Diana Whaley (ed.) 2009, ‘Arnórr jarlaskáld Þórðarson, Þorfinnsdrápa 5’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 235-6.
Hilmir rauð í hjalma
hreggi skelkings eggjar;
fór, áðr fimmtán væri,
fetrjóðr Hugins, vetra.
Gǫrr lézk grund at verja
geðfrœkn ok til sœkja
œri Einars hlýra
engr mannr und skýranni.
Hilmir rauð eggjar skelkings í {hreggi hjalma}; {fetrjóðr Hugins} fór, áðr væri fimmtán vetra. Engr mannr und {skýranni} œri {hlýra Einars} lézk gǫrr at verja grund, geðfrœkn, ok sœkja til.
The ruler reddened the sword’s edges in {the storm of helmets} [BATTLE]; {the foot-reddener of Huginn <raven>} [WARRIOR] set forth before he was fifteen winters. No man under {the cloud-hall} [SKY/HEAVEN] younger than {Einarr’s brother} [= Þorfinnr] has declared himself ready to guard his realm, mind-bold, and to mount attacks.
Mss: 332ˣ(18), Flat(131ra), R702ˣ(37v), 48ˣ(343r marg) (Orkn); Kˣ(319r-v), 325XI 2 e(2r) (Hkr, ll. 5-8); Holm2(29r), 325V(32ra), 972ˣ(201va), 75a(21rb), 321ˣ(112), 73aˣ(74r), 68(28r), 61(96vb), Holm4(21rb), Bb(157v), Tóm(116v) (ÓH, ll. 5-8); B(6v), 744ˣ(41r) (SnE, ll. 1-2)
Readings: [2] hreggi: ‘hrægg[...]’ B, hreggi 744ˣ; skelkings: skilfings Flat, ‘skelkiungs’ R702ˣ, ‘skelkvins’ 48ˣmarg, ‘[...]kelk[...]s’ B, skelkings 744ˣ [4] fet‑: fjǫt‑ R702ˣ [5] Gǫrr: ‘Geírr’ Bb; lézk: ‘leiz’ R702ˣ, lét 75a, 61, Bb [6] geð‑: so all others, gunn 332ˣ [7] œri: ‘errínn’ Flat, œri 48ˣmarg, ‘o᷎r’ Bb; Einars: annars 75a; hlýra: hlýri Flat, 73aˣ, 61, hlýra 48ˣmarg [8] engr: ungr Tóm; mannr: mann Flat, R702ˣ, 73aˣ, 61, Holm4, Tóm; und: í Flat, und 48ˣmarg, ‘vn’ 325V
Editions: Skj AI, 344, Skj BI, 316-17, Skald I, 160; Flat 1860-8, II, 404, Orkn 1913-16, 43, ÍF 34, 43 (ch. 20); Hkr 1893-1901, II, 199, ÍF 27, 160, Hkr 1991, 364 (ÓH ch. 96); ÓH 1941, I, 232 (ch. 81); SnE 1848-87, II, 540; Whaley 1998, 228-30.
Context: In the sagas, the st. follows a sketch of Þorfinnr’s appearance and character, and a statement that at the age of five he received Caithness (Katanes, and Sutherland according to a variant) and the title jarl from his grandfather Malcolm (Melkólmr), King of the Scots. In SnE, ll. 1-2 are quoted to illustrate the use of hilmir within a section on terms for rulers.
Notes: [2] skelkings ‘the sword’s’: Though rare, the term skelkingr, perhaps ‘fearsome one’ (AEW) is paralleled, as a variant, in Þul Sverða 7/1III and cf. ‘skelkuin’ as a variant in Hfr Lv 5/7V. Flat’s skilfings is the lectio facilior and hence perhaps a secondary reading since, although also rare as a sword-heiti, skilfingr is more familiar as a name of Óðinn or a term for ‘prince’ (LP). — [3] fór ‘set forth’: Björn Magnússon Ólsen (1909a, 289) suggested emending to fár ‘few’, since he found fór meaningless in the absence of a phrase indicating direction, but the absolute use of fara is attested in a military context in Sigv Berv 1/4: fer, ef þó skulum berjask ‘I shall go, if we nonetheless have to fight’. — [6] geðfrœkn ‘mind-bold’: This has the authority of all mss except 332ˣ, which has gunnfrœkn ‘battle-bold’. Both readings are well paralleled by synonymous compounds (e.g. gunnbráðr/gunndjarfr; geðrakkr/geðhraustr). — [7] hlýra Einars ‘Einarr’s brother [= Þorfinnr]’: A reference to Þorfinnr’s half-brother Einarr rangmuðr ‘Wry-mouth’, who, after long territorial wranglings between the kinsmen, finally died in 1020 at the hands of Þorfinnr’s henchman Þorkell (Storm 1888, 16, 57, 106, 316 and 468).
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