Re: Hrafns 12C

> Þat högg kom á hönd Teiti á hreifann, ok var kallat ekki
> mikit sár, en höndin fell síðan af honum í hreifanum, þá
> er Þorvaldr Bjarnason skyldi græða hann.

> That blow landed on Teiti's hand on his wrist, and was not
> called a large wound, but afterwards his hand fell off
> from him at the wrist when Thorvaldr Bjarnson intended to
> cure him. (I used the Modern Icelandic possibility of
> skulu meaning to intend, here.)

> That blow came on the hand of Teitr on the-wrist, and was
> called not a great wound, but the-hand fell afterwards
> from him in the-wrist, when Þorvaldr Bjarni‘s-son should
> (ie was expected to) heal him.

That blow hit Teit’s arm at the wrist and was not called a
great wound, but afterwards the hand fell off him at the
wrist when Þorvald Bjarnason was to heal him.

> Á þau mál var þar þegar sætzt á þinginu.

> Those matters were immmediately settled there at the
> Assembly.

> In that matter [it] was at-once come-to-terms there at the
> Thing (Assembly)

An agreement in those matters was at once reached there at
the þing.

> En þat kom upp síðan, at þeir Loftr ok Gísli höfðu verit í
> fjörráðum við Þorvald ok þeir hefði heitit at halda upp
> fébótum fyrir Hauk, ef hann hefði unnit á Þorvaldi.

> And that became known later that Loftr and Gisli had been
> in plotting against his life with Thorvaldr and they had
> promised to discharge compensation for Haukr if he had
> done bodily injury to Thorvaldr.

> And that came up (ie came to light) afterwards, that they,
> Loptr and Gísli, had been in [the]
> hatching-of-a-plot-against-the-life of Þorvaldr and they
> had promised to discharge (lit: hold up) an offer-of-money
> (ie pay a reward) for Haukr, if he had
> done-a-bodily-injury to Þorvaldr.

And it came out afterwards that Lopt and Gísli had been in a
plot against Þorvald’s life, and they had promised to pay
compensation in Hauk’s behalf if he had done bodily injury
to Þorvald.

<Fébótum> is the dative of the plural noun <fébœtr>
‘compensation, esp. weregild’.

> En er Loftr vissi, at Þorvaldr hafði ekki skeinzt, þá
> vildi hann eigi fébótum upp halda, sem þeir höfðu heitit.

> But when Loftr found out that Thorvaldr had not gotten a
> scratch, then he didn't want to discharge the
> compensation, which they had promised.

> But (And) when Loptr knew, that Þorvaldr had not
> been-scratched, then he wanted not to discharge (lit: hold
> up) [the] offer-of-money (ie pay the reward), which they
> had promised.

And when Lopt perceived that Þorvald had not been wounded,
he did not want to pay compensation as they had promised.

> Svá gerði ok Gísli, en Hauki þóttu þeir eiga at efna mælt
> mál við sik, þar er hann hafði ráðit til Þorvalds, þótt
> hann hefði eigi skeinzt.

> Gisli also did so, but it seemed to Haukr they were under
> obligation (to have) settled the case with him, when he
> had attacked Thorvaldr, though he hadn't gotten a scratch.

> Gísli also acted thus, but (and) [it] seemed to Haukr they
> (ie Loptr and Gísli) to have stipulated (<mæla>, Z2) to
> fulfil [the] agreement with him, there where (ie insofar
> as) he had attacked Þorvaldr, even-though he (ie Þorvaldr)
> had not been-scratched.

Gísli also acted thus, but Hauk thought that they were
obliged to fulfil the arranged agreement with him, seeing
that he had attacked Þorvald, even though he had not been
[even] slightly wounded.

> En því vildu þeir eigi fé gjalda, er Þorvaldr hafði ekki
> skeinzt af tilræði Hauks.

> But they didn't want to return that money, when Thorvaldr
> hadn't been slightly injured from Haukr's assault.

> But they wanted not to pay [the] money for that, when
> Þorvaldr had not been scratched by [the] assault of Haukr.

But for that [reason] they did not want to pay money,
[namely,] that Þorvald had not been at all wounded by Hauk’s
assault.

I could be wrong, but I’m treating <því ... er> as
equivalent to <því ... at>.

> Þá sýndist Lofti óvarligt vera sér at sitja í Dýrafirði
> fyrir ófriði Þorvalds, ok fyrir því fór hann á brott,
> brátt er menn kómu af þingi, suðr um land til Eyjólfs goða
> Þorsteinssonar, mágs síns, föður Álfdísar, konu hans, ok
> var þar um sumarit ok öndverðan vetrinn.

> Then it seemed to Loftr imprudent to be staying in
> Byrafirth because of Thorvaldr's hostilities, and because
> of that he went away, as soon as people came from the
> Assembly, south across land to heathen-chief Eyjolf
> Thorsteinson, his inlaw and father of Alfdisar, his wife,
> and he stayed there during the summer and early winter.

> Then [it] seemed to Loptr to be imprudent (<úvarligr>) for
> himself to stay (lit: sit) in Dýrafjörðr for [reasons of]
> [the] enmity of Þorvaldr, and for that [reason] he
> journeyed away, as soon as folk came from [the] Thing
> (assembly), south across land to Eyjólfr [the] goði
> (chief), Þorsteinn’s-son, his father-in-law, father of
> Álfdís, his wife, and was (stayed) there during the-summer
> and the-beginning of the-winter.

Then it seemed to Lopt to be imprudent for him to stay at
Dýrafjörð on account of Þorvald’s feud, and for that reason
he travelled away as soon as folks came from [the] þing,
south across the country to Eyjólf <goði> Þorsteinsson, his
father-in-law, father of Álfdís, his wife, and stayed there
during the summer and the beginning of the winter.

> Þetta sumar fór Þorvaldr vestr í Dýrafjörð til leiðar at
> vitja fégjalda þeira, er gjaldast skyldu fyrir Hauk, en
> féin kómu þar eigi fram.

> This summer Thorvaldr went west to Thyrfiord on the way to
> claim their payment, which should be paid for Haukr, but
> the money didn't appear there.

> This summer Þorvaldr journeyed west to Dýrafjörðr to [the]
> local-assembly (<leið>, Z.ii) to fetch those payment
> (fine), which should be-paid for Haukr, but the-monies
> came not forth (was not forthcoming) there.

This summer Þorvald travelled west into Dýrafjörð to the
local summer assembly to claim the fines that were to be
paid for Hauk, but the monies were not forthcoming there.

GPH says that the <leið> was obligatory, was held in July or
August at the site of the spring þing, and lasted at least
one day but no more than two.

> Þá beiddi Þorvaldr Hrafn, at hann skyldi fara með honum á
> Mýrar at ræna bú Lofts fyrir þat, er fégjöld kómu eigi
> fram fyrir Hauk.

> Then Thorvaldr asked Hrafn, that he should go with him to
> Myrar to rob Loftr's farm for that, when the payment
> didn't appear for Haukr.

> Then Þorvaldr asked Hrafn, that he should go with him to
> Mýrar to plunder [the] household of Loptr for that
> [reason] that payments came not forth (were not
> forthcoming) for Haukr.

Then Þorvald requested of Hrafn that he should travel with
him to Mýrar to rob Lopt’s farm on account of the fact that
payments for Hauk were not forthcoming.

> En Hrafn vildi eigi í þeiri för vera, kveðst veita mundu
> Þorvaldi til laga, en eigi til ólaga, mælti, at Þorvaldr
> skyldi sækja Loft til laga eða Gísla um fjörráð eða
> fjárhald, ok kvaðst veita honum mundu til þess.

> But Hrafn didn't want to be on that trip; he said for
> himself (that) he would lead Thorvaldr to participation in
> law, but not to lawlessness, that Thorvaldr should
> prosecute Loftr lawfully or Gisla concerning plotting
> against one's life or withholding one's money, and says
> for himself he would lead to that.

> But Hrafn wanted not to be in their journey (expedition),
> declared-of-himself [that he] would help (<veita>, Z1)
> Þorvaldr through [the] law (ie by legal means), but [and]
> not through lawlessness (<úlög>) (ie not by illegal
> means), spoke, that Þorvaldr should pursue Loptr through
> [the] law (ie by legal means) or Gísli concerning [the]
> hatching-of-a-plot-against-the-life or with-holding-money,
> and declared-of-himself [that he] would help (<veita>, Z1)
> him through that (ie by those means).

But Hrafn did not want to go [‘be’] on that journey; [he]
said that he would help Þorvald in lawful but not in
unlawful ways, said that Þorvald should prosecute Lopt or
Gísli at law for plotting against his life or withholding
his money, and said that he would help him with that.

> Eftir þat fór Þorvaldr á Mýrar ok rænti þar mörgu fé ok
> lagði ámæli til við Hrafn, er hann vildi eigi í þeiri för
> vera.

> After that, Thorvaldr went to Myrar and stole there much
> money and contributed blame against Hrafn, when he didn't
> want to be on that trip.

> After that Þorvaldr journeyed to Mýrar and plundered there
> much property and reproached (lit: placed blame towards
> [it] against) Hrafn, that he wanted not to be in their
> journey (expedition).

After that Þorvald travelled to Mýrar and stole many sheep
there and blamed Hrafn for not wanting [‘placed the blame on
Hrafn that he did not want’] to go [‘be’] on the journey
with him.

> Of þetta rán orti Heinrekr, þingmaðr Þorvalds, vísu þessa:

> Concerning this robbery, Heinrikr, Thorvaldr's liegeman,
> composed this verse:

> Of this plundering, Heinekr, Thingman (liegeman) of
> Þorvaldr, made this verse:

Concerning this robbery Heinrek, Þorvald’s þingman, made
this vísa:

> Rækir, frák, at ræki,
> ráð vas þat mikit, dáða,
> kynnisk kappgirnd manna,
> kýr tuttugu af Mýrum.
> Nú hefr hrynbirkis hvárki
> hlynr, veitk á því skynjar,
> illr mun kostr sá kallaðr,
> kýr né land á Mýrum.

GPH gives it as follows:

> Rekkar, frá ek, at ræki,
> ráð er þat mikit dáða,
> kynnisk kappgirnd manna,
> kýr tuttugu af Mýrum.
> Nú hefr hrynbirkis hvárki
> hlynr, veit ek á því skynjar,
> illr mun kostr hans kallaðr,
> kýr né land á Mýrum.

Of course <frák> and <frá ek> are the same, as are <veitk>
and <veit ek>, and the difference between <hans kostr> and
<sá kostr> is minor, so the important differences are
between <rækir> and <rekkar>, and (as it turns out) the
presence or absence of the comma after <mikit>. Finally, I
note that <https://skaldic.abdn.ac.uk/m.php?p=verse&i=3107>
gives it as follows:

> Rœkir frák at ræki
> (ráð vas þat mikit) dáða,
> kynnisk kappgirnð manna,
> kýr tuttugu af Mýrum;
> nú hefr hrauðbirkis hvárki
> hlynr (veitk á því skynjar),
> illr mun kostr sá kallaðr,
> kýr né land á Mýrum.

This is clearly similar in many respects to the online
source, with parentheses replacing some commas for added
clarity, so it’s very likely that <rækir> in the online
source should be understood as <rœkir>. (We’ve seen that
the online source generally has <æ> for older <œ>, and the
Lex. Poet. says that <hrauðbirkis> is an editorial
emendation.)

I’m going to start with GPH’s version, as I strongly suspect
that it’s the currently most authoritative version.

I heard that warriors drove —
that is a great undertaking of deeds —
men’s lust for contention is made known —
twenty cows from Mýrar.
Now has ringing birch’s
maple tree — I have knowledge of that —
bad will his state be called —
neither cows nor land at Mýrar.

This is clearer if we move the fourth line up to follow the
first line and move the last line up to follow ‘maple tree’:

I heard that warriors drove twenty cows from Mýrar; that
is a great undertaking of deeds — men’s lust for
contention is made known. Now ringing birch’s maple tree
has neither cows nor land at Mýrar — I have knowledge of
that; his state will be called bad.

(I’ve also slightly changed the word order in the
translation of the last four lines.)

The ringing birch is a sword, and the sword’s (maple) tree
is a warlike man, here specifically Lopt. Word order aside,
the translation of <hrynbirkis> is the hardest thing here.
CV has a neuter collective noun <birki> ‘birch’; it’s not
clear from the entry whether it appears *only* in compounds,
but Baetke simply marks it a neuter noun and glosses it
<Birke> ‘birch’. Since it’s neuter, not weak masculine, its
genitive sing. is <birkis>, which is what we have here.

The first element, <hryn->, is harder: the entries in Z and
CV for <hrynja> and a few other words beginning with <hryn->
aren’t very helpful. However, de Vries s.v. <hrynja> notes
Nynorsk <rynja> ‘to make a noise, crash about’ and Old
Swedish <rynia> ‘to make a noise’, relevant since ON /hr/
was voiced to /r/ in Old Norwegian and Old Swedish, and
while the Lex. Poet. does not have <hrynbirki>, its entries
for several other compounds in <hryn-> support this
interpretation, and GPH actually translates <hrynbirki> as
‘ringing birch’.

The footnote for the online version refers to an earlier
footnote in the source volume. I was able to track it down:
it’s at

<http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Hrafns_saga_Sveinbjarnarsonar#cite_note-1>.

The B version:

> Frák, at dáða rækir ræki tuttugu kýr af Mýrum. Þat vas
> mikit ráð. Kappgirnd manna kynnisk. Nú hefr hrynbirkis
> hlynr hvárki kýr né land á Mýrum. Veitk skynjar á því, sá
> kostr mun illr kallaðr.

I heard that [the] caretaker of deeds drove twenty cows
from Mýrar. That was a great undertaking. Men’s lust for
contention is made known. Now ringing birch’s maple tree
has neither cows nor land at Mýrar. I have knowledge of
that; that state will be called bad.

As noted above, <rækir> is almost certainly for older
<rœkir>, which must be an agent noun from <rœkja>, here in
its sense ‘to take care of’. A caretaker of deeds is
presumably a warrior, a brave man, or the like.

The C version:

> Eg frétti, að kappimi ræki tuttugu kýr frá Mýrum. Það var
> mikið afrek. Kappgirni manna verður augljós. Nú hefir hann
> hvorki kýr né land á Mýrum. Eg veit skyn á því, að sá
> kostur mun vera kallaður illur.

I suspect that <kappimi> is an OCR error for <kappinn>.

I heard that the warrior drove twenty cows from Mýrar.
That was a great achievement. Man’s competitive spirit
becomes obvious. Now he has neither cows nor land at
Mýrar. I have knowledge of it, that that state will be
called bad.

> You refuse, (frák?), that
> advice (vas?) that much, admire,
> became known full of energy and desire to excel man,
> twenty cows of Myrum.
> Now has neither (hrynbirkis?)
> maple tree, I know that sails,
> the choice will be called poor,
> cows nor land at Myrum.

<Frák> is <frá ek>; <vas> is an older form of <var>.

> Driven-out (<rækr>, Lex Poet), I heard (<frá ek>), that

> that was [the] great plan, of merit (gram. gen fem pl, <dáð>, Z3)

> [the] ambition (<kappgirnð>, Lex. Poet) of men becomes-known

> twenty cows from Mýrar.

> Now [the] warrior (lit: maple-tree of mail-bark, <hlynr
> hrynbirkis> Lex Poet, which as best I can tell is
> uncertain about <hrynbirki>, as am I!) neither -

> I have (lit: know) knowledge about that,

> That choice will [be] called ill,

> cows nor land in Mýrar.

> Or, after rearranging all the pieces:

> I heard that, that was the great plan of merit– twenty
> cows driven-out from Mýrar I have knowledge of that: Now
> the warrior has neither cows nor land in Myrar - that
> choice will be called bad.

Brian