Russell Poole (ed.) 2017, ‘Breta saga 47 (Gunnlaugr Leifsson, Merlínusspá II 47)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 175.
‘Hann Kambríe kallar sveitir
ok Norðhumru nánar hjarðir.
Ok ótrautt Tems at þurru
drengs dolgþorins drekka lýðir.
‘Hann kallar sveitir Kambríe ok hjarðir nánar Norðhumru. Ok lýðir dolgþorins drengs drekka ótrautt Tems at þurru.
‘It will summon the bands of Cambria and the herds near Northumbria. And without reluctance the people of the battle-resolute warrior will drink the Thames dry.
Mss: Hb(50r) (Bret)
Editions: Skj AII, 18, Skj BII, 19-20, Skald II, 12, NN §2163B; Bret 1848-9, II, 32 (Bret st. 47); Hb 1892-6, 276; Merl 2012, 110-11.
Notes: [All]: Cf. DGB 116 (Reeve and Wright 2007, 155.208-9; cf. Wright 1988, 110, prophecy 46): Associabit sibi greges Albanorum et Kambriae, qui Tamensem potando siccabunt ‘It will ally itself to the flocks of Scotland and Wales, which will drink the Thames dry’ (Reeve and Wright 2007, 154). The previous sentence in Geoffrey’s text is not represented in Merl. — [3-4] hjarðir nánar Norðhumru ‘the herds near Northumbria’: Presumably the Scots. Gunnlaugr does not use a name corresponding to Geoffrey’s Albania ‘Scotland’ (cf. I 64/4, where he translates Geoffrey’s Albania with Skotland). — [5] ótrautt ‘without reluctance’: Kock suggests (NN §§2163B; Skald) reading ótrauðla, adv. with similar meaning, so as to restore regular fornyrðislag, but see Note to II 46/11. — [6] at þurru ‘dry’: For this use of the prep. at with adj. to denote the result of an action, see CVC: at with dat. C VII; ONP: at I with dat. D 14. — [7] dolgþorins drengs ‘of the battle-resolute warrior’: Referring back to the serpent-king of II 46/1 (represented by hann ‘it’ in 47/1), with a characteristic rationalisation of the allegory on Gunnlaugr’s part; Merl 2012 unnecessarily posits some other antecedent.
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