ESk Elfv 1^II

Margr fell maðr af dreyrgu
marblakks á kaf saxi;
gnógt elði fekksk gýgjar
Glaum; rak ná fyr straumi.
Elfr varð unda gjalfri
eitrkǫld roðin heitu;
vitnis fell með vatni
varmt ǫlðr í men Karmtar.

Margr maðr fell af dreyrgu saxi {marblakks} á kaf; gnógt elði fekksk {Glaum gýgjar}; ná rak fyr straumi. Eitrkǫld Elfr varð roðin {heitu gjalfri unda}; {varmt ǫlðr vitnis} fell með vatni í {men Karmtar}.

Many a man fell from the bloody prow {of the sea-steed} [SHIP] into the deep; abundant nourishment was given {to the Glaumr <horse> of the troll-woman} [WOLF]; carrion drifted before the current. The bitter-cold Götaälv was reddened {by the hot surge of wounds} [BLOOD]; {the warm ale of the wolf} [BLOOD] flowed with the water into {the necklace of Karmøy <island>} [SEA].

Mss: Kˣ(679v), F(77ra), E(62r), J2ˣ(366r), 42ˣ(54v) (Hkr); H(129v), Hr(84vb) (H-Hr); R(37r), Tˣ(38v), U(39v), A(14r), B(6r), 744ˣ(39r), C(6v) (SnE, ll. 5-8); A(1r) (GrammSkáld, ll. 5-8)

Readings: [1] af: so all others, á Kˣ    [2] marblakks: markblakks E, ‘marbaks’ Hr    [3] fekksk: fekk H, Hr    [4] Glaum: glaumr H, Hr;    ná: ‘gna’ Hr    [5] varð: var E, J2ˣ, 42ˣ, H, Hr, U, B, C;    unda: undra J2ˣ, 42ˣ    [6] roðin heitu: ‘roð[...]’ B, 744ˣ;    roðin: drifin C;    heitu: sveita A(1r)    [7] vitnis fell með vatni: ‘[...]’ B, ‘vitníss fell með vatne’ 744ˣ;    vitnis: ‘víndis’ Hr;    vatni: vandi Hr    [8] varmt: vart R, ‘[...]armt’ B;    ǫlðr: blóð F, C, eldr U, hold B;    í men: í mun H, Hr, U, ‘[...]m[...]’ B, ‘í men’ 744ˣ;    Karmtar: ‘carmt’ Tˣ

Editions: Skj AI, 477, Skj BI, 449, Skald I, 221; ÍF 28, 358-9 (Hákherð ch. 11), F 1871, 354, E 1916, 216; Fms 7, 266 (Hákherð ch. 11); SnE 1848-87, I, 476-9, II, 350, 455, 538, 594, SnE 1931, 168, SnE 1998, I, 87; SnE 1848-87, II, 397, GrammSkáld 1884, 159.

Context: In Hkr and H-Hr sts 1-2 commemorate the battle of the Götaälv. In SnE (Skm) the second helmingr illustrates that vitnir is a heiti for ‘wolf’, and in GrammSkáld the consonant clusters -lfr- and -rmt- are given as examples of features that enhance the aesthetic quality of poetry.

Notes: [All]: Grégóríus, Ingi and Erlingr had the upper hand in this battle. After Hákon’s ship had been cleared, his men leaped from the other ships into the water. Many were killed but the main contingent was able to swim ashore. — [4] Glaum ‘to the Glaumr <horse>’: Glaumr was a legendary horse (see LP: Glaumr 1). — [5] Elfr ‘the Götaälv’: River in south-western present-day Sweden. — [8] í men Karmtar ‘into the necklace of Karmøy <island> [SEA]’: Karmøy is an island in Rogaland, south-western Norway. Einarr is fond of using Norw. islands as determinants in his kennings for ‘sea’; see ESk Lv 14-15^III.

References

1. Bibliography
2. Fms = Sveinbjörn Egilsson et al., eds. 1825-37. Fornmanna sögur eptir gömlum handritum útgefnar að tilhlutun hins norræna fornfræða fèlags. 12 vols. Copenhagen: Popp.
3. SnE 1848-87 = Snorri Sturluson. 1848-87. Edda Snorra Sturlusonar: Edda Snorronis Sturlaei. Ed. Jón Sigurðsson et al. 3 vols. Copenhagen: Legatum Arnamagnaeanum. Rpt. Osnabrück: Zeller, 1966.
4. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
5. LP = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1931. Lexicon poeticum antiquæ linguæ septentrionalis: Ordbog over det norsk-islandske skjaldesprog oprindelig forfattet af Sveinbjörn Egilsson. 2nd edn. Copenhagen: Møller.
6. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
7. F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
8. SnE 1931 = Snorri Sturluson. 1931. Edda Snorra Sturlusonar. Ed. Finnur Jónsson. Copenhagen: Gyldendal.
9. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
10. SnE 1998 = Snorri Sturluson. 1998. Edda: Skáldskaparmál. Ed. Anthony Faulkes. 2 vols. University College London: Viking Society for Northern Research.
11. GrammSkáld 1884 = Björn Magnússon Ólsen, ed. 1884. Den tredje og fjærde grammatiske afhandling i Snorres Edda tilligemed de grammatiske afhandlingers prolog og to andre tillæg. SUGNL 12, 159. Copenhagen: Knudtzon.
12. Internal references
13. Edith Marold 2017, ‘Snorra Edda (Prologue, Gylfaginning, Skáldskaparmál)’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols [check printed volume for citation].
14. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Heimskringla’ 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=4> (accessed 26 April 2024)
15. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, The Fifth Grammatical Treatise’ 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=68> (accessed 26 April 2024)
16. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Hulda-Hrokkinskinna’ 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=84> (accessed 26 April 2024)
17. (forthcoming), ‘ Snorri Sturluson, Skáldskaparmál’ 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=112> (accessed 26 April 2024)
18. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2017, ‘Einarr Skúlason, Lausavísur 14’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 177.