Craig wrote:

>Well, it is kind of nice to see some stuff. Especially something a little
>different with some new words. My previous language classes all moved
>gradually into teaching in the language being studied so as to get the feel
>for it outside the very structured environment of classwork. Of course, in
>those cases the language was a modern language still in use so
>conversational usage was important. Perhaps it is less so in the study of a
>"dead" language.

The thing with ON is that you can decide if you look at it as a dead or
a living language. The living part of it is, of course, modern Icelandic.

>Don't suppose I'll ever ask anyone where
>the bathroom is in Old Norse!

Well, at least it's no problem if you want to try:

"Hvar er salernit?"

This will work perfectly well in Iceland even if
the design of "salerni" has changed somewhat since
the days of Snorri:)


Here's a very funny chapter from the Laxdoela saga (MI-spelling).

"Í þann tíma var það mikil tíska að úti var SALERNI og eigi allskammt frá
bænum
og svo var að Laugum. Kjartan lét þar taka dyr allar á húsum og bannaði öllum
mönnum útgöngu og dreitti þau inni þrjár nætur. Eftir það ríður Kjartan heim
í Hjarðarholt og hver hans förunauta til síns heimilis. Ólafur lætur illa
yfir þessi ferð.
Þorgerður kvað eigi lasta þurfa og sagði Laugamenn til slíks gert hafa eða
meiri svívirðingar.
...
Þeim Laugamönnum líkar illa og þótti þetta miklu meiri svívirðing og verri
en þótt
Kjartan hefði drepið mann eða tvo fyrir þeim."

Some PD-translation I found:

"At that time it was the custom that outhouses were outside, and not very
far away
from the dwelling-house, and so it was at Laugar. Kjartan had all the doors
of the
house taken, and forbade all the inmates to go outside, and for three
nights he
made them do their errands within the house. After that Kjartan rode home to
Herdholt, and each of his followers rode to his own home. Olaf was very
ill-pleased
with this raid, but Thorgerd said there was no reason for blame, for the
men of
Laugar had deserved this, yea, and a still greater shame.
...
The men of Laugar bore this exceedingly ill, and thought it by much a
greater and
worse disgrace than if Kjartan had even killed a man or two of them."

Regards,
Haukur


P.S.

eigi allskammt = not very far away?

I don't think it means that...