Heill Konrad!

Thanks, that clears up my confusion...

I agree with your position here - atrocities like this, committed in
Christian fervour, are unconscionable. How much of the old culture has been
stamped out due to their misguided enthusiasm? Far too much, I say!

konrad_oddsson wrote:

> Heill Daníel!
>
> > Sorry it's taken awhile to get back to you, I've had a bit of
> backlog to get through.
> >
> > Many thanks for this, it's been a great help.
> >
> > I've attempted a translation of your passage, but I suspect it's
> rather crude - corrections?
>
> > One must attack a player (musician)
> > (and break the peace)
> > that shall ever be a worthy thing
> > One must (defile?) a player
> > he who with fiddle goes
> > or with fiddle fares
> > or (on) drum (beats)
> > then shall hang that one who beats (it)
> >
> > because with fair songs
> > and striking up playing (music)
> > shall all (of them) worship heathen gods
> >
> > konrad_oddsson wrote:
> >
> > > Here is how the law SHOULD read:
> > >
> > > Verðr leikari barðr
> > > (ok friðr á brotinn)
> > > þat skal æ gilt vesa
> > > Verðr leikari sárgaðr
> > > sá es með gígju gengr
> > > eða með fiðlu ferr
> > > eða (á) bumbu (berr)
> > > þá skal hengja þann es barði
> > >
> > > þvíat með fögrum söngvi
> > > ok slegnum slætti
> > > skal fjörg öll fága
>
> My makeshift rewrite of this law was intended as a satire on what in
> my opinion is an unjust and indefensible law. The original basically
> states that if a musician is physically beaten, then that selfsame
> musician should be further punished by a humiliating ordeal. This
> ordeal involves being whipped while holding onto the greased and
> shaven tail of a young cow and while standing in a newly greased
> pair of shoes. As a musician and hopeful defender of basic human
> dignity, I find such laws reprehensible. While many unjust laws were
> propagated in the various Scandinavian countries, especially against
> real or perceived "heathens", this is the only one that I know of
> which specifically targets musicians as such. The gist of the law
> could be summed up as follows: musicians are less than human and can
> therefore be beaten or otherwise humiliated without fear of legal or
> other social consequence. My satire could be literally translated as
> follows:
>
> Becomes a player beaten (=if a musician is beaten)
> and peace on broken (=and his peace violated)
> that shall always valid/legal be. (the original states "UNvalid")
>
> (These lines imply that a musician has no right to legal procedure)
>
> Becomes a musician sored (=if a musician is wounded)
> that which with "gígja" goes (=he that with a "gígja goes)
> or with fiddle fares (=or with a fiddle travels)
> or on drum beats (I added the word "beats" for alliterative purposes)
> then shall hang that which beats (=then shall he who beat the
> musician be hung)
>
> Gígja is a kind of antique Scandinavian fiddle. It was brought to
> the British Isles by early Scandinavian settlers, where the word
> itself was later reinterpreted and applied to a style of tune and
> dance now refered to as a "jig". As a musician myself, I certainly
> enjoy the hardcore traditional Celtic music in which tunes of one
> type are called "jigs", other "reels", and still others names of
> various kinds. What I do NOT enjoy, and have NO tolerance for, are
> people or policies which endeavor to illiminate music as "the work
> of the Devil" by destroying musical instruments, killing or maining
> musicians, or otherwise interfering with free musical expression.
> Given my views on this subject, it should come as a surprise to no
> one that the one issuing the beating should be punished in my satire
> of the old law. What kind of musical heritage will a nation have
> which mains its musicians and burns their instruments? The last part
> of my satire translates as follows:
>
> of this that with beautiful song (=because with beautiful song)
> and slayed slay (=and played tune) (to "play" is to "slay" in Norse,
> as in to "strike a tune", and a tune is called a "striking")
> shall gods all worship (=shall the gods be worshiped/honoured)
>
> As the authers of the law against musicians were "Christians", my
> satire appropriately enshrines worshiping Gods of the "Heathens" by
> singing and playing beautiful music in their honour. I hope that
> this renders my new "law" intelligible to all, including musicians.
>
> Regards,
> Konrad.
>
> Sumir hafa kvæði...
> ...aðrir spakmæli.
>
> - Keth
>
> Homepage: http://www.hi.is/~haukurth/norse/
>
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--
Daniel Bray
dbray@...
School of Studies in Religion A20
University of Sydney NSW 2006 Australia

"Nobody believes the official spokesman... but everybody trusts an
unidentified source." Ron Nesen