GunnLeif Merl I 61VIII
Russell Poole (ed.) 2017, ‘Breta saga 129 (Gunnlaugr Leifsson, Merlínusspá I 61)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 98.
Glíkt ‘’
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glíkr (adj.; °-jan/-an; compar. -ari, superl. -astr): like, alike
mun ‘will’
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munu (verb): will, must
notes
[1] gaupu ‘a lynx’: Emended in Skj B, followed by subsequent eds, from ms. gaupa (not refreshed), the nom. form. Bret 1848-9 retains gaupa without explanation, but the oblique form is required.
grams ‘The king’s’
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1. gramr (noun m.): ruler
jóð ‘son’
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jóð (noun n.): child, offspring
vesa ‘resemble’
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2. vera (verb): be, is, was, were, are, am
vill ‘will wish’
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vilja (verb): want, intend
sinni ‘its’
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3. sinn (pron.; °f. sín, n. sitt): (refl. poss. pron.)
þjóð ‘people’
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þjóð (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -/-u; -ir): people
sjalfri ‘own’
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sjalfr (adj.): self
steypa ‘to destroy’
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steypa (verb): throw down, cast off
En ‘And’
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2. en (conj.): but, and
af ‘for’
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af (prep.): from
sǫkum ‘reasons’
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sǫk (noun f.; °sakar; sakar/sakir): cause, offence
bæði ‘of both’
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báðir (pron.; °gen. beggja (báðra), nom./acc. n. bǽði): both
Íra ‘the Irish’
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írar (noun m.): Irishmen
ok ‘and’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
Engla ‘the English’
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Englar (noun m.): English people
auðgrar ‘of the rich’
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auðigr (adj.; °auðgan/auðigan; compar. auðgari/auðigri, superl. auðgastr/auðigastr): wealthy
jarðar ‘land’
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jǫrð (noun f.; °jarðar, dat. -u; jarðir/jarðar(DN I (1367) 304)): ground, earth
Néústría ‘Neustria’
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Neustria (noun f.)
ok ‘and’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
notes
[10] ok numin tígnum ‘and deprived of honours’: Finnur Jónsson reads numinn, referring back to the lynx-like king – og han berøvet sin hæder ‘and he [will be] deprived of his honour’ (Skj B, cf. NN §3258C; Merl 2012) – but the sense and adherence to the Latin are improved if we interpret the ms. form numin as f. nom. sg., agreeing with Neustría, which is the subject of the clause. Kock doubts (NN §104, cf. §3258C) that the names of countries can function as grammatical subjects, but fails to take account of the Latin. Cities and nations, like individual persons, could be thought of as possessing honours (cf. I 30/5, I 59/5).
numin ‘deprived’
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1. nema (verb): to take
notes
[10] ok numin tígnum ‘and deprived of honours’: Finnur Jónsson reads numinn, referring back to the lynx-like king – og han berøvet sin hæder ‘and he [will be] deprived of his honour’ (Skj B, cf. NN §3258C; Merl 2012) – but the sense and adherence to the Latin are improved if we interpret the ms. form numin as f. nom. sg., agreeing with Neustría, which is the subject of the clause. Kock doubts (NN §104, cf. §3258C) that the names of countries can function as grammatical subjects, but fails to take account of the Latin. Cities and nations, like individual persons, could be thought of as possessing honours (cf. I 30/5, I 59/5).
tígnum ‘of honours’
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tígn (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): honour
notes
[10] ok numin tígnum ‘and deprived of honours’: Finnur Jónsson reads numinn, referring back to the lynx-like king – og han berøvet sin hæder ‘and he [will be] deprived of his honour’ (Skj B, cf. NN §3258C; Merl 2012) – but the sense and adherence to the Latin are improved if we interpret the ms. form numin as f. nom. sg., agreeing with Neustría, which is the subject of the clause. Kock doubts (NN §104, cf. §3258C) that the names of countries can function as grammatical subjects, but fails to take account of the Latin. Cities and nations, like individual persons, could be thought of as possessing honours (cf. I 30/5, I 59/5).
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Cf. DGB 115 (Reeve and Wright 2007, 149.105-7; cf. Wright 1988, 105, prophecy 18): Egredietur ex eo linx penetrans omnia, quae ruinae propriae gentis imminebit. Per illam enim utramque insulam amittet Neustria et pristina dignitate spoliabitur ‘From him will emerge a lynx, which will penetrate through everything and threaten to destroy its own people. Because of it Normandy will lose both islands and be stripped of its former honour’ (Reeve and Wright 2007, 148). The lynx appears as a simile rather than allegorically in Merl and the idea that the lynx’s preternaturally acute sight enables it to see through into the viscera of animals, hinted at in DGB, is not carried over.
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