ÞjóðA Magnfl 19^II

Háðisk heilli góðu
hildr, sem Magnús vildi;
selr of sigr at þylja
sóknstœrir mér fœri.
Brand rauð buðlungr Þrœnda;
berr íðula síðan
hann ept hervíg þrennin
hæra skjǫld at gjǫldum.

Hildr háðisk góðu heilli, sem Magnús vildi; {sóknstœrir} selr mér fœri at þylja of sigr. {Buðlungr Þrœnda} rauð brand; ept þrennin hervíg berr hann hæra skjǫld íðula síðan at gjǫldum.

The battle was waged with good fortune, as Magnús wished; {the onslaught-sweller} [WARRIOR] gives me opportunity to recite about victory. {The prince of the Þrœndir} [NORWEGIAN KING = Magnús] reddened the sword; after threefold pitched battle he carries the higher shield ever afterwards in repayment.

Mss: Kˣ(519r-v), 39(18ra), F(41va), E(9v), J2ˣ(256r) (Hkr); H(13r), Hr(11rb) (H-Hr)

Readings: [4] ‑stœrir mér fœri: ‑sterkr framarr merkjum H, ‘‑sterkum iofr merkívm’ Hr;    mér: so 39, F, E, J2ˣ, om. Kˣ    [6] berr: ‘bǫrr’ J2ˣ, bar H, Hr    [7] þrennin: þrennan H    [8] hæra: hǫggvinn E, J2ˣ;    at: á Hr

Editions: Skj AI, 367-8, Skj BI, 338, Skald I, 170, NN §806; Hkr 1893-1901, III, 70, IV, 207-8, ÍF 28, 64-5, Hkr 1991, 599 (Mgóð ch. 35), F 1871, 191, E 1916, 32; Fms 6, 91 (Mgóð ch. 41), Fms 12, 140.

Context: The sagas summarise Magnús’s successes in Denmark, and Okík Magn 1 and Arn Hryn 14 are quoted. The present st. follows the statement that Magnús fought three battles against Sveinn Úlfsson (only Hkr specifies three).

Notes: [All]: In H-Hr the st. is introduced, Sem hér segir ‘As it says here’ and Þjóðólfr is not named, so the implication would be that this is by Arnórr or else anonymous. — [3, 4] selr mér fœri at þylja of sigr ‘gives me opportunity to recite about victory’: This is akin to Arnórr’s comment on Magnús providing him yrkisefni ‘material for composition’ (Arn Hryn 14). Such statements are not common, to judge from Kreutzer 1977, 196. The verb þylja is a derivative of þulr ‘sage’ (cf. þula ‘metrical catalogue’), but it probably functions as a generic term for performing poetry here (see Kreutzer 1977, 155-6). — [6, 8] berr hæra skjǫld ‘carries the higher shield’: The context suggests the sense ‘wins victory’ (so LP: skjǫldr); there is no evidence that this existed as a fixed idiom. — [6] íðula ‘ever’: (a) This is taken here to qualify berr ‘carries’ (l. 6). (b) Finnur Jónsson (Hkr 1893-1901 and Skj B) takes it instead with rauð ‘reddened’ (l. 5), hence ‘repeatedly reddened’, so assuming interruption of l. 6, but Kock includes this in his list of erroneously construed adverbials in NN §806. — [8] at gjǫldum ‘in repayment’: This seems the likeliest sense: Magnús prevails as a reward for his courage and effort. To take it with rauð in l. 5 and in the sense ‘in retribution’ seems less likely in the absence of any mention of a specific cause to punish his enemies.

References

1. Bibliography
2. Skj B = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15b. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. B: Rettet tekst. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1973. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
3. Fms = Sveinbjörn Egilsson et al., eds. 1825-37. Fornmanna sögur eptir gömlum handritum útgefnar að tilhlutun hins norræna fornfræða fèlags. 12 vols. Copenhagen: Popp.
4. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
5. NN = Kock, Ernst Albin. 1923-44. Notationes Norrœnæ: Anteckningar till Edda och skaldediktning. Lunds Universitets årsskrift new ser. 1. 28 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
6. 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.
7. Kreutzer, Gert. 1977. Die Dichtungslehre der Skalden: Poetologische Terminologie und Autorenkommentare als Grundlage einer Gattungspoetik. 2nd edn. Hochschulschriften: Literaturwissenschaft 1. Meisenheim am Glan: Hain.
8. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
9. Hkr 1893-1901 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1893-1901. Heimskringla: Nóregs konunga sǫgur af Snorri Sturluson. 4 vols. SUGNL 23. Copenhagen: Møller.
10. Hkr 1991 = Bergljót S. Kristjánsdóttir et al., eds. 1991. Heimskringla. 3 vols. Reykjavík: Mál og menning.
11. F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
12. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
13. Internal references
14. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Heimskringla’ 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=4> (accessed 20 April 2024)
15. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Hulda-Hrokkinskinna’ 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=84> (accessed 20 April 2024)
16. Diana Whaley (ed.) 2009, ‘Arnórr jarlaskáld Þórðarson, Hrynhenda, Magnússdrápa 14’ 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, pp. 200-1.
17. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Oddr kíkinaskáld, Poem about Magnús góði 1’ 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. 32.