Vegmildr víðrar foldar
vǫrðr þá fóstr í Gǫrðum;
vellbjóðr vísar dáðir
vann, sás hæst gekk manna.
Blikrunnr brigða miklum
brátt réð * þeim, es átti,
allprútt éla Þróttar
Óláfr skipa stóli.
Vegmildr vǫrðr víðrar foldar þá fóstr í Gǫrðum; vellbjóðr, sás gekk hæst manna, vann vísar dáðir. Þróttar éla blikrunnr, Óláfr, réð * brátt, allprútt, þeim brigða miklum stóli skipa, es átti.
The honour-generous guardian of vast territory [RULER = Óláfr] was fostered in Russia; the gold-offerer [GENEROUS MAN], who was the greatest of men, performed renowned deeds. The tree of the gleam of the storms of Þróttr <= Óðinn> [(lit. ‘gleam-tree of the storms of Þróttr’) BATTLES > SWORD > WARRIOR], Óláfr, soon commanded most excellently the extremely large fleet of ships which he owned.
[8] stóli skipa ‘fleet of ships’: (a) The same phrase occurs in Bjbp Jóms 16/4. Stóll ‘fleet’ is assumed to be an adoption from Gk (LP: 2. stóll; AEW: stóll 3). (b) Skipa is taken by Finnur Jónsson (1893b and Skj B) as the verb ‘to man’, hence réð ... stóli, þeims hann, Óláfr, átti skipa allprútt ‘(the warrior) commanded a fleet which he, Óláfr, had to man most excellently’. This obviates the problem with hann (see Note to l. 6), but it breaks up the phrase skipa stóli and assumes a complex word order, with elements of the subordinate þeims-clause in ll. 6, 7 and 8.