SnSt Lv 7III
Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2017, ‘Snorri Sturluson, Lausavísur 7’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 374.
Komk ‘I came’
(not checked:)
koma (verb; kem, kom/kvam, kominn): come
inn ‘in’
(not checked:)
1. inn (adv.): in, inside
þars ‘where’
(not checked:)
þars (conj.): where
sat ‘sat’
(not checked:)
sitja (verb): sit
svanni ‘a woman’
(not checked:)
svanni (noun m.): lady, woman
notes
[1-2] svanni, vænstr svanna ‘a woman, the most beautiful of women’: For svanni lit. ‘clever, wise’, see AEW: svanni and Note to Þul Kvenna I 1/1. This is a m. noun; hence vænstr m. nom. sg. ‘the most beautiful’. The <v> in vænstr is no longer visible, but it has been supplied by earlier eds.
svanna ‘of women’
(not checked:)
svanni (noun m.): lady, woman
notes
[1-2] svanni, vænstr svanna ‘a woman, the most beautiful of women’: For svanni lit. ‘clever, wise’, see AEW: svanni and Note to Þul Kvenna I 1/1. This is a m. noun; hence vænstr m. nom. sg. ‘the most beautiful’. The <v> in vænstr is no longer visible, but it has been supplied by earlier eds.
notes
[1-2] svanni, vænstr svanna ‘a woman, the most beautiful of women’: For svanni lit. ‘clever, wise’, see AEW: svanni and Note to Þul Kvenna I 1/1. This is a m. noun; hence vænstr m. nom. sg. ‘the most beautiful’. The <v> in vænstr is no longer visible, but it has been supplied by earlier eds.
í ‘inside’
(not checked:)
í (prep.): in, into
ranni ‘the hall’
(not checked:)
rann (noun n.): house, hall
Gerðr ‘Gerðr’
(not checked:)
Gerðr (noun f.): Gerðr
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
leysti ‘was loosening ’
(not checked:)
leysa (verb): release, loosen, redeem
sú ‘that’
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
svarðar ‘of the scalp’
(not checked:)
svǫrðr (noun m.; °svarðar, dat. sverði; sverðir, acc. svǫrðu): scalp
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
svarðar ‘of the scalp’
(not checked:)
svǫrðr (noun m.; °svarðar, dat. sverði; sverðir, acc. svǫrðu): scalp
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
svarðar ‘of the scalp’
(not checked:)
svǫrðr (noun m.; °svarðar, dat. sverði; sverðir, acc. svǫrðu): scalp
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
svarð ‘scalp’
(not checked:)
svǫrðr (noun m.; °svarðar, dat. sverði; sverðir, acc. svǫrðu): scalp < svarðakr (noun m.)
kennings
svarðakr.‘scalp-field. ’
= HAIR
scalp-field. → HAIR
notes
[4] svarðakr ‘her scalp-field [HAIR]’: The <a> in -akr ‘field’ is obliterated by a hole in the ms. but is reasonably certain since both svǫrð ‘scalp’ and akr ‘field’ are given in the prose that precedes the stanza (so also earlier eds).
akr ‘field’
(not checked:)
akr (noun m.; °akrs, dat. akri; akrar): field < svarðakr (noun m.)
[4] ‑akr: ‘[…]kr’ W
kennings
svarðakr.‘scalp-field. ’
= HAIR
scalp-field. → HAIR
notes
[4] svarðakr ‘her scalp-field [HAIR]’: The <a> in -akr ‘field’ is obliterated by a hole in the ms. but is reasonably certain since both svǫrð ‘scalp’ and akr ‘field’ are given in the prose that precedes the stanza (so also earlier eds).
raðar ‘of the ridge’
(not checked:)
rǫð (noun f.; °; -ir): ridge
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
raðar ‘of the ridge’
(not checked:)
rǫð (noun f.; °; -ir): ridge
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
raðar ‘of the ridge’
(not checked:)
rǫð (noun f.; °; -ir): ridge
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
kennings
sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar‘that Gerðr of the fences of the ridge of the scalp ’
= WOMAN
the ridge of the scalp → HEAD
the fences of the HEAD → HEADBANDS
that Gerðr of HEADBANDS → WOMAN
notes
[3, 4] sú Gerðr garða raðar svarðar ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the fences of the ridge of the scalp [HEAD > HEADBANDS > WOMAN]’: Emendation is needed, because garði m. dat. sg. ‘fence, enclosure, yard, house’ (so W) cannot be accommodated syntactically in this clause. The present edn follows Skj B, which is least intrusive in terms of emendation. Kock (NN §2193; Skald) further emends svarðakr m. acc. sg. ‘scalp-field’ to svarðakrs gen. sg. and construes sú Gerðr garða svarðar leysti raðar svarðakrs which can be translated as ‘that Gerðr <goddess> of the houses of the scalp [HEADDRESSES > WOMAN] was loosening her rows of the scalp-field [HAIR > LOCKS OF HAIR]’.
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
The helmingr illustrates kennings for women’s hair in which the base-words are words for ‘head’, ‘parting of the hair’, ‘cheek’, ‘neck’, ‘scalp’ or ‘forehead’ and the determinants are words for ‘forest’, ‘field’, ‘grass’ or ‘trees’.
The metre is dunhent ‘echoing-rhymed’, which is also attested in RvHbreiðm Hl 65-6 and in SnSt Ht 24 (see Notes there).
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