No vísa this time, but still not one of the easier bits.
> Þorgerður svarar: "Mikið gerið þér mér fyrir þessu máli en
> eigi mundi eg mitt erfiði til spara ef til framkvæmdar
> yrði."
> Thorgerdr answers: "You have done much for me over this
> case, and I would not spare my trouble if to your
> difficulty."
> Thorgerd answers, “You have done much for me for this
> case, but I would not spare difficulty if success resulted
> from it.”
Þorgerð answers: ‘You make me much [trouble] over this case,
but I would not spare my trouble if success would result
from it.’
<Gerið> is second person plural present indicative, agreeing
with <þér> as its subject. At <fyrir> Z10 this clause
actually appears (in slightly variant form) with the gloss
'you make this case hard for me'.
> Síðan fór hún út á Eyri og fann Steinþór og bað hann
> gerast formann eftirmælis þessa.
> Then she went to to Eyri and met Steinthor and asked him
> become leader in this case concerning a person's death.
> Then she went out to Eyr and met Steinthor and asked him
> to be prosecutor in this case (of Vigfus’ slaying).
Then she went out to Eyr and met Steinþór and asked him to
become leader of this suit [against Vigfús’s slayer].
> Steinþór svarar: "Hví beiðir þú mig þessa?
> Steinthor answers: "Why do you ask me this?
> Steinthor answers, “Why do you ask this of me?
Steinþór answers: ‘Why do you ask me for this?
> Eg er ungur maður og átt eigi hlut að málum manna en
> frændur Vigfúss, þeir er honum eru nánari en eg, eru meiri
> uppivöðslumenn en eg.
> I am a young man and hadn't a part to the man's case than
> kinsman Vigruss, they who to him were closer than I, were
> more overbearing men than I.
> I am a young man and had no part in mens’ cases, but
> Vigfus’ kinsmen, those who are closer to him than I, are
> more overbearing than I.
I am a young man and [have] had no part of men’s cases; and
kinsmen of Vigfús who are closer to him than I are more
aggressive men than I.
The first person singular of <eiga> is <á>, not <átt>; <átt>
is second person singular, which makes no sense here, and
past participle, which makes fine sense if we assume that
<hefi> has been omitted. This <en> seems to make better
sense as 'and' than as 'but'. In the modern language
<uppivöðslusamur> is 'pushy, aggressive, overbearing,
domineering', and I felt that 'aggressive' or 'pushy' fit
the situation a little better than 'overbearing', though
'overbearing' might fit the men better!
> Er og þess engi von að eg taki þetta mál fyrir hendur þeim
> en eigi mun eg skiljast við frændur mína þá er eftir þessu
> máli eiga að sjá."
> That is also no hope that I take this matter before the
> hand to them, but I will not forsake my relatives, those
> who have a look after this matter. (Z. sjá 6 - eiga eptir
> e-u at sjá, to have to look after a thing)
> I am not accustomed to this that I take this case off
> their hands, but I will not part from my kinsmen then who
> are obliged to see to this case.”
That is also not to be expected, that I should take this
case from their hands, but I will not forsake my kinsmen who
have to see to this case.’
> Fékk Þorgerður þar eigi önnur svör.
> Thorgerdur didn't get there another answer.
> Thorgerd gave there no other answer.
Þorgerð got there no other answer.
> Fór hún eftir það inn yfir fjörðu á fund Vermundar og
> sagði honum hvar þá var komið, kvað allt sitt mál fyrir
> borði verða nema hann gerðist skörungur fyrir þessu máli.
> After that she went inwards over a fiord to meet Vermundr
> and told him where that had come, said her matter was
> quite slighted unless he become a leader for this matter.
> (?) (Z. borð 2 - verða (allr) fyrir borð borinn, verða
> allr fyrir borði, to be (quite) thrown overboard, i. e.
> slighted)
> She went after it in over (the) fjord to meet Vermund and
> told him what had happened then, said all her efforts went
> overboard unless he became leader in this case.
After that she went in [i.e., eastwards] along [the] fjords
to visit Vermund and told him how matters then stood; [she]
said that her whole case would be overboard unless he became
leader for this case.
<Fjörðr> is a u-stem, like <köttr>: <fjörðu> is the
accusative plural. My other edition identifies the fjords
in question as the Kolgrafafjörð and Hraunsfjörð. The
former can be seen clearly labelled about midway along the
northern edge of Snæfellsnes on the map at
<
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Map_of_the_Sn%C3%A6fellsnes_peninsula.png>;
the latter is the narrow arm that branches off its eastern
side and is partly obscured by the yellow highway 54.
> Vermundur svarar: "Meiri von er að reki verði að ger
> þessum málum þér til hugganar.
> Vermundr answers: "More hope is to (those) who become
> adrift (those) who deserve comfort.
> Vermund answers, “More is to be expected to prosecute to
> make this case to comfort you.
Vermund answers: ‘It is more to be expected that these cases
would be prosecuted [‘prosecution would be made of these
cases’] for your consolation.
> Skal eg þó til leggja enn ráð með þér ef þú vilt þér að
> fylgja."
> I shall yet contribute as my share still advice with you
> if you wanted yourself to take."
> I shall still contribute yet advice for you if you want to
> follow (it).”
Nevertheless, I shall still contribute advice to you if you
really want to pursue [the matter].
<Ef þú vilt þér> is more or less literally 'if you want for
yourself', but I decided to follow the editor of my other
edition in interpreting the unexpected (second) <þér> as
strengthening the verb <vilt>: 'if you really want, if
you’re determined to’, or the like. And I think that
<fylgja> refers to the suit, not Vermund’s advice.
> Hún svarar: "Flesta hluti mun eg til þess vinna."
> She answers: "In most part I will make myself worthy of
> this."
> She answers, “I will work most on this.”
She answers: ‘For this I will do most things.’
> "Nú skaltu heim fara," sagði Vermundur, "og láta upp grafa
> Vigfús bónda þinn.
> "You shall now go home," said Verundr, "and open up (the)
> grave of your husband Vigfus.
> “Now you shall go home,” said Vermund, “and have Vigfus,
> your husband, dug up.
‘Now you shall go home,’ said Vermund, ‘and have Vigfús,
your husband, dug up.
> Tak síðan höfuð hans og fær Arnkatli og seg honum svo að
> þetta höfuð mundi eigi við aðra meta að mæla eftir hann ef
> þess þyrfti við."
> Then take his head and go to Arnkatl and tell him so as
> this head would not value with to speak about him if that
> is necessary."
> Then take his head and bring (it) to Arnkel and tell him
> thus, that this head would not have left (it) to others to
> speak for him if this were needed.”
Then take his head and bring [it] to Arnkel and tell him
that this head would not leave it to others to take up the
prosecution for his [= Arnkel’s] slaying if that were
needed.
> Þorgerður kvaðst eigi vita hvar þessu máli mundi koma en
> sjá kvaðst hún að þeir spörðu hana eigi til erfiðis og
> skaprauna "en til mun eg þetta vinna," segir hún, "ef þá
> yrði þyngri hlutur óvina minna en áður."
> Thorgerdr said for himself (to) not know where this case
> would come, but he told her that they don't spare her from
> toil and ridicule "but I will make myself worthy of this,"
> she says, "
> þeir spörðu hana Thorgerd said she didn’t know where this
> case would wind up but she said she saw that they spared
> her nothing in terms of difficulty and vexation “and I
> will work on this,” says she, “if then (the) thing became
> more weighed down for my enemies than before.”
Þorgerð said that she did not know where this case would end
up, and/but she said that they did not spare her from
trouble and annoyance ‘but I will do that,’ she says, ‘if
[the] thing would then become more difficult for my enemies
than before.’
Note that <þessu máli> is a dative object of <koma>, so it’s
literally something like 'where [it] would bring this case'.
> Eftir það fór hún heim og hafði þessa meðferð alla sem
> henni var kennd.
> After that she went home and had all this behavior as she
> was instructed.
> After that she went home and had all this management
> (performed?) as to her was known.
After that she went home and behaved exactly as she was
instructed.
This is <kenna> Z10 and <meðferð> Z3.
> Og er hún kom á Bólstað segir hún Arnkatli að frændur
> Vigfúss vildu að hann gerðist fyrirmaður að eftirmáli um
> víg Vigfúss en þeir hétu allir sinni liðsemd.
> And when she came to Bolstad she tells Arnkatl that (his)
> kinsman Vigfuss wanted that he become a leader for the
> case concerning Vigfuss's slaying and they promised all
> their assistance.
> And when she came to Bolstad, she says to Arnkel, that
> Vigfus’ kinsmen wanted that he become leader in the
> prosecution regarding Vigfus’ slaying and they all
> promised their help.
And when she came to Bólstað she says to Arnkel that
Vigfús’s kinsmen wanted that he become leader of the
prosecution for [the] slaying of Vigfús, and they all
promised their assistance.
> Arnkell kvaðst sagt hafa áður hversu honum var gefið um
> þetta mál.
> Arnkell said for himself to have said how he was disposed
> concerning this matter.
> Arnkel said he had previously said how he felt about this
> case.”
Arnkel said that he had said before how he was disposed
concerning this case.’
> Þá brá Þorgerður höfðinu undan skikkju sinni og mælti:
> "Hér er nú það höfuð er eigi mundi undan teljast að mæla
> eftir þig ef þess þyrfti við."
> Then Thorgerdur drew the head from under her cloak and
> said: "Here now is that head which would not refuse to
> take up the prosecution in your case of being slain if
> that were needed." (Z. telja 6 - teljast undan e-u, to
> decline, refuse) (Z. mæla 3 - mæla eptir e-n, to take up
> the prosecution in the case of a slain man)
> Then Thorgerd drew the head from under her cloak and said,
> “Here is now that head which would not refuse to speak
> after you if you needed it.”
Then Þorgerð drew the head from under her cloak and said:
‘Here now is the head that would not refuse to take up the
suit for your slaying if this were necessary.’
Brian