> Steinþór var framast barna Þorláks.
> Steinthor was the most prominent (of) Thorlak's children.
> Steinthor was Thorlak’s foremost son.
Steinþór was foremost of Þorlák’s sons.
> Hann var mikill maður og sterkur og manna vopnfimastur og
> hinn mesti atgervismaður.
> He was a large man and strong, and most dexterous in arms
> of men and the man of greatest physical accomplishments.
> He was a large man and strong and best skilled in arms of
> men and and the most accomplished man.
He was a large man and strong and at arms the most dexterous
of men and a man of the greatest physical accomplishements.
> Hógvær var hann hversdaglega.
> He was generally gentle.
> Hogvaer was ordinary.
He was commonly [‘every day’] gentle [or meek of mind].
> Steinþór var til þess tekinn að hinn þriðji maður hafi
> best verið vígur á Íslandi með þeim Helga Droplaugarsyni
> og Vémundi kögur.
> Steinthor was chosen to that, that the third man had best
> been able to fight in Iceland, along with Helga
> Droplaugarson and Vemundi "quilt." (?)
> Steinthor was considered? to have been the third man best
> skilled in arms in Iceland (along) with those, Helgi
> Droplaug’s son and Vermund fringe?
Steinþór was consdered to have been the third best man in
Iceland in ability to fight, with Helgi Droplaugarson and
Vémund kögurr [‘a quilt with a fringe, a bed-cover’,
apparently on account of dressing in same].
> Þormóður var vitur maður og stilltur vel.
> Thormodr was a wise man and fully calm.
> Thormod was a wise man and very calm.
Þormóð was a wise man and thoroughly calm/composed.
> Þórður blígur var ákafamaður mikill og örorður.
> "Gazing" Thord was a large impetuous man and hasty of
> speech (örorður = öroðr).
> Thord blick was a very impetuous and outspoken.
Þórð blígr was a very impetuous man and hasty of speech
[frank, outspoken].
> Bergþór var yngstur og þó hinn efnilegasti.
> Bergthor was the youngest and yet the most promising.
> Bergthor was the youngest and still the most promising.
Bergþór was youngest and yet the most promising.
> Snorri Þorgrímsson var þá fjórtán vetra er hann fór utan
> með fóstbræðrum sínum, Þorleifi kimba og Þóroddi.
> Snorri Thorgrimson was then 14 years old when he went
> abroad with his foster-brothers, Thorliefr kimba and
> Thoroddr.
> Snorri Grim’s son was then fourteen years old and he went
> abroad with his foster brothers, Thorleif kimbi and
> Thorod.
Snorri Þorgrímsson was then fourteen when he went abroad
(from Iceland) with his foster brothers, Þorleif kimbi and
Þórodd.
> Börkur hinn digri, föðurbróðir hans, galt honum fimm tigu
> silfurs til utanferðar.
> Borkr the stout, his foster-brother, gave him 50 pieces of
> silver for travelling abroad. (see CV GÖRA 4 - gerði Njáll
> hundrað silfrs, N. put it at a hundred silver pieces)
> Bork the stout, his uncle, gave him fifty (ounces of)
> silver for his trip abroad.
Börk inn digri, his father’s brother, gave him fifty ‘of
silver’ [i.e., fifty aura, each of which was an eighth of a
mark] for the journey abroad.
> Þeir urðu vel reiðfari og komu til Noregs um haustið.
> They had a good voyage and arrived at Norway during the
> fall.
> They had a good voyage and arrived in Norway during the
> fall.
They had a good voyage and arrived in Norway in the fall.
> Þeir voru um veturinn á Rogalandi.
> They stayed during the winter at Rogaland.
> There stayed in Rogaland during the winter.
During the winter they were in Rogaland.
> Snorri var með Erlingi Skjálgssyni á Sóla og var Erlingur
> vel til hans því að þar hafði verið forn vinátta með hinum
> fyrrum frændum þeirra, Hörða-Kára og Þórólfi Mostrarskegg.
> Snorri stayed with Erling Skjalgson at Sola and Erlingr
> was good to him because there had been an old friendship
> with him formerly the relatives, Horda-Kara and Thorolf
> Mostarskegg.
> Snorri stayed with Erling Skjalg’s son at Sola and Erling
> was good to him because there had been an old friendship
> between their kinsmen, Horda-Kari and
> Thorlof-Mostrarskegg, previously.
Snorri stayed with Erling Skjálgsson [son of Þórólf skjálgr
‘squinting’] at Sóli, and Erling was good to him, because
there had been an old friendship between their earlier
kinsmen, Hörða-Kári and Þórólf Mostrarskegg.
I take it that 'earlier kinsmen' means something like
'kinsmen of an earlier generation' (and who are probably
dead at this point).
> Um sumarið eftir fóru þeir til Íslands og urðu síðbúnir.
> During the next summer they went to Iceland and became
> slow in getting ready. (Z. sein-búinn - `late-boun', slow
> in getting ready, = síðbúinn)
> During the next summer they went to Iceland and became
> late boun.
The next summer they went to Iceland and sailed late [‘were
late-prepared’].
> Þeir höfðu harða útivist og komu litlu fyrir vetur í
> Hornafjörð.
> They had a hard voyage and landed a little before winter
> in Hornafiord.
> They had a difficult time at seas and arrived shortly
> before winter in Hornafjord.
They had a hard voyage and arrived in Hornafjörð just before
winter.
> En er þeir bjuggust frá skipi, Breiðfirðingarnir, þá
> skaust þar mjög í tvö horn um búnað þeirra Snorra og
> Þorleifs kimba.
> And when they, the Broad-firthingers, got the ship ready
> then they shot off there almost in two horns concerning
> their household, Snorri and Thorleifr kimba. (??)
> And when they, the Breidafirthers, got ready (to go) from
> the ship, then many failed to notice? there much
> difference in (the)? two (as to) their clothing, Snorri’s
> and Thorleif’s kima.
And when they, (the) Breiðfirðings, prepared to leave (the)
ship, there was a very great difference in
equipment/clothing between Snorri and Þorleif kimbi.
Rob: The idiom's under <horn>, Z4.
> Þorleifur keypti þann hest er hann fékk bestan.
> Thorleif bought that horse which he obtained the best.
> Thorleif kept that stallion which served him best.
þorleif bought the best horse that he could [buy].
<Bestan> is masc. acc. sing.; it goes with <hest>.
> Hann hafði og steindan söðul allglæsilegan.
> He also had a splendid painted saddle.
> He also had a splendid studded? saddle.
He also had a splendid (lit. ‘very shiny’) painted saddle.
> Hann hafði búið sverð og gullrekið spjót, myrkblán skjöld
> og mjög gylltan, vönduð öll klæði.
> He had worn a sword and gold-inlaid spear, a dark-blue
> shield, also very gilded, carefully chosen all (his)
> clothes.
> He had an ornamented sword and a spear inlaid with gold, a
> dark blue and heavily gilded shield (and) all clothing
> elaborately worked.
He had an ornamented sword and a gold-inlaid spear, a dark
blue shield with much gilding, (and he had) taken great pains
with all (his) clothing.
> Hann hafði þar og til varið mjög öllum sínum fararefnum.
> He also possessed there wielded much all his equipment.
> (??)
> He also had there (as?) to condition much to all his
> equipment??
He had also spent much on all of his outfittings.
This is the second verb <verja> (Z4).
> En Snorri var í svartri kápu og reið svörtu merhrossi
> góðu.
> But Snorri was in a black cape and rode a good black mare.
> But Snorri was in a black cape and rode a good black mare.
But Snorri was in a black hooded cloak and rode a good black
mare.
> Hann hafði fornan trogsöðul og vopn lítt til fegurðar
> búin.
> He had an old trough-shaped saddle and a weapon made with
> little beauty.
> He had an old saddle shaped like a trough and weapons made
> with little embellishment.
He had an old trough-shaped saddle and weapons little
adorned for beauty.
> Búnaður Þórodds var þar á milli.
> Thorod's household was there in between.
> Thorod’s outfit was between (those extremes).
Þórodd’s outfit was there in the middle.
> Þeir riðu austan um Síðu og svo sem leið liggur vestur til
> Borgarfjarðar og svo vestur um Flötu og gistu í
> Álftafirði.
> They rode east around Sidu and so as the way lies west to
> Borgarfjard and so west around Flotu and (they) stayed the
> night in Swan-firth.
> They rode from the east around Sida and so as (the) way
> lies west to Borgarfjord and so west around Fletir and
> stayed overnight in Alftafjord.
They rode from the east across Síða and as the road lies
west to Borgarfjörð and so west across Flata(?) [‘Flat’, now
Flatir ‘Flats’] and passed the night at Álptafjörð.
> Eftir það reið Snorri til Helgafells og ætlar þar að vera
> um veturinn.
> After that Snorri rode to Helgafell and intended to stay
> there during the winter.
> After that Snorri rode to Helgafell and intends to stay
> there during the winter.
After that Snorri rode to Helgafell and intended to stay
there over the winter.
> Börkur tók því fálega og höfðu menn það mjög að hlátri um
> búnað hans.
> Borkr took that unenthusiastically and had men that much
> laughed at his dwelling. (Z. hafa 14 - h. e-n háði,
> hlátri, to mock, laugh at)
> Bork took it cooly and men had much laughter about his
> gear.
Börk took that coldly [was unenthusiastic about it], and
folks greatly ridiculed his outfit.
'His' here refers to Stein, not to Börk. It took me way too
long to realize this, but once I did, both this sentence and
the next made *much* better sense.
> Tók Börkur svo á að honum hefði óheppilega með féið farist
> er öllu var eytt.
> Borkr understood so that he had unfortunately foundered
> with money, which was all spent.
> Bork regarded? him so that he had done unluckily with the
> money which was all (for) nothing.
Börk took (this) so, that he had got on unluckily with the
money, which was all spent.
In other words, Börk interpreted Stein's less than
magnificent appearance as an indication that he'd wasted the
money that Börk had given him.
> Það var einn dag öndverðan vetur að Helgafelli að þar
> gengu inn tólf menn alvopnaðir.
> It was one at the beginning of winter at Helgafell that 12
> men in full armor went in there.
> It was one day, beginning of winter at Helgafell that
> twelve armed men went in there.
It was one day at the beginning of winter at Helgafell that
twelve men went inside there in full armor.
> Þar var Eyjólfur hinn grái, frændi Barkar, sonur Þórðar
> gellis.
> There was Eyjolfr the gray, a relative of Barkr, a son of
> "yeller" Thord.
> There were Eyjolf the grey, kinsman of Bork, son of Thord
> gellir.
There was Eyjólf inn grái [‘the grey’], Börk’s kinsman, son
of Þórð gellir.
> Hann bjó í Otradal vestur í Arnarfirði.
> He lived in Otradale, west in Arnarfirth.
> He lived in Otradal, west in Arnarfirth.
He lived at Otradal to the west in Arnarfjörð.
'Otterdale'
Brian