GunnLeif Merl I 21VIII
Russell Poole (ed.) 2017, ‘Breta saga 89 (Gunnlaugr Leifsson, Merlínusspá I 21)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 62.
Táknar ‘stands for’
(not checked:)
tákna (verb)
inn ‘The’
(not checked:)
2. inn (art.): the
kennings
‘Inn rauði fagrsili rás,’‘‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ ’
= SNAKE
‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ → SNAKE
rauði ‘red’
(not checked:)
rauðr (adj.; °compar. -ari): red
kennings
‘Inn rauði fagrsili rás,’‘‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ ’
= SNAKE
‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ → SNAKE
rás ‘of the earth’
(not checked:)
4. rá (noun n.): [earth]
kennings
‘Inn rauði fagrsili rás,’‘‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ ’
= SNAKE
‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ → SNAKE
notes
[2] fagrsili rás ‘the fine rope of the earth [SNAKE]’: See Note to I 12/8. The cpd fagrsili is a hap. leg.
fagr ‘fine’
(not checked:)
fagr (adj.; °fagran; compar. fegri, superl. fegrstr): fair, beautiful < fagrsili (noun m.): [fine rope]
kennings
‘Inn rauði fagrsili rás,’‘‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ ’
= SNAKE
‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ → SNAKE
notes
[2] fagrsili rás ‘the fine rope of the earth [SNAKE]’: See Note to I 12/8. The cpd fagrsili is a hap. leg.
sili ‘rope’
(not checked:)
sili (noun m.; °-a): [harness-strap] < fagrsili (noun m.): [fine rope]
kennings
‘Inn rauði fagrsili rás,’‘‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ ’
= SNAKE
‘The red fine rope of the earth,’ → SNAKE
notes
[2] fagrsili rás ‘the fine rope of the earth [SNAKE]’: See Note to I 12/8. The cpd fagrsili is a hap. leg.
kvað ‘said’
(not checked:)
kveða (verb; kveð, kvað, kveðinn): (str.) say, recite, sing
bjóðr ‘the offerer’
(not checked:)
2. bjóðr (noun m.): inviter
kennings
bjóðr bragar,‘the offerer of poetry, ’
= POET = Merlin
the offerer of poetry, → POET = Merlin
bragar ‘of poetry’
(not checked:)
bragr (noun m.; °-ar): poem, poetry
kennings
bjóðr bragar,‘the offerer of poetry, ’
= POET = Merlin
the offerer of poetry, → POET = Merlin
brezka ‘the British’
(not checked:)
brezkr (adj.): British
lýði ‘people’
(not checked:)
lýðr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -; -ir): one of the people
en ‘and’
(not checked:)
2. en (conj.): but, and
inn ‘the’
(not checked:)
2. inn (art.): the
hvíti ‘white’
(not checked:)
hvítr (adj.; °-an; -ari, -astr): white
notes
[5] naðr ‘snake’: Emended by Bret 1848-9, followed by all subsequent eds, from ms. maðr ‘man’ (not refreshed). Cf. I 32/2.
ina ‘for the’
(not checked:)
2. inn (art.): the
þjóð ‘folk’
(not checked:)
þjóð (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -/-u; -ir): people
es ‘who’
(not checked:)
2. er (conj.): who, which, when
byggja ‘settle’
(not checked:)
2. byggja (verb; °byggir/byggvir; byggði; byggðr): inhabit, dwell; build, found
mun ‘will’
(not checked:)
munu (verb): will, must
brezkar ‘the British’
(not checked:)
brezkr (adj.): British
jarðir ‘lands’
(not checked:)
jǫrð (noun f.; °jarðar, dat. -u; jarðir/jarðar(DN I (1367) 304)): ground, earth
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Cf. DGB 112 (Reeve and Wright 2007, 145.34-6; cf. Wright 1988, 102, prophecy 1): Cauernas ipsius occupabit albus draco, qui Saxones quos inuitasti significat. Rubeus uero gentem designat Britanniae, quae ab albo opprimetur ‘Its caves will be taken by the white dragon, which symbolises the Saxons whom you have summoned. The red represents the people of Britain, whom the white will oppress’ (Reeve and Wright 2007, 144). Gunnlaugr rationalises the ‘caves’ as ‘lands’.
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