Sitja veiðivitjar
vals á borgar hálsum;
böl er, þat er hefr um hafnat
hrafn Sigurðar nafni.
Blási nýtinjótar
nás í spán at hánum;
ofsnemma lét Óðinn
álf valmeyjar deyja.
Veiðivitjar vals sitja á hálsum borgar; böl er, þat er hrafn hefr um hafnat nafni Sigurðar. Blási nýtinjótar nás í spán at hánum; Óðinn lét álf valmeyjar deyja ofsnemma.
Hunting-visitors of the slain [RAVENS] sit on the heights of the fortress; it is a misfortune that the raven has forsaken the name of Sigurðr. Let the devourers of the dead [RAVENS/EAGLES] whistle for him; Óðinn caused the elf of the carnage-maiden [VALKYRIE > WARRIOR] to die too early.
[5] nýtinjótar nás ‘the devourers of the dead [RAVENS/EAGLES]’: Lit. ‘great enjoyers of the corpse’. The hap. leg. nýtinjótar is a cpd noun, whose second element is ‑njótar, m. nom. pl., meaning ‘enjoyers, users’ (CVC: njótr) and its cognate first element nýti- (from nýta ‘make use of, enjoy’) is an intensifier (LP: nýtinjótr). It forms the base-word, with nás ‘of the corpse’ as its determinant, in a kenning for birds or beasts of battle, most probably the ravens of ll. 1-2.