Kálf Kátr 38VII
Kirsten Wolf (ed.) 2007, ‘Kálfr Hallsson, Kátrínardrápa 38’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 954-5.
Æðin ‘Anger’
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1. œði (noun f.): fury
hljóp ‘overtook’
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hlaupa (verb): leap, run
í ‘’
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í (prep.): in, into
kennings
prýði plátu;‘the adorner of harness; ’
= WARRIOR
the adorner of harness; → WARRIOR
notes
[1] plátu (f. gen. sg.) ‘harness, plate armour’: Finnur Jónsson (Skj B) and Kock (Skald) emend all mss’ ‘platons’ to plátu; Sperber takes the ms. form as a proper noun and regards Plátons prýðir (which he translates as ‘worshipper of Platon’, i.e. the Greek philosopher Plato, considered as a representative of heathen learning) as a kenning for ‘heathen’. Pláta occurs elsewhere in poetry only in rímur, as a determinant in man (or warrior)-kennings (e.g. plátu runn ‘bush of armour’ in Friðþjófsrímur II, 13/1(Finnur Jónsson 1905-22, I, 420), a poem Finnur (LH, III, 52) considered likely to be composed by Vitulus vates). Plata f. is attested in prose (ONP word-list: plata; Fritzner: plata 2; Fritzner IV: pláta) and the form ‘Platonis’ occurs in the prose saga of S. Catherine (Unger 1877, 404; Wolf 2003, 126) to refer to Plato the philosopher.
prýði ‘the adorner’
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prýðir (noun m.): adorner
kennings
prýði plátu;‘the adorner of harness; ’
= WARRIOR
the adorner of harness; → WARRIOR
pína ‘be tortured’
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3. pína (verb): torture, torment
bauð ‘requested’
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bjóða (verb; °býðr; bauð, buðu; boðinn (buð- Thom¹ 5²n.)): offer, order, invite
hann ‘he’
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hann (pron.; °gen. hans, dat. honum; f. hon, gen. hennar, acc. hana): he, she, it, they, them...
drotning ‘queen’
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dróttning (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -u/-, acc. -u/-; -ar): queen
sína ‘his’
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3. sinn (pron.; °f. sín, n. sitt): (refl. poss. pron.)
brjóstin ‘the breasts’
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brjóst (noun n.; °-s; -): breast, chest
skáru ‘cut’
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skera (verb): cut
blóta ‘the sacrifice’
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2. blóta (verb; °-að-): sacrifice
kennings
blóta lystir spennandar baugs‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring ’
= GENEROUS MEN
the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring → GENEROUS MEN
notes
[3-4] blóta lystir spennandar baugs ‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring [GENEROUS MEN]’: An ironic expression for Maxentius’s heathen followers, based on the kenning-type ‘distributor of gold/rings [GENEROUS MAN]’.
lystir ‘keen’
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lystr (adj.): eager
kennings
blóta lystir spennandar baugs‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring ’
= GENEROUS MEN
the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring → GENEROUS MEN
notes
[3-4] blóta lystir spennandar baugs ‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring [GENEROUS MEN]’: An ironic expression for Maxentius’s heathen followers, based on the kenning-type ‘distributor of gold/rings [GENEROUS MAN]’.
baugs ‘of the ring’
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baugr (noun m.; °dat. -i/-; -ar): ring
kennings
blóta lystir spennandar baugs‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring ’
= GENEROUS MEN
the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring → GENEROUS MEN
notes
[3-4] blóta lystir spennandar baugs ‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring [GENEROUS MEN]’: An ironic expression for Maxentius’s heathen followers, based on the kenning-type ‘distributor of gold/rings [GENEROUS MAN]’.
spennandar ‘squanderers’
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spennandi (noun m.): spanner
kennings
blóta lystir spennandar baugs‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring ’
= GENEROUS MEN
the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring → GENEROUS MEN
notes
[3-4] blóta lystir spennandar baugs ‘the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring [GENEROUS MEN]’: An ironic expression for Maxentius’s heathen followers, based on the kenning-type ‘distributor of gold/rings [GENEROUS MAN]’.
lífs ‘while she was alive’
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líf (noun n.; °-s; -): life
af ‘off’
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af (prep.): from
henni ‘her’
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hann (pron.; °gen. hans, dat. honum; f. hon, gen. hennar, acc. hana): he, she, it, they, them...
Tiggi ‘king’
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tiggi (noun m.; °-ja): king
liet ‘had’
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láta (verb): let, have sth done
þá ‘then’
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2. þá (adv.): then
tróðu ‘the stick’
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tróða (noun f.; °-u): stick
kennings
tróðu mála Iðja‘the stick of the speech of Iði ’
= WOMAN
the speech of Iði → GOLD
the stick of the GOLD → WOMAN
notes
[5-6] tróðu mála Iðja ‘the stick of the speech of Iði <giant> [GOLD > WOMAN]’: The pers. n. Iði (Iðja gen. sg.) for mss’ ‘idju’ was first suggested by Kahle following Jón Þorkelsson. According to the Skm section of SnE (1998, I, 3), Iði was the name of a very rich giant who, along with his two brothers, measured out their inheritance in mouthfuls of gold. From that myth, according to Snorri, poets could construct kennings for gold that referred to it as ‘speech or words or talk’ of these giants. A similar kenning appears in st. 39/1-2 ýtir raddar Iðja (also by emendation, where the mss have the same form iðju, possibly understood by the scribes as from iðja f. ‘activity, work’). The poet appears to refer once more to the myth underlying these relatively uncommon kennings (cf. Meissner, 227) in 40/5-6 ýtar róms jötna ‘launchers of the speech of giants’ and again in 50/5-6 eigendur jötna róms ‘owners of the speech of giants’. The gold-kenning Iðja rödd ‘voice of Iði <giant>’ also appears in Völsungs rímur III, 20/4 (Finnur Jónsson 1905-22, I, 329).
höggva ‘slain’
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hǫggva (verb): to strike, put to death, cut, hew
tál ‘very deceit’
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1. tál (noun f.; °-ar; -ar): deceit < tálgjarn (adj.)
gjarnastur ‘inclined’
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gjarn (adj.; °compar. -ari, superl. -astr): eager < tálgjarn (adj.)
kennings
tróðu mála Iðja‘the stick of the speech of Iði ’
= WOMAN
the speech of Iði → GOLD
the stick of the GOLD → WOMAN
notes
[5-6] tróðu mála Iðja ‘the stick of the speech of Iði <giant> [GOLD > WOMAN]’: The pers. n. Iði (Iðja gen. sg.) for mss’ ‘idju’ was first suggested by Kahle following Jón Þorkelsson. According to the Skm section of SnE (1998, I, 3), Iði was the name of a very rich giant who, along with his two brothers, measured out their inheritance in mouthfuls of gold. From that myth, according to Snorri, poets could construct kennings for gold that referred to it as ‘speech or words or talk’ of these giants. A similar kenning appears in st. 39/1-2 ýtir raddar Iðja (also by emendation, where the mss have the same form iðju, possibly understood by the scribes as from iðja f. ‘activity, work’). The poet appears to refer once more to the myth underlying these relatively uncommon kennings (cf. Meissner, 227) in 40/5-6 ýtar róms jötna ‘launchers of the speech of giants’ and again in 50/5-6 eigendur jötna róms ‘owners of the speech of giants’. The gold-kenning Iðja rödd ‘voice of Iði <giant>’ also appears in Völsungs rímur III, 20/4 (Finnur Jónsson 1905-22, I, 329).
kennings
tróðu mála Iðja‘the stick of the speech of Iði ’
= WOMAN
the speech of Iði → GOLD
the stick of the GOLD → WOMAN
notes
[5-6] tróðu mála Iðja ‘the stick of the speech of Iði <giant> [GOLD > WOMAN]’: The pers. n. Iði (Iðja gen. sg.) for mss’ ‘idju’ was first suggested by Kahle following Jón Þorkelsson. According to the Skm section of SnE (1998, I, 3), Iði was the name of a very rich giant who, along with his two brothers, measured out their inheritance in mouthfuls of gold. From that myth, according to Snorri, poets could construct kennings for gold that referred to it as ‘speech or words or talk’ of these giants. A similar kenning appears in st. 39/1-2 ýtir raddar Iðja (also by emendation, where the mss have the same form iðju, possibly understood by the scribes as from iðja f. ‘activity, work’). The poet appears to refer once more to the myth underlying these relatively uncommon kennings (cf. Meissner, 227) in 40/5-6 ýtar róms jötna ‘launchers of the speech of giants’ and again in 50/5-6 eigendur jötna róms ‘owners of the speech of giants’. The gold-kenning Iðja rödd ‘voice of Iði <giant>’ also appears in Völsungs rímur III, 20/4 (Finnur Jónsson 1905-22, I, 329).
mála ‘of the speech’
(not checked:)
1. mál (noun n.; °-s; -): speech, matter
kennings
tróðu mála Iðja‘the stick of the speech of Iði ’
= WOMAN
the speech of Iði → GOLD
the stick of the GOLD → WOMAN
notes
[5-6] tróðu mála Iðja ‘the stick of the speech of Iði <giant> [GOLD > WOMAN]’: The pers. n. Iði (Iðja gen. sg.) for mss’ ‘idju’ was first suggested by Kahle following Jón Þorkelsson. According to the Skm section of SnE (1998, I, 3), Iði was the name of a very rich giant who, along with his two brothers, measured out their inheritance in mouthfuls of gold. From that myth, according to Snorri, poets could construct kennings for gold that referred to it as ‘speech or words or talk’ of these giants. A similar kenning appears in st. 39/1-2 ýtir raddar Iðja (also by emendation, where the mss have the same form iðju, possibly understood by the scribes as from iðja f. ‘activity, work’). The poet appears to refer once more to the myth underlying these relatively uncommon kennings (cf. Meissner, 227) in 40/5-6 ýtar róms jötna ‘launchers of the speech of giants’ and again in 50/5-6 eigendur jötna róms ‘owners of the speech of giants’. The gold-kenning Iðja rödd ‘voice of Iði <giant>’ also appears in Völsungs rímur III, 20/4 (Finnur Jónsson 1905-22, I, 329).
mála ‘of the speech’
(not checked:)
1. mál (noun n.; °-s; -): speech, matter
kennings
tróðu mála Iðja‘the stick of the speech of Iði ’
= WOMAN
the speech of Iði → GOLD
the stick of the GOLD → WOMAN
notes
[5-6] tróðu mála Iðja ‘the stick of the speech of Iði <giant> [GOLD > WOMAN]’: The pers. n. Iði (Iðja gen. sg.) for mss’ ‘idju’ was first suggested by Kahle following Jón Þorkelsson. According to the Skm section of SnE (1998, I, 3), Iði was the name of a very rich giant who, along with his two brothers, measured out their inheritance in mouthfuls of gold. From that myth, according to Snorri, poets could construct kennings for gold that referred to it as ‘speech or words or talk’ of these giants. A similar kenning appears in st. 39/1-2 ýtir raddar Iðja (also by emendation, where the mss have the same form iðju, possibly understood by the scribes as from iðja f. ‘activity, work’). The poet appears to refer once more to the myth underlying these relatively uncommon kennings (cf. Meissner, 227) in 40/5-6 ýtar róms jötna ‘launchers of the speech of giants’ and again in 50/5-6 eigendur jötna róms ‘owners of the speech of giants’. The gold-kenning Iðja rödd ‘voice of Iði <giant>’ also appears in Völsungs rímur III, 20/4 (Finnur Jónsson 1905-22, I, 329).
sálin ‘soul’
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sál (noun f.; °-ar, dat. -u/-; -ir): soul
[7] sálin: sálu 713, 399a‑bˣ, sálu 920ˣ
giet ‘expect’
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2. geta (verb): to beget, give birth to, mention, speak of; to think well of, like, love
eg ‘I’
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ek (pron.; °mín, dat. mér, acc. mik): I, me
að ‘that’
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4. at (conj.): that
hennar ‘her’
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hann (pron.; °gen. hans, dat. honum; f. hon, gen. hennar, acc. hana): he, she, it, they, them...
hvíli ‘rests’
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2. hvíla (verb): rest
himna ‘heavens’
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himinn (noun m.; °himins, dat. himni; himnar): heaven, sky
notes
[8] í dýrðarvistum himna Krists ‘in the glorious abodes of Christ’s heavens’: Possibly a kenning-like periphrasis for Paradise.
Krists ‘of Christ’s’
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Kristr (noun m.; °-s/-, dat. -i; -ar): Christ
notes
[8] í dýrðarvistum himna Krists ‘in the glorious abodes of Christ’s heavens’: Possibly a kenning-like periphrasis for Paradise.
í ‘in’
(not checked:)
í (prep.): in, into
notes
[8] í dýrðarvistum himna Krists ‘in the glorious abodes of Christ’s heavens’: Possibly a kenning-like periphrasis for Paradise.
dýrðar ‘the glorious’
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dýrð (noun f.; °-ar/-a(NoDipl(1279) 44²); -ir): glory < dýrðarvist (noun f.)
notes
[8] í dýrðarvistum himna Krists ‘in the glorious abodes of Christ’s heavens’: Possibly a kenning-like periphrasis for Paradise.
vistum ‘abodes’
(not checked:)
vist (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): abode, lodging, provisions < dýrðarvist (noun f.)
notes
[8] í dýrðarvistum himna Krists ‘in the glorious abodes of Christ’s heavens’: Possibly a kenning-like periphrasis for Paradise.
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Anger overtook the adorner of harness [WARRIOR]; he requested that his queen be tortured; the sacrifice-keen squanderers of the ring [GENEROUS MEN] cut the breasts off her while she was alive. The very deceit-inclined king then had the stick of the speech of Iði <giant> [GOLD > WOMAN] slain; I expect that her soul rests in the glorious abodes of Christ’s heavens.
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