Hróksv Hrkv 2VIII (Hálf 52)
Hubert Seelow (ed.) 2017, ‘Hálfs saga ok Hálfsrekka 52 (Hrókr inn svarti, Hrókskviða 2)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 346.
Vildi ‘would want’
(not checked:)
vilja (verb): want, intend
engi ‘No one’
(not checked:)
2. engi (pron.): no, none
við ‘with’
(not checked:)
2. við (prep.): with, against
Vifil ‘Vifill’
(not checked:)
1. Vífill (noun m.)
notes
[2] Vifil ‘Vifill’: According to the prose text (Hálf 1981, 190), Vifill was the son of Heðinn, a jarl of King Haki, and is referred to by his patronymic in l. 8. The name Vifill, etymologically ‘Beetle’ (AEW: Vifill) appears in other Old Norse texts (see Hrólf 3/1) while Heðinn is elsewhere the name of a legendary hero (see Bragi Rdr 10/6III and Note 1). The prose text indicates that Vifill had sought the hand of Brynhildr and that she had been promised to him before Hrókr’s identity and superior claim had been established.
jafnaz ‘to compare himself’
(not checked:)
2. jafna (verb): [equal]
þó ‘even’
(not checked:)
þó (adv.): though
at ‘though’
(not checked:)
4. at (conj.): that
Hámundar ‘Hámundr’s’
(not checked:)
Hámundr (noun m.): Hámundr
hjarðar ‘he tended’
(not checked:)
hjǫrð (noun f.; °hjarðar, dat. -/-u; hjarðir/hjarðar): herd
gætti ‘livestock’
(not checked:)
2. gæta (verb): look after, care for
Sá ‘see’
(not checked:)
2. sjá (verb): see
ek ‘I’
(not checked:)
ek (pron.; °mín, dat. mér, acc. mik): I, me
öngan ‘any’
(not checked:)
2. engi (pron.): no, none
þar ‘There’
(not checked:)
þar (adv.): there
svína ‘swine’
(not checked:)
svín (noun n.; °-s; -): swine, pig < svínahirðir (noun m.)
hug ‘more faint’
(not checked:)
hugr (noun m.): mind, thought, courage < huglauss (adj.)
[7] huglausara: huglausari 2845
notes
[7] huglausara ‘more faint-hearted’: Most earlier eds, with the exception of Skj B and Hálf 1981, have normalised the ms. reading to the earlier form of the comp. m. adj. ending in -a. Forms of the comp. m. adj. ending in -i are generally found in texts later than 1250-1300 (cf. ANG §435 Anm. 1).
lausara ‘hearted’
(not checked:)
lauss (adj.; °compar. lausari): loose, free, without < huglauss (adj.)
[7] huglausara: huglausari 2845
notes
[7] huglausara ‘more faint-hearted’: Most earlier eds, with the exception of Skj B and Hálf 1981, have normalised the ms. reading to the earlier form of the comp. m. adj. ending in -a. Forms of the comp. m. adj. ending in -i are generally found in texts later than 1250-1300 (cf. ANG §435 Anm. 1).
en ‘than’
(not checked:)
2. en (conj.): but, and
Heðins ‘of Heðinn’
(not checked:)
2. Heðinn (noun m.): [Heðinn, champions]
kennings
arfa Heðins.‘the heir of Heðinn. ’
= Vifill
the heir of Heðinn. → Vifill
arfa ‘the heir’
(not checked:)
arfi (noun m.; °-a; -ar): heir, heiress
kennings
arfa Heðins.‘the heir of Heðinn. ’
= Vifill
the heir of Heðinn. → Vifill
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
The clear implication of this refusal to compare man with man is that Vifill is so far beneath the normal standards that warriors must measure up to that even swineherds would show greater courage. Implicit here also is the notion that people not of the warrior class in early Scandinavia could not possess noble qualities.
Stanza/chapter/text segment
Use the buttons at the top of the page to navigate between stanzas in a poem.
Information tab
- text: if the stanza has been published, the edited text of the stanza and translation are here; if it hasn't been published an old edition (usually Skj) is given for reference
- sources: a list of the manuscripts or inscriptions containing this stanza, with page and line references and links (eye button) to images where available, and transcription where available
- readings: a list of variant manuscript readings of words in the main text
- editions and texts: a list of editions of the stanza with links to the bibliography; and a list of prose works in which the stanza occurs, allowing you to navigate within the prose context
- notes and context: notes not linked to individual words are given here, along with the account of the prose context for the stanza, where relevant
Interactive tab
The text and translation are given here, with buttons to toggle whether the text is shown in the verse order or prose word order. Clicking on indiviudal words gives dictionary links, variant readings, kennings and notes, where relevant.
Full text tab
This is the text of the edition in a similar format to how the edition appears in the printed volumes.
Chapter/text segment
This view is also used for chapters and other text segments. Not all the headings shown are relevant to such sections.