Hjþ Lv 8VIII (HjǪ 19)/8 — mun ‘will’
Gakk þú framar hóti, fyrr en þú á seyði dragir
þenna þjóðkonung; þú ert flagð it hraustasta.
Ettu fram járnhrömmum, ef þú afli treystir,
drós in dulrífa, en ek mun dvergasmíði.
Gakk þú hóti framar, fyrr en þú dragir þenna þjóðkonung á seyði; þú ert it hraustasta flagð. Ettu járnhrömmum fram, ef þú treystir afli, in dulrífa drós, en ek mun dvergasmíði.
Advance a bit further before you drag this mighty king onto the fire; you are the boldest ogress. Unleash your iron claws, if you trust in your strength, wilful woman, and I will [unleash] my dwarfs’ work [SWORD].
notes
[8] en ek mun dvergasmíði ‘and I will [unleash] my dwarfs’ work [SWORD]’: The phrasal verb etja fram ‘unleash’ must be understood from l. 5. The cpd dvergasmíði ‘dwarfs’ work’ has been understood here as a sword-kenning, even though this noun may refer to skilfully crafted artefacts of many kinds, not necessarily swords; however, swords are most frequently referred to in this way, particularly in riddarasögur (see ONP: dvergasmíði). The concept that such artefacts were the work of dwarfs is connected with the idea, expressed in various Old Norse mythological contexts, that the dwarfs were the artisans who worked for the gods and produced their most prized weapons and equipment, like Óðinn’s spear, Gungnir, and Þórr’s hammer, Mjǫllnir (see SnE 1998, I, 41-2).
grammar
Verbs: Preterite-present verbs
The present tense of these verbs is like the past tense of strong verbs, and their past tense is weak.
| eiga | mega | kunna | skulu | munu | muna | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| indic. pres. | sing. pl. | 1st 2nd 3rd 1st 2nd 3rd | á átt á eigum eiguð eigu | má mátt má megum meguð megu | kann kannt kann kunnum kunnuð kunnu | skal skalt skal skulum skuluð skulu | mun munt mun munum munuð munu | man mant man munum munið muna |
| indic. past stem subj. pres. stem subj. past stem | átt- eig- ætt- | mátt- meg- mætt- | kunn- kunn- kynn- | skyld- skyl- skyld- | mund- myn- mynd- | mund- mun- mynd- | ||