--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, "Padraic I.M. MacUidhir"
<padraic_macuidhir@...> wrote:
>
> One thing to keep in mind is that "áss" and "Æsinir" would
> be words used to refer to the Aesir...which leaves out the
> Vanir. Just a thought from a fellow Heithinn.
>
> Pádraic I.M. MacUidhir
> Direktor der Archive,
> Forschung Verwalter,
> und der Verlag-Manager
> für die Northvegr Foundation
> www.northvegr.org
>
> --- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, "Tamara" <sharraunna@...>
wrote:
> > Hail!
> >
> > I'm trying to translate "We are here to honor the gods" into Old
Norse.

You might want to ask two questions: 1) Is my sentence-construction
Norse or is it Modern English? 2) Would anyone really have said what
I am trying to say, and if so, in what context?

> > I have a start, I think, with "Erum hér," but I don't know the
verb for "to honor."

Your subject would be vér, if plural, or vit, if dual. There are
several ways to say 'honour'. The question her is: In what way do I,
or 'we', intend to honour the gods? The usual means would be through
an animal-sacrifice or a ceremonial drinking-round (often both). The
concept 'to honour the gods' implies some sort of action. Prayer is
usually not classified as 'honouring' in the usual sense, so I guess
you must mean sacrifice, ceremonial drink or perhaps a dedication of
some kind accompanied by a sacrifice or a drinking-round. In short,
you could begin by asking the questions 'With/by means of what do we
intend to honour the gods?', 'Where are we doing this?' and 'To what
end are we doing this, if any?'

> > Also, I'm not certain on the declension of "áss." "Æsinir"
doesn't seem quite right. Any help would be appreciated.

The word declined like this in the early 13th century: áss ás æsi
ásar æsir ásu ásum ása. In the 10th it declined like this: óss ós
æsi ásar æsir ósu ósum ása, where ó is not ó )long o), but tailed ó,
which is the u-mutation of á. It is a masculine u-stem. This lead us
to another question: What age do I want my sentence to conform to?

Regards,
Konrad

> > Health and wealth,
> >
> > ~~Tara