ESk Geisl 1VII
Martin Chase (ed.) 2007, ‘Einarr Skúlason, Geisli 1’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 7.
text and translation
Eins má óð ok bœnir
— alls ráðanda ins snjalla
vels fróðr, sás getr góða —
guðs þrenning mér kenna.
Gǫfugt ljós boðar geisli
gunnǫflugr miskunnar
— ágætan býðk ítrum
Óláfi brag — sólar,
Þrenning eins guðs má kenna mér óð ok bœnir; vels fróðr, sás getr góða {ins snjalla ráðanda alls}. {Gunnǫflugr geisli {sólar miskunnar}} boðar gǫfugt ljós — býðk ágætan brag ítrum Óláfi
‘The Trinity of one God can teach me poetry and prayers; he is indeed wise who gets the goodwill of the eloquent ruler of all [= God]. The battle-strong beam of the sun of mercy [= God > = Christ/Óláfr] proclaims a splendid light — I offer the excellent poem to glorious Óláfr —,’
notes and context
Lines 1-4 of st. 1 are cited by Óláfr Þórðarson in TGT (c. 1250) in illustration of the rhetorical figure of parenthesis, which Óláfr defines as ‘the interruption of a sentence by an interpolated clause’ and (referring to Einarr’s st.) ‘here a second clause is interpolated and brought to a conclusion, before the first clause is ended’. He says that this figure always occurs in the verse-type that ‘we’ call stælt ‘inlaid’ or álagsháttr ‘extension form’, both terms Snorri Sturluson employs in Ht (SnE 1999, 10 and 16).
In the reading of sts 1-2 offered here, st. 2 is syntactically in apposition to sólar (gen. sg.) ‘of the sun’ of 1/8, and the two sts (to 2/4) thus constitute a single complex sentence interspersed with intercalary clauses.
readings
- [1] óð: so Bb, A, orð Flat, W
- [2] ráðanda: valdanda Bb, kjósanda A, W
- [2] snjalla: ljósa A, W
- [3] vels (‘vel er’): mjǫk er Bb, A, ‘mi[...]’ W
- [3] góða: greiða Bb
sources
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.
-
GKS 1005 fol (Flat) — 2ra/1 - 2ra/1
Eins má orð ok bœnir
images
— alls ráðanda ins snjalla
vel er fróðr, sás getr góða —
guðs þrenning mér kenna.
Gǫfugt ljós boðar geisli
gunnǫflugr miskunnar
— ágætan býðk ítrum
Óláfi brag — sólar, -
Holm perg 1 fol (Bb) — 117ra/1 - 117ra/4
Eins má óð ok bœnir
images
— alls valdanda ins snjalla
mjǫk er fróðr, sás getr greiða —
guðs þrenning mér kenna.
Gǫfugt ljós boðar geisli
gunnǫflugr miskunnar
— ágætan býðk ítrum
Óláfi brag — sólar, -
AM 748 I b 4° (A) — 7v/24 - 7v/25 [1-4]
imagesEins má óð ok bœnir
— alls kjósanda ins ljósa
mjǫk er fróðr, sás getr góða —
guðs þrenning mér kenna.
Gǫfugt ljós boðar geisli
gunnǫflugr miskunnar
— ágætan býðk ítrum
Óláfi brag — sólar,Æins ma óð ok bænir allz kiosanda hins liosa miǫk er fróðr sa | ær gætr góða gvðs þrenning mer kenna .
(VEÞ)
-
AM 242 fol (W) — 110/5 - 110/6 [1-4]
imagesEins má orð ok bœnir
— alls kjósanda ins ljósa
†mi[...]† fróðr, sás getr góða —
guðs þrenning mér kenna.
Gǫfugt ljós boðar geisli
gunnǫflugr miskunnar
— ágætan býðk ítrum
Óláfi brag — sólar,Eíns ma orð ok bæner allz kiosanda hins liosa mi[...] sa er getr | goða gvðs þrenníng mer kenna.
(TW)
editions and texts
Skj: Einarr Skúlason, 6. Geisli 1: AI, 459, BI, 427, Skald I, 211, NN §924; Flat 1860-8, I, 1, Cederschiöld 1873, 1, Chase 2005, 51, 123-5; TGT 1884-6, I, 112-13, TGT 1998, 228-9.
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