Halli XI Fl 5^II

Ofreiði verðr jǫfra
allhætt, ef skal sættask;
menn, þeirs miðla kunnu,
môl ǫll vega í skôlum.
Dugir siklingum segja
slíkt allt, es her líkar;
veldr, ef verr skulu hauldar,
vili grandar því, skiljask.

Ofreiði jǫfra verðr allhætt, ef skal sættask; menn, þeirs kunnu miðla, vega ǫll môl í skôlum. Dugir segja siklingum allt slíkt, es líkar her; vili grandar veldr því, ef hauldar skulu skiljask verr.

The excessive anger of the kings becomes most dangerous, if there must be a settlement; men, who know how to mediate, weigh all the issues in the balance. It is good to tell princes all such things as please the people; an inclination to evil-doing causes it if the freeholders must part on worse terms.

Mss: Kˣ(567v), 39(28vb), F(50rb), E(23r), J2ˣ(287v) (Hkr); H(59r), Hr(43va) (H-Hr, ll. 1-4)

Readings: [1] Ofreiði: Ófriði E, H, Hr    [3] kunnu: kunna F, Hr    [5] siklingum: siglingum 39    [8] grandar: girnðar E

Editions: Skj AI, 402, Skj BI, 371, Skald I, 185; ÍF 28, 161 (HSig ch. 71), F 1871, 235, E 1916, 82; Fms 6, 332 (HSig ch. 88).

Context: As for st. 4 in Hkr. In H-Hr the first helmingr of st. 5 is all that is quoted and it is prefaced by the formula Ok enn kvað skáldit ‘And in addition the skald said’.

Notes: [4] vega ǫll môl í skôlum ‘weigh all the issues in the balance’: The metaphor derives from the portable scales used by Scandinavian and other traders to determine the value of currency and precious metals (Foote and Wilson, 1970, 196-7). — [6] hauldar ‘freeholders’: Although rhymes of -ld- : -lð- are an occasional licence, here we probably see the poet using the Norw. form hauldar, not Icel. hǫlðar, as indicated by the internal rhyme and the ms. readings ‘hꜵldar’ (Kˣ, F, J2ˣ) and ‘haulldar’ 39, E. See also Note to Anon Nkt 15/2.

References

1. Bibliography
2. Fms = Sveinbjörn Egilsson et al., eds. 1825-37. Fornmanna sögur eptir gömlum handritum útgefnar að tilhlutun hins norræna fornfræða fèlags. 12 vols. Copenhagen: Popp.
3. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
4. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
5. F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
6. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
7. Internal references
8. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Heimskringla’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=4> (accessed 25 April 2024)
9. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Hulda-Hrokkinskinna’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=84> (accessed 25 April 2024)
10. (forthcoming), ‘ Heimskringla, Haralds saga Sigurðssonar’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=142> (accessed 25 April 2024)
11. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Anonymous Poems, Nóregs konungatal 15’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 771.