Útsteinn Útkv 4VIII (Hálf 44)
Hubert Seelow (ed.) 2017, ‘Hálfs saga ok Hálfsrekka 44 (Útsteinn Gunnlaðarson, Útsteinskviða 4)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 339.
Þótti ‘seem’
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2. þykkja (verb): seem, think
ekki ‘to either’
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2. ekki (adv.): not
Hrókum ‘the Hrókar’
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Hrókr (noun m.)
notes
[1] Hrókum ‘the Hrókar’: Two brothers, members of the Hálfsrekkar, Hrókr inn svarti ‘Rook the Black’ and Hrókr inn hvíti ‘Rook the White’. Cf. Hálf 26/1 and Note there.
né ‘It did not’
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né (conj.): nor
Hálfdani ‘Hálfdan’
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Halfdan (noun m.): Hálfdan
notes
[2] Hálfdani ‘Hálfdan’: The name of another of the Hálfsrekkar (cf. Hálf 1981, 177).
raun ‘a trial’
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raun (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): ordeal, proof, experience
at ‘to’
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5. at (nota): to (with infinitive)
berjaz ‘fight’
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2. berja (verb; °barði; barðr/bariðr/barinn): fight
við ‘against’
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2. við (prep.): with, against
rag ‘cowardly’
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ragr (adj.; °superl. -astr): [perverted, minded] < ragmenni (noun n.)
notes
[4] ragmenni ‘cowardly wretches’: Like dritmenni in l. 7 of the previous stanza, ragmenni is a hap. leg., but is self-evidently formed from the adj. ragr ‘cowardly, unmanly’ plus the n. noun menni ‘people, men’.
menni ‘wretches’
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menni (noun n.): -men < ragmenni (noun n.)
notes
[4] ragmenni ‘cowardly wretches’: Like dritmenni in l. 7 of the previous stanza, ragmenni is a hap. leg., but is self-evidently formed from the adj. ragr ‘cowardly, unmanly’ plus the n. noun menni ‘people, men’.
þá ‘when’
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2. þá (adv.): then
er ‘’
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2. er (conj.): who, which, when
vér ‘we’
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vér (pron.; °gen. vár, dat./acc. oss): we, us, our
fjórir ‘four’
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fjórir (num. cardinal): four
falla ‘’
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falla (verb): fall
létum ‘slew’
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láta (verb): let, have sth done
átta ‘eight’
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átta (num. cardinal): eight
jarla ‘jarls’
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jarl (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i; -ar): poet, earl
fyrir ‘off’
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fyrir (prep.): for, before, because of
notes
[8] fyrir Ann*snesi ‘off Annsnes’: The ms. has ‘annis nesi’, which cannot be accommodated into a metrical line without resorting to tmesis. It is uncertain whether this word is a common noun andnes, annes ‘headland, promontory’ (cf. LP: andnes, and as in Anon Vǫls 1/3I) or a p. n., though the context suggests the latter.
notes
[8] fyrir Ann*snesi ‘off Annsnes’: The ms. has ‘annis nesi’, which cannot be accommodated into a metrical line without resorting to tmesis. It is uncertain whether this word is a common noun andnes, annes ‘headland, promontory’ (cf. LP: andnes, and as in Anon Vǫls 1/3I) or a p. n., though the context suggests the latter.
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
This stanza follows a format frequently found in the mannjafnaðr; the speaker refers to his own or his companions’ bravery, implying that it is much greater than that of their cowardly opponents. Frequently a place, often legendary, is mentioned as the site of the battle. The information that the four Hálfsrekkar slew eight jarls implies that Úlfr’s eight sons do not stand a chance either.
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