ÞKolb Eirdr 2I
Jayne Carroll (ed.) 2012, ‘Þórðr Kolbeinsson, Eiríksdrápa 2’ 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. 491.
Mjǫk ‘very’
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mjǫk (adv.): very, much
lætr ‘’
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láta (verb): let, have sth done
margar ‘many’
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2. margr (adj.; °-an): many
snetkjur ‘’
morðar ‘’
notes
[2] mærðarǫrr ‘praise-liberal’: This is taken here as a cpd, though a phrase ǫrr mærðar ‘liberal with praise’ would also be possible. The adj. is construed, as in most eds, as qualifying óðr ‘poetry’. Ǫrr ‘swift, bold, liberal’ usually qualifies terms for rulers or warriors in skaldic poetry, and the phrase may alternatively be taken with skjaldhlynr ‘shield-maple [WARRIOR]’, meaning ‘eager for praise’ (so Skald; NN §580). However, this assumes an unattested meaning of ‘eager’ for the common word ǫrr.
ǫrr ‘liberal’
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ǫrr (adj.): generous, brave
notes
[2] mærðarǫrr ‘praise-liberal’: This is taken here as a cpd, though a phrase ǫrr mærðar ‘liberal with praise’ would also be possible. The adj. is construed, as in most eds, as qualifying óðr ‘poetry’. Ǫrr ‘swift, bold, liberal’ usually qualifies terms for rulers or warriors in skaldic poetry, and the phrase may alternatively be taken with skjaldhlynr ‘shield-maple [WARRIOR]’, meaning ‘eager for praise’ (so Skald; NN §580). However, this assumes an unattested meaning of ‘eager’ for the common word ǫrr.
ok ‘’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
knǫrru ‘merchant ships’
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knǫrr (noun m.; °knarrar, dat. knerri; knerrir, acc. knǫrru/knerri): (a kind of) ship
áðr ‘’
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áðr (adv.; °//): before
vegs ‘’
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2. vegr (noun m.; °-s/-ar, dat. -): honour
skaldi ‘’
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skáld (noun n.; °-s; -): poet
skals ‘’
skjalds ‘’
skalds ‘of the skald’
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skáld (noun n.; °-s; -): poet
[3] skalds: skjalds 510, ‘scals’ Tˣ, skaldi U
at ‘’
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4. at (conj.): that
skeiða ‘’
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1. skeið (noun f.; °-ar; -r/-ar/-ir): ship
skœðar ‘’
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skœðr (adj.): dangerous
skeiðar ‘longships’
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1. skeið (noun f.; °-ar; -r/-ar/-ir): ship
[3] skeiðar: ‘skæðar’ FskAˣ, skeiða R, Tˣ, A, C
skjǫldungr ‘’
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skjǫldungr (noun m.): king
skald ‘’
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skáld (noun n.; °-s; -): poet
skjǫld ‘’
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skjǫldr (noun m.; °skjaldar/skildar, dat. skildi; skildir, acc. skjǫldu): shield
skaril ‘’
skjald ‘The shield’
[4] skjaldhlynr: so 325VIII 1, 61, 54, Bb, 510, A, ‘sciald lynr’ Kˣ, J2ˣ, FskAˣ, skjald dynr 39, F, ‘ska(ri)llynr’(?) J1ˣ, skjǫldungr FskBˣ, skjǫld hlynr R, Tˣ, skald hlynr U, skjald hlymr C
kennings
Skjaldhlynr‘The shield-maple ’
= WARRIOR
The shield-maple → WARRIOR
hlymr ‘’
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hlymja (verb): [roars]
lynr ‘’
lynr ‘’
dynr ‘’
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dynr (noun m.; °dat. -; -ir): din < skjalddynr (noun m.): shield-din
hlynr ‘maple’
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hlynr (noun m.; °-s): maple < skjaldhlynr (noun m.)
[4] skjaldhlynr: so 325VIII 1, 61, 54, Bb, 510, A, ‘sciald lynr’ Kˣ, J2ˣ, FskAˣ, skjald dynr 39, F, ‘ska(ri)llynr’(?) J1ˣ, skjǫldungr FskBˣ, skjǫld hlynr R, Tˣ, skald hlynr U, skjald hlymr C
kennings
Skjaldhlynr‘The shield-maple ’
= WARRIOR
The shield-maple → WARRIOR
alium ‘’
bryni ‘’
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brýni (noun n.; °; -): °whetstone; “appetite whetter”, spice
hrynja ‘’
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hrynja (verb): fall, flow
þás ‘when’
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þás (conj.): when
ólítil ‘’
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ólítill (adj.): not small
ólítill ‘’
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ólítill (adj.): not small
ólítinn ‘at full strength’
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ólítill (adj.): not small
[5] ólítinn: ólítil FskBˣ, ólítill FskAˣ
notes
[5] ólítinn ‘at full strength’: (a) This, the reading of all Hkr and ÓT mss as well as 510, is construed here with fór, hence lit. ‘advanced not insignificantly’. The adverbial use of m. acc. sg. is unusual, but cf. ModIcel. að fara mikinn, lit. ‘to go all out’ (so ÍF 26); cf. also Anon (TGT) 8/1III, where hraustan (m. acc. sg.) ‘brave’ stands for hraustliga ‘bravely’, albeit as a solecism (TGT 1884, 75). (b) Skj B, Skald and ÍF 29 prefer ólítill ‘great’ (lit. ‘not small’), the reading of FskAˣ (and cf. FskBˣ ólítil), taken with the subject of the clause, oddherðir ‘point-hardener [WARRIOR]’. This reading is more straightforward but for that reason may be seen as secondary, especially given the overwhelming agreement of the other mss.
úti ‘’
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úti (adv.): out, outdoors, out at sea, abroad
él ‘’
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él (noun n.; °; dat. -um): storm < élherðir (noun m.): [storm-hardeners]
odd ‘the point’
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oddr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i; -ar): point of weapon < oddherðir (noun m.)
[6] odd‑: so FskBˣ, FskAˣ, 510, él‑ Kˣ, 39, F, J1ˣ, J2ˣ, 325VIII 1, 61, 54, Bb
kennings
oddherðir‘the point-hardener ’
= WARRIOR
the point-hardener → WARRIOR
notes
[6] oddherðir ‘the point-hardener [WARRIOR]’: This cpd is clearly a warrior-kenning, but the mss differ over the determinant. (a) Oddherðir, the reading of the Fsk mss and 510, is adopted here, as in Skj B, Skald and ÍF 29. It follows a warrior-kenning pattern which has herðir as the base-word and a term for ‘battle’ or ‘weapon’ (usually ‘sword’) as the determinant (Meissner 295). (b) Élherðir ‘storm-hardener’ in all other mss is adopted in ÍF 26, on the assumption that él can mean ‘battle’, just as hríð can mean both ‘storm’ and ‘(phase in a) battle’. Élherðir also appears in all mss of Hallm Hallkv 12/6V (Bergb 12) (but is emended in Skj B to oddherðir), and another possible case of él ‘battle’ arises in Ótt Hfl 8/1-4 (see Note). Overall, however, the evidence for él ‘battle’ is sparse, whereas él very frequently combines with a determinant to produce a battle-kenning; the examples include two involving the comparable élherðandi ‘storm-strengthener’ (LP: élherðandi).
herðir ‘hardener’
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herðir (noun m.): sword < oddherðir (noun m.)herðir (noun m.): sword < élherðir (noun m.): [storm-hardeners]
kennings
oddherðir‘the point-hardener ’
= WARRIOR
the point-hardener → WARRIOR
notes
[6] oddherðir ‘the point-hardener [WARRIOR]’: This cpd is clearly a warrior-kenning, but the mss differ over the determinant. (a) Oddherðir, the reading of the Fsk mss and 510, is adopted here, as in Skj B, Skald and ÍF 29. It follows a warrior-kenning pattern which has herðir as the base-word and a term for ‘battle’ or ‘weapon’ (usually ‘sword’) as the determinant (Meissner 295). (b) Élherðir ‘storm-hardener’ in all other mss is adopted in ÍF 26, on the assumption that él can mean ‘battle’, just as hríð can mean both ‘storm’ and ‘(phase in a) battle’. Élherðir also appears in all mss of Hallm Hallkv 12/6V (Bergb 12) (but is emended in Skj B to oddherðir), and another possible case of él ‘battle’ arises in Ótt Hfl 8/1-4 (see Note). Overall, however, the evidence for él ‘battle’ is sparse, whereas él very frequently combines with a determinant to produce a battle-kenning; the examples include two involving the comparable élherðandi ‘storm-strengthener’ (LP: élherðandi).
þar ‘’
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þar (adv.): there
styr ‘’
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styrr (noun m.; °dat. -): battle
fat ‘’
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1. feta (verb): follow, able to make
réð ‘’
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ráða (verb): advise, rule, interpret, decide
fǫr ‘’
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fǫr (noun f.): journey, fate; movement
fór ‘advanced’
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fara (verb; ferr, fór, fóru, farinn): go, travel
[6] fór: fǫr F, réð 325VIII 1, ‘styr’ 61, 54, Bb, fat FskBˣ, FskAˣ, þar 510
notes
[6] fór ‘advanced’: This acts as an auxiliary to inf. gerða ‘to enclose’ (see LP: fara 7). Fat ‘proceeded, made his way’, the reading of the Fsk mss, is also possible, and frequently occurs as an auxiliary (LP: feta). Stýr or styr, the reading of the ÓT mss, cannot be made to work with the rest of the helmingr, and is unmetrical.
gjǫrðar ‘’
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gjǫrð (noun f.): girdle
gjǫrðu ‘’
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1. gera (verb): do, make
gerði ‘’
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1. gera (verb): do, make
gerðr ‘’
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Gerðr (noun f.): Gerðr
gerðar ‘’
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2. gerða (verb): enclose
gerða ‘to enclose’
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2. gerða (verb): enclose
[6] gerða: gerðar 39, F, 325VIII 1, FskBˣ, gerðr J1ˣ, gerði 61, gjǫrðu 54, Bb, gjǫrðar 510
mǫrg ‘many’
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2. margr (adj.; °-an): many
notes
[7]: The line is reminiscent of Tindr Hákdr 9/3 þar vas lind* fyr landi ‘a shield [defence] was placed off the coast there’. De Vries (1964-7, I, 181) notes this parallel and another between Tindr Hákdr 4/4 and ÞKolb Eirdr 15/4 (see Note to that line), and suggests that the skalds Tindr and Þórðr were acquainted, their homes being quite close, at Hallkelsstaðir and Hítarnes respectively. The correspondences suggest that Þórðr is indebted to Tindr’s poem in praise of Eiríkr’s father (see also E. Olsen 1934, 264).
vas ‘was’
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2. vera (verb): be, is, was, were, are, am
notes
[7]: The line is reminiscent of Tindr Hákdr 9/3 þar vas lind* fyr landi ‘a shield [defence] was placed off the coast there’. De Vries (1964-7, I, 181) notes this parallel and another between Tindr Hákdr 4/4 and ÞKolb Eirdr 15/4 (see Note to that line), and suggests that the skalds Tindr and Þórðr were acquainted, their homes being quite close, at Hallkelsstaðir and Hítarnes respectively. The correspondences suggest that Þórðr is indebted to Tindr’s poem in praise of Eiríkr’s father (see also E. Olsen 1934, 264).
lind ‘a linden-shield’
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1. lind (noun f.): linden-shield, linden tree
notes
[7]: The line is reminiscent of Tindr Hákdr 9/3 þar vas lind* fyr landi ‘a shield [defence] was placed off the coast there’. De Vries (1964-7, I, 181) notes this parallel and another between Tindr Hákdr 4/4 and ÞKolb Eirdr 15/4 (see Note to that line), and suggests that the skalds Tindr and Þórðr were acquainted, their homes being quite close, at Hallkelsstaðir and Hítarnes respectively. The correspondences suggest that Þórðr is indebted to Tindr’s poem in praise of Eiríkr’s father (see also E. Olsen 1934, 264). — [7] lind ‘linden-shield’: The word refers primarily to the linden- or lime-tree and its wood, and therefore, though it most commonly denotes a ‘shield’, other wooden objects may be signified. ‘Spear’ is possible here (so Skj B, cf. Hkr 1893-1901, IV), while ÍF 26 and ÍF 29 suggest ‘ship’ via the sense ‘mast’.
lind ‘a linden-shield’
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1. lind (noun f.): linden-shield, linden tree
notes
[7]: The line is reminiscent of Tindr Hákdr 9/3 þar vas lind* fyr landi ‘a shield [defence] was placed off the coast there’. De Vries (1964-7, I, 181) notes this parallel and another between Tindr Hákdr 4/4 and ÞKolb Eirdr 15/4 (see Note to that line), and suggests that the skalds Tindr and Þórðr were acquainted, their homes being quite close, at Hallkelsstaðir and Hítarnes respectively. The correspondences suggest that Þórðr is indebted to Tindr’s poem in praise of Eiríkr’s father (see also E. Olsen 1934, 264). — [7] lind ‘linden-shield’: The word refers primarily to the linden- or lime-tree and its wood, and therefore, though it most commonly denotes a ‘shield’, other wooden objects may be signified. ‘Spear’ is possible here (so Skj B, cf. Hkr 1893-1901, IV), while ÍF 26 and ÍF 29 suggest ‘ship’ via the sense ‘mast’.
frá ‘’
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frá (prep.): from
notes
[7]: The line is reminiscent of Tindr Hákdr 9/3 þar vas lind* fyr landi ‘a shield [defence] was placed off the coast there’. De Vries (1964-7, I, 181) notes this parallel and another between Tindr Hákdr 4/4 and ÞKolb Eirdr 15/4 (see Note to that line), and suggests that the skalds Tindr and Þórðr were acquainted, their homes being quite close, at Hallkelsstaðir and Hítarnes respectively. The correspondences suggest that Þórðr is indebted to Tindr’s poem in praise of Eiríkr’s father (see also E. Olsen 1934, 264).
landi ‘the land’
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land (noun n.; °-s; *-): land
notes
[7]: The line is reminiscent of Tindr Hákdr 9/3 þar vas lind* fyr landi ‘a shield [defence] was placed off the coast there’. De Vries (1964-7, I, 181) notes this parallel and another between Tindr Hákdr 4/4 and ÞKolb Eirdr 15/4 (see Note to that line), and suggests that the skalds Tindr and Þórðr were acquainted, their homes being quite close, at Hallkelsstaðir and Hítarnes respectively. The correspondences suggest that Þórðr is indebted to Tindr’s poem in praise of Eiríkr’s father (see also E. Olsen 1934, 264).
lund ‘’
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lund (noun f.; °-ar; -ir/-ar(Rém 301³¹)): mind, way
land ‘’
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land (noun n.; °-s; *-): land
síns ‘of his’
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3. sinn (pron.; °f. sín, n. sitt): (refl. poss. pron.)
faðr ‘’
fǫður ‘father’
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faðir (noun m.): father
[8] fǫður: so 39, F, J1ˣ, 325VIII 1, 61, 54, Bb, FskAˣ, 510, om. Kˣ, J2ˣ, ‘faðr’ FskBˣ
randa ‘’
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rǫnd (noun f.; °dat. -/-u; rendr/randir): shield, shield-rim
rǫndum ‘’
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rǫnd (noun f.; °dat. -/-u; rendr/randir): shield, shield-rim
renndu ‘’
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2. renna (verb): run (strong)
rǫndu ‘with the shield’
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rǫnd (noun f.; °dat. -/-u; rendr/randir): shield, shield-rim
[8] rǫndu: renndu 39, F, randa 61, rǫndum FskAˣ
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Mjǫk lét margar snekkjur |
The shield-maple [WARRIOR] made very many warships, as well as merchant ships and longships, resound on the surf — the praise-liberal poetry of the skald grows —, when the point-hardener [WARRIOR] advanced at full strength from offshore to enclose the lands of his father with the shield; many a linden-shield was before the land.
In Hkr and ÓT, Hákon jarl and Eiríkr jarl send for men and ships from Þrœndalǫg (Trøndelag), and send messengers to Mœrr (Møre), Raumsdalr (Romsdalen), and north to Naumudalr (Namdalen) and Hálogaland (Hålogaland). In Fsk and Jvs, this stanza and st. 3 (and in Fsk st. 4/1-4) are cited together as part of these texts’ accounts of the battle of Hjǫrungavágr (Liavågen). The Jómsvíkingar, led by Búi digri ‘the Stout’ Vésetason, Vagn Ákason, and Sigvaldi Strút-Haraldsson, sail to Hjǫrungavágr, where they encounter Hákon, Eiríkr, and the three other sons of Hákon; each commands one of 180 well-equipped ships. In SnE (Skm), the stanza appears among others illustrating heiti for poetry.
[1-4]: Þórðr catalogues the various types of ship in Eiríkr’s fleet. Skeiðar ‘longships’ (l. 3) are often thought of as longer than snekkjur ‘warships’ (l. 1), though they are not necessarily so (see Note to ÞjóðA Magnfl 2/2, 3II; Jesch 2001a, 123-4). Knǫrru (m. acc. pl.) in l. 2 is translated ‘merchant ships’ since knǫrr can denote a cargo ship (e.g. Ótt Hfl 14/2), and the prose of Jvs appears to equate pl. knerrir with kaupskip ‘merchant ships’ (although Fsk refers to both knerrir and kaupskip). It can, however, be used in contexts of conflict (Vígf Hák 1/8; Þhorn Harkv 7/5 and Note; Jesch 2001a, 128-32).
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