Svipdagsmál (Gróugaldr and Fjǫlsvinnsmál)
© 2023 Edward Pettit, CC BY-NC 4.0 https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0308.36
The poems Gróugaldr (Gg.) ‘Gróa’s Incantation’ and Fjǫlsvinnsmál (Fj.) ‘The Sayings of Fjǫlsvinnr’, both of which are in ljóðaháttr, survive in neither R nor A nor any other medieval source, but only in numerous seventeenth-century manuscripts. The essence of the eponymous hero Svipdagr’s quest is also known from sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Scandinavian ballads about a certain ungen Sveidal ‘young Sveidal’ (and variants of this name), although these do not derive immediately from the Eddic poems, from which they differ substantially by, among other things, omitting much of the dialogue.1 On this basis, Gg. and Fj., which appear to represent the start and conclusion of the hero’s quest, are often presented together in editions under the modern title of Svipdagsmál ‘The Lay of Svipdagr’. The date of the Eddic poems’ composition is uncertain, but it is likely that they at least draw on medieval story-elements, themes and imagery.
Among the undoubtedly medieval Eddic poems, FSk. contains the most apparent parallels to Svipdagr’s quest. Despite gaps in the story of Svipdagr—whether due to textual loss or because knowledge of the missing events was assumed—and many textual difficulties in Fj, it seems that in both FSk. and Svipdagsmál the hero (in FSk., Skírnir) undertakes a perilous journey to an Otherworldly complex in the land of giants, one implicitly visited otherwise only by the dead. He does so to win a female associated with light (respectively, Gerðr and Menglǫð), who inhabits a residence rich with gold and surrounded by ‘discerning flicker-flame’. In both cases the hero converses with an unwelcoming giant, passes ferocious guard-dogs and, it seems likely, acquires a remarkable twig-weapon with which he finally wins the object of his bridal quest.
Collectively, these similarities appear more than coincidental. They invite the proposal that Svipdagsmál is informed by a mythic theme akin to that of FSk. (insofar as that can be discerned), which, I have argued elsewhere, may well be celestial (solar/lunar) in nature.2 It is, however, debatable to what extent this theme, if present, was apparent to the composers of these poems and their audiences, and how completely and coherently the surviving poems communicate it.
Synopsis
Gróugaldr
Prose: An initial sentence explains that this poem is called ‘Gróa’s Incantation’, which Gróa chanted to her son (later named as Svipdagr) when she was dead.
Verse: Svipdagr calls on his mother to awaken at her grave (1). She asks him the nature of his trouble (2). He says that his (unnamed) stepmother has set him an impossible task—to visit a certain Menglǫð (3). Gróa replies that his journey will be long, if it proves successful (4), whereupon the fearful Svipdagr asks her for incantations to protect him (5).
Gróa chants him nine incantations: the first, which Rindr chanted to Rani, to enable Svipdagr to thrust aside something terrible (6); the second, associated with the Norn Urðr, to aid him on roads he would rather not travel (7); the third, to subdue dangerous rivers as he passes them (8); the fourth, to pacify enemies (9); the fifth, to loosen shackles (10), the sixth, to calm a maelstrom and grant safe passage (11); the seventh, to prevent frostbite (12); the eighth, to protect against a dead Christian woman at night (13); the ninth, to elicit wisdom from the giant Mímir (14).
Gróa then gives Svipdagr a parting blessing and stresses that he must remember her words (15–16).
Fjǫlsvinnsmál
Verse: This poem begins with Svipdagr observing a fortress of the giants, which rises into view as he approaches it, and a voice—probably that of a giant (or possibly a dwarf)—telling him to be off (1). Svipdagr asks what sort of ‘ogress’ (actually probably a male giant) he sees moving amid the flames that surround at least part of the stronghold, and the giant asks him his purpose (2). Svipdagr again asks for the ‘ogress’s’ identity and remarks on his lack of hospitality, at which the giant again tells him to be on his way (3). The giant adds that he is called Fjǫlsviðr, and tells him to depart a third time (4). Svipdagr expresses his desire to live in the glowing courts and golden halls that he sees (5).
Fjǫlsviðr asks for Svipdagr’s origins, and Svipdagr conceals his true identity in reply (6). Svipdagr asks who controls the stronghold (7). Fjǫlsviðr says it is Menglǫð (8). Svipdagr asks the name of the highly dangerous gate before him (9). Fjǫlsviðr identifies it as Þrymgjǫll, which was made by the sons of Sólblindi (probably dwarves), and which fetters every visitor who tries to open it (10). Svipdagr enquires about the dangerous courtyard he sees (11). Fjǫlsviðr identifies it as Gastropnir, an enclosure of clay, which will stand as long as the world endures (12). Svipdagr asks about the fierce dogs he sees (13). Fjǫlsviðr identifies them as Gífr and Geri (14). Svipdagr asks whether anyone can get inside while these dogs sleep (15). Fjǫlsviðr says no, because one dog sleeps by night, the other by day (16). Svipdagr asks whether they can be distracted by any meat (17). Fjǫlsviðr says only by pieces of Viðófnir, a cockerel (18).
Svipdagr asks the name of the tree whose branches spread through all lands (19). Fjǫlsviðr calls it Mímameiðr, whose demise will be unexpected, as neither fire nor iron can harm it (20). Svipdagr asks what comes from that tree’s spirit(?) (21). Fjǫlsviðr says that exposing its fruit to fire (to produce smoke?) helps women with complaints of the womb(?) (22).
Svipdagr asks the name of the golden cockerel sitting in the tree (23). Fjǫlsviðr calls him Viðófnir, who oppresses the giantess Sinmara (wife or daughter of the fire-giant Surtr) with a single sorrow (24). Svipdagr asks whether any weapon can kill Viðófnir (25). Fjǫlsviðr says it is called Lævateinn ‘Twig of Treacheries’, but that Loptr (Loki) plucked it and took down to the world of the dead, where it resides in a strongly locked chest beside Sinmara (26). Svipdagr asks whether anyone can go after that twig and escape alive (27). Fjǫlsviðr indicates that this is possible, if that person can bring a rare object to Sinmara in exchange (28). Svipdagr asks for the object’s identity (29). Fjǫlsviðr identifies it as a radiant sickle that Viðófnir keeps hold of (30).
Svipdagr asks the name of the flame-surrounded hall (31). Fjǫlsviðr calls it Lýr, and says it trembles on a spike and, for humans, is the subject of hearsay alone (32). Svipdagr asks who made it (33). Fjǫlsviðr lists the names of its makers, who are apparently dwarves (34).
Svipdagr asks the name of the rock on which he sees a bride (presumably Menglǫð) (35). Fjǫlsviðr calls it Lyfjaberg and identifies it as a pleasure for the sick and for infertile women, if they climb it (36). Svipdagr asks the names of the maidens who sing (or sit) before Menglǫð (37). Fjǫlsviðr names them (38). Svipdagr asks whether they protect women who sacrifice to them (39). Fjǫlsviðr says they protect everyone who sacrifices to them (40).
Svipdagr enquires whether any man can sleep in Menglǫð’s arms (41). Fjǫlsviðr says none can, except Svipdagr, who is destined to marry her (42). Svipdagr immediately commands that the doors be opened, reveals his true name, and asks whether Menglǫð will receive him warmly (43). Menglǫð is informed of the arrival of the newcomer, whom, the messenger thinks, is Svipdagr (44). She declares that ravens shall blind the messenger if he is lying (45). She asks Svipdagr his origin and name (46). He identifies himself as Svipdagr, son of Sólbjartr ‘Swooping/Fleeting Day, son of Sun-Bright’ (47), whereupon Menglǫð welcomes him with a kiss and her love (48). She says that, having waited for him for ages, her wish has finally come true (49), that their painful love-longings are over, and that they shall live passionately together for the rest of their days (50).
Further Reading
Basciu, G., ‘Marred in Transmission? A New Proposal for the Questioning Sequence in the Old Norse Svipdagsmál’, Rhesis: International Journal of Linguistics, Philology, and Literature 6.1 (2015), 5–15, https://www.rhesis.it/wp-content/uploads/Rhesis-LP-6.1-01-Giorgio-Basciu.pdf
Boer, R. C., ed., Die Edda mit historisch-kritischem Commentar, 2 vols. (Haarlem: Tjeenk Willink, 1922).
Bugge, S., ed., Norrœn fornkvæði: Norrœn fornkvæði: islandsk samling af folkelige oldtidsdigte om nordens guder og heroer almindelig kaldet Sæmundar Edda hins fróða (Christiania: Universitetsforlaget, 1867; rpt. 1965).
Falk, H., ‘Om Svipdagsmál, ANF 9 (1893), 311–62.
Grambo, R., ‘Ballad Problems: A Short Comment on Kla’s Roth’s Paper’, Jahrbuch für Volksliedforschung 24 (1979), 139–46.
Harris, J., ‘Edda and Ballad: Svipdagsmál and the Uses of Poetic Afterlife’, in T. R. Tangherlini, ed., Nordic Mythologies: Interpretations, Intersections, and Institutions (Berkeley, CA: North Pinehurst Press, 2014), pp. 35–49.
Heslop, K., ‘Talking Heads: The Mediality of Mímir’, in K. Heslop and J. Glauser, ed., RE:writing. Medial Perspectives on Textual Culture in the Icelandic Middle Ages (Zurich: Chronos, 2018), pp. 63–84.
Jón Hnefill Aðalsteinsson, ‘The Varðlokkur of Guðriður Þorbjarnardóttir’, in S. Ó Catháin, ed., Northern Lights: Following Folklore in North-Western Europe: Essays in Honour of Bo Almqvist (Dublin: University College Dublin Press, 2001), pp. 97–110.
Kalinke, M. E., Bridal-Quest Romance in Medieval Iceland (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1990).
Kaplan, M., ‘Trolls in the Mill: The Supernatural Stakes of Waterpower’, in J. Glauser and P. Hermann, ed., Myth, Magic, and Memory in Early Scandinavian Narrative Culture: Studies in Honour of Stephen A. Mitchell (Turnhout: Brepols, 2021), pp. 129–43, https://doi.org/10.1484/M.AS-EB.5.121337
Korecká, L., Wizards and Words: The Old Norse Vocabulary of Magic in a Cultural Context (Munich: Utzverlag, 2019).
Lincoln, B., ‘The “House of Clay”’, Indo-Iranian Journal 24 (1982), 1–12.
McKinnell, J., Meeting the Other in Old Norse Myth and Legend (Cambridge, UK: D. S. Brewer, 2005).
Motz, L., ‘The King and the Goddess: An Interpretation of the Svipdagsmál’, ANF 90 (1975), 133–50.
Pettit, E., The Waning Sword: Conversion Imagery and Celestial Myth in ‘Beowulf’ (Cambridge, UK: Open Book Publishers, 2020), https://doi.org/10.11647/obp.0190
Robinson, P. M. W., ‘An Edition of Svipdagsmál’ (D.Phil. thesis, University of Oxford, 1991).
Schröder, F. R., ‘Svipdagsmál’, Germanisch-romanische Monatsschrift 16 (1966), 113–19.
Sveinsson, E. Ó., ‘Svipdag’s Long Journey: Some Observations on Grógaldr and Fjölsvinnsmál’, in B. Almqvist et al., ed., Hereditas: Essays and Studies Presented to Professor Séamus Ó Duilearga (Dublin: Folklore of Ireland Society, 1975), pp. 298–319.
Gróugaldr
Gróugaldr, er hon gól syni sínum dauð:
1. ‘Vaki þú, Gróa! Vaki þú, góð kona!
Vek ek þik dauðra dura,
ef þú þat mant, at þú þinn mǫg bæðir
til kumbldysjar koma!’
2. ‘Hvat er nú annt mínum einga syni?
Hverju ertu nú bǫlvi borinn,
er þú þá móður kallar,
er til moldar er komin
ok ór ljóðheimum liðin?’
3. ‘Ljótu leikborði skaut fyr mik hin lævísa kona,
sú er faðmaði minn fǫður;
þar bað hon mik koma, er kvæmtki veit —
móti Menglǫðu!’
4. ‘Lǫng er fǫr, langir ru farvegar,
langir ru manna munir,
ef þat verðr at þú þinn vilja bíðr,
ok skeikar þá Skuld at skǫpum.’
5. ‘Galdra þú mér gal, þá er góðir eru —
bjarg þú, móðir, megi!
Á vegum allr hygg ek at ek verða muna,
þykkjumk ek til ungr afi!’
6. ‘Þann gel ek þér fyrstan, þann kveða fjǫlnýtan,
þann gól Rindr Rani,
at þú of ǫxl skjótir því er þér atalt þykkir —
sjálfr leið þú sjálfan þik.
7. ‘Þann gel ek þér annan, ef þú árna skalt
viljalauss á vegum:
Urðar lokur haldi þér ǫllum megum,
er þú á sinnum sér.
8. ‘Þann gel ek þér inn þriðja, ef þér þjóðár
falla at fjǫrlotum:
Horn ok Ruðr snúisk til Heljar meðan,
en þverri æ fyr þér.
9. ‘Þann gel ek þér inn fjórða, ef þik fjándr standa,
gǫrvir á gálgvegi:
hugr þeim hverfi til handa þér,
ok snúisk þeim til sátta sefi.
10. ‘Þann gel ek þér inn fimmta, ef þér fjǫturr verðr
borinn at boglimum:
Leifnis elda læt ek þér fyr legg of kveðinn,
ok støkkr þá láss af limum, en af fótum fjǫturr.
11. ‘Þann gel ek þér inn sétta, ef þú á sjó kømr
meira en menn viti: logn ok lǫgr
gangi þér í lúðr saman ok ljái þér æ friðdrjúgrar farar.
12. ‘Þann gel ek þér inn sjaunda, ef þik sœkja kømr
frost á fjalli há: hrævakulði
megit þínu holdi fara, ok haldit þér líki at liðum.
13. ‘Þann gel ek þér inn átta, ef þik úti nemr
nótt á niflvegi, at því firr megi þér
til meins gøra — kristin dauð kona.
14. ‘Þann gel ek þér inn njunda, ef þú við inn naddgǫfga
orðum skiptir jǫtun:
máls ok manvits sé þér af Mímis hjarta
gnóga of gefit.
15. ‘Farir þú nú æva þar er forað þykkir,
ok standit þér mein fyr munum;
á jarðfǫstum steini stóð ek innan dura,
meðan ek þér galdra gól!
16. ‘Móður orð ber þú, mǫgr, héðan,
ok lát þér í brjósti búa!
Því nóga heill skaltu of aldr hafa,
meðan þú mín orð of mant!’
Fjǫlsvinnsmál
1. Útan garða hann sá upp um koma
þursa þjóðar sjǫt;
‘Úrgar brautir árnaðu aptr heðan —
áttattu hér, verndarvanr, veru!’
2. ‘Hvat er þat flagða er stendr fyr forgǫrðum
ok hvarflar um hættan loga?’
‘Hvers þú leitar, eða hvers þú á leitum ert,
eða hvat viltu, vinlauss, vita?’
3. ‘Hvat er þat flagða er stendr fyr forgarði
ok býðrat líðǫndum lǫð?’
‘Sœmðarorða lauss hefir þú, seggr, of lifat,
ok haltu heim héðan!
4. ‘Fjǫlsviðr ek heiti, en ek á fróðan sefa,
þeygi em ek míns mildr matar;
innan garða þú kemr hér aldregi,
ok dríf þú nú, vargr, at vegi!’
5. ‘Augna gamans fýsir aptr fán,
hvars hann getr svást at sjá;
garðar glóa mér þykkja of gullna sali —
hér munda ek eðli una!’
6. ‘Segðu mér hverjum ertu, sveinn, borinn,
eða hverra ertu manna mǫgr?’
‘Vindkaldr ek heiti, Várkaldr hét minn faðir,
þess var Fjǫlkaldr faðir.
7. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
eign ok auðsǫlum?’
8. ‘Menglǫð of heitir, en hana móðir of gat
við Svafrþorins syni;
hon hér ræðr ok ríki hefir
eign ok auðsǫlum.’
9. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat sú grind heitir, er með goðum sáat
menn it meira forað.’
10. ‘Þrymgjǫll hon heitir, en hana þrír gerðu,
Sólblinda synir;
fjǫturr fastr verðr við faranda hvern
er hana hefr frá hliði.’
11. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat sá garðr heitir er með goðum sáat
menn it meira forað.’
12. ‘Gastropnir heitir, en ek hann gǫrvan hefk
ór Leirbrimis limum;
svá hefik studdan at hann standa man
æ, meðan ǫld lifir.’
13. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat þeir garmar heita er gífrari hefik
ǫnga fyrr í lǫndum litit.’
14. ‘Gífr heitir annarr, en Geri annarr,
ef þu vilt þat vita;
varðir ellifu, er þeir varða,
unz rjúfask regin.’
15. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvárt sé manna nǫkkut, þat er megi inn koma,
meðan sókndjarfir sofa.’
16. ‘Missvefni mikit var þeim mjǫk of lagit,
síðan þeim var varzla vituð;
annarr of nætr sefr, en annarr of daga,
ok kemsk þá vætr, ef þá kom.’
17. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvárt sé matar nǫkkut, þat er menn hafi,
ok hlaupi inn, meðan þeir eta.’
18. ‘Vængbráðir tvær liggja í Viðófnis liðum,
ef þú vilt þat vita:
þat eitt er svá matar, at þeim menn of gefi,
ok hlaupi inn, meðan þeir eta.’
19. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat þat barr heitir er breiðask
um lǫnd ǫll limar.’
20. ‘Mímameiðr hann heitir, en þat fáir vita,
af hverjum rótum renn;
við þat hann fellr, er fæstan varir —
flærat hann eldr né járn.’
21. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat af móði verðr þess ins mæra viðar,
er hann flærat eldr né járn.’
22. ‘Út af hans aldni skal á eld bera,
fyr kélisjúkar konur;
útar hverfa þats þær innar skyli —
sá er hann með mǫnnum mjǫtuðr.’
23. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat sá hani heitir er sitr í inum háva viði —
allr hann við gull glóir!’
24. ‘Viðófnir hann heitir, en hann stendr Veðrglasi,
á meiðs kvistum Míma;
einum ekka þryngr hann ørófsaman
Surtar Sinmǫru.’
25. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvárt sé vápna nǫkkut, þat er knegi Viðófnir fyr
hníga á Heljar sjǫt.’
26. ‘Lævateinn heitir, en hann gørði Loptr rúinn
fyr nágrindr neðan;
í segjárns keri liggr hann hjá Sinmǫru,
ok halda Njarðlásar níu.’
27. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvárt aptr kemr, sá er eptir ferr
ok vill þann tein taka.’
28. ‘Aptr mun koma, sá er eptir ferr
ok vill þann tein taka,
ef þat fœrir sem fáir eigu
Eiri Aurglasis.’
29. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvárt sé mæta nǫkkut, þat er menn hafi,
ok verðr því in fǫlva gýgr fegin.’
30. ‘Ljósan ljá skaltu í lúðr bera —
þann er liggr í Viðófnis vǫlum —
Sinmǫru at selja, áðr hon sǫm telisk
vápn til vígs at ljá.’
31. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat sá salr heitir er slunginn er
vísum vafrloga.’
32. ‘Lýr hann heitir, en hann lengi mun
á brodds oddi bifask;
auðranns þess munu um aldr hafa
frétt eina fírar.’
33. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hverr þat gørði er ek fyr garð sék
innan, ásmaga.’
34. ‘Uni ok Íri, Bari ok Óri,
Varr ok Vegdrasill;
Dóri ok Úri, Dellingr, Atvarðr,
Liðskjálfr, Loki.’
35. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat þat bjarg heitir, er ek sé brúði á
þjóðmæra þruma.’
36. ‘Lyfjaberg þat heitir, en þat hefir lengi verit
sjúkri ok sárri gaman;
heil verðr hver, þótt hafi árs sótt,
ef þat klífr, kona.’
37. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvat þær meyjar heita er fyr Menglaðar knjám
syngja sáttar saman.’
38. ‘Hlíf heitir ein, ǫnnur Hlífþursa,
þriðja Þjóðvarta,
Bjǫrt ok Blíð, Blíðr, Fríð,
Eir ok Aurboða.’
39. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvart þær bjarga þeim er blóta þær,
ef gørask þarfar þess.’
40. ‘Bjarga svinnar hvar er menn blóta þær
á stallhelgum stað;
ei svá hátt forað kemr at hǫlða sonum,
hvern þær ór nauðum nema.’
41. ‘Segðu mér þat, Fjǫlsviðr, er ek þik fregna mun
ok ek vilda vita:
hvárt sé manna nǫkkut, þat er knegi á Menglaðar
svásum armi sofa.’
42. ‘Vætr er þat manna, er knegi á Menglaðar
svásum armi sofa,
nema Svipdagr einn — honum var sú in sólbjarta
brúðr at kván of kveðin.’
43. ‘Hrittu á hurðir! Láttu hlið rúm!
Hér máttu Svipdag sjá!
En þó vita far ef vilja muni
Menglǫð mitt gaman!’
44. ‘Heyrðu, Menglǫð! Hér er maðr kominn,
gakk þú á gest sjá!
Hundar fagna, hús hefir upp lokisk —
hygg ek at Svipdagr sé!’
45. ‘Horskir hrafnar skulu þér á hám gálga
slíta sjónir ór,
ef þú þat lýgr, at hér sé langt kominn
mǫgr til minna sala!
46. ‘Hvaðan þú fórt? Hvaðan þú fǫr gørðir?
Hvé þik hétu hjú?
At ætt ok nafni skal ek jartegn vita,
ef ek var þér kván of kveðin!’
47. ‘Svipdagr ek heiti, Sólbjartr hét minn faðir,
þaðan rákumk vindar kalda vegu;
Urðar orði kveðr engi maðr,
þótt þat sé við lǫst lagit!’
48. ‘Vel þú nú kominn! Hefi ek minn vilja beðit —
fylgja skal kveðju koss!
Forkunnar sýn mun flestan glaða,
hvars hefir við annan ást.
49. ‘Lengi ek sat ljúfu bergi á,
beið ek þín dœgr ok daga;
nú þat varð, er ek vætt hefi,
at þú ert kominn, mǫgr, til minna sala!
50. ‘Þrár hafðar er ek hefi til þíns gamans,
en þú til míns munar!
Nú er þat satt, er vit slíta skulum
ævi ok aldri saman!’
Gróa’s Incantation
‘Gróa’s3 Incantation’,4 which she chanted to her son5 when [she was] dead:
1.6 ‘Awake, Gróa! Awake, good woman!
I awaken you at the doors of the dead,7
[to see] if you recall it, that you invited your boy
to come to your monument-mound!’8
2. ‘What is it now which concerns my only son?
By what evil are you now overcome,
when you call on that mother [of yours],
when she’s come to earth
and passed from people-homes?’9
3. ‘An ugly playing-board10 the mischief-wise woman pushed before me,11
she who embraced my father;
there she commanded me to come, where she knows one can’t come —
to meet Menglǫð!’12
4. ‘Long is13 the journey, long are14 the journey-ways,
if it turns out that you attain your wish,
and Skuld17 then wends her way according to the fates.’
5. ‘Chant me incantations, those which are good —
save, mother, your son!
I think I’ll be wholly destroyed on the ways,
I seem to me too young a youth!’
6. ‘That one I chant for you first,18 the one they call very useful,
the one Rindr chanted to Rani,19
so that you may thrust from your shoulder that which seems to you terrible —
let yourself lead yourself!
7. ‘That one I chant for you second, if you must quest
unwillingly20 on ways:
may Urðr’s locks(?)21 guard you on all sides,
when you’re on your way.
8. ‘That one I chant for you as the third, if mighty rivers
fall to your life’s betrayal(?):22
may Horn and Ruðr23 turn to Hel while [you pass by],
and always dwindle before you.
9. ‘That one I chant for you as the fourth, if enemies beset you,
prepared,24 on the gallows-way:25
may their heart come26 into your hands,27
and their spirit incline28 to reconciliations.
10. ‘That one I chant for you as the fifth, if a fetter is
borne to29 your bending limbs:30
I let Leifnir’s flames(?)31 be spoken over your leg,32
and the shackle then springs from your limbs, and the fetter from your feet.
11. ‘That one I chant for you as the sixth, if you come upon a sea
greater than men may know: may calm and water
go together for you in the mill33 and always grant you a peace-rich passage.
12. ‘That one I chant for you as the seventh, if frost comes seeking you
on a high mountain: may corpse-coldness34
be unable to destroy your flesh, and may it not bind your body by the limbs(?).35
13. ‘That one I chant for you as the eighth, if night [over]takes you
outside on the mist-way,36 so that she may be less able37
to do you harm — a dead Christian woman.38
14. ‘That one I chant for you as the ninth, if you have to exchange words
with the stud-ennobled39 giant:40
may sufficient eloquence and commonsense be given to you
from Mímir’s heart.41
15. ‘May you never now go where it’s thought a danger,
and may misfortune not stand in the way of your wishes;
on an earth-fast42 stone I stood within doors,43
as long as I chanted incantations for you!
16. ‘Bear your mother’s words hence, boy,
and let them lodge in your breast!
In that way you shall have enough luck throughout your life,
as long as you remember my words!’
The Sayings of Fjǫlsvinnr
1.44 Outside the courts he45 saw come up
the stronghold46 of the people of giants;47
‘On moist ways take your message back48 from here —
you’ll have no refuge here, vagabond!’49
2. ‘What kind of ogress is it which stands before the forecourts
and moves to and fro through dangerous flame?’50
‘Whom are you searching for, or whom are you in search of,
or what, friendless one, do you want to know?’51
3. ‘What kind of ogress is it which stands before the forecourt
and doesn’t offer hospitality to travellers?’
‘Bereft of fitting words you have lived, fellow,
and be on your way home from here!52
4. ‘I’m called Fjǫlsviðr,53 and I have a wise mind,
although I’m not at all generous with my food;
you’ll never come inside these courts here,
and now be off,54 wolf,55 on your way!’
5. ‘Rare [is] the man repulsed by his eyes’ delight(?),56
wherever he gets to see something sweet;
the courts glow, it seems to me, around golden halls —
here I’d be happy with a homeland!’
6. ‘Tell me, boy, from whom were you born,
or which men’s57 son are you?’
‘I am called Vindkaldr,58 my father was called Várkaldr,59
[and] his father was Fjǫlkaldr.60
7. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
who here controls and has power over
properties and treasure-halls?’61
8. ‘She’s called Menglǫð, and her mother begat her
with Svafrþorinn’s son;62
she here controls and has power over
properties and treasure-halls.’
9. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what that gate is called, a greater danger than which
people haven’t seen among the gods.’
10. ‘It’s called Þrymgjǫll,63 and three made it,
the sons of Sólblindi;64
a firm fetter will be forthcoming for every traveller
who raises it from the gateway.’65
11. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what this courtyard is called, a greater danger than which
people haven’t seen among the gods.’
12. ‘It’s called Gastropnir,66 and I’ve made it
from Leirbrimir’s limbs;67
I’ve supported it,68 so that it will stand
always, as long as the world lives.’
13. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what those dogs are called, than which I’ve seen
none fiercer before in lands.’69
14. ‘One is called Gífr,70 and the other Geri,71
if you want to know it;
eleven women, when they guard(?),72
until the powers are ripped apart.’73
15. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
whether there is anyone who can come inside,
while the attack-daring ones74 sleep.’
16. ‘Much-opposed sleep75 was strictly laid down for them,
after the watch was assigned to them;
one sleeps by night,76 and the other by day,77
and no one comes [past], if he came then.’78
17. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
whether there’s any meat,79 that which men may bring,80
and [then] run in, while they81 eat.’
18. ‘Two wing-morsels lie in Viðófnir’s82 limbs,
if you want to know it:
that’s the only meat that men may give them,
and [then] run in, while they eat.’
19. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what the tree is called which spreads
its limbs across all lands.’
20. ‘It’s called Mímameiðr,83 but few know it,84
from what roots it runs;85
it will fall by that which the fewest86 expect —
neither fire nor iron will flay it.’
21. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what comes forth from the spirit(?) of that glorious tree,
since neither fire nor iron flay it.’
22. ‘One must expose some of its fruit to a fire,
for womb-sick(?)87 women;
further out goes that which they should [keep] further in —
that one, it’s a meter of fate among men.’88
23. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what the cockerel is called which sits in the high tree89 —
he’s all glowing with gold!’
24. ‘He’s called Viðófnir, and he stands on Veðrglasir,90
on twigs of the tree91 of Mími;
with one sorrow he oppresses immeasurably92
Surtr’s Sinmara.’93
25. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
whether there’s any weapon by which Viðófnir can [be made]
to sink94 into Hel’s seats.’95
26. ‘It’s called Lævateinn,96 but Loptr97 caused it to be plucked
down beneath corpse-gates;98
in a chest of tough-iron99 it lies besides Sinmara,
and nine Njǫrðr100-locks guard it.’
27. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
whether he’ll come back, the one who goes after
and wants to take that twig.’
28. ‘He’ll come back, the one who goes after
and wants to take that twig,
if he brings that which few possess101
to the Eir102 of Aurglasir.’103
29. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
whether there’s any treasure, that which men may have,
and in which the pale giantess104 will be pleased.’
30. ‘A radiant sickle you must bear into the mill105 —
the one which lies in Viðófnir’s knuckles106 —
to give it to Sinmara, before she reckons herself willing
to lend107 you the weapon108 for the killing.’
31. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what the hall is called which is cast about
with discerning flicker-flame.’109
32. ‘It’s called Lýr,110 and long will it tremble
on the point of a spike;111
of this treasure-house,112 throughout the ages,
humans will have only hearsay.’
33. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
who of the sons of the Æsir113 made that
which I see within the enclosure.’114
34.115 ‘Uni116 and Íri,117 Bari118 and Óri,119
Dóri122 and Úri,123 Dellingr,124 Atvarðr,125
35. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what that rock is called, on which I see a most renowned
bride128 remaining quietly.’
36. ‘It’s called Lyfjaberg,129 and it’s long been
a pleasure to the poorly [woman] and the pained [woman];
every woman becomes sound, even if she has fertility’s sickness,130
if she scales it.’
37. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
what those maidens are called who sing131 together
peacefully before Menglǫð’s knees.’
38. ‘One132 is called Hlíf,133 the second Hlífþursa,134
the third Þjóðvarta,135
Bjǫrt136 and Blíð,137 Blíðr,138 Fríð,139
39. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
whether they protect those who sacrifice to them,
if there should be need for this.’
40. ‘The wise ones offer protection wherever people sacrifice to them
at an altar-holy place;142
danger doesn’t come upon the sons of men so severely143
[that] they [can’t] free144 each one from constraints.’
41. ‘Tell me, Fjǫlsviðr, that which I will ask you
and which I would know:
whether there’s anyone who can sleep
in Menglǫð’s sweet arms.’145
42. ‘There’s no one at all who can sleep
except Svipdagr146 alone — for him was that sun-bright bride
appointed as wife.’
43. ‘Push open the doors! Give the gate room!147
But yet go to find out whether Menglǫð will
wish my pleasure!’
44. ‘Hear, Menglǫð! A man has come here,
go to see the guest!
The hounds rejoice, the house has opened itself up —
45. ‘Astute ravens shall tear out your eyes
on a high gallows,
if you’re lying about it, that the boy has come
a long way to my halls!
46. ‘Whence have you come? Whence did you make your journey?
I must have148 proof of your lineage and name,
if I was appointed to be your wife!’
47. ‘I’m called Svipdagr, my father was called Sólbjartr,149
from there I wandered the wind’s cold ways;150
no one [gain]says151 Urðr’s word,152
even if it’s laid down with injustice!’
48. ‘You’re welcome now! I’ve got my wish —
a kiss shall accompany the greeting!
The sight of one’s desire will gladden most [people],153
wherever one has love for another.
49. ‘Long I sat on the beloved rock,154
I waited for you for days155 and days;
now it’s come to pass, that which I’ve hoped for,
that you’ve come, boy, to my halls!
50.156 ‘I’ve suffered pains for your love-play,
and you [have likewise] for desire of me!
Now it’s [come] true,157 since we two shall tear through158
life and age159 together!’
Textual Apparatus to Svipdagsmál
The contents of the following textual apparatus to Svipdagsmál are highly selective, noting only the most significant changes from the two primary manuscripts, both of which date from c. 1675: Rask 21 a (Ra), pp. 56–58 and Stockholm Papp. 15 8vo (St), pp. 50–56. For fuller details of emendations and variant readings, see the editions by Bugge and Robinson listed in the Further Reading section.
Gróugaldr
3/2 skaut] Ra, St skauts þú
3/5 kvæmtki] Ra, St kveðki
3/6 Menglǫðu] Ra menglauðum, St mengloðum
7/6 sinnum] Ra, St sman
8/2 þjóðár] Ra, St þioþir
9/4] hverfi] Ra, St hryggvi
9/5 til] Ra, St absent
9/5 þér] Ra, St þér mætti
10/2 verðr] Ra, St verða
10/4 Leifnis elda] Ra leifins elda, St Leifnis eldu
11/6 ljái] Ra, St ljá
12/6 þér] Ra, St or
12/6 líki] Ra, St lík
13/4 megi] Ra, St megi at
14/1 inn] Ra, St absent
14/5 af] Ra, St á
14/5 Mímis] Ra mimis, St minniss
15/1 Farir] Ra, St far
15/2 þar er] Ra, St þér
16/4 Því] Ra, St þi
Fjǫlsvinnsmál
4/6 at] Ra, St af
7/6 auðsǫlum] Ra, St auþsaulun
8/3 Svafrþorins] Ra, St Svafur þorins
8/6 auðsǫlum] Ra auþaulun, St auþsaulun
9/4 sú] Ra, St absent
10/4 fjǫturr] Ra, St fjǫtrar
11/5 sáat] Ra, St sjáat
13/5 gífrari hefik] Ra, St gifur rekar
13/6 ǫnga fyrr í lǫndum litit] Manuscript readings vary here, but it appears that none is comprehensible. I take the present emendation, and that of 13/5, from the edition by Bugge. For 13/5–6, Robinson’s emended text reads er gífrir rekask / † giorþa fyrir londin lim †, only the first part of which he translates, as ‘that roam ravenous …’.
16/2 of] Ra, St absent
16/6 kemsk] Ra komt, St kemt
16/6 ef] Ra, St of
18/1 Vængbráðir] so Ra; St Vegnbraðir
18/2 liðum] Ra liðum, St viðum
18/6 hlaupi] Ra laupa, St laufa
20/6 flærat] St flær at, Ra flær
21/6 flærat] Ra, St flær ei
21/6 eldr] Ra, St eld
22/5 þats] Ra þess, St þoss
24/2 Veðrglasi] Ra veðir-/glasi, St veðir glasi
24/6 Sinmǫru] Ra sinn mantu, St sinn mautu
26/1 Lævateinn] Ra, St Hevateinn
32/1 Lýr] Ra, St Hyr
33/5 sék] Ra, St sok
34/4 Úri] St Uri, Ra Óri
36/1 Lyfjaberg] Ra Hyfvia berg, St Hyfuia ber
36/3 sjúkri] Ra, St sjúk
38/1 ein] Ra, St absent
40/1 Bjarga svinnar] Ra, St Sumur
48/6 hvars] Ra, St hvers
49/6 ert kominn] Ra, St ert aptr kominn ‘have come back’
50/6 ok] Ra, St absent
1 For an English translation of one Swedish ballad, in which the object of the hero’s quest is called Spegelklar ‘Mirrorclear’, see I. Cumpstey, trans., The Faraway North: Scandinavian Ballads (Cumbria: Skadi Press, 2016), pp. 71 –76.
2 See E. Pettit, The Waning Sword: Conversion Imagery and Celestial Myth in ‘Beowulf’ (Cambridge, UK: Open Book Publishers, 2020), https://doi.org/10.11647/obp.0190, especially chapters 7 and 16.
3 The name Gróa, which is also a sword-name, relates to the verb gróa ‘to grow’ or ‘to heal’. SnESkáld (I, 17, p. 22) tells how a seeress called Gróa, wife of Aurvandill the Bold, began chanting incantations to loosen a piece of whetstone in Þórr’s skull, an incident mentioned earlier in Haust.
4 In this title the multiple incantations described in the poem are apparently treated collectively.
5 Svipdagr.
6 This stanza is spoken by Svipdagr, Gróa’s son.
7 I.e., at her grave.
8 I.e., a burial site topped by stones.
9 I.e., the world of living humans. There might be a pun on ‘(magical) song homes’.
10 A metaphor for a dreadful challenge.
11 I.e., presented me with. The woman is Svipdagr’s evil stepmother. Cf. the giantess Skaði, Freyr’s stepmother in FSk., who commands Skírnir to find out why Freyr is so upset and thereby sets in motion Skírnir’s dangerous quest for Gerðr.
12 ‘Torc/Necklace Glad (One)’. Perhaps compare Freyja’s possession of the Brísingamen ‘Torc of the Brísingar’.
13 Or ‘will be’.
14 Or ‘will be’.
15 Or ‘will be’.
16 Cf. FSk. 42.
17 One of the Nornir, supernatural females who govern people’s fates. Her name is interpretable as ‘That Which Shall Happen’.
18 The actual words of this incantation, and the following ones, are not given.
19 Rindr is the mother of Váli, the son of Óðinn who will avenge Baldr’s death, according to BDr. 11. Her name (perhaps earlier *Vrindr) is of uncertain meaning. She might be a giantess, but is included among the goddesses in SnEGylf (36, p. 30). Rani ‘Snout’ is otherwise unknown, but the name suggests an unattractive, perhaps giantish or animalistic figure. It has also been suggested that Rani might be a name of Óðinn, who has a similar-looking alias in Hrani ‘Blusterer’. Consequently, some commentators have proposed that the event mentioned here might relate to the story behind the words seið Yggr til Rindar ‘Yggr [Óðinn] practised seiðr [feminine magic] to [get?] Rindr’ in the tenth-century Sigurðardrápa of Kormákr Ǫgmundarson (SnESkáld, I, 2, p. 9; SPSMA III, 277). A version of what may be essentially the same story is told at length in GD (3.4.1–8, 13). It describes how a Russian princess called Rinda (cf. Rindr) rebuffed the amorous advances of a disguised Othinus (Óðinn) by hitting and shoving him, before he, after earlier afflicting her with a piece of bark inscribed with spells, succeeded in binding and raping her. However, not only was Rinda ultimately unsuccessful in rebuffing Othinus (who calls himself Rosterus and Wecha, not Rani), but her initially successful rejections of him did not involve magic. Jónas Kristjánsson and Vésteinn Ólason, ed., Eddukvæði, Íslenzk fornrit, 2 vols. (Reykjavík: Hið íslenzka bókmenntafélag, 2014), II, 438 emends þann gól Rindr Rani to þann gól Rindi Rani ‘the one Rani [Óðinn] chanted to Rindr’, but this raises the objection that Óðinn wanted to get close to Rindr, not thrust her away. Another possibility is that the name is not Rani but Ráni and refers to Rán, the sea-giantess who drowns sailors; this would suit the context of Gróa’s offering of protection for her son on his perilous journey (cf. Gg. 8 and 11 especially), but would be metrically abnormal because the first syllable of a disyllabic word at the end of a ‘full line’ of ljóðaháttr is normally short.
20 Or perhaps ‘despairingly’.
21 Urðr ‘That Which Has Happened’ or ‘Fate’ is one of the Nornir; see Vsp. 19–20. Her lokur ‘locks(?)’, or lok(k)ur ‘enticements/incantations(?)’, are presumably some sort of protective magic. They might relate to a (similarly obscure) magical song called Varðlok(k)ur which attracts spirits when recited by a woman in chapter 4 of Eiríks saga rauða ‘The Saga of Eiríkr the Red’.
22 I.e., in such a way as to threaten your life.
23 These are presumably the names of mythical rivers; they might mean ‘Horn’ and ‘Ruddy One’. Cf. Hrǫnn and Hríð, which are among the rivers that ‘fall near men, and fall from here to Hel’, in Grm. 28.
24 I.e., armed and ready; this describes the enemies.
25 I.e., on the way to the gallows; presumably, these would be people intent on hanging Svipdagr, or at least on bringing about his death in some way.
26 Literally, ‘turn’.
27 I.e., into your keeping, your power.
28 Literally, ‘turn’.
29 I.e., brought to and placed on.
30 Literally, ‘bowed/curved limbs’; alternatively, bóglimum ‘arms’ (and/or ‘legs’?).
31 Possibly the name of an incantation, perhaps one deemed capable of melting metal, but the identities of Leifnir (or Leifinn) and his flames (fiery breath?) are obscure. Leifnir is elsewhere a poetic term for a ship and the name of a sea-king; it also appears in a poetic term for a sword, Leifnis-grand ‘Leifnir’s hurt’. Many editors, however, emend Leifnis elda to leysigaldr ‘a loosing incantation’.
32 Literally, (bone of the) leg or arm.
33 Literally, ‘the frame of a hand-mill’, but this is a metaphor for the ‘milling’ waters of a whirlpool. The incantation promises to protect Svipdagr against them. Cf. Fj. 30.
34 I.e., deadly cold.
35 The text of this stanza’s last half-line is problematic and its meaning is uncertain.
36 I.e., a misty or dark road, perhaps with a hint of the road to Niflhel ‘Dark/Mist Hell’.
37 I.e., that she may unable.
38 The reason for the attribution of potential harm to a dead Christian woman is obscure.
39 Or ‘spear-ennobled’. If ‘stud/nail-ennobled’ is correct, it possibly alludes to the Pole Star as the ‘stud’ about which the sky was thought to revolve; cf. Hdl. 35.
40 This is presumably Fj.’s Fjǫlsviðr/Fjǫlsvinnr, who might be Mímir/Mími incognito.
41 On Mímir, a giant of wisdom, see Vsp. 28. Not all editors, however, accept that this stanza mentions Mímir, as manuscript readings vary and the text is therefore uncertain.
42 I.e., a stone fixed in the ground.
43 I.e., the notional ‘doors of the dead’—the entrance to the stone and to the world of the dead—mentioned in Gg. 1.
44 Fj. begins with Svipdagr outside Menglǫð’s fortress, having completed most of his journey.
45 I.e., Svipdagr.
46 Literally, ‘seats’.
47 Or þursa þjóðar sjǫt ‘the palace of the people of giants’. Some manuscripts have þursa broþir ‘(the) brother of giants’.
48 Or simply ‘Go back’.
49 Literally, ‘protection-wanting one’. These words are addressed to the (as yet unnamed) Svipdagr by a giant (probably), who assumes the visitor wants shelter.
50 The stronghold is apparently surrounded by flame; cf. FSk. 8–9. This question is asked by the undaunted Svipdagr; it appears insulting, as he is addressing a male.
51 Although sense can be made of the manuscript order, editors often reorder Fj. 1 and 2 as follows: 1/1–3, 2/1–3; 2/4–6, 1/4–6.
52 The speaker probably takes exception partly to being called an ogress. Alternatively, the second half of this stanza might be attributed to Svipdagr.
53 ‘Very Wise/Swift One’, a variant of Fjǫlsvinnr. Here it is probably the name of a giant (possibly an alias of Mími), though elsewhere in Old Norse texts it is the name of a dwarf and an alias of Óðinn.
54 Literally, ‘drive’.
55 Or ‘criminal’.
56 The precise sense of this line, which may be partly corrupt, is uncertain.
57 I.e., his male ancestors.
58 ‘Wind Cold’.
59 ‘Spring Cold’.
60 ‘Very Cold’.
61 I.e., either ‘treasuries’ or ‘richly adorned halls’; cf. Fj. 32.
62 The identities of Svafrþorinn ‘Sleep-Daring One(?)’ and his son are unknown.
63 Roughly ‘Clashing Yell’.
64 ‘Sun-Blind(ed) One’; he is otherwise unknown, but his name suggests a dwarf or a giant.
65 I.e., in order to open it.
66 The meaning of Gastropnir (or Gastrópnir) is uncertain, perhaps ‘Guest Pincher’.
67 Leirbrimir means ‘Clay Brimir’, Brimir being a giant-name formed from brim ‘surf’. The ‘limbs’ of Leirbrimir are presumably clay. In Indo-European mythologies, the ‘house/enclosure of clay’ appears to be a metaphor for the grave.
68 I.e., with pillars.
69 The conclusion of this stanza is conjectural, being based on a speculative emendation.
70 ‘Savage One’.
71 ‘Ravenous One’ (also the name of one of Óðinn’s wolves). If Gastropnir represents the grave, part of the Otherworldly land of the dead, Gífr and Geri may be hellhounds or at least akin to such creatures.
72 This line is evidently corrupt, but no emendation commands much confidence. Perhaps emend varðir ellifu ‘eleven women’ (only ten women are named in Fj. 37–38) to verðir ellifu ‘eleven guards’, the intended sense being that, when these two dogs are guarding, it is as if there are eleven guards. But other suggested emendations have the dogs guarding for eternity (at eilífu) or guarding the gods’ remedy for old age (ellilyf).
73 I.e., at Ragnarok.
74 I.e., the guard-dogs.
75 I.e., alternate sleeping patterns.
76 Literally, ‘during nights’.
77 Literally, ‘during days’.
78 I.e., at any time, day or night.
79 Or ‘food’.
80 Literally, ‘have’.
81 I.e., the guard-dogs.
82 Identified as a cockerel in Fj. 23–24. Viðófnir may mean ‘Wood/Tree Crower’; alternatively, Víðófnir could mean ‘Wide Crower’ (i.e., ‘One Whose Crowing Is Widely Heard’).
83 ‘Mími’s Branch/Tree’, Mími possibly being another name for the giant Mímir.
84 This line lacks alliteration in the Old Norse, unless the second half is emended to en þat mangi veit ‘and no one knows it’.
85 Cf. Háv. 138, Grm. 31.
86 I.e., no one.
87 Or ‘hysterical’. If, as seems more likely, the reference is to women with uterine problems, perhaps smoke from the tree’s fruit acted as an abortifacient. Alternatively, if the women are ‘hysterical’ for some other reason, perhaps the smoke enabled them to reveal, and thereby relieve themselves of, disturbing emotions which, Fjǫlsviðr thinks, it would be better for them to keep hidden. Cf. Fj. 36.
88 This obscure line might identify Mímameiðr with the mjǫtvið mæran ‘glorious measure-tree’ of Vsp. 2, which is better known as the world-tree Yggdrasill. Here the fate it metes out is perhaps the abortion or premature birth of a child.
89 Presumably Mímameiðr.
90 This emended name could mean either ‘Weather/Wind Shining One’ or ‘Wether Shining One’; the second possibility is conceivable because Heimdallr, whose name invites identification with the world-tree, is identifiable as a white ram-god. Cf. Glasir, a mythological tree or grove with golden foliage that stands before Valhǫll in SnESkáld (I, 34, p. 41; 45, p. 60).
91 Or ‘branch’.
92 Or possibly ‘continuously’. The ‘sorrow’ is perhaps the knowledge (crowed by Viðófnir?) that she would be robbed and, it may be, killed by Svipdagr.
93 Surtr ‘Black One’ is the name of a fire-demon or fire-giant who will kill Freyr at Ragnarok; see Vsp. 51–52. That Sinmara is a giantess is indicated by Fj. 29; she is probably Surtr’s wife or daughter. Her name (here emended) is interpretable as ‘Sinew Mara’ or perhaps ‘Perpetual/Great Mara’, but might originally have been *Sindrmara ‘Cinder Mare’. A mara ‘mare’ (cognate with English ‘nightmare’) was a kind of physically suppressive female monster.
94 I.e., in death.
95 I.e., residences, halls with seats. Hel is here either the underworld land of the dead or its female ruler.
96 ‘Twig of Treacheries/Harms’, an obscure name for a weapon. This interpretation relies on an emendation of the manuscript reading Hevateinn to give the line expected alliteration; cf. the comparable emendations Lýr and Lyfjaberg in Fj. 32, 36. As a weapon, Lævateinn could well be a sword, a ‘twig-sword’; cf. Skírnir’s gambanteinn ‘tribute-twig’ in FSk. 32, and Mistleteinn ‘Mistletoe’, another ‘twig-sword’ of Norse mythology. Also noteworthy is the term læva lundr ‘grove of deceits’ in an obscure passage of Haust. (11) concerning Loki and his instigation of the abduction of the goddess Iðunn to the land of giants (SPSMA III, 447–48). Note, too, the reference to the ‘treachery (læ)-blended sword’, which Guðrún explains in relation to fire and burning, in Gðr. II 38.
97 ‘Lofty’, an alias of Loki.
98 These gates presumably guard an underworld of the dead.
99 Some editors treat segjárn as a proper name.
100 Njǫrðr was a god of the sea, which, together with other evidence, suggests that Lævateinn was locked within a submerged chest, probably beneath a maelstrom. Perhaps the nine locks relate to the sea-giant’s daughters, who personified waves.
101 I.e., no one possesses.
102 Eir ‘Mercy’ is elsewhere the name of a goddess, but here it seems to denote the giantess Sinmara. Cf. Fj. 38.
103 ‘Mud-Shining One’, a mythical place-name.
104 Sinmara.
105 I.e., whirlpool; cf. Gg. 11. The sickle is obscure.
106 I.e., foot-joints, in which case Viðófnir is possibly imagined as holding the sickle with one or both of its feet. Another possible translation is ‘rods’, i.e., perhaps, bones or feather-shafts.
107 Or ‘grant’.
108 I.e., Lævateinn.
109 Cf. FSk. 8–9.
110 The manuscript reading Hyr might be interpreted as Hyrr ‘Fire’ or Hýrr ‘Fitting for a Household’, but with neither of these readings does the line alliterate conventionally; this shortcoming favours emendation to Lýr ‘Pollack/Whitefish/Fish’; similarly desirable emendations of H- to L- produce Lævateinn and Lyfjaberg in Fj. 26, 36. For my thoughts on the possible significance of Lýr, an ostensibly bizarre name for a hall, see Pettit, The Waning Sword, pp. 203–05.
111 Possibly the tip of a sword or knife (Lævateinn?), or a spearhead.
112 The compound auðrann (auð- + rann ‘house, hall’) occurs only here. Its likely primary sense is ‘treasure-house’ or ‘richly adorned house’ (cf. auðsǫlum ‘treasure-halls’ in Fj. 7, 8), with the first element being the combining form of masc. auðr ‘riches, wealth, treasure’. But auð- is ambiguous, perhaps deliberately. It could also be a combining form of fem. auðr ‘fate, destiny’ (also attested as a fem. proper name), in which case it would be a ‘destiny-house’, one that contained Svipdagr’s destined bride, Menglǫð (alias Auðr?). There may also be an ironic nod to auð- ‘easy’, given the inaccessibility and puzzling nature of this ‘easy house’. Finally, a deliberately misleading suggestion of an ‘empty house’ (auðr ‘empty’) is conceivable, to dissuade Svipdagr from going there.
113 The Æsir are the gods. Their ‘sons’ in this case apparently are, or include, dwarves.
114 Alternatively, ‘who made that which I see within the enclosure of the sons of the Æsir’.
115 Most, if not all, of the names in this stanza appear to be of dwarves.
116 Perhaps ‘Calm/Satisfied One’.
117 Perhaps ‘Irish One’.
118 Perhaps ‘Eager One’ or ‘Rough One’; alternatively, Bári (perhaps from bára ‘wave, billow’).
119 Perhaps ‘Quarrelsome One’ or ‘Raver’; this name also appears amid lists of dwarf-names in SnEGylf (14, p. 16). The Old Norse line’s alliteration appears faulty, but it could be corrected by placing Óri before Bari.
120 ‘Wary One’. Two smiths of the name appear in chapters 4–5 of Hrólfs saga kraka.
121 ‘Way Steed’.
122 This name, which possibly relates to modern Icelandic dór ‘auger’, ‘iron drill’, also appears in a list of dwarf-names in SnEGylf (14, p. 16).
123 The name might relate to Modern Icelandic úr ‘sparks (from iron working)’.
124 ‘Gleaming One’; Dellingr is the father of Dagr ‘Day’ in Vm. 25; Dellingr’s ‘doors’ are mentioned in Háv. 160.
125 This name possibly arose as a corruption of *at var þar ‘(Dellingr) was thereat’ or *ok var þar ‘(Dellingr) was also there’.
126 Ostensibly ‘Limb/Joint-Shaking One’, but Jónas Kristjánsson and Vésteinn Ólason, Eddukvæði, II, 447 discerns two separate names: Liðski, Alfr; see also the next footnote.
127 Elsewhere, Loki is the name of the Norse trickster-god. However, the last line should perhaps be emended to liðskjálfar loki ‘(as) troop-shelf’s finisher’, in which case Dellingr would be identified as the smith who completed the work. If so, there may originally have been only nine (the typically ‘perfect’ Germanic number), not twelve, smiths in this list: Uni, Íri, Bari, Óri, Varr, Vegdrasill, Dóri, Úri and Dellingr.
128 Presumably Menglǫð.
129 ‘Rock of Healing Herbs/Medicines’ (cf. Fj. 49); with the emendation of H- to L- in Lyfjaberg, cf. Lævateinn and Lýr in Fj. 26, 32. The presence of this medicinal rock, and the maidens of the next stanza, in an Otherworld with attributes suggestive of an enclosure of the dead is curious; perhaps the idea is that those who scale it return to health/life by climbing away from the land of the dead.
130 I.e., even if she is barren. Cf. Fj. 22.
131 Instead of syngja ‘sing’, some manuscripts have sitja ‘sit’.
132 Ein ‘one’ is supplied editorially for both metre and sense.
133 ‘Cover’, ‘Shelter’.
134 Interpreted as hlíf þursa, the sense would be ‘protection of giants’, but Hlífþursa is probably a corruption of some other name; some editors emend to Hlífþrasa, which might mean roughly ‘Protective Fighter’. Cf. Líf ok Lífþrasir in Vm. 45.
135 This name also appears corrupt. Some editors emend Þjóðvara; the element þjóð- means ‘people’, ‘nation’, but sometimes it serves merely as an intensifier, in which case the emended name might mean ‘Very Wary One’.
136 ‘Bright One’.
137 ‘Blithe One’. But in view of the very similar following name, perhaps emend to Blik ‘Shining One’.
138 ‘Blithe One’. Perhaps emend to Blíð.
139 ‘Pretty One’.
140 ‘Mercy’; also the name of a goddess and a valkyrie, and applied generically to Sinmara in Fj. 28.
141 ‘Mud Bidder/Offerer’; elsewhere a giantess, the wife of Gymir and mother of Gerðr.
142 I.e., a place made holy by the presence of an altar.
143 Literally, ‘highly’.
144 Literally, ‘take’.
145 Literally, ‘arm’.
146 Probably ‘Swooping Day’ or ‘Fleeting Day’.
147 I.e., room to open.
148 Literally, ‘know’.
149 ‘Sun-Bright (One)’. Earlier, Svipdagr had named his father Várkaldr ‘Spring Cold’. In Fj. 42 Menglǫð is in sólbjarta brúðr ‘the sun-bright bride’.
150 Perhaps emend to vindkalda vegu ‘wind-cold ways’. Svipdagr refers back to his pseudonym Vindkaldr ‘Wind Cold’ in Fj. 6.
151 Possibly við should be added to the Old Norse line, to produce the literal sense ‘speaks against’.
152 I.e., destiny, Urðr being one of the Nornir. Cf. Urðar lokur ‘Urðr’s locks(?)’ in Gg. 7.
153 An understatement.
154 Some editors emend ljúfu bergi ‘on (a/the) beloved rock’ to Lyfjabergi ‘on Lyfjaberg’; cf. Fj. 36.
155 Or ‘half-days’ (periods from dawn to dusk).
156 It is unclear whether this final stanza is spoken by Menglǫð or Svipdagr.
157 I.e., our mutual desire has come to pass.
158 The verb slíta ‘to tear (apart)’ perhaps implies an intensely passionate consumption of their time together; cf. Hlr. 14.
159 I.e., ‘this age of the world’ or ‘old age’.
_1.png)