Ótt Knútdr 1I
Matthew Townend (ed.) 2012, ‘Óttarr svarti, Knútsdrápa 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. 769.
Hratt ‘you launched’
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1. hrinda (verb): launch, propell
[1] Hratt: ‘Hræztu’ JÓ, 41ˣ, ‘Hrestu’ 20dˣ, ‘Hręztu’ 873ˣ
lítt ‘at no great’
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lítill (adj.; °lítinn): little
notes
[1] lítt gamall ‘at no great age’: Lit. ‘little old’ (adv. + adj.). Knútr’s date of birth is unknown, but he was probably born c. 995-1000. For further emphasis on his youth, see sts 1/3-4, 4/2, and 6/1, and for discussion see Jesch (2004b); on the topos of Scandinavian rulers embarking on their careers in early youth, see Marold (1993c, 103-5).
gamall ‘age’
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gamall (adj.; °gamlan; compar. & superl. ellri adj.): old
notes
[1] lítt gamall ‘at no great age’: Lit. ‘little old’ (adv. + adj.). Knútr’s date of birth is unknown, but he was probably born c. 995-1000. For further emphasis on his youth, see sts 1/3-4, 4/2, and 6/1, and for discussion see Jesch (2004b); on the topos of Scandinavian rulers embarking on their careers in early youth, see Marold (1993c, 103-5).
lýtir ‘Destroyer’
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lýtir (noun m.): destroyer
kennings
Lýtir lǫgreiðar,‘Destroyer of the sea-chariot, ’
= SEAFARER
the sea-chariot, → SHIP
Destroyer of the SHIP → SEAFARER
lǫg ‘of the sea’
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lǫgr (noun m.; °lagar, dat. legi): sea < lǫgreið (noun f.): [sea-chariot]
kennings
Lýtir lǫgreiðar,‘Destroyer of the sea-chariot, ’
= SEAFARER
the sea-chariot, → SHIP
Destroyer of the SHIP → SEAFARER
lǫg ‘of the sea’
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lǫgr (noun m.; °lagar, dat. legi): sea < lǫgreið (noun f.): [sea-chariot]
kennings
Lýtir lǫgreiðar,‘Destroyer of the sea-chariot, ’
= SEAFARER
the sea-chariot, → SHIP
Destroyer of the SHIP → SEAFARER
reiðar ‘chariot’
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1. reið (noun f.; °-ar; -ir/-ar): riding; chariot < lǫgreið (noun f.): [sea-chariot]
kennings
Lýtir lǫgreiðar,‘Destroyer of the sea-chariot, ’
= SEAFARER
the sea-chariot, → SHIP
Destroyer of the SHIP → SEAFARER
reiðar ‘chariot’
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1. reið (noun f.; °-ar; -ir/-ar): riding; chariot < lǫgreið (noun f.): [sea-chariot]
kennings
Lýtir lǫgreiðar,‘Destroyer of the sea-chariot, ’
= SEAFARER
the sea-chariot, → SHIP
Destroyer of the SHIP → SEAFARER
framm ‘forward’
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fram (adv.): out, forth, forwards, away
skeiðum ‘ships’
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1. skeið (noun f.; °-ar; -r/-ar/-ir): ship
fórat ‘went from’
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fara (verb; ferr, fór, fóru, farinn): go, travel
œri ‘younger’
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œrr (adj.): raging
kennings
folksveimuðr,‘army-traveller, ’
= WARRIOR
army-traveller, → WARRIOR
notes
[4] folksveimuðr ‘army-traveller [WARRIOR]’: The mss have ‘-sveimadr’, which could be normalised to sveimaðr (as in ÍF 35), but sveimuðr is the earlier type of form (cf. Note to Ótt Lv 1/2), and is also adopted in Skj B, Skald and Knýtl 1919-25.
sveimuðr ‘traveller’
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sveimaðr (noun m.): [traveller] < folksveimuðr (noun m.)
kennings
folksveimuðr,‘army-traveller, ’
= WARRIOR
army-traveller, → WARRIOR
notes
[4] folksveimuðr ‘army-traveller [WARRIOR]’: The mss have ‘-sveimadr’, which could be normalised to sveimaðr (as in ÍF 35), but sveimuðr is the earlier type of form (cf. Note to Ótt Lv 1/2), and is also adopted in Skj B, Skald and Knýtl 1919-25.
þér ‘than you’
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þú (pron.; °gen. þín, dat. þér, acc. þik): you
heiman ‘home’
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heiman (adv.): from home
Hilmir ‘Prince’
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hilmir (noun m.): prince, protector
ok ‘and’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
hættir ‘daring’
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hættr (adj.; °compar. -ari/-ri, superl. -astr): dangerous
harðbrynjuð ‘hard-armoured’
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harðbrynjaðr (adj.): hard-armoured
notes
[6] harðbrynjuð skip ‘hard-armoured ships’: The cpd harðbrynjaðr occurs only here and in Hallv Knútdr 3/4III, where it also describes Knútr’s ships. See further Jesch (2001a, 157-9), who suggests the armour concerned may be shields along the sides of the ship. Óttarr and Hallvarðr may well have been contemporaries at Knútr’s court, and on account of the probable dates of composition for their respective Knútsdrápur, it is more likely that Hallvarðr is borrowing from Óttarr than vice versa.
skip ‘ships’
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skip (noun n.; °-s; -): ship
notes
[6] harðbrynjuð skip ‘hard-armoured ships’: The cpd harðbrynjaðr occurs only here and in Hallv Knútdr 3/4III, where it also describes Knútr’s ships. See further Jesch (2001a, 157-9), who suggests the armour concerned may be shields along the sides of the ship. Óttarr and Hallvarðr may well have been contemporaries at Knútr’s court, and on account of the probable dates of composition for their respective Knútsdrápur, it is more likely that Hallvarðr is borrowing from Óttarr than vice versa.
kynjum ‘wondrously’
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2. kyn (noun n.; °; -): wonder
notes
[6] kynjum ‘wondrously’: From kyn n. ‘wonder’, here in the dat. pl. functioning as an adv.
reiðr ‘in your anger’
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4. reiðr (adj.; °superl. -astr): angry
þú ‘you’
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þú (pron.; °gen. þín, dat. þér, acc. þik): you
rauðar ‘red’
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rauðr (adj.; °compar. -ari): red
notes
[7-8] rauðar randir ‘red shields’: In skaldic verse shields are often red with the blood of enemies. Here, however, battle has not yet been joined, so the redness may be decorative, or possibly proleptic. A red shield is raised as a sign of hostile intention in HHund I 33/3, and see further Falk (1914b, 129-32).
randir ‘shields’
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rǫnd (noun f.; °dat. -/-u; rendr/randir): shield, shield-rim
notes
[7-8] rauðar randir ‘red shields’: In skaldic verse shields are often red with the blood of enemies. Here, however, battle has not yet been joined, so the redness may be decorative, or possibly proleptic. A red shield is raised as a sign of hostile intention in HHund I 33/3, and see further Falk (1914b, 129-32).
Knútr ‘Knútr’
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Knútr (noun m.): Knútr
fyr ‘before’
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fyr (prep.): for, over, because of, etc.
landi ‘the land’
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land (noun n.; °-s; *-): land
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
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Hratt lítt gamall, lýtir |
Destroyer of the sea-chariot [SHIP > SEAFARER], you launched ships forward at no great age; army-traveller [WARRIOR], no ruler younger than you went from home. Prince, you made ready hard-armoured ships and were wondrously daring; in your anger, Knútr, you raised [lit. had] red shields before the land.
The stanza follows the Knýtl account of Knútr’s gathering of his army to attack England.
The introduction in Knýtl specifies the title of the poem as Knútsdrápa.
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