Gyðja Lv 1VIII (Ǫrv 59)
Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2017, ‘Ǫrvar-Odds saga 59 (Gyðja, Lausavísur 1)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 874.
Hverr ‘Who’
(not checked:)
2. hverr (pron.): who, whom, each, every
veldr ‘is causing’
(not checked:)
valda (verb): cause
eldi ‘the fire’
(not checked:)
eldr (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i/-(HómÍsl¹(1993) 24v²⁴); -ar): fire
hverr ‘who’
(not checked:)
2. hverr (pron.): who, whom, each, every
orrostu ‘the battle’
(not checked:)
orrusta (noun f.; °-u; -ur): battle
hverr ‘who’
(not checked:)
2. hverr (pron.): who, whom, each, every
[3] hverr jarls magni: hverr jarls megin 344a, 343a, 471, 173ˣ, ‘giori hvermegin’ 344a
jarls ‘of a jarl’
(not checked:)
jarl (noun m.; °-s, dat. -i; -ar): poet, earl
[3] hverr jarls magni: hverr jarls megin 344a, 343a, 471, 173ˣ, ‘giori hvermegin’ 344a
magni ‘power’
(not checked:)
magn (noun n.; °-s): strength
[3] hverr jarls magni: hverr jarls megin 344a, 343a, 471, 173ˣ, ‘giori hvermegin’ 344a
eggjum ‘blades’
(not checked:)
1. egg (noun f.; °-jar, dat. -ju/-): edge, blade
[4] eggjum: eðr 344a, oddum 343a, oddu 471, ‘ognum’ 173ˣ
Hof ‘Temples’
(not checked:)
1. hóf (noun n.; °-s; -): court, temple
hörgar ‘sanctuaries’
(not checked:)
hǫrgr (noun m.; °; -ar): cairn, shrine
[6] hörgar brunnu: hörga brenna 344a
brunnu ‘burned’
(not checked:)
2. brenna (verb; °brennr/brenn; brann, brunnu; brunninn): (strong, intransitive)
[6] hörgar brunnu: hörga brenna 344a
notes
[7] hverr ‘who’: With the exception of 7 and 471, all the other mss read Oddr here, but this cannot be correct, as the answer to the question is given by Oddr, identifying himself, in the following stanza.
rauð ‘reddened’
(not checked:)
rjóða (verb): to redden
eggjar ‘blades’
(not checked:)
1. egg (noun f.; °-jar, dat. -ju/-): edge, blade
notes
[8] á nið yngva ‘on the descendant of a prince’: Presumably a reference to Álfr bjálki. If he is the speaker of the stanza, then he refers to himself; if Gyðja, she refers to her husband. In the case of the younger mss, ll. 7-8 are somewhat at variance with the prose text, which indicates that Álfr was seriously wounded by Oddr’s stone arrows, whereas the eggjar ‘blades’ of l. 7 suggests sword-play.
yngva ‘of a prince’
(not checked:)
Yngvi (noun m.): Yngvi, prince
[8] á yngva nið: ok eyddi hof 344a, á yngva liði 343a
notes
[8] á nið yngva ‘on the descendant of a prince’: Presumably a reference to Álfr bjálki. If he is the speaker of the stanza, then he refers to himself; if Gyðja, she refers to her husband. In the case of the younger mss, ll. 7-8 are somewhat at variance with the prose text, which indicates that Álfr was seriously wounded by Oddr’s stone arrows, whereas the eggjar ‘blades’ of l. 7 suggests sword-play.
nið ‘the descendant’
(not checked:)
1. niðr (noun m.; °-s; niðjar/niðir, acc. niði): son, kinsman, relative
[8] á yngva nið: ok eyddi hof 344a, á yngva liði 343a
notes
[8] á nið yngva ‘on the descendant of a prince’: Presumably a reference to Álfr bjálki. If he is the speaker of the stanza, then he refers to himself; if Gyðja, she refers to her husband. In the case of the younger mss, ll. 7-8 are somewhat at variance with the prose text, which indicates that Álfr was seriously wounded by Oddr’s stone arrows, whereas the eggjar ‘blades’ of l. 7 suggests sword-play.
Interactive view: tap on words in the text for notes and glosses
See Introduction to sts 59-70.
As mentioned in the Introduction, this and sts 61, 63a, 64, 66 and 70 are attributed to the pagan priestess Gyðja in all mss except for 7, which attributes sts 59 and 61 to Álfr bjálki. Whoever is the speaker, this stanza is uttered immediately after he or she has witnessed all the temples and sanctuaries of their town (borg) ablaze at Oddr’s orders. As often, the version of 344a is somewhat different from the other witnesses.
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.