Þjóð Yt 21I
Edith Marold (ed.) 2012, ‘Þjóðólfr ór Hvini, Ynglingatal 21’ 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. 46.
Ok ‘And’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
við ‘near’
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2. við (prep.): with, against
notes
[1] við vág ‘near the bay’: Vágr can designate the sea, a bay or other bodies of water (LP: vágr). This has been variously localized. Snorri (Context above) believes it to be Lake Vänern, and Finnur Jónsson concurs in Hkr 1893-1901, IV and Yng 1912. Noreen (1912a, 10-11) takes it to be the river Fyrisån or (Yt 1925) Lake Mälaren; Skre (2007b, 415) Oslofjorden; and Hkr 1991 the sea.
vág ‘the bay’
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vágr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-; -ar): sea, wave
notes
[1] við vág ‘near the bay’: Vágr can designate the sea, a bay or other bodies of water (LP: vágr). This has been variously localized. Snorri (Context above) believes it to be Lake Vänern, and Finnur Jónsson concurs in Hkr 1893-1901, IV and Yng 1912. Noreen (1912a, 10-11) takes it to be the river Fyrisån or (Yt 1925) Lake Mälaren; Skre (2007b, 415) Oslofjorden; and Hkr 1991 the sea.
†hinn ‘’
(not checked:)
2. inn (art.): the
[2] †hinn es viðjar† (‘hinn er viðiar’): ‘vidar’ F, hinn er er viðjar J1ˣ
notes
[2] †hinn es viðjar† ‘…’: Despite several suggestions as to the best way to complete this poorly transmitted (unmetrical) line, one must concur with Åkerlund (1939, 110), ÍF 26 and Wessén (Yng 1952, 73) that it is impossible to arrive at an acceptable solution.
es ‘’
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2. er (conj.): who, which, when
[2] †hinn es viðjar† (‘hinn er viðiar’): ‘vidar’ F, hinn er er viðjar J1ˣ
notes
[2] †hinn es viðjar† ‘…’: Despite several suggestions as to the best way to complete this poorly transmitted (unmetrical) line, one must concur with Åkerlund (1939, 110), ÍF 26 and Wessén (Yng 1952, 73) that it is impossible to arrive at an acceptable solution.
viðar ‘’
viðjar† ‘’
(not checked:)
2. viðja (verb)
[2] †hinn es viðjar† (‘hinn er viðiar’): ‘vidar’ F, hinn er er viðjar J1ˣ
notes
[2] †hinn es viðjar† ‘…’: Despite several suggestions as to the best way to complete this poorly transmitted (unmetrical) line, one must concur with Åkerlund (1939, 110), ÍF 26 and Wessén (Yng 1952, 73) that it is impossible to arrive at an acceptable solution.
hræ ‘the corpse’
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hræ (noun n.; °; -): corpse, carrion
konung ‘’
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konungr (noun m.; °dat. -i, -s; -ar): king
Óláf ‘’
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Óláfr (noun m.): Óláfr
konungs ‘’
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konungr (noun m.; °dat. -i, -s; -ar): king
Ôleifs ‘of Óláfr’
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Óláfr (noun m.): Óláfr
[3] Ôleifs: Óláf konung J1ˣ, R685ˣ, Óláfs konungs J2ˣ
hol ‘’
æl ‘’
ǫl ‘’
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ǫl (noun n.; °-s; -): ale < ǫlgylðir (noun m.)
hof ‘the temple’
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1. hóf (noun n.; °-s; -): court, temple < hofgylðir (noun m.)
[4] hofgylðir: ‘holgyldir’ F, ‘ælgylþis’ J1ˣ, ǫlgylðis J2ˣ, R685ˣ
kennings
hofgylðir‘the temple-wolf ’
= FIRE
the temple-wolf → FIRE
notes
[4] hofgylðir ‘the temple-wolf [FIRE]’: Both this and the J reading ǫlgylðir ‘wolf of the alder’ (J2ˣ) are satisfactory fire-kennings of the type ‘enemy of the tree or the house’ (Meissner 101) and can alliterate either with Ôleifr or with hræ ‘corpse’, and eds have varied in their preference. Hofgylðir is chosen in this edn since it is the reading of the main ms. Kˣ and since it alliterates with hræ in the first lift of the previous line. In the case of ǫlgylðir the lift would fall on the second syllable of a Type D1-line, which led Noreen (1912a, 11 and Yt 1925) and Åkerlund (1939, 110) to reverse hræ Óláfs to Óláfs hræ.
gylðir ‘’
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gylðir (noun m.): wolf
gylðis ‘’
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gylðir (noun m.): wolf
gylðir ‘wolf’
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gylðir (noun m.): wolf < hofgylðir (noun m.)gylðir (noun m.): wolf < ǫlgylðir (noun m.)
[4] hofgylðir: ‘holgyldir’ F, ‘ælgylþis’ J1ˣ, ǫlgylðis J2ˣ, R685ˣ
kennings
hofgylðir‘the temple-wolf ’
= FIRE
the temple-wolf → FIRE
notes
[4] hofgylðir ‘the temple-wolf [FIRE]’: Both this and the J reading ǫlgylðir ‘wolf of the alder’ (J2ˣ) are satisfactory fire-kennings of the type ‘enemy of the tree or the house’ (Meissner 101) and can alliterate either with Ôleifr or with hræ ‘corpse’, and eds have varied in their preference. Hofgylðir is chosen in this edn since it is the reading of the main ms. Kˣ and since it alliterates with hræ in the first lift of the previous line. In the case of ǫlgylðir the lift would fall on the second syllable of a Type D1-line, which led Noreen (1912a, 11 and Yt 1925) and Åkerlund (1939, 110) to reverse hræ Óláfs to Óláfs hræ.
svalg ‘swallowed’
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1. svelgja (verb): swallow
notes
[4] svalg ‘swallowed’: The verb here extends the metaphoric sense of the base-word of the fire-kenning, gylðir ‘wolf’; cf. Sturl Hákkv 8/1-4II.
Ok ‘And’
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3. ok (conj.): and, but; also
glóð ‘’
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glóð (noun f.): ember
glað ‘’
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glǫð (noun f.): [bright one, horse] < glaðfjalgr (adj.)
glóð ‘the ember’
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glóð (noun f.): ember < glóðfjalgr (adj.)
[5] glóðfjalgr: so J2ˣ, glaðfjalgr Kˣ, papp18ˣ, 521ˣ, F, R685ˣ, 761aˣ, ‘glodflalgr’ J1ˣ
kennings
glóðfjalgr sonr Fornjóts‘the ember-hot son of Fornjótr ’
= FIRE
the ember-hot son of Fornjótr → FIRE
flalgr ‘’
fjalgr ‘hot’
(not checked:)
-fjalgr (adj.): [hot] < glóðfjalgr (adj.)-fjalgr (adj.): [hot] < glaðfjalgr (adj.)
[5] glóðfjalgr: so J2ˣ, glaðfjalgr Kˣ, papp18ˣ, 521ˣ, F, R685ˣ, 761aˣ, ‘glodflalgr’ J1ˣ
kennings
glóðfjalgr sonr Fornjóts‘the ember-hot son of Fornjótr ’
= FIRE
the ember-hot son of Fornjótr → FIRE
gǫtvar ‘’
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gǫtvar (noun f.): [garments]
notes
[6] gǫrvar ‘the clothes’: The J transcripts have gǫtvar ‘clothes’, which is adopted in most previous eds (Yt 1925; Åkerlund 1939, 110; ÍF 26) as the more common word (see LP: gǫrvar, gǫtvar). This edn follows the main ms. Kˣ.
lesti ‘’
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lesta (verb): destroy, damage
sonar ‘’
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sonr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. syni; synir, acc. sonu, syni): son
sonr ‘son’
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sonr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. syni; synir, acc. sonu, syni): son
[7] sonr: so F, J1ˣ, J2ˣ, R685ˣ, sonar Kˣ, papp18ˣ, 521ˣ, 761aˣ
kennings
glóðfjalgr sonr Fornjóts‘the ember-hot son of Fornjótr ’
= FIRE
the ember-hot son of Fornjótr → FIRE
notes
[7] sonr Fornjóts ‘the son of Fornjótr <giant> [FIRE]’: Fornjótr’s sons Ægir, Logi and Kári personify the sea, fire and wind, respectively; see Sveinn Norðrdr 2/2III and Note. The etymology of the name is controversial; cf. Hellquist (1903).
fjǫrnjóts ‘’
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fjǫrnjótr (noun m.)
Fornjóts ‘of Fornjótr’
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Fornjótr (noun m.): Fornjótr
[7] Fornjóts: so papp18ˣ, 521ˣ, F, J1ˣ, J2ˣ, R685ˣ, 761aˣ, ‘fiorniotz’ Kˣ
kennings
glóðfjalgr sonr Fornjóts‘the ember-hot son of Fornjótr ’
= FIRE
the ember-hot son of Fornjótr → FIRE
notes
[7] sonr Fornjóts ‘the son of Fornjótr <giant> [FIRE]’: Fornjótr’s sons Ægir, Logi and Kári personify the sea, fire and wind, respectively; see Sveinn Norðrdr 2/2III and Note. The etymology of the name is controversial; cf. Hellquist (1903).
af ‘from’
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af (prep.): from
Svía ‘of the Swedes’
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Svíar (noun m.): Swedes
svá ‘’
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svá (adv.): so, thus
jǫfri ‘the ruler’
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jǫfurr (noun m.): ruler, prince
Sá ‘That’
[9] Sá: so F, J1ˣ, R685ˣ, svá Kˣ, papp18ˣ, 521ˣ, J2ˣ, 761aˣ
kennings
Sá áttkonr kyns lofða‘That descendant of the kindred of rulers ’
= KING
the kindred of rulers → KINGS
That descendant of KINGS → KING
notes
[9, 11] sá áttkonr kyns lofða ‘that descendant of the kindred of rulers [KINGS > KING]’: So most eds. Lofða has also been taken as gen. sg. of Lofði, the name of a legendary king (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B).
konar ‘’
(not checked:)
konr (noun m.; °-ar): kind, descendant < 1. átt (noun f.): [inheritance]
kennings
Sá áttkonr kyns lofða‘That descendant of the kindred of rulers ’
= KING
the kindred of rulers → KINGS
That descendant of KINGS → KING
notes
[9, 11] sá áttkonr kyns lofða ‘that descendant of the kindred of rulers [KINGS > KING]’: So most eds. Lofða has also been taken as gen. sg. of Lofði, the name of a legendary king (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B).
at ‘’
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3. at (prep.): at, to
konr ‘descendant’
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konr (noun m.; °-ar): kind, descendant < áttkonr (noun m.): [descendant]
[9] ‑konr: ‑konar J1ˣ, R685ˣ
kennings
Sá áttkonr kyns lofða‘That descendant of the kindred of rulers ’
= KING
the kindred of rulers → KINGS
That descendant of KINGS → KING
notes
[9, 11] sá áttkonr kyns lofða ‘that descendant of the kindred of rulers [KINGS > KING]’: So most eds. Lofða has also been taken as gen. sg. of Lofði, the name of a legendary king (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B).
notes
[10, 12] hvarf frá Uppsǫlum fyr lǫngu ‘disappeared from Uppsala long ago’: This could mean either that Óláfr died (Wadstein 1891, 377-9) or that he went away (Schück 1905-10, 49; Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B; Yt 1925). Åkerlund (1939, 70-2) argues persuasively for the latter.
fofða ‘’
Uppsǫlum ‘Uppsala’
(not checked:)
Uppsalir (noun m.): [Uppsala]
notes
[10, 12] hvarf frá Uppsǫlum fyr lǫngu ‘disappeared from Uppsala long ago’: This could mean either that Óláfr died (Wadstein 1891, 377-9) or that he went away (Schück 1905-10, 49; Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B; Yt 1925). Åkerlund (1939, 70-2) argues persuasively for the latter.
kennings
Sá áttkonr kyns lofða‘That descendant of the kindred of rulers ’
= KING
the kindred of rulers → KINGS
That descendant of KINGS → KING
notes
[9, 11] sá áttkonr kyns lofða ‘that descendant of the kindred of rulers [KINGS > KING]’: So most eds. Lofða has also been taken as gen. sg. of Lofði, the name of a legendary king (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B).
kennings
Sá áttkonr kyns lofða‘That descendant of the kindred of rulers ’
= KING
the kindred of rulers → KINGS
That descendant of KINGS → KING
notes
[9, 11] sá áttkonr kyns lofða ‘that descendant of the kindred of rulers [KINGS > KING]’: So most eds. Lofða has also been taken as gen. sg. of Lofði, the name of a legendary king (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B).
kyns ‘of the kindred’
(not checked:)
1. kyn (noun n.; °-s; -): kin
kennings
Sá áttkonr kyns lofða‘That descendant of the kindred of rulers ’
= KING
the kindred of rulers → KINGS
That descendant of KINGS → KING
notes
[9, 11] sá áttkonr kyns lofða ‘that descendant of the kindred of rulers [KINGS > KING]’: So most eds. Lofða has also been taken as gen. sg. of Lofði, the name of a legendary king (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B).
kyns ‘of the kindred’
(not checked:)
1. kyn (noun n.; °-s; -): kin
kennings
Sá áttkonr kyns lofða‘That descendant of the kindred of rulers ’
= KING
the kindred of rulers → KINGS
That descendant of KINGS → KING
notes
[9, 11] sá áttkonr kyns lofða ‘that descendant of the kindred of rulers [KINGS > KING]’: So most eds. Lofða has also been taken as gen. sg. of Lofði, the name of a legendary king (Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B).
fyr ‘ago’
(not checked:)
fyr (prep.): for, over, because of, etc.
notes
[10, 12] hvarf frá Uppsǫlum fyr lǫngu ‘disappeared from Uppsala long ago’: This could mean either that Óláfr died (Wadstein 1891, 377-9) or that he went away (Schück 1905-10, 49; Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B; Yt 1925). Åkerlund (1939, 70-2) argues persuasively for the latter.
lǫngu ‘long’
(not checked:)
langr (adj.; °compar. lengri, superl. lengstr): long
notes
[10, 12] hvarf frá Uppsǫlum fyr lǫngu ‘disappeared from Uppsala long ago’: This could mean either that Óláfr died (Wadstein 1891, 377-9) or that he went away (Schück 1905-10, 49; Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B; Yt 1925). Åkerlund (1939, 70-2) argues persuasively for the latter.
hvarf ‘disappeared’
(not checked:)
1. hverfa (verb): turn, disappear
notes
[10, 12] hvarf frá Uppsǫlum fyr lǫngu ‘disappeared from Uppsala long ago’: This could mean either that Óláfr died (Wadstein 1891, 377-9) or that he went away (Schück 1905-10, 49; Hkr 1893-1901, IV; Skj B; Yt 1925). Åkerlund (1939, 70-2) argues persuasively for the latter.
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
After the death of Ingjaldr illráði, his son Óláfr flees to Vermaland (Värmland) and begins clearing land. Great numbers of Swedes join him, putting pressure on the land, and when harvests fail, this is blamed on Óláfr, who is not given to performing sacrifices. He is burned alive in his house by Vænir (Lake Vänern) by his own people in sacrifice to Óðinn.
As father to the Norwegian Yngling king Hálfdan hvítbeinn ‘White-bone’, Óláfr trételgja ‘Wood-cutter’ ushers in the transition from the Swedish to the Norwegian Ynglingar. His nickname trételgja also appears in HN (2003, 78): Eius filius Olauus cognomento Tretelgia … ‘His son Óláfr nicknamed Tretelgia …’. According to Snorri (Context above) and Saxo (Saxo 2005, I, 7, 11, 7, p. 502-3) he ruled in Värmland, to where he had emigrated after the death of his father. Värmland was presumably regarded as part of Sweden by Þjóðólfr, who refers to Óláfr trételgja as a ruler of the Swedes (jǫfri Svía, l. 8), and also in HN (2003, 78), which reports that Óláfr died in Sweden. Snorri’s interpretation of Óláfr’s cremation as a sacrifice to Óðinn and as a brenna, in which a building is set on fire so that its occupants burn to death, is not matched in the other prose sources.
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