SnSt Lv 5^III

This lausavísa (SnSt Lv 5), edited by Kari Ellen Gade, is found in TGT (mss A (main ms.) and W) as well as in Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar (Hák; mss E, F, 42ˣ, 81a, 8 and Flat). It is attributed to Snorri in all mss, and it emerges from the prose narrative in Hák that Snorri composed it during his sojourn at the court of Duke Skúli Bárðarson in Trondheim, Norway, in 1238 (see Context below). The author of TGT, Óláfr Þórðarson, may have been present on the occasion when Snorri recited the stanza, since he accompanied Snorri to Norway in 1237 (cf. Storm 1888, 130, s. a. 1237).

Herfanga bauð Hringi
hjaldr einskǫpuðr galdra
— Gautr hvatti þrym þreyta
þann — ok Hilditanni.
Oflengi veldr yngva
ósætt, en vel mætti
herstefnandi hafna
hans dóm, Vǫlundr rómu.

{Einskǫpuðr {galdra {herfanga}}} bauð Hringi ok Hilditanni hjaldr; Gautr hvatti þreyta þann þrym. Oflengi veldr {Vǫlundr rómu} ósætt yngva, en {herstefnandi} mætti vel hafna dóm hans.

{The one creator {of incantations {of army-tunics}}} [BYRNIES > BATTLES > = Óðinn] ordered Hringr (‘Ring’) and Hilditǫnn (‘War-tooth’) to fight; Gautr <= Óðinn> incited [them] to prolong that clash. For too long {the Vǫlundr <legendary smith> of strife} [WARRIOR = Gautr Jónsson] has caused the rulers’ conflict, and {the army-summoner} [RULER = Hákon] would do well to reject his judgement.

Mss: A(8r), W(110-111) (TGT); E(168r), F(106ra), 42ˣ(147r), 81a(99vb), 8(46r), Flat(175vb) (Hák)

Readings: [1] Herfanga: Ganga 8    [2] hjaldr: hjaldrs F, Flat;    ein‑: en 42ˣ, eins 81a, 8;    ‑skǫpuðr: ‑skǫput F, ‘skop auðr’ 42ˣ;    galdra: gjalda 42ˣ    [3] þrym: þó W, þrum 42ˣ, 8;    þreyta: þrautar W, þróttar E, F, 42ˣ, 81a, 8, Flat    [4] ‑tanni: ‑tannar W    [5] veldr: velkti 42ˣ, veldi 8;    yngva: yngvi 81a, ‘ungva’ 8    [7] ‑stefnandi: so all others, ‑stofnandi A    [8] hans dóm: ‘hondom’ 42ˣ;    hans: hann E, 8, ‘hior’ F;    dóm: dómr W;    Vǫlundr: vanlundr 42ˣ;    rómu: ‘rama’ 81a

Editions: Skj AII, 78, Skj BII, 89, Skald II, 49, NN §2192; SnE 1848-87, II, 184-5, 426, III, 152, TGT 1884, 31, 116-17, 234-5, TGT 1927, 87-8, 109; E 1916, 573, F 1871, 491, Hák 1910-86, 499, Hák 1977-82, 100, Flat 1860-8, III, 120.

Context: In TGT the stanza is given as an example of the rhetorical figure icon, i.e. the comparison between two persons or their characteristics. As Óláfr Þórðarson explains (TGT 1927, 88): Hér er óeiginlig líking milli Óðins ok nǫkkurs illgjarns manns ‘Here there is an improper comparison between Óðinn and a certain evil-minded man’. According to Hák, one of King Hákon Hákonarson’s counsellors, Gautr Jónsson af Meli, was causing bad blood between Hákon and his father-in-law, Skúli Bárðarson. One day Skúli asked Snorri jokingly whether it was correct that ancient kings had referred to Óðinn by the name of ‘Gautr’. When Snorri confirmed that this was indeed the case, Skúli issued the following challenge to Snorri (E 1916, 573): yrk nu visu … ok seg huerssu miok þesi glikiz þeim ‘compose a stanza now … and say how much this one [Gautr Jónsson] resembles that one [Óðinn]’. Snorri then recited the present stanza.

Notes: [All]: In 1261, Snorri’s nephew, Sturla Þórðarson, composed a lausavísa (Sturl Lv 4^IV) in a similar vein in which he made a comparison between Gizurr jarl Þorvaldsson and Óðinn (Gizurr was also a name for Óðinn; cf. Note to Þul Óðins 1/5). Sturla was clearly familiar with Snorri’s stanza, and Óláfr Þórðarson, Sturla’s brother and the author of TGT, must have known the identity of the Gautr in the present stanza (see Introduction above), but he refrains from divulging that information (cf. nǫkkurs illgjarns manns ‘a certain evil-minded man’ in Context above). — [1, 4] Hringi ok Hilditanni ‘Hringr (“Ring”) and Hilditǫnn (“War-tooth”)’: The Danish legendary king Haraldr hilditǫnn Hrœreksson and his son-in-law, the Swedish king Sigurðr hringr Randvésson, known from Saxo (Saxo 2005, I, 8, 1, 1-5, 1, pp. 510-23) and Skjǫldunga saga (ÍF 35, 58-69). See also Notes to RvHbreiðm Hl 39 [All] and 41 [All]. The battle instigated by Óðinn and used as a frame of reference by Snorri here is the epic battle of Brávellir at which Haraldr hilditǫnn fell. According to legend, Óðinn participated in that battle disguised as Brúni, a counsellor of Haraldr’s, but he turned against Haraldr and ultimately killed him. — [1, 2] einskǫpuðr galdra herfanga ‘the one creator of incantations of army-tunics [BYRNIES > BATTLES > = Óðinn]’: The present interpretation follows TGT 1927. In Skj B Finnur Jónsson adopts Sveinbjörn Egilsson’s version (SnE 1848-87, III) of the helmingr and construes einskǫpuðr galdra ‘the one creator of incantations > = Óðinn]’ and hjaldr herfanga ‘the din of army-tunics [BYRNIES > BATTLE]’ (so also LP: herfang 2). Hjaldr is, however, much more common as a heiti for ‘battle’ than as a base-word in battle-kennings (see LP: hjaldr 1, 2). Björn Magnússon Ólsen (TGT 1884) takes herfanga ‘of army-struggles’ (with ‑fanga as a gen. pl. in the meaning ‘struggles, wrestling’) with einskǫpuðr ‘the one creator’ (einskǫpuðr herfanga ‘the one creator of army-struggles’ [BATTLES > WARRIOR > = Óðinn]’) and construes hjaldrgaldra ‘din-incantations’ as a kenning for ‘battle’. — [3] Gautr: One of Óðinn’s names (see Note to Þul Óðins 1/6). — [3] þreyta ‘to prolong’: The reading of ms. A. Finnur Jónsson failed to include this variant in Skj A, and Kock (Skald; NN §2192), who based his edn on Skj A, regarded þreyta as Finnur’s emendation. He accordingly tried to make sense of the W reading and assumed the nonsensical cpd þrymþrautar, translated as ett rungande kraftprov ‘a resounding testimony of strength’. The variant Þróttar ‘of Þróttr <= Óðinn>’ in the Hák mss could be taken with þrym as a kenning for ‘battle’ (þrym Þróttar ‘noise of Þróttr’), but it must be a lectio facilior. Þrym Þróttar does not make sense syntactically, because the verb hvetja ‘incite’ is construed with acc. of person and gen. rei (hvetja e-n e-s ‘incite sby to sth.’) or with acc. of person and a prepositional phrase (hvetja e-n til e-s, at e-u). Cf. TGT 1884, 235 n. 3. — [3, 4] þann þrym ‘that clash’: Þrymr ‘noise, clash, tumult’ does not otherwise occur as a heiti for ‘battle’ (cf. LP: þrymr), and that circumstance could have prompted the variant Þróttar in the Hák mss (see Note to þreyta ‘to prolong’ above). — [5] yngva ‘the rulers’’: Yngvi is a heiti for ‘sea-king’ and the name of various legendary persons (see Introduction to Þjóð Yt^I and Note to Þul Sea-kings 4/8). In the present stanza, the rulers referred to must be Hákon Hákonarson and Skúli Bárðarson. — [7]: This line echoes Eskál Vell 35/3^I. — [8] Vǫlundr rómu ‘the Vǫlundr <legendary smith> of strife [WARRIOR = Gautr Jónsson]’: The smith Vǫlundr is the protagonist of Vǫlundarkviða (Vǫl). The name could also be used in poetry as a common noun for ‘smith’, but it is otherwise not attested as the base-word in a kenning (cf. LP: Vǫlundr). It is not immediately clear why Snorri uses this name in a warrior-kenning referring to Gautr Jónsson, but it could well have had negative connotations. According to Vǫl, Vǫlundr, through deceit, killed the two young sons of his captor, King Níðuðr of Sweden, and impregnated Níðuðr’s daughter, Bǫðvildr.

References

1. Bibliography
2. TGT 1884 = Björn Magnússon Ólsen, ed. 1884. Den tredje og fjærde grammatiske afhandling i Snorres Edda tilligemed de grammatiske afhandlingers prolog og to andre tillæg. SUGNL 12. Copenhagen: Knudtzon.
3. Skj A = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15a. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. A: Tekst efter håndskrifterne. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1967. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
4. Skj B = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15b. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. B: Rettet tekst. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1973. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
5. SnE 1848-87 = Snorri Sturluson. 1848-87. Edda Snorra Sturlusonar: Edda Snorronis Sturlaei. Ed. Jón Sigurðsson et al. 3 vols. Copenhagen: Legatum Arnamagnaeanum. Rpt. Osnabrück: Zeller, 1966.
6. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
7. NN = Kock, Ernst Albin. 1923-44. Notationes Norrœnæ: Anteckningar till Edda och skaldediktning. Lunds Universitets årsskrift new ser. 1. 28 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
8. LP = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1931. Lexicon poeticum antiquæ linguæ septentrionalis: Ordbog over det norsk-islandske skjaldesprog oprindelig forfattet af Sveinbjörn Egilsson. 2nd edn. Copenhagen: Møller.
9. Storm, Gustav, ed. 1888. Islandske annaler indtil 1578. Christiania (Oslo): Det norske historiske kildeskriftfond. Rpt. 1977. Oslo: Norsk-historisk kjeldeskrift-institutt.
10. 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.
11. ÍF 35 = Danakonunga sǫgur. Ed. Bjarni Guðnason. 1982.
12. F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
13. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
14. Hák 1977-82 = Mundt, Marina, ed. 1977. Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar etter Sth. 8 fol., AM 325VIII, 4° og AM 304, 4°. Oslo: Forlagsentralen. Suppl. by James E. Knirk, Rettelser til Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar etter Sth. 8 fol., AM 325VIII, 4° og AM 304, 4°. Norrøne tekster 2. Oslo: Norsk historisk kjeldeskrift-institutt, 1982.
15. Saxo 2005 = Friis-Jensen, Karsten, ed. 2005. Saxo Grammaticus: Gesta Danorum / Danmarkshistorien. Trans. Peter Zeeberg. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Det danske sprog- og litteraturselskab & Gads forlag.
16. TGT 1927 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1927b. Óláfr Þórðarson: Málhljóða- og málskrúðsrit. Grammatisk-retorisk afhandling. Det kgl. Danske Videnskabernes Selskab. Historisk-filologiske meddelelser 13, 2. Copenhagen: Høst.
17. Hák 1910-86 = Kjær, Albert and Ludvig Holm-Olsen, eds. 1910-86. Det Arnamagnæanske haandskrift 81a fol. (Skálholtsbók yngsta) indeholdende Sverris saga, Bǫglungasǫgur, Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar. Oslo: Den norske historiske kildeskriftkommission and Kjeldeskriftfondet.
18. Internal references
19. (forthcoming), ‘ Óláfr hvítaskáld Þórðarson, The Third Grammatical Treatise’ in Tarrin Wills (ed.), The Third Grammatical Treatise. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=32> (accessed 25 April 2024)
20. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar’ 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=33> (accessed 25 April 2024)
21. Kari Ellen Gade 2017, ‘(Biography of) Sturla Þórðarson’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 392.
22. Elena Gurevich 2017, ‘ Anonymous, Heiti for sea-kings’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 987. <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=1045> (accessed 25 April 2024)
23. Elena Gurevich (ed.) 2017, ‘Anonymous Þulur, Óðins nǫfn 1’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 732.
24. Guðrún Nordal (forthcoming), ‘ Snorri Sturluson, Lausavísur’ in Guðrún Nordal (ed.), Poetry on Icelandic History. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 4. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=1378> (accessed 25 April 2024)
25. Edith Marold with the assistance of Vivian Busch, Jana Krüger, Ann-Dörte Kyas and Katharina Seidel, translated from German by John Foulks 2012, ‘ Þjóðólfr ór Hvini, Ynglingatal’ 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. 3. <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=1440> (accessed 25 April 2024)
26. Edith Marold (ed.) 2012, ‘Einarr skálaglamm Helgason, Vellekla 35’ 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. 327.
27. Not published: do not cite ()
28. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2017, ‘Rǫgnvaldr jarl and Hallr Þórarinsson, Háttalykill 39’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 1047.
29. Not published: do not cite (Sturl Lv 4^IV)