HSt Rst 15I
Rolf Stavnem (ed.) 2012, ‘Hallar-Steinn, Rekstefja 15’ 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. 913.
Ǫr ‘The arrow’
(not checked:)
ǫr (noun f.; °dat. -/-u; ǫrvar/ǫrar): arrow < ǫrbjóðr (noun m.)
[1] Ǫr‑: auð‑ 53, ‘Orr‑’ Flat
kennings
Ǫrbjóðr‘The arrow-offerer ’
= WARRIOR
The arrow-offerer → WARRIOR
bjóðr ‘offerer’
(not checked:)
2. bjóðr (noun m.): inviter < ǫrbjóðr (noun m.)
[1] ‑bjóðr: ‑rjóðr 61, 53, 54, Bb(97va)
kennings
Ǫrbjóðr‘The arrow-offerer ’
= WARRIOR
The arrow-offerer → WARRIOR
átta ‘eight’
(not checked:)
átta (num. cardinal): eight
notes
[1, 2] átta ok þrinnum skeiðum ‘eight and three warships’: The numbers of enemy ships are also detailed in the poem: fifteen (st. 16/5), sixty (st. 18/4) and a further five (st. 21/2); see also McDougall and McDougall (1998, 74) on the size of fleets in the battle.
skeiðum ‘warships’
(not checked:)
1. skeið (noun f.; °-ar; -r/-ar/-ir): ship
notes
[1, 2] átta ok þrinnum skeiðum ‘eight and three warships’: The numbers of enemy ships are also detailed in the poem: fifteen (st. 16/5), sixty (st. 18/4) and a further five (st. 21/2); see also McDougall and McDougall (1998, 74) on the size of fleets in the battle.
efsta ‘a final’
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efri (adj. comp.; °superl. efstr/øfstr (eft- [$1653$] 13r²³, etc.)): higher, highest
sinn ‘time’
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2. sinn (noun n.; °?dat. -): time
ok ‘and’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
notes
[1, 2] átta ok þrinnum skeiðum ‘eight and three warships’: The numbers of enemy ships are also detailed in the poem: fifteen (st. 16/5), sixty (st. 18/4) and a further five (st. 21/2); see also McDougall and McDougall (1998, 74) on the size of fleets in the battle.
notes
[1, 2] átta ok þrinnum skeiðum ‘eight and three warships’: The numbers of enemy ships are also detailed in the poem: fifteen (st. 16/5), sixty (st. 18/4) and a further five (st. 21/2); see also McDougall and McDougall (1998, 74) on the size of fleets in the battle.
byrr ‘the wind’
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byrr (noun m.; °-jar/-s; -ir, acc. -i/-u(SigrVal 188¹³)): favourable wind
beita ‘to sail’
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2. beita (verb; °-tt-): beat, tack
notes
[3] beita ‘to sail ... to windward’: A technical term; see Jesch (2001a, 174).
þorði ‘dared’
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þora (verb): dare
brýnn ‘sharp’
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brýnn (adj.; °compar. brýnni, superl. brýnstr/brýnastr): ready, swift
[4] brýnn: ‘brynnt’ Flat
notes
[4] brýnn ‘sharp’: Konráð Gíslason (1895-7), followed by Skj B, reads brynn ‘sharp’ to provide an exact rhyme with mynni ‘mouth’, but the hendingar in Rst are not perfectly regular (see Introduction to Rst) and unequal vowel length is found sporadically in hendingar throughout the skaldic corpus (see ‘Normalisation resulting from linguistic changes’ in General Introduction).
Þránd ‘of Trond’
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Þrándr (noun m.): [Trønde] < Þrándheimr (noun m.): Trøndelag
[4] ór Þrándheims: at Svǫlðrar all others
notes
[4] mynni Þrándheims ‘the mouth of Trondheimsfjorden’: Þrándheimr refers to the region of Trøndelag, and here to the fjord that is its principal waterway, and not to the city now called Trondheim, but formerly Nidaros (ON Niðaróss). This reading is compatible with the seafaring description in the stanza, while at mynni Svǫlðrar ‘to the estuary of Svǫlðr’ in the ÓT mss names the ultimate battle-site of Svǫlðr, and tallies well with a near-identical phrase in Skúli Svǫlðr 2/7III (and see Note). This and other evidence could suggest that Svǫlðr was a river or inlet (see McDougall and McDougall 1998, 74-5). It is not clear which is the original reading.
heims ‘heimsfjorden’
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heimr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-; -ar): home, abode; world < Þrándheimr (noun m.): Trøndelag
[4] ór Þrándheims: at Svǫlðrar all others
notes
[4] mynni Þrándheims ‘the mouth of Trondheimsfjorden’: Þrándheimr refers to the region of Trøndelag, and here to the fjord that is its principal waterway, and not to the city now called Trondheim, but formerly Nidaros (ON Niðaróss). This reading is compatible with the seafaring description in the stanza, while at mynni Svǫlðrar ‘to the estuary of Svǫlðr’ in the ÓT mss names the ultimate battle-site of Svǫlðr, and tallies well with a near-identical phrase in Skúli Svǫlðr 2/7III (and see Note). This and other evidence could suggest that Svǫlðr was a river or inlet (see McDougall and McDougall 1998, 74-5). It is not clear which is the original reading.
mynni ‘the mouth’
(not checked:)
mynni (noun n.; °-s; gen. -a): mouth
[4] mynni: so 61, minni all others
notes
[4] mynni Þrándheims ‘the mouth of Trondheimsfjorden’: Þrándheimr refers to the region of Trøndelag, and here to the fjord that is its principal waterway, and not to the city now called Trondheim, but formerly Nidaros (ON Niðaróss). This reading is compatible with the seafaring description in the stanza, while at mynni Svǫlðrar ‘to the estuary of Svǫlðr’ in the ÓT mss names the ultimate battle-site of Svǫlðr, and tallies well with a near-identical phrase in Skúli Svǫlðr 2/7III (and see Note). This and other evidence could suggest that Svǫlðr was a river or inlet (see McDougall and McDougall 1998, 74-5). It is not clear which is the original reading.
Ormr ‘Ormr’
(not checked:)
ormr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i; -ar): serpent
notes
[5, 6] Ormr inn langi skreið ‘Ormr inn langi (“the Long Serpent”) slithered’: Óláfr’s famous warship; see also Note to st. 18/2, and see Hókr Eirfl 3/4. The ‘snake’ metaphor is extended into the verb.
skreið ‘slithered over’
(not checked:)
skríða (verb): creep, glide
notes
[5, 6] Ormr inn langi skreið ‘Ormr inn langi (“the Long Serpent”) slithered’: Óláfr’s famous warship; see also Note to st. 18/2, and see Hókr Eirfl 3/4. The ‘snake’ metaphor is extended into the verb.
árar ‘on the oars’
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1. ár (noun f.; °-ar, dat. u/-; -ar/-ir(LandslBorg 151b²¹)): oar
knúði ‘thrust’
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knýja (verb): press forward, urge, drive
[5] knúði: so 61, 53, Flat, kníðu Bb(112ra), gnúði 54, gnúðu Bb(97va)
notes
[5] knúði ‘thrust’: 3rd pers. sg. pret. indic. of knýja; the older form kníða seems to be preserved in 3rd pers. pl. pret. indic. kníðu in Bb(112ra): see LP: knýja.
ǫlna ‘of fish’
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ǫln (noun f.; °alnar; alnar/alnir): mackerel
[6] ǫlna: so all others, ‘ótna’ Bb(112ra)
kennings
vang ǫlna;‘the field of fish; ’
= SEA
the field of fish; → SEA
vang ‘the field’
(not checked:)
1. vangr (noun m.): field, plain
[6] vang: so 61, 53, 54, Bb(97va), vagns Bb(112ra), menn Flat
kennings
vang ǫlna;‘the field of fish; ’
= SEA
the field of fish; → SEA
inn ‘inn’
(not checked:)
2. inn (art.): the
notes
[5, 6] Ormr inn langi skreið ‘Ormr inn langi (“the Long Serpent”) slithered’: Óláfr’s famous warship; see also Note to st. 18/2, and see Hókr Eirfl 3/4. The ‘snake’ metaphor is extended into the verb.
langi ‘langi (‘the Long Serpent’)’
(not checked:)
langr (adj.; °compar. lengri, superl. lengstr): long
notes
[5, 6] Ormr inn langi skreið ‘Ormr inn langi (“the Long Serpent”) slithered’: Óláfr’s famous warship; see also Note to st. 18/2, and see Hókr Eirfl 3/4. The ‘snake’ metaphor is extended into the verb.
hirð ‘retinue’
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hirð (noun f.; °-ar; -ir/-ar(FskB 53)): retinue
prúð ‘the valiant’
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prúðr (adj.; °superl. -astr): magnificent, proud
[7] prúð: prúðr Flat
hilmir ‘the ruler’
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hilmir (noun m.): prince, protector
stýrði ‘steered’
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stýra (verb): steer, control
[7] stýrði: so all others, stúrði Bb(112ra)
Hann ‘He’
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hann (pron.; °gen. hans, dat. honum; f. hon, gen. hennar, acc. hana): he, she, it, they, them...
konung ‘of royal’
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konungr (noun m.; °dat. -i, -s; -ar): king < konungmaðr (noun m.): king
[8] konung‑: kóng 54
manna ‘men’
(not checked:)
maðr (noun m.): man, person < konungmaðr (noun m.): king
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
|
Ǫrbjóðr átta skeiðum |
The arrow-offerer [WARRIOR] dared a final time to sail eight and three warships to windward out from the mouth of Trondheimsfjorden; the wind became sharp. Ormr inn langi (‘the Long Serpent’) slithered over the field of fish [SEA]; the valiant retinue thrust on the oars; the ruler steered. He was the mightiest of royal men …
The sea battle in the vicinity of Svǫlðr is about to begin and King Óláfr is approaching the island with his eleven ships.
The departure of Óláfr and his fleet marks the beginning of the sequence of stanzas (sts 15-23) depicting his final battle at Svǫlðr (c. 1000). For the battle, see also Hfr ErfÓl 1-24, Skúli SvǫlðrIII, Stefnir Lv 1 (cf. OSnorr Lv), Eþsk Couplet, Hókr Eirfl, ÞKolb Eirdr 8, and the non-contemporary Anon Óldr 17-24; see further the entry on Óláfr Tryggvason in ‘Ruler biographies’ in Introduction to this volume. — [8]: For this line of the refrain, see Note to st. 9/8.
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