Re: Laxdaela Saga 37 part 2 - Rob's Translation

Is it just me, or was this one a bit stickier than usual?

> Þorleikur mælti: "Engi er eg mangsmaður því að þessi hross
> færð þú aldregi þótt þú bjóðir við þrenn verð."

> Thorleik said: "I am not a barter's-man because you never
> get this horse even though you make an offer three times
> the price."

> Thorleik spoke, “I am not a haggling man because these
> horses you (will) never remove? though you make a bid of
> thrice (their) worth.”

> Þorleikr spoke: “I am not a man-of-barter (shady dealer?)
> because you (will) never get (fá) these horses (acc neut
> plural) even though you should-make-a-bid of threefold
> worth (bid triple).”

According to Fritzner, <mangsmaðr> is a synonym of
<mangari>, which he defines more or less as a small-scale
dealer who buys goods to sell them again at the greatest
possible profit. He seems to be saying in essence 'I'm not
haggling for a better deal; the horses aren't for sale at
any price'.

> Mundi eg það og vilja að þú hefðir óríflegra verðið en nú
> hefi eg þér boðið og létir þú hrossin eigi að síður."

> I would also want that, that you had been not-good and now
> I have offered you and you have not valued the horses at
> less."

> I remembered? it and also want that you have behaved badly
> and now I have offered you and you do not let the horses
> (go?) for? less.”

> I would also want that, that you should-have
> more-unfavourably the-worth than now I have offered to you
> and you give-up (láta, Z2) the-horses for a less
> (price?).”

<Eigi at síður> is 'nonetheless, nevertheless'; it doesn't
seem to be in Zoëga, but CV has it. 'I would also want that
you should get (Z8) the value more unfavorably than I have
now offered you and [that] you should give up the horses all
the same.'

> En þetta sumar mun eg fara að sjá hrossin hvor okkar sem
> þá hlýtur þau að eiga þaðan í frá."

> And this summer I will make an attack on the horses each
> of us (two) as then they are allotted to have from that
> time." (Z. þaðan í frá - from that time)

> But this summer I will go to see our horses as who gets
> them then to own henceforth.”

> But this summer I will go to look-at the-horses, whichever
> (hvárr) of us then they are-obliged to be-under-obligation
> (be bound) to (eiga , Z3?) thenceforth.”

<Hlýtur> is 3rd person sing. present indic.; its subject
must be <hvor>, and the sense looks to me to be simply
'gets' (Z2), with object <þau>: 'But this summer I will go
to look at the horses, whichever of us two gets (Z2) them to
have thenceforth'.

> Það mæltu menn er heyrðu að hér væri maklega á komið um
> þeirra skipti.

> Men who heard that said that here was properly hit (?)
> concerning their parting.

> People said it who heard that here was proper to come
> concerning their parting.

> That spoke persons (men) who heard, that here (it)
> would-be fitly (deservedly) accomplished (concluded,
> kominn á, Z) concerning their transaction (dealings, pl,
> skipti, Z4).

Which is apparently a roundabout way of saying that the
outcome of the business would be what they deserved. I must
admit that I found this one more opaque than most.

> Það var einn morgun snemma að maður sá út á Hrútsstöðum að
> Hrúts bónda Herjólfssonar.

> It was early one morning that a man saw out at Hrut's-stad
> Herjolf's sons at Hrut's farm.

> It was one morning early that a man looked out at Hrut’s
> steads at farmer Hrut’s Herjolf’s son.

> That was one morning early that a person (man) looked out
> at Hrútsstaðir (Hrútr’s-steads) at (the home of?) farmer
> Hrútr Herjólfssonar.

I'm not entirely sure about this one, but I'm inclined to
agree with Alan's that <að Hrúts bónda Herjólfssonar> is an
instance of the elliptical use of <at> in Zoëga's A.II(5).
The best possibilities seem to me to be 'Early one morning
at freeman/farmer Hrút Herjólfsson's a man looked out over
Hrútsstaðir' and 'Early one morning a man looked out over
Hrútsstaðir, freeman/farmer Hrút Herjólfsson's [home]', with
the word order favoring the latter. (They convey pretty
much the same sense anyway.)

> En er hann kom inn spurði Hrútur tíðinda.
> And when he come in Hrut asked (about) the news.
> But when he came inside Hrut asked for news.
> But when he came in Hrútr asked tidings.

I'd go with narrative 'and' here for <en>; it really doesn't
seem to be contrastive.

> Þau stóðu í engjum þínum fyrir neðan garð."

> They stood in your meadows beyond (literally, below) (the)
> fence."

> They stood in your meadow below (the) yard.”

> They stood in your outlying-grass fields (eng, pl) below
> (the) fence.”

I agree that 'fence' seems likely: <garðr> as 'yard' would,
I think, refer to an enclosed plot close to the house, while
the grazing meadows could be at some distance. I'd also go
with 'below'.

> Hrútur svarar: "Það er satt að Þorleikur frændi er jafnan
> ómeskinn um beitingar og enn þykir mér líkara að eigi séu
> að hans ráði hrossin rekin á brott."

> Hrut answers: "That is true that kinsman Thorleik is
> always un-sporting concerning grazing (plural in ON) and
> still I think likely that would not be that his plan to
> drive the horses away."

> Hrut answers, “It is true that kinsman Thorleik is always
> indifferent about grazing and still seems to me more
> likely that not to be his plan to drive the horses away.”

> Hrútr answers: “That is true that kinsman Þorleikr is
> always indifferent (careless?, úmeskinn) about grazing and
> (but) (it) still seems to me more-likely that the horses
> be not driven away at his command (ráð, Z6).”

I suspect that the use of the plural <beitingar> indicates
that the word is to be interpreted as 'places of grazing,
pastures': Þ. doesn't much care where his horses graze.

> Hann gekk út nokkuð snúðigt og sá að maður reið að hrossum
> fyrir neðan garð.

> He went out somewhat swiftly and saw that a man rode (how
> does "að" fit in here?) the horses beyond the fence.

> He went out somewhat quickly and saw that a man rode to
> horses below (the) yard.

> He walked (marched) out somewhat swiftly and saw that a
> person (man) rode near (at, Z.ii.1) (the) horses below
> (the) fence.

I think that the <að> in <reið að> is more akin to that in
<fara at> 'to assault' and <hlaupa at> 'to attack': he's not
attacking the horses, but he's doing more than just riding
near them, namely, driving/herding them.

> Eldgrímur tók kveðju hans og heldur seint.
> Eldrim received his greeting and slowly goes on.
> Eldgrim accepted his greeting and rather slowly.
> Eldgrímr received his greeting and (but) rather slowly.

'Tisn't immediately obvious from the usual senses of <taka>,
but <taka kveðju> is actually to return or acknowledge a
greeting.

Brian