Hjþ Lv 6VIII (HjǪ 13)
Richard L. Harris (ed.) 2017, ‘Hjálmþés saga ok Ǫlvis 13 (Hjálmþér Ingason, Lausavísur 6)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 505.
snerta ‘touch’
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2. snerta (verb): touch
Snar ‘Snar’
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snarr (adj.): gallant, bold < snarvendill (noun m.)
vendill ‘vendill’
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vendill (noun m.): [rod] < snarvendill (noun m.)
fyrr ‘before’
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fyrr (adv.): before, sooner
en ‘’
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2. en (conj.): but, and
á ‘on’
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3. á (prep.): on, at
setir ‘put’
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setja (verb): place, set, establish
konungs ‘of the king’
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konungr (noun m.; °dat. -i, -s; -ar): king
kennings
arfa konungs‘the heir of the king ’
= RULER = me, Hjálmþér
the heir of the king → RULER = me, Hjálmþér
arfa ‘the heir’
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arfi (noun m.; °-a; -ar): heir, heiress
kennings
arfa konungs‘the heir of the king ’
= RULER = me, Hjálmþér
the heir of the king → RULER = me, Hjálmþér
Handar ‘your hand’
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hǫnd (noun f.; °handar, dat. hendi; hendr (hendir StatPáll³ 752¹²)): hand
[5] Handar: hendr papp6ˣ
notes
[5] muntu missa handar ‘you will lose your hand’: The prose text following this stanza makes it clear that the reference here is to Ýma’s hand, which Hjálmþér has cut off at the wrist, not her whole arm, as Skj B has it, du vil miste din arm.
muntu ‘You will’
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munu (verb): will, must
notes
[5] muntu missa handar ‘you will lose your hand’: The prose text following this stanza makes it clear that the reference here is to Ýma’s hand, which Hjálmþér has cut off at the wrist, not her whole arm, as Skj B has it, du vil miste din arm.
missa ‘lose’
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2. missa (verb): lose, lack
notes
[5] muntu missa handar ‘you will lose your hand’: The prose text following this stanza makes it clear that the reference here is to Ýma’s hand, which Hjálmþér has cut off at the wrist, not her whole arm, as Skj B has it, du vil miste din arm.
hátt ‘loudly’
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3. hár (adj.; °-van; compar. hǽrri, superl. hǽstr): high
æpa ‘shriek’
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œpa (verb): cry out
svá ‘thus’
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svá (adv.): so, thus
munum ‘we will’
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munu (verb): will, must
[7] munum: so papp6ˣ, munu vit 109a IIIˣ, munum vit ÍBR5ˣ
skilja ‘part’
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1. skilja (verb): separate, understand
skauð ‘cunt’
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1. skauð (noun f.; °; -ir): °pjok, svækling, "tøsedreng"; uhyre; (I) forhud (på hests penis)
notes
[8] in aumasta skauð ‘most wretched cunt’: A gross insult, because the word skauð often refers to the female genitalia, specifically the vagina (cf. Fritzner: skauð 1 and citations there as well as Note to Ǫrv 46/10), just as words for ‘sword’ and ‘knife’ can refer to the penis, and the mention of Snarvendill touching Ýma here is likely to carry sexual symbolism as well as being the instrument whereby Hjálmþér threatens to cut off her hand. The saga’s prose text following this stanza makes it perfectly clear that Ýma understands Hjálmþér’s idiom of sexualised aggression, because she responds by inviting him to have intercourse with her.
notes
[8] in aumasta skauð ‘most wretched cunt’: A gross insult, because the word skauð often refers to the female genitalia, specifically the vagina (cf. Fritzner: skauð 1 and citations there as well as Note to Ǫrv 46/10), just as words for ‘sword’ and ‘knife’ can refer to the penis, and the mention of Snarvendill touching Ýma here is likely to carry sexual symbolism as well as being the instrument whereby Hjálmþér threatens to cut off her hand. The saga’s prose text following this stanza makes it perfectly clear that Ýma understands Hjálmþér’s idiom of sexualised aggression, because she responds by inviting him to have intercourse with her.
aumasta ‘most wretched’
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aumr (adj.; °compar. -ari, superl. -astr): wretched, poor
notes
[8] in aumasta skauð ‘most wretched cunt’: A gross insult, because the word skauð often refers to the female genitalia, specifically the vagina (cf. Fritzner: skauð 1 and citations there as well as Note to Ǫrv 46/10), just as words for ‘sword’ and ‘knife’ can refer to the penis, and the mention of Snarvendill touching Ýma here is likely to carry sexual symbolism as well as being the instrument whereby Hjálmþér threatens to cut off her hand. The saga’s prose text following this stanza makes it perfectly clear that Ýma understands Hjálmþér’s idiom of sexualised aggression, because she responds by inviting him to have intercourse with her.
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
Hjálmþér responds to Ýma’s threat in the previous stanza by saying that things have gone badly for the cloth with which she has dried her hair and which had touched her glyrnur ‘cat’s eyes’, implying that she is a troll. He then speaks this provocative stanza.
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