FriðÞ Lv 2^VIII (Frið 2)

Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2017, ‘Friðþjófs saga ins frœkna 2 (Friðþjófr Þorsteinsson, Lausavísur 2)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 195.

introduction

With Frið 2 begins a long series of stanzas describing Friðþjófr’s perilous, stormy voyage on his ship Elliði from Norway to the Orkney islands, interlaced with reminiscences of his courtship of Ingibjǫrg. The stanzas, most of which are put in the mouth of Friðþjófr himself, alternate descriptions of the raging storm he and his men encounter with yearning for the women back home. They employ some common conventions of skaldic poetry, including the contrast between the tough man’s life at sea and soft indoor amusements with women at home.

text and translation

notes and context

Helgi and Hálfdan punish Friðþjófr for his dalliance with their sister and his desecration of Baldrshagi (see Note to l. 4 below) by sending him to collect tribute from the Orkney islands, ostensibly so they can pay Ingibjǫrg’s dowry to King Hringr, but actually so they can have Friðþjófr killed. As he sails out from Sognefjorden, Friðþjófr and his men encounter a storm caused by two witches (seiðkonur) in the pay of the brothers. Friðþjófr then speaks this stanza.

This stanza has no counterpart in the A redaction mss, but it is similar to Friðþjófs rímur III, 3/3-5/1 (Frið 1893, 108; Finnur Jónsson 1905-22, I, 426). The metre of Frið 2 is the variant form of dróttkvætt that Snorri Sturluson calls munnvǫrp ‘mouth-throwings’ (SnE 2007, 28-9), in which odd lines have no rhyme, and even lines have skothending. Frið 2 has several metrical irregularities; line 2 begins with an unstressed element (cf. NN §§2338Fa, 2385B, 1470), which Finnur Jónsson (Skj B) regularises by emendation, while l. 4 has no hending. Falk (1890, 71) points out other metrically irregular lines in Frið stanzas (6/4, 14/8, 28/4, 29/4 and 32/6) that contain the cpd Baldrshagi and/or the adj. miðr. Brúðir (l. 6) violates Craigie’s Law. — [6]: This line is too short in several mss, and was also so in papp17ˣ, where a later hand has added the adj. fagran ‘fair, beautiful’. Most eds have preferred the adj. góðan ‘happy, good’, adopted from 109aˣ and found in several other B redaction mss.

readings

• [1] Snyðja: so 109a IIˣ, 1006ˣ, sindra papp17ˣ, ‘sinda’ 173ˣ
• [5] at: á 173ˣ
• [6] góðan: so 109a IIˣ, om. with fagran inserted above the line in a later hand papp17ˣ, om. 1006ˣ, 173ˣ
• [7] þær: þar 1006ˣ, 173ˣ
• [7] er: so all others, ‘ed’ papp17ˣ
• [8] þótt: enn þótt 109a IIˣ
• [8] fylli (‘fille’): felli 1006ˣ, 173ˣ

sources

Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.

• Holm papp 17 4°x (papp17x) — 358v/9 - 358v/11

  sindra lét ek ór Sogni
  (en snótir mjaðar neyttu)
  bræddan byrjar sóta
  (í Baldrshaga miðjum).
  Nú tekr hregg at herða;
  hafi dag brúðir ,
  þær †ed† oss vilja unna,
  þótt Elliða fylli.

  Sindra liet eg vr sögne, | Enn snoter. miadar. neyttu, Bræddan byriar sota, j balldurz haga midium, nu | tekur hregg ad herda, hafe dag bruder ⸌fagran⸍ [added in later hand] þær ed oss vilia, vnna, þott ellida fille, |

  (JG)

  images
Close

• AM 109 a II 8°x (109a IIx) — 146v - 146v

  Snyðja lét ek ór Sogni
  (en snótir mjaðar neyttu)
  bræddan byrjar sóta
  (í Baldrshaga miðjum).
  Nú tekr hregg at herða;
  hafi dag brúðir góðan,
  þær er oss vilja unna,
  enn þótt Elliða fylli.

  images
Close

• GKS 1006 folx (1006x) — 582/12 - 582/15

  Snyðja lét ek ór Sogni
  (en snótir mjaðar neyttu)
  bræddan byrjar sóta
  (í Baldrshaga miðjum).
  Nú tekr hregg at herða;
  hafi dag brúðir ,
  þar er oss vilja unna,
  þótt Elliða felli.

  Snidia liet eg ur Sogni | enn Snoter miadar neittu Bræddan biriar Sota j Balldurz | haga midium nu tekur hregg at herda hafi dag Bruder | þar er oss vilia unna þott Ellida felli.

  (JG)

  images
Close

• AM 173 folx (173x) — 83v/27 - 84r/1

  †sinda† lét ek ór Sogni
  (en snótir mjaðar neyttu)
  bræddan byrjar sóta
  (í Baldrshaga miðjum).
  Nú tekr hregg á herða;
  hafi dag brúðir ,
  þar er oss vilja unna,
  þótt Elliða felli.

  images
Close

editions and texts