Hjálm Lv 15^VIII (Ǫrv 25)

Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2017, ‘Ǫrvar-Odds saga 25 (Hjálmarr inn hugumstóri, Lausavísur 15)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 839.

introduction

This group of stanzas is only present in the younger mss of Ǫrv, 343a, 471 and 173ˣ, and not in 344a. It is prompted by Hjálmarr’s prose request to Oddr to greet his bench-mates back in Sweden by name (this prose part is also in 344a but without the stanzas). The version of 344a then goes on with Hjálmarr’s request to Oddr not to bury his body in a mound beside the worthless berserks, and to take his ring back to Ingibjörg in Sweden. Ms. 344a then concludes with Ǫrv 16. All other mss add Ǫrv 20 as the concluding stanza of Hjálmarr’s death-song. Ms. 343a is the main ms. for this group of stanzas.

text and translation

notes and context

This stanza is the first of a roll-call of Hjálmarr’s former drinking mates.

Neither this nor the four following stanzas are present in 344a, nor are they edited either in Edd. Min. or in Ǫrv 1892. Ǫrv 1888 gives them within square brackets in a smaller font than the main text to indicate Boer’s view that these stanzas were later additions. Skj and Skald separate them as Addendum β. — [1-2]: These lines echo Sigsk 2/5-6 (NK 207) drucco oc dœmðo | dœgr mart saman ‘[they] drank and chatted together many a day’. — [3-8]: The beginning of the list of names of Hjálmarr’s drinking mates, which continues over the following four stanzas. Many of the names, such as Álfr and Atli, with which the list begins, are attested in other heroic poems or in sagas; some are known to have been borne by individuals mentioned in historical sources, such as Ldn. Some of these names may be, or may have originated as, nicknames, especially those that refer to features of the landscape (e.g. gláma ‘bald, barren tract’ or possibly a variant of glámr ‘twilight, gleam’, cf. ONP: glámr, Þul Tungls 1/4^III and Note there, Þul Jǫtna II 1/8^III and Note there), birds (e.g. starri ‘Starling’, trani ‘Crane’) or other animals or natural phenomena (cf. Janzén 1947b, 44-6; Whaley 1993). Vifill (or Vífill) ‘? Beetle’ was the name of one of the first settler Ingólfr’s slaves in Ldn (ÍF 1, 44-5) and the name of a wise commoner who shelters the sons of King Hálfdan in Hrólf; see Hrólf 3/1 and Note.

readings

• [2] dægr: so 471, 173ˣ, ‘dægurt’ 343a
• [4] Eymundr: Eyvindr 471, 173ˣ
• [5] Gláma: Glamma 173ˣ
• [8] Stórólfr: Steinólfr 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.

• AM 343 a 4° (343a) — 68v/20 - 68v/21

  Drukkum vér ok dæmðum
  †dægurt† margt saman,
  Álfr ok Atli,
  Eymundr, Trani,
  Gizurr, Gláma,
  Guðvarðr, Starri,
  Steinkell, Stikill,
  Stórólfr, Vifill.

  Drukum uer ok dæmdum dægurt margt saman. alfr ok atli eymundr | trani. gizur glama guduardr starri. steinkell stikill storolfr uifill.

  (HA)

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• AM 471 4° (471) — 75r - 75v

  Drukkum vér ok dæmðum
  dægr margt saman,
  Álfr ok Atli,
  Eyvindr, Trani,
  Gizurr, Gláma,
  Guðvarðr, Starri,
  Steinkell, Stikill,
  Stórólfr, Vifill.

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• AM 173 folx (173x) — 37v/14 - 37v/21 [1-4, 7-8, 5-6]

  Drukkum vér ok dæmðum
  dægr margt saman,
  Álfr ok Atli,
  Eyvindr, Trani,
  Gizurr, Glamma,
  Guðvarðr, Starri,
  Steinkell, Stikill,
  Steinólfr, Vifill.

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• AM 344 b 4°x (344bx) — 15r/15 - 15r/17

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