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Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Anon Líkn 5^VII

George S. Tate (ed.) 2007, ‘Anonymous Poems, Líknarbraut 5’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 234-5.

Anonymous Poems Líknarbraut

Dreifðu ‘sprinkle’

(not checked:)
dreifa (verb; °-fð-): sprinkle, separate

notes

[1] dreifðu ‘sprinkle you’: One of only two instances in the poem (cf. látattu 6/5) of B’s several suffixed 2nd pers. pronouns necessary for a six-syllable l.

láðs ‘of land’

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2. láð (noun n.): earth, land

kennings

Lífstýrir láðs ok lofða,
‘life-ruler of land and men’
= God
Ruler of land and the life of men, → God

ok ‘and’

(not checked:)
3. ok (conj.): and, but; also

kennings

Lífstýrir láðs ok lofða,
‘life-ruler of land and men’
= God
Ruler of land and the life of men, → God

lofða ‘of men’

(not checked:)
lofði (noun m.; °; -ar): man

kennings

Lífstýrir láðs ok lofða,
‘life-ruler of land and men’
= God
Ruler of land and the life of men, → God

líf ‘the life’

(not checked:)
líf (noun n.; °-s; -): life < lífstýrir (noun m.)

kennings

Lífstýrir láðs ok lofða,
‘life-ruler of land and men’
= God
Ruler of land and the life of men, → God

stýrir ‘Ruler’

(not checked:)
stýrir (noun m.): ruler, controller < lífstýrir (noun m.)

kennings

Lífstýrir láðs ok lofða,
‘life-ruler of land and men’
= God
Ruler of land and the life of men, → God

mér ‘my’

(not checked:)
ek (pron.; °mín, dat. mér, acc. mik): I, me

dýru ‘with precious’

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dýrr (adj.; °compar. -ri/-ari, superl. -str/-astr): precious

leyfðar ‘in praise’

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leyfð (noun f.): praise

kendr ‘acknowledged’

(not checked:)
kenna (verb): know, teach

[3] kendr: ‘[...]dr’ B, ‘[...]ndr’ 399a‑bˣ

notes

[3] kendr ‘acknowledged, known’: Restoration of ‘ken’ based upon Jón Sigurðsson’s note in 399a-bˣ, supported by an ascender of possible ‘k’ and an ‘n’ that was visible to Jón and to Rydberg 1907, 12; Jón’s suggestion has been accepted by all eds.

í ‘’

(not checked:)
í (prep.): in, into

lyndis ‘mind’s’

(not checked:)
lyndi (noun n.; °-s): mind

kennings

lyndis láð
‘mind’s land ’
= BREAST
mind’s land → BREAST

notes

[3-4] lyndis láð ‘mind’s land [BREAST]’: According to Guðrún Nordal 2001, 258, ‘the poetic imagery that supposes that the mind resides in the chest is dominant in chest-kennings in the thirteenth century’, but already we find vilja byrgi ‘enclosure of desire’ in Þjóð Yt 4/2^I (C10th); cf. rann hugar ‘house of the mind’ 7/4 and tún hyggju ‘field of the mind’ 40/3.

láð ‘land’

(not checked:)
2. láð (noun n.): earth, land

kennings

lyndis láð
‘mind’s land ’
= BREAST
mind’s land → BREAST

notes

[3-4] lyndis láð ‘mind’s land [BREAST]’: According to Guðrún Nordal 2001, 258, ‘the poetic imagery that supposes that the mind resides in the chest is dominant in chest-kennings in the thirteenth century’, but already we find vilja byrgi ‘enclosure of desire’ in Þjóð Yt 4/2^I (C10th); cf. rann hugar ‘house of the mind’ 7/4 and tún hyggju ‘field of the mind’ 40/3.

himnesku ‘heavenly’

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himneskr (adj.; °-an): heavenly

sáði ‘seed’

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2. sáð (noun n.; °-s; -): seed

ár ‘an abundance’

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2. ár (noun n.; °-s; -): year, year’s abundance

notes

[5] ár ‘(year’s) abundance’: Cf. Lat. annona ‘year’s yield’. Skj B (cf. LP) and Kock and Meissner 1931, II, 10 construe ár as adv. ‘soon, quickly’, giving the sense svát ár færak sanna ávöxt ‘so that I may bring forth early (i.e. promptly) true fruit’. Though this is possible, the frequency of ár as ‘year’ or ‘year’s abundance’ in the poem, especially in kennings for God or Christ (10/2, 17/1, 20/5, 46/3, 47/3), together with the sowing imagery of the st., argues against it. A similar joint occurrence of ár and ávöxtr as synonyms is found in the ONorw. homily on the parable of the sower: þa fec hann þar mikit ár ok margfaldan á-vöxt ‘then he received a great abundance and manifold yield’ (HómNo, 70).

svá ‘so’

(not checked:)
svá (adv.): so, thus

at ‘that’

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4. at (conj.): that

ávöxt ‘fruit’

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ávǫxtr (noun m.; °·vaxtar (auoxtar DN IV (1342) 223¹), dat. ·vexti; acc. ·vǫxtu): fruit; offspring

færak ‘I may bring forth’

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2. fœra (verb): bring

alls ‘of all’

(not checked:)
allr (adj.): all

kennings

kannandi alls,
‘tester of all, ’
= God
tester of all, → God

notes

[6] kannandi alls ‘tester of all [= God]’: On the idea of God as tester, cf. reynir munka ‘tester of monks’ Anon Hafg 1^IV, possibly the earliest of all ON Christian kennings; see Lange 1958a, 59 on the surprise the kenning must have evoked, even though reynir had a long history in pagan kennings.

kannandi ‘tester’

(not checked:)
kannandi (noun m.): [tester]

kennings

kannandi alls,
‘tester of all, ’
= God
tester of all, → God

notes

[6] kannandi alls ‘tester of all [= God]’: On the idea of God as tester, cf. reynir munka ‘tester of monks’ Anon Hafg 1^IV, possibly the earliest of all ON Christian kennings; see Lange 1958a, 59 on the surprise the kenning must have evoked, even though reynir had a long history in pagan kennings.

sannan ‘true’

(not checked:)
2. sannr (adj.; °-an; compar. -ari, superl. -astr): true

elsku ‘for love’

(not checked:)
1. elska (noun f.; °-u): love

[7] elsku: so 399a‑bˣ, ‘elsk[...]’ B

notes

[7] elsku kuðr ‘renowned for love’: Restoration of ‘u’ based upon 399a-bˣ and occurrence of elsku kuðr in Has 16/5, one of the chief models for Líkn; cf. elsku kunnr, Arngr Gd 32/2^IV.

kuðr ‘renowned’

(not checked:)
kunnr (adj.): known (?)

notes

[7] elsku kuðr ‘renowned for love’: Restoration of ‘u’ based upon 399a-bˣ and occurrence of elsku kuðr in Has 16/5, one of the chief models for Líkn; cf. elsku kunnr, Arngr Gd 32/2^IV.

af ‘from’

(not checked:)
af (prep.): from

yðru ‘your’

(not checked:)
yðvarr (pron.; °f. yður; pl. yðrir): your

ó ‘un’

(not checked:)
ó- ((prefix)): un- < óþornaðr (adj.)

þornuðu ‘withered’

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þorna (verb): [withered, get dry] < óþornaðr (adj.)

korni ‘seed’

(not checked:)
korni (noun m.): [seed]

[8] korni: ‘ko[...]i’ B, ‘korṇẹ’ 399a‑bˣ

notes

[8] korni ‘seed’: Restoration based upon 399a-bˣ and aðalhending.

Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses

verse
prose

The st.’s dominant image, that of God as sower whose seed is his word, depends upon such passages as I Cor. III.7-9 (God as husbandman who gives increase, cf. ár below) and the parable of the sower in Mark IV.3-20. See the OIcel. homily on ember-days (HómÍsl 1993, 16v-17r; HómÍsl 1872, 36): sva scolom vér nu haʟda þa. at vér náem andlego áre í hiortom rom ... Þa keomr orþa sáþ hans i hugscoz iorþ óra ‘thus we should now hold them [i.e. ember-days] that we might receive a spiritual abundance in our hearts ... Then the seed of his word will come into our mind’s ground’ (cf. lyndis láð below). With reference to this st., Paasche 1914a, 127, who noted this homiletic analogue, has also assembled relevant appellatives of Christ from church Lat.: e.g. verus et summus agricola ‘true and supreme husbandman’, sator universi ‘sower of the universe’, auctor spritualium fructum ‘creator of spiritual fruits’; cf. liturgical agricola caelestis ‘celestial husbandman’ (Manz 1941, 60, no. 34).

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