -): meeting, assembly < ǫrþing (noun n.)
kennings
þollr ǫrþings‘the tree of the arrow-assembly ’
= WARRIOR
the arrow-assembly → BATTLE
the tree of the BATTLE → WARRIOR
af ‘from’
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af (prep.): from
gǫrningum ‘his undertakings’
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gerning (noun f.): [his undertakings]
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
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Bjǫrt kveða brenna kerti |
They say bright candles are burning above Breiðskeggr’s grave; I know that their chieftain may rather be lacking in light. We [I] do not know that he has better expectations from his undertakings; we [I] thought an end had been put to that; the tree of the arrow-assembly [BATTLE > WARRIOR] was wretched in all respects.
Blakkr speaks out against the sanctity of Þorleifr Breiðskeggr.
[1-2]: These ll. recall st. 20/5, 6 of Einarr Skúlason’s Geisli (GeislVII): Síðan brann ljós yfir líki vísa ‘Then light burned over the body of the prince’. Thus it appears that Blakkr is deliberately ridiculing the ‘sanctity’ of Breiðskeggr by alluding to the miracles connected with the sanctity of S. Óláfr.
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