HSt Rst 10^I

Rolf Stavnem (ed.) 2012, ‘Hallar-Steinn, Rekstefja 10’ 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. 908.

Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses

Óláfr’s Christianization of the Nordic lands is also the subject of Anon Óldr 11-14, and see Note to Anon Óldr 12 [All]. — [1-2]: The present edn follows Konráð Gíslason (1895-7, also followed in Skj B and Skald), in emending tvenna to tvenni ‘two’, n. acc. pl. qualifying þjóðlǫnd ‘countries, nation’s lands’. On tvenni as a variant on tvenn, the n. acc. pl. form of tvennir ‘two’, see ANG §445 Anm. 4. The five lands Christianized by Óláfr are specified in the following stanza. — [5-7]: This appears to be a self-reflexive comment on the poet’s activity of recounting Óláfr’s achievements, akin to those in st. 23/5-7 or in st. 24/1-3 where the audience are referred to by a kenning for ‘warriors’. More than one construal is possible, however, and the identity of mǫnnum ‘men, people’ is uncertain. (a) This edn follows Kock (NN §1173) in taking mǫnnum ‘men, people’ with mærings ‘of the glorious one, hero’, and eggmóts ‘of the edge-meeting [BATTLE]’ with fremðarverka ‘remarkable achievements’. Eggmóts could have a quasi-adverbial function, ‘in battle’. This gives good sense and straightforward word order. The reference of mǫnnum mærings ‘men/people of the glorious one’ is unclear, though it could be the devotees of Óláfr Tryggvason or conceivably of God, cf. Gamlkan Has 37/6^VII firar dróttins ‘men of the Lord [CHRISTIAN PEOPLE]’. (b) This problem is avoided if mǫnnum ‘to men, people’ stands alone and mærings ‘of the glorious one, hero’ is added to the phrase merki fremðarverka mærings eggmóts, hence ‘signs of the hero’s remarkable achievements in battle’; but the phrase is unwieldy and mǫnnum mærings would seem to form a more natural unit. (c) Konráð Gíslason (1895-7) reads mǫnnum eggmóts ‘men of the edge-meeting [BATTLE > WARRIORS]’, but since this does not accord with normal kenning conventions, he suggests that mǫnnum is a corruption of meiðum ‘trees’, which would yield a standard man- or warrior-kenning; this is followed in Skj B and consequentially mærings is combined with fremðar verka, but the emendation is unnecessary. — [8]: For this line of the refrain, see Note to st. 9/8.