R. D. Fulk (ed.) 2012, ‘Sigvatr Þórðarson, Lausavísur 3’ 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. 702.
Ek tók lystr, né lastak
— leyfð íð es þat — síðan,
sóknar Njǫrðr, við sverði
— sás mínn vili — þínu.
Þollr, fekkt húskarl hollan
— hǫfum ráðit vel báðir —
látrs, en ek lánardróttin,
linns blóða, mér góðan.
Ek tók lystr við sverði þínu, {Njǫrðr sóknar}, né lastak síðan; sás vili mínn; þat es leyfð íð. {Þollr {látrs {blóða linns}}}, fekkt hollan húskarl, en ek mér góðan lánardróttin; hǫfum báðir ráðit vel.
I accepted, eager, your sword, {Njǫrðr <god> of combat} [WARRIOR], and I will not find fault with it afterwards; this is what I wish; it is a praiseworthy occupation. {Fir-tree {of the lair {of the serpent’s brother}}} [SERPENT > GOLD > MAN], you got a loyal retainer, and I [got] for myself a good liege lord; we have both decided well.
Mss: Holm2(11v), R686ˣ(22v), 972ˣ(77va), J1ˣ(154v), J2ˣ(132r), 325VI(9vb), 321ˣ(49), 73aˣ(32r), 78aˣ(29v), 68(10v), 61(83vb), Holm4(3va), 325V(14va), 325VII(4r), Bb(133va), Flat(83ra), Tóm(101r), 325XI 2 l(1r) (ÓH); Kˣ(247v-248r) (Hkr)
Readings: [1] lystr: ‘daystr’ Bb; né lastak (‘ne ek lasta’): ‘ne e[…] asta’ 325VI, mǫrk lasta 78aˣ, ek lasta 61, en ek lasta Flat, til lasta Tóm [2] leyfð: ‘[…]eyfð’ 325XI 2 l; íð es (‘ið er’): ‘ydri er’ 972ˣ, iðn er J1ˣ, J2ˣ, 325VI, 321ˣ, 68, Holm4, 325V, Bb, Flat, Tóm, iðu 73aˣ, í blank space er 78aˣ, iðn var 61, 325VII; síðan: síð 78aˣ [3] sóknar: ‘socuar’ 325XI 2 l; Njǫrðr: norðr Bb; við: var R686ˣ, ‘v[...]’ 325VI, með Tóm; sverði: ‘[…]ði’ 325VI [4] mínn: mín R686ˣ, 972ˣ, 61, 325V, Flat, Tóm; þínu: þanninn 325XI 2 l [5] fekkt (‘fek tv’): tóktu R686ˣ, J1ˣ, J2ˣ, 325VI, 78aˣ, tók en 321ˣ, gaztu Kˣ; húskarl hollan: ‘h[…]’ 325VI, ‘huskarllann’ 325V, ‘huskarll […]ollan’ 325XI 2 l [6] báðir: ‘baþr’ R686ˣ, ‘báðar’ Flat [7] látrs: ‘Latturs’ 972ˣ, linns 61, ‘laírs’ 325XI 2 l; ek: om. Tóm; ‑dróttin: so J1ˣ, 325VI, 78aˣ, Holm4, 325V, 325VII, 325XI 2 l, ‑dróttinn Holm2, 972ˣ, J2ˣ, 321ˣ, 73aˣ, 61, Bb, Flat, Tóm, Kˣ, ‘drotin’ R686ˣ, ‑drótni 68 [8] linns: ‘Lins’ 972ˣ, lands 61, ‘linn(z)’(?) 325XI 2 l; blóða: bróður J1ˣ, J2ˣ; mér: mann 321ˣ
Editions: Skj AI, 266, Skj BI, 246, Skald I, 127, NN §671, Fms 4, 90, Fms 12, 78, ÓH 1853, 36, 263, ÓH 1941, I, 82 (ch. 38), Flat 1860-8, II, 39; Hkr 1777-1826, II, 46 (ÓHHkr ch. 41), VI, 74, Hkr 1868, 248 (ÓHHkr ch. 41), Hkr 1893-1901, II, 63, IV, 118, ÍF 27, 55, Hkr 1991, I, 287 (ÓHHkr ch. 43); Konráð Gíslason 1892, 35, 171, Jón Skaptason 1983, 185, 313.
Context: After accepting reward for the previous stanza, Sigvatr becomes a member of the king’s retinue, and he delivers this.
Notes: [1, 3, 4] ek tók við sverði þínu ‘I accepted your sword’: In the ceremony of investiture as a retainer, the king would hold the haft of his sword over his right knee, and the aspiring retainer would grasp the haft with his right hand: see Hirðskrá chs 31, 43 (ed. Meissner 1938; Imsen 2000). — [2] íð ‘occupation’: The reading íðn/iðn in most mss is also possible, and more or less synonymous. — [2] þat ‘it’: Finnur Jónsson (Skj B, following Konráð Gíslason 1892 and 1895-7, II, 236) regards this as the object of né lastak ‘I will not find fault with’ (l. 1), but Kock (NN §671) objects that the preceding parenthesis must not end with unstressed es ‘is’. — [4] mínn ‘I’: The older form of minn, with long vowel, is required by the aðalhending. Similar forms with shortening (Lv 6/2, 7/7, 13/8, 18/7) and without (Lv 8/6, 19/2) are required by the hendingar in Sigvatr’s lausavísur; see also ‘Normalisation resulting from linguistic changes’ in General Introduction for discussion of short and long variants. — [8] blóða linns ‘of the serpent’s brother [SERPENT]’: Blóða ‘brother’ adds nothing to the kenning, just as bróðir adds nothing to bróðir gera ‘brother of the wolf/wolves [WOLF]’ (Anon Krm 16/3VIII in AM 6 folˣ), and brœðr adds nothing semantically to brœðr bergrisa ‘giant’s brothers [GIANTS]’ (Grott 9/7, NK 298). The use of ‘brother’ may serve to mark a change of number in some instances including the Grott example, and blóða here could be regarded as gen. pl. In support of that Meissner 239 has several examples of gen. pl. linna ‘of snakes’ as the determinant of gold-kennings, but on the other hand kennings of this type are at least partly motivated by legends of a lone dragon guarding treasure, notably Fáfnir. At all events, linns must not be thought to refer to an earthworm (as by Jón Skaptason 1983, 312-13); linnr alone may refer to a dragon: see LP: 1. linnr.
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