Eskál Vell 23I
Edith Marold (ed.) 2012, ‘Einarr skálaglamm Helgason, Vellekla 23’ 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. 311.
Varð ‘was’
(not checked:)
1. verða (verb): become, be
fyr ‘before’
(not checked:)
fyr (prep.): for, over, because of, etc.
víga ‘’
(not checked:)
víg (noun n.; °-s; -): battle
Vinða ‘of the Wends’
(not checked:)
Vinðr (noun m.; °; vinðr/-ir): the Wends
[1] Vinða: víga 61, 53, 54, Bb
kennings
myrði Vinða‘the killer of the Wends ’
= Hákon jarl
the killer of the Wends → Hákon jarl
notes
[1] myrði Vinða ‘the killer of the Wends [= Hákon jarl]’: This kenning is usually associated with Hákon jarl and interpreted as an allusion either to unknown raids in the Baltic Sea region or to the battle at the Danevirke (see Introduction). Morawiec (2006, 709) doubts any relationship to the battle, because it ended in defeat; however, the poem portrays the events as heroic and victorious acts of the ruler (see sts 26-8). The ÓT ms. tradition has replaced Vinða with víga ‘of the battles’, which yields a periphrasis ‘killer of the battles’ that resists interpretation. Freudenthal (Vell 1865, 60) suggests, implausibly, that this is a reference to Hákon jarl as a peaceable ruler.
morði ‘’
(not checked:)
1. morð (noun n.; °-s; -): killing, battle
kennings
myrði Vinða‘the killer of the Wends ’
= Hákon jarl
the killer of the Wends → Hákon jarl
notes
[1] myrði Vinða ‘the killer of the Wends [= Hákon jarl]’: This kenning is usually associated with Hákon jarl and interpreted as an allusion either to unknown raids in the Baltic Sea region or to the battle at the Danevirke (see Introduction). Morawiec (2006, 709) doubts any relationship to the battle, because it ended in defeat; however, the poem portrays the events as heroic and victorious acts of the ruler (see sts 26-8). The ÓT ms. tradition has replaced Vinða with víga ‘of the battles’, which yields a periphrasis ‘killer of the battles’ that resists interpretation. Freudenthal (Vell 1865, 60) suggests, implausibly, that this is a reference to Hákon jarl as a peaceable ruler.
víð ‘a widely’
(not checked:)
víðr (adj.): far < víðfrægr (adj.): far-renownedvíðr (adj.): far < víðfrægr (adj.): far-renowned
frægt ‘renowned’
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frægr (adj.; °-jan/-an; compar. -ri, superl. -jastr/-astr/-str): famous, renowned < víðfrægr (adj.): far-renowned
[2] ‑frægt: ‑frægr 325VIII 1, Bb
en ‘and’
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2. en (conj.): but, and
gramr ‘the ruler’
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1. gramr (noun m.): ruler
síðan ‘then’
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síðan (adv.): later, then
gjǫrðask ‘’
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1. gera (verb): do, make
mest ‘eagerly’
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meiri (adj. comp.; °meiran; superl. mestr): more, most
at ‘for ’
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3. at (prep.): at, to
morði ‘battle’
(not checked:)
1. morð (noun n.; °-s; -): killing, battle
mann ‘slaughter’
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maðr (noun m.): man, person < mannfall (noun n.)
fall ‘’
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fall (noun n.; °-s; *-): fall < mannfall (noun n.)
við ‘in’
(not checked:)
2. við (prep.): with, against
styr ‘battle’
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styrr (noun m.; °dat. -): battle
annan ‘the second’
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1. annarr (pron.; °f. ǫnnur, n. annat; pl. aðrir): (an)other, second
hlumm ‘’
(not checked:)
hlummr (noun m.; °; -ar): oar-handle < hlummnarfi (noun m.)
hlunn ‘’
(not checked:)
hlunnr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i; -ar): roller < hlunnnarfi (noun m.)
Hlym ‘of the din’
(not checked:)
hlymr (noun m.): din < hlymnarfi (noun m.)
[5] Hlym‑: ‘hlum‑’ J1ˣ, ‘hlun‑’ 61, 53, 54, Bb
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
Hlym ‘of the din’
(not checked:)
hlymr (noun m.): din < hlymnarfi (noun m.)
[5] Hlym‑: ‘hlum‑’ J1ˣ, ‘hlun‑’ 61, 53, 54, Bb
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
fyr ‘’
(not checked:)
fyr (prep.): for, over, because of, etc.
nar ‘’
(not checked:)
nár (noun m.; °-s; -ir): corpse
rarfi ‘’
Narfi ‘The Narfi’
(not checked:)
Narfi (noun m.): Narfi < hlymnarfi (noun m.)Narfi (noun m.): Narfi < hlunnnarfi (noun m.)Narfi (noun m.): Narfi < hlummnarfi (noun m.)
[5] Narfi: ‘‑rarfi’ J1ˣ, ‘‑nar fyr’ 53, 54, Bb
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
notes
[5] Narfi ‘Narfi <supernatural being>’: Son of the malevolent trickster-god Loki and brother of Hel and the wolf Fenrir (see Note to Yt 7/5-6). Narfi is himself turned into a wolf in the prose epilogue to Lok and in Gylf (SnE 2005, 49). His name therefore seems unsuitable as a base-word of a warrior-kenning praising Hákon jarl, because it cannot be understood as praise, and the kenning may refer to Hákon’s enemy Ragnfrøðr.
bauð ‘’
(not checked:)
bjóða (verb; °býðr; bauð, buðu; boðinn (buð- Thom¹ 5²n.)): offer, order, invite
bað ‘ordered’
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biðja (verb; °biðr; bað, báðu; beðinn (beiþ- Martin¹ 573, bỏþ- HákEirsp 661, cf. ed. intr. xl)): ask for, order, pray
[5] bað: bauð 53, 54, Bb
hverfa ‘to be turned’
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1. hverfa (verb): turn, disappear
hlífar ‘of the shield’
(not checked:)
hlíf (noun f.; °-ar; -ar): shield, defence
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
hlífar ‘of the shield’
(not checked:)
hlíf (noun f.; °-ar; -ar): shield, defence
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
hlífar ‘of the shield’
(not checked:)
hlíf (noun f.; °-ar; -ar): shield, defence
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
fladz ‘’
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
kennings
Hlífar flagðs hlym-Narfi‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’
= WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
the troll-woman of the shield → AXE
the din of the AXE → BATTLE
The Narfi of the BATTLE → WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?
ok ‘and’
(not checked:)
3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
lagði ‘pulled up’
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leggja (verb): put, lay
Jalks ‘of Jálkr’
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Jalkr (noun m.): [Jálkr]
kennings
ǫndur Jalks‘the ski of Jálkr ’
= SHIP
the ski of Jálkr → SHIP
var ‘’
(not checked:)
2. vera (verb): be, is, was, were, are, am
notes
[7] við ǫndurt fylki ‘alongside the front of the host’: Fylki is here regarded as referring not to a region, but to a ‘host’ (cf. LP: fylki 1). It could, however, be interpreted as a regional term, and then the phrase would mean the outermost part of a fylki, cf. Icel. Ǫndvert nes (giving the p. n. Öndverðarnes) and Ǫndurð-eyrr (ÍF 26, 247 n.). But that is less likely, as fylki does not refer to a landscape feature like nes ‘headland’.
ǫndvert ‘’
(not checked:)
ǫndverðr (adj.): early, beginning
ǫndyrt ‘’
ǫndurt ‘the front’
(not checked:)
ǫndurr (noun m.; °-s): front, onset
[7] ǫndurt: ‘ondvert’ 53, ‘ondyrt’ 54, Bb
notes
[7] við ǫndurt fylki ‘alongside the front of the host’: Fylki is here regarded as referring not to a region, but to a ‘host’ (cf. LP: fylki 1). It could, however, be interpreted as a regional term, and then the phrase would mean the outermost part of a fylki, cf. Icel. Ǫndvert nes (giving the p. n. Öndverðarnes) and Ǫndurð-eyrr (ÍF 26, 247 n.). But that is less likely, as fylki does not refer to a landscape feature like nes ‘headland’.
fylki ‘of the host’
(not checked:)
fylki (noun n.): county
notes
[7] við ǫndurt fylki ‘alongside the front of the host’: Fylki is here regarded as referring not to a region, but to a ‘host’ (cf. LP: fylki 1). It could, however, be interpreted as a regional term, and then the phrase would mean the outermost part of a fylki, cf. Icel. Ǫndvert nes (giving the p. n. Öndverðarnes) and Ǫndurð-eyrr (ÍF 26, 247 n.). But that is less likely, as fylki does not refer to a landscape feature like nes ‘headland’.
ǫndut ‘’
ǫndr ‘’
kennings
ǫndur Jalks‘the ski of Jálkr ’
= SHIP
the ski of Jálkr → SHIP
forf ‘’
þǫrf ‘’
(not checked:)
þǫrf (noun f.; °þarfar; þarfar/þarfir): need
†fꜹrf† ‘…’
[8] †fꜹrf†: ‘þorf’ F, ‘forf’ 325VIII 1, ‘vorp’ 61, 53, 54, Bb
notes
[8] †fꜹrf† ‘…’: So far no interpretation of the ms. readings (fǫrf, vorp, þǫrf) has been conclusive. Most previous interpreters assume that the word formed an expression for ‘ship’ in conjunction with ǫndur Jalks ‘ski of Jálkr <sea-king>’. Specific suggestions have been: (a) Fǫr Jalks ǫndurs ‘the vehicle of the Jálkr of the ski [= Ullr > SHIP]’ (Konráð Gíslason 1895-7, I, 152), to which Finnur Jónsson (Hkr 1893-1901, IV) objects because of the short syllable fǫr. (b) Eggert Ó. Brím (ÓT 1892, 375) interprets þǫrf as an adv. in the sense of þarflega ‘as it was necessary’, but does not comment on the grammatical form. (c) Kock (NN §§404, 2244) suggests two configurations of the three words ǫndurr ‘ski’, fors ‘of the wave/waterfall’ and Jalks ‘of Jálkr/sea-king’ that could yield a ship-kenning, but in both the word fors ‘waterfall’ is superfluous.
á ‘’
(not checked:)
3. á (prep.): on, at
af ‘’
(not checked:)
af (prep.): from
landi ‘land’
(not checked:)
land (noun n.; °-s; *-): land
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
|
Varð fyr Vinða myrði |
There was a widely renowned slaughter before the killer of the Wends [= Hákon jarl] in the second battle, and then the ruler eagerly set out for battle. The Narfi <supernatural being> of the din of the troll-woman of the shield [(lit. ‘din-Narfi of the troll-woman of the shield’) AXE > BATTLE > WARRIOR = Ragnfrøðr?] ordered the ski of Jálkr <sea-king> [SHIP] to be turned … towards land and pulled up alongside the front of the host.
Hákon jarl takes the entire host south toward Staðr (Stadlandet) and learns that King Ragnfrøðr has moved into Sogn with his forces. Learning of this, he heads there, lands, stakes out the battlefield and positions his troops on it.
[1-4]: Many suggestions have been made for the interpretation of this helmingr, which consists of two main clauses. (a) The construal above is the most straightforward, and is adopted in ÍF 26 and Hkr 1991. A difficulty here is that síðan ‘then’ (l. 2) would seem to imply that having created mannfall ‘slaughter’, Hákon readied himself for a further battle, although only two (in the north of Sunnmøre and in Sogneforden) are recounted in the prose sources and Ragnfrøðr is said to have fled from Norway after the battle in Sogn (Hkr, ÍF 26, 247; Fsk, ÍF 29, 115), leaving Hákon in control. Possibly the meaning is that Hákon was always ready for battle, or conceivably that the gramr ‘ruler’ is Ragnfrøðr, who was preparing for more strife (cf. Note to ll. 5-8). (b) It is perhaps in order to obviate this difficulty that most interpreters construe the first clause as Gramr varð fyr Vinða myrði við annan styr ‘The ruler encountered the killer of the Wends in a second battle’. En and síðan (l. 2) are then construed with the second clause: en síðan gerðisk mest víðfrægt mannfall at morði ‘and then an immense, widely renowned slaughter arose in battle’ (Fms 12; Vell 1865, 60; Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Konráð Gíslason 1895-7, I, 149-50; Skj B). This produces a better narrative sequence but assumes extreme fragmentation in l. 2: víðfrægt, en, gramr, síðan.
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