PART II
BALLADS
BALLADS
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
I. The ballads of the Faroe Islands aroused the interest of Ole Worm as early as 1639; but the five ballads which he took down are no longer extant, and we know of them only from a reference by Peder Syv[1] towards the close of the seventeenth century. In 1673 Lucas Debes[2] wrote a description of the islands which contained an account of their dances and songs; but unfortunately he did not transcribe any of the ballads. Indeed the balladry and songs attracted little general attention till the close of the eighteenth century, when Jens Kristjan Svabo devoted himself to a careful study of the language and a collection of the ballads of his native Islands.
In 1781-2, during a visit to the Faroes, Svabo turned his attention especially to Faroese folk-songs and made a ms. collection of fifty-two ballads, which were purchased by the Crown Prince and presented to the Royal Library at Copenhagen. It is interesting to note that Svabo, like his contemporary Bishop Percy[3], thought it necessary to apologise in his preface for making the collection, and humbly claims for it an interest merely antiquarian. It is clear, however from his tone throughout the Preface, that Svabo had a far more scholarly appreciation of the value of his material than had Percy. Indeed it would be difficult to overestimate the debt which all succeeding students of Faroese ballads owe to him. Disappointed in his hopes of public recognition of his work done for the Civil Service, he retired to the Islands, where, in solitude and poverty, he devoted himself, till his death in 1829, to the collection and transcription of ballad material. His personal help and example inspired other Faroe-islanders to make collections for themselves, some of which, notably Klemmentsen's _SandoyjarbÛk_, are among our best authorities for the ballads today. His own ballad collection, still in ms. in the Royal Library at Copenhagen, has never been published; but Schr¯ter, Lyngbye and Hammershaimb all owed their incentive and inspiration to his work. To study the history of Faroese ballad collections without realising the force of Svabo's personality is to leave Hamlet out of the play.
In 1817 the Danish botanist, Hans Kristjan Lyngbye visited the Faroes, where he became acquainted with "the learned Svabo" as he calls him, and also with Johan Henrik Schr¯ter, a clergyman on Suder¯, himself a keenly interested ballad collector, and, incidentally, the first to make a collection of Faroese folk-tales in prose. Partly from these men, and partly from oral recitations and material supplied by Provost Hentze, Lyngbye was able to gather together a considerable body of Faroese ballads which, with the support and encouragement of Bishop P. E. M¸ller, he published at Copenhagen in 1822, under the title of _FÊrˆiske KvÊder om Sigurd Fofnersbane og hans ∆t_.
Unfortunately Lyngbye knew no Icelandic and very little Faroese, and his work necessarily suffers in consequence. Still more unfortunate was his unscientific handling of material and lack of literary conscience, which permitted his cutting out, adding and transposing stanzas--and again we are reminded of the _Reliques_--till the original form of a ballad is sometimes entirely lost. Fortunately, however, most of the material that he had at his command is still preserved. It is to be noted that the qualities which go to make an ideal _collector_ of ballads do not always imply an ideal editor of the material collected. The great collector of Jutland ballads and folk-lore, Evald Tang Kristensen, has started a new and sounder tradition by a reverent in-gathering of all that formed part of the common stock of peasant lore in his day[4]. The sifting of material is wisely left to the trained scholar, and, one hopes, to a later and less intrepid generation[5].
The tradition started by Svabo and Lyngbye was carried on by V. U. Hammershaimb, himself a native of the Islands and a great lover of Faroese folk-lore. During the years 1847-8, and again in 1853, he visited the Faroes expressly to study the dialects, and to collect the native ballads and folklore, which he published under the title of _FÊrˆiske_ _KvÊder_ in the _Nordiske Literatur-Samfund_, the _Antiquarisk Tidsskrift_, etc.
Like Svabo, Hammershaimb eventually returned and settled on the Faroes; but unfortunately, owing to the pressure of his administrative duties, he was never able to spare time for a final revision of his collection, though urged repeatedly to the work by his friend Svend Grundtvig. Ultimately, however, when Grundtvig himself undertook to make an exhaustive critical edition of the Faroese ballads in all their variant forms, Hammershaimb placed all his material in his hands.
Svend Grundtvig and his colleague J. Bloch, of the Royal Library staff, completed in 1876 their great fifteen vol. MS. collection of Faroese ballads with all their known variants, _F¯royja KvÊi_--_Corpus Carminum Faeroensium_--_FÊr¯ernes Gamle Folkeviser_. This was afterwards increased by Bloch to sixteen volumes by the addition of much new material, some of which was collected by Jakobsen in his journey to the Faroes in 1887[6]. Before beginning the work Grundtvig had every available version, whether in public or private hands, at his disposal, so that he had a magnificent apparatus criticus. Unfortunately the work has never been published, so that owing to the difficulties of communication with Denmark (which have proved to be insuperable) it has been impossible for me to consult it. The first three volumes, however, which include all the Faroese ballads translated below, are based on Hammershaimb's collections of 1851-1855. Hammershaimb was himself a genuine scholar with a sensitive literary conscience and a thorough knowledge of all the Faroese dialects, and his work is spoken of in the highest terms by Grundtvig in his article on the _Corpus Carminum Faroensium_[7]. Moreover Hammershaimb had consulted all the other available versions of these ballads before printing; so that it is improbable that when a comparison of the texts can be made much alteration will be required.
II. The Faroe Islands are probably the only place to be found in Western Europe where ballads are still sung to the accompaniment of the dance. The dance and song, it must be confessed, are gradually losing their original character, while the ballads are often long and unwieldy, sometimes, as in the Ballad of Õvint Herintsson, running to five divisions (_TÊttir_) and over three hundred and fifty verses. The verses are frequently chanted in a solemn recitative, while the ballad tunes tend to be confined chiefly to the refrains. The method of supplying the melody, however, is subject to almost endless variation. Sometimes old native folk tunes are attached to special ballads, e.g. in the case of _Vi hugged mid kaarde_; sometimes native ballads are sung to Danish folk melodies and refrains as, e.g. _Grindevisen_, sung to the tune of the Danish _Burmand holder i FjÊldet ut_. Sometimes in the Faroese repertoire, Norse ballads are found complete with their own melodies, e.g. _S¯mandsviserne_, or sung to Danish folk-tunes, e.g. _Zinklars Vise_. Most curious of all is the method not infrequently resorted to in modern times of singing native ballads, often of modern origin, to the tunes of the Protestant Psalmody--a custom which may have had its origin in the common practice of singing both ballads and psalms on all momentous occasions, such as on the night of a wedding, or before starting on a big fishing expedition. The Islanders have little idea of tone or melody and do not sing well; and eye-witnesses of some of the ballad dances at Thorshaven aver that the tunes sound less like dance music than melancholy dirges. In _Folkesangen paa FÊr¯erne_ (_FÊr¯ske Kvadmelodier_), pp. 85-140, Thuren has published a large number of original ballad tunes. The characteristic motifs of folk tunes are traceable throughout, as well as their elusive qualities. Thus we find, side by side with airs based on the ordinary major and minor scales, others which, like mediaeval church music, are based on a 'modal' or 'gapped' tonal system. Indeed traces of the pentatonic scale are not infrequently met with, especially in the tunes attached to the earlier ballads. The majority of Faroese melodies, however, have only one gap and have more in common with the system of notation found in Gregorian music than with the pentatonic scale of many Hebridean lays. A further characteristic of folk music which appears in most Faroese airs is the curious form of close which rarely occurs on the tonic. Not infrequently the theme ends on the leading note or supertonic which strikes the ear with a perpetual surprise, the cadence leading one to anticipate a repetition rather than a conclusion of the air. The reason is that these tunes, like many folk songs from Somerset, the Appalachians and the Hebrides, were 'circular,' that is, formed for continuous repetition to suit the lengthy nature of the songs and ballads.
The ballad however is not a mere historical relic on the Faroes, but a living literary form. The simplicity of the life, and the absence of class distinction[8], still constitute an atmosphere in some respects not unlike that of Mediaeval Denmark, and the ballad is the favourite form of artistic expression. A whale-hunt, a shipwreck, or the adventures of fishermen in the far north are still made the subject of a new ballad, composed by one or more of the community; and if the result finds general favour it is added to the ballad repertoire along with the ballads of Sir Tristram or Childe Sigurth[9].
In his description of his travels on the Faroes 1847-8, V. U. Hammershaimb[10] says that he took down the greater number of his ballads at Sumb¯ on Suder¯, the most southerly village in the Islands. He describes the ballad dance as follows:
It is the custom here that the same ballad should not be sung more than once a year[11] in the 'dancing-chamber,' so that the repertoire is obviously extensive, seeing that they dance at wedding feasts, generally for three days and nights without cessation. In the special dancing season from Yule till Lent, the ballads are danced not only on Sundays but also on the so-called 'Feast Days.' (They do not dance again from the beginning of Lent till the day after Christmas.) The dance at Sumb¯ has characteristics of its own which differ from those of the rest of the Faroes. The people here generally sing well and know how to put expression into the actual dance. Elsewhere on the Islands this is now for the most part reduced to a uniform stamp with the feet, marking the melody of the ballad. Moreover they still continue here in common use both the 'Walking Verse' (_stigingar stev_) and the more rapid measure 'Tripping Verse' (_trÛkingar stev_) of the Round Dance, in which, as a rule, the dancers hold one another by the hand, forming a circle, dancing backwards while the verse (_ˆrindi_) is sung, and reversing the movement with considerable energy during the singing of the refrain (_vigangur, niurl·g, stev_). This round dance is characteristic of Sumb¯[12].
For the most part the dance is now performed with the same speed in both verse and refrain[13], and though little changed since Hammershaimb wrote, it tends more and more to become a solemn and joyless function; and there is a curious unanimity today among eyewitnesses as to the depressing effect it has on them. Hjalmar Thuren, writing in later times (1908), furnishes some additional information as to the manner of the ballad dance[14]. The ballads are danced with special zest on the 29th of July, the day of the anniversary of the death of Saint Olaf, when all the islanders who can leave their homes flock to Thorshaven and dance from sunset till sunrise. Sometimes the ballads are danced in the open air, and it has been the custom in certain districts from ancient times to hold assemblies for dancing out in the fields on certain fixed days. On the 12th Sunday after Trinity people meet in definite places on the Northern Islands. On the other hand the dance is often the spontaneous outcome of the desire of the moment, "as much to keep themselves warm as for the sake of entertainment." Thus after a whale-hunt the men sometimes dance in their wet, bloody clothes, singing the popular ballad of the ca'ing whale with the refrain:
To us bold men great joy it is To slay a whale!
The dance is always accompanied by song, but instrumental music has never been in use on the Faroes. The time and character of the dance are indicated at the beginning of the ballad by the precentor. This post of honour was originally much sought after and some precentors were famous over the islands for their special rendering of certain ballads, some of which were family possessions in the old days.
When a ballad is concluded, one of those who are taking part straightway begins on a new one, the dance frequently continuing uninterrupted, even when the song is ended. The precentor must have a strong voice and great powers of endurance as the ballads are often very long. He is generally of a lively disposition with some dramatic power, so that by imitating his gesticulations the dancers give character and individuality to the ballad. Thus in the refrain to the _Death-Song of Ragnar LobrÛk_:
_We struck with the sword_
the dancers stamp on the floor and clap hands together; but they are solemn and silent during the singing of a sorrowful ballad such as
Queen Dagmar lies sick, etc.
With the ballad dances of the Faroes it is interesting to compare the ballad dances of the Ukraine and also the choral dances of a community so far removed as the Torres Straits. Of these latter Dr Haddon writes[15]:
The dancing-ground was an oblong space.... The drummer with the singers generally struck up a song, but sometimes the dancers sang a refrain or called for a song by name. Each song seemed to be associated with its own particular dance and to be _accompanied by some story or incident_ which was illustrated by the movements of the dancers.
A much closer parallel, however, is furnished by the [Cyrillic: Khorovod] or choral dance of Little Russia. The [Cyrillic: Khorovod], according to the account of an eye witness[16], is not only a song sung to the accompaniment of a dance; but the song is narrative in form and answers in all respects to the ballad of North Western Europe. The dancers join hands and dance in a circle from west to east, in a contrary direction to the sun's movements--_withershins_ as the Scots peasants have it. Then, because it is considered unlucky to do anything _withershins_, in the refrain the motion is reversed and the dancers pass from east to west, to counteract the baleful effects of the first direction. Here too, however, it is interesting to note, the dance is sometimes stationary.
III. Into the rise of the ballads on the Faroes and their exact relation of form and content to the Icelandic _FornkvÊi_[17], and to the _Viser_ of Norway[18], Sweden[19], and above all of Denmark[20], it is impossible to enter here. Perhaps the relationship between the ballads of the various countries of the North will never be fully understood. The ramifications are too many and too complex, while too many links in the chain have already been lost in the "scrubby paper books" such as that with which Bishop Percy found the housemaid lighting the parlour fire. And those who would too hastily dogmatise on the 'conveyance', translation, and borrowing of the various versions receive a wholesome warning from Dr Axel Olrik's analysis[21] of the ancestry and parallel versions of the Scots, Icelandic, Swedish, Norwegian and Danish forms of the ballads of Earl Brand (Dan. _Riboldsvisen_). Moreover it is no easier to generalise about the sources of the Faroese ballad material than about the Danish. The motif of the Faroese _Tristrams T·ttur_, also found in the Icelandic ballad of _Tristram_ comes ultimately (through the Tristram's Saga one would suppose) from a French romance; that of Nornagest, changed though it is in form, is surely founded on the Icelandic Saga; _Olufu KvÊi_ comes no doubt from a Spanish story; and the motif of the Scots ballad of _Binnorie_ is "found also among the people of Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and the Faroes[22]."
It would be pleasant to develop a theory that the purveyors of ballad material were the sailors and merchants who plied up and down the great trade routes in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, or even earlier. It has been suggested by Professor Ker[23] and others that Shetland _may_ have been "the chief meeting-place or trading station between the ballads of Scotland and Norway." The Shetland ballad of _Sir Orfeo_ actually has a refrain in Norn, the Norse dialect spoken in Shetland and the small neighbouring islands till the eighteenth century; while the ballad of _Hildina_ taken down by Low[24] on the Island of Foula off Shetland (cf. p. 217 below) is entirely composed in Norn. Indeed we know from Low's account[25] that many ballads and songs must have perished with the language:
Nothing remains but a few names of things and two or three remnants of songs which one old man can repeat;
and further on he continues:
Most of the fragments they have are _old historical ballads and romances_.... William Henry, a farmer in Guttorm in Foula has the most knowledge of any I found; he spoke of three kinds of poetry used in Norn, and repeated or sung by the old men; the Ballad (or Romance, I suppose); _the Vysie or vyse, now commonly sung to dancers_[26]; and the simple song.... Most of all their tales are relative to the history of Norway; they seem to know little of the rest of Europe but by names; Norwegian transactions they have at their fingers' ends.
One would like to have known more about Norn and its 'Vysies,' which might have formed an interesting and instructive link between some of the Northern ballads. On the other hand, the Scandinavian colonies in Ireland, and settlers in English ports such as Bristol, may have done not a little, through their trade with France and the Mediterranean countries, to spread the new rhyming four line verse and the romantic stories of southern and eastern Europe[27].
While this obscurity remains as to the connection between the Faroese ballads and those of neighbouring countries, notably Denmark, the questions of the age and origin of many of the Faroese ballads in their present form are also frought with difficulty. Of the Danish ballads, which sometimes offer parallels so close as to suggest translation from one language to the other, the first MS. collection that can be dated with certainty was written down in 1550. But there is much evidence, both internal and external, for assigning a much earlier date to the historical ballads at least. It has been suggested by Olrik[28], who supports his view by arguments which it would be extremely difficult to contest, that many of the historical ballads are practically contemporaneous with the events which they describe, and some of these took place in the thirteenth century, while others, e.g. _Riboldsvisen_, are possibly of the twelfth century.
Unfortunately we have fewer data, whether philological or historical, for assigning dates to the Faroese ballads than we have for the Danish. There can be little doubt, however, that the ballads translated below had their origin in the _Fornaldar Sˆgur_ composed in Iceland during the thirteenth century or in some fourteenth century _RÌmur_ derived from the sagas. That many of the Faroese ballads were literary in origin[29], and were based on either Sagas or RÌmur, is conclusively established by the opening lines of many of the ballads themselves, notably that of the _Olufu RÌma_:
Ein er rÌman ur Õslandi komin, SkrÌva Ì bÛk so breia.
("This story is come from Iceland, written in a book so broad.")
And _Trˆllini Ì Hornalandum_:
Verse 1. Fr¯Ì er komi fr· ÕslandÌ SkrÌva Ì bÛk so vÌa _etc._
Verse 2. Fr¯i er komi fr· Õslandi SkrÌva Ì bÛk so breia _etc._
Verse 3. Fr¯i er komi fr· Õslandi Higar i skald ta tÛk, Havi tÊr hoyrt um kongin tann, Õ skrÌvaur stendur Ì bÛk?
("This poem has come from Iceland, brought hither by a _skald_. Have you heard of the king about whom this book is written?")
The passages quoted above would seem to point to RÌmur rather than Sagas as the sources of the ballads. Or had more than one "Book so broad" come from Iceland? One wonders. Heusler notices[30] the tendency to divide up the longer ballads into sections or _TÊttir_, each whole in itself and yet forming a part of the ballad, and suggests the Icelandic _RÌmur_ as the models for this particular form. It is even possible that the word _RÌma_ is used advisedly in the first strophe of _Olufu KvÊi_, instead of the somewhat commoner _KvÊi_, with some reminiscence of its origin. One of the _Sjurar KvÊi_ (_Dvˆrgamoy_ III) begins:
Eina veit eg rÌmuna, Õ inni hevir ligi leingi.
(I know a rhyme (or _RÌma_?) etc.)
and _RÌsin Ì Holmgar_ also begins:
Eg veit eina rÌmuna, Õ gjˆrd er um Virgar sterka.
Many other instances might be quoted.
But it would be perilous to press too far what may, after all, be a mere verbal coincidence. And whatever gave rise to our poems as they now stand, it cannot be too strongly emphasised that they, like the rest of the _F¯royja KvÊi_, are first and last _Ballads_--rightly ballads. They have a form of their own, like other ballads, and are not a degenerate form of _RÌmur_ or a mere versification of some old Icelandic legends. Indeed what Professor Ker says of the Danish ballads[31] may with equal truth be applied to the ballads of the Faroes:
The ballads are not rude, rustic travesties of older more dignified stories; though some, perhaps many, of the older stories may survive among the ballads. They are for Denmark in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries what the older heroic lays of the Poetic Edda had been before them in the Northern lands. They take the place of earlier heroic poetry.
Whatever the nature of their connection with the ballads of the surrounding lands, the Faroese ballads are no isolated growth. They exhibit all the main characteristics of the ballad type, especially of the Danish, Norwegian and Icelandic ballads. Crude and inartistic they often are compared with the best of the Danish and even the Scottish ballads. The _Ballad of Hjalmar and Angantyr_ has little to recommend it beyond its simplicity and naÔvetÈ, the 'quaintness' of primitive literature; the _Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_ exhibits a curious lack of skill in the manipulation of the theme, and perhaps we are justified in assuming that two earlier ballads or perhaps _tÊttir_ have been imperfectly welded. The _Ballad of Nornagest_ is bald to a fault and lacks inspiration; and all alike show an imperfect artistry in diction.
Yet despite all these blemishes they are ballads as surely as _Sir Patrick Spens_ or _Ungen Sveidal_ are ballads. Nor is Professor Ker quite just to the ballads of the Faroes in saying[32] that because of their length, and "because they were made out of books, nothing but the lyrical form and the dancing custom kept them from turning into ordinary romances." Surely no material could be less promising than King Heithrek's Riddles; yet in virtue of what has been forgotten and what has been selected--the telescoping of the riddles and the elaboration of the setting--the ballad spirit has entered in and shaped from the unwieldy mass an artistic whole.
Indeed whatever their faults one realises in all these ballads the truth of Sidgwick's epigram[33]: "You never know what a ballad will say next, though you _do_ know how it is going to say it!" For it is even less similarity of theme than similarity of form that links the ballads of the Faroes with those of Denmark and the North. The invariable accompaniment of the refrain; the fluctuation between assonance and rhyme, the disregard of alliteration, and the general verse form; the love of repetition and ballad formulae,--especially of repetition of whole phrases or verses with the alteration of merely the words that rhyme, or of repetition with inversion of word order; the balladist's love of colour, of the material and the concrete, of glitter and shine; the large element of dialogue; the abrupt dramatic openings; the condensation and concentration of narrative and the strict exclusion of the irrelevant or superfluous; the infallible feeling for a 'situation'; the atmosphere of the tragic or the critical; the "echo, without comment, of the clash of man and fate[34]." All these are the elements that make the ballad a form of literature distinct from other lyric or epic forms; all these are the elements that go to make the Faroese ballads what they are--part of what Ker calls the "Platonic Idea, a Ballad in itself, unchangeable and one, of which the phenomenal multitude of ballads are 'partakers[35].'"
[Footnote 1: Cf. S. Grundtvig, _Meddelelse AngÂende FÊr¯ernes Litteratur og sprog_, in _Aarb¯ger for Nordisk Oldkyndighed_, published by the Royal Norse Early Text Society (Copenhagen), 1882, p. 358.]
[Footnote 2: _FÊroa Reserata_ (Copenhagen, 1673), pp. 251 and 308 (tr. John Sterpin, London, 1676).]
[Footnote 3: _Reliques_, Vol. I, _Epistle to the Countess of Northumberland_.]
[Footnote 4: Cf. W. A. Craigie, _Evald Tang Kristensen, A Danish Folk-lorist_, in _Folklore_, Vol. IX, 1898, pp. 194-220.]
[Footnote 5: Cf. C. J. Sharp, _English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians_ (London, 1917), p. xxii.]
[Footnote 6: Axel Olrik, _Om Svend Grundtvigs og Jˆrgen Blochs F¯royjakvÊi og fÊr¯ske ordbog_, in _Arkiv fˆr Nordisk Filologi_ (Lund, 1890), p. 249.]
[Footnote 7: Sv. Grundtvig, _FÊr¯ernes Litteratur og Sprog_, in _Aarb¯g for Nord. Oldk._, 1882, p. 364.]
[Footnote 8: Cf. N. Annandale, _The Faroes and Iceland_ (Oxford, 1905), p. 42.]
[Footnote 9: For interesting accounts of the composition of new ballads, cf. Lyngbye's article in the _Skandinavske Litteraturselskabs Skrifter_, 12th and 13th Annual, p. 234 ff.; also P. E. M¸ller, Introduction to Lyngbye's _FÊr. Kv._, pp. 14, 15. The _TrawlaravÌsur_ and other ballads, besides the dances and tunes of the Faroe Islands of today, have been investigated by Thuren who published several studies on this most interesting subject, e.g. _Dans og Kvaddigtning paa FÊr¯erne, med et Musikbilag_, 1901. _Folkesangen paa FÊr¯erne_, 1908, etc., (cf. especially _Nyere Danseviser_, pp. 273-282), etc.]
[Footnote 10: _Antiq. Tidsk._, 1846-1848, pp. 258-267.]
[Footnote 11: According to H. Thuren, _Dansen paa FÊr¯erne_ (Copenhagen, 1908), p. 9, a certain fixed number of songs are now sung on Suder¯; a great many have been quite forgotten since Hammershaimb wrote.]
[Footnote 12: It is also occasionally danced in Andefjord, but only very rarely nowadays (cf. H. Thuren, _Dansen paa FÊr¯erne_, p. 8).]
[Footnote 13: _Ib._ p. 8.]
[Footnote 14: _Ib._, pp. 4-10.]
[Footnote 15: _Dances and Dance Paraphernalia_, in _Expedition to the Torres Straits_ (Cambridge, 1904), Vol. IV, p. 292.]
[Footnote 16: Miss Aline Brylinska, who has kindly supplied me with this information.]
[Footnote 17: S. Grundtvig and JÛn Sigursson, _Islenzk FornkvÊi_, in _Nordiske Oldskrifter_ (Copenhagen, 1854-85).]
[Footnote 18: Landstad, _Norske Folkeviser_ (Christiania, 1853); S. Bugge, 1858.]
[Footnote 19: Geijer and Afzelius, 1814-1816, 1880; Arwidsson, 1834-1842.]
[Footnote 20: S. Grundtvig, _Danmarks Gamle Folkeviser_, 1853-1890. S. Grundtvig and A. Olrik, _Danske Ridderviser_, 1895-1919.]
[Footnote 21: _Riboldsvisen_ (a review of von der Recke's _Nogle Folkeviseredaktioner_) in _Danske Studier_, 1906, p. 175 ff.]
[Footnote 22: Landstad, _Norske Folkeviser_, note to _Dei Tvo Systar_, p. 867.]
[Footnote 23: _On the Danish Ballads_ (_Scottish Historical Review_, Vol. I, No. 4, July, 1904), p. 362.]
[Footnote 24: _A Tour through Orkney and Schetland in 1774_, Kirkwall, 1879. Cf. also Preface to _Sˆrla Th·ttr_, p. 39 ff. above.]
[Footnote 25: _Ib._, p. 105 ff.]
[Footnote 26: The _Vyse_, be it observed, is the Danish word most commonly used to denote a ballad. The Faroese use _KvÊi_, and less frequently _RÌma_.]
[Footnote 27: For an account of the Scandinavian settlements on the Bristol Channel, cf. A. Bugge, _Contributions to the History of the Norsemen in Ireland_, No. III, published in _Videnskabsselskabet i Christiania, Historisk-filosofisk Klasse_, 11, 1900.]
[Footnote 28: Axel Olrik, Introduction to _Danske Folkeviser Ì Udvalg_, 3rd ed. (Copenhagen and Christiania, 1913), p. 40 ff. Cf. also Steenstrup, _Vore Folkeviser_ (Copenhagen, 1891), ch. VII.]
[Footnote 29: On the literary sources of the Faroese ballads, cf. Steenstrup, _op. cit._ Introduction.]
[Footnote 30: _Lied und Epos_ (Dortmund, 1915), p. 19.]
[Footnote 31: _On the History of the Ballads, 1100-1500_, published in _Proceedings of the British Academy_ for 1902-1910, p. 202.]
[Footnote 32: _On the History of the Ballads_, etc., p. 202.]
[Footnote 33: Frank Sidgwick, _The Ballad_, London (Arts and Crafts of Letters Series), p. 61.]
[Footnote 34: Gummere, _The Popular Ballad_ (London, 1907), p. 340.]
[Footnote 35: _On the History of the Ballads_, etc., p. 204.]
INTRODUCTION TO GRÕPLUR I
In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries in Iceland, many of the Sagas or portions of them were turned into rhyming verse known as _RÌmur_. Sagas of almost every class were subjected to this treatment--_Õslendinga Sˆgur_, _Fornaldar Sˆgur_, _Fornmanna Sˆgur_ and others. It is supposed that in the first place these rhymed versions (_RÌmur_) were made for the purpose of recitation at social gatherings. There is ground for believing that the _RÌmur_ were sometimes recited, as an accompaniment of dances in Iceland[1]; but this is not believed to have been the purpose for which they were originally composed[2].
According to both JÛnsson[3] and Mogk[4], the _RÌmur_ and other forms of rhyming verse in early Norse poetry originated in the Mediaeval Latin Church Hymns introduced into Iceland in the thirteenth century. The similarity between the rhyming metres of the Latin and many (though not all) of the forms of verse used in the _RÌmur_ is very striking. Whether the influence of Latin hymns in Iceland was directly responsible for the change, however, as JÛnsson and Mogk believe, or whether the Latin hymns only influenced Norse verse indirectly through the medium of French poetry, is problematical. Perhaps these compositions owe their origin to the fashion of turning all kinds of material, likely and unlikely, into rhyming verse--a fashion which originated in France, and from the latter part of the twelfth century onwards gradually made its way over most of the West and North of Europe. The rhyming chronicles of the fourteenth century in England may be mentioned as one instance of this fashion, and the rhyming paraphrases of the splendid prose of Iceland are an outcome of the same movement.
The _GrÌplur_, some twenty stanzas of which are given below, represent this stage in the development of Icelandic literature. It may be observed that, like other _RÌmur_, they are the work of educated people--a fact which makes the wretched quality of much of the verse all the more striking, especially when they are contrasted with the ballads, which are, at least in most cases, the work of the unlettered. Unattractive however as they appear to the modern mind, it has been thought advisable to include a short extract from them here because it seems possible that in some cases the Faroese ballads may have derived their material from Iceland through the intermediate stage of the _RÌmur_ rather than from the Saga direct.
Reference is made to the exploits of Hromund in other _RÌmur_ besides the _GrÌplur_, notably in the _M·lsh·ttakvÊi_, the _SkÌa-RÌma_[5] (which is interesting as being based, in all probability, on an earlier poem than the _GrÌplur_) and in the _Klerka-RÌma_[6]. And he and Thrain the Berserk still live in the popular songs of the North. He is the _Ungen Ranild_[7] of the Danish ballad; and in the Norwegian ballad _Ramund den Unge_[8], Ramund (Hromund) and Hˆlgi (Helgi) appear as rivals for the hand of Svanhvit (who, however, is not mentioned by name). Like some of the Faroese ballads on the _Hervarar Saga_, these later versions are far removed from the story as we know it from early Icelandic sources[9]. They are of interest only to those who care for folk song and ballad for their freshness and their naÔve simplicity[10].
[Footnote 1: Cf. Finnur JÛnsson, _Oldnorske og Oldislandske Litteraturs Historie_, Vol. III, p. 35.]
[Footnote 2: Cf. F. JÛnsson, _op. cit._, Vol. III, p. 36; also Eugen Mogk, _Geschichte der Norwegisch-Isl‰ndischen Literatur_ (Strasburg, 1904), p. 722.]
[Footnote 3: _Op. cit._, III, p. 26 ff.]
[Footnote 4: _Op. cit._, p. 722 ff.]
[Footnote 5: Ed. by K. Maurer, Munich, 1869; F. JÛnsson, _Carmina Scaldica_ (Copenhagen, 1913).]
[Footnote 6: Codex A.M. 604 H.]
[Footnote 7: S. Grundtvig, _Danmarks Gamle Folkeviser_, Vol. I, p. 367 ff.]
[Footnote 8: M. B. Landstad, _Norske Folkeviser_ (Christiania, 1853), p. 189 ff.]
[Footnote 9: Cf. Kˆlbing, _Beitr‰ge zur Vergleichenden Geschichte der Romantischen Poesie und Prosa des Mittelalters_, pp. 185-187.]
[Footnote 10: For further ballads on the story of Hromund Greipsson, cf. Andrews, _Studies in the Fornaldarsˆgur Northrlanda_, in _Modern Philology_, 1911, 1912.]
GRÕPLUR I
9. Olaf was a mighty Prince Who governed Hˆrthaland. The brave folk dwelling along the coast He guarded with his hand.
10. Gnˆthar-Asmund, the Prince's father, A peerless man was he; By many a battle he reft from Kings Their land and territory.
11. In the stern of the King's ship Kari stood, And of heroes many another; In strength of limb had he never a peer; And ÷rnulf was his brother.
12. The King and his warriors reddened their swords In the blood of wicked men; But no man travelling with merchandise Got any hurt from them.
13. The Prince brought joy to his followers' hearts, With Draupnir's beautiful blood. A franklin who better were named a burgess Beside the princes stood.
14. Grip was a man who stirred up strife, Eager with blade for slaughter. This hero's wife was a good woman: Of Hrok the Black was she daughter.
15. Grip and Gunnlˆth, his good wife, They had nine sons in all: (Clever verses are made about them) And _Hrˆk_ did they every one call!
16. Hromund was a son of Grip, Eldest of the brothers was he; His heart knew never aught of fear, Nor faltered his valiancy.
17. Hrolf must I add, Hˆgni, Haki and Gaut, And Thrˆst with the other five; Angantyr and Helgi whose lot it was In the fortunes of war to thrive.
18. Logi was youngest (a tiny lad) Of the sons of the worthy pair; Hromund alone sallied forth to fight in battle, And the rest stayed at home where they were.
19. The hero feared neither fire nor sword When shields clashed in the fray; His shoulders were broad, and shining his hair. And kindly and keen was his eye.
20. He never fled or deserted the host, But poured forth darts on the shield;-- Faithful and true in courage was he As a hero should be in the field.
21. His wicked foe did he slay with might-- He knew no fear of pain; And all his noble courage and valour From his kinsman Hrˆk did he gain.
22. Two villains were there with the King, Deep-versed in magic arts. I swear those brothers Bild and Vali Both had evil hearts!
23. The King of Vali council takes, And a sad mistake made he; A name had he gained for courtesy and valour, But he never donned byrnie.
24. Less trusty warrior in the field I never look to find;-- False he was and treacherous,-- Full of deceit his mind.
25. The Prince's troop, the Niflung men, Along Norway's coast did sail, Until they came to the Skerries of the Elf,-- Nor did their courage fail.
26. The troop had prepared for a mighty battle, And against a promontory Olaf's men in their warships there Lay at anchor in the bay.
27. "Over the Island do ye go,"-- Thus to Kari spoke he,-- "To see if ye come on the vikings' ships, And if they are like to fight fiercely."
28. Kari and Ornulf, clothed and armed, With shield and polished blade Examine the coast, and hastily A search through the island made.
29. Six tall warships soon they see, Under the sea-cliffs lay they; And a '_Dragon_' carved in wondrous wise Beside the warships lay.
INTRODUCTION TO THE FAROESE BALLAD OF NORNAGEST
The _Ballad of Nornagest_ was published for the first time by Lyngbye in 1822 in _FÊrˆiske KvÊder om Sigurd Fofnersbane_ etc. In his visit to the Faroes in 1847-8, Hammershaimb took down the ballad from oral recitation at Sumb¯. He afterwards collated his version carefully with those of Svabo, Schr¯ter and Lyngbye, and published the result in _FÊrˆiske KvÊder_, Vol. I, Copenhagen, 1851. This is the version of the ballad translated below.
Lyngbye points out that Nornagest has become a well-known character in modern Faroese legend. We certainly note his popularity in the ballads, which is no doubt due to his association with Sigurth in the original story. In some ballads he appears as a companion in arms of the latter and even as a great warrior himself. He it is who rides with Sigurth and Virgar to meet the giant in Holmgarth (cf. _RÌsin Ì Holmgarum_, v. 33), and in _Ragnarlikkja_ (cf. v. 39 ff.) "the fierce Nornagest" sails with Sigurth, Brand, and Virgar to slay the King of Girtland; and so too in other stories.
It will be observed that the framework of the story differs considerably from that of the Saga, notably in the opening and closing scenes. The beginning of another story, dealing likewise with an old man, has been substituted for the original opening. The mention of the boat in verse 40 is perhaps reminiscent of some folk-tale; and the story of the leaden casket containing the soul of Nornagest which was sunk in the lake is an interesting instance of the external soul. I have no doubt that it is a reference to some folk-tale, but have not yet been able to identify it. Among many primitive peoples, who can hardly grasp abstract ideas, the life or soul of a man is regarded as a concrete thing which can be laid aside, and which, so long as it remains unharmed, will secure for him immortality. There is, for example, a Hindoo story of a princess whose soul was believed to be in her necklace.--One day an astrologer said to her parents: "This is no common child; the necklace of gold about her neck contains your daughter's soul; let it therefore be guarded with the utmost care; for if it were taken off and worn by another person, she would die[1]."
Many similar folk-tales are known from Icelandic and Danish sources as well as from many parts of Europe and Asia.
The air to which the following ballad is sung will be found on pp. 117, 118 of Thuren's _Folkesangen paa FÊr¯erne_.
[Footnote 1: For many interesting parallels, cf. Frazer, _Golden Bough_ (London, 1911-1915), "Balder the Beautiful," ch. II.]
_Nornagests Rima_
Taken down by A. P. BERGGEEN.
[Lyric: EÌtt er fr¯i um | Nor-na gest, | Lat tÊr r·-a | ra-ger Ì | van-da. | Ti likum gÛum | gekk hann nÊst. | Ox-ar tolv voru | leid-dir · torg, | og so fram · | fri-u borg. | Gra-ni bar | gul-li af |hei-i. ||]
THE FAROESE BALLAD OF NORNAGEST
1. A Ballad there is of Nornagest, Refrain:--_Be ready with a plan in trouble!_-- In manly virtues among the best. Refrain:--_Every lad should do so!_
2. Twelve oxen were led to the market square, And onward thence to a castle fair.
3. The King he thought to hew them to earth, And with courage and joy did he sally forth.
4. The King he struck such a mighty blow That the blood from the wounds did swiftly flow.
5. All the oxen fell down dead, And the axe sank deep that he brandished.
6. All men praised his princely blow: The blood from the wounds did swiftly flow.
7. A man there came with crutches twain: With these he steadied himself amain.
8. The King to the man full mildly spoke:-- "O why, and O why, dost thou praise not my stroke?"
9. "O Sire, thou struckest full manfully; But I saw a finer stroke in days gone by.
10. "Of Sigurth's deeds hast thou heard the worth,-- The mightiest champion of men on earth!
11. "Leaf and grove did tremble and quake When Sigurth clove in sunder the snake.
12. "This may you tell of Sigurth the bold:-- 'He was mightiest of all men in days of old.'
13. "This can I tell of Sigurth's fame:-- 'I know no hero with eyes so keen.'
14. "Leaf and grove did tremble and shake When Sigurth clove in sunder the snake.
15. "A noble man was Hˆgni, I ween, Full well did I know his ugly mien.
16. "Rich, brave and gentle was Gunnar enow, Wise too, and Gunnhild was like him, I trow.
17. "Wise too, and Gunnhild was like him, I trow. Of heroes like him are there all too few.
18. "My father he had a homestead fair: Herds of cattle were pastured there.
19. "And horses I tended as I sat in the wood.-- And blithest my heart when the weather was good!
20. "One and all in their saddles they ride, Childe Sigurth, and Hˆgni, and Gunnar beside.
22. "Over the mire-pit rode all and one.-- I was a lad, and I looked thereon.
23. "First sprang Gunnar's horse forthright. Gunnar measured his leap aright.
24. "Hˆgni's horse sprang after then. Fast stuck Grani in the fen.
25. "The last to spring was Sigurth's steed. Sigurth had given him so heavy a feed!
26. "Grani floundered in the fen: His saddle girth brake in pieces twain.
27. "Down from their saddles each did glide,-- Childe Sigurth, and Hˆgni, and Gunnar beside.
28. "They dragged at the noble steed amain; But Sigurth pulled hardest the bridle rein.
29. "'Oft have I leapt o'er the pit aright By day and eke in the murky night.
30. "'O Guest, a service of thee I pray:-- Wash from my courser the mire away.
31. "'The saddle buckle which broke 'neath me-- The same, O Guest, will I give to thee.'
32. "Forth they rode to a river then. No-one was there to look to the men.
33. "I washed his poitrail and breast for him, His thigh, his leg, and each long limb.
34. "The noble courser I made full clean. Then Sigurth took me for his horse-swain.
35. "So rode we forth to Fafnir's lair. Like the sun's own beams did the gold shine there.
36. "From Sigurth's steed did I draw a hair, Of wondrous length and beyond compare.
37. "The hair in the tail of Grani hung, --Well-nigh a foot and a fathom long.
38. "Well-nigh a foot and a fathom in height. And it shone and gleamed like silver so bright.
39. "In days gone by, full far have I strayed, Nor found I my candle and span of days."
40. The King he gave him pole and boat, And directed the old man on his road.
41. "In the Land of the Franks is a lake broad and wide Where thy candle and span of days do bide."
42. Long and long dived the courteous man Before he came his candle upon.
43. Kˆrnar the priest baptised him anon. When the candle burnt out his life was done.
44. When the light in the lanthorn had burnt away, Refrain:--_Be ready with a plan in trouble!_-- Then ended too his own life's day. Refrain:--_Every lad should do so!_
INTRODUCTION TO THE BALLAD OF HJALMAR AND ANGANTYR
The following ballad was taken down by Hammershaimb from oral recitation in Westmanhavn in 1846, and published at Copenhagen in 1855 in _FÊrˆiske KvÊder_, Vol. II. He took down a second version of the same ballad, but consisting of only nineteen stanzas, at Sumb¯ in 1847, which he published in the _Antiquarisk Tidsskrift_, 1849-50. This second version differs slightly from the one given in our text. In it Arngrim is said to have twelve sons of whom Angantyr was the youngest. Hjalmar is not expressly stated to have been a brother of Angantyr, as he is in our version and in the Danish ballad _Angelfyr and Helmer the Warrior_ (cf. p. 188 ff.). Moreover Angantyr is the first to learn of the franklin's daughter, and he forthwith builds a ship and sails away alone; and it is only later that Hjalmar also hears of her and sets sail, thus reaching the spot when Angantyr has already landed. More colour is given to the maiden's choice in the second version by the additional detail that
Hjalmar leapt so lightly to land, He made no footprint on the sand.
This, however, it is to be noted, is the regular formula by which the landing of the hero is described in the Faroese ballads. Cf. _Lokka T·ttur_, v. 78.
It is the opinion of Hammershaimb that this ballad was the original from which the longer ballad of _Arngrim's Sons_ sprang. This would seem to be supported by Heusler's contention that _The Long Ballad_ of the _Marsk Stig_ Cycle was composed by welding together several shorter ballads[1]; and certainly the _Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_ suggests that at least two distinct ballads have been run into one, especially when we compare the two varying versions of Svabo and Hammershaimb. Against this, however, we have to place the fact that something of the same invertebrate impression is given by the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_, on which these ballads are ultimately based. Even if we assume a composite origin for the _Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_, there is no evidence that any portion of it was based on the short _Ballad of Hjalmar and Angantyr_, while the difference of metre diminishes the probability of a connection.
The air and refrain to this ballad are given on p. 124 of Thuren's _Folkesangen paa FÊr¯erne_.
[Footnote 1: _Lied und Epos_ (Dortmund, 1905), p. 41 ff.]
_The Ballad of Hjalmar and Angantyr_
KIRKJUBÿ.
[Music quarter note=112]
[Lyric: BÛndin | undir | eikini | b˝r, || VÊl | bornir | menn |Eigir hann | ellivu | synir | d˝r! || Arngrims synir · | Bjarn | londum | ber- | jast vi | Sams | oy. ||]
THE BALLAD OF HJALMAR AND ANGANTYR
1. A man lived up in a high oak-tree, Refrain:-- _Ye well-born men!_-- Eleven warlike sons had he. Refrain:-- _Arngrim's Sons from Africa_, _They fought, they fought on Sams¯._
2. He had eleven sons so dear,-- The champions Hjalmar and Angantyr.
3. A ship, a ship did these warriors man, And swift 'fore the wind was the course she ran.
4. They hoisted their sail to the mast so high: They had faith in their strength and their valiancy.
5. Their anchor they cast in the white, white sand. Hjalmar hastily sprang to the land.
6. Their anchor they cast in the white, white sand. And Angantyr eagerly sprang on the strand.
7. Angantyr eagerly sprang on the strand. Up to his knees he sank in the sand.
8. "I drew my hose from my legs so bare To hide the sand from my lady fair!"
9. In the garden they busked them in cloaks of skin, And so went up to the franklin sitting there within.
10. "Here sittest thou, franklin, drinking thy wine: I beg that thy daughter so fair may be mine!"
11. When Hjalmar stood before the board, Angantyr straight took up the word.--
12. "Here sittest thou, franklin, drinking thy wine: I beg that thy daughter so fair may be mine!"
13. In sorry plight was the franklin then, For there at the board stood two mighty men.
14. "No choice so hard will I ever make; The maiden herself must choose her mate."
15. "No choice so hard shall be made by thee: The warrior Hjalmar shall wed with me.
16. "With Hjalmar the Brave would I wedded be, Who is so lovely and fair to see."
17. "O franklin! Lend me a trusty blade, We two must fight for the hand of the maid."
18. "O franklin! Lend me a sharp penknife: Each of us surely must lose his life."
19. They fought their way forth of the hall. They bellowed louder than any troll.
20. Till they reached a river they fought amain, Down on their knees and then up again.
21. Down on their knees and then up again Refrain:-- _Ye well-born men!_-- Till stiff and dead lay those champions twain. Refrain:-- _Arngrim's Sons from Africa_, _They fought, they fought on Sams¯._
INTRODUCTION TO THE DANISH BALLAD OF ANGELFYR AND HELMER THE WARRIOR
Four different versions of the Danish ballad of _Angelfyr and Helmer the Warrior_ are given by Grundtvig in _Danmarks Gamle Folkeviser_, Vol. I, number 19 (Copenhagen, 1853). Two of these, closely allied, are found in a MS. written in the sixteenth century[1]. The version which Grundtvig has called _A_ is the one adopted for translation below.
An interesting study in ballad composition is afforded by a comparison of this Danish ballad with the Faroese ballads of the _Sons of Arngrim_. According to Axel Olrik[2] the Danish ballad is founded on the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_. That the ultimate source of all the ballads of the _Sons of Arngrim_ was the Saga there can be no doubt. But whether the Danish ballad is derived directly from the Saga or through some intermediate stage, Icelandic, Faroese or Danish, is problematical. A definite relationship between the Danish and the Faroese ballads would seem to be shown by several common features of the story which do not occur in the Saga itself, as well as by some striking verbal resemblances which have no foundation in the prose narrative.
Thus on the one hand both in the Danish and in the Faroese ballads translated above, Hjalmar and Angantyr are described as brothers[3], whereas in the Saga they are not related. On the other hand the Danish and the two Faroese ballads are almost identical in their description of Angantyr and all his kin as "vile trolls," though Version _A_ given by Grundtvig describes him in accordance with the Saga as a "half-troll" (i.e. on his mother's side).
Other close verbal parallels, surely indicative of cross-relationship or of a common source, are afforded by a comparison of certain passages of the Danish ballad and the Faroese _Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_. Thus _v. 5_ of the Danish is practically identical with _v. 74_ of the Faroese, and we may compare _v. 9_ of the shorter _Ballad of Hjalmar and Angantyr_. May we also compare _v. 6_ of the Danish with _v. 79_ of the longer Faroese ballad; _v. 8_ with _v. 81_; _v. 10_ with _v. 84_; _v. 14_ with _v. 79_? Conventional as many of these phrases are, the identity can hardly be accidental in all cases.
The precise nature of the relationship between the two versions is not so clear. We may note, however, some of the features contained in the Danish version of the story which are not found in the Saga. In the first place neither Arngrim nor Sams¯ are mentioned, the names Offue and Uthiss-kier being substituted for them[4]; secondly, except in the refrain there is no mention of the sea or a voyage in the Danish ballad. Helmer bids them "saddle his steed," and both he and Angelfyr _ride_ to Upsala. Finally after _v. 11_ of our text, the Danish ballad differs entirely from the Faroese version of the story and also from that of the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_. Offue's revenge is peculiar to the Danish, and here too no mention is made of Ingibjˆrg's death.
From all these changes, and especially from the transference of names and places, it is obvious that the Danish version of the story is considerably more remote from the Saga than either of the two Faroese versions. At the same time, the absence of any reference to Sams¯ or any other Danish locality renders it highly improbable that its divergences are due to any (Danish) local tradition independent of the Saga.
On the whole it would seem that at an early date (fifteenth or early sixteenth century?) a ballad had been made from this portion of the Saga, either directly or through the intermediate stage of a lost rhymed version; and that it was composed in the Faroes themselves or in Iceland or some other region--the Orkneys and Shetlands are a possible suggestion--and acquired by the Danes not very long afterwards.
[Footnote 1: Cf. Grundtvig, _Danmarks Gamle Folkeviser_, Vol. I, p. 252. Also Axel Olrik, _Danske Folkeviser Ì Udvalg_, Vol. I, p. 263.]
[Footnote 2: Cf. Olrik, _op. cit._, p. 78. For general information on the Danish ballads the reader is referred to Steenstrup, _Vore Folkeviser_ (Copenhagen, 1891), translated by E. G. Cox (Boston, 1914).]
[Footnote 3: See, however, the Introduction to the _Ballad of Hjalmar and Angantyr_, p. 182 above.]
[Footnote 4: So MS. _A_; but cf. below _v. 1_ and note.]
ANGELFYR AND HELMER THE WARRIOR
1. Offue he dwelt in Uthiss-kier, Both rich and bold was he; And when two sons were born to him, He vowed they should warriors be.
Refrain: _But the tempest from the North Lashes dark and troubled billows On the gleaming waste of sand._[1]
2. It was Young Helmer the Warrior; He bade them saddle his steed: "I Ride to Upsala this day, The King's daughter to wed."
3. Then up and spake Young Angelfyr, Where he stood in scarlet so red: "O never shalt thou this eventide To the lovely maid be wed!"
4. Then up and spake Young Angelfyr: He bade them saddle his steed: "I will gallop today to Upsala, Till the earth is rent with my speed."
5. Out of doors in the castle-court They busked them in cloaks of skin, And so went they to the hall gallery, Where the King of Upsala sat within.
6. In came Young Helmer the Warrior, And stood before the board; "O King, I pray thee, give me thy daughter,-- I wait thy friendly word."
7. In there came Young Angelfyr, And gold shone on his hand: "O King, I pray thee, give me thy daughter And quit thee from this thy land."
8. Long and long stood the King of Upsala, And pondered silently, How those heroes who stood before him He might answer fittingly.
9. It was the King of Upsala, And he spake this word theretil: "I give my daughter to that man only Who has won him her goodwill."
10. "I give thee thanks, my father dear, That the choice thou lay'st on me; I give myself to Young Helmer the Warrior, For a noble man is he.
11. "I will not wed me to Angelfyr: For he is half a troll;-- So is his father, and so his mother, And so are his kinsfolk all."
12. Then up and spake Young Angelfyr As he stood and pondered there: "We both will take us forth to the courtyard, And fight for the maiden fair."
13. It was the King of Upsala, And answered he forthright: "O the swords they be keen, and the lads they be bold, And may measure them well in a fight."
14. Then up and rose Young Angelfyr Where he his sword out drew; And up rose Young Helmer the Warrior, Whom he to the earth did hew.
15. Offue he stands in Uthiss-kier And far and wide looks he: "O somewhere is Helmer suffering pain, For I feel such woe in the heart of me."
16. Offue he stands in Uthiss-kier And looks o'er the wide, wide heath: "O what can be harming my two sons today, And why are they both so wroth?"
17. It was Offue in Uthiss-kier; He sprang on his red-roan steed. And so came he to the King's courtyard, Ere Helmer was dead indeed.
18. "O hearken, hearken, Young Helmer, Beloved son of mine: Thy noble sword from out thy hands Why didst thou list to tine?"
19. "Eight are the mortal wounds I bear, They are both deep and sore; And had I only one of them I could not live an hour."
20. O it was Offue in Uthiss-kier, And he his sword out drew;-- And O it was Young Angelfyr Whom down to the earth he slew.
21. "Lie thou there, Young Angelfyr And bleed till thou art dead; So woeful was I in my heart When I saw how Helmer bled.
22. "Lie thou there, Young Angelfyr, And lose thy life-blood all. So woeful was I in my heart When I saw Young Helmer fall."
Refrain: _But the tempest from the North Lashes dark and troubled billows On the gleaming waste of sand._
[Footnote 1: The translation of the refrain is somewhat free; but cf. Olrik, _D. F. Ì U._, p. 78. Extreme condensation is a feature of all Faroese and Danish ballad refrains which makes a literal translation into English practically impossible.]
In MS. _B_ of the _Ballad of Angelfyr_ etc., _vv._ 1-11 correspond pretty closely to MS. _A_; but _vv._ 12-18 are different:
12. Alff he stood in Odderskier, And listened over the field; Then could he hear so far away Where his sons their swords did wield.
13. Up then rose Alff in Odderskier; He sprang on his red-roan steed; And came he so to Upsala Ere both the warriors were dead.
14. "O hearken, hearken, Young Helmer, Beloved son of mine: Why does the life blood from thy head In streams come running down?"
15. It was Young Helmer the Warrior, And his father answered he: "My brother Angelfyr could not have the maid, And therefore he wrought this ill to me.
16. "My body is pierced with fifteen wounds, All tainted with poison full sore; And had I only one of them I could not live an hour."
17. It was Alff in Odderskier, And an oak he uprootÈd; He struck with the oak Young Angelfyr, Till he lay on the earth stone dead.
18. Now both these warriors are lying dead, And dead lie they in their grave; And the King he is ready to give his daughter To the man whom he himself will have.
INTRODUCTION TO THE FAROESE BALLAD OF ARNGRIM'S SONS
The _Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_ was first taken down by Svabo towards the close of the eighteenth century. He never published it, but his MS. (III. 9) is preserved in the Royal Library at Copenhagen. In 1848 V. U. Hammershaimb took the ballad down again from oral recitation on Sand¯ and published it in the _Antiquarisk TÌdsskrift_, 1849-1851 (Copenhagen, 1852). He had, however, consulted Svabo's version, for he says in the prefatory note to the ballad:
It is entirely confused in Svabo's version in the Royal Library. I have therefore kept to the version which I got on Sand¯, which in the main points agrees with the Saga. Only in the conclusion and two other passages have I followed Svabo's version.
By 1855, however, it would seem that his view had changed. In his prefatory note to the _Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_, published in _Nordiske Oldskrifter_, vols. 18-19, Part II (Copenhagen, 1855), he writes:
The version given by Svabo is at variance with the Saga and has many internal discrepancies arising mainly from the fact that Hjalmar and Angantyr are here taken to be brothers, as in the Danish ballad. In the _Antiquarisk TÌdsskrift_ for 1849-1851 I published another version which I took down in Sand¯ in 1848, and in which I made some use of Svabo's version. My version corresponds exactly with the _Harvarar Saga_, but it is open to suspicion from the fact that it here forms the second part (_th·ttr_) of _Hjalmar's KvÊi_, of which the first part (_The Th·ttr of ÷rvar-Oddr_) is clearly of later origin; as is shown not only by the language, but also by the fact that the whole falls in with Suhm's story,--"The three friends, Hjalmar, Asbjˆrn and ÷rvarodd," etc. Many verses of _Arngrim's Sons_ presuppose a first _t·ttur_ to the ballad, for example that in which the sick Asbjˆrn complains that he cannot follow his companion to the fight on Sams¯[1]. That the language in the second part is purer and older than in the first part is easily explained from the fact that the people of Sand¯ have utilised the older Faroese version which was taken down by Svabo. They only needed to transpose the verses and to make a very few changes to get the whole readjusted according to the Saga or Suhm's story. The verses which the Sand¯ version has in common with Svabo's could therefore be used for purposes of comparison. There are thus weighty reasons for giving preference to Svabo's version, in spite of all its imperfections.
Of the first part of _Hjalmar's KvÊi_ I have unfortunately been unable to obtain a copy, though it is no doubt accessible at Copenhagen, as it is mentioned as number 60 ('_Hjalmar's KvÊi_, 2 tÊttir: _a_, ÷rvaroddur, _b_, Arngrim's Sinir') in a list of Faroese ballads taken down in the Faroes by Hammershaimb for the archaeological archives of the Royal Old Norse Text Society[2]. Hammershaimb says[3], however, that the first part "deals with Hjalmar's youth, the counsel given him by his father when he leaves home, how he is taken into the retinue (_hir_) of the Swedish King, how he distinguishes himself by his bravery against the vikings, and how he and Asbjˆrn and ÷rvarodd swear to be foster-brothers."
The translation which follows is made from Hammershaimb's second edition of the ballad, published in _Nordiske Oldskrifter_, vols. 18 and 19, Part II[4]--which is in fact Svabo's text; but the refrain of his first version has been adopted.
It will be noticed that the ballad differs in many points from the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_. In the first place, according to the ballad, it is Arngrim and not Angantyr who is buried with the sword Tyrfing[5]. Secondly, Hervik (the Hervˆr of the Saga) is described as a daughter of Arngrim and a sister of Angantyr. Hjalmar also is a brother of Hervik and of Angantyr according to the ballad, and actually accompanies Hervik on her quest of the sword Tyrfing, which according to the ballad took place _before_ the fight on Sams¯. Finally, Arngrim is said to have been killed by ÷rvarodd, and Hervik accordingly kills ÷rvarodd in retaliation. Another 'Young Odd' appears later as Hjalmar's companion in the true place of ÷rvarodd.
Thus we see that, as commonly happens in popular poetry, complex situations have become simplified, and, where simplification has not taken place, the people and events have become confused[6]. Both in the shorter Faroese ballad of _Hjalmar and Angantyr_, and in the Danish ballad of _Angelfyr and Helmer the_ _Warrior_, the simplification has proceeded even farther, and a still more striking instance of rigorous simplification is to be found in the _Ballad of Nornagest_.
No _RÌmur_ dealing with Arngrim's Sons have been published, and I have not been able to ascertain whether any exist, though a passing mention is made of them in verse 74 of the satirical poem _SkÌtharÌma_[7], probably composed in the fifteenth century by Einar or Sigurur FÛstri. _A priori_ it would seem probable that the ballads are derived from compositions of this kind rather than from the Saga direct. But it would be unwise to hazard even a guess as to the balance of probability without detailed knowledge of the relative circulation, distribution and popularity of the Sagas and the RÌmur respectively.
The air to which the following ballad is sung on the Faroes has been transcribed and printed by Thuren in _Folkesangen paa FÊr¯erne_, pp. 132, 133.
[Footnote 1: Cf. also the introduction of ÷rvar-Odd in v. 29 of Hammershaimb's version (_Antiq. TÌdss._, 1849-51, pp. 61-74); also vv. 28, 33, 58.]
[Footnote 2: Cf. _Antiq. TÌdss._, 1849-1851, p. 28.]
[Footnote 3: _Ib._, p. 58.]
[Footnote 4: Copenhagen, 1855.]
[Footnote 5: So Svabo's version; the Sand¯ version of Hammershaimb's first edition, however, preserves Angantyr here.]
[Footnote 6: A still more striking instance of the latter development will be found in the _G·tu RÌma_ (see p. 213 f. below) especially v. 22.]
[Footnote 7: _Carmina Scaldica_ (_a selection of Norwegian and Icelandic Scaldic poetry_) by Finnur JÛnsson, Copenhagen, 1913.]
_The Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_
[Lyric: ArngrÌmur | eigir | eina | borg, hon | stendur · | hˆgum | fjalli, :|| ellivu | eigir hann | synir | sÊr og | tÛlvti er | riddarin | snjalli.
(Refrain) N˙ | fellur | rÌ | man | yvir tann] breia | fjˆr; | har | liggur ein | bÛn- | di | deyur Ì | dˆkkari | jˆrd! | N˙ | fellur | rÌ- | man. ||]
_Variations of Refrain of The Ballad of Arngrim's Sons_
(1) I SÿRVAGI.
[Music]
(2)
[Music]
(3) KVALBÿ.
[Music]
(4)
[Music]
THE BALLAD OF ARNGRIM'S SONS.
1. High on a lofty mountain Does Arngrim his castle hold; He has eleven noble sons, And his twelfth is a champion bold.
Refrain: _Noble men are sailing now from Norway, And a fair breeze bears them o'er the wave._
2. He has eleven noble sons, Each skilled to wield his brand; And mightiest of all is Angantyr Who comes from Bjarnaland.
3. He has eleven noble sons, Beneath oak-trees live they; And Angantyr lives with them there And a warrior bold is he.
4. Arngrim and the Earl's lady, Children so fine had they-- Their daughter was named Hervik, Who governed land and fee.
5. This maiden was named Hervik, 'Fore all men I declare, She tilted in the tourney When the lads were playing there.
6. She tilted in the tourney Among the lads so strong. Then blood was up and blood was shed Ere she had played her long.
7. Down then sat the lads there; Angry were they each one.-- "Better than fighting us so fiercely Go 'venge thy father anon!"
8. Water she cast on her armour; She list no longer to fight, But went and stood before her mother, With cheeks all red and white.
9. "O hearken, hearken my Mother dear, The truth from thee would I know.-- Was my father slain in battle Or did he die on straw?"
10. "No truer tale can I tell to thee, My daughter whom I love: He fell before the bold ÷rvarodd To the South in Isan's Grove.
11. "I can tell thee no truer, my daughter dear Than I tell as here I stand;-- He fell before the bold ÷rvarodd To the South in Isan's Land."
12. She took her quickly to a chest Which guarded gold and fee; She drew a shirt from out the chest, And flung it on Hervik's knee.
13. She drew a shirt from out the chest, All bloodstained where it had lain.-- "Here may'st thou see the very same shirt In which thy father was slain."
14. Up then rose Hervik the Earl's daughter And manned ship hastily; Its cables were of shining gold, All twisted cunningly.
15. Up then rose Hervik the Earl's daughter, And decked her ship so fine, And bade them store within the hold Both ale and costly wine.
16. Tarred were the masts, And black was the ship in hue; The masthead was of the red, red gold, And the sun shone on it too.
17. Tarred were the masts; The ship it was quite new; The golden weather-cock spun aloft, And shone amid Heaven's own blue.
18. Tarred were the masts, The beams scored wondrously; Stem and stern were of red, red gold, And so was the sail on high.
19. All in the middle of the ship's deck The colour shone so fair Where Hervik, the Earl's daughter, Sat on the platform there.
20. She hoists aloft her silken sail, Striped gold on a scarlet ground, Nor ever once does she strike it again Till she comes to Isan's Land.
21. She hoists aloft her silken sail, (The like will scarce be found) Nor ever once does she strike it again Till she comes to Isan's ground.
22. Forth when Hervik's frigate Touched the fair land, Cast she forth her anchor Into the white, white sand.
23. Cast she down her anchor Into the white, white sand; And the first was Hervik the Earl's daughter To spring with her foot to land.
24. The first was Hervik the Earl's daughter To spring with her foot to land, And with her Hjalmar her brother Close at her right hand.
25. There a huntsman met her; He had hunted herd and fee: "O why art thou so sorrowful, As a troll had been hunting thee?"
26. Then up stood Hervik the Earl's daughter, Her good sword out she drew, And with it she clove the huntsman And him in sunder slew.
27. Three cross roads are bending, And one can she descry; Hervik has gone straight forth to the barrow Wherein her father doth lie.
28. Hervik has gone straight forth to the barrow Where her father lies dead and cold. Little recks she of fear or favour, Though quake now fell and fold.
29. Then up and spake the voice of Arngrim, And these words first spake he:-- "O where are my eleven sons gone, Since daughters are visiting me?"
30. "I pass not for my eleven brothers, Or where they share their fee. No treasure have I, save only Hjalmar, Hither brought with me.
31. "O haste thee, haste thee, my noble Father The good brand to give me; Or shall I set fire here to this barrow, And burn it over thee?"
32. Full woe was the champion Arngrim That she should wreck his grave. He seizÈd Tyrfing in both his hands And to his daughter gave.
33. He gave to her the sword then Was wonderfully made.-- The length of it was eighteen ells, And poisoned was its blade.
34. He gave to her the sword then Was wonderfully made. No leechcraft could avail the man Was wounded by its blade.
35. All in the middle of the garden She clad her in cloak of skin; She busked her in a cloak of fur, And entered the high hall within.
36. She busked her in her cloak of fur And entered the high hall belive, Where ÷rvarodd sat before the board With a hundred men and five.
37. "O welcome, welcome, Hervik, Hither now to me Mead or wine shalt thou have to drink As liefest is to thee."
38. "O little to me is thy mead, ÷rvarodd, And little to me thy wine. Today I have come to thy high hall, And a different errand is mine.
39. "O little to me is thy mead, ÷rvarodd, And little to me thy beer; For a different errand did I busk me When I left my home to come here.
40. "I busked me and came from Sweden To fight in this thy land. Stand up! Stand up! Thou bold ÷rvarodd, Stand up, and arm thy band!"
41. It fell full early on a morning tide, Before the sun rose high, Bold ÷rvarodd had a hundred men and twelve Accoutred royally.
42. Bold ÷rvarodd had a hundred men and twelve Accoutred royally. Then up rose Hervik, the Earl's daughter, To meet them gallantly.
43. Up then rose Hervik, the Earl's daughter, So doughty in the fight. She blew a blast on her golden horn, And struck to left and right.
44. It was Hervik, the Earl's daughter, So gallantly she rode;-- She clove to the shoulders every knight Who forth against her strode.
45. She clove to the shoulders every knight Who forth against her strode, Till only ÷rvarodd and his two companions Survivors of the army stood.
46. Under the castle gateway The King crept fearfully.-- "Now mercy, mercy, sweet Hervik, I pray thou'lt give to me!"
47. "Just so much is the sweet mercy Thou now shalt get of me As thou gavest to my noble Father When thou slew'st him felonly!"
48. "Just so much is the sweet mercy Thou now shalt win of me As thou gavest to my noble Father When thou slew'st him cruelly!"
49. That was Hervik, the Earl's daughter, To draw her sword was fain. She has slain the warrior ÷rvarodd And cut him in pieces twain.
50. She has slain the warrior ÷rvarodd And cut him in pieces twain, And all his men so brave and true She has heaped on his corse amain.
51. Up then rose Hervik, the Earl's daughter; Through the greenwood gan she ride; But hawk or hound made never a cry In the greenwood by her side.
52. She hoists aloft her silken sail, Striped gold on a scarlet ground; Nor ever once does she strike it again Till she reaches far Uppland.
53. Forth when Hervik's frigate Touched the fair land, Cast she forth her anchor Into the white, white sand.
54. Cast she forth her anchor Into the white, white sand; And forthwith her brother Angantyr Came riding down the strand.
55. She gave to him the sword then Was wonderfully made.-- The length of it was eighteen ells, And poisoned was its blade.
56. She gave to him the sword then Was wonderfully made.-- No leechcraft could avail the man Was wounded by its blade.
57. Angantyr sits in his high seat, And with his men spake he!-- "O where will I get a make to myself? This thought has been long with me."
58. One and all they hung their heads, And never a word spake they, Save Hjalmar his brother, and better were it He had held his peace that day.
59. "I can no truer tell thee, But and thou list to hear: The King of Upsala has a daughter, And she is passing fair.
60. "The King of Upsala has a daughter As lovely as the sun. Her cheeks they are as red and white As blood on driven snow.
61. "The King of Upsala has a daughter: Of many is her fame the word. Her throne it is of the red, red gold, And stands at the King's own board."
62. "O gin the maiden be so fair, And gin she be so fine, I swear an oath, though ill betide, To call that maiden mine.
63. "O long and long will the journey be O'er breaker but and billow; But I go forth to Upsala, Hjalmar, And thou, my brother, must follow."
64. Then up spake Hjalmar the warrior, And straightway answered he: "The bird feels joy when he spies a corpse, And so do I follow thee!"
65. Up then rose him Angantyr, And manned ship hastily. Its cables were of shining gold All twisted cunningly.
66. Up then rose him Angantyr, And decked his ship so fine, And bade them store within the hold Both ale and costly wine.
67. He hoists aloft his silken sail, Striped gold on a scarlet ground Nor ever once does he strike it again Till he comes to Uppsaland.
68. Forth then when his frigate Touched the fair land, Cast he down his anchor Into the white, white sand.
69. Cast he down his anchor Into the white, white sand. And Angantyr was the first to light With his foot to land.
70. Angantyr was the first to light With his foot to land, And by him Hjalmar his brother, Close at his right hand.
71. By him Hjalmar his brother Close at his right hand; Truly is it told to me He sank to his knees in sand.
72. Up they went from the sea-shore, Those men of wealth and worth; The rollers brake, and the earth it shook As they set their ships in berth.
73. Up they went from the sea-shore, In their clothes of scarlet so fair; Their helmets were of burnished gold, And no man did they fear.
74. All in the middle of the garden They clad them in cloaks of skin; They busked them in their cloaks of fur And entered the high hall within.
75. They busked them in their cloaks of fur And entered the high hall belive, Where the King of Uppland sat at the board With a hundred men and five.
76. Hjalmar went into the high hall With silk embroidered hood. His cheeks were red as lobster's claws, His eyes were like the dove.
77. Angantyr has do'en him to the high hall, 'Twas the custom in days gone by; And all in a word did he hail the King And ask for the maid truly.
78. Angantyr stands on the hall floor, Offers him greeting there;-- "Now hail be to thee, bold King of Uppsaland, Give me thy daughter fair!"
79. Then up and spake the bold Hjalmar, Before the broad board he stood:-- "O King, I pray thee, give me thy daughter Who is so fair and good."
80. Up then rose the bold Hjalmar, Before the broad board sat he:-- "O King, I pray thee, give me thy daughter Who is so wise and fair to see."
81. Long in sorrow sat the King And silently pondered. What he should answer the two fierce warriors, Who stood before the board.
82. Up then rose the King of Uppsaland; Angry and wroth was he: "My lady daughter shall come to the hall And for herself reply."
83. They have led his daughter to the hall, Attended fittingly; And Hjalmar's face grew red and pale As in the high-seat sat he.
84. "Now thanks and thanks to my noble father Who gave this choice to me. Hjalmar the champion from Uppland, He shall my husband be.
85. "I will not wed me to Angantyr: He is so vile a troll; So is his father and so his mother, And so are his kinsfolk all."
86. "Come forth, come forth, thou bold Hjalmar For ne'er so brief a tide. To battle on an island make thee bowne; She shall not be thy bride."
87. Then up and answered Odd the Young: "Once more we are fighting here. You shall go against Arngrim's Sons, And I against Angantyr."
88. "We two, Angantyr and I, Shall fight with mighty strife; I would not that lady Ingibjˆrg hear That I sought to flee for my life.
89. "We two, Angantyr and I, Shall meet in a mighty gripe, And long will lady Ingibjˆrg wait Ere she hear that I shrank for my life."
90. Out then spake the Young Odd, And pondered heavily; "O gin thou go'est against Angantyr, Thou choosest thy death truly."
91. All the sons of Arngrim Rode up the river shore A-tightening of their shield-straps Till they could tighten them no more.
92. All the sons of Arngrim Rode through the plain so green; A league and a league you could hear on the stones The clang of their spears so keen.
93. All the sons of Arngrim, Angry were they in mood. Little recked they for weapons, But tore up clubs of stout oakwood.
94. All the sons of Arngrim Rode up the river strand. It is the young Odd will lose his life, For Hjalmar is not at hand.
95. Odd rode against the Sons of Arngrim, His noble weapons proved he so, And he slew all the eleven brothers Yet never dealt he a second blow.
96. Angantyr and the bold Hjalmar On the island combated. All their followers who manned the ship Are lying now stone dead.
97. Hjalmar then struck Angantyr, So lay he at his feet. "O Hjalmar, give me now a drink, For it comforts the meanest wight."
98. "A drink from out my drinking horn I give thee willingly; But hearken, Angantyr my brother, Today have I surely conquered thee."
99. O he held the horn before his lips, --He the noble warrior,-- And O it was the heathen dog Who stabbed him under the helmet there.
100. It was the warrior Hjalmar, He drew his sword amain; He has cleft his brother Angantyr And cut him in pieces twain.
101. Odd came home at eventide A-riding on the strand, And saw where Hjalmar had sat him there, Marred by the poisoned brand.
102. Odd came home at eventide, Where Hjalmar leant his back on a stone; "O why art thou so wondrous pale, And what has brought thee to make such moan?"
103. "My corslet he has piercÈd, He has scathed my skin so white; The poison smeared upon the blade My heart will surely smite."
104. "Thou didst put thy faith in thy corslet, All made of shining steel; But here stand I in my shirt only, And yet no wound I feel.
105. "Thou didst put thy trust in thy corslet, All made of silver bright; But here stand I in my shirt only, And got no wound in the fight.
106. "Thou did'st put thy trust in thy corslet, All made of silver white; But here stand I in my shirt only Which sword could never bite."
107. Then up and spake the Warrior Hjalmar. The first word he did say Was "Hearken and hearken now Young Odd, And bear me hence away."
108. Then up and answered the Young Odd, He gazed on the rocky ravine: "This fight, O Hjalmar, if thou list to hear Has gone as I had foreseen."
109. He drew the gold ring from his arm; Speech could he utter still; Bade carry it to the lady Ingibjˆrg, And bade him fare him well
110. He drew the gold ring from his arm; All floating was he in blood. He sent it to the lady Ingibjˆrg, That maid so fair and good.
111. She died of grief for Hjalmar-- She the noble maid; I swear an oath upon my honour There lives none of whom the like can be said.
Refrain: _Noble men are sailing now from Norway, And a fair breeze bears them o'er the wave._
INTRODUCTION TO THE FAROESE RIDDLE BALLAD (G¡TU RÕMA)
The _G·tu RÌma_ was first taken down in Suder¯ by a clergyman, Schrˆter, early in the nineteenth century, and is preserved in the archives of the Early Text Society in Copenhagen. Unfortunately Schrˆter was only able to obtain the Ballad in a fragmentary form, and he has left us only a Danish translation of what he found. In his travels on the Faroes in 1847-1848 Hammershaimb made strenuous efforts to get the entire version, but curiously enough only succeeded in getting a version (of course in the original Faroese) which corresponds closely in length and content with Schrˆter's. He published this version first in the _Antiquarisk TÌdsskrift_, 1849-1851, and later _FÊrˆiske KvÊer_, vol. II. (Copenhagen, 1855). The translation given below is taken from the ballad as printed in _FÊrˆiske KvÊer_.
That a longer version of this ballad once existed is proved by the fact that verse 8 of both Schrˆter's and Hammershaimb's versions states that Guest the Blind[1] propounds thirty riddles to King Heithrek--about the same number as are to be found in the Saga, though only some six riddles and the answers to four others have come down to us. Hammershaimb attributed the loss of the others to the fact that the ballad is no longer one of those used in the dance. He was of opinion that the riddles propounded in the _RÌma_ are not the same as those found in the Saga; but it is to be noticed that the subjects of the riddles are in four cases the same, and in the other cases the subjects have the same characteristics, though the riddles themselves are not identical. It would therefore seem on the whole that the subjects of the _G·tu RÌma_ were originally identical with those of the Saga, but that they have become corrupted and possibly confused in the popular mind.
[Footnote 1: Presumably a corruption of _Gestumblindi_.]
G¡TU RÕMA.
1. Guest goes wandering from the hall, Silent and blind is he; Meets he with an eldern man All with hair so grey.
2. Meets he with an eldern man, All with hair so grey; "Why art thou so silent, Guest the Blind, And wherefore dost thou stray?"
3. "It is not so wonderful Though I of speech am slow; For riddles have brought me to an evil pass, And I lose my head tomorrow.
4. "It is not so wonderful Though mournful am I and slow; For riddles have brought me to an evil pass, And I lose my life tomorrow."
5. "How much of the red, red gold Wilt thou give to me, If I go in before King Heithrek And ask thy riddles for thee?"
6. "Twelve marks of the red, red gold Will I give to thee, If thou wilt go in before King Heithrek, And ransom my head for me."
7. "Go thou into thy courtyard And look to thy dwelling, thou, While I go in before King Heithrek, And ask him riddles now."
8. "Thirty are the riddles And one will I propose ... (_Riddles lost._)
9. (_First two lines lost._) Thunder is the red drum Which beats over all the world."
10. "O hearken now, Heithrek my King, Where dost thou know the neighbours, Both of whom use the same door, And neither one knows the other?"
11. "My thought and thy thought, No neighbour is one to other; Both of them use the same door, Yet neither knows the other."
12. "O hearken now, Heithrek my King, Where dost thou know the brothers Who roll far away on the outer reefs, And have neither fathers nor mothers?"
13. "The Western flow and the Eastern flow, Well may they be called brothers; They roll far away on the outer reefs And have neither fathers nor mothers."
14. "O hearken now, Heithrek my King, And what can this be now?-- Soft as down and hard as horn, And white as glistening snow!"
15. "Hear thou this now, Guest the Blind; This riddle I understand.-- The sea it is both soft and hard, And flings white spray upon the land."
16. "O hearken now, Heithrek my King, Where does the sapling grow,-- Its root is turned towards high Heaven, And its head turned down below?"
17. "The icicle on the high crags, No sapling it is I trow, Yet its root is turned towards high heaven, And its head turned down below."
18. "O hearken now, Heithrek my King, Where does that forest grow,-- It is cut on every holy day, And yet there is wood enow?"
19. "The beard which grows on each man's chin, No forest is that I trow, Though shaved on every holy day, And yet there is wood enow."
20. "O hearken now, Heithrek my King, Where dost thou know the brothers,-- Both of them live in the same hall, And have neither fathers nor mothers?"
21. "Turf clods and brimstones, Neither of the twain are brothers. Both of them live in the same hall, And have neither fathers nor mothers."
22. "The sow she wanders to her sty, She wallows on the green, green earth. The boar he grunts and the little pigs squeak, And each makes music with his mouth."
23. "O well do I know thy riddle, And well it shall be spoke; The hammer is raised in every smithy, And falls with even stroke."
24. "O well do I know thy riddle, Though thereof no boast make I. It is Othin who rides upon his steed, By land and eke by sea.
25. "O well do I know thy riddle, Yet of wisdom I make no display. Othin he rides upon his steed By night and eke by day."
26. Othin has turned into a wild fowl, And flown out from the hall; And therein King Heithrek has been burnt, He and his nobles all.
27. Othin has turned into a wild fowl, And has flown far out to sea; He has burnt King Heithrek in his hall, And all his company.
INTRODUCTION TO THE SHETLAND BALLAD OF HILDINA
This ballad has been discussed above, pp. 39 and 164 f. It was taken down by George Low in the course of a visit made by him to the island of Foula in the Shetlands in 1774. He was entirely ignorant of the language, and had apparently no idea as to the meaning of the actual words, though the general drift of the ballad was explained to him by the islander, William Henry, from whom he obtained it (cf. p. 164). As very few remains of the dialect have been preserved, apart from the ballad, the interpretation presents great difficulties. The following translation of the first twelve stanzas is made from the corrected text given by Dr M. HÊgstad in his edition of the _Hildina_ contained in _Skrifter udgivne af Videnskabsselskabet i Christiania_, 1900 (_Historisk-Filosofiske Klasse_, II).
THE SHETLAND BALLAD OF HILDINA
1. It was the Earl from Orkney, And counsel of his kin sought he, Whether he should the maiden Free from her misery.
2. "If thou free the maid from her gleaming hall, O kinsman dear of mine, Ever while the world shall last Thy glory still shall shine."
3. Home came the king, Home from the ship's levy The lady Hildina she was gone, And only her stepmother there found he.
4. "Be he in whatever land, This will I prove true, He shall be hanged from the highest tree That ever upward grew."
5. "If the Earl but come to Orkney, Saint Magnus will be his aid, And in Orkney ever he will remain-- Haste after him with speed."
6. The King he stood before his lady, And a box on her ear gave he, And all adown her lily white cheeks The tears did flow truly.
7. The Earl he stood before Hildina, And a pat on her cheek gave he,-- "O which of us two wouldst thou have lie dead, Thy father dear or me?"
8. "I would rather see my father doomed, And all his company, If so my own true lord and I May long rule in Orkney.
9. "Now do thou take in hand thy steed, And ride thou down to the strand; And do thou greet my sire full blithely, And gladly will he clasp thy hand."
10. The King he now made answer-- So sore displeased was he-- "In payment for my daughter What wilt thou give to me."
11. "Thirty marks of the red gold, This to thee will I give, And never shalt thou lack a son As long as I may live."
12. Now long stood the King, And long on the Earl gazed he:-- "O thou art worth a host of sons; Thy boon is granted thee."
It will be seen that up to this point, in spite of the loss of the names, there can be little doubt that the subject of the ballad is the story of Hethin and Hˆgni. After this however the narrative deviates from any other known version of this story. It would rather seem that--as in the German Kudrun--two stories, originally distinct, have been brought together in one poem.
NOTES
The numbers refer to chapters (sagas) and strophes (ballads, etc.)
THE TH¡TTR OF NORNAGEST
_The Th·ttr of Nornagest._ A _th·ttr_ is a portion (episode) of a longer saga, in this case the _Saga of Olaf Tryggvason_ which is found in the _FlateyjarbÛk_.
I. _King Olaf Tryggvason_, one of the most famous kings of Norway (_r._ 995-1000). He compelled the country to accept Christianity. For accounts of his life and times, see the _Story of Olaf Tryggvison_ in the _Heimskringla_, vol. I, pp. 221-378; and also the longer _Saga of King Olaf Tryggwason_, translated by Sephton.
_Trondhjem_, originally the name, not of a town, but of the entire district round the Trondhjem Fjord.
_A man came to him._ Cf. the _Saga of Olaf Tryggvason_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 71.
_Guest._ Here a pun is intended, the word _Gestr_ in Icelandic signifying a 'guest' as well as a 'stranger.'
_The Contentious._ The word in the text, '_˛ingbÌtr_,' seems to mean 'sharp in debate,' and to refer to his ready wit and astuteness in litigation.
_Guest said that he had been prime-signed._ To 'prime-sign' signified to make the _prima signatio_ or sign of the Cross over a person, preliminary to baptism. People so 'prime-signed' were admitted to certain parts of the Mass and to social intercourse in Christian communities. See the _Saga of Egil Skallagrimsson_, ch. 50 "King Athelstan [of England] was a good Christian.... He asked Thorolf and his brother to let themselves be prime-signed; for this was a common practice with both merchants and soldiers who took service under Christians. Men who were prime-signed had free intercourse with both Christians and heathens, and followed whatever religion they liked best. Thorolf and Egil did as the King asked them, and both were prime-signed."
_Svein Forkbeard_, King of Denmark from 986 (?) to 1014, and of England also during the last year of his life.
_The Emperor Otto_, i.e. Otto II, 973-983.
_Dane-work_, i.e. the Danish Wall still partially preserved, which divided Jutland from the land of the Saxons and stretched from near the city of Slesvig to the marsh-land along the River Treene.
_King Harold Gormsson_ appears to have reigned for about fifty years and to have died probably in 986. He was nick-named Harold 'Bluetooth' (or perhaps 'Blacktooth'). About 974 he fought the Emperor Otto II, and Earl Haakon of Norway aided him. Both Harold and Haakon were forced to accept Christianity, but Haakon afterwards renounced it.
_Earl Haakon the Heathen_, i.e. Earl Haakon the Great, or the Bad, who ruled over Norway, 975-995.
_Guthmund._ Cf. the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_, ch. 1. See also Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, pp. 346-349, where Guthmund is described as a magician dwelling in the land of the Perms. But see _Glasisvellir_, below.
_Glasisvellir._ Cf. the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_, ch. 1. For the name of the tree or grove called _Glasir_ beside Othin's abode in Valhalla, see _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 34: "Glasir stands with golden foliage before the halls of the God of Victory." See also _Bjarkam·l in Forna_, str. 3.
II. _Ulf the Red_ was standard-bearer to Olaf Tryggvason at the Battle of Svˆld (cf. the _Saga of Olaf Tryggvason, Heimskringla_, ch. 56), where he slew great numbers of the enemy.
_The Bay_, i.e. Christiania Fjord and the adjacent coasts.
_King Half._ See _H·lfssaga_, ch. 10; and _FlateyjarbÛk_, 11, pp. 136, 137. King Half had a chosen band of warriors numbering about sixty, who were subject to strict discipline and rules which Professor Craigie (_The Icelandic Sagas_, p. 94) suggests were modelled on those of the JÛmsvÌkings. For instance, "It was one of their customs always to lie off the ends of promontories. Secondly, they made a rule of never pitching tents on their ships and never clewing up the sail on account of bad weather." The incident referred to in the text is not mentioned in the Saga.
_No halls had been built in Norway._ The writer probably means to contrast the stone halls of his own day with the wooden structures of earlier times.
_The Harping of Gunnar_, a lost poem. The legend here referred to is told in _Vˆlsunga Saga_, ch. 37 (and elsewhere), doubtless from an old lay.--'King Attila had Gunnar cast into a pit full of snakes ... and his hands were tied. Guthr˙n sent him a harp, and he was so skilful in harping that he could play it with his toes; and he harped so well that hardly anyone had ever heard such skilful playing, even with the hand. So beautifully did he play that all the snakes were lulled to sleep except one horrible big adder which crept up to him and stung him to the heart. Thus he perished with great courage.'
Gunnar, the son of Gj˙ki, is the central figure both of the Norse story and of the German _Nibelungenlied_, in which he is called Gunther. In reality, he was overthrown and killed by the Huns in 437, after which the Burgundians moved from the Rhine to the district now known as Burgundy.
_The Ancient Wiles of Guthr˙n._ It is generally believed that this is the name of another lost heroic poem. But the title may possibly mean _The Adventures of Guthr˙n_, in which case the poem referred to may be the well-known _Ancient Lay of Guthr˙n_ (_Gur˙narkvia hin forna_). This latter poem is alluded to in ch. 9 below under the title of _Gur˙narrÊa_.
IV. _The Land of the Franks_, the Rhineland. As far back as the fifth century the Franks occupied that region--to the north of the Burgundians.
_Sigurth the son of Sigmund._ The story of Sigurth the Vˆlsung is related in _Vˆlsunga Saga_.
_Hundingsbani_, i.e. 'Slayer of Hunding.' See _Vˆlsunga Saga_, ch. 9.
V. _It chanced one day that_, etc. Chapters 5 and 6 are mainly taken from the poem _Reginsm·l_ of which strophes 13-26 are quoted in our text. _Reginsm·l_ is the first poem of a trilogy dealing with the early adventures of Sigurth. The two remaining poems _F·fnism·l_ and _Sigrdrifum·l_ are used only in the last two sentences of ch. 6.
_Yngvi_ is a name of the god Frey, from whom the kings of Norway and the early kings of Sweden were believed to have sprung.
_Fafnisbani_, i.e. 'Slayer of Fafnir.' Cf. ch. 6 _infra_. See also _Vˆlsunga Saga_, ch. 18.
_The Imperial Power had not_, etc. This may mean either the refounding of the Western Empire by Charlemagne, A.D. 800, or possibly the gaining of the Imperial throne by Otto I, King of the Germans, in 962.
VI. _Sigurth prepared for battle_, etc. An account of this battle is given in _Vˆlsunga Saga_, ch. 17.
_The sea-king's steed._ The text has _RÊfils hestum_, lit. 'RÊfil's horses.' RÊfil was a legendary sea-king. The names of such characters are frequently used in 'kennings' (i.e. poetic circumlocutions) like this.
_Hnikar_, a name of the god Othin in the _GrÌmnism·l_ (str. 47) and elsewhere.
_The Moon's sister._ The text has _systur M·na_, 'M·ni's sister,' i.e. the sun. _M·ni_, the old word for the moon, is preserved in Iceland only in a mythological sense, the ordinary word in use for moon being _tungl_. _M·ni_ and _SÛl_ (the sun) were brother and sister. See _Vaf˛r˙˛nism·l_, str. 23; also _Gylfaginning_, ch. 11, 12.
_Order their array_, lit. 'draw up a wedge-shaped column'--a favourite battle-formation, the origin of which was ascribed to Othin. _Stumbling is bad luck_, etc. So Wilken (gloss. _s.v. fyrir_, 2.) Vigf˙sson and Gering transl. 'It is an ill thing to outrun one's luck.'
_Friesland._ In early times the Frisians occupied a much greater extent of coast than now, reaching from the boundary between Holland and Belgium on one side to beyond the mouth of the Weser on the other--apart from the Frisians inhabiting the west coast of Slesvig.
_The 'blood-eagle'_ was a form of vengeance practised by the heathen Scandinavians in battle when anyone captured the slayer of his father. The ribs were cut in the shape of an eagle, and the lungs torn out through the opening. The Northumbrian King Ella (∆lla) is said to have been put to death in this way by the sons of Ragnar LothbrÛk. Cf. the _Saga of Ragnar LobrÛk and his sons_, ch. 18; also the _Th·ttr of Ragnar's Sons_, ch. 3.
_Hugin and Munin_ were Othin's attendant ravens who gave him information. See _GrÌmnism·l_, str. 20; _Gylfaginning_, ch. 38; _Ynglingasaga_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 7.
_The story of Sigurth Fafnisbani._ The whole story of the loves of Sigurth and Brynhild is related in the _Vˆlsunga Saga_, ch. 20-32. It is uncertain whether the reference here is to the _Vˆlsunga Saga_ as we have it or to an earlier form of the story.
VII. _Gjuki_ is mentioned under the form _Gebica_ in the _Lex Burgundionum_ (_c._ 500 A.D.). Nothing more is known of him from historical sources; but he is mentioned in _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 41, _Vˆlsunga Saga_ ch. 25, and in the _Edda Poems_, as the father of Gunnar and Guthr˙n. His name appears also (as _Gifica_, _Gibicho_, etc.) in the Anglo-Saxon poem _Widsi˛_, the Latin poem _Waltharius_, and in several early German poems.
_Sigurth Hring_, a legendary king of Sweden and Denmark, and the father of Ragnar LobrÛk. His story is related at length in a fragment of the _Skjˆldunga Saga_; and he is probably identical with the _Sigifridus_ who is mentioned in several Frankish Chronicles under the year 812 as carrying on hostilities against another Danish King _Anulo_.
_The sons of Gandalf_ were in constant hostility with King Harold the Fairhaired and his father. They owned Alfheimar and Vingulmˆrk along the Swedish coast of the Kattegat. Cf. the _Story of Halfdan the Black_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 1, 4; also the _Story of Harold the Fairhaired_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 1 etc.
_Gunnar and Hˆgni._ The story of the relations of Gunnar and Hˆgni with Sigurth is told in _Vˆlsunga Saga_, ch. 26 f.
_Jarnamotha._ The locality is unknown. There were large forests in Holstein in the Middle Ages called 'Iarnawith' and 'Isarnho'; cf. M¸llenhoff, _Deutsche Altertumskunde_, v, p. 122.
_hazlewood poles had been set up_, etc. The verb _hasla_, used in the sense of 'to challenge (to a pitched battle),' means, lit. 'to enhazle' a battlefield, i.e. to mark out the space reserved for a pitched battle with hazel poles. Cf. the _Saga of Egil SkallagrÌmsson_, ch. 52.
_The Kurir_ were the people of Courland (perhaps Lithuanians). The _KvÊnir_ were the Finnish inhabitants of the northern portion of what is now Sweden. King Alfred, in his translation of _Orosius_, inserts an original account of Norway and the neighbouring regions which was given to him by a Norwegian called Ohthere. It is there stated that beyond the mountains which bound the northern part of Norway was 'the land of the Cwenas.' Cf. also the _Saga of Egil SkallagrÌmsson_, ch. 14.
_Starkath_, the ideal warrior of old time in the North. Probably originally a historical figure, he became the centre of much legendary matter, and, as often happened in such cases, he was even credited with the composition of many poems, notably that on the Battle of Br·vˆll--an event which probably took place long after his time. In Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, pp. 246-258, he corresponds to the unnamed "Old Warrior" mentioned in _Beowulf_, l. 2041 ff.
_Fenhring_, in Hˆrthaland in Norway, not far from Bergen.
_Lund_, the old ecclesiastical capital of Denmark, situated in Skaane in the extreme south of Sweden. Not only Skaane, but also the neighbouring provinces (Halland, etc.) belonged in early times to Denmark.
VIII. _Starkath had committed a foul murder._ For this story see Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, p. 314 ff. Saxo says that the rule of King Ali or Ole was so hateful to the Zealanders that twelve of their generals resolved to put him to death, bribing Starkath to join them. Although a personal friend of Ole, Starkath agreed to do so, and murdered him in his bath. He afterwards repented bitterly, "and to atone for his crime slew some of those who had inspired him to it."
_Travels._ I have followed the reading _fera_, 'travels,' adopted by Wilken, not _frÊnda_, as in the _Fornaldar Sˆgur_, ed. by ¡smundarson. The latter would read: "The King wanted him to tell him much more about the history of his relatives."
IX. _Germans say_, etc. For the German story of the murder of Sigurth see the _Nibelungenlied_, str. 985 ff.
_Guthr˙narrÊtha._ This is no doubt the poem commonly called _Gur˙narkvia hin forna_, the opening of which narrates how Sigurth's horse came home riderless.
_Brynhild and the ogress chanted_, etc. The following lay is found in the _Edda Poems_ under the title of _Helrei Brynhildar_ ('The Hell-ride of Brynhild').
_From the Land of the Romans_, lit. 'From Valland'--the 'land of the Valar,' i.e. the Celts or Romans. Here the reference is doubtless to the Roman territories on the west bank of the Rhine. In the _Nibelungenlied_, Gunther (i.e. Gunnar) is represented as reigning at Worms. Cf. p. 232 below.
_Assigned me a home_, etc. In the _Codex Regius_ of the _Edda Poems_ this passage runs as follows: "The courageous king had my swan-form and those of my eight sisters carried beneath an oak."
_Hjalmgunnar._ See _Sigrdrifum·l_, the prose following str. 4. "She (i.e. Sigrdrifa) said that two kings were fighting. One was called Hjalmgunnar. He was old at that time, but a very great warrior, and Othin had promised him victory; but the other was called Agnar, the brother of Autha, whom no being would protect. Sigrdrifa (who was a valkyrie) slew Hjalmgunnar in battle, but Othin pierced her with a sleep-producing thorn in punishment for this," etc.
_Fafnir_ was the serpent who guarded the gold hoard on GnÌtahei till Sigurth slew him and carried off the treasure.
_All too long_, etc. In the _Codex Regius_ of the _Edda Poems_ this passage runs as follows: "For far too long a time (? for ever) will women and men be born into the world to overwhelming sorrow."
_The Sons of Lothbrok._ Ragnar LothbrÛk was a famous king who flourished about the middle of the ninth century, and who, according to legend, obtained his name ('Shaggy Breeks') from the shaggy trowsers which he wore when he went to attack a serpent. His various exploits are told in the _Saga of Ragnar LothbrÛk_, and in the _Th·ttr of the Sons of Ragnar_, and also by Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, pp. 368-380, etc. Among his other adventures he is said to have invaded Northumbria, but he was defeated by King Ella (∆lla) and thrown into a snake-pit, where he "died laughing," as we are told in a late poem (_Krakum·l_ or the 'Death-song of Ragnar LothbrÛk'). His death was afterwards avenged by his sons who invaded England in 866. Practically nothing historical is known of LobrÛk himself, though the achievements of his sons, both in the British Isles and on the continent, are of great historical importance.
_In the neighbourhood of the Alps._ In 856, Bjˆrn Ironside, a son of Ragnar LothbrÛk, with H·stein his chief lieutenant, invaded France, and during the years 859-862 made expeditions to Spain, Africa, the south of France, and Italy, capturing Pisa, Luna, etc. There can be no doubt that in their invasion of Italy in 860 the real objective was Rome; but for some unknown reason they returned without approaching it. According to Scandinavian tradition, when they entered Luna they were under the impression that it was Rome, and returned satisfied that their aim was accomplished.
_Vifilsborg._ This place is identified by Wilken with the modern Avenches in the Canton Vaud (Switzerland).
_Make their way there_, lit. 'pass over (the mountains) thither.'
X. _Eric_, a famous King of Sweden in the time of Harold the Fairhaired, King of Norway, in the latter half of the ninth century. He is frequently referred to in the Sagas and regarded as the typical great Swedish King of the past.
_Upsala_, i.e. Old Upsala, the ancient capital of the Swedish kingdom, a few miles from the modern city.
_King Harold the Fairhaired_, said to have been born _c._ 850 and to have succeeded as King of Vestfold _c._ 860. His conquest of Norway was practically completed at the Battle of Hafrsfjˆrth (_c._ 872). He is said to have retired in 930 and died _c._ 933.
_King Hlothver_, i.e. Louis I, King of the Franks and Emperor, 814-840.
_The Saxons_ inhabited a large part of north-west Germany and Holland; but the name _Saxland_ is often used in a wider sense, i.e. the German part of the Empire.
_Nornagest_, i.e. 'Gest (or guest) of the Norns.' The Norns were represented in Scandinavian mythology as women with the power of shaping human destiny. See _Helgakvia Hundingsbana_, 1, str. 2; _Gylfaginning_, chs. 15, 16; Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, p. 223; the _Saga of Burnt Nj·l_, ch. 156. Similar beliefs occur in Greek stories about the Fates ([Greek: KlÙthes]) e.g. the late Greek legend of the birth of Meleager. Cf. p. 13 above.
XII. _Three hundred._ I have used round figures here as elsewhere. Strictly the Norse 100 is 120.
THE TH¡TTR OF S÷RLI
I. _Vanakvisl._ The opening sentence may be compared with _Ynglingasaga_, ch. 1, in the _Heimskringla_. From this it appears that VanakvÌsl is the River Don, though strictly _kv[vi]sl_ means the fork (delta) of a river.
_∆sir and Vanir_, two sets of Scandinavian deities; but the references to the River Don and Asia are due to the learned speculations of later times, suggested partly by the resemblance of _Asia_ and _∆sir_. According to _Ynglingasaga_, chs. 1-4, there was war between the ∆sir and the Vanir, which was concluded by an exchange of hostages. The Vanir gave to the ∆sir three of their leading people--Njˆrth and his children Frey and Freyja. Othin made Njˆrth and Frey temple-priests, and Freyja a temple-priestess. What is said about Freyja here is not mentioned in _Ynglingasaga_; but from the poems of the _Edda_ it is clear that she was the Aphrodite of northern mythology.
_Asgarth._ For a description of Asgarth, the home of the ∆sir, see _Gylfaginning_, chs. 2, 9, 14, etc.
_Men in Asia called Alfregg_, etc. For Dvalin, cf. the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_, ch. 2 and note.
_Lived in a rock_; cf. _Vˆlusp·_, str. 48.
_Necklace._ For the _BrÌsingamen_, Freyja's treasure, see _Thrymskvia_, str. 12, etc. Cf. also _Beowulf_, l. 1199.
II. _Nal_, i.e. 'Needle.'
_Loki._ See _Gylfaginning_, ch. 33; and the _Edda Poems_, passim.
_So much favoured by the great good fortune of his lord._ Cf. _LaxdÊla Saga_, ch. 40 'Mun konungr [i.e. Olaf Tryggvason] vera giftudrj˙gr ok hamingju-mikill.'
III. _Frithfrothi_, the mythical peace-king of the Danes. See _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 43. He is often split up into two different characters, as by Saxo Grammaticus. (See especially _Dan. Hist._, Book v, which gives an account of the great Frothi.)
_Erling and Sˆrli._ Their story is told in the _Saga of Sˆrli the Strong_ (_Fornaldar Sˆgur_, III.).
_Skerries of the Elf._ Rocky islands near the mouth of the Gˆta Elv not far from Gˆteborg.
IV. _Halfdan_, surnamed BrˆnufÛstri. See the _Saga of Sˆrli the Strong_, ch. 11, where he is represented as King of Sweden.
_Roeskilde_, the old capital of SjÊlland, now the ecclesiastical capital of Denmark.
_Ellithi._ See the _Saga of Thorstein Vikingson_ (passim), and the _Saga of FrijÛf the Bold_ (passim).
_Gnoth._ The ship Gnoth belonged to ¡smund, who was called after it 'Gnoar-¡smund.' Cf. the _Saga of Egil and Asmund_, ch. 17; and the _Saga of GrÌm Loinkinni_, ch. 3. See also the _Saga of Hromund Greipsson_, ch. 1.
_Long Serpent_, i.e. the warship of Olaf Tryggvason.
_As is told in the poem_, etc. The poem is now lost.
_The poem of which he is the subject._ The Saga here quotes a difficult and obscure stanza which I have omitted.
_Hˆgni ... went raiding in the Baltic_, etc. In _Widsi_ l. 21, Hˆgni is said to have ruled the _Holmryge_, i.e., no doubt, the Rugii on the coast of Pomerania.
V. _Hjarrandi_ is the name of Hethin's father in all the Norse forms of the story; but originally this would seem to have been the name of Hethin's minstrel--the _HÙrant_ of _Kudrun_, and the _Heorrenda_ of _Deor_.
_Serkland_, i.e. Africa, 'Saracen Land.' It is only in this story that Hethin is said to come from here. Saxo Grammaticus calls him a Norwegian. Cf. also _Widsi˛_, l. 21, which gives the name of an unknown people.
_Gˆndul_, the name of one of the Valkyries. See _Vˆlusp·_, str. 31; _H·konarm·l_, passim; _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, chs. 2 and 47.
VI. _Heithrek Ulfham._ For Heithrek Ulfham see the _Saga of Hervˆr and Heithrek_, ch. 16.
VII. _She asked him._ I have followed Rafn's text. The ReykjavÌk ed. apparently has a misprint here--_hann_ for _hÛn_.
_He thrust the Queen down in front of the prow_, etc. The murder of the Queen is peculiar to this saga.
VIII. _This harrowing torment continued_, etc. A good deal has been written on the subject of the Unending Battle, which many writers believe to have been of mythological origin. Very often, however, it appears in local traditions. See Frazer's _Pausanias_, vol. II, p. 443 (the reference to the Battle of Marathon), where a considerable number of parallels are given. See also Panzer, _Hilde-Gudrun_, p. 328. Cf. p. 43, note I above.
_Olaf Tryggvason._ See the _Th·ttr of Nornagest_, ch. 1 and note.
IX. _Jarnskjˆld._ Cf. _Fornmanna Sˆgur_, vol. III, p. 125 ff. (_Saga of Olaf Tryggvason_).
_Glance of his eye_, etc. Literally, "He has the _Êgishj·lmr_." This is a poetical expression for a glance inspiring terror.
THE SAGA OF HROMUND GREIPSSON
I. _Gnothar-Asmund_, i.e. Asmund of the Gnoth, who was so called from his ship 'Gnoth' (cf. p. 230 above). For an account of him see the _Saga of Egil and Asmund_ (in _Fornaldar Sˆgur_, vol. III), especially ch. 17. He is mentioned also in the _Saga of GrÌm Loinkinni_, ch. 2. A different account of Olaf's family is given in _Gˆngu-HrÛlfs Saga_, ch. 38.
_Garthar in Denmark._ The geography of the story is by no means clear. Elsewhere in this saga Olaf's realm would seem to be situated in Sweden, while references in other works, e.g. _Landn·mabÛk_, I, ch. 3, _Hversu Noregr Bygthist_, ch. 2 (_Fornaldar Sˆgur_, II, p. 7) etc., point to Norway, especially the provinces of Thelamˆrk and Hˆrthaland, as the home of Hromund and his family.
_Hromund._ According to _Landn·mabÛk_, I, ch. 3, Ingolf and Leif, the first settlers in Iceland (A.D. 874) were the great grandsons of Hromund Greipsson. This would seem to show that he lived in the second half of the eighth century. See also the _Saga of Halfdan Eysteinsson_, ch. 1.
_Bild and Voli._ For these names, see Introduction to this saga, p. 59, and the note to _Mistletoe_ below.
_Ulfasker._ A corruption of _Elfasker_. Cf. _GrÌplur_, str. 25, and note to _Skerries of the Elf_, p. 229 above.
_Dragon_, a common term for a large type of warship in the Viking Age.
_Scoundrels._ The text has _Bl·menn_, i.e. lit. 'Black men', negroes. But in the Romantic Sagas, owing probably to the influence of stories relating to the Saracens, pirates are described as _Bl·menn_, even in stories relating exclusively to the North. Cf. _The Ballad of Hj·lmar and Angantyr_ (refrain), p. 184, above.
II. _I am going to be Othin's guest_, is a euphemism for 'be slain,' and is equivalent to 'go to Valhalla,' the abode of slain warriors which belonged to Othin. See the _Saga of Egil SkallagrÌmsson_, ch. 81, where Thorgerth, Egil's daughter, says that she will have no supper till she "sup with Freyja."
_No blade would wound Hrˆngvith._ It is not uncommon to hear that a warrior, usually an unsympathetic character, was immune through spells from wounds inflicted by weapons; cf. _Beowulf_, l. 804, where this is stated of Grendel.
III. _Hebrides._ The word _Suthreyjar_, here translated Hebrides, properly means all the islands off the west coast of Scotland. The modern form of the word is _Sodor_, surviving in the name of the diocese of 'Sodor and Man.'
_Ghosts._ It will be seen from the context that the word _draugr_ here translated 'ghost,' is in reality the animated corpse of the dead man. This is a common feature of Norse stories (e.g. the _Saga of Grettir the Strong_, ch. 18).
IV. _Valland_, i.e. France, lit. the 'Land of the _Valar_,' i.e. of the Celts or Romans. In Anglo-Saxon literature the French are sometimes called _Galwalas_, i.e. the 'Walas (Welsh) of Gaul'. See also the _Th·ttr of Nornagest_, ch. 9 and note.
_And he added_, etc. Are we to assume a lacuna here? The composition of this saga is however far from perfect. In certain passages (e.g. at the beginning of this chapter) one is inclined to suspect that someone has tried to combine two different texts of the story.
_Finger nails_, etc. Cf. the physiological fact of the growth of the finger nails after death, and the legend of Charlemagne according to which his beard grew through a stone table after his death.
_Gunnlˆth._ Other documents appear to make Hromund a Norwegian, and this is what we should gather from _Landn·mabÛk_ quoted above (p. 231, note). See _Hversu Noregr Bygist_, ch. 2.
_Mistletoe_, the name of the sword again connects this story with that of Balder who is stated in _Vˆlusp·_, str. 32 and _Gylfaginning_, ch. 49 to have been killed by a piece of mistletoe.
V. _Dagny_, the wife of IngjÛld, who was the friend of GrÌm Lothinkinni. See the _Saga of GrÌm Loinkinni_, ch. 3.
_H·logaland._ See _Hervarar Saga_, ch. 1 and note; and also the Sagas of _Ketil HÊng_ and _GrÌm Loinkinni_.
_Voli and Bild_, etc. At this point the writer of the saga has omitted part of the dialogue in which Olaf threatens to hang Hromund. Cf. _GrÌplur_, p. 383, str. 20, 21.
VI. _Helgi_ is known elsewhere as Helgi Haddingjaskati, e.g. in the short text called _Hversu Noregr Bygist_, ch. 2 (_Fornaldar Sˆgur_, II, p. 7). According to the prose at the end of _Helgakvia Hundingsbana_ II, Helgi Haddingjaskati and Kara were reincarnations of Helgi Hundingsbani and Sigr˙n, the hero and heroine of this poem. Their story was given in a poem called _K·ruljÛ_ which is now lost. See however Vigf˙sson and Powell, _Corpus Poeticum Boreale_, vol. I, pp. 129 and 130.
_On the frozen surface of Lake Vener._ This story is perhaps taken from that of the battle related in _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 43 and _Ynglingasaga_, ch. 33. Cf. _Beowulf_, l. 2392 ff.
_Kara._ For the form _Lara_ which appears in the printed editions see p. 62, note, above. In the prose at the end of _Helgakvia Hundingsbana_ II, Kara is called a valkyrie.
VIII. _Hagal._ The story of Hagal and Blind is given also at the beginning of _Helgakvia Hundingsbana_ II; but here the person disguised as a grinding-maid is Helgi, the hero of the poem.
X. _Who was also called Bavis_; cf. _Helgakv. Hund_. II, str. 2, where he is called _Blindr enn bˆlvÌsi_ ('skilled in harmful doings').
SAGA OF HERV÷R AND HEITHREK
I. _Finnmark_, i.e. the northernmost part of the Scandinavian Peninsula.
_Jˆtunheimar_, i.e. the homes of the _jˆtnar_ or giants. This name occurs frequently in Norse stories, though it is not elsewhere connected with Finnmark.
_Ymisland_, i.e. the land of _›mir_; see below.
_Halogaland_, i.e. the northern part of Norway stretching from about lat. 65∞ as far as Finnmark.
_Guthmund._ Cf. the _Th·ttr of Nornagest_, ch. 1 and note.
_Glasisvellir._ Cf. the _Th·ttr of Nornagest_, ch. 1, and note.
_Fields of immortality_, i.e. lit. 'Fields of the not dead' (_Ûdainsakr_). Cf. the _Saga of EirÌkr VÌfˆrla_, ch. 1, and the _Saga of H·lfdan Eysteinsson_, ch. 1. See also Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, p. 129.
_Hˆfund._ The name means lit. 'Judge.'
_Ymir_, i.e. the old 'Rime-giant,' the first being created out of Chaos, from whom the giants sprang; cf. _Vˆlusp·_, str. 3; _Vaf˛r˙˛nism·l_, str. 21; _GrÌmnism·l_, str. 40; _HyndluljÛ_, str. 33; _Gylfaginning_, chs. 5-8.
_Starkath Aludreng._ See _Gautreks Saga_, ch. 3, according to which this Starkath is the grandfather of his more famous namesake, for whom see the _Th·ttr of Nornagest_, ch. 7 and note. See also Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, pp. 224, 225.
_Elivagar._ See _Vaf˛r˙˛nism·l_, str. 31; _Gylfaginning_, ch. 5; _Hymiskvia_, str. 5.
_Alfheimar_, a name given to the region between the G¯taelv and the River Glommen, in the south-east of Norway (now mainly in Sweden). The royal family of this region is frequently mentioned in the history of Harold the Fairhaired and his father, and also in the stories of Sigurth Hring. See the _Th·ttr of Nornagest_, ch. 7 and note.
_Ey-grim Bolm_, i.e. 'Grim of the Island of Bolm.'
_Arngrim._ See Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, p. 203 ff.
_Berserk._ See _Ynglingasaga_, ch. 6.
II. _Dwarfs._ Cf. the story of Svegir in _Ynglingasaga_, ch. 15.
_Dvalin_ is the name of a dwarf in _Vˆlusp·_, str. 11, 14; _H·vam·l_, str. 143, and in other of the _Edda_ poems. It is, in fact, the typical name for a dwarf. Cf. also _Gylfaginning_, ch. 14, and _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 3, 57. _Dulin_ does not occur elsewhere, though _Durin_ is found in _Vˆlusp·_, str. 10.
_Standing in the doorway of the stone_, etc. Cf. _Vˆlusp·_, str. 48.
_Your sword_, etc. Cf. _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 49. "Now I have drawn _D·insleif_, which the dwarfs made and which must cause a man's death every time it is drawn, and never fails in its stroke."
_Tyrfing._ It has been suggested that this name is derived from _tyrfi_, 'resinous fir-tree,' owing to its flaming like resinous fir-wood. In early times it was customary for swords to be called by names ending in _-ing_. Cf. the swords _Hrunting_ in _Beowulf_, l. 1457, etc., _Nagling_, _ibid._, l. 2680, and _Mimming_ in _Waldhere_, l. 3, etc., etc.
_Perms._ The text has _um Bjarmaland_ 'in the land of the Bjarmar,' i.e. the _Beormas_ of Ohthere's Voyage in Alfred's translation of _Orosius_. It is generally reached, not as here, apparently, by the Baltic, but by voyages round the North Cape. The name is generally supposed to be connected with _Perm_, and in early times may have comprehended the Zyrianians, as well as the Permians proper and the Votiaks. There is some evidence from place-names that this group of languages was once spoken as far west as the White Sea. Cf. Abercromby, _The Pre- and Proto-historic Finns_, p. 10 f.
_Svafrlami._ The text (H) followed by the Reykjavik edition here has Sigrlami--which can hardly be right. Rafn's ed. reads Svafrlami.
_Twelve sons._ For Arngrim's Sons, Cf. _HyndluljÛth_, str. 23, 24; Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, pp. 203-205; _Saga of ÷rvar Odd_, ch. 14.
_Twins._ See the _Saga of Harold the Fairhaired_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 18, where again we find twins both receiving the same name.
_Mistletoe._ A sword of the same name occurs in the _Saga of Hromund Greipsson_ (see above).
_Hrotti._ Cf. _Hrunting_, the sword of Hunferth in _Beowulf_, l. 1457 etc. See also the note to _Tyrfing_, p. 235.
III. _Yule_, a festival of heathen times, approximately at Christmas, but rather later.
_Feast_, lit. 'At the Bragi-cup.' The custom of making vows in connection with these toasts was carried on into Christian times, an interesting example being found in the _Saga of Olaf Tryggvason_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 39. See also the _Saga of Haakon the Good_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 16; and _Helgakvia HjˆrvarssÛnar_, str. 32.
_Angantyr made a vow._ In the Royal MS. (see p. 79) it is Hjˆrvarth who makes the vow and subsequently claims the bride.
_Yngvi_ is the family name of the early Swedish kings. Collectively the early Swedish royal family were called _Ynglingar_. Cf. _Ynglingasaga_, ch. 20.
_Never did he_, etc. Compare what is said of Hˆgni's sword in _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 49.
_Sams¯._ The fight at Sams¯ is described in another MS. of this saga (which is translated in the appendix to Part I, p. 145 ff. above and which contains also the _Death-song of Hjalmar_), as well as in the _Saga of ÷rvar Odd_, ch. 14, and in Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, p. 205. The Island of Sams¯ is situated half way between Jutland and SjÊlland.
IV. _Exposing the child_, etc. For the custom of exposing infants, especially girls, at birth, so as to cause their death, see the _Saga of Gunnlaug Ormstungu_, ch. 3, the _Saga of Finnbogi Rammi_, etc. A similar custom prevailed in Ancient Greece. Cf. Plato, _Rep._ v, 461; Aristophanes, _Clouds_, l. 530 f.
_Sprinkled with water._ Sprinkling a child with water when a name was given to it appears to have been customary in heathen times. Cf. the _Saga of Harold the Fairhaired_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 40; the _Saga of Haakon the Good_, ch. 12; the _Saga of Egil Skallagrimsson_, ch. 31; _Vˆlsunga Saga_, ch. 13.
_She grew up_, etc. Cf. the description of the later Hervˆr in ch. 10.
_Here is a poem_, etc. The poem is probably earlier than the Saga in its present form. Heusler (_Eddica Minora_, p. xxi) refers it to the early part of the twelfth century.
_I will give you my necklace_, etc. Note the discrepancy between the poem and the prose at this point. In the former it would seem to be Hervˆr who offers a necklace, and this is what we should expect.
_Foolish is he who comes here alone_, etc. Cf. J. M. Synge, _The Aran Islands_, III: "We went up on the dun, where Michael said he had never been before after nightfall, though he lives within a stone's throw.... These people make no distinction between the natural and the supernatural."
V. _Ghosts_, i.e. the animated corpses of the people buried there.
_Nor other kinsman._ There is a lacuna in the text of the ms. at this point.
VI. _Bring up the child_, etc. It was customary for men in high station to send their children to be brought up and educated in the houses of relatives and friends.
_Reithgotaland_ is here explained as Jutland; but in ch. 9, Heithrek's subjects are described as _Gotar_, i.e. Goths; and in the latter part of the Saga, from ch. 12 onwards, the subject is clearly a war between the Goths and Huns. The earliest occurrence of the word (in the Swedish Inscription of Rˆk; cf. also _Vaf˛r˙˛nism·l_, str. 12) gives not _Reithgotaland_, but _Hraithgotaland_, which suggests that the name may be connected in some way with _Hrethgotan_, a name applied to the Goths in Anglo-Saxon poetry.
VII. _Divination._ The phrase means literally, 'The casting of bits of wood at the sacrifice.' Cf. Tacitus, _Germania_, ch. 10.
_Every second man._ _annanhv·rn_, apparently for _annanhvern_.
_Hall of the DÌs._ It is not clear who the _dÌs_ was, as the word is used rather loosely for supernatural female beings. Another reference to the _Hall of the DÌs_ occurs in _Ynglingasaga_, ch. 33. One of the goddesses (Freyja?) may be meant; or it may be the guardian spirit of the family.
VIII. _Land of the Saxons._ Cf. the _Th·ttr of Nornagest_, ch. 10 and note.
_Sifka and Hlˆth._ The names here mentioned, together with _Heithrek_ and _Angantyr_, are believed by some scholars to recur in _Widsi˛_, l. 116, where we find
_Heaoric and Sifecan, Hlie and Incgeneow_,
mentioned as being among the followers of Eormenric. These names clearly come from Gothic tradition, but the passage would seem to suggest that _Sifeca_ was a man, the Sibich of the German poems. Cf. Chambers, _Widsith_, p. 32. For the name Lotherus in Saxo, see note to ch. 12, p. 242.
_Holmgarth_, i.e. Novgorod.
IX. _Wendland_, i.e. the 'Land of the Slavs' (Anglo-Saxon _Weonodland_). After the expansion of the Slavs, from the fifth century onwards, this term came to denote an enormous expanse of country, including the coast of Eastern Germany, to which it is applied in the account of the voyage of Wulfstan in Alfred's translation of _Orosius_. In earlier times, when the Goths still occupied Poland and Galicia, the Slavs were restricted to the regions east of these countries.
_His horse fell dead._ Here the point of the story seems to be missed, or at least not clearly expressed. According to Hˆfund's fifth maxim (see ch. 6), Heithrek was not to ride his best horse when he was in a hurry.
X. _They had a daughter._ From our text it would appear that Hervˆr was the daughter of Sifka; but the end of ch. 9 is probably a late addition to the text. In the text printed by Rafn, Hervˆr is expressly stated to be a daughter of Hergerth.
_Ormar_ is presumably to be identified with the _Wyrmhere_ mentioned in _Widsi˛_, l. 119, in connection with the war waged by the Goths against the Huns in defence of their ancient fatherland, round the forest of the Vistula.
_Gestumblindi._ For this curious name, cf. the _Gestiblindus Gothorum rex_ mentioned by Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, p. 198 ff.
_In the King's retinue there were seven men_, etc. In the text (_a_) of this saga printed in Rafn's edition (_Fornaldar Sˆgur_, I, p. 462), there are said to be twelve men here. This is no doubt the right figure, twelve being the regular number in the judicial councils of the North, whether historical or legendary. Thus, e.g. in the _Saga of Olaf the Holy_ (_Heimskringla_), ch. 96 we read of a council of twelve sages (_spekingar_), whose duty it was to advise the Swedish king, especially in the administration of justice. Similar councils existed in the Danish settlements in England. Thus Lincoln and Stamford had each a council of twelve (cf. Stubbs, _Const. Hist._, I, p. 106, and n. 4). We may compare the twelve priests who officiated in the sacrifices at MÊren (cf. the _Saga of Olaf the Holy, Heimskr_. ch. 115), and the story of the twelve gods who were appointed by Othin as temple priests (_hof-goar_) to keep up the sacrifices and administer justice among men; cf. _Ynglingasaga_, ch. 2 (_HyndluljÛ_, str. 30; _Gautrekssaga_, ch. 7). In the Irish _Lay of Magnus Barelegs_, the Norwegians are referred to as _Clann an d· [.c]o[.m]airlea[.c] dÈag_ ('children or clan of the twelve councillors'). Cf. _Laoi[.d] Ma[.g]nius Moir_ (_Reliques of Irish Poetry_, by Charlotte Brooke, Dublin 1789, p. 274).
_King Heithrek worshipped Frey._ One text quoted by Rafn (_Verelius_) has _Freyja_ for _Frey_. The boar appears in stories relating to both these deities, e.g. _Gylfaginning_, ch. 49; _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. 35; _HyndluliÛ_, str. 5, 7.
XI. _I would that I had that_, etc. On these riddles see Heusler, _Eddica Minora_, p. xc ff.; 'Diealtnordischen R‰tsel' in _Zeitschrift des Vereins f¸r Volkskunde_, XI, p. 117 ff.; Tupper, _Modern Language Notes_, 18, p. 103; _The Riddles of the Exeter Book_, p. lii, etc. In the original the riddles are all in verse, while the King's answers, except the refrain with which they begin ("Your riddle is a good one," etc.) are in prose.
_You went over a bridge_, etc. The metrical text given by Rafn (_Fornaldar Sˆgur_, I, p. 466), has: "A bird flew above thee, a fish swam beneath thee, thou did'st go over a bridge." The prose text given on the same page has: "Thou did'st go over a bridge, and the course of the river was beneath thee, but birds were flying over thy head and on both sides of thee, and that was their road."
_Delling's doorway._ Delling (perhaps from an obsolete word _dallr_, 'bright, shining') is mentioned in _Vaf˛r˙˛nism·l_, str. 25, as the 'father of Day.' Possibly he may originally have been a personification of day itself. The expression "before Delling's doorway" occurs also in _H·vam·l_, str. 160, where it has been thought to mean 'at sunrise.' See also the genealogy in _Hversu Noregr Bygist_, ch. I (_Fornaldar Sˆgur_, II, p. 6), where a certain Svanhild is said to be the daughter of Day, the son of Delling, and of SÛl (i.e. the sun), the daughter of Mundilfari (cf. _Gylfaginning_, ch. II).
_Wolves are always struggling for it._ See _Gylfaginning_, ch. 12 (from _GrÌmnism·l_, str. 39).
_He who made it_, etc. I have followed Heusler's reading and read _er_ for _ker_ and _˛Û_ or _sj·_ for _˛·_.
_Laying their eggs._ For _verja_ read _verpa_.
_Have no husbands._ For _eigu_, read _eigut_, as on p. 121.
_Game of chess._ The text has _hneftafl_, i.e. a game having certain features in common with chess which was played in Iceland till the introduction of the latter, probably in the thirteenth century. Game-pieces have been discovered in Iceland which were probably used for this game. Some are plain and hemispherical in shape, others are shaped with a man's head or a dog's head. For a full and interesting description of _hneftafl_ see H. J. R. Murray, _A History of Chess_, Oxford, 1913, Appendix I, 'Chess in Iceland,' pp. 443-446.
_∆gis meyjar._ ∆gir or HlÈr, the husband of Rann, is a personification of the sea; but the kennings '∆gir's daughters,' '∆gir's steed,' etc. for 'billows' are common in poetry. See _Helgakvia Hundingsbana_ II, str. 29, and _Bragar-rÊur_, ch. 55 (included in Brodeur's translation of the _Prose Edda_ as _Sk·ldskaparm·l_, ch. I).
_Reefs._ For _brimserkum_, read _brimskerjum_.
_Ocean-path._ For _brim-reiar_, read _brim-leiar_. The passage is possibly corrupt.
_That is the hunn._ This stanza is difficult to interpret as we have no clear information as to the character of the game. It would seem that like the game of the Welsh _tawlbwrdd_, it was played between sides composed, the one of sixteen 'fair' (white) men, the other of a King (called _hnefa_ or _hunn_) and eight 'dark' (black) men. Cf. note to _Game of Chess_ above. See also Murray, _A History of Chess_, Oxford 1913, Appendix I, 'Chess in Iceland,' pp. 443-446.
_Four walking_, etc. This riddle is found in a form almost identical with our text in Jakobsen's _Dialect and Place Names of Shetland_ (Lerwick, 1897), p. 53. The 'sow' is also found in the _Exeter Book_, while 'the waves,' 'the anchor' and 'hailstones' have certain affinities with the AS. riddles.
_King Itrek's Game._ The reference here seems to be to a game something like chess. The text (R) given by Heusler in his edition of the _Eddica Minora_, p. 118, reads: "That is Itrek and Andath when they sit at their game."
_Dead men_, etc. In this strophe there seems to be an elaborate play on words. The phrase 'dead men' (_dauar menn_) seems to be a disguise for _val_ which means 'the slain' as well as 'hawk.' So also 'channel of blood' seems to be a disguise for _Êi_ which means 'vein' as well as 'eider-duck.'
_Sleipnir._ Othin's eight-footed horse. Cf. especially _Gylfaginning_, ch. 42.
_Tell me lastly_, etc. In _Vaf˛r˙˛nism·l_, str. 54, Othin makes himself known to Vaf˛r˙˛nir by the same question.
XII. _This pike_, etc. This verse is generally supposed to come from a lost poem on Heithrek.
_Mountains of Harvathi._ It is thought that _Harvathi_ may be the early Teutonic name for the Carpathians--a reminiscence of Gothic times.
_Humli and Hlˆth._ These names may be compared with _Humblus_ and _Lotherus_, two sons of Dan, the first kings mentioned in Saxo Grammaticus, _Dan. Hist._, p. 1. For the name _Hlˆ_ cf. also note to ch. 7, p. 238.
_Poem._ For this poem on the battle between the Goths and the Huns, see Heusler, _Eddica Minora_, p. vii ff., and notes. In part at least it appears to be very old.
_Myrkvith._ The forest _Myrkvith_ is mentioned also in _Atlakvia_, str. 3, 5, and 13; and in _Helgakvia Hundingsbana_, I, str. 53.
_Pillar_, lit. 'stone.' I do not know what is meant. Possibly _Gur˙narkvia_ III, str. 3 may be compared.
_Danaper's Shore._ _Danpr_ is treated as a personal name in _RÌgs˛ula_, str. 49, but it is more likely to have been originally the name of the River Dnieper (mentioned by Jordanes, _The Origins and Deeds of the Goths_, ch. 5, 52, as _Danaper_), which was within the territories of the Goths in the fourth century.
XIII. _Gizur._ There appear to be reminiscences of this story in Saxo,