Heil Sarah!!!

My last part of Böthwarr is now translated and ready, I apologize for the delay I wasn´t on Iceland ,I was living in a tent in the middle of the forest faaar away from the civilized world fighting mosquitoes flies and heat for the most of the time.

During a couple of weaks I was living in a small apartment without a computer so it was impossible to write any mails , for the last few days I have continued the usual fight against my usual enemies:

Teachers and time.(I went back to school)

But it wasn´t all that bad, the heat made it possible to swim and sunbath almost every day and I always had a good excuse to be lazy.

However,here is the old norse version of the Bothvarr text:

Konungr horfði á dýrit ok mælti síðan, “Enga sé ek fơr á dýrinu, en hverr vill nú taka kaup einn ok ganga í móti því?”  Bơðvarr mælti, “Þat væri næsta hrausts manns forvitnisbót.  Hơttr félagi, rektu nú af þér illmælit þat at menn láta, sem engi krellr né dugr muni í þér vera.  Far nú ok drep þú dýrit.  Máttu sjá at engi er allfúss til annarra.”  “Jᔠsagði Hơttr, “ek mun til þessa ráðask”.  Konungr mælti, “Ekki veit ek hvaðan þessi hreysti er at þér komin, Hơttr, ok mikit hefir um þik skipazk á skammri stundu”.  Hơttr mælti, “Gef mér til sverðit Gullinhjalta, er þú heldr á, ok skal ek þá fella dýrit eða fá bana.”  Hrólfr konungr mælti, “Þetta sverð er ekki beranda nema þeim manni sem bæði er góðr drengr ok hraustr.”  Hơttr sagði, “Svá skaltu til ætla at mér sé svá háttat”.  Konungr mælti, “Hvat má vita, nema fleira hafi skipzk um hagi þína en sjá þykkir?  En fæstir menn þykkjask þik kenna, at þú sér inn sami maðr.  Nú tak við sverðinu ok njót manna bezt, ef þetta er til unnit.”

Síðan gengr Hơttr at dýrinu alldjarfliga ok høggr til þess, þá er hann kømr í hơggfoeri, ok dýrit fellr niðr dautt.  Bơðvarr mælti, “Sjáið nú, herra, hvat hann hefir til unit.”  Konungr segir, “Víst hefir hann mikit skipazk, en ekki hefir Hơttr einn dýrit drepit; heldr hefir þú þat gơrt.”  Bơðvarr segir, “Vera má at svá sé.”  Konungr segir, “Vissa ek, þá er þú komt hér, at fáir mundu þínir jafningjar vera, en þat þykki mér þó þitt verk frægiligast, at þú hefir gơrt hér annan kappa þar er Hơttr er, ok óvænligr þótti til mikillar giptu.  Ok nú vil ek at hann heiti eigi Hơttr lengr ok skal hann heita Hjalti upp frá þessu; skaltu heita eptir sverðinu Gullinhjalta.”

And here is my translation which I have had a lot of problems with.

The king looked at the animal and then he said ”I do not see any ?? on the animal, but who wants to receive a reward and attack the animal? Böðvarr said “that would be a brave man´s ??

Höttr my friend throw off yourself the slander that men are saying , that you don´t have any spirit or strength inside you. You go and kill the animal you shall see that no one is eager to do anything else(? ) Yes said Höttr I will do this .The king said : I do not know where from this courage has came into you Höttr and much have changed in you in a short time.Höttr said: Give me the sword Gullinhjalti which you are holding and I shall kill the animal or die. King Hrolfr said : This sword shall be carried only by a good and brave man.Höttr said so shall you think that i´m of that kind. The king said : what may he know, unless more have changed than I think I see? But most of the men have the opinion that you are still the same man. Now take the sword and enjoy to be the best of men if you can do it.

Then Höttr goes towards the animal very bravely and hews until he reaches the animal with his sword and the animal drops dead. Böthvarr says see now my lord what he has managed to do. The king says: surely has he changed a lot but Höttr has not alone killed the animal rather you have done it. Böthvarr says may be so. The king says:I knew when you came here that a few would be as good as you are that seems to me to be your deed though I think your deed is more

honourable that you have here an other hero there where Höttr is ,and who seemed to have little hope of being able to perform any deeds.

And now I want that he shall not be called Höttr anymore,his name shall be Hjalti and from now on you shall be named after the sword Gullinhjalti

And a few comments:

-         ”Enga sé ek fơr á dýrinu” means literally “I do not see any journey on the animal”and my question is : why would there be a journey on the animal? This must be an expression which I wasn´t brave enough to translate.

-         These kings didn´t seem to express themselves in a simple and understandable way,he really made me confused.

I´m not quite sure how the translation of the next saga is organized or so, but I will start as soon as possible.

thomas