Re: Laxdaela Saga end 20 + beginning 21 -- Rob's Translation

> Ólafur bað móður sína eina ráða.
> Olaf asked his mother (for) an agreement.
> Olaf bade his mother decide alone (on her own).
> Ólafr bade his mother alone decide.

Rob: If <ráða> were from the neuter noun <ráð>, it could
only be the genitive plural. But the genitive plural of
<einn> is <einna>, not <eina>, so <eina> can't be modifying
a noun <ráða>. This pretty well ensures that <ráða> must be
the verb; for <eina> 'alone' see Zoëga s.v. <einn> (7).

As an aside, <einn> in the plural means 'only, just' when it
follows the noun (<sagnir einir> 'just tales'), 'some' when
it precedes it (<einir heiðnir víkingar> 'some heathen
vikings'), and 'roughly, about' when combined with another
numeral (<einar þrár> 'about three'). The genitive plural
also has a special use that is described at Z6.

> Síðan ræddi Ólafur við Þorbjörn að hann vildi taka vöru af
> honum að láni og gera mikið að.

> Then Olaf spoke with Thorbjorn, that he would take wares
> from him as a loan and grant much of.

> Afterwards Olaf speaks with Thorbjorn that he wished to
> take his wares on credit (or as a loan) and to make (it)
> large.

> After-that Ólafr spoke with Þjorbjörn that he wanted to
> take goods from him on loan and (for him) to send
> (despatch, göra, Z4?, Z8?) much towards (it) (don´t be
> sparing with it)

The meaning of <gera mikit at> in this particular instance
seems to be a bit uncertain. CV s.v. <göra> (B.II.2)
actually cites this sentence as an example of <göra ... at>
'to do so and so', translating <ok göra mikit at> as 'and do
great things'. (So far as I can see, the closest that Zoëga
comes to this usage is <hann gørði þat eina at, er hann
átti> 'he did only what he ought' in Z13, which would be 'he
did only that which he ought' in a more nearly word for word
translation.

However, while I'm willing to accept that a splended young
fellow like Ólaf might reasonably be presumed to intend
great things, we've had no specific indication of such
intentions up to this point. Moreover, we learn a few
sentences later that he takes a whopping great share. I'm
inclined to read <hann vildi taka vöru af honum at láni ok
gera mikit at> as 'he wanted to take goods from him on loan
and do [so] greatly': he wants a large loan. (On checking,
I see that this is also M&P's interpretation.) This is
<mikit> as an adverb, 'greatly, much'.

> Höskuldi líkar þetta vel er hann vill um búið annast.

> This pleases Hoskuld well that he (i.e., Olaf) will
> be-busy-about the farm.

> Hoskuld is well pleased with this since he wants to
> provide for the farm.

> This well pleases Höskuldr that (er) he wants to
> occupy-himself with (see annast um e-t, Z3) the-farm.

Rob's reading is correct: Höskuld is pleased that Ólaf is
taking an active, responsible interest in the farm.

> Síðan reið Höskuldur til þings en snúið var að brullaupi á
> Lambastöðum og réð Ólafur einn máldaga.

> Then Hoskuld road to (the) Thing but was turned to (the)
> wedding (or wedding feast) at Lamb-towns and Olaf resolved
> an agreement.

> Afterwards Hoskuld rode to (the) Thing and a wedding was
> prepared for at Lambi's Steads and Olaf alone decided on
> (the) document.

> After-that Höskuldr rode to (the) Thing but (and) (it,
> everything) was prepared for (see snúa, Z7) wedding at
> Lambastaðir (Lambs’-Steads) and Ólafr alone devises the
> agreement.

'Devised, decided': <réð> is past tense. The agreement is
of course the marriage contract.

> Ólafur tók þrjá tigu hundraða vöru af óskiptu og skyldi
> þar ekki fé fyrir koma.

> Olaf took 3,000 wares reserved-for-him and there should
> wealth come to naught. (Z. koma 4 - k. fyrir ekki, to come
> to naught, be of no avail)

> Olaf took three thousand wares indivisible? and there
> should no money come for (it).

> Ólafr took thirty hundreds of goods from (the) undivided
> (?) and no money should come for (it) there (I suspect
> that this means that he doesn´t have to pay anything in
> return, either principal or interest?).

Rob & Grace: The participial adjective <óskiptr> 'undivided'
is in CV (as <úskiptr>, as usual). Here it's not attached
to any explicit noun, but the context indicates that it must
refer to Þorbjörn's estate: in writing up the marriage
contract, Ólaf set aside this much for himself.

By the way, these hundreds are probably so-called long
hundreds equal to 120, specifically 120 ells (<alnar>) of
vaðmál or the equivalent value, for a total of 3600 ells.
That's 600 ounces (<eyrir>) of silver, or 600/8 = 75 marks
(<mörk>). A translater's note in Ch. 2 of the M&P Njála
says that a milch cow was worth almost two marks at about
this time, so Ólaf seems to have taken the value of about 38
milch cows; I expect that this was a pretty hefty sum.

> Enn fékk hún honum í hönd hníf og belti og bað hann selja
> fóstru sinni: "Get eg að hún dyljist eigi við þessar
> jartegnir."

> Yet she put in his hands a knife and belt and asked (that)
> he hand-over (them) to her foster-(somebody): "I guess
> that she doesn't refuse-to-acknowledge these tokens."

> And she gave him in (his) hand a knife and belt and bade
> him deliver (them?) to her foster (nurse), "I guess that
> she would not ignore these tokens."

> Moreover, she got for him into (his) hand (possession) a
> knife and a belt and asked him to give (them) to her
> foster-mother. ”I guess that she does not refuse to
> acknowledge these tokens.’

Zoëga gives only 'foster-mother' and 'foster-daughter' for
<fóstra>, but CV notes that it can also mean 'wet-nurse'.
It sounds to me as if the finger-ring and the knife and belt
are intended to be recognized by people in the same place; a
foster-mother would probably not be living with Melkorka's
father, so my guess is that 'nurse' is the intended meaning.
(Shades of Little Buttercup!)

> Honum líkar heldur þunglega.
> It pleases him rather heavily.
> He finds (this) rather difficult.
> (It) pleases him rather heavily.

'Heavily' is literally correct, but the sense here (as is
probably obvious) is metaphorical: he found it rather
oppressive, i.e., it didn't please him at all.

Brian