ESk Lv 4II
Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Einarr Skúlason, Lausavísur 4’ 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. 571-2.
Oss ‘us [me]’
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vér (pron.; °gen. vár, dat./acc. oss): we, us, our
lét ‘made’
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láta (verb): let, have sth done
abbatissa ‘The abbess’
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abbatissa (noun ?): [abbess]
angri ‘from worries’
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2. angr (noun n.): grief, sin
notes
[2] firð angri ‘removed from worries’: Lit. ‘removed from worry’. Finnur Jónsson translates this as free of sorg over synder, syndsmærte ‘sorrow over sins or pain from sins’ (LP: angr) or den sorg-frie ‘the carefree’ (Skj B). Kock (NN §2489) suggests that Einarr deliberately juxtaposed the hungry poet and the well-fed abbess.
firð ‘removed’
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2. firra (verb): keep (from), remove
notes
[2] firð angri ‘removed from worries’: Lit. ‘removed from worry’. Finnur Jónsson translates this as free of sorg over synder, syndsmærte ‘sorrow over sins or pain from sins’ (LP: angr) or den sorg-frie ‘the carefree’ (Skj B). Kock (NN §2489) suggests that Einarr deliberately juxtaposed the hungry poet and the well-fed abbess.
of ‘around’
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3. of (prep.): around, from; too
notes
[2] of svangann (noun, m. acc. sg.) ‘around the flank’: Skj B treats this as an adj. svangan (m. acc. sg.) ‘hungry’ with the expletive particle of: lét oss of svangan ‘let us [me] [be] hungry’. That reading forces the emendation of dygg þótt ‘faithful although’(l. 3) to dugðut ‘were not able to’ because a finite verb (3rd pers. pl.) is needed with the subject in vígðu víf: in vígðu víf dugðut gyrða víti ‘the consecrated women were not able to prevent the punishment’ (ll. 3-4). For the suffixed article (svangann ‘the flank’), see ANG §472. See also stallarinn ‘the marshal’ (l. 8). For a similar image of a hungry retainer with a belt pulling close to his spine, see SnH Lv 3/7, 8: belti dregr hrygg mér at hvru ‘the belt truly pulls at my spine’.
svangann ‘the flank’
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svangi (noun m.; °-a): [flank]
notes
[2] of svangann (noun, m. acc. sg.) ‘around the flank’: Skj B treats this as an adj. svangan (m. acc. sg.) ‘hungry’ with the expletive particle of: lét oss of svangan ‘let us [me] [be] hungry’. That reading forces the emendation of dygg þótt ‘faithful although’(l. 3) to dugðut ‘were not able to’ because a finite verb (3rd pers. pl.) is needed with the subject in vígðu víf: in vígðu víf dugðut gyrða víti ‘the consecrated women were not able to prevent the punishment’ (ll. 3-4). For the suffixed article (svangann ‘the flank’), see ANG §472. See also stallarinn ‘the marshal’ (l. 8). For a similar image of a hungry retainer with a belt pulling close to his spine, see SnH Lv 3/7, 8: belti dregr hrygg mér at hvru ‘the belt truly pulls at my spine’.
dygg ‘faithful’
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dyggr (adj.; °dyggvan/dyggan; compar. -vari/-ari/-ri, superl. -vastr/-astr/-str): trustworthy
þótt ‘although’
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þótt (conj.): although
víf ‘women’
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víf (noun n.): woman, wife
in ‘the’
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2. inn (art.): the
vígðu ‘consecrated’
víti ‘may reproach’
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víta (verb): reproach, destroy
notes
[4] fyrðar (m. nom. pl.) ‘people’: The ms. reads fyr þat ‘for that’. The prepositional phrase has been retained in Skj B, but it makes the l. unmetrical: the third syllable (fyr) must carry a full stress and internal rhyme and a monosyllabic proclitic prep. cannot do that. The present reading follows that of NN §2183 (for earlier attempts at interpretation, see NN §2183).
gyrða ‘tighten the belt’
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gyrða (verb): gird
Enn ‘And’
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2. en (conj.): but, and
til ‘to’
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til (prep.): to
áts ‘eat’
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át (noun n.; °-s): eating, food
með ‘with’
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með (prep.): with
nunnum ‘the nuns’
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nunna (noun f.; °-u; -ur): [nuns, nun]
ógnar ‘of the battle’
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ógn (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): terror, battle
rakks ‘brave’
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rakkr (adj.; °compar. -ari): bold
á ‘at’
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3. á (prep.): on, at
Bakka ‘Bakke’
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1. bakki (noun m.; °-a; -ar): bank, slope
drós ‘the lady’
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drós (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): lady
gladdit ‘did not cheer’
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gleðja (verb): gladden, rejoice
vin ‘the friend’
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vinr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. -/(-i OsvReyk 92.17); -ir): friend
vísa ‘leader’
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vísi (noun m.; °-a): leader
vasat ‘was not’
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2. vera (verb): be, is, was, were, are, am
[8] vasat (‘varat’): ‘rarat’ Mork
stallarinn ‘the marshal’
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stallari (noun m.; °-a; -ar): king’s marshal
notes
[8] stallarinn ‘the marshal’: For this office, see Note to Úlfr Lv l. 1. For the suffixed article, see Note to l. 2 above.
kallaðr ‘summoned’
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kalla (verb): call
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Einarr visits the nunnery at Nonneseter (Bakke, Trondheim) and fails to appear when King Eysteinn Haraldsson sits down to eat. To redeem himself, Einarr must recite a st. before the king finishes his drink.
As a retainer of the king, Einarr was expected to accompany Eysteinn to the table (see Holm-Olsen 1983, 57-8). — This and the following two sts must have been composed prior to the death of King Eysteinn Haraldsson (1157).
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