Sturl Hákkv 37II/5 — fólk ‘people’
Svá var Elfr
öll at líta
glæsilig,
sem á gull sæi
frægðarfólk,
er flota þeysti
lofsæll konungr
Ljóðhúsa til.
Öll Elfr var svá glæsilig at líta, sem frægðarfólk sæi á gull, er lofsæll konungr þeysti flota til Ljóðhúsa.
The entire Götaälv was so glorious to see, as if the famous people were looking at gold, when the praise-blessed king hastened his fleet to Lödöse.
readings
[5] ‑fólk: om. 81a, fólki Flat
notes
[5] frægðarfólk ‘the famous people’: Taken here as the subject of sæi (3rd pers. pl. pret. subj.) ‘were looking, looked’ (l. 4) referring to high-ranking Gautar observing Hákon’s fleet (E 1916, 632): mikils þotti Gꜹtum um vert er þeir sá sua maurg skip ok stór ok uel buin ‘it seemed a great marvel to the Gautar when they saw so many large and well-equipped ships’. Skj B and Skald assume sæi to have an unexpressed subject, ‘as if [one] looked’ and regard frægðarfólk as the subject of þeysti ‘hastened’ (l. 6) and both eds accordingly emend lofsæll konungr (m. nom. sg.) ‘praise-blessed king’ (l. 7) (so all mss) to lofsæls konungs (m. gen. sg.) as a qualifier to frægðarfólk (‘the famous people of the praise-blessed king’).