Forað Lv 4VIII (Ket 24)/4 — sk*arn ‘dung’
Gang hóf ek upp í Angri, eigraða ek á til Steigar;
skálm †glotadrra skroptu†, sk*arn tadda ek á til Karmtar,
elda mun ek á Jaðri ok at Útsteini blása.
Þá mun ek austr við Elfi, áðr dagr á mik skíni,
ok með brúðkonum beigla ok bráðliga gefit jarli.
Ek hóf upp gang í Angri, ek eigraða á til Steigar; skálm †glotadrra skroptu†, ek tadda sk*arn á til Karmtar, ek mun elda á Jaðri ok blása at Útsteini. Þá mun ek austr við Elfi, áðr dagr skíni á mik, ok beigla með brúðkonum ok bráðliga gefit jarli.
I began my expedition in Angr, I sauntered on to Steig; [my] short sword … , I spread dung [on the way] to Karmøy, I will kindle fire in Jæren and blow at Utstein. Then I will go east near the Götaälv, before day shines upon me, and lumber about with the bridesmaids and at once be given [in marriage] to the jarl.
readings
[4] sk*arn tadda ek á: ‘skrarm radri ek á’ 343a, skarmta ek á 471
notes
[4] ek tadda sk*arn á til Karmtar ‘I spread dung [on the way] to Karmøy’: Both 343a and 471, the only mss which have the stanza in the form given above, have the adv. á (‘ꜳ’) between the pron. ek and the prepositional phrase til Karmtar. Anderson (1990, 53 n. 152) indicates that it is uncertain whether the form which she prints as rada (343a) should not be read as ‘tada’, while Valgerður Erna Þorvaldsdóttir read ‘radri’ (transcription for this edn). Since the form ‘skrarm’ strongly resembles the noun skarn ‘dung’ and a form ‘tada’ could be a way of writing tadda (3rd pers. sg. pret. of teðja ‘dung, manure’) one could perhaps conjecture that the line in 343a should read skarn tadda ek á til Karmtar ‘I spread dung [on the way] to Karmøy’. Such a phrase would allude to labours which Forað has performed during her journey through Norway (cf. the mention of the fire she will kindle, etc. in ll. 5-6). Previous eds adopt the reading skarmtak (skarmta ek) from 471, which Finnur Jónsson tentatively translates as skræve (?) ‘stride?’ but does not include in LP. ÍO: †skarma believes that the form skarmta is the 1st pers. sg. pres. tense; the inf. *skarmta would mean ‘stumble along; drag oneself along’.