GunnLeif Merl I 89VIII
Russell Poole (ed.) 2017, ‘Breta saga 157 (Gunnlaugr Leifsson, Merlínusspá I 89)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 123.
Ok ‘And’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
Ránar ‘of Rán’
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Rán (noun f.): Rán
kennings
vegr Ránar‘the path of Rán ’
= SEA
the path of Rán → SEA
notes
[1] vegr Ránar ‘the path of Rán <sea-goddess> [SEA]’: Possibly Gunnlaugr misunderstands Lat. mare as referring to the open sea rather than to the Severn estuary.
vegr ‘the path’
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1. vegr (noun m.; °-s/-ar, dat. -i/-; -ar/-ir, gen. -a/-na, acc. -a/-i/-u): way, path, side
kennings
vegr Ránar‘the path of Rán ’
= SEA
the path of Rán → SEA
notes
[1] vegr Ránar ‘the path of Rán <sea-goddess> [SEA]’: Possibly Gunnlaugr misunderstands Lat. mare as referring to the open sea rather than to the Severn estuary.
renn ‘will run’
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2. renna (verb): run (strong)
of ‘through’
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3. of (prep.): around, from; too
notes
[2] ósa ‘mouths’: Emended in Bret 1848-9, followed by subsequent eds, from ms. ‘asa’ (not refreshed).
Sábrínus ‘of the Severn’
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Sabrínus (noun m.)
notes
[3] Sábrínus ‘the Severn’: Nom. sg. form used as gen.
sjau ‘seven’
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sjau (num. cardinal): seven
sék ‘I’
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2. sjá (verb): see
fyrir ‘foresee’
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fyrir (prep.): for, before, because of
En ‘And’
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2. en (conj.): but, and
Óskarô ‘the river Usk’
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Óskará (noun f.)
notes
[5] Óskarô ‘the river Usk’: Rises in Brecon, Wales and flows into the sea at Newport, some fifty kilometres from the mouth of the Severn.
es ‘is ’
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2. vera (verb): be, is, was, were, are, am
undr ‘marvel’
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2. undr (noun n.; °-s; -): wonder, marvel
mikit ‘a great’
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mikill (adj.; °mikinn): great, large
mun ‘will’
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munu (verb): will, must
mánuðr ‘months’
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mánuðr (noun m.; °-aðar; -aðir/-uðir): month
sjau ‘for seven’
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sjau (num. cardinal): seven
môttug ‘powerfully’
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máttigr (adj.; °compar. -ari/-ri, superl. -astr): mighty
vella ‘boil’
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2. vella (verb): boil - strong, intransitive
Gervisk ‘will come’
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1. gera (verb): do, make
fiskum ‘for the fish’
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fiskr (noun m.): fish
fjǫrtjón ‘Loss of life’
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fjǫrtjón (noun n.)
at ‘of ’
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3. at (prep.): at, to
notes
[11] en ‘and’: Emended from ms. er ‘which’ (not refreshed) in NN §3258E, Skald (printed as enn); not so Bret 1848-9, Skj B or Merl 2012, and the reading could perhaps stand, giving the sense ‘when’ or ‘because’, but cf. men ‘but’ in the translation in Skj B and doch ‘but, however’ in Merl 2012. For discussion of probable errors in Hb see Introduction.
ór ‘out of’
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3. ór (prep.): out of
sjǫlfum ‘engendered’
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sjalfr (adj.): self
snákar ‘snakes’
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snákr (noun m.): snake
verða ‘will be’
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1. verða (verb): become, be
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Cf. DGB 116 (Reeve and Wright 2007, 151.141-3; cf. Wright 1988, 107, prophecy 30): Sabrinum mare per septem hostia discurret, et fluuius Oscae per septem menses feruebit. Pisces illius calore morientur, et ex eis procreabuntur serpentes ‘The Severn sea will flow out through seven channels and the river Usk will boil for seven months. The heat will kill its fish and from them snakes will be procreated’ (cf. Reeve and Wright 2007, 150). The Bristol Channel was formerly known as the Severn Sea (cf. Welsh Môr Hafren).
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