Glúmr Gráf 11^I

Varð á víðu borði
viggjum hollr at liggja
gætir Glamma sóta
garðs Eylimafjarðar.
Sendir fell á sandi
sævar báls at Halsi;
olli jǫfra spjalli
orðheppinn því morði.

{Gætir {garðs {sóta Glamma}}}, hollr viggjum, varð at liggja á víðu borði Eylimafjarðar. {Sendir {báls sævar}} fell á sandi at Halsi; {orðheppinn spjalli jǫfra} olli því morði.

{The guardian {of the fence {of the steed of Glammi <sea-king>}}} [SHIP > SHIELD > WARRIOR], benevolent to horses, had to lie on the wide shore of Eylimi’s fjord [Limfjorden]. {The dispenser {of the fire of the sea}} [GOLD > GENEROUS MAN = Haraldr] fell on the sand at Hals; {the speech-blessed confidant of princes} [JARL = Hákon] caused that killing.

Mss: Kˣ(128v), 39(5rb), F(22vb), J1ˣ(80r), J2ˣ(75r) (Hkr); 61(10vb), 53(8vb), 54(4vb), Bb(14va), 62(3va), Flat(11va) (ÓT); FskBˣ(18v), FskAˣ(75) (Fsk, ll. 5-8)

Readings: [1] víðu: breiðu Flat    [2] viggjum: byggjum Flat;    at: ‘[…]’ 39    [3] Glamma: gamla 61, 53, 54, Bb, 62, Flat    [4] garðs: garð J1ˣ, 61, 53, 54, Bb, 62, Flat;    Eylima‑: ey lima 61, 53, 54, Bb, 62, ‘eilima’ Flat;    ‑fjarðar: ‘[…]þar’ 39    [6] sævar: ‘[…]var’ 39;    at: á 53, 54, Bb;    Halsi: ‘[…]’ 39    [7] olli: ‘[…]’ 39;    jǫfra: jǫfurs 62;    spjalli: spilli Bb, falli 62

Editions: Skj AI, 77, Skj BI, 67, Skald I, 41, NN §§259, 260; Hkr 1893-1901, I, 277, IV, 72, ÍF 26, 239, Hkr 1991, I, 159 (ÓTHkr ch. 14), F 1871, 104; Fms 1, 88, Fms 12, 33, ÓT 1958-2000, I, 95 (ch. 53), Flat 1860-8, I, 85; Fsk 1902-3, 66 (ch. 14), ÍF 29, 109 (ch. 16).

Context: In Hkr, the stanza follows a statement that Haraldr gráfeldr fell in battle. In Fsk, sts 10 and 11/5-8 form a stanza that is cited as evidence for the battle having taken place on land, presumably since Haraldr is said to die á sandi at Halsi ‘on the sand at Hals’ (l. 6).

Notes: [All]: The reference to Gráf 11 in the Note to Arn Hardr 13/2^II is to the stanza now numbered Gráf 12. — [1-4]: (a) The interpretation adopted here is essentially that of Sveinbjörn Egilsson (Fms 12; see also NN §259 and ÍF 26), taking Eylimafjarðar ‘of Eylimi’s fjord’ as a punning reference to Limafjǫrðr (Limfjorden), or perhaps reflecting a serious antiquarian belief that the p. n. derived from that of a legendary king (LP: Eylimi). Ey and lima are written as one word in many mss. (b) Finnur Jónsson (Hkr 1893-1901; Skj B) detaches ey ‘island’ from Limafjarðar ‘of Limfjorden’ and incorporates it in the kenning viggjum eygarðs ‘(with the) horses of the island-enclosure [SEA > SHIPS]’. Liggja then means not ‘lie (dead)’ but ‘lie at anchor’ (cf., e.g., ÞjóðA Har 5/5^II). This produces a bland statement that does not relate to the death of Haraldr that is so prominent in the second helmingr. Further, viggjum hollr ‘benevolent to horses’, consecutive in the text, are separated, while eygarðs is read as a cpd, which involves assuming tmesis, which is rare in the earlier skaldic poetry. Interpretation (a) therefore seems preferable, despite the difficulty of hollr viggjum ‘benevolent to horses’ (see Note to l. 2). — [2] hollr viggjum ‘benevolent to horses’: Hollr ‘benevolent, friendly, loyal’ frequently governs a dat. of the beneficiary (LP: hollr), and this seems to be the case here. The horses are assumed to be literal, although in context metaphorical ones (as in the ship-kenning assumed by Finnur Jónsson, noted above) might seem more likely. If literal, the reference could be to horses kept for pagan ritual purposes (see Note to st. 13 [All] on Haraldr’s religion). Alternatively (as argued by Kock in NN §§259, 2203, followed in ÍF 26) the allusion could be to one of the tólf íþróttir ‘twelve accomplishments’ that Glúmr attributes to Haraldr in st. 14. This probably incomplete stanza does not enumerate the accomplishments, and the comparable stanzas attributed to Haraldr harðráði ‘Hard-rule’ (Hharð Gamv 4^II) and Rǫgnvaldr jarl Kali Kolsson (Rv Lv 1^II) do not include horsemanship in their lists, but Kock includes it among a number of skills attributed to kings in Old Norse and Old English sources, and specifically (NN §259) in the eddic Rígsþula (Rþ 35, 37, 42, 47). — [4] Eylimafjarðar ‘of Eylimi’s fjord [Limfjorden]’: It is clear from at Halsi ‘at Hals’ in l. 6 that the reference is to Limfjorden, the large strait (and until c. 1200 also a sea passage) across northern Jutland (see Note to Sigv Knútdr 8/8). — [6] at Halsi ‘at Hals’: Located at the eastern end of Limfjorden. It is possible that Glúmr knew a form of Hals with long vowel, which would provide a more exact rhyme on báls here, though lengthening in this and similar contexts does not generally occur until c. 1200 or shortly before (see ANG §124.3.) — [7] spjalli jǫfra ‘confidant of princes [JARL = Hákon]’: Snorri (SnE 1998, I, 81) cites the kenning spjalli konungs ‘confidant of a king’ among kennings for jarlar ok hersar ok hirðmenn ‘jarls and hersar and retainers’, quoting Hfr Hákdr 5/2^III, in which this kenning is used of Hákon jarl Sigurðarson. The jarl referred to here may well be the same Hákon, who according to the prose accounts (the fullest of which is in Fsk, ÍF 29, 104-9) engineered the killing of Haraldr gráfeldr by persuading Gull-Haraldr, nephew of Haraldr Gormsson of Denmark, to kill Haraldr gráfeldr in order to gain rule over Norway. Hákon then killed Gull-Haraldr on the pretext of his supposed disloyalty to Haraldr Gormsson, and took control over Norway himself. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson (ÍF 26) notes that the kenning could also apply to the direct agent, Gull-Haraldr. — [8] orðheppinn ‘speech-blessed’: (a) The adj., a hap. leg., is here construed with ll. 7-8, and the helmingr is read as two couplets. The attribution of verbal effectiveness seems to fit Hákon jarl most appropriately, both in general (in one of the two versions of Hfr Hákdr 5/2^III he is described as snjallmæltr ‘wise in speech’) and in the context of the story of his incitement of Gull-Haraldr. (b) Grammatically it could qualify the subject of ll. 5-6, Haraldr gráfeldr, and this is how it is construed in Skj B.  — [8] því morði ‘that killing’: Morð is taken here to refer specifically to the death of Haraldr, but in skaldic language it often means ‘battle’, which is an alternative possibility here.

References

1. Bibliography
2. Skj B = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15b. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. B: Rettet tekst. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1973. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
3. Fms = Sveinbjörn Egilsson et al., eds. 1825-37. Fornmanna sögur eptir gömlum handritum útgefnar að tilhlutun hins norræna fornfræða fèlags. 12 vols. Copenhagen: Popp.
4. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
5. NN = Kock, Ernst Albin. 1923-44. Notationes Norrœnæ: Anteckningar till Edda och skaldediktning. Lunds Universitets årsskrift new ser. 1. 28 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
6. 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.
7. ANG = Noreen, Adolf. 1923. Altnordische Grammatik I: Altisländische und altnorwegische Grammatik (Laut- und Flexionslehre) unter Berücksichtigung des Urnordischen. 4th edn. Halle: Niemeyer. 1st edn. 1884. 5th unrev. edn. 1970. Tübingen: Niemeyer.
8. Flat 1860-8 = Gudbrand Vigfusson [Guðbrandur Vigfússon] and C. R. Unger, eds. 1860-8. Flateyjarbók. En samling af norske konge-sagaer med indskudte mindre fortællinger om begivenheder i og udenfor Norge samt annaler. 3 vols. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
9. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
10. Hkr 1893-1901 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1893-1901. Heimskringla: Nóregs konunga sǫgur af Snorri Sturluson. 4 vols. SUGNL 23. Copenhagen: Møller.
11. Hkr 1991 = Bergljót S. Kristjánsdóttir et al., eds. 1991. Heimskringla. 3 vols. Reykjavík: Mál og menning.
12. F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
13. Fsk 1902-3 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1902-3. Fagrskinna: Nóregs kononga tal. SUGNL 30. Copenhagen: Møller.
14. SnE 1998 = Snorri Sturluson. 1998. Edda: Skáldskaparmál. Ed. Anthony Faulkes. 2 vols. University College London: Viking Society for Northern Research.
15. ÍF 29 = Ágrip af Nóregskonunga sǫgum; Fagrskinna—Nóregs konungatal. Ed. Bjarni Einarsson. 1985.
16. ÓT 1958-2000 = Ólafur Halldórsson, ed. 1958-2000. Saga Óláfs Tryggvasonar en mesta. 3 vols. EA A 1-3. Copenhagen: Munksgaard (Reitzel).
17. Internal references
18. (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 23 April 2024)
19. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Fagrskinna’ 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=56> (accessed 23 April 2024)
20. Judith Jesch 2017, ‘(Biography of) Rǫgnvaldr jarl Kali Kolsson’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 342.
21. Diana Whaley (ed.) 2009, ‘Arnórr jarlaskáld Þórðarson, Haraldsdrápa 13’ 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. 274-5.
22. Not published: do not cite ()
23. Alison Finlay (ed.) 2012, ‘Glúmr Geirason, Gráfeldardrápa 12’ 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. 262.
24. Alison Finlay (ed.) 2012, ‘Glúmr Geirason, Gráfeldardrápa 11’ 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. 260.
25. Kate Heslop (ed.) 2017, ‘Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld Óttarsson, Hákonardrápa 5’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 219.
26. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Haraldr harðráði Sigurðarson, Gamanvísur 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. 39-40.
27. Judith Jesch (ed.) 2009, ‘Rǫgnvaldr jarl Kali Kolsson, Lausavísur 1’ 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. 576-7.
28. Matthew Townend (ed.) 2012, ‘Sigvatr Þórðarson, Knútsdrápa 8’ 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. 659.
29. Diana Whaley (ed.) 2009, ‘Þjóðólfr Arnórsson, Stanzas about Haraldr Sigurðarson’s leiðangr 5’ 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. 155-6.