Rv Lv 20^II

Vôn ák — út á Spáni
vas skjótt rekinn flótti —
— flýði margr af mœði
menlundr — konu fundar.
Því erum vér, at vôru*
væn hljóð kveðin þjóðum,
— valr tók vǫll at hylja —
verðir Ermingerðar.

Ák vôn fundar konu; flótti vas rekinn skjótt út á Spáni; {margr menlundr} flýði af mœði. Því erum vér verðir Ermingerðar, at væn hljóð vôru* kveðin þjóðum; valr tók at hylja vǫll.

I have hopes of meeting the woman; the fleeing host was chased swiftly out in Spain; {many a neck-ring tree} [MAN] fled because of exhaustion. This is why we are worthy of Ermingerðr, because beautiful sounds were spoken to people; corpses began to cover the field.

Mss: Flat(140rb) (Orkn)

Readings: [1] ák: ek Flat    [5] vôru*: vrum Flat

Editions: Skj AI, 509, Skj BI, 483-4, Skald I, 237; Flat 1860-8, II, 482, Orkn 1887, 167, Orkn 1913-16, 243, ÍF 34, 219 (ch. 87), Bibire 1988, 234.

Context: While harrying in Spánland it heiðna ‘heathen Spain’ (ÍF 34, 218), Rǫgnvaldr’s troops attack a village where they meet resistance, but eventually chase the inhabitants away.

Notes: [1, 4] vôn fundar konu; út á Spáni ‘hopes of meeting the woman; out in Spain’: Skj B construes the adverbial phrase with the framing cl. of this helmingr, but it is not clear which woman the poet might expect to meet in Spain. Since Ermingerðr is mentioned in l. 8, it is most likely that this is also a reference to her, and that Rǫgnvaldr is interweaving his memories, thoughts and expectations of her with his current activities, as also in sts 15, 17, 19, 21-2, 25. — [6] væn hljóð ‘beautiful sounds’: It is not clear what these are. Bibire 1988 translates ‘splendid voices (of war)’, but does not really link this expression to why the poet considers himself worthy of Ermingerðr. Finnbogi Guðmundsson (ÍF 34) does link the two, but glosses the sentence as að barizt var með miklu braki ‘because the fighting took place with much noise’, following Skj B, which however emends to vápnhljóð ‘weapon-sounds’. It seems more likely that Rǫgnvaldr is referring to his own poetry and developing the contrast between past and present activities. He is not averse to praising himself (see Note to Lv 16/2), and refers to his own poetry in sts 11 and 23, and to his role as poet in st. 35, as well as, of course, in st. 1. — [8] Ermingerðar ‘of Ermingerðr’: See Note to st. 15 [All].

References

1. Bibliography
2. Skj B = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15b. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. B: Rettet tekst. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1973. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
3. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
4. Flat 1860-8 = Gudbrand Vigfusson [Guðbrandur Vigfússon] and C. R. Unger, eds. 1860-8. Flateyjarbók. En samling af norske konge-sagaer med indskudte mindre fortællinger om begivenheder i og udenfor Norge samt annaler. 3 vols. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
5. ÍF 34 = Orkneyinga saga. Ed. Finnbogi Guðmundsson. 1965.
6. Orkn 1913-16 = Sigurður Nordal, ed. 1913-16. Orkneyinga saga. SUGNL 40. Copenhagen: Møller.
7. Bibire, Paul. 1988. ‘The Poetry of Earl Rǫgnvaldr’s Court’. In Crawford 1988, 208-40.
8. Orkn 1887 = Gudbrand Vigfusson 1887-94, I.