Gamlkan Jóndr 1VII
Beatrice La Farge (ed.) 2007, ‘Gamli kanóki, Jónsdrápa 1’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 133-4.
Tígnar ‘in honour’
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tígn (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): honour
frák ‘I have heard’
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1. fregna (verb): hear of
þik ‘you’
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þú (pron.; °gen. þín, dat. þér, acc. þik): you
upphaf ‘elevation’
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upphaf (noun n.): beginning
eignask ‘acquired for yourself’
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eigna (verb; °-að-): acquire
eigi ‘you did not’
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3. eigi (adv.): not
mistir ‘go without’
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mista (verb): lose
blezan ‘the blessing’
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blezun (noun f.; °blezanar/blezunar; blezanir): [blessing]
Kristi ‘of Christ’
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Kristr (noun m.; °-s/-, dat. -i; -ar): Christ
ráðeflandi ‘Counsel-provider’
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ráðeflandi (noun m.)
kennings
Ráðeflandi liðs rekka,‘Counsel-provider of the troop of men, ’
= APOSTLE
the troop of men, → MANKIND
Counsel-provider of the MANKIND → APOSTLE
risnu ‘in munificence’
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risna (noun f.; °-u): munificence
prúðan ‘splendid’
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prúðr (adj.; °superl. -astr): magnificent, proud
rekka ‘of men’
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rekkr (noun m.; °; -ar): man, champion
kennings
Ráðeflandi liðs rekka,‘Counsel-provider of the troop of men, ’
= APOSTLE
the troop of men, → MANKIND
Counsel-provider of the MANKIND → APOSTLE
rekka ‘of men’
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rekkr (noun m.; °; -ar): man, champion
kennings
Ráðeflandi liðs rekka,‘Counsel-provider of the troop of men, ’
= APOSTLE
the troop of men, → MANKIND
Counsel-provider of the MANKIND → APOSTLE
liðs ‘of the troop’
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lið (noun n.; °-s; -): retinue, troop
kennings
Ráðeflandi liðs rekka,‘Counsel-provider of the troop of men, ’
= APOSTLE
the troop of men, → MANKIND
Counsel-provider of the MANKIND → APOSTLE
liðs ‘of the troop’
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lið (noun n.; °-s; -): retinue, troop
kennings
Ráðeflandi liðs rekka,‘Counsel-provider of the troop of men, ’
= APOSTLE
the troop of men, → MANKIND
Counsel-provider of the MANKIND → APOSTLE
af ‘from’
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af (prep.): from
flærðar ‘of falsehood’
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flærð (noun f.): falsehood, deceit
kennings
hnekki flærðar —‘the suppressor of falsehood — ’
= God
the suppressor of falsehood — → God
hnekki ‘the suppressor’
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hnekkir (noun m.): subduer
kennings
hnekki flærðar —‘the suppressor of falsehood — ’
= God
the suppressor of falsehood — → God
sólar ‘of the sun’
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sól (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -u/-; -ir): sun
kennings
mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar‘the famous lord of the hall of the sun ’
= God
the hall of the sun → SKY/HEAVEN
the famous lord of the SKY/HEAVEN → God
sólar ‘of the sun’
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sól (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -u/-; -ir): sun
kennings
mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar‘the famous lord of the hall of the sun ’
= God
the hall of the sun → SKY/HEAVEN
the famous lord of the SKY/HEAVEN → God
ranns ‘of the hall’
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rann (noun n.): house, hall
kennings
mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar‘the famous lord of the hall of the sun ’
= God
the hall of the sun → SKY/HEAVEN
the famous lord of the SKY/HEAVEN → God
ranns ‘of the hall’
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rann (noun n.): house, hall
kennings
mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar‘the famous lord of the hall of the sun ’
= God
the hall of the sun → SKY/HEAVEN
the famous lord of the SKY/HEAVEN → God
at ‘that’
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4. at (conj.): that
siklingr ‘lord’
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siklingr (noun m.; °; -ar): king, ruler
kennings
mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar‘the famous lord of the hall of the sun ’
= God
the hall of the sun → SKY/HEAVEN
the famous lord of the SKY/HEAVEN → God
unni ‘granted’
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1. unna (verb): love
seima ‘of gold wires’
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2. seimr (noun m.; °dat. -i): gold
kennings
brjót* seima‘to the breaker of gold wires ’
= GENEROUS MAN
to the breaker of gold wires → GENEROUS MAN
kennings
brjót* seima‘to the breaker of gold wires ’
= GENEROUS MAN
to the breaker of gold wires → GENEROUS MAN
notes
[6] brjót*: The ms. reading is ‘brjotr’ (nom. sg.). The subject of the sentence is the kenning siklingr ranns sólar ‘lord of the hall of the sun’ [SKY/HEAVEN > = God (= Christ)]; since the st. is addressed to S. John, it is to be expected that he be mentioned in the second part of the st. as well as in the first. All eds since Bugge therefore emend the nom. form brjótr to the dat. sg. brjót* (1874, 933 n. 3) assuming a m. dat. sg. a-stem noun without dat. ending -i (ANG §358.3). The man-kenning brjót seima ‘breaker of gold wires’ [GENEROUS MAN] then designates the Apostle John and forms part of the indirect object in the construction unni mætra lífs seima brjót ok móður sinni ‘granted a more worthy life to the breaker of gold wires [GENEROUS MAN = John] and to his mother’.
í ‘in’
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í (prep.): in, into
notes
[6] í þessum heimi ‘in this world’: Bugge, Finnur Jónsson (Skj B) and Lange (1958b, 17) regard this prepositional phrase as part of the subordinate cl. an aðrir gæti ‘than others were able to obtain’; Kock (NN §3124) argues that the w.o. suggests rather that í þessum heimi forms part of the cl. at siklingr ranns sólar unni seima brjót ok móður sinni mætra líf.
þessum ‘this’
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1. sjá (pron.; °gen. þessa dat. þessum/þeima, acc. þenna; f. sjá/þessi; n. þetta, dat. þessu/þvísa; pl. þessir): this
notes
[6] í þessum heimi ‘in this world’: Bugge, Finnur Jónsson (Skj B) and Lange (1958b, 17) regard this prepositional phrase as part of the subordinate cl. an aðrir gæti ‘than others were able to obtain’; Kock (NN §3124) argues that the w.o. suggests rather that í þessum heimi forms part of the cl. at siklingr ranns sólar unni seima brjót ok móður sinni mætra líf.
heimi ‘world’
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heimr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-; -ar): home, abode; world
notes
[6] í þessum heimi ‘in this world’: Bugge, Finnur Jónsson (Skj B) and Lange (1958b, 17) regard this prepositional phrase as part of the subordinate cl. an aðrir gæti ‘than others were able to obtain’; Kock (NN §3124) argues that the w.o. suggests rather that í þessum heimi forms part of the cl. at siklingr ranns sólar unni seima brjót ok móður sinni mætra líf.
mærðar ‘the famous’
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mærð (noun f.): praise
kennings
mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar‘the famous lord of the hall of the sun ’
= God
the hall of the sun → SKY/HEAVEN
the famous lord of the SKY/HEAVEN → God
notes
[7] mærðar kœnn ‘famous’: This phrase can be translated as ‘wise in fame’ and is interpreted by Finnur Jónsson (Skj B; LP: mærð), Kahle (1901, 138) and Lange (1958b, 17) as ‘famous, much praised’ or (less plausibly) as ‘praised for his wisdom’ (LP: kœnn).
kœnn ‘’
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2. kœnn (adj.; °superl. kǿnstr/kǿnastr): wise, skilful
kennings
mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar‘the famous lord of the hall of the sun ’
= God
the hall of the sun → SKY/HEAVEN
the famous lord of the SKY/HEAVEN → God
notes
[7] mærðar kœnn ‘famous’: This phrase can be translated as ‘wise in fame’ and is interpreted by Finnur Jónsson (Skj B; LP: mærð), Kahle (1901, 138) and Lange (1958b, 17) as ‘famous, much praised’ or (less plausibly) as ‘praised for his wisdom’ (LP: kœnn).
ok ‘and’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
móður ‘own mother’
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móðir (noun f.): mother
sinni ‘to his’
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3. sinn (pron.; °f. sín, n. sitt): (refl. poss. pron.)
mætra ‘a more worthy’
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mætr (adj.; °compar. -ri/-ari, superl. -astr): honoured, respected
lífs ‘life’
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líf (noun n.; °-s; -): life
an ‘than’
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2. an (conj.): than
aðrir ‘others’
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1. annarr (pron.; °f. ǫnnur, n. annat; pl. aðrir): (an)other, second
gæti ‘were able to obtain’
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2. geta (verb): to beget, give birth to, mention, speak of; to think well of, like, love
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Counsel-provider of the troop of men [MANKIND > APOSTLE], I have heard that you, splendid in munificence, acquired for yourself elevation in honour from the suppressor of falsehood [= God (= Christ)] — you did not go without the blessing of Christ — that the famous lord of the hall of the sun [SKY/HEAVEN > = God (= Christ)] granted to the breaker of gold wires [GENEROUS MAN] and to his own mother a more worthy life in this world than others were able to obtain.
Prefaced to this st. is the remark: ok kveðr svá til ástarlófs Jesu Cristi, er hann veitti sínum frænda ‘and he [Gamli] says this in praise of the love that Jesus Christ granted to his relative [John]’ (Jón4 1874, 510). On the idea of John as Christ’s relative, see Note to st. 2/4.
Apart from the intercalary cl. (eigi mistir blezan Kristi ‘you did not go without Christ’s blessing’) and the apostrophe addressed to S. John (ráðeflandi liðs rekka ‘fortifier of the condition of the troop of men’ [MANKIND > APOSTLE = John]), this st. consists of a single sentence, a main cl. and two subordinate cls. The main cl. is frák = frá ek ‘I have heard’, the first subordinate cl. has the form of an acc. and inf. (þik, risnu prúðan, eignask upphaf tignar af flærðar hnekki ‘you, splendid in prowess, acquired for yourself elevation in honour from {the suppressor of falsity} [= Christ]’); the second half of the st. contains the second subordinate cl., which is introduced by the conj. at ‘that’: at mærðar kœnn siklingr ranns sólar, unni brjót seima ok sinni móður mætra lífs í þessum heimi en aðrir gæti ‘that {the glorious lord {of the hall of the sun}} [SKY/HEAVEN > = Christ] granted {to the breaker of gold wires} [GENEROUS MAN = John] and to His own mother a more worthy life in this world than others were able to obtain’
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