Re: Haensna Thoris Saga 9 end + 10 part 1 -- Rob's Translation

> Þorbjörn karl tekur þá til orða: "Á þá leið er Oddur
> bóndi," sagði hann, "að þú hefir heitið mér ásjá þinni og
> vil eg nú til þess taka að þú leggir til nokkur góð ráð og
> komir til."

> Old man (or just "man") Thorbjorn then begins to speak:
> "In this wise (or so says Zoega, but that's not an
> expression I ever use)," he said, "that you have called me
> to support you, and I now want to do that that you furnish
> some good advice and come (here to me)."

> Old-man Þorbjörn takes then to words (ie starts to speak):
> „(It) is thus (in this wise), farmer Oddr,“ said he “that
> you have promised me your help and I want now to take to
> (ie have recourse to, taka til e-s, Z12) that, that you
> put forward (contribute) some good counsels(plans) (neut
> plural) and be of some value( use) (koma til, Z4?).”

Then old Þorbjörn begins to speak: ‘It’s this way, Master
Odd,’ he said, ‘that you have promised me your help, and I
now want to have recourse to it, in that you contribute some
good advice and help me.’

It could be ‘to be of value’, but I think that ‘to help,
avail’ is at least as good. Either way the general idea is
clear, though.

> Oddur kvaðst svo gera mundu.

> Oddr said for himself (that he) would do so.

> Oddr declared-of-himself (that he) would do so.

Odd said that he would do so.

> Ríða þeir nú í Örnólfsdal og koma þar fyrir dag.

> They now ride to Ornolfsdale and arrived there before
> daybreak.

> They ride now to Örnúlfsdalr (Örnúlfr’s-Dale) and come
> there before day.

They ride now to Örnólfsdal and reach there before daybreak.

> Voru þá fallin húsin og fölskaður mjög eldurinn.

> The houses were then fallen and very much covered with
> white ashes.

> The farm-buildings were (had) then (ie by that time)
> fallen and the fire (was) much covered-with-white ashes.

The houses were then fallen and the fire almost burnt out.

This is <mjök> Z3; <fölskaðr> 'pale, burnt out' is in CV.

> Nú ríður Oddur að húsi einu því er eigi var allt brunnið.

> Oddr now rides to one house that is not all burned.

> Now Oddr rides to that one (particular) building which is
> not completely burnt.

Now Odd rides to the one house that was not completely
burned up.

> Hann seilist til birkirafts eins og kippir brott úr
> húsinu, ríður síðan andsælis um húsin með loganda brandinn
> og mælti: "Hér nem eg mér land fyrir því að hér sé eg nú
> eigi byggðan bólstað.

> He tried to get a hold of a brich rafter and snatches it
> out of the house, then rides against the course of the sun
> around the house [note that in June the sun would appear
> to circle the house] with the burning firebrand and said:
> "Here I claim for myself land because I don't see here an
> inhabited abode.

> He tries-to-get-hold of one (particular) birch-rafter and
> pulls (it) away from the-building, rides after-that
> withershins around farm-buildings with the flaming
> fire-brand and spoke: “Here I take (the) land (estate) for
> myself for that (reason) that I here see now not an
> inhabited farm.

He reaches out to a birch rafter and jerks it away from the
house, then rides widdershins about the houses with the
burning brand and said: ‘Here I take possession of land for
myself, for I do not see here now an inhabited homestead.

> Heyri það vottar þeir er hjá eru."

> He heard they affirm who were next to (him).

> Hear that (is this an imperative?), those witnesses who
> are present.”

Let those witnesses hear that who are nearby.’

<Heyri> is 3rd plur. pres. subjunctive; its subject is
<vottar þeir>. German has a similar construction:

Sei X ein topologischer Raum.
Let X be a topological space.

Here <sei> is 3rd sing. pres. subj. of <sein> 'to be'.

> Hann keyrir síðan hestinn og ríður í brott.

> He then lashes his horse and rides away.

> He whips after-that the (his)-horse and rides away.

Then he spurs his horse and rides away.

There seems to be no telling whether he used a whip, spurs,
or some other means of driving the horse forward sharply.

> Hersteinn mælti: "Hvað er nú til ráða?

> Hernstein said: "What is to advise now?

> Hersteinn spoke: “What is now to be done? (ráð, Z4)?

Herstein said: ‘Now what’s to be done?

> Eigi reyndust þessi vel."

> This did not turn out well."

> This turned out (ie proved to be) not good.”

This did not turn out well.’

> Þorbjörn mælti: "Þegi þú ef þú mátt hvað sem í gerist."

> Thorbjorn said: "Be silent if you are able what as it
> became." (??)

> Þorbjörn spoke: “Be silent if you can whatever happens.”

Þorbjörn said: ‘Be silent if you can, whatever happens.’

> Hersteinn svarar og kvaðst það eina talað hafa er eigi var
> við of.

> Herstein answers and said for himself that (he) only has
> talked when he didn't respond. (??)

> Hersteinn answers and declared-of-himself to have spoken
> merely that which was not to excess. (see við of, under
> of, Z2)

Herstein replies and said that he has said only that which
was not too much.

I.e., no more than was appropriate.

> Útibúr var óbrunnið, það sem varningur Austmanns var inni
> og mikið fé annað.

> A storehouse was not burned, that which the Norwegians'
> merchandise was inside and much money in addition.

> A store-house was (ie remained) un-burnt, that which (the)
> wares of the East-man (Norwegian) were inside and much
> other property.

A storehouse was unburned, that which the Easterner’s wares
were in, and much other wealth.

> Í þessu hverfur Þorbjörn karl.

> Earl Thorbjorn disappears in this.

> Old-man Þorbjorn turns (disappears) into this.

At this moment old Þorbjörn disappears.

I’m pretty sure that <Í þessu> is the adverbial expression
of time. Remember, this Þorbjörn is the fellow who
sometimes moves so fast that he isn’t where he’s actually
seen; I shouldn’t be surprised if ‘disappears’ were intended
literally.

> Nú lítur Hersteinn heim til bæjarins og sér útibúrið opið
> og út borið féið en engan sér hann manninn.

> Herstein now looks home to his farms and sees the
> storehouse open and the money exposed than no man has
> seen. (I don't understand the structure at the end, and I
> am just guessing.)

> Now Hersteinn looks homeward towards the-farmstead and
> sees the store-house open and the-property carried out but
> he sees no (engan, masc acc sg)  person (man) (manninn,
> masc acc sg)

Now Herstein looks homewards to the farmhouse and sees the
storehouse open and the wealth carried out, but he sees no
person.

> Þar eru bundnar klyfjar.

> There are bound packs there.

> There are bound trusses.

Packs are tied up there.

> Þar næst heyrir hann hark mikið í túnið, sér nú að heim
> eru rekin hross öll þau er faðir hans hafði átt, sauðir og
> naut úr fjósi og allt ganganda fé.

> Next there he hears a loud noise in the homestead, he now
> seas that at home are the driven horses, all those that
> his father had owned, sheep and cattle out of the barn and
> all the livestock.

> There next he hears a great noise in the-home-meadow, sees
> now that are driven home all those horses which his father
> had owned, sheep and cattle (neat) out of (the) byre and
> all walking animals (ie livestock).

Thereupon he hears a great noise in the home field; he now
sees that all the horses that his father had owned are being
driven home, the sheep and cattle from the cowshed and all
the livestock.

> Síðan eru klyfjar upp hafðar og því næst öllu á ferð snúið
> og allt fémætt á brott fært.

> Then all the packs are taken and thereafter all turned to
> their way and all all valuables taken away.

> After-that (the) trusses are taken (heaved) up (cf hafa
> e-t uppi, Z14) and in the next (instant) (are) turned (ie
> prepared) everything for (the) journey (?) and all
> valuable (things) conveyed away

Then the packs are lifted up, and thereupon everything sent
on its way, and everything valuable carried away.

Baetke has <snúa á rás> 'to begin to move, to get under way;
to run off', to which this seems similar. See also some of
the glosses s.v. <snúa> in the Faulkes/Barnes yellow
glossary.

> Hersteinn víkur nú eftir og sér að Þorbjörn karl rekur
> féið.

> Herstin now yields to and sees that earl Thorbjorn is
> driving the livestock.

> Hersteinn turns now back and sees that old-man Þorbjörn
> drives the-cattle.

Herstein now goes after it and sees that old Þorbjörn is
driving the animals.

> Þeir snúa leið sinni ofan eftir héraði í Stafholtstungur
> og svo út yfir Norðurá.

> They turn down their path across the district to
> Stafholstungur and so out over Nordura.

> They turn (ie go) their way down along (the) district into
> Stafholtstungur (Stave-wood-Tongues) and so out over
> Norðurá (North-River).

They make their way down along the district into
Stafholtstungur and so out over Norðrá.

> Sauðamaður Þorkels trefils úr Svignaskarði gekk þenna
> morgun að fé sínu.

> A shepherd of Thorkel "Tatter" from Svignaskardi went this
> morning to his sheep.

> (The) shepherd of Þorkell ‘Rag’ out-of Svignaskarð
> (Mountain-Pass) went (on foot) this morning to his sheep.

Þorkel trefill’s shepherd from Svignaskarð went to his
animals this morning.

> Hann sér hvar þeir fara og reka alls kyns fénað.

> He sees where they are going and drives all his kin's
> livestock.

> He sees where they journey and (they) drive cattle of all
> kinds (species).

He sees where they travel and drive all sorts of livestock.

> Hann segir þetta Þorkatli en hann svarar: "Veit eg hverju
> gegna mun.

> He tells this to Thorkatl, and he answers: "I know what it
> will mean.

> He says (tells) this to Þorkell and he answers: I know
> what this will mean (gegna, Z3).

He tells Þorkel this, and he replies: ‘I know what this will
mean.

> Það munu vera Þverhlíðingar vinir mínir.

> That will be Thervhlidingr, my friend.

> That will be my friends (nom pl) (the) Þverhlíð-folk.

That will be Þverhlíðings, friends of mine.

> Þeir hafa vetrarnauð mikla og munu þeir reka hingað fé
> sitt.

> They have a big severe winter and they will drive his
> sheep here.

> They have a very severe winter and they will drive their
> cattle hither.

They have a very severe winter, and they must be driving
their livestock hither.

> Skal þeim það heimilt.

> It shall be allowed.

> That shall (be) free for them (ie they shall have a right
> to do so).

They are free to do that.

> Eg hefi hey ærin.

> I have hay for the ewe. (???)

> I have sufficient (oerinn) hay.

I have enough hay.

> Eru hér og nógar jarðir útifé."

> They is here also enough land for cattle that graze
> outside in the winter.

> Here are also ample lands for
> cattle-that-graze-outside-in-winter.

Here are also abundant pastures for winter-grazing cattle.

Brian