--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, Haukur Þorgeirsson
<haukurth@...> wrote:

>
> It's "Fyr löngu liðit" which seems to me like an aberrant start of

a

> sentence. I could be wrong.

Ah, I see, so 'langt ok langt heðan' is okay? This is where I found
it [ http://www.hi.is/~eybjorn/ugm/skindex/hll.html ],

Barn at aldri
þykkik brögnum vera,
þó hefk forn tíðendi [fregit];
Öðlinga sögur
þykkjumk [inna kunna],
fyr löngu liðit.

...although now I see on closer inspection that Finnur Jónsson has
an alternate reading:

öðlinga sögur
þykkjumk [segja kunna]
fyr löngu liðnar.

Which I took to mean: "They considered me a child in years though I
have heard ancient lore. Tales of kings I think I can tell [of
events] long ago." (Or if it's an adjective describing the
stories: "I think I can tell long ago tales of kings.") I just
imagined it was a more emphatic way of saying 'fyrir löngu'.
Otherwise, maybe take a leaf out of the "tree-man's" book and begin
with:

Þat var fyr löngu
á leið vetrar
langt ok langt heðan / í brott.