ǪrvOdd Ævdr 16VIII (Ǫrv 86)/8 — lá ‘lie’
Létum skeika at sköpuðu
drengmenn snarir í drifaveðri.
Sýndiz seggjum — sandr var á þiljum —
lands ván liðin; lá ek eigi þar.
Snarir drengmenn létum skeika at sköpuðu í drifaveðri. Sýndiz seggjum ván lands liðin; sandr var á þiljum; ek lá eigi þar.
[We] bold heroes let things go according to the will of fate in the storm of sea-spray. The hope of land seemed over to the men; sand was on the decks; I did not lie there.
notes
[8] ek lá eigi þar ‘I did not lie there’: The meaning of this statement is not clear, but may relate to the condition of the ship with its decks covered in sand, suggesting that it was wrecked and lay on the seabed (LP: sandr), but that Oddr escaped drowning (‘I did not lie there’). Alternatively the verb liggja might here mean ‘lie at anchor, stay’ (Fritzner: liggja 5) rather than ‘lie down, rest’, in which case l. 8 could be understood as an ironic comment indicating that the sea was so rough that Oddr had no intention of staying there.