Russell Poole (ed.) 2012, ‘Guthormr sindri, Hákonardrápa 6’ 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. 164.
Valþagnar lét vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar vafs of hǫfðum
hlymmildingum gildir.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
nadds hámána raddar
valbrands víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
{Gildir {vafs handar}} lét {vígnestr} bresta saman of hǫfðum {vegnum {Valþagnar hlym}mildingum}. Þar gekk {Njǫrðr {raddar {hámána nadds}}} af {vápnunduðum Nirði {víðra landa {sunda {valbrands}}}}.
‘ The payer of the coil of the arm [ARM-RING > GENEROUS MAN = Hákon] let war-needles [SPEARS] clash together over the heads of the slain bestowers of the tumult of Valþǫgn <valkyrie> [(lit. ‘tumult-bestowers of Valþǫgn’) BATTLE > WARRIORS]. There the Njǫrðr <god> of the voice of the high moon of the spear [SHIELD > BATTLE > WARRIOR = Hákon] went from the weapon-wounded Njǫrðr <god> of the wide lands of the inlets of the slaughter-fire [SWORD > BLOOD > SHIELDS > WARRIOR = Guthormr Eiríksson].’
Hákon learns that the Eiríkssynir (or Gunnhildarsynir) have entered Vík (Viken), putting Tryggvi Óláfsson to flight and raiding extensively. He defeats them at Ǫgvaldsnes (Avaldsnes, Rogaland) and they flee, weakened by the death of their leader Guthormr Eiríksson in the battle.
[5-8]: Remarkable is the construction of two kennings upon the base-word Njǫrðr (nom. sg.) and Nirði (dat. sg.) ‘Njǫrðr <god>’, though cf. a similar use of Baldr in Hharð Lv 5II, continued in ÞjóðA Lv 3II. The first kenning refers to Hákon, the second to his slain opponent, Guthormr Eiríksson. The detailed analysis of the helmingr, and particularly of l. 8 sunda ‘of the inlets’, however, presents difficulties. (a) It is assumed here, with most previous eds (including ÍF 26 and Hkr 1991, with differences of detail) that gen. pl. sunda forms a blood-kenning with one or other of the two kennings in the helmingr. In the construal shown above, the sword-kenning is the determinant of the blood-kenning. A variation on this is to read Njǫrðr raddar sunda hámána nadds ‘Njǫrðr of the voice of the inlets of the high moon of the spear [SHIELD > BLOOD > BATTLE > WARRIOR]’ where the shield-kenning is the determinant of the blood-kenning, but this is not a known pattern (cf. the blood-kennings in Meissner 204-5). Neither solution is unproblematic, since the battle-kenning in l. 6 and the shields-kenning in l. 7 are both logically complete without the addition of sunda ‘of the inlets’. (b) Finnur Jónsson’s analysis (1884, 90; Hkr 1893-1901, IV; tacit in Skj B; LP: hômáni, valbrandr; cf. Björn Magnússon Ólsen 1886, 192) involves two cases of tmesis: há-raddar ‘loud voice’ and val-sunda ‘corpse-inlets’, but this is unnecessary (Sahlgren 1927-8, I, 129). (c) Kock (NN §1932, modifying a solution proposed in NN §1079A) reads sunda víðra landa valbrands vápnunduðum ‘wounded by the weapon of the inlets of the wide lands of the slaughter-fire [SWORD > SHIELDS > BLOOD]’, i.e. ‘wounded by a bloody weapon’, but the syntax implicit in this postulated use of the kenning to qualify vápn ‘weapon’ is dubious (cf. Sahlgren 1927-8, I, 129).
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.
Val-þǫgnir lét vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar vafs af hǫfðum
hlymmildingum gildir.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
nadds hámána raddar
valbrands víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Valþꜹgnir[17] ⸌rognir⸍ let vegnom | vígnestr saman bresta | handar vafs (nafs) af ⸌of⸍ hꜹfþom | hlym mildingom gildir (gildit) | þar gecc niorðr af nirði[18] | naddz[19] hámána raddar | valbrandz viðra[20] landa | vápnundoðum[21] suɴda | [22]
(VEÞ)
Val-þǫgnir lét vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar †nafs† af hǫfðum
hlym†-minndingom† gildit.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
nadds hámána raddar
val-brandr víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Val | þaugnir let vegnvm vignestr saman bres | ta handar nafs af hofðom hlym miɴ | dingom gildit · Þar gecc niorðr af nir | ði naddz hamana raddar valbrandr || viðra landa uapnundundom svnda .
(VEÞ)
Val-rǫgnir lét vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar †nafs† af hǫfðum
hlymmildingum gildit.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
nadds hámána raddar
valbrands víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Val | rꜹgnir let vegnom víg nestr saman bresta handar nafs af | hofðom hlym milldínngom gilldít · þar geck níorðr af nirði | naddz hamána raddar valbrandz viðra landa vapn vɴdoþom svɴ | da ·
(VEÞ)
Val†-þamar† lét vegnum
víg-nest sama bresta
hand vafs of hǫfðum
hlymmildingum gildir.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
†nandz† hámána raddar
valbrands víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Valþamar læt uægnum uíg næst sama b | ræsta hannd uafs of haufþum hlym millding | um gilldir · þat gekk niorþr af nirði nandz h | á mana raddar ualbrandz uiþra landa uaþn unnduð | um sunda ·
(VEÞ)
Val†-þꜹnar† lét vegnum
víg-nest saman bresta
handar vafs of hǫfðum
hlymmildingum gildir.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
nadds hámána raddar
valbrands víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Val-þǫgnir lét vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar vafs of hǫfðum
hlymmildingum gildar.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
nadds hámána raddar
valbrands víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Valþo᷎gnar let uegnum uíg nestr | saman bresta . handar uafs of ho᷎fdum hlym milldingum gillðar . þar | gekk niorðr af nirði naddz hꜳ mána raddar . ualbrandz | uiðra landa uopn unduðum sunda .
(VEÞ)
Valþagnar réð vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar vafs of hǫfðum
hlýðin--milding gildir.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af niðri
nadds hámána raddar
val-brandr víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Valþagnar red vegnum . | vignestr saman bresta . handar vafs of hof | dum hlydin millding gilldir . þar geck niordr | af nidri . nadz hamana raddar . valbrandz | vidra landa . vapn vndvþum svnda .
(VEÞ)
Val-þǫgnar réð vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar vafs of hǫfðum
hlym-mildingr gildar.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
nadds hámána raddar
val-brandr víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Ua | lþaugnar red vegnum · vignestr saman bresta · han | dar vafs of hofdvm · hlym milldíngr gilldar · þar | geck níordr af nírdi · nadz hamana raddar · val | brandr vidra landa · vapn vnduþvm sunda ·
(VEÞ)
Val-þǫgnar réð vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
handar vafs ok hǫfðum
hlym-mildingr gildan.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af †nírdrí†
nadds hámána raddar
valbrands víðra landa
vápnunduðum sunda.
Valþaugnar red vegnum vignestr saman bresta | handar vafs ok hofdum hlym mildíngr gildann | þar geck níordr af nírdrí nadds hamana raddar | valbrandz vidra landa vapn vndudum sunda . |
(VEÞ)
Val-þegnar lét vegnum
vígnestr saman bresta
hríðar varps ok hǫfðum
†hlyttr-†-mildingr gildi.
Þar gekk Njǫrðr af Nirði
naddrs hámána raddar
val-braut víðra landa
vápnunduðum lét sunda.
Valþeggnar let vegnum uígnestr saman | bresta hridar varps ok ho᷎fdum hlyttr milldingr gillde þar gek níordr af nírde n | addrs hamana raddar ualbraut uidra landa uopnundum let sunda ·
(VEÞ)
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