Liggja sék á leggjum
(láss bannar þér rásir)
kveldfǫrlustum karli
(Kúgi) járn in bjúgu.
Eiguð aldri, Kúgi,
— aptr munt settr af prettum —
— nauðrs at nýta eiða —
náttþing, ok halt sáttir.
Sék in bjúgu járn liggja á leggjum kveldfǫrlustum karli; Kúgi, láss bannar þér rásir. Eiguð aldri náttþing, Kúgi, ok halt sáttir; munt aptr settr af prettum; nauðrs at nýta eiða.
I see the curved irons lying on the legs of the old man who was out and about most in the evening; Kúgi, the lock prevents you from running. Never hold night-meetings, Kúgi, and keep to agreements; you will be hindered from treacherous deeds; it is necessary to keep to oaths.
[4] in bjúgu járn ‘the curved irons’: This phrase seems to describe iron shackles, which usually have a semicircular shape, rather than the ‘twisted fetters’ envisaged by Bibire 1988.
Pronouns and determiners: Definite article
The definite article is normally suffixed to nouns, except in some cases where it is used with an adjective. If the noun form ends in a vowel, the 'i' in the article is dropped. If the noun form ends in 'um', the 'm' and 'i' are both dropped. E.g. hesta (acc. pl.) > hestana (acc. pl. definite); hestum (dat. pl.) > hestunum (dat. pl. definite)
masc. | fem. | neut. | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
sing. | N A G D | inn inn ins inum | in ina innar inni | it it ins inu |
pl. | N A G D | inir ina inna inum | inar inar inna inum | in in inna inum |