Anon Óldr 1I
Kate Heslop (ed.) 2012, ‘Anonymous Poems, Óláfs drápa Tryggvasonar 1’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 1033.
Yfirhilding ‘overlord’
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yfirhildingr (noun m.): [overlord]
kennings
einn yfirhilding hverrar ættar aldar,‘the sole overlord of every family of men, ’
= God
the sole overlord of every family of men, → God
biðk ‘I ask’
(not checked:)
biðja (verb; °biðr; bað, báðu; beðinn (beiþ- Martin¹ 573, bỏþ- HákEirsp 661, cf. ed. intr. xl)): ask for, order, pray
notes
[2] beina* ‘set in motion’: Of all the possible explanations of ms. beinar, including f. nom. pl. of adj. beinn ‘straight’ or nom. pl. of beini m. ‘help, hospitality’, none fits the helmingr’s sense or syntax. Sveinbjörn Egilsson’s emendation (1832, 7) to the verb beina ‘set in motion, steer, direct’ is accepted by all subsequent eds. Biðk ... beina ‘I ask ... to direct’ also occurs in Anon Hafg 2/1-2IV.
aldar ‘of men’
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ǫld (noun f.; °; aldir): people, age
kennings
einn yfirhilding hverrar ættar aldar,‘the sole overlord of every family of men, ’
= God
the sole overlord of every family of men, → God
notes
[4] hverrar ættar aldar ‘of every family of men’: (a) Although slightly overloaded, this phrase is comparable with other collocations of ætt with a gen. meaning ‘men’, including Hfr Lv 7/1, 3V (Hallfr 10) ǫll ætt aldar ‘the whole family of men’ (and see LP: ætt 2). Coupled with yfirhildingr ‘overlord’, it forms a God-kenning which resembles others designating God as ruler of mankind (Meissner 370, also 372). However, as a determinant which is not itself a kenning, hverrar ættar aldar is unusual, and the whole expression could be regarded as a looser genitival construction rather than a kenning. (b) Gullberg (1875) takes hverrar ættar as gen. object of mætti (dat. of môttr m. ‘power’), so ‘power over every family’, but this is a less compelling expression of divine omnipotence.
einn ‘the sole’
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2. einn (pron.; °decl. cf. einn num.): one, alone
kennings
einn yfirhilding hverrar ættar aldar,‘the sole overlord of every family of men, ’
= God
the sole overlord of every family of men, → God
notes
[2] einn ‘sole’: Or alternatively ‘alone, only’.
hróðtǫlu ‘praiseful speech’
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hróðtala (noun f.): [praiseful speech]
notes
[2] beina* ‘set in motion’: Of all the possible explanations of ms. beinar, including f. nom. pl. of adj. beinn ‘straight’ or nom. pl. of beini m. ‘help, hospitality’, none fits the helmingr’s sense or syntax. Sveinbjörn Egilsson’s emendation (1832, 7) to the verb beina ‘set in motion, steer, direct’ is accepted by all subsequent eds. Biðk ... beina ‘I ask ... to direct’ also occurs in Anon Hafg 2/1-2IV.
mér ‘for me’
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ek (pron.; °mín, dat. mér, acc. mik): I, me
mestum ‘most’
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meiri (adj. comp.; °meiran; superl. mestr): more, most
stýrir ‘wields’
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stýra (verb): steer, control
mætti ‘power’
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máttr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. mǽtti/mátt; mǽttir, dat. -um): power
hverrar ‘of every’
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2. hverr (pron.): who, whom, each, every
kennings
einn yfirhilding hverrar ættar aldar,‘the sole overlord of every family of men, ’
= God
the sole overlord of every family of men, → God
notes
[4] hverrar ættar aldar ‘of every family of men’: (a) Although slightly overloaded, this phrase is comparable with other collocations of ætt with a gen. meaning ‘men’, including Hfr Lv 7/1, 3V (Hallfr 10) ǫll ætt aldar ‘the whole family of men’ (and see LP: ætt 2). Coupled with yfirhildingr ‘overlord’, it forms a God-kenning which resembles others designating God as ruler of mankind (Meissner 370, also 372). However, as a determinant which is not itself a kenning, hverrar ættar aldar is unusual, and the whole expression could be regarded as a looser genitival construction rather than a kenning. (b) Gullberg (1875) takes hverrar ættar as gen. object of mætti (dat. of môttr m. ‘power’), so ‘power over every family’, but this is a less compelling expression of divine omnipotence.
ættar ‘family’
(not checked:)
1. ætt (noun f.; °-ar; -ir): family
kennings
einn yfirhilding hverrar ættar aldar,‘the sole overlord of every family of men, ’
= God
the sole overlord of every family of men, → God
notes
[4] hverrar ættar aldar ‘of every family of men’: (a) Although slightly overloaded, this phrase is comparable with other collocations of ætt with a gen. meaning ‘men’, including Hfr Lv 7/1, 3V (Hallfr 10) ǫll ætt aldar ‘the whole family of men’ (and see LP: ætt 2). Coupled with yfirhildingr ‘overlord’, it forms a God-kenning which resembles others designating God as ruler of mankind (Meissner 370, also 372). However, as a determinant which is not itself a kenning, hverrar ættar aldar is unusual, and the whole expression could be regarded as a looser genitival construction rather than a kenning. (b) Gullberg (1875) takes hverrar ættar as gen. object of mætti (dat. of môttr m. ‘power’), so ‘power over every family’, but this is a less compelling expression of divine omnipotence.
þvít ‘because’
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þvít (conj.): because, since
veg ‘high’
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2. vegr (noun m.; °-s/-ar, dat. -): honour < veglyndr (adj.): [high-minded]
lyndum ‘minded’
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lyndr (adj.; °superl. -astr): minded < veglyndr (adj.): [high-minded]
vanda ‘fashion’
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vanda (verb): fashion, execute
vin ‘friend’
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vinr (noun m.; °-ar, dat. -/(-i OsvReyk 92.17); -ir): friend
þínum ‘your’
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þinn (pron.; °f. þín, n. þitt): your
skalk ‘I shall’
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skulu (verb): shall, should, must
Rínar ‘of the Rhine’
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Rín (noun f.): [Rhine]
kennings
fǫgrum bjartleyg Rínar.‘into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine.’
= GOLD
into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine. → GOLD
brag ‘poetry’
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bragr (noun m.; °-ar): poem, poetry
þeims ‘he who’
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2. er (conj.): who, which, when
bjart ‘bright’
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bjartr (adj.; °compar. -ari, superl. -astr): bright < bjartleygr (noun m.): [bright flame]
kennings
fǫgrum bjartleyg Rínar.‘into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine.’
= GOLD
into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine. → GOLD
leyg ‘flame’
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1. leygr (noun m.): flame < bjartleygr (noun m.): [bright flame]
kennings
fǫgrum bjartleyg Rínar.‘into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine.’
= GOLD
into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine. → GOLD
fǫgrum ‘into the beautiful’
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fagr (adj.; °fagran; compar. fegri, superl. fegrstr): fair, beautiful
kennings
fǫgrum bjartleyg Rínar.‘into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine.’
= GOLD
into the beautiful bright flame of the Rhine. → GOLD
bauð ‘struck’
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bjóða (verb; °býðr; bauð, buðu; boðinn (buð- Thom¹ 5²n.)): offer, order, invite
ótta ‘fear’
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ótti (noun m.; °-a): fear
goð ‘God’
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1. guð (noun m.; °***guðrs, guðis, gus): (Christian) God
dróttinn ‘Lord’
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dróttinn (noun m.; °dróttins, dat. dróttni (drottini [$1049$]); dróttnar): lord, master
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