Sigv Berv 10^II

Gjalt varhuga, veltir,
viðr, þeims nú ferr heðra,
þjófs (skal hǫnd í hófi)
hǫlða kvitt (of stytta).
Vinrs, sás varmra benja
vǫrnuð býðr, en hlýðið,
tármútaris teitir,
til, hvat búmenn vilja.

{Veltir þjófs}, gjalt varhuga viðr kvitt hǫlða, þeims nú ferr heðra; skal of stytta hǫnd í hófi. Vinrs, sás býðr vǫrnuð, en, {{{varmra benja tár}mútaris} teitir}, hlýðið til, hvat búmenn vilja.

{Toppler of the thief} [JUST RULER], pay heed to the chatter of men which now is spreading here; the hand must be held back by moderation. He is a friend who offers a warning, but you, {gladdener {of the hawk {of the tear of warm wounds}}} [(lit. ‘gladdener of the tear-hawk of warm wounds’) BLOOD > RAVEN/EAGLE > WARRIOR], must heed what the farmers want.

Mss: Kˣ(505r), 39(14vb), E(5v), J2ˣ(246r) (Hkr); Holm2(74r-v), 972ˣ(585va), 972ˣ(585vb), 325VI(42rb), 321ˣ(283), 73aˣ(216v), 325VII(41v), 325V(89vb), 61(130va), Tóm(161v), Bb(206rb) (ÓH); FskBˣ(54r), FskAˣ(209) (Fsk, ll. 1-4); H(4v), Hr(6ra-b) (H-Hr); 325XI 3(1r), Flat(190ra) (Flat)

Readings: [1] varhuga: ‘uaro᷎ga’ Flat    [2] viðr: veðrs 73aˣ, við H, Hr;    þeims (‘þeim er’): þeim 325VI;    nú: þú J2ˣ, Holm2, 972ˣ(585va), 972ˣ(585vb);    ferr: ferr víða 325XI 3    [3] þjófs: þjóð 325VI, 321ˣ, þjóf 325V, FskBˣ, FskAˣ, H, Hr, 325XI 3, Flat;    skal: skal ek 325V, 61, Tóm;    hǫnd: so E, J2ˣ, 972ˣ(585va), 73aˣ, 61, Tóm, Bb, H, Hr, 325XI 3, Flat, hund Kˣ, 39, Holm2, 972ˣ(585vb), 325VII, 325V, FskBˣ, FskAˣ, hverr 325VI, 321ˣ    [4] hǫlða: ‘hulða’ E, ‘hulda’ J2ˣ, halda Tóm;    of: af 73aˣ, at 325V;    stytta: ‘stvtta’ Bb, 325XI 3    [5] Vinrs sás (‘vinr er sá er’): so E, J2ˣ, Holm2, 972ˣ(585vb), Bb, vin er sá er Kˣ, vinr er sá 39, 972ˣ(585va), vinr em ek 325VI, 321ˣ, H, vinr er 73aˣ, vinr sá er 325VII, 325V, 61, Tóm, vinr ek Hr, vinr er ek 325XI 3, Flat;    varmra: ‘v[...]ra’ 325VII, varma 325V, H, Hr;    benja: ‘beinia’ E, beima J2ˣ, 61, H, beina 972ˣ(585vb), Tóm, Bb, ‘bæn[...]’ 325VII    [6] vǫrnuð: so 39, 325VI, 325V, H, Hr, 325XI 3, varnaðr Kˣ, varnað E, J2ˣ, Holm2, 972ˣ(585va), 972ˣ(585vb), 321ˣ, 73aˣ, 61, Tóm, Bb, ‘[...]’ 325VII, ‘voro᷎d’ Flat;    býðr: býð ek 325VI, 321ˣ, 73aˣ, Hr, ‘[...]yðr’ 325VII, ek 325V, ‘budr’ Bb, býðk H, búðs 325XI 3, Flat;    hlýðið: hlýði 39, ek hlýði E, J2ˣ, Holm2, 972ˣ(585va), 972ˣ(585vb), 61, Tóm, Bb, hlýðir 325VI, þeir hlýðit 321ˣ, ‘ec hlyþ[...]’ 325VII, ‘hlidit’ Flat    [7] tár‑: ‘[...]’ 325VII, tár á or tára 325XI 3;    ‑mútaris: musteris 39, Bb, ‘mustaris’ J2ˣ, ‘muteris’ Holm2, 972ˣ(585vb), 325VI, 321ˣ, 73aˣ, 325XI 3, Flat, ‘[...]taris’ 325VII, ‘mvntaris’ 325V, ‘materis’ Hr;    teitir: ‘tetter’ 972ˣ(585va), teitar 972ˣ(585vb), teiti 325VI, 321ˣ, 73aˣ, 325V, 61, Tóm, H, Hr, 325XI 3, Flat    [8] til: om. 325VI;    hvat: hvatt Tóm;    búmenn: búmann 972ˣ(585vb), búmanns Bb;    vilja: vinna Tóm

Editions: Skj AI, 255, Skj BI, 237-8, Skald I, 123; ÍF 28, 29-30 (Mgóð ch. 16), E 1916, 18; ÓH 1941, I, 626 (ch. 261); ÍF 29, 213 (ch. 48); Fms 6, 42 (Mgóð ch. 22); Louis-Jensen 1970b, 149, Flat 1860-8, III, 268, Mork 1928-32, 28, Andersson and Gade 2000, 107, 467 (MH); Jón Skaptason 1983, 150, 295.

Notes: [2] heðra ‘here’: The more archaic form hiðra (Goth hidre, OE hider) would restore the aðalhending and has been adopted by most earlier eds (see ANG §60; AEW: heðra). — [3, 4] skal of stytta hǫnd í hófi ‘the hand must be held back by moderation’: Lit. ‘one must shorten the hand in moderation’. This saying means that one should not stretch the fingers longer than moderation prescribes, i.e. one must not be greedy and aggressive but show self-restraint. — [4] kvitt ‘chatter’: Earlier eds emend to kytt, and it is possible that Sigvatr used the variant form kytt for kvitt (see ANG §83.2), which would then form aðalhending with stytta ‘measure’ (lit. ‘shorten’). See also Note to st. 1/6 above. — [7] -mútaris (m. gen. sg.) ‘of the hawk’: Mútari is a nomen agentis which is related to the adj. mútaðr ‘moulted’, referring to a bird that has changed its feathers (from Lat. mutarius; cf. MHG mūzære ‘falcon’; see AEW: mútari).

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. AEW = Vries, Jan de. 1962. Altnordisches etymologisches Wörterbuch. 2nd rev. edn. Rpt. 1977. Leiden: Brill.
5. Andersson, Theodore M. and Kari Ellen Gade, trans. 2000. Morkinskinna: The Earliest Icelandic Chronicle of the Norwegian Kings (1030-1157). Islandica 51. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press.
6. ANG = Noreen, Adolf. 1923. Altnordische Grammatik I: Altisländische und altnorwegische Grammatik (Laut- und Flexionslehre) unter Berücksichtigung des Urnordischen. 4th edn. Halle: Niemeyer. 1st edn. 1884. 5th unrev. edn. 1970. Tübingen: Niemeyer.
7. 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.
8. ÓH 1941 = Johnsen, Oscar Albert and Jón Helgason, eds. 1941. Saga Óláfs konungs hins helga: Den store saga om Olav den hellige efter pergamenthåndskrift i Kungliga biblioteket i Stockholm nr. 2 4^to med varianter fra andre håndskrifter. 2 vols. Det norske historiske kildeskriftfond skrifter 53. Oslo: Dybwad.
9. Mork 1928-32 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1928-32. Morkinskinna. SUGNL 53. Copenhagen: Jørgensen.
10. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
11. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
12. ÍF 29 = Ágrip af Nóregskonunga sǫgum; Fagrskinna—Nóregs konungatal. Ed. Bjarni Einarsson. 1985.
13. Jón Skaptason. 1983. ‘Material for an Edition and Translation of the Poems of Sigvat Þórðarson, skáld’. Ph.D. thesis. State University of New York at Stony Brook. DAI 44: 3681A.
14. Louis-Jensen, Jonna. 1970b. ‘Et forlæg til Flateyjarbók? Fragmenterne AM 325 IV ß og XI, 3 4to’. Opuscula 4. BA 30, 141-58. Copenhagen: Munksgaard.
15. Internal references
16. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Magnúss saga góða ok Haralds harðráða’ 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=147> (accessed 18 April 2024)