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skaldic

Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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FriðÞ Lv 30VIII (Frið 36)/12 — b*örn* ‘children’

Þá hét ek Friðþjófr,         er ek fór með víkingum,
en Herþjófr,         er ek ekkjur grætta,
Geirþjófr,         er ek gaflökum fleygða,
Gunnþjófr,         er ek gekk at fylki,
Eyþjófr,         er ek útsker rænta,
Helþjófr,         er ek henta smáb*örn*,
Valþjófr,         þá ek var æðri mönnum.
Nú hef ek sveimat síðan         með saltkörlum,
hjálpar þurfandi,         áðr en hingat kom.

Ek hét Friðþjófr, þá er ek fór með víkingum, en Herþjófr, er ek grætta ekkjur, Geirþjófr, er ek fleygða gaflökum, Gunnþjófr, er ek gekk at fylki, Eyþjófr, er ek rænta útsker, Helþjófr, er ek henta smáb*örn*, Valþjófr, þá ek var æðri mönnum. Nú hef ek sveimat síðan með saltkörlum, þurfandi hjálpar, áðr en kom hingat.

I was called Friðþjófr (‘Peace-thief’), when I travelled with vikings, and Herþjófr (‘Army-thief’), when I made widows weep, Geirþjófr (‘Spear-thief’), when I let fly throwing spears, Gunnþjófr (‘Battle-thief’), when I went towards the host, Eyþjófr (‘Island-thief’), when I plundered outlying skerries, Helþjófr (‘Hel-thief’), when I seized little children, Valþjófr (‘Slain men-thief’), when I was higher than [other] men. Now I have since roamed around with salt burners, needing help, before I came here.

readings

[12] ‑b*örn*: björnu papp17ˣ, 109a IIˣ, ‑bornu 1006ˣ, 173ˣ

notes

[11-12] Helþjófr, er ek henta smáb*örn* ‘Helþjófr (“Hel-thief”), when I seized little children’: Some eds (e.g. Edd. Min.) have adopted the reading of papp17ˣ in l. 12 smábjörnu (other mss having smábornu) in the sense ‘little bears’, sensing a possible connection with the name Húnþjófr, which appears in a corresponding passage of Friðþjófs rímur (IV, 55, 3, Frið 1893, 123) and which could be understood to contain the element húnn ‘bear cub’ or ‘boy, young man’ (cf. LP: húnn). The slight emendation to smábörn ‘little children’ was proposed by Falk, and seems far more probable than the over-ingenious bear cub hypothesis. Both Skj B and Skald emend to smábǫrnum (dat. pl.), though henda ‘catch, seize’ takes the acc.

grammar

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