Here's my attempt at those two verses; I hope I haven't made too many
mistakes here. All corrections welcome. Thanks for calling our
attention to them Grace. I found the originals at Eysteinn's site [
http://www.hi.is/~eybjorn/ugm/skindex/nja.html ].

Menn eru sízt at sönnu,
slíkt talar þjóð í hljóði,
(opt heyrt er þat) eptir,
öll, á Rangárvöllum ;
Mörð frák gígju gerðu
gunnhríðir margkunnar ;
engr var seima sløngvir
slíkr at spekt ok ríki.

Men are slow to (say the) truth afterwards. It's often heard. So
speaks the whole of the people on the Rang River Plains in secret. I
have learnt that Mord Fiddle made very cunning battle-storms. There
was no slinger of gold (threads) like him for wisdom and power.

KENNINGS:

sløngvir seima "slinger of gold/gold-threads" = generous man =
man/leader/chieftain = Mord.

gunnhríð "battle-storm" = battle


Heyrt hafak, hrings at bjartrar
Hristi þráðs með ráðum
jarðar undirgerðar
álmr, væntik, þik rænti ;
réðu hodda hlæði
haldendr við þik skjaldar,
áðr rauð seima sneiðir
sverð, at hann eigi berðisk.

I expect I have heard that the elm-of-ring (=man) robbed you of the
valkyrie of bright bed of the thread of the earth (=woman). Holders
of the shield advised the ruiner of hoards not to fight. Of old, the
cutter of gold threads reddened sword.

Question: Is 'hafa(k)' infinitive, dependent on 'vænti(k)', or have I
got confused here?

KENNINGS:

álmr hrings "elm of ring" = man = Mord.

þráðr jarðar "thread of earth" = snake.

undirgerð þráðs jarðar "understructure of snake", i.e. what a snake
lies on, its bed = gold.

Hristr undirgerð þráðs jarðar "valkyrie/goddess of gold" = woman. I'm
guessing here that 'Hristi' is the dative of a ja-stem alternative to
the more usual (?) o-stem, Hrist.

hloeðir hodda "ruiner/destroyer of hoards" = generous man =
man/leader/chieftain = Mord? or Hrut? The parallel with the earlier
verse suggests Mord, but since Hrut is the one who is literally a
fighter, maybe it's him that's meant.

haldandi skjaldar "holder of shield" = warrior = man.

Although these kennings might seem rather tortuous at first sight,
they follow very conventional patterns (that's if I've understood them
right!) A woman is described using the name of a supernatural female
being such as a goddess or valkyrie for the base word, then qualified
with some attribute which may be clothing or ornaments or some
activity associated with women. Likewise men, with clothing or
ornaments such as they might wear, or weapons. Names of trees or
words for any kind of wood were also used as base-words for kennings;
masculine for men, feminine for women. It's conventional to describe
all men as warriors. And any important man or leader is typically
characterised as generous, and his generosity often expressed with
some kenning that implies violence done to the gold, gold rings, etc.
which he gives so freely it's as if he's throwing gold away, thereby
diminishing/destroying his treasure by his generosity.

LN



--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, "Fred and Grace Hatton"
<hatton@...> wrote:

>
> The Dasent Njal at http://omacl.org/Njal/
> in the section we are working on has Gunnar as a skald reciting

poetry - -

> including a line talking about Lord of the rings.
> Grace
> Fred and Grace Hatton
> Hawley Pa
>