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skaldic

Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Hár Lv 1I

Diana Whaley (ed.) 2012, ‘Hárekr í Þjóttu, Lausavísur 1’ 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. 808.

Hárekr í ÞjóttuLausavísur
12

Ráðit ‘resolved’

(not checked:)
ráða (verb): advise, rule, interpret, decide

[1] Ráðit: ‘Raþto’ 68

Close

hefk ‘I have’

(not checked:)
hafa (verb): have

[1] hefk (‘hefi ec’): hef Bb, hafði Tóm

Close

at ‘to’

(not checked:)
5. at (nota): to (with infinitive)

Close

ríða ‘ride’

(not checked:)
1. ríða (verb): ride

Close

Rín ‘of Rhine’

(not checked:)
Rín (noun f.): [Rhine] < rínleygr (noun m.)

[2] Rín‑: lín‑ Tóm

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

Rín ‘of Rhine’

(not checked:)
Rín (noun f.): [Rhine] < rínleygr (noun m.)

[2] Rín‑: lín‑ Tóm

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

Rín ‘of Rhine’

(not checked:)
Rín (noun f.): [Rhine] < rínleygr (noun m.)

[2] Rín‑: lín‑ Tóm

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

leygs ‘flame’

(not checked:)
1. leygr (noun m.): flame < rínleygr (noun m.)

[2] ‑leygs: ‑leiks 61, ‘‑lꝍks’ DG8, ‘‑[…]gs’ B, ‑leygs 744ˣ

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

leygs ‘flame’

(not checked:)
1. leygr (noun m.): flame < rínleygr (noun m.)

[2] ‑leygs: ‑leiks 61, ‘‑lꝍks’ DG8, ‘‑[…]gs’ B, ‑leygs 744ˣ

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

leygs ‘flame’

(not checked:)
1. leygr (noun m.): flame < rínleygr (noun m.)

[2] ‑leygs: ‑leiks 61, ‘‑lꝍks’ DG8, ‘‑[…]gs’ B, ‑leygs 744ˣ

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

heðan ‘from here’

(not checked:)
heðan (adv.): hence, from this place

Close

mínum ‘my’

(not checked:)
minn (pron.; °f. mín, n. mitt): my

[2] mínum: mínu 73aˣ, Flat, A, ‘minam’ 61, ‘[…]nu’ B, mínu 744ˣ

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

láðs ‘of the land’

(not checked:)
2. láð (noun n.): earth, land

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

láðs ‘of the land’

(not checked:)
2. láð (noun n.): earth, land

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

dyn ‘resounding’

(not checked:)
dynja (verb; °dunði): resound < dynmarr (noun m.)

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

mari ‘steed’

(not checked:)
2. marr (noun m.): horse < dynmarr (noun m.)

[3] ‑mari: ‑mara Holm4

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

leiðar ‘on my way’

(not checked:)
leið (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -u/-; -ir/-ar): path, way

[3] leiðar: dreyra 75c, leiða Flat

Close

lǫngum ‘long’

(not checked:)
langr (adj.; °compar. lengri, superl. lengstr): long

kennings

lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs mínum,
‘my long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame, ’
   = SHIP

Rhine-flame, → GOLD
the land of the GOLD → SEA
my long resounding steed of the SEA → SHIP
Close

heldr ‘rather’

(not checked:)
heldr (adv.): rather

Close

an ‘than’

(not checked:)
2. an (conj.): than

Close

þótt ‘though’

(not checked:)
þótt (conj.): although

[5] þótt: ‘þeott’ 68, ‘þote’ 325VII

Close

legg ‘of the limb’

(not checked:)
leggr (noun m.; °-jar, dat. -; -ir): limb < leggfjǫturr (noun m.)

[5] legg‑: ‘laug‑’ Tóm

kennings

lundr leggfjǫturs,
‘the grove of the limb-fetter, ’
   = MAN

the limb-fetter, → ARM-RING
the grove of the ARM-RING → MAN

notes

[5, 6] lundr leggfjǫturs ‘the grove of the limb-fetter [ARM-RING > MAN]’: This is an unusual kenning, but ‘fetter, bond’ in kennings for ‘arm-ring’ or ‘gold/silver’ is paralleled in Anon (Styrb) 3/2 liðband ‘limb-band’ and Ólhelg Lv 2/6, 8 band valklifs ‘band of the falcon-cliff [ARM > RING]’ (under one interpretation: see Note). The man-kenning could either be taken in apposition to Knútr (as here; also NN §774; ÍF 27; ÍF 29) or as an apostrophe (as in Hkr 1893-1901, IV and Skj B, matching the apostrophe assumed there in the first helmingr).

Close

legg ‘of the limb’

(not checked:)
leggr (noun m.; °-jar, dat. -; -ir): limb < leggfjǫturr (noun m.)

[5] legg‑: ‘laug‑’ Tóm

kennings

lundr leggfjǫturs,
‘the grove of the limb-fetter, ’
   = MAN

the limb-fetter, → ARM-RING
the grove of the ARM-RING → MAN

notes

[5, 6] lundr leggfjǫturs ‘the grove of the limb-fetter [ARM-RING > MAN]’: This is an unusual kenning, but ‘fetter, bond’ in kennings for ‘arm-ring’ or ‘gold/silver’ is paralleled in Anon (Styrb) 3/2 liðband ‘limb-band’ and Ólhelg Lv 2/6, 8 band valklifs ‘band of the falcon-cliff [ARM > RING]’ (under one interpretation: see Note). The man-kenning could either be taken in apposition to Knútr (as here; also NN §774; ÍF 27; ÍF 29) or as an apostrophe (as in Hkr 1893-1901, IV and Skj B, matching the apostrophe assumed there in the first helmingr).

Close

fjǫturs ‘fetter’

(not checked:)
fjǫturr (noun m.): fetter < leggfjǫturr (noun m.)

[5] ‑fjǫturs: ‑fjǫturr 68, 75c, 325V, Bb, DG8

kennings

lundr leggfjǫturs,
‘the grove of the limb-fetter, ’
   = MAN

the limb-fetter, → ARM-RING
the grove of the ARM-RING → MAN

notes

[5, 6] lundr leggfjǫturs ‘the grove of the limb-fetter [ARM-RING > MAN]’: This is an unusual kenning, but ‘fetter, bond’ in kennings for ‘arm-ring’ or ‘gold/silver’ is paralleled in Anon (Styrb) 3/2 liðband ‘limb-band’ and Ólhelg Lv 2/6, 8 band valklifs ‘band of the falcon-cliff [ARM > RING]’ (under one interpretation: see Note). The man-kenning could either be taken in apposition to Knútr (as here; also NN §774; ÍF 27; ÍF 29) or as an apostrophe (as in Hkr 1893-1901, IV and Skj B, matching the apostrophe assumed there in the first helmingr).

Close

fjǫturs ‘fetter’

(not checked:)
fjǫturr (noun m.): fetter < leggfjǫturr (noun m.)

[5] ‑fjǫturs: ‑fjǫturr 68, 75c, 325V, Bb, DG8

kennings

lundr leggfjǫturs,
‘the grove of the limb-fetter, ’
   = MAN

the limb-fetter, → ARM-RING
the grove of the ARM-RING → MAN

notes

[5, 6] lundr leggfjǫturs ‘the grove of the limb-fetter [ARM-RING > MAN]’: This is an unusual kenning, but ‘fetter, bond’ in kennings for ‘arm-ring’ or ‘gold/silver’ is paralleled in Anon (Styrb) 3/2 liðband ‘limb-band’ and Ólhelg Lv 2/6, 8 band valklifs ‘band of the falcon-cliff [ARM > RING]’ (under one interpretation: see Note). The man-kenning could either be taken in apposition to Knútr (as here; also NN §774; ÍF 27; ÍF 29) or as an apostrophe (as in Hkr 1893-1901, IV and Skj B, matching the apostrophe assumed there in the first helmingr).

Close

liggi ‘may lie’

(not checked:)
liggja (verb): lie

Close

lundr ‘the grove’

(not checked:)
1. lundr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. -i/-; -ar): grove, tree

[6] lundr: lyndr 68

kennings

lundr leggfjǫturs,
‘the grove of the limb-fetter, ’
   = MAN

the limb-fetter, → ARM-RING
the grove of the ARM-RING → MAN

notes

[5, 6] lundr leggfjǫturs ‘the grove of the limb-fetter [ARM-RING > MAN]’: This is an unusual kenning, but ‘fetter, bond’ in kennings for ‘arm-ring’ or ‘gold/silver’ is paralleled in Anon (Styrb) 3/2 liðband ‘limb-band’ and Ólhelg Lv 2/6, 8 band valklifs ‘band of the falcon-cliff [ARM > RING]’ (under one interpretation: see Note). The man-kenning could either be taken in apposition to Knútr (as here; also NN §774; ÍF 27; ÍF 29) or as an apostrophe (as in Hkr 1893-1901, IV and Skj B, matching the apostrophe assumed there in the first helmingr).

Close

í ‘in’

(not checked:)
í (prep.): in, into

Close

Eyrar ‘the Øresund’

(not checked:)
eyrr (noun f.): land-spit < eyrarsund (noun n.): Øresund

[6] Eyrar‑: eyra‑ 75c, eyja‑ Bb

Close

sundi ‘’

(not checked:)
sund (noun n.; °-s; -): sound, strait; swimming < eyrarsund (noun n.): Øresund

[6] ‑sundi: ‑sundum 75c, 325VII, Bb, Flat

Close

kann ‘know’

(not checked:)
kunna (verb): know, can, be able

notes

[7] kann ‘know’: Kunna frequently governs a dat. object, especially when it refers to knowing or understanding someone’s character or behaviour (see examples in Fritzner: kunna 1b), here kerski minni ‘my spirit’ or perhaps ‘cheerfulness, sense of humour’.

Close

kerski ‘spirit’

(not checked:)
kerski (noun f.): [spirit]

[7] kerski: ‘[…]’ 325VII, ‘kælki’ DG8

Close

minni ‘my’

(not checked:)
minn (pron.; °f. mín, n. mitt): my

Close

Knútr ‘Knútr’

(not checked:)
Knútr (noun m.): Knútr

[8] Knútr: Knút 61

notes

[8] Knútr: Hárekr later allied with the Danish King Knútr inn ríki (Cnut the Great), and the ÓH-Hkr tradition (ÍF 27, 290-1) is that there was probably already an agreement at this point.

Close

skipum ‘ships’

(not checked:)
skip (noun n.; °-s; -): ship < herskip (noun n.): warship

[8] herskipum: á herskipum Flat

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

Confronted by a mighty Danish fleet lying in the Eyrarsund (Øresund), King Óláfr Haraldsson decides on a strategic retreat overland, but the veteran Hárekr refuses to abandon his ships. He speaks Lv 1 before he sets sail in ÓH-Hkr and Fsk, but after in ÓHLeg. In TGT, the first couplet illustrates the barbarismus consisting of the dropping of a syllable (aftekning samstǫfu); after the citation it is explained that this is necessary to avoid a superfluous syllable, and (though not in W) that the word in question is Rín- in place of Rínar

[1-2]: Ms. 744ˣ, a copy of B by Jón Ólafsson, is used to supply readings (whether these match or differ from the main text) where B is not legible.  — [1-4]: The helmingr clearly declares that the skald will travel by sea rather than on foot, and contains a ship-kenning of which ‑mari (dat. sg.) ‘steed’ in l. 3 is the base-word, aptly matched by the verb ríða ‘ride’, which takes a dat. object. Rínleygs ‘Rhine-flame’ in l. 2 is a stereotypical gold-kenning, but it is not certain whether it supplies part of the necessary determinant of the ship-kenning, and láðs ‘land’ and leiðar ‘way’ in l. 3 are problematic. Neither of the two main analyses of the helmingr is wholly convincing. (a) The analysis above, which avoids emendation, is essentially that proposed by Kock (NN §773; Skald) and taken up in ÍF 27, ÍF 29 and Hkr 1991. Láð Rínleygs ‘land of Rhine-flame [GOLD]’ is taken as a kenning, albeit unparalleled, for ‘sea’, on the basis that since ‘gold’ can be ‘flame of the sea/water’ (as in Rínleygs itself), the sea can be ‘land of gold’. This sea-kenning then acts as determinant for dynmari ‘noise-steed, resounding steed’ to represent ‘ship’, hence lǫngum dynmari láðs Rínleygs ‘long resounding steed of the land of Rhine-flame [GOLD > SEA > SHIP]’. Leiðar (f. gen. sg.) is then taken by Kock as the equivalent of leiðangr, a seaborne expedition, specifying the ship-kenning as a warship. Kock compares Tindr Hákdr 4/7 leiðar langra skeiða, which he takes to mean ‘of long expedition ships’. A variation on this analysis is to take leiðar as an adverbial gen. sg. of leið in the sense ‘way, path’ hence ‘on my way’, qualifying ganga ‘go, walk’ (cf. NS §141), and this is adopted above. (b) Finnur Jónsson (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; LP: leiðir) emended leiðar to leiðir which, tentatively interpreted as ‘hater’, yields a man-kenning leiðir Rínleygs ‘hater of Rhine-flame [GOLD > GENEROUS MAN]’. This functions as an apostrophe, presumably to King Óláfr, who is present in Fsk and ÓH-Hkr but not in ÓHLeg (Context above). Finnur (LP: dynmarr) construed dyn- ‘noise, noisy, roaring’ in dynmari, with láðs ‘of the land’, hence láðs dynmari ‘steed of the land of noise [(lit. ‘noise-steed of the land’) SEA > SHIP]’, though this depends on equating dyn(r) with terms for waves or the surging sea, such as brim (cf. Meissner 93).

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