----- Original Message -----
Sent: Sunday, April 09, 2006 2:00
PM
Subject: [norse_course] koma við þat
út
'at koma út' just means to travel to Iceland. I
guess the phrase
must go back to a time when the settlers still thought of
themselves
as basically Norwegian at heart. The opposite is 'útan',
literally "from out", but in the context of Iceland "abroad".
(Zoega út 3, útan 2.)
'við þat' I think just refers back generally
to all the magnificent
things they've getting up to in on those
gallivants. "With that
[done], they come home." Gwyn Jones has
"AND SO they return home
again".
ok þykkja þar mestháttar, sem þá
koma þeir
and are thought so very important wherever they come
then
þar...sem
"there...where"
"in-whatever-place...that"
Gwyn
Jones leaves out "then". Maybe it refers to the time after
they've
done their travelling, now that they have a reputation
they're thought
important, once they've been from land to land.