Þorf Lv 1I
Diana Whaley (ed.) 2012, ‘Þorfinnr munnr, Lausavísur 1’ 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. 845.
Geisli ‘The sunbeam’
(not checked:)
geisli (noun m.): beam of light
[1] Geisli stendr: ‘[...]tendr’ NRA52
kennings
Geisli jarðar Gunnar‘The sunbeam of the land of Gunnr ’
= SWORD
the land of Gunnr → SHIELD
The sunbeam of the SHIELD → SWORD
til ‘into’
(not checked:)
til (prep.): to
grundar ‘the ground’
(not checked:)
grund (noun f.): earth, land
kennings
grundar munna;‘the ground of jaws; ’
= HEAD
the ground of jaws; → HEAD
kennings
Geisli jarðar Gunnar‘The sunbeam of the land of Gunnr ’
= SWORD
the land of Gunnr → SHIELD
The sunbeam of the SHIELD → SWORD
kennings
Geisli jarðar Gunnar‘The sunbeam of the land of Gunnr ’
= SWORD
the land of Gunnr → SHIELD
The sunbeam of the SHIELD → SWORD
jarðar ‘of the land’
(not checked:)
jǫrð (noun f.; °jarðar, dat. -u; jarðir/jarðar(DN I (1367) 304)): ground, earth
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52
kennings
Geisli jarðar Gunnar‘The sunbeam of the land of Gunnr ’
= SWORD
the land of Gunnr → SHIELD
The sunbeam of the SHIELD → SWORD
jarðar ‘of the land’
(not checked:)
jǫrð (noun f.; °jarðar, dat. -u; jarðir/jarðar(DN I (1367) 304)): ground, earth
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52
kennings
Geisli jarðar Gunnar‘The sunbeam of the land of Gunnr ’
= SWORD
the land of Gunnr → SHIELD
The sunbeam of the SHIELD → SWORD
munna ‘of jaws’
(not checked:)
munnr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i; -ar): mouth
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52
kennings
grundar munna;‘the ground of jaws; ’
= HEAD
the ground of jaws; → HEAD
ofan ‘down’
(not checked:)
ofan (adv.): down
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52
notes
[3] ofan ‘down’: In the legend, Sigurðr fights the dragon from below.
fellr ‘flows’
(not checked:)
falla (verb): fall
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52 [3] fellr: so DG8, fell Flat
blóð ‘blood’
(not checked:)
blóð (noun n.; °-s): blood
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52
á ‘onto’
(not checked:)
3. á (prep.): on, at
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52
báðar ‘both’
(not checked:)
báðir (pron.; °gen. beggja (báðra), nom./acc. n. bǽði): both
[2, 3] jarðar munna ofan fellr blóð á báðar: ‘[...]’ NRA52 [3] báðar: báða DG8
kennings
báðar benskeiðr,‘both wound-ships, ’
= SWORDS
both wound-ships, → SWORDS
ben ‘wound’
(not checked:)
1. ben (noun f.; °-jar, dat. -; -jar , gen. -a(var. EiðKrC 402¹³: AM 77 4° D)): wound < benskeið (noun f.): [wound-ships]
[4] benskeiðr: ‘[...]seiðr’ NRA52, benseiðr DG8
kennings
báðar benskeiðr,‘both wound-ships, ’
= SWORDS
both wound-ships, → SWORDS
skeiðr ‘ships’
(not checked:)
1. skeið (noun f.; °-ar; -r/-ar/-ir): ship < benskeið (noun f.): [wound-ships]
[4] benskeiðr: ‘[...]seiðr’ NRA52, benseiðr DG8
kennings
báðar benskeiðr,‘both wound-ships, ’
= SWORDS
both wound-ships, → SWORDS
Hristisk ‘quivers’
(not checked:)
hrista (verb): shake
hjǫrr ‘The sword’
(not checked:)
hjǫrr (noun m.): sword
[5, 6, 7] hjǫrr í brjósti hringi grœnna lyngva en: ‘[...]’ NRA52
í ‘in’
(not checked:)
í (prep.): in, into
[5, 6, 7] hjǫrr í brjósti hringi grœnna lyngva en: ‘[...]’ NRA52
brjósti ‘the breast’
(not checked:)
brjóst (noun n.; °-s; -): breast, chest
[5, 6, 7] hjǫrr í brjósti hringi grœnna lyngva en: ‘[...]’ NRA52
hringi ‘of the ring’
(not checked:)
1. hringr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -; -ar): ring; sword
[5, 6, 7] hjǫrr í brjósti hringi grœnna lyngva en: ‘[...]’ NRA52
kennings
hringi grœnna lyngva,‘of the ring of green heathers, ’
= SERPENT
the ring of green heathers, → SERPENT
grœnna ‘of green’
(not checked:)
2. grœnn (adj.; °superl. grǿnastr/grǿnstr): green
[5, 6, 7] hjǫrr í brjósti hringi grœnna lyngva en: ‘[...]’ NRA52
kennings
hringi grœnna lyngva,‘of the ring of green heathers, ’
= SERPENT
the ring of green heathers, → SERPENT
lyngva ‘heathers’
(not checked:)
lyng (noun n.; °dat. -vi/-i; -): heather
[5, 6, 7] hjǫrr í brjósti hringi grœnna lyngva en: ‘[...]’ NRA52
kennings
hringi grœnna lyngva,‘of the ring of green heathers, ’
= SERPENT
the ring of green heathers, → SERPENT
notes
[6] lyngva ‘of heathers’: This word (nom. sg. lyng n.) occurs quite frequently in kennings for ‘snake, serpent’, and is perhaps especially appropriate here, since in Fáfn 21/2, 28/6 and 29/2 (NK 184-5) it is í lyngvi that the dragon Fáfnir lies. Lyng applies to the plant Erica ‘heather’ and similar moorland species, and hence also to land overgrown with these plants.
en ‘and’
(not checked:)
2. en (conj.): but, and
[5, 6, 7] hjǫrr í brjósti hringi grœnna lyngva en: ‘[...]’ NRA52
þorinn ‘daring’
(not checked:)
þora (verb): dare < folkþorinn (adj.)
fylkir ‘leader’
(not checked:)
fylkir (noun m.): leader
við ‘with’
(not checked:)
2. við (prep.): with, against
steik ‘roasting’
(not checked:)
steik (noun f.; °-ar; -ar): steak, meat, roasting
notes
[8] steik ‘roasting’: This seems to be an allusion to the hero Sigurðr roasting the heart of the slain dragon (cf. Fáfn 32).
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
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Geisli stendr til grundar |
The sunbeam of the land of Gunnr <valkyrie> [SHIELD > SWORD] stabs into the ground of jaws [HEAD]; blood flows down onto both wound-ships [SWORDS], and the prince grows angry. The sword quivers in the breast of the ring of green heathers [SERPENT], and the battle-daring leader proceeds to amuse himself with roasting.
Seated in his high-seat with Þorfinnr (‘Þormor’ presumably for Þormóðr in ÓHLeg) in front of him, King Óláfr Haraldsson tells the skald to compose about the scene on the wall-hangings. Þorfinnr looks and, seeing Sigurðr’s slaying of the dragon depicted there, speaks this stanza.
The stanza describes the slaying of the dragon Fáfnir, guardian of the Rhine-gold, by the legendary Vǫlsung hero Sigurðr Fáfnisbani ‘Slayer of Fáfnir’, which is narrated in Fáfn, SnE 1998, I, 46 and Vǫlsunga saga (Vǫls 1965, 30-2). References to the same story are intercalated with praise of King Haraldr Sigurðarson in the C11th Illugi Har 2II. — [1-4]: (a) The construal adopted here follows that of Kock (NN §781; Skald). It is slightly forced, especially in its reference to báðar benskeiðr ‘both wound-ships [SWORDS]’, since ‘ship’ as a base-word of a sword-kenning is unparalleled, and the reference to two swords corresponds to nothing in the legend of Sigurðr. ‘Both’ would make sense if referred to the two edges of a sword-blade, and Kock seems to imply that by referring to grammatically pl. terms for ‘sword’ such as þremjar ‘cutters’ (Þul Sverða 11/1III, and see Note; also LP: þremjar), but benskeiðr ‘wound-ships’ would seem more likely to denote whole swords. (b) The analysis by Finnur Jónsson (Skj B) is also problematic, however. He emends jarðar to jarðir in l. 2, and ben- to baugs- and s(k)eiðr to seiðs in l. 4. This gives munna seiðs grundar ‘jaws of the fish of the ground [SNAKE]’ and (báðar) jarðir baugs ‘(both) lands of the ring [ARMS]’, which fit well in context, but at the price not only of heavy emendation but also of a highly counter-intuitive word order, in which seiðs and jarðir are detached from their clauses.
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