Snorri Sturluson

Edda
Prologue and GylfaginningCodex Regius, f. 7v (reduced)(see pp. 26/34–28/1)

Snorri Sturluson

Edda
Prologue and Gylfaginning

Edited by

ANTHONY FAULKESSECOND EDITIONVIKING SOCIETY FOR NORTHERN RESEARCH
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON2005

© Anthony Faulkes 1982/2005
Second Edition 2005
First published by Oxford University Press in 1982
Reissued by Viking Society for Northern Research 1988, 2000
Reprinted 2011

ISBN 978 0 903521 64 2

Printed by Short Run Press Limited, Exeter

Contents
Codex Regius, fol. 7v .......................................................... Frontispiece
Abbreviated references ....................................................................... vii
Introduction ..........................................................................................xi
Synopsis ..........................................................................................xi
The author ..................................................................................... xii
The title ....................................................................................... xvii
The contents of Snorri’s Edda ................................................... xviii
Models and sources ........................................................................ xx
Manuscripts .............................................................................. xxviii
Bibliography ............................................................................... xxxi
Text ........................................................................................................ 3
General notes ....................................................................................... 57
Textual notes ........................................................................................ 73
Glossary ............................................................................................... 77
Index of names .................................................................................. 163

Preface
The first edition of this book was published by the Clarendon Press, Oxford
in hardback 1982. It was reissued in paperback by the Viking Society in
1988, and again, with minor corrections and a lengthy list of corrections, in
2000. This second edition has been fully corrected, revised and reset, and I
am very grateful for the care with which proofs have been read by David
Ashurst, who has drawn my attention to many inconsistencies, somesurviving from the original edition, some introduced in my revision, as wellas pointing out a number of errors that crept in during the resetting. It is
hoped that the book is now more accurately printed and more reliable than
before.

Abbreviated referencesÁgrip: Ágrip af Nóregskonungasƒgum, ed. M. J. Driscoll, London 1995.
AH Gudesagn: P. A. Munch, Norrøne gude- og heltesagn, rev. A.
Holtsmark, Oslo 1967.
AH Studier: A. Holtsmark, Studier i Snorres Mytologi, Oslo 1964.
Akv: Atlakvi›a (PE 282–91).
Alv: Alvíssmál (PE 129–34).
AM 748 I b 4to and 748 II 4to, Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, Reykjavík;
printed in SnE II 397–494, 573–627 (where the second is referred toas AM 1 e ß fol.); facsimile in Fragments of the Elder and Younger
Edda, Copenhagen 1945 (Corpus Codicum Islandicorum Medii Aevi
XVII).
AM 757 a 4to, Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, Reykjavík; printed in SnE II
501–72.
Bdr: Baldrs draumar (PE 135–8).
Codex Regius of the eddic poems: GkS 2365 4to, Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, Reykjavík; printed in PE; facsimile in Codex Regius of the Elder
Edda, Copenhagen 1937 (Corpus Codicum Islandicorum Medii Aevi X).
Egils saga: ÍF II.
Elder Edda: see PE and Codex Regius.
Flateyjarbók: GkS 1005 fol., Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, Reykjavík;
printed in Flateyjarbok I–III, Christiania 1860–8; facsimile in Corpus
Codicum Islandicorum Medii Aevi I, Copenhagen 1930.
Fm: Fáfnismál (PE 219–26).
Grammatical Treatises: all four are edited in SnE II 2–249. See also
Den første og anden grammatiske afhandling i Snorres Edda, ed. V.
Dahlerup and Finnur Jónsson, København 1886; Den tredje og fjærde
grammatiske afhandling i Snorres Edda, ed. B. M. Ólsen, København
1884; The First Grammatical Treatise, ed. Hreinn Benediktsson,
Reykjavík 1972; First Grammatical Treatise, ed. E. Haugen, London
1972.
Grm: Grímnismál (PE 75–89).
Gylf: Gylfaginning.
Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar, ed. Gu›brandur Vigfússon, London 1887;
tr. G. W. Dasent, London 1894 (Rolls Series, Icelandic Sagas II and IV).
Háttatal: Snorri Sturluson, Edda: Háttatal, ed. Anthony Faulkes, Oxford
1991. Repr. Viking Society for Northern Research, London 1999.

viii

Abbreviated references

Hauksbók: AM 371, 544, 675 4to, Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, Reykjavík,
and Arnamagnæan Institute, Copenhagen; ed. E. Jónsson and F.
Jónsson, København 1892–6; facsimile in Hauksbók, Copenhagen 1960
(Manuscripta Islandica 5). The text of Vƒluspá is in AM 544 4to, foll.
20–21r.
Háv: Hávamál (PE 43–64).
Hdl: Hyndluljó› (PE 152–62).
Hei›reks saga: The Saga of King Hei›rek the Wise, ed. and tr. C. Tolkien,
London 1960.
HH: Helgakvi›a Hundingsbana hin fyrri (PE 179–89).
HH II: Helgakvi›a Hundingsbana ƒnnur (PE 190–201).
Hkr: Snorri Sturluson, Heimskringla, ed. Bjarni A›albjarnarson,
Reykjavík 1941–51 (ÍF XXVI–XXVIII).
Hrbl: Hárbar›sljó› (PE 97–104).
Hym: Hymiskvi›a (PE 105–12).
ÍF: Íslenzk fornrit I– , Reykjavík 1933– .
J: Papp. fol. nr 38, Royal Library, Stockholm.
K: AM 755 4to, Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, Reykjavík.
Ls: Lokasenna (PE 113–23).
MRN: E. O. G. Turville-Petre, Myth and Religion of the North, London
1964.
N: NkS 1878 b 4to, Royal Library, Copenhagen.
Noreen, A., Altisländische und Altnorwegische Grammatik, 4th ed., Halle
1923 (cited by paragraph no.).
Od: Oddrúnargrátr (PE 276–81).
PE (Poetic Edda): Norrœnn Fornkvæ›i, Sæmundar Edda, ed. S. Bugge,
Christiania 1867; see also AM 748 and Codex Regius above.
R: Gks 2367 4to, Royal Library, Copenhagen; printed in SnE I and Edda
Snorra Sturlusonar, ed. Finnur Jónsson, København 1931; facsimile
in Codex Regius of the Younger Edda, Copenhagen 1940 (Corpus
Codicum Islandicorum Medii Aevi XIV).
Rm: Reginsmál (Sigur›arkvi›a Fáfnisbana ƒnnur, PE 212–8).
Saxo Grammaticus, Gesta Danorum, ed. J. Olrik, H. Ræder, F. Blatt,Hauniæ 1931–57; see also The First Nine Books of the Danish Historyof Saxo Grammaticus, tr. O. Elton, London 1894, and Saxo Grammaticus,
The History of the Danes, tr. P. Fisher, ed. H. E. Davidson, Cambridge
1979–80.
Sd: Sigrdrífumál (PE 227–36).
SG Kommentar: Die Lieder der Edda, ed. B. Sijmons and H. Gering,
III: Kommentar, erste Hälfte: Götterlieder, Halle 1927.

Abbreviated referencesix

Skáld: Snorri Sturluson, Edda: Skáldskaparmál. 1. Introduction, Text
and Notes; 2. Glossary and Index of Names, ed. Anthony Faulkes,
London 1998.
Skj: Den norsk-islandske Skjaldedigtning A I–II, B I–II, ed. Finnur
Jónsson, København and Kristiania 1912–15.
Skjƒldunga saga: the extant material believed to be derived from thelost Skjƒldunga saga is printed in ÍF XXXV 1–90.
Skm: Skírnismál (PE 90–6).
SnE: Edda Snorra Sturlusonar I–III, Hafniæ 1848–87.
Sturlunga saga I–II, ed. Jón Jóhannesson, Magnús Finnbogason and
Kristján Eldjárn, Reykjavík 1946; tr. J. H. McGrew and R. G. Thomas,
New York 1970–4.
Sƒgubrot af fornkonungum in ÍF XXXV 46–71.
T: MS No. 1374, University Library, Utrecht; ed. W. van Eeden, De
Codex Trojectinus van de Snorra Edda, Leiden 1913, and Árni Björnsson,
Snorra Edda, Reykjavík 1975; facsimile in Codex Trajectinus. The
Utrecht Manuscript of the Prose Edda, ed. Anthony Faulkes, Copenhagen
1985 (Early Icelandic Manuscripts in Facsimile XV).
Th: Thott 1494 4to, Royal Library, Copenhagen.
Tms: Trójumanna saga, ed. J. Louis-Jensen, Copenhagen 1963.
U: DG 11, University Library, Uppsala (Codex Upsaliensis); printed in
SnE II 250–396; facsimile in Snorre Sturlasons Edda, UppsalaHandskriften DG 11 I, Stockholm 1962; the second volume of thiswork (Uppsala 1977) gives a diplomatic text.
Vm: Vafﬂrú›nismál (PE 65–74).
Vsp: Vƒluspá (PE 1–42).
Vƒlsunga saga: The Saga of the Volsungs, ed. and tr. R. G. Finch, London
1965.
W: AM 242 fol., Arnamagnæan Institute, Copenhagen; ed. Finnur
Jónsson, Edda Snorra Sturlusonar, Codex Wormianus, København and
Kristiania 1924; facsimile in Codex Wormianus, Copenhagen 1931
(Corpus Codicum Islandicorum Medii Aevi II).
Ynglinga saga: Hkr I 9–83.
ﬁrk: ﬁrymskvi›a (PE 124–8).

Introduction
Gylfaginning is the first part of Snorri Sturluson’s Edda, and contains
the most extensive and coherent account of Scandinavian mythologythat exists from the Middle Ages. The prologue that accompanies it
develops a surprisingly rational theory about the origin of heathen
religions, which is of great interest for the history of ideas in medieval
Scandinavia. It is true that the value of the work for historians of religion
is seriously impaired by the fact that the author was a Christian who
lived at a time when the myths he describes had long since ceased to bebelieved in. His sources may have been unreliable, and his attitude to
his material was clearly influenced both by his own religious beliefs
and by his education and reading, which were largely within the traditionof medieval European Christianity. But Gylfaginning remains a sourceof primary importance for the study of heathen Scandinavian tradition,
without which other sources such as the poems of the Elder Edda andthe Danish History of Saxo Grammaticus would give a much lesscomprehensible picture. Moreover the narratives in Gylfaginning areskilfully told and highly entertaining, with occasional touches of subtle
humour and irony. The overall structure of the work, both in the orderingof the narratives within it and in the handling of the frame story in which
they are contained, also reveals artistry of a high order. It is therefore apity that the work has been difficult of access, particularly to English
students, and has been read mainly in extracts that give a poor impressionof the work as a whole. The present edition attempts to remedy this bypresenting for the first time the complete text of this part of Snorri’s
Edda in normalised spelling with a comprehensive glossary and sufficient
explanatory notes to enable the text to be understood. In order to keep
the volume as compact as possible, only a minimum of comment on
mythological matters has been included, and that is mostly to be foundin the index of names.

Synopsis
The prologue begins with an account of how mankind forgot about theircreator and began to worship nature; from this arose heathen religions(1–2). Then the author tells of Troy, and how descendants of the Trojans(the Æsir) migrated to Scandinavia and founded various dynasties, andwere so prosperous that they came to be considered gods (3–11).

xii

Introduction

Gylfaginning opens with an anecdote of how a king in Sweden, Gylfi,
was tricked out of some of his land by one of the newcomers (1). He goes tovisit the newcomers, disguised as a beggar and calling himself Gangleri,
to find out whether their success was due to their own nature or to thegods they worshipped. He is welcomed, but told that his life depends on
his proving himself wiser than them (2). His questions are answered bythree speakers, Hár, Jafnhár and ﬁri›i, and he is told first about the kingof their gods, All-father (3), then about the beginning of the world andthe origin of the giants and the gods, of whom the chief, Ó›inn, turns
out to be the same as All-father, and the creation of men (4–9). He is
told about night and day, sun and moon, the bridge of the gods (Bifrƒst),the golden age, the creation of dwarfs, the world-ash (Yggdrasill), thenorns, the dwellings of the gods, the wind, summer and winter (10–19).
There follow descriptions of each of the gods and goddesses in turn,including with Loki an account of his offspring Hel and the story of thebinding of Fenriswolf, and with the goddesses the story of Freyr’s wooingof Ger›r (20–37). Gylfi hears about Ó›inn’s hall (Valhƒll), the origin ofÓ›inn’s horse Sleipnir (with the story of the giant builder of the gods’
stronghold), and Freyr’s ship Skí›bla›nir (38–43). Then follow twostories about ﬁórr, his expedition to the court of Útgar›aloki and his fishingfor the Midgard serpent (44–8); the death of Baldr, his funeral, the attempt
to get him back from Hel; and the capture and punishment of Loki (49–50).
Finally Gylfi asks and is told about the twilight of the gods (ragnarøkr)
in their last battle against the giants, the destruction of the world, and its
subsequent renewal (51–3). Before he can ask more there is a loud crashand the Æsir and their hall disappear; they are unable to answer further
questions and Gylfi has won the content of wisdom, but is cheated of his
victory. He goes home and passes on the stories. The Æsir, however,decide to adopt the names of the gods in the stories they have told sothat people will think that they themselves are the gods. The identitiesof the ‘historical’ Æsir, migrants to Scandinavia from Asia, and themythical ones in the stories, which have been kept distinct up to thispoint, are thus finally merged, and the author ends by suggesting thatthe myths told of them are really allegories of events in the Trojan war (54).

The author
Snorri Sturluson (1179–1241) was one of the leading figures in Icelandicsocial and political life in the thirteenth century. He acquired great wealthand power and became deeply involved in the political turmoil in theIntroduction

xiii

country that led to the collapse of the legal and social organisation that
had existed since the settlement and eventually to loss of independence
in 1262–4, when Iceland became subject to the Norwegian throne. He
visited the Norwegian court in 1218–20 and again in 1237–9, andevidently agreed to try to further the interests of King Hákon Hákonarson(who ruled from 1217 to 1263) and of the king’s father-in-law Earl Skúliin Iceland. In the end, however, Skúli rebelled against the king and was
defeated and killed (1240), and Snorri also came under the king’s displeasure. He was killed in his own cellar on the orders of his countryman
Gizurr ﬁorvaldsson acting on the king’s authority.
Snorri was well known as an important public figure (he was twice
lawspeaker in the Icelandic parliament), and also as a poet; several poemsby him are quoted in Sturlunga saga, Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar andthe third and fourth Grammatical Treatises (see Skj A II 52–79). Thereis only an isolated contemporary reference to him as the author of
historical writings (Sturlunga saga I 342), but there is fairly goodevidence that he compiled Heimskringla, a history of the kings of Norwayfrom legendary times to 1177, and a separate saga of St Óláfr. It is also
considered likely that he wrote Egils saga, the biography of Iceland’s
greatest poet, though there is no direct evidence for this.
Snorri’s authorship of the Prose Edda is considered established by
the rubric at the head of the text in U, which is probably the oldest extant
manuscript, written in Iceland in the early fourteenth century:
Bók ﬂessi heitir Edda. Hana hefir saman setta Snorri Sturluson eptir ﬂeimhætti sem hér er skipat. Er fyrst frá Ásum ok Ymi, ﬂar næst Skáldskaparmál
ok heiti margra hluta, sí›ast Háttatal er Snorri hefir ort um Hákon konung
ok Skúla hertuga. (This book is called Edda. Snorri Sturluson has compiled
it in the manner in which it is arranged here. There is first told about theÆsir and Ymir, then Skáldskaparmál (‘poetic diction’) and (poetical) namesof many things, finally Háttatal (‘enumeration of metres or verse-forms’)
which Snorri has composed about King Hákon and Earl Skúli.)A separate heading to Háttatal in this manuscript again names Snorri as
its author, and verses from Háttatal are quoted and ascribed to him in
Hákonar saga, in the third Grammatical Treatise, and in the version of
the second part of Skáldskaparmál in W. There is a reference to theprose commentary to Háttatal naming Snorri as its author in the preface
to the Grammatical Treatises in W (SnE II 8), and Skáldskaparmál is
attributed to him in the fragmentary manuscript AM 748 I b 4to, though
there the attribution is immediately followed by a list of kennings that is
not thought to be part of Snorri’s work (SnE II 427–8). The otherindependent manuscripts do not mention the author’s name, and thexiv

Introduction

earliest reference to his authorship of the work as a whole outside
manuscripts that contain it is in the late sixteenth-century Oddverjaannáll
under the notice of his death: ‘Andlát Snorra Sturlusonar . . . hann samsetti
Eddu . . .’1 (Death of Snorri Sturluson . . . he compiled Edda . . .)Snorri’s authorship of the Prose Edda was upheld by the renaissancescholar Arngrímur Jónsson (1568–1648), and since his time it has generally been accepted without question. But the surviving manuscripts, whichwere all written more than half a century after Snorri’s death, differ
from each other considerably and it is not likely that any of them preserves
the work quite as he wrote it. A number of passages in Skáldskaparmál
especially have been thought to be interpolations, and this section of thework has clearly been subject to various kinds of revision in mostmanuscripts. It has also been argued that the prologue and the firstparagraph and part of the last paragraph of Gylfaginning are not by Snorri,at least in their surviving forms. The prologue contains ideas clearly
derived from the Christian Latin learning of medieval Europe, and also
includes inaccurate scraps of classical material, while Gylfaginning (likeHeimskringla) appears to belong to strictly native Scandinavian tradition.
Continental books were, however, widely known in Iceland in the twelfth
century, and educated lay Icelanders were not isolated from the learningof the Christian tradition. The prologue to Gylfaginning is a piece ofphilosophical speculation not unworthy of the author of the prologue toHeimskringla. Moreover it is a necessary introduction to Gylfaginning
not only to set the scene for the dialogue within which its mythologicalstories are enclosed, but also to make clear the author’s attitude to hismaterial; Snorri was a Christian and needed to establish the relationshipof his heathen mythology to his own beliefs. The prologue explains thenature and origins of the religion described in the body of the work. The
first paragraph of Gylfaginning is not in U and is not strictly necessary
to the narrative. It may have been an afterthought, but the anecdote
appears also in Heimskringla (I 14–15) in a form that implies that theversion in Gylfaginning already existed. The end of the last paragraphof Gylfaginning is also lacking in U; it is a return to one of the themes ofthe prologue and the same arguments apply to both, though the meaningof the penultimate sentence is not entirely clear and may not be quite as
the author intended.
It is not known when Snorri wrote the books that are ascribed to him,
though Háttatal was presumably written shortly after his first visit to
1 Oddaannálar og Oddverjaannáll, ed. Eiríkur ﬁormó›sson and Gu›rún Ása

Grímsdóttir, Reykjavík 2003, 146.

Introduction

xv

Norway, and may have been the first part of his Edda to be written. The
compilation of the rest could have extended over many years; some of
the inconsistencies in the work as it has survived may be due to its having
been still in process of revision when the author died. Heimskringla,
which is evidently an expansion of the separate saga of St Óláfr, is insome respects a more mature work than the Edda, and the first part,
Ynglinga saga, seems to have a reference to Gylfaginning (Hkr I 16/4–
5). This saga, like Gylfaginning and its prologue, deals with the originof the Æsir, but whereas in the Edda they are treated partly as gods andpartly as human beings who came to be worshipped as gods, in Ynglinga
saga they are consistently dealt with from the euhemeristic viewpoint,
as human ancestors of the kings of Norway; and in Ynglinga saga theauthor does not, as in the Edda, combine Norse traditions with classicaland biblical material. His concern in Heimskringla is with history, notmythology.
Snorri was the first Icelandic prose writer whose background is known
who was not a cleric, though his ecclesiastical predecessors had been by
no means uninterested in secular learning and he and his lay contemporaries were deeply imbued with Christian learning. But his outlook,though Christian, was predominantly secular. He seems to have belonged
to a group of writers with interests in poetry and history, though there isno evidence that he presided over a ‘school’ of poets and scholars. He
was a friend of Styrmir Kárason, a priest whose writings included a saga
about St Óláfr and a version of Landnámabók; his nephews Sturlaﬁór›arson and Óláfr hvítaskáld were both poets (the latter also a subdeacon) and Sturla compiled several historical works, while Óláfr was
the author of the third Grammatical Treatise (in which classical rhetoricaltheory is applied to Icelandic verse), and may have written Kn‡tlinga
saga, a history of the Danish kings modelled on Heimskringla. Sturla
Sighvatsson, another of Snorri’s nephews, is said to have spent time at
Snorri’s home at Reykjaholt seeing to the copying of his uncle’s historical
writings (Sturlunga saga I 342).
Snorri’s books are a product of a particular social and cultural
background, but they are also links in traditions of scholarly writing on
various subjects that continue through the whole medieval period.
Heimskringla is the high point in the evolution of Icelandic historical
writing about the kings of Norway. The Edda forms part of two lines ofdevelopment. One of its main concerns is language, and in this respect it
belongs with the Grammatical Treatises, the first of which was written
in the twelfth century and is mainly about orthography, while the fourth
was written in the fourteenth century and, like the third, is about thexvi

Introduction

rhetoric of poetry. But Snorri’s mythography is also part of a continuing
tradition. Mythological poems were still being written in the twelfth
century and probably even later, and there is a fragment of a treatise on
heathen religions in the fourteenth-century manuscript AM 162 M fol.
(SnE II 635–6), though in origin parts of this may be older than Snorra
Edda.2 The date of the first written collection of eddic poems is uncertain,
but the idea of collecting and editing them may well have been suggested
by Snorri’s work in Gylfaginning, and it may also have inspired some of
the writers of heroic sagas (fornaldar sƒgur) to include mythologicalmaterial in their stories.
Like many other Icelanders, Snorri was interested in the past of his
own people and in the ideas that had contributed to the development of
the Icelandic civilisation he knew. As a mythographer he was concernedto show that the attitudes and beliefs of his forebears were rational if
unenlightened, and as a critic of poetry to show their culture as a highly
developed art. His personal interest in mythology is apparent not only
from his authorship of Gylfaginning and Ynglinga saga. In an anecdotein Hákonar saga (pp. 172–3), he is said to have composed a verse aboutÓ›inn for Earl Skúli; and it seems from Sturlunga saga (I 344, 374) that
he called his booth at the Alﬂingi ‘Valhƒll’. His prologue to Gylfaginning
reveals that he was not just interested in mythology because it was
important for the understanding of scaldic poetry; he there appears not
only as a mythographer but also as a historian of religion, and his attitude
to the heathen religion is almost as interesting as the mythology itself.
It was love of the traditional poetry of Scandinavia that was theunderlying reason for the composition of the Edda as a whole. All partsof it are concerned largely with the kinds of poetry that had been cultivated in the north from at least the ninth century; but it was written ata time when both eddic and scaldic verse were declining in popularity.
New kinds of poetry were being introduced from the south, among which
the ballad, with its simpler metres and themes, was to be the most influential. Whether or not Snorri felt that the traditional forms of poetry heknew were under threat, his Edda was clearly written to encourage thestudy and composition of scaldic verse of the old type. One of its achievements is that we have in it not only an invaluable aid to the comprehensionof early Scandinavian poetry, but also the texts of many verses and thecontents of many myths that would otherwise have been lost.

2 See Stefán Karlsson, ‘Ættbogi Noregskonunga’, Sjötíu ritger›ir helga›ar
Jakobi Benediktssyni, Reykjavík 1977, 677–704.

Introduction

xvii

The title
The original meaning of the word ‘edda’ as the title of Snorri’s book is
unknown, but references in fourteenth-century poems to ‘eddu list’ and‘eddu reglur’ (art of edda, rules of edda) make it clear that at least bythen the word was understood to mean ‘poetics’.3 That the name wasused of Snorri’s book in the Middle Ages is shown by the rubric in U
quoted above, and by references to Skáldskaparmál and the prologue toGylfaginning in AM 757 a 4to (SnE II 532–3), and it is the usual nameby which the work is referred to from the sixteenth century onwards.
None of the other medieval manuscripts has any heading (only W and U
contain the beginning of the text) and it is uncertain whether the namewas given the work by Snorri himself.
Snorri’s Edda has often been thought of more as a mythological workthan as a treatise on poetry, and so the word ‘edda’ has sometimes been
regarded as meaning ‘mythology’. When, therefore, the collection of
traditional poems in the Codex Regius, GkS 2365 4to, was discoveredin the seventeenth century the name Edda was also applied to that. Manyof the mythological poems in that collection were recognised as thesources of Snorri’s mythology in Gylfaginning, and it thus seemed to bean earlier version of Snorri’s work. It was attributed, certainly mistakenly,
to Sæmundr the Wise, and came to be known as Sæmundar Edda or the
Elder or Poetic Edda, to distinguish it from Snorra (or Snorri’s) Edda,
which is sometimes called the Younger or Prose Edda. (It is not in factcertain that Snorri’s book was not compiled before the eddic poems werefirst collected together and written down.) The term eddic poetry is now
used of the kind of poetry found in GkS 2365 4to, while the kind of
poetry Snorri was concerned with in Skáldskaparmál and Háttatal iscalled scaldic poetry.
The prologue has no title in the manuscripts, but the name Gylfaginningappears in U (only), not in the initial rubric but at the end of the prologue.
This name, which means ‘deception (or tricking) of Gylfi’, refers to theway Gylfi is treated at the end of the framing narrative (cf. also 7/25–7);
but it also relates to the deception whereby the ‘historical’ Æsir convince
the world that they are gods, and is a reminder that the stories Gylfi
hears and evidently believes are not held by the author to be true. As hewrote in Skáldskaparmál (Skáld I 5/30–32), ‘Eigi skulu kristnir menn
trúa á hei›in go› ok eigi á sannyndi ﬂessar sagnar annan veg en svá sem
hér finnsk í upphafi bókar’ (Christians must not believe in heathen gods,
3 See Anthony Faulkes, ‘Edda’, Gripla II, Reykjavík 1977, 32–9.

xviiiIntroduction

or in the truth of this account in any other way than in accordance withwhat is said at the beginning of this book (i.e. in the prologue and maybe
the first few chapters of Gylfaginning)).

The contents of Snorri’s Edda
Snorri’s Edda is primarily a treatise on poetry. It is in three main parts,
with a prologue in the form of a narrative prelude to the first part,
Gylfaginning.
The third part, Háttatal, consists of a poem in 102 stanzas composedby Snorri in praise of King Hákon and Earl Skúli, in which each stanza
illustrates a structural, stylistic or metrical variation, with a commentaryin prose explaining the techniques involved. The commentary, at least
to begin with, is in dialogue form, though the speakers have no names or
personalities. One reason for thinking that this was the first part of the
Edda to be written is that the commentary includes a short analysis of
poetic diction (Háttatal 5–7) which would have been redundant after
Skáldskaparmál was composed.
The central section, Skáldskaparmál, is also the longest. It is an ambitious
attempt to give a comprehensive account of the techniques of poetic
diction, particularly as found in scaldic verse, and Snorri richly illustrates
his analysis with quotations (usually consisting of half-stanzas of fourlines each) from the work of earlier poets, many of whose poems are
only preserved in Snorri’s quotations in his Edda and in Heimskringla
and must have been known to him mainly from oral tradition. His analysis
is divided into two main parts, dealing with kennings (periphrastic
descriptions) and heiti (poetical names) respectively, and some manuscripts also include collections of ﬂulur (versified lists of heiti) whichwere probably mostly composed in the twelfth century. These may nothave been included by Snorri, but some of them were evidently known
to him. Skáldskaparmál also contains some narrative passages in whichstories that are supposed to lie behind some of the poetical expressions
discussed in the theoretical part of the work are told, and a preliminary
narrative tells of the mythical origin of the mead of poetical inspiration.
Some quite long passages of early narrative verse are quoted in connection
with these stories in some manuscripts, and these too may be interpolations, though again Snorri certainly knew and used the poems from which
they are taken even if he did not himself include the quotations in full.
Like Háttatal, Skáldskaparmál is cast in dialogue form, but here thespeakers are given names. Bragi, god of poetry, gives the information,

Introduction

xixÆgir the sea-god is his questioner, and there is an introduction that sets
the scene of their conversation. But, as in Háttatal, the dialogue becomes
perfunctory in the course of the work and is abandoned towards the end.
It may be that the speakers in Skáldskaparmál too were originally anonymousand that the introduction and first few narratives, where the dialogue
between Ægir and Bragi is properly maintained, is really a separate
section of the work, added by Snorri later (from the seventeenth century
onwards the name Bragaræ›ur, ‘speeches of Bragi’, has sometimes beenused to distinguish this section). At any rate the material in Skáldskaparmál has not been fully assimilated to the dialogue setting; Bragi gives
some information about himself and Ægir in the third person, in one
case telling a story in which they both appear that takes place after theconversation in which he tells it (Skáld I 40–41). Perhaps Snorri had
intended to revise this section completely.
There are some references to Gylfaginning and its prologue in Skáldskaparmál (Skáld I 5/30–35, cf. SnE II 533; Skáld I 18/1–2, 6, 19/10, 20/18,
43/17). Although these would seem to indicate that Gylfaginning waswritten first, they may be later additions (they are not in all manuscripts),
implying perhaps that Snorri had begun to revise Skáldskaparmál after
writing Gylfaginning. In one place in Gylfaginning there seems to be areference to a story in Skáldskaparmál (see note to 25/29–30 below).
Gylfaginning is the part of the Edda in which Snorri’s narrative powers
are at their most developed, and where the device of the dramatic dialogue
form is used most consistently and successfully, and so it is assumed
that it was written last. It contains a series of stories about the Norse
gods, arranged chronologically to cover their history from the creationof the world to its end (the twilight of the gods) and subsequent rebirth.
The relevance of this part to the rest of the Edda and to the purpose of
the whole as an art of poetry is not immediately apparent, but it is likelythat it is an extension of the narratives included in Skáldskaparmál, andis intended to present in a systematic way the entire mythological background to the numerous mythological terms that form part of the poetic
language discussed in Skáldskaparmál. Scaldic verse, in the earlier stagesof its development, had been closely associated with the heathen religion
in both its subject-matter and diction, and many early poets had believedthat poetry was the gift of the heathen gods and had originated withthem.4 Nevertheless it is true that many of the stories in Gylfaginning
4 See Gylf 25/20–23 and 34/15 below; Skáld I 19/20–1; Hkr I 17; ÍF II 256;and cf. G. Kreutzer, Die Dichtungslehre der Skalden, Meisenheim am Glan 1977,
109 and 185–95.

xxIntroduction

have little to do with poetry and must have been included mainly for thesake of completeness, or even just to provide entertainment.

Models and sources
There were no precedents for Snorri’s Edda as a comprehensive treatiseon the metre and diction of vernacular poetry either in Scandinavian
literature or elsewhere in Europe. Irish is the only other language inwhich treatises existed on native poetry in the Middle Ages, and it isunlikely that Snorri knew any of those. Several artes poeticae werecomposed in France and England in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries,
but these were primarily concerned with Latin poetry, and thoughacquaintance with some of them might have been one of the factors that
prompted the writing of the Edda, Snorri’s treatment does not have muchin common with them.5 Háttatal, however, is somewhat similar to thetreatise De centum metris of Servius, and the manner of its commentary
is reminiscent of some early rhetorical treatises, while a number of the
distinctions made in it are rather like those of traditional Latin grammar.6
But for this part of the Edda there was a forerunner closer at hand in
Háttalykill, a poem said to have been composed in the twelfth century
by the Orkney poet Rƒgnvaldr kali (Norwegian by origin) and the
Icelander Hallr ﬁórarinsson in which various scaldic verse-forms were
exemplified.7 It does not survive complete, but in 82 extant verses orfragments 41 different verse-forms are used. It does not seem that any
commentary existed, however, and Snorri’s work is both more ambitious
and more clearly theoretical and analytical.
Skáldskaparmál was also a pioneering work, though some of Snorri’s
terminology again may be based on that of Latin works on rhetoric andgrammar, and the analysis of scaldic diction in it may be based on traditio-

5 E. Faral, Les Arts poétiques du Xlle et du Xllle siècle, Paris 1924.
6 See Grammatici Latini IV, ed. H. Keil, Lipsiae 1864, 456–67; Fortunatianus,Ars rhetorica III, 1, ed. C. Halm, Rhetores Latini minores, Lipsiae 1863, 120–1;
Snorri’s setning, leyfi, fyrirbo›ning (Háttatal 3) seems to correspond to parspraeceptiva, pars permissiva and pars prohibitiva in Latin grammar and rhetoric;see Den tredje og fjærde grammatiske afhandling, ed. B. M. Olsen, København
1884, xvi. Cf. Anthony Faulkes, ‘Snorri’s rhetorical categories’, in Sagnaﬂing
helga› Jónasi Kristjánssyni sjötugum 10. apríl 1994, Reykjavík 1994, 167–76.
7 Háttalykill enn forni, ed. Jón Helgason and A. Holtsmark, København 1941
(Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana I).

Introductionxxi

nal theories worked out by earlier Icelandic poets.8 In any case it may be
assumed that the composition of the work was preceded by a good dealof learned discussion with friends interested in poetic theory. But Snorri
was the first to set a theory down in writing; he had successors in theauthors of the third and fourth Grammatical Treatises, though their
methods and aims were different from his. Before Skáldskaparmál there
existed, as far as is known, only the poem Alvíssmál (PE 129–34) andsome versified lists (ﬂulur) of words, names and kennings, probably
intended as aids to memory for poets; it is uncertain when these werefirst written down. The age of the short list of kennings in prose in the
fragmentary manuscripts AM 748 I b 4to and 757 a 4to (SnE II 428–32,
511–15) is also unknown, but this too lacks any kind of theoretical analysis.
Gylfaginning is unique among the mythographical writings of the
Middle Ages. Just as Skáldskaparmál and Háttatal are unusual not only
in being in the vernacular, but also in being concerned with vernacular
poetry, so Gylfaginning is the only medieval treatise that deals comprehensively with the gods of the Germanic races rather than the Greek
and Roman ones. There are brief mentions of the Germanic gods in
Anglo-Saxon in the homilies De falsis diis of Ælfric and Wulfstan, but
their only similarity to Snorri’s treatment is the use of the euhemeristic
interpretation of heathen gods as being really human beings; and Snorri’s
work quite lacks their polemical attitude to heathendom.9 His almost
humanistic detachment and his respect for antiquity make him in fact
much more like the Latin mythographers of the Middle Ages, althoughunlike them he is not much interested in allegorical or symbolic interpretation of myth.10 Having given a blanket explanation of the origin andsignificance of his material in the prologue (a subject to which he returns
at the end of Gylfaginning and in Skáldskaparmál 5–6), he narrates his
myths (through the mouths of his characters) as myths, entirely without
8 See Halldór Halldórsson, Old Icelandic heiti in Modern Icelandic, Reykjavík

1975, 11–30. The self-consciousness of early Scandinavian poets is well revealedby G. Kreutzer, op. cit. (note 4 above). Cf. G. Turville-Petre, Haraldr the Hardruler and his Poets, London 1968, 12–13.
9 Homilies of Ælfric, A Supplementary Collection, ed. J. C. Pope, II, Oxford
1968 (Early English Text Society No. 260), 667–724; The Homilies of Wulfstan,ed. D. Bethurum, Oxford 1957, 220–4. There is an Icelandic translation of theformer in Hauksbók 1892–6, 156–64; see A. Taylor, ‘Hauksbok and Ælfric’s De
Falsis Diis’, Leeds Studies in English, New Series III (1969), 101–9.
10 See Fulgentius, Mitologiae, ed. R. Helm in Fabii Planciadis Fulgentii V. C.
Opera, Lipsiae 1898; Fulgentias the Mythographer, tr. L. G. Whitbread, Ohio
1971; Scriptores rerum mythicarum Latini tres, ed. G. H. Bode, Cellis 1834.

xxii

Introductioncomment and without attempting to use them for any moral purpose.
There are only occasional traces of a tendency towards allegoricalinterpretation in Gylfaginning, e.g. at 27/18–22 and 29/31–30/7, where
Snorri indulges in the widespread medieval practice of etymologisingnames. Otherwise the only ‘significance’ the stories have is aetiological,
for instance when ﬁórr’s drinking feat is said to have been the origin of
the tides (43/16; other examples at 28/9–10, 47/39, 48/22, 49/4, 16). In
contrast the main purpose of other medieval mythographers was toreinterpret heathen (i.e. in their case classical) myths as moral allegories.
Snorri’s matter-of-fact approach is much closer to that of earlier (andless well known) mythographers like Hyginus (probably second century),
while his attempt to fit mythological tradition into a historical framework in the prologue (and in Ynglinga saga) shows his attitude to havesomething in common with that of Peter Comestor and Saxo Grammaticus.11
For some of the narrative parts of his Edda (as for much of Heimskringla) Snorri was indebted to the scholarly historians of the previous
generation in Iceland. The account of the migration of the Æsir from
Asia to Scandinavia in the prologue to Gylfaginning and various stories
in Skáldskaparmál are derived from Skjƒldunga saga. Only extracts fromthis saga now survive in Icelandic, but an idea of its contents can begained from the Latin version made at the end of the sixteenth century
by Arngrímur Jónsson.12 Like Snorra Edda, it was probably based onoral stories in verse and prose together with literary sources such as thewritings of Sæmundr the Wise. The migration story seems to havedeveloped in emulation of traditions found in Roman, Frankish andBritish writings about the foundation of western nations by survivors of
11 Hygini Fabvlae, ed. H. I. Rose, Lvgdvni Batavorvm 1934; The Myths ofHyginus, tr. M. Grant, Lawrence, Kansas 1960; Peter Comestor, Historia
Scholastica, ed. J. P. Migne, Patrologia Latina 198, Parisiis 1855, cols. 1116,
1124, etc. One might also compare the presentation of classical myths in the
Ecloga of Theodulus (ed. J. Osternacher, Ripariae 1902), also in dialogue form
and widely known in the Middle Ages; and in the introduction to the Hauksbók
version of Trójumanna saga, ed. J. Louis-Jensen, Copenhagen 1963, 1–5, though
this may be later than Snorra Edda. On etymology and aetiology in Gylf see A.
Holtsmark, Studier i Snorres mytologi, Oslo 1964, 78–81.
12 Arngrimi Jonae Opera Latine Conscripta, ed. Jakob Benediktsson, Hafniæ
1950–7 (Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana IX–XII), I 333 ff. (cf. IV 107–17); see Jakob
Benediktsson, ‘Icelandic traditions of the Scyldings’, Saga-Book XV (1957–61),
48–66. The fragments thought to be derived from the saga, including its beginning(‘Upphaf allra frásagna’) and Sƒgubrot af fornkonungum are printed in ÍF XXXV
39–90.

Introductionxxiii

the fall of Troy.13 The connection of the Æsir with Asia appears in various
learned Icelandic writers from Ari ﬁorgilsson onwards in association
with the euhemeristic interpretation of the heathen gods as human kings
and the myths told about them as perverted history. This interpretation
lies behind the Scandinavian genealogies that go back to the gods, suchas the one appended to Ari’s Íslendingabók (ÍF I 27–8), as well as being
implicit in many of the narratives of Saxo Grammaticus.
Snorri used various genealogies, some of them in verse, like Ynglingataland Háleygjatal (Skj A I 7–15, 68–71); both are quoted in Ynglinga
saga, the latter also in Skáldskaparmál and the prologue to Gylfaginning.
Others were in tabular form, and some of the genealogy in the prologue
is derived from English genealogical tables. In both England and Icelandin the Middle Ages genealogy was a product of learned antiquarian
activity rather than popular lore.14
Snorri may also have known a now lost ‘Sigur›ar saga’ (an earlier
version of Vƒlsunga saga than the one that survives), and taken from it
information for the prologue to Gylfaginning and parts of Skáldskaparmál.
His reference to Sigur›ar saga in Háttatal (p. 18), however, may be to thestory of Sigur›r in general rather than to a particular written version.
The knowledge of the Troy story, such as it is, shown in the prologue
and last chapter of Gylfaginning and in Skáldskaparmál probably cameprincipally from Trójumanna saga, an Icelandic account of the Trojan
war based on Latin sources.15 The earlier part of the prologue contains
ideas that seem to show the influence of various Latin writings, though
it is uncertain whether Snorri knew these at first hand.16 But his adoption
13 See Anthony Faulkes, ‘Descent from the gods’, Mediaeval Scandinavia 11(1978–9) [1983], 92–125).
14 See Anthony Faulkes, ‘The genealogies and regnal lists in a manuscript in
Resen’s library’, Sjötíu ritger›ir helga›ar Jakobi Benediktssyni, Reykjavík 1977,
177–90.
15 See Trójumanna saga, ed. J. Louis-Jensen, Copenhagen 1963, xi; Hauksbók
1960, xv.
16 See U. and P. Dronke, ‘The prologue of the prose Edda: explorations of a
Latin background’, Sjötíu ritger›ir helga›ar Jakobi Benediktssyni, Reykjavík
1977, 153–76; Anthony Faulkes, ‘Pagan Sympathy: Attitudes to Heathendom in
the Prologue to Snorra Edda’, in Edda: A Collection of Essays, ed. R. J.
Glendinning and Haraldur Bessason, Manitoba 1983, 283–314 (University of
Manitoba Icelandic Studies 4). Cf. ‘The sources of Skáldskaparmál: Snorri’s
intellectual background’, in Snorri Sturluson. Kolloquium anläßlich der 750.
Wiederkehr seines Todestages, ed. Alois Wolf, Tübingen 1993, 59–76 (ScriptOralia
51); Klaus von See, ‘Snorri Sturluson and the Creation of a Norse Cultural
Ideology’, Saga-Book XXV (2001), 367–93.

xxiv

Introductionof such ideas, as well as his linking of Scandinavian prehistory withclassical legend, shows that he was intent on making the Scandinavian
past part of the European past, and on fitting native traditions into a
European context.
In using the dialogue form to present his material in the three mainparts of his treatise, Snorri was following a practice almost standard inlearned treatises in the Middle Ages; it appears for instance in the
dialogues of Gregory the Great, in the Elucidarius of Honorius Augustodunensis (both of which existed in Icelandic translations in Snorri’stime), and in Konungs skuggsjá.17 But some of the poems of the Elder
Edda also present mythological information in dialogue form, and withthe older poems of this kind there can be no question of the influence oflearned treatises. There seems to have been an ancient Scandinavian
tradition of composing poems of mythological instruction as dialogues
or dramatic monologues. The closest parallel to Gylfaginning is Vafﬂrú›nismál (which is also a contest of wisdom) in which Ó›inn gives
information about the gods in third-person narrative; but there are similar devices in several other eddic poems, such as Grímnismál, Baldrs
draumar and Vƒluspá. The presentation of the series of riddles inHei›reks saga, too, is reminiscent of Gylfaginning, though in its present
form the saga may have been compiled later than Snorra Edda. Skáldskaparmál and Háttatal, where the dialogue form is used rather perfunctorily, are much more like the learned treatises, but Gylfaginning, where
it is used in a dramatic and effective way, is closer to the tradition of the
dialogue poems. Snorri has even succeeded in differentiating the rolesof Hár, Jafnhár and ﬁri›i, particularly at 8/33–9/5 and 36/27–37/2.
The actual story that forms the frame of Gylfaginning seems to be
Snorri’s invention, but in many respects, particularly the conclusion, it
is like the episode of ﬁórr and Útgar›aloki (see 43/30–5) and may bebased on it. Gylfi as an opponent of the Æsir in Sweden was probably
suggested by the story of Gefjun and Gylfi embodied in the verse from
Bragi’s Ragnarsdrápa quoted at 7/12–19; this may possibly have been
in Skjƒldunga saga. The first verse of Hávamál is quoted at the beginning
17 Heilagra manna søgur, ed. C. R. Unger, Christiania 1877, II 179–255;
Elucidarius in Old Norse Translation, ed. Evelyn Scherabon Firchow and Kaaren
Grimstad, Reykjavík 1989; Konungs skuggsiá, ed. L. Holm-Olsen, Oslo 1945.
Both Alcuin, De rhetorica (Rhetores Latini minores, ed. C. Halm, Lipsiae 1863,
523–50) and Aldhelm, De metris (Opera, ed. R. Ehwald, Berolini 1919,
Monumenta Germaniae historica, Auctores Antiquissimi XV 59–204), also use
dialogue form.

Introductionxxv

of Gylfaginning and there is an allusion to the last verse at the end (54/30),
though it is uncertain whether this poem existed in the form in which itappears in PE before Snorri wrote Gylfaginning. Hár, Jafnhár and ﬁri›i
are all names of Ó›inn in Grímnismál, but then so is Gangleri, so theidentification of the three representatives of the Æsir in Gylfaginningwith Ó›inn is by no means certain. Nevertheless we are probably rightto assume that Gylfi’s three-in-one informant is a trinity representing
aspects of Ó›inn, but it is then the Ó›inn of the prologue, the ‘historical’
euhemerised king of the human Æsir in their migration from Tyrkland,
not the god who appears in the myths within the dialogue. It is only atthe end of Gylfaginning that the human Æsir deliberately identify
themselves with the gods.
Many of the stories told in Gylfaginning are based on poems of theElder Edda, and many verses from such poems are quoted within the
dialogue. Vƒluspá, the first poem in the Codex Regius, contains a seriesof myths organised into a chronological scheme beginning with creationand ending with the destruction of the world and its renewal, and it isclearly on this poem that Snorri based the outline of the plan of
Gylfaginning, as well as a number of the stories in it (the scheme is also,of course, like that of the Bible). Besides Vƒluspá, the poems mostfrequently used are Vafﬂrú›nismál and Grímnismál. The texts of Snorri’s
quotations from eddic poems are in some places quite different from theother texts we have of them, which are all in manuscripts written after
his time. It is possible that he used an earlier manuscript that is now lost,
but it may be that he knew the poems only from oral tradition. As an
attempt at a scholarly systematisation of traditional legends, Gylfaginning
is a result of the same antiquarian movement that gave rise to thecollecting and copying of traditional poems in the Elder Edda, and it isuncertain which came first.
Other eddic poems are also used occasionally, and in some cases verses
are quoted from poems that otherwise have not survived (e.g. in thestory of Njƒr›r and Ska›i, 24/3–15). Some material is derived fromscaldic poems (see for example the note to 45/10), but there are no
quotations from scaldic verse within the dialogue (two appear in the
introductory frame story; cf. note to 34/16–24). There is quite a lot ofmaterial, however, for which no source is known (e.g. the story of ﬁórrand Útgar›aloki, pp. 37–43). Since Snorri does not quote every verse heuses when he is following known poems, many of the stories that do notsurvive elsewhere may be based on poems or parts of poems that are
now lost. But it is also possible that oral stories in prose on mythologicalxxvi

Introduction

subjects existed in the thirteenth century, though little can be known forcertain about them. A number of Snorri’s stories are similar to ones told
by Saxo Grammaticus and must have a common source which need notin every case have been in verse.
There is no reason to believe, however, that everything in Gylfaginningis derived from ancient tradition, whether oral or written. Snorri was a
Christian and had only a scholar’s and an artist’s interest in mythology;
he was preserving it for antiquarian, not religious, reasons. In Heimskringla he treated even his historical sources with a certain freedom,
and clearly he would not have felt it wrong to depart from or expand his
sources in Gylfaginning too if artistic or other considerations required
it, and he would probably not have felt inhibited from inventing newstories or drastically altering old ones if he saw fit.
Moreover it is unlikely that Snorri gives a very accurate picture of
Norse mythology as a whole. Both Vƒluspá and Gylfaginning treat
heathen mythology in a systematic way which was surely alien from thenature of the heathen religion itself, which must have consisted rather ofa disorganised body of conflicting traditions that was probably neverreduced in heathen times to a consistent orthodoxy such as Snorri attempts
to present. His account of it is coloured by his Christian education which
would have taught him to expect a religion to be a system of coherent
beliefs; and in other ways too it is clear that his Christian attitudes haveinfluenced his presentation of heathen myth. At the beginning of
Gylfaginning the heathen religion is presented as a perversion of thetrue faith, in accordance with the explanation of the origin of heathen
religions given in the prologue, where they are said to have beendeveloped by human beings using the ‘earthly understanding’ given themby God but without the benefit of spiritual wisdom. Several qualities
attributed to Ó›inn conform to the Christian conception of an almighty
creator and giver of life and judge of mankind, but must be alien from
actual ideas about Ó›inn in heathen times (at any rate we find a rather
different picture of him in Ynglinga saga). Snorri saw his heathen
ancestors not as entirely misguided but as falling short of the truth, andtheir creed as a misguided reflection of Christian orthodoxy. He canhardly have taken his account of creation seriously (see especially 9/8),
and it was evidently part of his purpose to reveal some of the limitations
and childishness of heathen religion. Sometimes he has not even mademuch effort to reconcile contradictions between variant traditions (seenote to 14/14–17; there are numerous other contradictions in Gylfaginning that may or may not be deliberate). He clearly enjoyed theIntroduction

xxvii

comedy of some of his stories, which often seem almost parodies of
popular lore (for instance the account of the origin of Naglfar, 50/4–7),
and his irony is sometimes even directed against the principal figures of
Norse mythology (e.g. at 36/28–31). There are also clear exampies ofhis modification of tradition to accommodate it to Christian ideas, as
when he puts the description of places of reward and torment (Vsp 38–9) after the account of ragnarøkr (on his use of this term see glossary),
which as a consequence becomes very like the Christian doomsday,
instead of before as in Vƒluspá. Snorri had an intimate knowledge of
Norse mythology but he did not reproduce that mythology unchanged,
and his account needs to be handled with care by those who wish to use
it to shed light on heathen religion.
Although within the dialogue in Gylfaginning the myths are presented
as myths, without any imposed interpretation, the general treatment of
mythology there is far from naïve. It is a scholarly systematisation of
traditional material which is incorporated into a European historicalframework and adapted to a Christian scheme of ideas. The euhemeristic
attitude to the gods, characteristic of historiography rather than theology
in the Middle Ages, and the detached non-polemical treatment of myth,mark the work as belonging to the humanistic tradition of learned
Icelandic writing of the twelfth century as it was found in Ari and theauthor of Skjƒldunga saga; and the scholarly analysis and careful,schematised presentation of what must have been an amorphous massof tradition in poetry and oral prose make the work comparable withthat of the author of the first Grammatical Treatise. In narrative skill
and stylistic assurance it can stand beside the best sagas of Icelanders,with which it shares also the device of presenting stories in prose withverses freely quoted as corroboration, some of them represented as being
the actual comments of characters in the story. Like some fornaldarsƒgur, Gylfaginning is largely a retelling in prose of stories originallytransmitted in verse. Moreover, the technique of the fictional narrator(and dramatised audience), which is rarely used elsewhere in medieval
Icelandic prose narrative, and nowhere to such effect, adds considerable
dimension and sophistication to the work.
Snorri shows a mixture of influences from the learned writings of theChristian Middle Ages and from the traditional northern world of mythand legend. But only a small part of his work can be considered a directreflection of ‘popular’ lore. He writes in a literary way and much of hismaterial is learned. Even the eddic poems he quotes so often may have cometo him from an antiquarian library rather than from the lips of the people.

xxviii

Introduction

Manuscripts
There are four manuscripts with independent textual value that containthe prologue, Gylfaginning, Skáldskaparmál and Háttatal. These are theCodex Regius (R, written in the first half of the fourteenth century),
Codex Wormianus (W, written about the middle of the fourteenth
century), Codex Trajectinus (T, written about 1595, but believed to be a
copy of a medieval manuscript that no longer survives), and Codex Upsaliensis (U, written in the first quarter of the fourteenth century). R and
T have very similar texts, but W and U differ both from them and fromeach other, in some places quite considerably, both in wording andcontent. The first leaf of R has been lost and it now lacks the beginningof the prologue (to 5/13 in this edition), and after Háttatal it has two
poems, Jómsvíkingadrápa and Málsháttakvæ›i, which are not part of
the Edda. T also lacks the beginning of the prologue (to 3/33) and theend of Háttatal. W includes long passages in the prologue that are not in
the other manuscripts; these passages contain material from biblical andclassical tradition and are thought to be interpolations. It also contains
four Grammatical Treatises and part of the eddic poem Rígsﬂula (PE
141–51), which are not part of Snorri’s Edda; but some narrative passages
that appear in the first half of Skáldskaparmál in other manuscripts arelacking. The second half of Skáldskaparmál in W had been subject toextensive revision by a fourteenth-century redactor, but pages have been
lost from this part of the manuscript and only fragments of this section
now remain; the beginning and end of Háttatal are also missing. But
where the contents of W correspond to R and T, it has a text more similar
to them than to U.
The text in U is throughout very different from the others. It has been
subject to extensive verbal shortening, with the result that in many places
the text hardly makes sense. Various passages that are in the othermanuscripts are lacking, and much of the material that is included is ina different order. Háttatal is incomplete. U also contains some miscellaneous material which, although it is not part of the Edda, is connectedwith Snorri Sturluson or reflects his interests, and could be derived fromhis papers. These are Skáldatal (a list of Scandinavian court poets, aversion of which is also found in one of the manuscripts of Heimskringla),a genealogy of the Sturlung family to which Snorri belonged, a list of
Icelandic lawspeakers ending with Snorri’s name, and a version of thesecond Grammatical Treatise. Both W and U lack the ﬂulur found at theend of Skáldskaparmál in R and T.

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xxix

Fragments survive of three other medieval manuscripts that containparts of Skáldskaparmál and ﬂulur; it is impossible to say whether they
once contained other sections of the work. The text in AM 748 II 4to,written about 1400, is very similar to that in R; here a second scribe has
added a genealogy of the Sturlung family. AM 748 I b 4to, written in thefirst quarter of the fourteenth century, and AM 757 a 4to, written about
1400, contain parts of a redaction of Skáldskaparmál and a collection of
ﬂulur which are both rather different from what survives in othermanuscripts, and they include an additional list of kennings that wasprobably not originally part of Snorri’s Edda. AM 748 I b 4to also
contains parts of the third Grammatical Treatise and a fragment of a
fifth, and the poem Íslendingadrápa (and in AM 748 I a 4to, Arnamagnæan Institute, Copenhagen, which was formerly bound with AM
748 I b 4to, there is part of a collection of eddic poems too); AM 757 a
4to has parts of the third Grammatical Treatise and various religious(Christian) poems. A fourth medieval fragment, AM 756 4to, written in
the fifteenth century, contains parts of both Gylfaginning and Skáldskaparmál derived from W.
Independent texts of a good many of the scaldic verses in Snorra Edda
are found in various other works, such as sagas of kings (including
Heimskringla), sagas of Icelanders, and the Grammatical Treatises. Mostof the eddic poems quoted in Gylfaginning (including Vsp, Vm, and Grm)are found in the Codex Regius of the Elder Edda, written in the second
half of the thirteenth century, and some (including Grm and part of Vm)
are also in AM 748 I a 4to (see above). There is another version ofVƒluspá in Hauksbók (early fourteenth century), but Vƒluspá hin skamma
is only in Flateyjarbók (last quarter of the fourteenth century).
Numerous post-medieval manuscripts of the Prose Edda exist. These
are largely derived from the extant medieval manuscripts, but in somecases contain parts of the medieval versions that have since been lost,for example, some of the redaction of the second part of Skáldskaparmál
in W and the beginning of the prologue in R.18 The texts in many ofthese later manuscripts have been subject to extensive alteration andinterpolation, particularly in Skáldskaparmál, the section which in boththe medieval and the Renaissance period attracted most attention.
There has been much discussion as to whether U or R and T best
preserve the Edda as it was written by Snorri, but there is little on which
18 See Anthony Faulkes, ‘The Prologue to Snorra Edda: An Attempt at
Reconstruction’, Gripla III, Reykjavík 1979, 204–13.

xxx

Introduction

to base a rational judgement. U is probably the oldest manuscript (though
only by a few years), and the material accompanying the Edda in U
implies a close connection with Snorri himself; but the arrangement inthis version seems, at least to most modern readers, less logical andartistic. Scholars are reluctant to attribute what seems to be an improvement in the version in R and T to scribal alteration, and yet if R
and T are closer to the original it is difficult to see what could haveprompted a scribe to alter an arrangement that seems satisfactory so as
to produce the illogicality of U. A third possibility, which is attractive
but incapable of proof, is that U is derived from a draft made by Snorri,in which he may have assembled his material on loose leaves, and that
R and T (and W) are derived from a revised and perhaps expanded version
also by Snorri. Both versions may then have been further altered bylater hands. On the whole it seems best to admit that the manuscripts
preserve various compilations based on the lost work of Snorri Sturluson,
each of which has its own interest and value.
Attempts have also been made to establish a stemma of the relationshipsof the principal manuscripts, but these have resulted in little agreement.19
While R, T and AM 748 II 4to clearly form one group and AM 748 I b
4to and AM 757 a 4to another, the relationships of these groups to W
and U are more complicated than a conventional stemma can indicate.
Moreover there are large parts of the text that are not in all manuscripts,
and even when they run parallel there is often little verbal correspondence,
especially between U and the others, and there is no reliable way ofdetermining which manuscripts have the more original readings. Taking
into account also the span of time and possible number of copies between
the author’s original and the earliest extant manuscripts, it is clear that it
is impossible to reconstruct an archetype with any confidence. Therefore
it seems best to base a text on a single manuscript, emending it from oneof the others only where it fails to make acceptable sense. Of the medieval
manuscripts that contain Gylfaginning, R has the most coherent text andshows the least signs of scribal alteration and has therefore been chosen
as the basis of this edition. Minor slips of the pen have been corrected
silently and odd letters lost through damage to the manuscript have been
19 See De Codex Trajectinus van de Snorra Edda, ed. W. van Eeden, Leiden

1913, introduction; F. W. Müller, Untersuchungen zur Uppsala-Edda, Dresden
1941; Edda Snorra Sturlusonar, ed. Finnur Jónsson, København 1931, xvii ff.
(and references there); D. O. Zetterholm, Studier i en Snorre-text, Stockholm
1949 (Nordiska texter och undersokningar 17); Snorri Sturluson, Edda, ed. A.
Holtsmark and Jón Helgason, København 1950, viii f.

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xxxi

supplied, but all other departures from the text of R are noted in the
textual notes. The beginning of the prologue (to 5/13) is supplied fromseventeenth-century manuscripts (K, N, Th, J) derived from R when it
was complete (see note 18 above). For R, W, T, U and PE the facsimile
editions have been used; readings from other manuscripts are based on
photographs kindly provided by Stofnun Árna Magnússonar á Íslandi.
The spelling (in the text, textual notes and quotations in introduction
and general notes), punctuation, word-division, use of capitals, paragraphdivision and arrangement of verse-lines are editorial, but account has
been taken of the punctuation and capitalisation of the manuscripts inthe placing of full stops, and of the use of large and ornamental capitals
in making paragraph divisions. In the parts of the text based onseventeenth-century manuscripts modern word-forms have been modified to conform to medieval usage. The chapter numbering of SnE I has
been added in the margins (it is also printed, in brackets, in the text of
Edda Snorra Sturlusonar, ed. Finnur Jónsson, København 1931); in the
prologue the numbers are not consecutive because the additional passagesin W are included in that edition.

Bibliography
The best sources for Snorri’s life are Íslendinga saga (in Sturlunga saga)and Hákonar saga Hákonarsonar, both by his nephew Sturla; and thesagas about Gu›mundr Arason (Biskupa sögur, Kaupmannahöfn 1858–
78, I 405–618, II 1–187). There are good accounts of him and his workin the introductions to The Stories of the Kings of Norway by Snorri
Sturlason, tr. W. Morris and Eiríkur Magnússon, IV, London 1905 (TheSaga Library VI); and to Heimskringla, part 1, The Olaf Sagas, tr. S.
Laing, rev. J. Simpson, London 1964, and part 2, Sagas of the Norse
Kings, tr. S. Laing, rev. P. Foote, London 1961; and in G. Turville-Petre,
Origins of Icelandic Literature, Oxford 1953, 220–9.
The most influential discussions of Snorri’s work in the past century
have been in Sigur›ur Nordal, Snorri Sturluson, Reykjavík 1920;
H. Kuhn, ‘Das Nordgermanische Heidentum in den ersten Christlichen
Jahrhunderten’, Zeitschrift für deutsches Altertum 79 (1942), 133–66(reprinted in Kleine Schriften, Berlin 1969–72, II 296–326); W. Baetke,
Die Götterlehre der Snorra-Edda, Berlin 1952; and A. Holtsmark, Studieri Snorres Mytologi, Oslo 1964. Cf. Klaus von See, ‘Snorri Sturluson
and the Creation of a Norse Cultural Ideology’, Saga-Book XXV (2001),

xxxiiIntroduction

367–93. Little has been written in English, but there are useful
introductions to the facsimile edition of R by E. Wessén and to that of W
by Sigur›ur Nordal. There are bibliographies of the Prose Edda in
Islandica XIII (1920) and XXXVII (1955), which can be supplemented
from the periodical bibliographies in Acta Philologica Scandinavica up
to 1962, and Bibliography of Old Norse-lcelandic Studies from 1963 to
1980; see also Kulturhistorisk leksikon for nordisk middelalder III,
København 1958, 479–80, and ‘Snorra Edda’, ‘Snorri Sturluson’ inMedieval Scandinavia. An Encyclopedia, ed. Phillip Pulsiano, New Yorkand London 1993.
The second and third parts of Snorri’s Edda are edited by Anthony
Faulkes in Snorri Sturluson, Edda. Skáldskaparmál. 1. Introduction, Text
and Notes; 2. Glossary and Index of Names, London 1998, and Snorri
Sturluson, Edda. Háttatal. Oxford 1991; paperback edition Viking
Society for Northern Research 1999. The most useful complete edition
is still SnE I–III, the first volume of which contains a Latin translation,and volume II the texts of U and the fragmentary manuscripts. Edda
Snorra Sturlusonar, ed. Finnur Jónsson, København 1931, is more convenient, but has many inaccuracies and inconsistencies and is difficult
to use. The edition by A. Holtsmark and Jón Helgason, København 1950,
includes only parts of the text of Gylfaginning and Skáldskaparmál. The
entire work is translated by Anthony Faulkes in Snorri Sturluson, Edda,
London 1987.
The best handbook of Scandinavian mythology in English is MRN;
but J. de Vries, Altgermanische Religionsgeschichte I–II, Berlin 1935–7(extensively revised ed. 1956–7), and, for individual mythological names,
Kulturhistorisk leksikon and Medieval Scandinavia. An Encyclopedia(see above) should also be consulted. P. A. Munch, Norse Mythology, tr.
S. B. Hustvedt, New York 1926, gives a useful survey of the material
but lacks the later bibliographical references in the revision of Munch’s
Norwegian text by A. Holtsmark (Norrøne gude- og heltesagn, Oslo1967). There is commentary on the important mythological poem Vƒluspá
in the edition by Sigur›ur Nordal, tr. B. S. Benedikz and J. McKinnell,
Durham 1978, and in The Poetic Edda II, Mythological Poems, ed. Ursula
Dronke, Oxford 1997.

Snorri Sturluson

Edda
PA RT I[Prologue]
Almáttigr gu› skapa›i himin ok jƒr› ok alla ﬂá hluti er ﬂeim
fylgja, ok sí›arst menn tvá er ættir eru frá komnar, Adam ok Evu,ok fjƒlga›isk ﬂeira kynsló› ok dreif›isk um heim allan. En er framli›u stundir, ﬂá ójafna›isk mannfólkit: váru sumir gó›ir ok rétttrúa›ir, en myklu fleiri snerusk eptir girndum heimsins ok órœktu
gu›s bo›or›, ok fyrir ﬂví drekti gu› heiminum í sjávargangi okƒllum kvikvendum heimsins nema ﬂeim er í ƒrkinni váru me› Nóa.
Eptir Nóa fló› lif›u átta menn ﬂeir er heiminn byg›u ok kómu frá
ﬂeim ættir, ok var› enn sem fyrr at ﬂá er fjƒlmentisk ok byg›iskverƒldin ﬂá var ﬂat allr fjƒl›i mannfólksins er elska›i ágirni fjár okmetna›ar en afrœktusk gu›s hl‡›ni, ok svá mikit ger›isk af ﬂví atﬂeir vildu eigi nefna gu›. En hverr mundi ﬂá segja sonum ﬂeira frá
gu›s stórmerkjum? Svá kom at ﬂeir t‡ndu gu›s nafni ok ví›ast umverƒldina fansk eigi sá ma›r er deili kunni á skapara sínum. En eigi
at sí›r veitti gu› ﬂeim jar›ligar giptir, fé ok sælu, er ﬂeir skyldu vi›
vera í heiminum. Mi›la›i hann ok spekina svá at ﬂeir skil›u allajar›liga hluti ok allar greinir ﬂær er sjá mátti loptsins ok
jar›arinnar. ﬁat hugsu›u ﬂeir ok undru›usk hverju ﬂat mundi
gegna at jƒr›in ok d‡rin ok fuglarnir hƒf›u saman e›li í sumum
hlutum ok var ﬂó ólíkt at hætti. ﬁat var eitt e›li at jƒr›in var
grafin í hám fjalltindum ok spratt ﬂar vatn upp ok ﬂurfti ﬂar eigi
lengra at grafa til vaz en í djúpum dƒlum. Svá eru ok d‡r ok fuglar,
at jafnlangt er til bló›s í hƒf›i ok fótum. ¯nnur náttúra er sú
jar›ar at á hverju ári vex á jƒr›unni gras ok blóm ok á sama ári
fellr ﬂat allt ok fƒlnar. Svá eru ok d‡r ok fuglar, at ﬂeim vex hár ok
fja›rar ok fellr af á hverju ári. ﬁat er hin ﬂri›ja náttúra jar›ar ﬂá er
hon er opnu› ok grafin ﬂá grœr gras á ﬂeiri moldu er efst er ájƒr›unni. Bjƒrg ok steina ﬂ‡ddu ﬂeir á móti tƒnnum ok beinum
kvikvenda. Af ﬂessu skil›u ﬂeir svá at jƒr›in væri kyk ok hef›i lífme› nokkurum hætti, ok ﬂat vissu ﬂeir at hon var fur›uliga gƒmul
at aldartali ok máttug í e›li. Hon fœddi ƒll kvikvendi ok hon
eigna›isk allt ﬂat er dó. Fyrir ﬂá sƒk gáfu ﬂeir henni nafn ok tƒl›uættir sínar til hennar. ﬁat sama spur›u ﬂeir af gƒmlum frændum
sínum at sí›an er tali› váru mƒrg hundru› vetra ﬂá var in samajƒr›, sól ok himintungl. En gangr himintunglanna var ójafn, áttusum lengra gang en sum skemra. Af ﬂvílíkum hlutum gruna›i ﬂá at

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Prologuenokkurr mundi vera stjórnari himintunglanna sá er stilla mundi
gang ﬂeira at vilja sínum, ok mundi sá vera ríkr mjƒk ok máttugr;
ok ﬂess væntu ﬂeir, ef hann ré›i fyrir hƒfu›skepnunum, at hannmundi fyrr verit hafa en himintunglin; ok ﬂat sá ﬂeir, ef hann ré›igang himintunglanna, at hann mundi rá›a skini sólar ok dƒggloptsins ok ávexti jar›arinnar er ﬂví fylgir, ok slíkt sama vindinum
loptsins ok ﬂar me› stormi sævarins. ﬁá vissu ﬂeir eigi hvar ríkihans var. Af ﬂví trú›u ﬂeir at hann ré› ƒllum hlutum á jƒr›u ok í
lopti, himins ok himintunglum, sævarins ok ve›ranna. En til ﬂessat heldr mætti frá segja e›a í minni festa ﬂá gáfu ﬂeir nafn me›
sjálfum sér ƒllum hlutum ok hefir ﬂessi átrúna›r á marga lundbreyzk svá sem ﬂjó›irnar skiptusk ok tungurnar greindusk. En alla
hluti skil›u ﬂeir jar›ligri skilningu ﬂvíat ﬂeim var eigi gefin andlig
spek›in. Svá skil›u ﬂeir at allir hlutir væri smí›a›ir af nokkuru
efni.
Verƒldin var greind í ﬂrjár hálfur. Frá su›ri í vestr ok inn at
Mi›jar›arsjá, sá hlutr var kalla›r Affrica. Hinn sy›ri hlutr ﬂeirar
deildar er heitr ok brunninn af sólu. Annarr hlutr frá vestri ok til
nor›rs ok inn til hafsins, er sá kalla›r Evropa e›a Enea. Hinn
nyr›ri hlutr er ﬂar kaldr svá at eigi vex gras ok eigi má byggja. Frá
nor›ri ok um austrhálfur allt til su›rs, ﬂat er kallat Asia. Í ﬂeim
hlut veraldar er ƒll fegr› ok pr‡›i ok eign jar›ar ávaxtar, gull ok
gimsteinar. ﬁar er ok mi› verƒldin; ok svá sem ﬂar er jƒr›in fegri
ok betri at ƒllum kostum en í ƒ›rum stƒ›um, svá var ok mannfólkit
ﬂar mest tignat af ƒllum giptum, spekinni ok aflinu, fegr›inni okalls kostar kunnustu.
Nær mi›ri verƒldunni var gƒrt ﬂat hús ok herbergi er ágætast
hefir verit, er kallat var Troja. ﬁat kƒllum vér Tyrkland. ﬁessi sta›r
var myklu meiri gƒrr en a›rir ok me› meira hagleik á marga lundme› kostna›i ok fƒngum er ﬂar váru til. ﬁar váru tólf konungdómar ok einn yfirkonungr ok lágu mƒrg ﬂjó›lƒnd til hvers
konungdóms. ﬁar váru í borginni tólf hƒfu›tungur. ﬁessirhƒf›ingjar hafa verit um fram a›ra menn ﬂá er verit hafa í verƒldu
um alla manndómliga hluti.
Einn konungr er ﬂar var er nefndr Munon e›a Mennon. Hannátti dóttur hƒfu›konungs Priami, sú hét Troan. ﬁau áttu son, hannhét Tror, ﬂann kƒllum vér ﬁór. Hann var at uppfœzlu í Thraciame› hertoga ﬂeim er nefndr er Loricus. En er hann var tíu vetra ﬂátók hann vi› vápnum fƒ›ur síns. Svá var hann fagr álitum er hannkom me› ƒ›rum mƒnnum sem ﬂá er fíls bein er grafit í eik. Hár

Prologue

5hans er fegra en gull. ﬁá er hann var tólf vetra haf›i hann fullt afl.
ﬁá lypti hann af jƒr›u tíu bjarnstƒkum ƒllum senn ok ﬂá drap hannLoricum fóstra sinn ok konu hans Lora e›a Glora ok eigna›i sér
ríkit Thracia. ﬁat kƒllum vér ﬁrú›heim. ﬁá fór hann ví›a um lƒndok kanna›i allar heims hálfur ok sigra›i einn saman alla berserki
ok risa ok einn hinn mesta dreka ok mƒrg d‡r. Í nor›rhálfu heims
fann hann spákonu ﬂá er Sibil hét, er vér kƒllum Sif, ok fekk
hennar. Engi kann at segja ætt Sifjar. Hon var allra kvenna fegrst,
hár hennar var sem gull. ﬁeira son var Lori›i, er líkr var fe›r
sínum, hans son var Einri›i, hans son Vingeﬂórr, hans son
Vingenir, hans son Mó›a, hans son Magi, hans son Sescef, hansson Be›vig, hans son Athra, er vér kƒllum Annan, hans sonÍtrmann, hans son Heremó›, hans son Scialdun, er vér kƒllum
Skjƒld, hans son Biaf, er vér kƒllum Bjár, hans son Jat, hans sonGu›ólfr, hans son Finn, hans son Friallaf, er vér kƒllum Fri›leif.
Hann átti ﬂann son er nefndr er Voden, ﬂann kƒllum vér Ó›in.
Hann var ágætr ma›r af speki ok allri atgervi. Kona hans hét
Frigida, er vér kƒllum Frigg. Ó›inn haf›i spádóm ok svá konahans, ok af ﬂeim vísindum fann hann ﬂat at nafn hans mundi uppi
vera haft í nor›rhálfu heimsins ok tignat um fram alla konunga.
Fyrir ﬂá sƒk f‡stisk hann at byrja fer› sína af Tyrklandi ok haf›ime› sér mikinn fjƒl›a li›s, unga menn ok gamla, karla ok konur,ok hƒf›u me› sér marga gersemliga hluti. En hvar sem ﬂeir fóru
yfir lƒnd, ﬂa var ágæti mikit frá ﬂeim sagt, svá at ﬂeir ﬂóttu líkari
go›um en mƒnnum. Ok ﬂeir gefa eigi sta› fer›inni fyrr en ﬂeir
koma nor›r í ﬂat land er nú er kallat Saxland. ﬁar dval›isk Ó›inn
langar hrí›ir ok eignask ví›a ﬂat land.
ﬁar setr Ó›inn til lands gæzlu ﬂrjá sonu sína; er einn nefndr
Veggdegg, var hann ríkr konungr ok ré› fyrir Austr Saxalandi;hans sonr var Vitrgils, hans synir váru ﬂeir Vitta, fa›ir Heingests,
ok Sigarr, fa›ir Svebdegg, er vér kƒllum Svipdag. Annarr son
Ó›ins hét Beldegg, er vér kƒllum Baldr; hann átti ﬂat land er nú
heitir Vestfal. Hans son var Brandr, hans son Frio›igar, er vérkƒllum Fró›a, hans son var Freovin, hans son Wigg, hans son
Gevis, er vér kƒllum Gavi. Inn ﬂri›i son Ó›ins er nefndr Siggi,
hans son Rerir. ﬁeir langfe›gar ré›u ﬂar fyrir er nú er kallat
Frakland, ok er ﬂa›an sú ætt komin er kƒllu› er Vƒlsungar. Fráƒllum ﬂessum eru stórar ættir komnar ok margar. ﬁá
byrja›i Ó›inn fer› sína nor›r ok kom í ﬂat land er ﬂeir kƒllu›uRei›gotaland ok eigna›isk í ﬂví landi allt ﬂat er hann vildi. Hann

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Prologuesetti ﬂar til landa son sinn er Skjƒldr hét, hans son hét Fri›leifr;
ﬂa›an er sú ætt komin er Skjƒldungar heita, ﬂat eru Danakonungar,
ok ﬂat heitir nú Jótland er ﬂá var kallat Rei›gotaland.
Eptir ﬂat fór hann nor›r ﬂar sem nú heitir Svíﬂjó›. ﬁar var sá
konungr er Gylfi er nefndr, en er hann spyrr til fer›a ﬂeira
Asiamanna er Æsir váru kalla›ir, fór hann móti ﬂeim ok bau› atÓ›inn skyldi slíkt vald hafa í hans ríki sem hann vildi sjálfr. Ok sátími fylg›i fer› ﬂeira at hvar sem ﬂeir dvƒl›usk í lƒndum, ﬂá var ﬂarár ok fri›r gó›r, ok trú›u allir at ﬂeir væri ﬂess rá›andi, ﬂvíat ﬂat
sá ríkismenn at ﬂeir váru ólíkir ƒ›rum mƒnnum ﬂeim er ﬂeir hƒf›u
sét at fegr› ok at viti. ﬁar ﬂótti Ó›ni fagrir lands kostir ok kaus sér
ﬂar borgsta› er nú heita Sigtúnir. Skipa›i hann ﬂar hƒf›ingjum okí ﬂá líking sem verit haf›i í Troja, setti tólf hƒfu›menn í sta›inumat dœma landslƒg, ok svá skipa›i hann réttum ƒllum sem fyrrhƒf›u verit í Troju ok Tyrkir váru vanir.
Eptir ﬂat fór hann nor›r ﬂar til er sjár tók vi› honum, sá er ﬂeir
hug›u at lægi um ƒll lƒnd, ok setti ﬂar son sinn til ﬂess ríkis er nú
heitir Nóregr. Sá er Sæmingr kalla›r, ok telja ﬂar Nóregskonungar
sínar ættir til hans ok svá jarlar ok a›rir ríkismenn, svá sem segir í
Háleygjatali. En Ó›inn haf›i me› sér ﬂann son sinn er Yngvi er
nefndr, er konungr var í Svíﬂjó›u, ok eru frá honum komnar ﬂærættir er Ynglingar eru kalla›ir. ﬁeir Æsir tóku sér kvánfƒng ﬂar
innan lands, en sumir sonum sínum, ok ur›u ﬂessar ættir
fjƒlmennar, at umb Saxland ok allt ﬂa›an um nor›rhálfur
dreif›isk svá at ﬂeira tunga, Asiamanna, var eigintunga um ƒll
ﬂessi lƒnd; ok ﬂat ﬂykkjask menn skynja mega af ﬂví at skrifu› eru
langfe›ga nƒfn ﬂeira, at ﬂau nƒfn hafa fylgt ﬂessi tungu ok ﬂeir
Æsir hafa haft tunguna nor›r hingat í heim, í Nóreg ok í Sviﬂjó›, íDanmƒrk ok í Saxland; ok í Englandi eru forn lands heiti e›a sta›aheiti ﬂau er skilja má at af annarri tungu eru gefin en ﬂessi.

Prologue7[Gylfaginning]
Gylfi konungr ré› ﬂar lƒndum er nú heitir Svíﬂjó›. Frá honum er
ﬂat sagt at hann gaf einni farandi konu at launum skemtunar sinnar
eitt plógsland í ríki sínu ﬂat er fjórir øxn drœgi upp dag ok nótt.
En sú kona var ein af Ása ætt. Hon er nefnd Gefjun. Hon tók fjóra
øxn nor›an ór Jƒtunheimum, en ﬂat váru synir jƒtuns ok hennar, ok
setti ﬂá fyrir plóg. En plógrinn gekk svá hart ok djúpt at upp leysti
landit, ok drógu øxninir ﬂat land út á hafit ok vestr ok námu sta›arí sundi nokkvoru. ﬁar setti Gefjun landit ok gaf nafn ok kalla›i
Selund. Ok ﬂar sem landit haf›i upp gengit var ﬂar eptir vatn; ﬂater nú Lƒgrinn kalla›r í Svíﬂjó›. Ok liggja svá víkr í Leginum semnes í Selundi. Svá segir Bragi skáld gamli:
Gefjun dró frá Gylfa
glƒ› djúprƒ›ul ƒ›la,svá at af rennirauknum
rauk, Danmarkar auka.
Báru øxn ok áttaennitungl ﬂar er gengu
fyrir vineyjar ví›ri
valrauf, fjƒgur haufu›.

Gylfi konungr var ma›r vitr ok fjƒlkunnigr. Hann undra›isk ﬂatmjƒk er Ásafólk var svá kunnigt at allir hlutir gengu at vilja ﬂeira.
ﬁat hugsa›i hann hvárt ﬂat mundi vera af e›li sjálfra ﬂeira, e›amundi ﬂví valda go›mƒgn ﬂau er ﬂeir blótu›u. Hann byrja›i fer›sína til Ásgar›s ok fór me› laun ok brá á sik gamals manns líki okdul›isk svá. En Æsir váru ﬂví vísari at ﬂeir hƒf›u spádóm, ok sá
ﬂeir fer› hans fyrr en hann kom, ok ger›u í móti honum
sjónhverfingar. En er hann kom inn í borgina ﬂá sá hann ﬂar hávahƒll, svá at varla mátti hann sjá yfir hana. ﬁak hennar var lagt
gyltum skjƒldum svá sem spánﬂak. Svá segir ﬁjó›ólfr inn hvinverski at Valhƒll var skjƒldum ﬂƒk›:Á baki létu blíkja,bar›ir váru grjóti,
Sváfnis salnæfrar
seggir hyggjandi.

Gylfi sá mann í hallar durunum ok lék at handsƒxum ok haf›i sjau
senn á lopti. Sá spur›i hann fyrr at nafni. Hann nefndisk Gangleri

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ok kominn af refilstigum ok beiddisk at sœkja til náttsta›ar ok
spur›i hverr hƒllina ætti. Hann svarar at ﬂat var konungr ﬂeira.
‘En fylgja má ek ﬂér at sjá hann. Skaltu ﬂá sjálfr spyrja hannnafns.’
Ok snerisk sá ma›r fyrir honum inn í hƒllina. En hann gekk
eptir, ok ﬂegar lauksk hur›in á hæla honum. ﬁar sá hann mƒrg gólf
ok mart fólk, sumt me› leikum, sumir drukku, sumir me› vápnum
ok bƒr›usk. ﬁá lita›isk hann umb ok ﬂótti margir hlutir ótrúligir
ﬂeir er hann sá. ﬁá mælti hann:‘Gáttir allará›r gangi framum skygnask skyli
ﬂvíat óvíst er at vita
hvar óvinir
sitja á fleti fyrir.’Hann sá ﬂrjú hasæti ok hvert upp frá ƒ›ru, ok sátu ﬂrír menn,
sinn í hverju. ﬁá spur›i hann hvert nafn hƒf›ingja ﬂeira væri. Sásvarar er hann leiddi inn at sá er í inu nezta hásæti sat var konungr
ok heitir Hár, en ﬂar næst sá er heitir Jafnhár, en sá ofarst er ﬁri›iheitir. ﬁá spyrr Hár komandann hvárt fleira er eyrindi hans, enheimill er matr ok drykkr honum sem ƒllum ﬂar í Háva hƒll. Hann
segir at fyrst vil hann spyrja ef nokkvorr er fró›r ma›r inni. Hár
segir at hann komi eigi heill út nema hann sé fró›ari, ok‘Stattu fram me›an ﬂú fregn,
sitja skal sá er segir.’Gangleri hóf svá mál sitt:‘Hverr er œztr e›a elztr allra go›a?’
Hár segir: ‘Sá heitir Alfƒ›r at váru máli, en í Ásgar›i inum fornaátti hann tólf nƒfn. Eitt er Alfƒ›r, annat er Herran e›a Herjan,
ﬂri›ja er Nikarr e›a Hnikarr, fjór›a er Nikuz e›a Hniku›r, fimtaFjƒlnir, sétta Óski, sjaunda Ómi, átta Bifli›i e›a Biflindi, níunda
Svi›arr, tíunda Svi›rir, ellipta Vi›rir, tólfta Jálg e›a Jálkr.’ﬁá spyrr Gangleri: ‘Hvar er sá gu›, e›a hvat má hann, e›a hvat
hefir hann unnit framaverka?’
Hár segir: ‘Lifir hann of allar aldir ok stjórnar ƒllu ríki sínu okræ›r ƒllum hlutum stórum ok smám.’ﬁá mælir Jafnhár: ‘Hann smí›a›i himin ok jƒr› ok loptin ok alla
eign ﬂeira.’ﬁá mælti ﬁri›i: ‘Hitt er mest er hann ger›i manninn ok gaf honumGylfaginning9ƒnd ﬂá er lifa skal ok aldri t‡nask, ﬂótt líkaminn fúni at moldue›a brenni at ƒsku. Ok skulu allir menn lifa ﬂeir er rétt eru si›a›ir
ok vera me› honum sjálfum ﬂar sem heitir Gimlé e›a Vingólf, en
vándir menn fara til Heljar ok ﬂa›an í Niflhel, ﬂat er ni›r í inn
níunda heim.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat haf›isk hann á›r at en himinn ok jƒr›væri gƒr?’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘ﬁá var hann me› hrímﬂursum.’
Gangleri mælti: ‘Hvat var upphaf? E›a hversu hófsk? E›a hvatvar á›r?’
Hár svarar: ‘Svá sem segir í Vƒluspá:
Ár var alda
ﬂat er ekki var.
Vara sandr né særné svalar unnir.
Jƒr› fansk eigi
né upphiminn,
gap var ginnunga
en gras ekki.’ﬁá mælir Jafnhár: ‘Fyrr var ﬂat mƒrgum ƒldum en jƒr› varskƒpu› er Niflheimr var gƒrr, ok í honum mi›jum liggr bru›r sá er
Hvergelmir heitir, ok ﬂa›an af falla ﬂær ár er svá heita: Svƒl,Gunnﬂrá, Fjƒrm, Fimbulﬂul, Slí›r ok Hrí›, Sylgr ok Ylgr, Ví›,
Leiptr; Gjƒll er næst Helgrindum.’ﬁá mælir ﬁri›i: ‘Fyrst var ﬂó sá heimr í su›rhálfu er Muspell heitir.
Hann er ljóss ok heitr. Sú átt er logandi ok brennandi, er hann okófœrr ﬂeim er ﬂar eru útlendir ok eigi eigu ﬂar ó›ul. Sá er Surtr
nefndr er ﬂar sitr á lands enda til landvarnar. Hann hefir loganda
sver›, ok í enda veraldar mun hann fara ok herja ok sigra ƒll go›inok brenna allan heim me› eldi. Svá segir í Vƒluspá:
Surtr ferr sunnanme› sviga lævi.
Skínn af sver›isól valtíva.
Grjótbjƒrg gnata
en gífr rata.
Tro›a halir Helveg,
en himinn klofnar.’Gangleri mælir: ‘Hversu skipa›isk á›r en ættirnar yr›i e›aauka›isk mannfólkit?’ﬁá mælir Hár: ‘Ár ﬂær er kalla›ar eru Élivágar, ﬂá er ﬂær váru

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svá langt komnar frá uppsprettunni at eitrkvikja sú er ﬂar fylg›ihar›na›i svá sem sindr ﬂat er renn ór eldinum, ﬂá var› ﬂat íss, ok
ﬂá er sá íss gaf sta›ar ok rann eigi, ﬂá héldi yfir ﬂannig úr ﬂat er af
stó› eitrinu ok fraus at hrími, ok jók hrímit hvert yfir annat allt í
Ginnungagap.’ﬁá mælti Jafnhár: ‘Ginnungagap, ﬂat er vissi til nor›rs ættar,
fyltisk me› ﬂunga ok hƒfugleik íss ok hríms ok inn í frá úr ok gustr.
En hinn sy›ri hlutr Ginnungagaps léttisk móti gneistum ok síum
ﬂeim er flugu ór Muspellsheimi.’ﬁá mælti ﬁri›i: ‘Svá sem kalt stó› af Niflheimi ok allir hlutir
grimmir, svá var ﬂat er vissi námunda Muspelli heitt ok ljóst, enGinnungagap var svá hlætt sem lopt vindlaust. Ok ﬂá er mœttisk
hrímin ok blær hitans svá at brá›na›i ok draup, ok af ﬂeim kvikudropum kvikna›i me› krapti ﬂess er til sendi hitann, ok var›manns líkandi, ok var sá nefndr Ymir. En hrímﬂursar kalla hann
Aurgelmi, ok eru ﬂa›an komnar ættir hrímﬂursa, svá sem segir íVƒluspá hinni skƒmmu:Eru vƒlur allarfrá Vi›ólfi,vitkar allir
frá Vilmei›i,en sei›berendr
frá Svarthƒf›a,allir jƒtnar
frá Ymi komnir.

En hér segir svá Vafﬂrú›nir jƒtunn
27

hva›an Aurgelmir komme› jƒtna sonum
fyrst, inn fró›i jƒtunn:

30“ﬁá er ór Élivágum
stukku eitrdropar
ok óx unz ór var› jƒtunn,
ﬂar eru órar ættir
komnar allar saman;
ﬂví er ﬂat æ allt til atalt.”’

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ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvernig óxu ættir ﬂa›an e›a skapa›isk
svá at fleiri menn ur›u, e›a trúir ﬂú ﬂann gu› er nú sag›ir ﬂúfrá?’
ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘Fyr øngan mun játum vér hann gu›. Hann var
illr ok allir hans ættmenn. ﬁá kƒllum vér hrímﬂursa. Ok svá er sagt

Gylfaginning11

at ﬂá er hann svaf, fekk hann sveita. ﬁá óx undir vinstri hƒndhonum ma›r ok kona, ok annarr fótr hans gat son vi› ƒ›rum. En
ﬂa›an af kómu ættir. ﬁat eru hrímﬂursar. Hinn gamli hrímﬂurs,
hann kƒllum vér Ymi.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvar byg›i Ymir e›a vi› hvat lif›i hann?’‘Næst var ﬂat, ﬂá er hrímit draup, at ﬂar var› af k‡r sú er
Au›humla hét, en fjórar mjólkár runnu ór spenum hennar, okfœddi hon Ymi.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Vi› hvat fœddisk k‡rin?’
Hár segir: ‘Hon sleikti hrímsteinana, er saltir váru. Ok hinn
fyrsta dag er hon sleikti steina kom ór steininum at kveldi mannshár, annan dag manns hƒfu›, ﬂri›ja dag var ﬂar allr ma›r. Sá er
nefndr Búri. Hann var fagr álitum, mikill ok máttugr. Hann gat
son ﬂann er Borr hét. Hann fekk ﬂeirar konu er Bestla hét, dóttir
Bƒlﬂorns jƒtuns, ok fengu ﬂau ﬂrjá sonu. Hét einn Ó›inn, annarr
Vili, ﬂri›i Vé. Ok ﬂat er mín trúa at sá Ó›inn ok hans brœ›r munu
vera st‡randi himins ok jar›ar; ﬂat ætlum vér at hann muni svá
heita. Svá heitir sá ma›r er vér vitum mestan ok ágæztan, ok vel
megu ﬂér hann láta svá heita.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat var› ﬂá um ﬂeira sætt, e›a hvárir váru
ríkari?’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘Synir Bors drápu Ymi jƒtun. En er hann fell, ﬂá
hljóp svá mikit bló› ór sárum hans at me› ﬂví drektu ﬂeir allri ætt
hrímﬂursa, nema einn komsk undan me› sínu h‡ski. ﬁann kallajƒtnar Bergelmi. Hann fór upp á lú›r sinn ok kona hans ok helzk
ﬂar, ok eru af ﬂeim komnar hrímﬂursa ættir, svá sem hér segir:Ørófi vetraá›r væri jƒr› skƒpu›,ﬂá var Bergelmir borinn;
ﬂat ek fyrst of maner sá hinn fró›i jƒtunn
á var lú›r of lagi›r.’ﬁá svarar Gangleri: ‘Hvat hƒf›usk ﬂá at Bors synir, ef ﬂú trúir at
ﬂeir sé gu›?’
Hár segir: ‘Eigi er ﬂar lítit af at segja. ﬁeir tóku Ymi ok fluttu ímitt Ginnungagap, ok ger›u af honum jƒr›ina, af bló›i hans sæinn
ok vƒtnin. Jƒr›in var gƒr af holdinu en bjƒrgin af beinunum, grjót
ok ur›ir ger›u ﬂeir af tƒnnum ok jƒxlum ok af ﬂeim beinum er
brotin váru.’ﬁá mælir Jafnhár: ‘Af ﬂví bló›i er ór sárum rann ok laust fór, ﬂar

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af ger›u ﬂeir sjá ﬂann er ﬂeir ger›u ok festu saman jƒr›ina, oklƒg›u ﬂann sjá í hring útan um hana, ok mun ﬂat flestum manniófœra ﬂykkja at komask ﬂar yfir.’ﬁá mælir ﬁri›i: ‘Tóku ﬂeir ok haus hans ok ger›u ﬂar af himin ok
settu hann upp yfir jƒr›ina me› fjórum skautum, ok undir hvert
horn settu ﬂeir dverg. ﬁeir heita svá: Austri, Vestri, Nor›ri, Su›ri.
ﬁá tóku ﬂeir síur ok gneista ﬂá er lausir fóru ok kastat haf›i ór
Muspellsheimi, ok settu á mi›jan Ginnungahimin bæ›i ofan okne›an til at l‡sa himin ok jƒr›. ﬁeir gáfu sta›ar ƒllum eldingum,
sumum á himni, sumar fóru lausar undir himni, ok settu ﬂó ﬂeim
sta› ok skƒpu›u gƒngu ﬂeim. Svá er sagt í fornum vísindum at
ﬂa›an af váru dœgr greind ok áratal, svá sem segir í Vƒluspá:
Sól ﬂat ne vissi
hvar hon sali átti.
Máni ﬂat ne vissi
hvat hann megins átti.
Stjƒrnur ﬂat ne vissu
hvar ﬂær sta›i áttu.

Svá var á›r en ﬂetta væri of jƒr›.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘ﬁetta eru mikil tí›indi er nú heyri ek. Fur›umikil smí› er ﬂat ok hagliga gert. Hvernig var jƒr›in háttu›?’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘Hon er kringlótt útan, ok ﬂar útan um liggr hinn
djúpi sjár, ok me› ﬂeiri sjávar strƒndu gáfu ﬂeir lƒnd til byg›arjƒtna ættum. En fyrir innan á jƒr›unni ger›u ﬂeir borg umhverfis
heim fyrir ófri›i jƒtna, en til ﬂeirar borgar hƒf›u ﬂeir brár Ymisjƒtuns, ok kƒllu›u ﬂá borg Mi›gar›. ﬁeir tóku ok heila hans okkƒstu›u í lopt ok ger›u af sk‡in, svá sem hér segir:Ór Ymis holdi
var jƒr› of skƒpu›,en ór sveita sjár,bjƒrg ór beinum,ba›mr ór hári,en ór hausi himinn;
En ór hans brám
ger›u blí› reginMi›gar› manna sonum,en ór hans heila
váru ﬂau hin har›mó›gusk‡ ƒll of skƒpu›.’Gylfaginning13ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Mikit ﬂótti mér ﬂeir hafa ﬂá snúit til lei›arer jƒr› ok himinn var gert ok sól ok himintungl váru sett ok skiptdœgrum—ok hva›an kómu menninir ﬂeir er heim byggja?’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘ﬁá er ﬂeir Bors synir gengu me› sævar strƒndu,fundu ﬂeir tré tvau, ok tóku upp tréin ok skƒpu›u af menn. Gaf
hinn fyrsti ƒnd ok líf, annarr vit ok hrœring, ﬂri›i ásjónu, málit okheyrn ok sjón; gáfu ﬂeim klæ›i ok nƒfn. Hét karlma›rinn Askr, en
konan Embla, ok ólusk ﬂa›an af mannkindin ﬂeim er byg›in var
gefin undir Mi›gar›i. ﬁar næst ger›u ﬂeir sér borg í mi›jum heimi
er kalla›r er Ásgar›r. ﬁat kƒllum vér Troja. ﬁar byg›u gu›in okættir ﬂeira ok ger›usk ﬂa›an af mƒrg tí›indi ok greinir bæ›i ájƒr›unni ok í lopti. ﬁar er einn sta›r er Hli›skjálf heitir, ok ﬂá erÓ›inn settisk ﬂar í hásæti ﬂá sá hann of alla heima ok hvers mannsathœfi ok vissi alla hluti ﬂá er hann sá. Kona hans hét FriggFjƒrgvinsdóttir, ok af ﬂeira ætt er sú kynsló› komin er vér kƒllumÁsa ættir, er bygt hafa Ásgar› hinn forna ok ﬂau ríki er ﬂar liggja
til, ok er ﬂat allt go›kunnig ætt. Ok fyrir ﬂví má hann heitaAlfƒ›r at hann er fa›ir allra go›anna ok manna ok alls ﬂess er af
honum ok hans krapti var fullgert. Jƒr›in var dóttir hans ok konahans. Af henni ger›i hann hinn fyrsta soninn, en ﬂat er Ásaﬂórr.
Honum fylg›i afl ok sterkleikr. ﬁar af sigrar hann ƒll kvikvendi.
‘Nƒrfi e›a Narfi hét jƒtunn er byg›i í Jƒtunheimum. Hann áttidóttur er Nótt hét. Hon var svƒrt ok døkk sem hon átti ætt til. Hon
var gipt ﬂeim manni er Naglfari hét. ﬁeira son hét Au›r. ﬁví næstvar hon gipt ﬂeim er Annarr hét. Jƒr› hét ﬂeira dóttir. Sí›arst áttihana Dellingr, var hann Ása ættar. Var ﬂeira son Dagr. Var hannljóss ok fagr eptir fa›erni sínu. ﬁá tók Alfƒ›r Nótt ok Dag son
hennar ok gaf ﬂeim tvá hesta ok tvær kerrur ok setti ﬂau upp áhimin at ﬂau skulu rí›a á hverjum tveim dœgrum umhverfis
jƒr›ina. Rí›r Nótt fyrri ﬂeim hesti er kalla›r er Hrímfaxi, ok atmorni hverjum døggvir hann jƒr›ina af méldropum sínum. Sá
hestr er Dagr á heitir Skinfaxi, ok l‡sir allt lopt ok jƒr›ina af faxi
hans.’ﬁá mælti Gangleri: ‘Hversu st‡rir hann gang sólar ok tungls?’
Hár segir: ‘Sá ma›r er nefndr Mundilfœri er átti tvau bƒrn. ﬁauváru svá fƒgr ok frí› at hann kalla›i annat Mána en dóttur sína Sól,ok gipti hana ﬂeim manni er Glenr hét. En gu›in reiddusk ﬂessu
ofdrambi ok tóku ﬂau systkin ok settu upp á himin, létu Sól keyraﬂá hesta er drógu kerru sólarinnar ﬂeirar er gu›in hƒf›u skapat til
at l‡sa heimana af ﬂeiri síu er flaug ór Muspellsheimi. ﬁeir hestar

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heita svá: Árvakr ok Alsvi›r. En undir bógum hestanna settu
go›in tvá vindbelgi at kœla ﬂá, en í sumum frœ›um er ﬂat kallatísarnkol. Máni st‡rir gƒngu tungls ok ræ›r n‡jum ok ni›um. Hann
tók tvau bƒrn af jƒr›unni, er svá heita: Bil ok Hjúki, er ﬂau gengu
frá brunni ﬂeim er Byrgir heitir, ok báru á ƒxlum sér sá er heitirSœgr, en stƒngin Simul. Vi›finnr er nefndr fa›ir ﬂeira. ﬁessi bƒrnfylgja Mána, svá sem sjá má af jƒr›u.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Skjótt ferr sólin, ok nær svá sem hon séhrædd, ok eigi mundi hon ﬂá meir hvata gƒngunni at hon hræddisk
bana sinn.’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘Eigi er ﬂat undarligt at hon fari ákafliga, nær
gengr sá er hana sœkir. Ok øngan útveg á hon nema renna undan.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hverr er sá er henni gerir ﬂann ómaka?’
Hár segir: ‘ﬁat eru tveir úlfar, ok heitir sá er eptir henni ferrSkƒll. Hann hræ›isk hon ok hann mun taka hana, en sá heitir Hati
Hró›vitnisson er fyrir henni hleypr, ok vill hann taka tunglit, ok
svá mun ver›a.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hver er ætt úlfanna?’
Hár segir: ‘G‡gr ein b‡r fyrir austan Mi›gar› í ﬂeim skógi er
Járnvi›r heitir. Í ﬂeim skógi byggja ﬂær trƒllkonur er Járnvi›jur
heita. In gamla g‡gr fœ›ir at sonum marga jƒtna ok alla í vargs
líkjum, ok ﬂa›an af eru komnir ﬂessir úlfar. Ok svá er sagt at afættinni ver›r sá einn mátkastr er kalla›r er Mánagarmr. Hann
fyllisk me› fjƒrvi allra ﬂeira manna er deyja, ok hann gleypir tungl
ok støkkvir bló›i himin ok lopt ƒll. ﬁa›an t‡nir sól skini sínu okvindar eru ﬂá ókyrrir ok gn‡ja he›an ok handan. Svá segir íVƒluspá:Austr b‡r in aldna
í Járnvi›iok fœ›ir ﬂar
Fenris kindir.
Ver›r ór ﬂeim ƒllum
einna nokkurr
tungls tjúgarií trƒlls hami.
Fyllisk fjƒrvi
feigra manna,r‡›r ragna sjƒtrau›um dreyra.
Svƒrt ver›a sólskin

Gylfaginning15

of sumur eptir,ve›r ƒll válynd.
Vitu› ér enn e›a hvat?’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hver er lei› til himins af jƒr›u?’ﬁá svarar Hár ok hló vi›: ‘Eigi er nú fró›liga spurt. Er ﬂér eigi
sagt ﬂat at gu›in ger›u brú til himins af jƒr›u ok heitir Bifrƒst?
Hana muntu sét hafa, kann vera at ﬂat kallir ﬂú regnboga. Hon erme› ﬂrim litum ok mjƒk sterk ok ger me› list ok kunnáttu meiri ena›rar smí›ir. Ok svá sem hon er sterk, ﬂá mun hon brotna ﬂá er
Muspells megir fara ok rí›a hana, ok svima hestar ﬂeira yfir stórar
ár. Svá koma ﬂeir fram.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Eigi ﬂótti mér go›in gera af trúna›i brúna,
er hon skal brotna mega, er ﬂau megu gera sem ﬂau vilja.’ﬁá mælir Hár: ‘Eigi eru go›in hallmælis ver› fyrir ﬂessa smí›.
Gó› brú er Bifrƒst, en engi hlutr er sá í ﬂessum heimi er sér megi
treystask ﬂá er Muspells synir herja.’ﬁá mælti Gangleri: ‘Hvat haf›isk Alfƒ›r ﬂá at er gƒrr varÁsgar›r?’
Hár mælir: ‘Í upphafi setti hann stjórnarmenn ok beiddi ﬂá atdœma me› sér ørlƒg manna ok rá›a um skipun borgarinnar. ﬁatvar ﬂar sem heitir I›avƒllr í mi›ri borginni. Var ﬂat hit fyrsta ﬂeira
verk at gera hof ﬂat er sæti ﬂeira standa í, tólf ƒnnur en hasætit ﬂat
er Alfƒ›r á. ﬁat hús er bezt gert á jƒr›u ok mest. Allt er ﬂat útanok innan svá sem gull eitt. Í ﬂeim sta› kalla menn Gla›sheim.
Annan sal ger›u ﬂeir, ﬂat var hƒrgr er gy›jurnar áttu, ok var
hann allfagr. ﬁat hús kalla menn Vingólf. ﬁar næst ger›u ﬂeir ﬂat
at ﬂeir lƒg›u afla ok ﬂar til ger›u ﬂeir hamar ok tƒng ok ste›ja ok
ﬂa›an af ƒll tól ƒnnur. Ok ﬂví næst smí›u›u ﬂeir málm ok stein ok
tré, ok svá gnógliga ﬂann málm er gull heitir at ƒll búsgƒgn ok ƒll
rei›igƒgn hƒf›u ﬂeir af gulli, ok er sú ƒld kƒllu› gullaldr, á›r en
spiltisk af tilkvámu kvennanna. ﬁær kómu ór Jƒtunheimum. ﬁarnæst settusk gu›in upp í sæti sín ok réttu dóma sína ok mintusk
hva›an dvergar hƒf›u kviknat í moldunni ok ni›ri í jƒr›unni svá
sem ma›kar í holdi. Dvergarnir hƒf›u skipazk fyrst ok tekit
kviknun í holdi Ymis ok váru ﬂá ma›kar, en af atkvæ›i gu›annaur›u ﬂeir vitandi mannvits ok hƒf›u manns líki ok búa ﬂó í jƒr›uok í steinum. Mo›sognir var dvergr ok annarr Durinn. Svá segir íVƒluspá:ﬁá gengu regin ƒllá rƒkstóla,

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Gylfaginning

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ginnheilug go›,ok of ﬂat gættusk
at skyldi dverga
drótt of skepja
ór brimi bló›guok ór Bláins leggjum.
ﬁar mannlíkunmƒrg of ger›usk,
dvergar í jƒr›u,sem Durinn sag›i.

Ok ﬂessi segir hon nƒfn ﬂeira dverganna:
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N‡i, Ni›i,
Nor›ri, Su›ri,Austri, Vestri,Alﬂjólfr, Dvalinn,
Nár, Náinn,Nipingr, Dáinn,Bifurr, Báfurr,Bƒmbƒrr, Nori,Óri, Ónarr,Óinn, Mƒ›vitnir,
Vigr ok Gandálfr,Vindálfr, ﬁorinn,
Fili, Kili,
Fundinn, Váli,ﬁrór, ﬁróinn,ﬁekkr, Litr, Vitr,
N‡r, N‡rá›r,
Rekkr, Rá›svi›r.

En ﬂessir eru ok dvergar ok búa í steinum, en inir fyrri í moldu:
Draupnir, Dólgﬂvari,Hƒrr, Hugstari,
Hle›jólfr, Glóinn,Dóri, Óri,Dúfr, Andvari,
Heptifili,
Hárr, Síarr.

En ﬂessir kómu frá Svarinshaugi til Aurvanga á Jƒruvƒllu, ok er
kominn ﬂa›an Lofarr; ﬂessi eru nƒfn ﬂeira:
Skirpir, Virpir,
Skafi›r, Ái,Gylfaginning17Álfr, Ingi,
Eikinskjaldi,
Falr, Frosti,Fi›r, Ginnarr.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvar er hƒfu›sta›rinn e›a helgista›rinn
go›anna?’
Hár svarar: ‘ﬁat er at aski Yggdrasils. ﬁar skulu gu›in eiga dómasína hvern dag.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat er at segja frá ﬂeim sta›?’ﬁá segir Jafnhár: ‘Askrinn er allra tréa mestr ok beztr. Limarhans dreifask yfir heim allan ok standa yfir himni. ﬁrjár rœtrtrésins halda ﬂví upp ok standa afar breitt. Ein er me› Ásum, enƒnnur me› hrímﬂursum, ﬂar sem for›um var Ginnungagap. In
ﬂri›ja stendr yfir Niflheimi, ok undir ﬂeiri rót er Hvergelmir, en
Ní›hƒggr gnagar ne›an rótna. En undir ﬂeiri rót er til hrímﬂursa
horfir, ﬂar er Mímis brunnr, er spek› ok mannvit er í fólgit, ok
heitir sá Mímir er á brunninn. Hann er fullr af vísindum fyrir ﬂví athann drekkr ór brunninum af horninu Gjallarhorni. ﬁar komAlfƒ›r ok beiddisk eins drykkjar af brunninum, en hann fekk eigi
fyrr en hann lag›i auga sitt at ve›i. Svá segir í Vƒluspá:
Allt veit ek Ó›innhvar ﬂú auga falt,
í ﬂeim inum mæraMímis brunni.
Drekkr mjƒ› Mímir
morgun hverjan
af ve›i Valfƒ›rs.
Vitu› ﬂér enn e›a hvat?

ﬁri›ja rót asksins stendr á himni, ok undir ﬂeiri rót er brunnr sá ermjƒk er heilagr er heitir Ur›ar brunnr. ﬁar eigu gu›in dómsta›
sinn. Hvern dag rí›a Æsir ﬂangat upp um Bifrƒst. Hon heitir okÁsbrú. Hestar Ásanna heita svá: Sleipnir er baztr—hann á Ó›inn,
hann hefir átta fœtr; annarr er Gla›r, ﬂri›i Gyllir, fjór›i Glær,fimti Skei›brimir, sétti Silfrtoppr, sjaundi Sinir, átti Gils, níundi
Falhófnir, tíundi Gulltoppr, Léttfeti ellipti. Baldrs hestr var
brendr me› honum. En ﬁórr gengr til dómsins ok ve›r ár ﬂær er
svá heita:Kƒrmt ok ¯rmt
ok Kerlaugar tvær,ﬂær skal ﬁórr va›a

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Gylfaginning

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dag hverner hann dœma skal
at aski Yggdrasils,
ﬂvíat Ásbrú
brenn ƒll loga,
heilug vƒtn hlóa.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Brenn eldr yfir Bifrƒst?’Hár segir: ‘ﬁat er ﬂú sér rautt í boganum er eldr brennandi.
Upp á himin mundu ganga hrímﬂursar ok bergrisar ef ƒllum værifœrt á Bifrƒst ﬂeim er fara vilja. Margir sta›ir eru á himni fagrir ok
er ﬂar allt gu›lig vƒrn fyrir. ﬁar stendr salr einn fagr undir askinumvi› brunninn, ok ór ﬂeim sal koma ﬂrjár meyjar ﬂær er svá heita:Ur›r, Ver›andi, Skuld. ﬁessar meyjar skapa mƒnnum aldr. ﬁærkƒllum vér nornir. Enn eru fleiri nornir, ﬂær er koma til hvers
manns er borinn er at skapa aldr, ok eru ﬂessar go›kunnigar, ena›rar álfa ættar, en inar ﬂri›ju dverga ættar, svá sem hér segir:Sundrbornar mjƒkhygg ek at nornir sé,
eigut ﬂær ætt saman.
Sumar eru Áskunnar,
sumar eru álfkunnar,
sumar dœtr Dvalins.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Ef nornir rá›a ørlƒgum manna, ﬂá skipta
ﬂær geysi ójafnt, er sumir hafa gott líf ok ríkuligt, en sumir hafa
lítit lén e›a lof, sumir langt líf, sumir skamt.’
Hár segir: ‘Gó›ar nornir ok vel ætta›ar skapa gó›an aldr, en
ﬂeir menn er fyrir óskƒpum ver›a, ﬂá valda ﬂví illar nornir.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat er fleira at segja stórmerkja frá
askinum?’
Hár segir: ‘Mart er ﬂar af at segja. ¯rn einn sitr í limum
asksins, ok er hann margs vitandi, en í milli augna honum sitr
haukr sá er heitir Ve›rfƒlnir. Íkorni sá er heitir Ratatoskr renn
upp ok ni›r eptir askinum ok berr ƒfundaror› milli arnarins okNí›hƒggs. En fjórir hirtir renna í limum asksins ok bíta barr. ﬁeir
heita svá: Dáinn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr, Duraﬂrór. En svá margir
ormar eru í Hvergelmi me› Ní›hƒgg at engi tunga má telja. Svásegir hér:
Askr Yggdrasils
dr‡gir erfi›imeira en menn viti.

Gylfaginning19Hjƒrtr bítr ofanen á hli›u fúnar,sker›ir Ní›hƒggr ne›an.

3

Svá er sagt:
Ormar fleiri
liggja und aski Yggdrasils
en ﬂat of hyggi hverr ósvi›ra afa.
Góinn ok Móinn(ﬂeir ró Grafvitnis synir),
Grábakr ok Grafvƒllu›r,Ófnir ok Sváfnir
hygg ek at æ mynimei›s kvistum má.

Enn er ﬂat sagt at nornir ﬂær er byggja vi› Ur›ar brunn taka hvern
dag vatn í brunninum ok me› aurinn ﬂann er liggr um brunninn,
ok ausa upp yfir askinn til ﬂess at eigi skyli limar hans tréna e›afúna. En ﬂat vatn er svá heilagt at allir hlutir ﬂeir sem ﬂar koma íbrunninn ver›a svá hvítir sem hinna sú er skjall heitir, er innan
liggr vi› eggskurn, svá sem hér segir:
Ask veit ek ausinn,heitir Yggdrasill,
hár ba›mr, heilagr,hvíta auri.
ﬁa›an koma dƒggvarer í dali falla.
Stendr hann æ yfir grœnnUr›ar brunni.

Sú dƒgg er ﬂa›an af fellr á jƒr›ina, ﬂat kalla menn hunangfall, ok
ﬂar af fœ›ask b‡flugur. Fuglar tveir fœ›ask í Ur›ar brunni. ﬁeir
heita svanir, ok af ﬂeim fuglum hefir komit ﬂat fugla kyn er svá
heitir.’ﬁá mælti Gangleri: ‘Mikil tí›indi kanntu at segja af himnum.
Hvat er ﬂar fleira hƒfu›sta›a en at Ur›ar brunni?’
Hár segir: ‘Margir sta›ir eru ﬂar gƒfugligir. Sá er einn sta›r ﬂar
er kalla›r er Álfheimr. ﬁar byggvir fólk ﬂat er ljósálfar heita, en
døkkálfar búa ni›ri í jƒr›u, ok eru ﬂeir ólíkir ﬂeim s‡num en
myklu ólíkari reyndum. Ljósálfar eru fegri en sól s‡num, en
døkkálfar eru svartari en bik. ﬁar er einn sá sta›r er Brei›ablik er
kalla›r, ok engi er ﬂar fegri sta›r. ﬁar er ok sá er Glitnir heitir, ok

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Gylfaginning

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eru veggir hans ok ste›r ok stólpar af rau›u gulli, en ﬂak hans af
silfri. ﬁar er enn sá sta›r er Himinbjƒrg heita. Sá stendr á himins
enda vi› brúar spor›, ﬂar er Bifrƒst kemr til himins. ﬁar er enn
mikill sta›r er Valaskjálf heitir. ﬁann sta› á Ó›inn. ﬁann ger›u
gu›in ok ﬂƒk›u skíru silfri, ok ﬂar er Hli›skjálfin í ﬂessum sal, ﬂathásæti er svá heitir. Ok ﬂá er Alfƒ›r sitr í ﬂví sæti ﬂá sér hann ofallan heim. Á sunnanver›um himins enda er sá salr er allra er
fegrstr ok bjartari en sólin, er Gimlé heitir. Hann skal standa ﬂá erbæ›i himinn ok jƒr› hefir farizk, ok byggja ﬂann sta› gó›ir mennok réttlátir of allar aldir. Svá segir í Vƒluspá:
Sal veit ek standa
sólu fegra
gulli betraá Gimlé.
ﬁar skulu dyggvar
dróttir byggja
ok of aldrdagayn›is njóta.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat gætir ﬂess sta›ar ﬂá er Surtalogi
brennir himin ok jƒr›?’Hár segir: ‘Svá er sagt at annarr himinn sé su›r ok upp frá
ﬂessum himni, ok heitir sá himinn Andlangr, en hinn ﬂri›ihiminn sé enn upp frá ﬂeim ok heitir sá Ví›bláinn, ok á ﬂeim himni
hyggjum vér ﬂenna sta› vera. En ljósálfar einir hyggjum vér at nú
byggvi ﬂá sta›i.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hva›an kemr vindr? Hann er sterkr svá athann hrœrir stór hƒf ok hann œsir eld en svá sterkr sem hann er ﬂá
má eigi sjá hann. ﬁví er hann undarliga skapa›r.’ﬁá segir Hár: ‘ﬁat kann ek vel segja ﬂér. Á nor›anver›umhimins enda sitr jƒtunn sá er Hræsvelgr heitir. Hann hefir arnar
ham. En er hann beinir flug ﬂá standa vindar undan vængum
honum. Hér segir svá:Hræsvelgr heitir
er sitr á himins enda,jƒtunn í arnar ham.
Af hans vængum
kve›a vind koma
alla menn yfir.’Gylfaginning21ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hví skilr svá mikit at sumar skal vera heitt
en vetr kaldr?’
Hár segir: ‘Eigi mundi svá fró›r ma›r spyrja, ﬂvíat ﬂetta vitu
allir at segja, en ef ﬂú ert einn or›inn svá fávíss at eigi hefir ﬂetta
heyrt, ﬂá vil ek ﬂó ﬂat vel vir›a at heldr spyrir ﬂú eitt sinn ófró›liga
en ﬂú gangir lengr duli›r ﬂess er skylt er at vita. Svásu›r heitir sá
er fa›ir Sumars er, ok er hann sællífr svá at af hans heiti er ﬂat
kallat svásligt er blítt er. En fa›ir Vetrar er ‡mist kalla›r Vindlónie›a Vindsvalr. Hann er Vása›ar son, ok váru ﬂeir áttungar
grimmir ok svalbrjósta›ir, ok hefir Vetr ﬂeira skaplyndi.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hverir eru Æsir ﬂeir er mƒnnum er skylt at
trúa á?’Hár segir: ‘Tólf eru Æsir gu›kunnigir.’ﬁá mælir Jafnhár: ‘Eigi eru Ásynjurnar óhelgari ok eigi meguﬂær minna.’ﬁá mælir ﬁri›i: ‘Ó›inn er œztr ok elztr Ásanna. Hann ræ›rƒllum hlutum, ok svá sem ƒnnur gu›in eru máttug, ﬂá ﬂjóna
honum ƒll svá sem bƒrn fƒ›ur. En Frigg er kona hans, ok veit honørlƒg manna ﬂótt hon segi eigi spár, svá sem hér er sagt at Ó›innmælir sjálfr vi› ﬂann Ás er Loki heitir:“Œrr ertu Lokiok ørviti,
hví ne legskaﬂu, Loki?
Ørlƒg Frigg
hygg ek at ƒll viti
ﬂótt hon sjálfgi segi.”Ó›inn heitir Alfƒ›r, ﬂvíat hann er fa›ir allra go›a. Hann heitir
ok Valfƒ›r, ﬂvíat hans óskasynir eru allir ﬂeir er í val falla. ﬁeim
skipar hann Valhƒll ok Vingólf, ok heita ﬂeir ﬂá einherjar. Hann
heitir ok Hangagu› ok Haptagu›, Farmagu›, ok enn hefir hannnefnzk á fleiri vega, ﬂá er hann var kominn til Geirrø›ar konungs:“Heitumsk Grímr
ok Ganglari,
Herjan, Hjálmberi,ﬁekkr, ﬁri›i,ﬁu›r, U›r,
Helblindi, Hár,
Sa›r, Svipall,
Sanngetall,
Herteitr, Hnikarr,

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Gylfaginning
Bileygr, Báleygr,Bƒlverkr, Fjƒlnir,
Grímnir, Glapsvi›r, Fjƒlsvi›r,
Sí›hƒttr, Sí›skeggr,Sigfƒ›r, Hniku›r,Alfƒ›r, Atrí›r, Farmat‡r,
Óski, Ómi,Jafnhár, Blindi,Gƒndlir, Hárbar›r,
Svi›urr, Svi›rir,
Jálkr, Kjalarr, Vi›urr,
ﬁrór, Yggr, ﬁundr,
Vakr, Skilfingr,
Váfu›r, Hroptat‡r,
Gautr, Verat‡r.”’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Geysi mƒrg heiti hafi ﬂér gefit honum.
Ok ﬂat veit trúa mín at ﬂetta mun vera mikill fró›leikr sá er hér
kann skyn ok dœmi hverir atbur›ir hafa or›it sér til hvers ﬂessa
nafns.’
ﬁá segir Hár: ‘Mikil skynsemi er at rifja vandliga ﬂat upp. En ﬂó
er ﬂér ﬂat skjótast at segja at flest heiti hafa verit gefin af ﬂeim
atbur› at svá margar sem eru greinir tungnanna í verƒldunni, ﬂáﬂykkjask allar ﬂjó›ir ﬂurfa at breyta nafni hans til sinnar tungu tilákalls ok bœna fyrir sjálfum sér, en sumir atbur›ir til ﬂessa heita
hafa gerzk í fer›um hans ok er ﬂat fœrt í frásagnir, ok muntu eigi
mega fró›r ma›r heita ef ﬂú skalt eigi kunna segja frá ﬂeim
stórtí›indum.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hver eru nƒfn annarra Ásanna? E›a hvat
hafask ﬂeir at? E›a hvat hafa ﬂeir gert til frama?’
Hár segir: ‘ﬁórr er ﬂeira framast; sá er kalla›r Ásaﬂórr e›a¯kuﬂórr. Hann er sterkastr allra gu›anna ok manna. Hann á
ﬂar ríki er ﬁrú›vangar heita, en hƒll hans heitir Bilskirnir. Í ﬂeim
sal eru fimm hundra› gólfa ok fjórir tigir. ﬁat er hús mest svá atmenn hafa gert. Svá segir í Grímnismálum:Fimm hundra› gólfa
ok um fjórum tøgum,svá hygg ek Bilskirni me› bugum.
Ranna ﬂeira
er ek ræfr vita,míns veit ek mest magar.

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ﬁórr á hafra tvá er svá heita: Tanngnjóstr ok Tanngrisnir; ok rei›ﬂá er hann ekr, en hafrarnir draga rei›na. ﬁví er hann kalla›r¯kuﬂórr. Hann á ok ﬂrjá kostgripi. Einn ﬂeira er hamarrinnMjƒllnir er hrímﬂursar ok bergrisar kenna ﬂá er hann kemr á lopt,
ok er ﬂat eigi undarligt: hann hefir lamit margan haus á fe›rum
e›a frændum ﬂeira. Annan grip á hann beztan, megingjar›ar, ok
er hann spennir ﬂeim um sik ﬂá vex honum ásmegin hálfu. Inn
ﬂri›ja hlut á hann ﬂann er mikill gripr er í. ﬁat eru járnglófar. ﬁeira
má hann eigi missa vi› hamars skaptit. En engi er svá fró›r attelja kunni ƒll stórvirki hans, en segja kann ek ﬂér svá mƒrg tí›indi
frá honum at dveljask munu stundirnar á›r en sagt er allt ﬂat er ek
veit.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Spyrja vil ek tí›inda af fleiri Ásunum.’
Hár segir: ‘Annarr son Ó›ins er Baldr, ok er frá honum gott at
segja. Hann er beztr ok hann lofa allir. Hann er svá fagr álitum ok
bjartr svá at l‡sir af honum, ok eitt gras er svá hvítt at jafnat er til
Baldrs brár. ﬁat er allra grasa hvítast, ok ﬂar eptir mátﬂu marka
hans fegr› bæ›i á hár ok á líki. Hann er vitrastr Ásanna ok fegrsttala›r ok líknsamastr, en sú náttúra fylgir honum at engi máhaldask dómr hans. Hann b‡r ﬂar sem heitir Brei›ablik. ﬁat er áhimni. Í ﬂeim sta› má ekki vera óhreint, svá sem hér segir:Brei›ablik heita
ﬂar er Baldr hefir
sér of gerva sali,
í ﬂví landi
er ek liggja veitfæsta feiknstafi.

Hinn ﬂri›i Áss er sá er kalla›r er Njƒr›r. Hann b‡r á himni ﬂar
sem heitir Nóatún. Hann ræ›r fyrir gƒngu vinds ok stillir sjá okeld. Á hann skal heita til sæfara ok til vei›a. Hann er svá au›igr okfésæll at hann má gefa ﬂeim au› landa e›a lausafjár er á hann heita
til ﬂess. Eigi er Njƒr›r Ása ættar. Hann var upp fœddr í Vanaheimum, en Vanir gíslu›u hann go›unum ok tóku í mót at Ásagíslingu ﬂann er Hœnir heitir. Hann var› at sætt me› go›unum okVƒnum.
‘Njƒr›r á ﬂá konu er Ska›i heitir, dóttir ﬁjaza jƒtuns. Ska›i vill
hafa bústa› ﬂann er átt haf›i fa›ir hennar—ﬂat er á fjƒllum
nokkvorum ﬂar sem heitir ﬁrymheimr—en Njƒr›r vill vera nær sæ.
ﬁau sættusk á ﬂat at ﬂau skyldu vera níu nætr í ﬁrymheimi, en ﬂá

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a›rar níu at Nóatúnum. En er Njƒr›r kom aptr til Nóatúna af
fjallinu ﬂá kva› hann ﬂetta:
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“Lei› erumk fjƒll—varka ek lengi á,nætr einar níu:úlfa ﬂytr
mér ﬂótti illr vera
hjá sƒngvi svana.”ﬁá kva› Ska›i ﬂetta:“Sofa ek máttigaksævar be›jum áfugls jarmi fyrir:
sá mik vekr
er af ví›i kemr
morgun hverjan: már.”ﬁá fór Ska›i upp á fjallit ok byg›i í ﬁrymheimi ok ferr hon mjƒk á
skí›um ok me› boga ok sk‡tr d‡r. Hon heitir ƒndurgu› e›aƒndurdís. Svá er sagt:
ﬁrymheimr heitir
er ﬁjazi bjó,
sá hinn ámátki jƒtunn,en nú Ska›i byggvir,
skír brú›r gu›a,fornar toptir fƒ›ur.

Njƒr›r í Nóatúnum gat sí›an tvau bƒrn. Hét sonr Freyr en
dóttir Freyja. ﬁau váru fƒgr álitum ok máttug. Freyr er hinnágætasti af Ásum. Hann ræ›r fyrir regni ok skini sólar ok ﬂar me›ávexti jar›ar, ok á hann er gott at heita til árs ok fri›ar. Hann ræ›rok fésælu manna. En Freyja er ágætust af Ásynjum. Hon á ﬂann
bœ á himni er Fólkvangar heita, ok hvar sem hon rí›r til vígs ﬂá á
hon hálfan val, en hálfan Ó›inn, svá sem hér segir:
Fólkvangr heitir,en ﬂar Freyja ræ›rsessa kostum í sal.
Hálfan val
hon k‡ss á hverjan dag,en hálfan Ó›inn á.

Gylfaginning

25

Salr hennar Sessrúmnir, hann er mikill ok fagr. En er hon ferr, ﬂá
ekr hon kƒttum tveim ok sitr í rei›. Hon er nákvæmust mƒnnum til
á at heita, ok af hennar nafni er ﬂat tignarnafn er ríkiskonur eru
kalla›ar “fróvur”. Henni líka›i vel mansƒngr. Á hana er gott at
heita til ásta.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Miklir ﬂykkja mér ﬂessir fyrir sér Æsirnir,
ok eigi er undarligt at mikill kraptr fylgi y›r, er ﬂér skulu› kunna
skyn go›anna ok vita hvert bi›ja skal hverrar bœnarinnar. E›a eru
fleiri enn go›in?’
Hár segir: ‘Sá er enn Áss er T‡r heitir. Hann er djarfastr ok bezt
huga›r ok hann ræ›r mjƒk sigri í orrostum. Á hann er gott at heita
hreystimƒnnum. ﬁat er or›tak at sá er “t‡hraustr” er um fram era›ra menn ok ekki sésk fyrir. Hann var vitr svá at ﬂat er mælt at sá
er “t‡spakr” er vitr er. ﬁat er eitt mark um djarfleik hans, ﬂá erÆsir lokku›u Fenrisúlf til ﬂess at leggja fjƒturinn á hann, Gleipni,
ﬂá trú›i hann ﬂeim eigi at ﬂeir mundu leysa hann fyrr en ﬂeir lƒg›uhonum at ve›i hƒnd T‡rs í munn úlfsins. En ﬂá er Æsir vildu eigi
leysa hann ﬂá beit hann hƒndina af ﬂar er nú heitir úlfli›r, ok erhann einhendr ok ekki kalla›r sættir manna.
‘Bragi heitir einn. Hann er ágætr at speki ok mest at málsnild okor›fimi. Hann kann mest af skáldskap, ok af honum er bragr
kalla›r skáldskapr, ok af hans nafni er sá kalla›r bragr karla e›akvenna er or›snild hefir framar en a›rir, kona e›a karlma›r. Konahans er I›unn. Hon var›veitir í eski sínu epli ﬂau er go›in skulu ábíta ﬂá er ﬂau eldask, ok ver›a ﬂá allir ungir, ok svá mun vera allt
til ragnarøkrs.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Allmikit ﬂykki mér go›in eiga undir gæzlu
e›a trúna›i I›unnar.’ﬁá mælir Hár ok hló vi›: ‘Nær lag›i ﬂat ófœru einu sinni. Kunna
mun ek ﬂar af at segja, en ﬂú skalt nú fyrst heyra nƒfn Ásanna
fleiri.
‘Heimdallr heitir einn. Hann er kalla›r hvíti Áss. Hann er mikill
ok heilagr. Hann báru at syni meyjar níu ok allar systr. Hann heitir
ok Hallinskí›i ok Gullintanni: tennr hans váru af gulli. Hestr hansheitir Gulltoppr. Hann b‡r ﬂar er heitir Himinbjƒrg vi› Bifrƒst.
Hann er vƒr›r go›a ok sitr ﬂar vi› himins enda at gætabrúarinnar fyrir bergrisum. ﬁarf hann minna svefn en fugl. Hann
sér jafnt nótt sem dag hundra› rasta frá sér. Hann heyrir ok ﬂat er
gras vex á jƒr›u e›a ull á sau›um ok allt ﬂat er hæra lætr. Hann
hefir lú›r ﬂann er Gjallarhorn heitir ok heyrir blástr hans í alla

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heima. Heimdalar sver› er kallat hƒfu›. Hér er svá sagt:
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Himinbjƒrg heita,
en ﬂar Heimdall kve›avalda véum.
ﬁar vƒr›r go›adrekkr í væru rannigla›r hinn gó›a mjƒ›.

Ok enn segir hann sjálfr í Heimdalargaldri:
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“Níu em ek mœ›ra mƒgr,níu em ek systra sonr.”‘Hƒ›r heitir einn Ássinn. Hann er blindr. Œrit er hann styrkr.
En vilja mundu go›in at ﬂenna Ás ﬂyrfti eigi at nefna, ﬂvíat hans
handaverk munu lengi vera hƒf› at minnum me› go›um okmƒnnum.
‘Vi›arr heitir einn, hinn ﬂƒgli Áss. Hann hefir skó ﬂjƒkkvan.
Hann er sterkr næst ﬂví sem ﬁórr er. Af honum hafa go›in mikit
traust í allar ﬂrautir.
‘Áli e›a Váli heitir einn, sonr Ó›ins ok Rindar. Hann er djarfr íorrostum ok mjƒk happskeytr.
‘Ullr heitir einn, sonr Sifjar, stjúpsonr ﬁórs. Hann er bogma›r
svá gó›r ok skí›fœrr svá at engi má vi› hann keppask. Hann er okfagr álitum ok hefir hermanns atgervi. Á hann er ok gott at heita í
einvígi.
‘Forseti heitir sonr Baldrs ok Nƒnnu Nepsdóttur. Hann á ﬂann
sal á himni er Glitnir heitir, en allir er til hans koma me›sakarvandræ›i, ﬂá fara allir sáttir á braut. Sá er dómsta›r beztrme› gu›um ok mƒnnum. Svá segir hér:
Glitnir heitir salr,hann er gulli studdr
ok silfri ﬂak›r it sama,
en ﬂar Forseti
byggvir flestan dag
ok svæfir allar sakar.

‘Sa er enn tal›r me› Ásum er sumir kalla rógbera Ásanna ok
frumkve›a flær›anna ok vƒmm allra go›a ok manna. Sá er nefndr
Loki e›a Loptr, sonr Fárbauta jƒtuns. Mó›ir hans er Laufey e›aNál. Brœ›r hans eru ﬂeir B‡leistr ok Helblindi. Loki er frí›r okfagr s‡num, illr í skaplyndi, mjƒk fjƒlbreytinn at háttum. HannGylfaginning27

haf›i ﬂá speki um fram a›ra menn er slœg› heitir, ok vælar til allra
hluta. Hann kom Ásum jafnan í fullt vandræ›i ok opt leysti hannﬂá me› vælræ›um. Kona hans heitir Sigyn, sonr ﬂeira Nari e›aNarfi. Enn átti Loki fleiri bƒrn. Angrbo›a hét g‡gr í Jƒtunheimum. Vi› henni gat Loki ﬂrjú bƒrn. Eitt var Fenrisúlfr,annat Jƒrmungandr (ﬂat er Mi›gar›sormr), ﬂri›ja er Hel. En ergo›in vissu til at ﬂessi ﬂrjú systkin fœddusk upp í Jƒtunheimum okgo›in rƒk›u til spadóma at af systkinum ﬂessum mundi ﬂeim mikit
mein ok óhapp standa ok ﬂótti ƒllum mikils ills af væni, fyrst af
mó›erni ok enn verra af fa›erni.
‘ﬁá sendi Alfƒ›r til gu›in at taka bƒrnin ok fœra sér. Ok er ﬂau
kómu til hans ﬂá kasta›i hann orminum í inn djúpa sæ er liggr um
ƒll lƒnd, ok óx sá ormr svá at hann liggr í mi›ju hafinu of ƒll lƒndok bítr í spor› sér. Hel kasta›i hann í Niflheim ok gaf henni vald
yfir níu heimum at hon skipti ƒllum vistum me› ﬂeim er til hennar
váru sendir, en ﬂat eru sóttdau›ir menn ok ellidau›ir. Hon á ﬂar
mikla bólsta›i ok eru gar›ar hennar forkunnar hávir ok grindr
stórar. Eljú›nir heitir salr hennar, Hungr diskr hennar, Sultr knífr
hennar, Ganglati ﬂrællinn, Ganglƒt ambátt, Fallanda Fora›
ﬂreskƒldr hennar er inn gengr, Kƒr sæing, Blíkjanda Bƒl ársali
hennar. Hon er blá hálf en hálf me› hƒrundar lit—ﬂví er hon
au›kend—ok heldr gnúpleit ok grimlig.
‘Úlfinn fœddu Æsir heima, ok haf›i T‡r einn djarfleik til atganga at úlfnum ok gefa honum mat. En er gu›in sá hversu mikit
hann óx hvern dag, ok allar spár sƒg›u at hann mundi vera lag›r til
ska›a ﬂeim, ﬂá fengu Æsir ﬂat rá› at ﬂeir ger›u fjƒtur allsterkan er
ﬂeir kƒllu›u Ley›ing ok báru hann til úlfsins ok bá›u hann reyna
afl sitt vi› fjƒturinn. En úlfinum ﬂótti sér ﬂat ekki ofrefli ok lét ﬂá
fara me› sem ﬂeir vildu. It fyrsta sinn er úlfrinn spyrndi vi›
brotna›i sá fjƒturr. Svá leystisk hann ór Ley›ingi. ﬁví næst ger›uÆsirnir annan fjƒtur hálfu sterkara er ﬂeir kƒllu›u Dróma, okbá›u enn úlfinn reyna ﬂann fjƒtur ok tƒl›u hann ver›a munduágætan mjƒk at afli ef slík stórsmí›i mætti eigi halda honum.
En úlfrinn hugsa›i at ﬂessi fjƒturr var sterkr mjƒk, ok ﬂat me› athonum haf›i afl vaxit sí›an er hann braut Ley›ing. Kom ﬂat í hug
at hann mundi ver›a at leggja sik í hættu ef hann skyldi frægr
ver›a, ok lét leggja á sik fjƒturinn. Ok er Æsir tƒl›usk búnir, ﬂá
hristi úlfrinn sik ok laust fjƒtrinum á jƒr›ina ok knú›isk fast at,
spyrnir vi›, braut fjƒturinn svá at fjarri flugu brotin. Svá drap hannsik ór Dróma. ﬁat er sí›an haft fyrir or›tak at leysi ór Ley›ingi e›a

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drepi ór Dróma ﬂá er einnhverr hlutr er ákafliga sóttr. Eptir ﬂatóttu›usk Æsirnir at ﬂeir mundu eigi fá bundit úlfinn. ﬁá sendiAlfƒ›r ﬂann er Skírnir er nefndr, sendima›r Freys, ofan í Svartálfaheim til dverga nokkurra ok lét gera fjƒtur ﬂann er Gleipnir
heitir. Hann var gjƒrr af sex hlutum: af dyn kattarins ok af skeggi
konunnar ok af rótum bjargsins ok af sinum bjarnarins ok af anda
fisksins ok af fogls hráka. Ok ﬂóttu vitir eigi á›r ﬂessi tí›indi, ﬂá
máttu nú finna skjótt hér sƒnn dœmi at eigi er logit at ﬂér: sét
muntﬂu hafa at konan hefir ekki skegg ok engi dynr ver›r af hlaupi
kattarins ok eigi eru rœtr undir bjarginu, ok ﬂat veit trúa mín atjafnsatt er ﬂat allt er ek hefi sagt ﬂér ﬂótt ﬂeir sé sumir hlutir er ﬂúmátt eigi reyna.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘ﬁetta má ek at vísu skilja at satt er. ﬁessa
hluti má ek sjá er ﬂú hefir nú til dœma tekit, en hvernig var›fjƒturrinn smí›a›r?’
Hár segir: ‘ﬁat kann ek ﬂér vel segja. Fjƒturrinn var› sléttr ok
blautr sem silkirœma, en svá traustr ok sterkr sem nú skaltu heyra.
ﬁá er fjƒturrinn var fœr›r Ásunum, ﬂƒkku›u ﬂeir vel sendimanni
sitt eyrindi. ﬁá fóru Æsirnir út í vatn ﬂat er Ámsvartnir heitir, íhólm ﬂann er Lyngvi er kalla›r, ok kƒllu›u me› sér úlfinn, s‡ndu
honum silkibandit ok bá›u hann slíta ok kvá›u vera nokkvoru
traustara en líkindi ﬂœtti á fyrir digrleiks sakar, ok seldi hverr
ƒ›rum ok treysti me› handaafli, ok slitna›i eigi; en ﬂó kvá›u ﬂeir
úlfinn slíta mundu. ﬁá svarar úlfrinn:‘“Svá lízk mér á ﬂenna dregil sem ønga fræg› munak af hljóta
ﬂótt ek slíta í sundr svá mjótt band, en ef ﬂat er gƒrt me› list ok
væl, ﬂótt ﬂat s‡nisk lítit, ﬂá kemr ﬂat band eigi á mína fœtr.”‘ﬁá sƒg›u Æsirnir at hann mundi skjótt sundr slíta mjóttsilkiband, er hann haf›i fyrr brotit stóra járnfjƒtra,—“en ef ﬂú fær
eigi ﬂetta band slitit ﬂá muntu ekki hræ›a mega go›in, enda
skulum vér ﬂá leysa ﬂik.”‘Úlfrinn segir: “Ef ﬂér bindi› mik svá at ek fæk eigi leyst mik ﬂá
skolli› ﬂér svá at mér mun seint ver›a at taka af y›r hjálp. Ófúss
em ek at láta ﬂetta band á mik leggja. En heldr en ﬂér fr‡i› mér
hugar ﬂá leggi einnhverr hƒnd sína í munn mér at ve›i at ﬂetta sé
falslaust gert.”‘En hverr Ásanna sá til annars ok ﬂótti nú vera tvau vandræ›i ok
vildi engi sína hƒnd fram selja fyrr en T‡r lét fram hƒnd sína hœgri
ok leggr í munn úlfinum. En er úlfrinn spyrnir, ﬂá har›na›i bandit,
ok ﬂví har›ara er hann brauzk um, ﬂví skarpara var bandit. ﬁáGylfaginning29

hlógu allir nema T‡r. Hann lét hƒnd sína. ﬁá er Æsirnir sá atúlfrinn var bundinn at fullu, ﬂá tóku ﬂeir festina er ór varfjƒtrinum er Gelgja heitir, ok drógu hana gƒgnum hellu mikla—súheitir Gjƒll—ok festu helluna langt í jƒr› ni›r. ﬁá tóku ﬂeir mikinn
stein ok skutu enn lengra í jƒr›ina—sá heitir ﬁviti—ok hƒf›u ﬂann
stein fyrir festar hælinn. Úlfrinn gap›i ákafliga ok feksk um mjƒkok vildi bíta ﬂá. ﬁeir skutu í munn honum sver›i nokkvoru; nemahjƒltin vi› ne›ra gómi, en efra gómi bló›refill. ﬁat er gómsparrihans. Hann grenjar illiliga ok slefa renn ór munni hans. ﬁat er á sú
er Ván heitir. ﬁar liggr hann til ragnarøkrs.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Fur›u illa barnaeign gat Loki, en ƒll ﬂessi
systkin eru mikil fyrir sér. En fyrir hví drápu Æsir eigi úlfinn er
ﬂeim er ills ván af honum?’
Hár svarar: ‘Svá mikils vir›u go›in vé sín ok gri›asta›i at eigi
vildu ﬂau saurga ﬂá me› bló›i úlfsins ﬂótt svá segi spárnar at hannmuni ver›a at bana Ó›ni.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hverjar eru Ásynjurnar?’Hár segir: ‘Frigg er œzt. Hon á ﬂann bœ er Fensalir heita ok erhann allvegligr. ¯nnur er Sága. Hon b‡r á Søkkvabekk, ok er
ﬂat mikill sta›r. ﬁri›ja er Eir. Hon er læknir beztr. Fjór›a er
Gefjun. Hon er mær, ok henni ﬂjóna ﬂær er meyjar andask. Fimta
er Fulla. Hon er enn mær ok ferr laushár ok gullband um hƒfu›.
Hon berr eski Friggjar ok gætir skóklæ›a hennar ok veit launrá›me› henni. Freyja er tignust me› Frigg. Hon giptisk ﬂeim mannier Ó›r heitir. Dóttir ﬂeira heitir Hnoss. Hon er svá fƒgr at af
hennar nafni eru hnossir kalla›ar ﬂat er fagrt er ok gersemligt. Ó›rfór í braut langar lei›ir, en Freyja grætr eptir, en tár hennar er gullrautt. Freyja á mƒrg nƒfn, en sú er sƒk til ﬂess at hon gaf sér ‡mis
heiti er hon fór me› ókunnum ﬂjó›um at leita Ó›s. Hon heitirMardƒll ok Hƒrn, Gefn, S‡r. Freyja átti Brísingamen. Hon erkƒllu› Vanadís. Sjaunda Sjƒfn: hon gætir mjƒk til at snúa hugum
manna til ásta, kvenna ok karla. Af hennar nafni er elskuginn
kalla›r sjafni. Átta Lofn: hon er svá mild ok gó› til áheita at hon
fær leyfi af Alfƒ›r e›a Frigg til manna samgangs, kvenna ok karla,ﬂótt á›r sé bannat e›a ﬂvertekit. Fyrir ﬂví er af hennar nafni lof
kallat, ok svá ﬂat er lofat er mjƒk af mƒnnum. Níunda Vár: honhl‡›ir á ei›a manna ok einkamál er veita sín á milli konur okkarlar. ﬁví heita ﬂau mál várar. Hon hefnir ok ﬂeim er brig›a.
Tíunda Vƒr: hon er ok vitr ok spurul, svá at engi hlut má hanaleyna. ﬁat er or›tak at kona ver›i vƒr ﬂess er hon ver›r vís. Ellipta

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Syn: hon gætir dura í hƒllinni ok l‡kr fyrir ﬂeim er eigi skulu inn
ganga, ok hon er sett til varnar á ﬂingum fyrir ﬂau mál er hon villósanna. ﬁví er ﬂat or›tak at syn sé fyrir sett ﬂá er hann neitar.
Tólfta Hlín: hon er sett til gæzlu yfir ﬂeim mƒnnum er Frigg vill
for›a vi› háska nokkvorum. ﬁa›an af er ﬂat or›tak at sá er for›askhleinir. ﬁrettánda Snotra: hon er vitr ok látprú›. Af hennar heiti er
kallat snotr kona e›a karlma›r sá er vitr ma›r er. Fjórtánda Gná:
hana sendir Frigg í ymsa heima at eyrindum sínum. Hon á ﬂann hest
er renn lopt ok lƒg, er heitir Hófvarfnir. ﬁat var eitt sinn er hon
rei› at Vanir nokkvorir sá rei› hennar í loptinu. ﬁá mælti einn:“Hvat ﬂar fl‡gr?
Hvat ﬂar ferre›a at lopti lí›r?”‘Hon segir:
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“Ne ek fl‡g
ﬂó ek fer
ok at lopti lí›k
á Hófvarfni
ﬂeim er Hamskerpir
gat vi› Gar›rofu.”‘Af Gnár nafni er svá kallat at ﬂat gnæfar er hátt ferr. Sól ok Bil
eru tal›ar me› Ásynjum, en sagt er fyrr frá e›li ﬂeira. Enn eru ﬂæra›rar er ﬂjóna skulu í Valhƒll, bera drykkju ok gæta bor›búna›arok ƒlgagna. Svá eru ﬂær nefndar í Grímnismálum:Hrist ok Mist
vil ek at mér horn beri,
Skeggjƒld ok Skƒgul,Hildr ok ﬁrú›r,Hlƒkk ok Herfjƒtur,Gƒll ok Geirahƒ›,Randgrí› ok Rá›grí›
ok Reginleif.
ﬁær bera einherjum ƒl.

ﬁessar heita valkyrjur. ﬁær sendir Ó›inn til hverrar orrostu. ﬁær
kjósa feig› á menn ok rá›a sigri. Gu›r ok Rota ok norn in yngsta
er Skuld heitir rí›a jafnan at kjósa val ok rá›a vígum. Jƒr›, mó›irﬁórs, ok Rindr, mó›ir Vála, eru tal›ar me› Ásynjum.
‘Gymir hét ma›r, en kona hans Aurbo›a. Hon var bergrisa

Gylfaginning31ættar. Dóttir ﬂeira er Ger›r er allra kvenna er fegrst. ﬁat var einn
dag er Freyr haf›i gengit í Hli›skjálf ok sá of heima alla, en er
hann leit í nor›rætt ﬂá sá hann á einum bœ mikit hús ok fagrt, ok
til ﬂess húss gekk kona, ok er hon tók upp hƒndum ok lauk hur›fyrir sér ﬂá l‡sti af hƒndum hennar bæ›i í lopt ok á lƒg, ok allir
heimar birtusk af henni. Ok svá hefndi honum ﬂat mikla mikillæti
er hann haf›i sezk í ﬂat helga sæti at hann gekk í braut fullr af
harmi. Ok er hann kom heim, mælti hann ekki, hvárki svaf hannné drakk; engi ﬂor›i ok krefja hann or›a. ﬁá lét Njƒr›r kalla til
sín Skírni, skósvein Freys, ok ba› hann ganga til Freys ok bei›ahann or›a ok spyrja hverjum hann væri svá rei›r at hann mælir
ekki vi› menn. En Skírnir kvazk ganga mundu ok eigi fúss, okkva› illra svara vera ván af honum. En er hann kom til Freys ﬂáspur›i hann hví Freyr var svá hnipinn ok mælti ekki vi› menn. ﬁá
svarar Freyr ok sag›i at hann haf›i sét konu fagra ok fyrir hennar
sakar var hann svá harmsfullr at eigi mundi hann lengi lifa ef hannskyldi eigi ná henni.
‘“Ok nú skaltu fara ok bi›ja hennar mér til handa ok hafa hanaheim hingat hvárt er fa›ir hennar vill e›a eigi, ok skal ek ﬂat vel
launa ﬂér.”‘ﬁá svarar Skírnir, sag›i svá at hann skal fara sendifer› en Freyrskal fá honum sver› sitt. ﬁat var svá gott sver› at sjálft vásk. En
Freyr lét eigi ﬂat til skorta ok gaf honum sver›it. ﬁá fór Skírnir okba› honum konunnar ok fekk heitit hennar, ok níu nóttum sí›arskyldi hon ﬂar koma er Barey heitir ok ganga ﬂá at brullaupinume› Frey. En er Skírnir sag›i Frey sitt eyrindi ﬂá kva› hann ﬂetta:“Lƒng er nótt,lƒng er ƒnnur,
hvé mega ek ﬂreyja ﬂrjár?
Opt mér mána›r
minni ﬂóttien sjá hálf h‡nótt.”ﬁessi sƒk er til er Freyr var svá vápnlauss er hann bar›isk vi›
Belja ok drap hann me› hjartar horni.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Undr mikit er ﬂvílíkr hƒf›ingi sem Freyr ervildi gefa sver› svá at hann átti eigi annat jafngott! Geysi mikit
mein var honum ﬂat ﬂá er hann bar›isk vi› ﬂann er Beli heitir. ﬁatveit trúa mín at ﬂeirar gjafar mundi hann ﬂá i›rask.’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘Lítit mark var ﬂá at er ﬂeir Beli hittusk. Drepa
mátti Freyr hann me› hendi sinni. Ver›a mun ﬂat er Frey mun

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ﬂykkja verr vi› koma er hann missir sver›sins ﬂá er Muspells synirfara ok herja.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘ﬁat segir ﬂú at allir ﬂeir menn er í orrostu
hafa fallit frá upphafi heims eru nú komnir til Ó›ins í Valhƒll.
Hvat hefir hann at fá ﬂeim at vistum? Ek hug›a at ﬂar skyldi vera
allmikit fjƒlmenni.’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘Satt er ﬂat er ﬂú segir, allmikit fjƒlmenni er ﬂar,en myklu fleira skal enn ver›a, ok mun ﬂó oflítit ﬂykkja ﬂá erúlfrinn kemr. En aldri er svá mikill mannfjƒl›i í Valhƒll at eigi máﬂeim endask flesk galtar ﬂess er Sæhrímnir heitir. Hann er so›innhvern dag ok heill at aptni. En ﬂessi spurning er nú spyrr ﬂú ﬂykki
mér líkara at fáir muni svá vísir vera at hér kunni satt af at segja.
Andhrímnir heitir steikarinn en Eldhrímnir ketillinn. Svá er hér
sagt:
Andhrímnir lætr
í EldhrímniSæhrímni so›inn,
fleska bazt.
En ﬂat fáir vitu
vi› hvat einherjar alask.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvárt hefir Ó›inn ﬂat sama bor›hald sem
einherjar?’Hár segir: ‘ﬁá vist er á hans bor›i stendr gefr hann tveim úlfum
er hann á, er svá heita: Geri ok Freki. Ok ønga vist ﬂarf hann: vín
er honum bæ›i drykkr ok matr. Svá segir hér:
Gera ok Frekase›r gunntami›rhró›igr Herjafƒ›r,
en vi› vín eittvápngafigr
Ó›inn æ lifir.

Hrafnar tveir sitja á ƒxlum honum ok segja í eyru honum ƒll
tí›indi ﬂau er ﬂeir sjá e›a heyra. ﬁeir heita svá: Huginn ok
Muninn. ﬁá sendir hann í dagan at fljúgja um allan heim ok koma
ﬂeir aptr at dƒgur›armáli. ﬁar af ver›r hann margra tí›inda víss.
ﬁví kalla menn hann hrafna gu›. Svá sem sagt er:
Huginn ok Muninn
fljúgja hverjan dagjƒrmungrund yfir.

Gylfaginning33Óumk ek Huginat hann aptr ne komi,ﬂó sjámk ek meir at Munin.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat hafa einherjar at drykk ﬂat er ﬂeim
endisk jafngnógliga sem vistin, e›a er ﬂar vatn drukkit?’ﬁá segir Hár: ‘Undarliga spyr›u nú at Alfƒ›r mun bjó›a til sín
konungum e›a jƒrlum e›a ƒ›rum ríkismƒnnum ok muni gefa ﬂeim
vatn at drekka, ok ﬂat veit trúa mín at margr kemr sá til Valhallarer d‡rt mundi ﬂykkjask kaupa vazdrykkinn ef eigi væri betra
fagna›ar ﬂangat at vitja, sá er á›r ﬂolir sár ok svi›a til banans.
Annat kann ek ﬂér ﬂa›an segja. Geit sú er Hei›rún heitir stendr
uppi á Valhƒll ok bítr barr af limum trés ﬂess er mjƒk er nafnfrægt
er Léra›r heitir, en ór spenum hennar rennr mjƒ›r sá er hon fyllir
skapker hvern dag. ﬁat er svá mikit at allir einherjar ver›a
fulldruknir af.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘ﬁat er ﬂeim geysi haglig geit. Forkunnar
gó›r vi›r mun ﬂat vera er hon bítr af.’ﬁá mælir Hár: ‘Enn er meira mark at of hjƒrtinn Eikﬂyrni erstendr á Valhƒll ok bítr af limum ﬂess trés, en af hornum hansver›r svá mikill dropi at ni›r kemr í Hvergelmi, en ﬂa›an af fallaár ﬂær er svá heita: Sí›, Ví›, Sekin, Ekin, Svƒl, Gunnﬂró, Fjƒrm,Fimbulﬂul, Gipul, Gƒpul, Gƒmul, Geirvimul; ﬂessar falla um Ása
byg›ir. ﬁessar eru enn nefndar: ﬁyn, Vin, ﬁƒll, Bƒll, Grá›,
Gunnﬂráin, Nyt, Nƒt, Nƒnn, Hrƒnn, Vína, Veg, Svinn,
ﬁjó›numa.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘ﬁetta eru undarlig tí›indi er nú sag›ir ﬂú.
Geysi mikit hús mun Valhƒll vera, allﬂrƒngt mun ﬂar opt vera
fyrir durum.’ﬁá svarar Hár: ‘Hví spyrr ﬂú eigi ﬂess, hversu margar dyrr eru áValhƒll e›a hversu stórar? Ef ﬂú heyrir ﬂat sagt ﬂá muntu segja athitt er undarligt ef eigi má ganga út ok inn hverr er vill. En ﬂat erme› sƒnnu at segja at eigi er ﬂrøngra at skipa hana en ganga íhana. Hér máttu heyra í Grímnismálum:Fimm hundra› dura
ok of fjórum tøgum,svá hygg ek á Valhƒllu vera.
Átta hundru› einherja
ganga senn ór einum durumﬂá er ﬂeir fara me› vitni at vega.’

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ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Allmikill mannfjƒl›i er í Valhƒll. Svá njóta
trú minnar at allmikill hƒf›ingi er Ó›inn er hann st‡rir svá miklum
her. E›a hvat er skemtun einherjanna ﬂá er ﬂeir drekka eigi?’
Hár segir: ‘Hvern dag ﬂá er ﬂeir hafa klæzk ﬂá hervæ›a ﬂeir sik
ok ganga út í gar›inn ok berjask ok fellr hverr á annan. ﬁat er leikr
ﬂeira. Ok er lí›r at dƒgur›armáli ﬂá rí›a ﬂeir heim til Valhallar ok
setjask til drykkju, svá sem hér segir:
Allir einherjarÓ›ins túnum íhƒggvask hverjan dag.
Val ﬂeir kjósa
ok rí›a vígi frá,sitja meir um sáttir saman.

En satt er ﬂat er ﬂú sag›ir: mikill er Ó›inn fyrir sér. Mƒrg dœmifinnask til ﬂess. Svá er hér sagt í or›um sjálfra Ásanna:“Askr Yggdrasils,
hann er œztr vi›a,en Skí›bla›nir skipa,
Ó›inn Ása,en jóa Sleipnir,Bifrƒst brúa,en Bragi skálda,Hábrók hauka,en hunda Garmr.”’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hverr á ﬂann hest Sleipni? E›a hvat er frá
honum at segja?’
Hár segir: ‘Eigi kanntu deili á Sleipni ok eigi veiztu atbur›i af
hverju hann kom!—en ﬂat mun ﬂér ﬂykkja frásagnarvert. ﬁat var
snimma í ƒndver›a byg› go›anna, ﬂá er go›in hƒf›u sett Mi›gar›
ok gert Valhƒll, ﬂá kom ﬂar smi›r nokkvorr ok bau› at gera ﬂeim
borg á ﬂrim misserum svá gó›a at trú ok ørugg væri fyrir bergrisum
ok hrímﬂursum ﬂótt ﬂeir komi inn um Mi›gar›. En hann mælir sér
ﬂat til kaups at hann skyldi eignask Freyju, ok hafa vildi hann sól
ok mána. ﬁá gengu Æsirnir á tal ok ré›u rá›um sínum, ok var ﬂat
kaup gert vi› smi›inn at hann skyldi eignask ﬂat er hann mælir til
ef hann fengi gert borgina á einum vetri, en hinn fyrsta sumars dag
ef nokkvorr hlutr væri ógjƒrr at borginni ﬂá skyldi hann af
kaupinu. Skyldi hann af øngum manni li› ﬂiggja til verksins. Ok er
ﬂeir sƒg›u honum ﬂessa kosti, ﬂá beiddisk hann at ﬂeir skyldu lofa

Gylfaginning35

at hann hef›i li› af hesti sínum er Sva›ilfœri hét. En ﬂví ré› Lokier ﬂat var til lagt vi› hann. Hann tók til hinn fyrsta vetrar dag at
gera borgina, en of nætr dró hann til grjót á hestinum. En ﬂat ﬂóttiÁsunum mikit undr hversu stór bjƒrg sá hestr dró, ok hálfu meiraﬂrekvirki ger›i hestrinn en smi›rinn. En at kaupi ﬂeira váru sterk
vitni ok mƒrg sœri, fyrir ﬂví at jƒtnum ﬂótti ekki trygt at vera me›Ásum gri›alaust ef ﬁórr kvæmi heim, en ﬂá var hann farinn íAustrveg at berja trƒll. En er á lei› vetrinn, ﬂá sóttisk mjƒkborgarger›in ok var hon svá há ok sterk at eigi mátti á ﬂat leita. En
ﬂá er ﬂrír dagar váru til sumars ﬂá var komit mjƒk at borghli›i. ﬁá
settusk gu›in á dómstóla sína ok leitu›u rá›a ok spur›i hverr
annan hverr ﬂví hef›i rá›it at gipta Freyju í Jƒtunheima e›a spillaloptinu ok himninum svá at taka ﬂa›an sól ok tungl ok gefajƒtnum. En ﬂat kom ásamt me› ƒllum at ﬂessu mundi rá›it hafa sáer flestu illu ræ›r, Loki Laufeyjarson, ok kvá›u hann ver›an ills
dau›a ef eigi hitti hann rá› til at smi›rinn væri af kaupinu, okveittu Loka atgƒngu. En er hann var› hræddr ﬂá svar›i hann ei›aat hann skyldi svá til haga at smi›rinn skyldi af kaupinu, hvat sem
hann kosta›i til. Ok it sama kveld er smi›rinn ók út eptir grjótinu
me› hestinn Sva›ilfœra, ﬂá hljóp ór skóginum nokkvorum merr at
hestinum ok hrein vi›. En er hestrinn kendi hvat hrossi ﬂetta varﬂá œddisk hann ok sleit sundr reipin ok hljóp til merarinnar, en
hon undan til skógar ok smi›rinn eptir ok vill taka hestinn, en
ﬂessi hross hlaupa alla nótt ok dvelsk smí›in ﬂá nótt. Ok eptir um
daginn var› ekki svá smí›at sem fyrr haf›i or›it. Ok ﬂá ersmi›rinn sér at eigi mun lokit ver›a verkinu, ﬂá fœrisk smi›rinn íjƒtunmó›. En er Æsirnir sá ﬂat til víss at ﬂar var bergrisi kominn,ﬂá var› eigi ﬂyrmt ei›unum, ok kƒllu›u ﬂeir á ﬁór, ok jafnskjótt
kom hann ok ﬂví næst fór á lopt hamarrinn Mjƒllnir, galt ﬂá
smí›arkaupit ok eigi sól ok tungl, heldr synja›i hann honum at
byggva í Jƒtunheimum ok laust ﬂat hit fyrsta hƒgg er haussinn
brotna›i í smán mola ok sendi hann ni›r undir Niflhel. En Lokihaf›i ﬂá fer› haft til Sva›ilfœra at nokkvoru sí›ar bar hann fyl. ﬁat
var grátt ok haf›i átta fœtr, ok er sá hestr beztr me› go›um okmƒnnum. Svá segir í Vƒluspá:ﬁá gengu regin ƒllá rƒkstóla,
ginnheilug go›
ok of ﬂat gættusk,
hverr hef›i lopt allt

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lævi blandite›a ætt jƒtuns
Ó›s mey gefna.
Á gengusk ei›ar,or› ok sœri,mál ƒll meginlig
er á me›al fóru.
ﬁórr einn ﬂat vannﬂrunginn mó›i.
Hann sjaldan sitr
er hann slíkt of fregn.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat er at segja frá Skí›bla›ni er hann er
beztr skipa? Hvárt er ekki skip jafngott sem hann er e›a jafnmikit?’
Hár segir: ‘Skí›bla›nir er beztr skipanna ok me› mestum
hagleik gerr, en Naglfari er mest skip, ﬂat er á Muspell. Dvergar
nokkvorir, synir Ívalda, ger›u Skí›bla›ni ok gáfu Frey skipit.
Hann er svá mikill at allir Æsir megu skipa hann me› vápnum ok
herbúna›i, ok hefir hann byr ﬂegar er segl er dregit, hvert er faraskal. En ﬂá er eigi skal fara me› hann á sæ ﬂá er hann gƒrr af svámƒrgum hlutum ok me› svá mikilli list at hann má vefja saman
sem dúk ok hafa í pung sínum.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Gott skip er Skí›bla›nir, en allmikilfjƒlkyngi mun vi› vera hƒf› á›r svá fái gert. Hvárt hefir ﬁórrhvergi svá farit at hann hafi hitt fyrir sér svá ríkt e›a ramt athonum hafi ofrefli í verit fyrir afls sakar e›a fjƒlkyngi?’ﬁá mælir Hár: ‘Fár ma›r vættir mik at frá ﬂví kunni segja, en
mart hefir honum har›fœrt ﬂótt. En ﬂótt svá hafi verit at
nokkvorr hlutr hafi svá verit ramr e›a sterkr at ﬁórr hafi eigi sigr
fengit á unnit, ﬂá er eigi skylt at segja frá, fyrir ﬂví at mƒrg dœmieru til ﬂess, ok ﬂví eru allir skyldir at trúa, at ﬁórr er mátkastr.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Svá lízk mér sem ﬂess hlutar mun ek y›rspurt hafa er engi er til fœrr at segja.’ﬁá mælir Jafnhár: ‘Heyrt hƒfum vér sagt frá ﬂeim atbur›um er
oss ﬂykkja ótrúligir at sannir muni vera, en hér mun sjá sitja nær ervita mun sƒnn tí›indi af at segja, ok muntu ﬂví trúa at hann mun
eigi ljúga nú it fyrsta sinn er aldri laug fyrr.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hér mun ek standa ok hl‡›a ef nokkvorr
órlaustn fær ﬂessa máls, en at ƒ›rum kosti kalla ek y›r vera
yfirkomna ef ﬂér kunni› eigi at segja ﬂat er ek spyr.’Gylfaginning37ﬁá mælir ﬁri›i: ‘Au›s‡nt er nú at hann vill ﬂessi tí›indi vita ﬂóttoss ﬂykki eigi fagrt at segja. En ﬂér er at ﬂegja.
‘ﬁat er upphaf ﬂessa máls at ¯kuﬂórr fór me› hafra sína okrei› ok me› honum sá Áss er Loki er kalla›r. Koma ﬂeir at kveldi
til eins búanda ok fá ﬂar náttsta›. En um kveldit tók ﬁórr hafrasína ok skar bá›a. Eptir ﬂat váru ﬂeir flegnir ok bornir til ketils.
En er so›it var ﬂá settisk ﬁórr til náttver›ar ok ﬂeir lagsmenn. ﬁórrbau› til matar me› sér búandanum ok konu hans ok bƒrnum
ﬂeira. Sonr búa hét ﬁjálfi en Rƒskva dóttir. ﬁá lag›i ﬁórr hafrstƒkurnar útar frá eldinum ok mælti at búandi ok heimamennhans skyldu kasta á hafrstƒkurnar beinunum. ﬁjálfi, son búanda,
helt á lærlegg hafrsins ok spretti á knífi sínum ok braut til mergjar.
ﬁórr dval›isk ﬂar of nóttina, en í óttu fyrir dag stó› hann upp okklæddi sik, tók hamarinn Mjƒllni ok brá upp ok víg›i hafrstƒkurnar. Stó›u ﬂá upp hafrarnir ok var ﬂá annarr haltr eptra
fœti. ﬁat fann ﬁórr ok tal›i at búandinn e›a hans hjón mundi eigi
skynsamliga hafa farit me› beinum hafrsins. Kennir hann atbrotinn var lærleggrinn. Eigi ﬂarf langt frá ﬂví at segja, vita megu
ﬂat allir hversu hræddr búandinn mundi vera er hann sá at ﬁórr lét
síga br‡nnar ofan fyrir augun; en ﬂat er sá augnanna, ﬂá hug›iskhann falla mundu fyrir sjóninni einni samt. Hann her›i hendrnar athamarskaptinu svá at hvítnu›u knúarnir, en búandinn ger›i semván var ok ƒll hjúnin, kƒllu›u ákafliga, bá›u sér fri›ar, bu›u atfyrir kvæmi allt ﬂat er ﬂau áttu. En er hann sá hræzlu ﬂeira ﬂá gekk
af honum mó›rinn ok sefa›isk hann ok tók af ﬂeim í sætt bƒrnﬂeira ﬁjálfa ok Rƒsku ok ger›usk ﬂau ﬂá skyldir ﬂjónustumennﬁórs ok fylgja ﬂau honum jafnan sí›an. Lét hann ﬂar eptir hafra ok
byrja›i fer›ina austr í Jƒtunheima ok allt til hafsins, ok ﬂá fór hannút yfir hafit ﬂat it djúpa. En er hann kom til lands ﬂá gekk hannupp ok me› honum Loki ok ﬁjálfi ok Rƒskva. ﬁá er ﬂau hƒf›u litlahrí› gengit var› fyrir ﬂeim mƒrk stór. Gengu ﬂau ﬂann dag allan til
myrks. ﬁjálfi var allra manna fóthvatastr. Hann bar k‡l ﬁórs, en til
vista var eigi gott. ﬁá er myrkt var or›it leitu›u ﬂeir sér til náttsta›ar ok fundu fyrir sér skála nokkvorn mjƒk mikinn. Váru
dyrr á enda ok jafnbrei›ar skálanum. ﬁar leitu›u ﬂeir sér náttbóls.
En of mi›ja nótt var› landskjálpti mikill, gekk jƒr›in undir ﬂeim
skykkjum ok skalf húsit. ﬁá stó› ﬁórr upp ok hét á lagsmenn sínaok leitu›usk fyrir ok fundu afhús til hœgri handar í mi›jum
skálanum ok gengu ﬂannig. Settisk ﬁórr í dyrrin en ƒnnur ﬂau váru
innar frá honum ok váru ﬂau hrædd, en ﬁórr helt hamarskaptinu

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Gylfaginningok hug›i at verja sik. ﬁá heyr›u ﬂau ym mikinn ok gn‡. En er kom
at dagan ﬂá gekk ﬁórr út ok sér hvar lá ma›r skamt frá honum í
skóginum ok var sá eigi lítill. Hann svaf ok hraut sterkliga. ﬁá
ﬂóttisk ﬁórr skilja hvat látum verit haf›i of nóttina. Hann spennir
sik megingjƒr›um ok óx honum ásmegin, en í ﬂví vaknar sá ma›r
ok stó› skjótt upp. En ﬂá er sagt at ﬁór var› bilt einu sinni at sláhann me› hamrinum, ok spur›i hann at nafni. En sá nefndisk
Skr‡mir.
‘“En eigi ﬂarf ek,” sag›i hann, “at spyrja ﬂik at nafni. Kenni ek
at ﬂú ert Ásaﬂórr. En hvárt hefir ﬂú dregit á braut hanzka minn?”‘Seildisk ﬂá Skr‡mir til ok tók upp hanzka sinn. Sér ﬁórr ﬂá at
ﬂat haf›i hann haft of nóttina fyrir skála, en afhúsit, ﬂat var
ﬂumlungrinn hanzkans. Skr‡mir spur›i ef ﬁórr vildi hafa fƒruneytihans, en ﬁórr játti ﬂví. ﬁá tók Skr‡mir ok leysti nestbagga sinn ok
bjósk til at eta dƒgur›, en ﬁórr í ƒ›rum sta› ok hans félagar.
Skr‡mir bau› ﬂá at ﬂeir leg›i mƒtuneyti sitt, en ﬁórr játti ﬂví. ﬁá
batt Skr‡mir nest ﬂeira allt í einn bagga ok lag›i á bak sér. Hann
gekk fyrir of daginn ok steig heldr stórum. En sí›an at kveldi
leita›i Skr‡mir ﬂeim náttsta›ar undir eik nokkvorri mikilli. ﬁámælir Skr‡mir til ﬁórs at hann vill leggjask ni›r at sofna,—“en ﬂér
taki› nestbaggann ok búi› til nóttur›ar y›r.”‘ﬁví næst sofnar Skr‡mir ok hraut fast, en ﬁórr tók nestbaggann
ok skal leysa, en svá er at segja sem ótrúligt mun ﬂykkja, at engi
knút fekk hann leyst ok engi álarendann hreyft svá at ﬂá værilausari en á›r. Ok er hann sér at ﬂetta verk má eigi n‡task ﬂá var›hann rei›r, greip ﬂá hamarinn Mjƒllni tveim hƒndum ok steig framƒ›rum fœti at ﬂar er Skr‡mir lá ok l‡str í hƒfu› honum. En
Skr‡mir vaknar ok spyrr hvárt laufsbla› nakkvat felli í hƒfu›honum, e›a hvárt ﬂeir hef›i ﬂá matazk ok sé búnir til rekna. ﬁórrsegir at ﬂeir munu ﬂá sofa ganga. Ganga ﬂau ﬂá undir a›ra eik. Er
ﬂat ﬂér satt at segja at ekki var ﬂá óttalaust at sofa.
‘En at mi›ri nótt ﬂá heyrir ﬁórr at Skr‡mir hr‡tr ok sefr fast svá
at dunar í skóginum. ﬁá stendr hann upp ok gengr til hans, rei›ir
hamarinn títt ok hart ok l‡str ofan í mi›jan hvirfil honum. Hann
kennir at hamars mu›rinn søkkr djúpt í hƒfu›it. En í ﬂví bili
vaknar Skr‡mir ok mælti:‘“Hvat er nú? Fell akarn nokkvot í hƒfu› mér? E›a hvat er títtum ﬂik, ﬁórr?”‘En ﬁórr gekk aptr skyndiliga ok svarar at hann var ﬂán‡vakna›r; sag›i at ﬂá var mi› nótt ok enn væri mál at sofa. ﬁáGylfaginning39

hugsa›i ﬁórr ﬂat, ef hann kvæmi svá í fœri at slá hann it ﬂri›jahƒgg, at aldri skyldi hann sjá sik sí›an; liggr nú ok gætir ef Skr‡mir
sofna›i fast. En litlu fyrir dagan, hann heyrir ﬂá at Skr‡mir mun
sofnat hafa, stendr ﬂá upp ok hleypr at honum, rei›ir ﬂá hamarinn
af ƒllu afli ok l‡str á ﬂunnvangann ﬂann er upp vissi. Søkkr ﬂáhamarrinn upp at skaptinu, en Skr‡mir settisk upp ok strauk ofvangann ok mælir:‘ “Hvart munu foglar nokkvorir sitja í trénu yfir mér? Mik
grunar er ek vakna›a at tros nokkvot af kvistunum felli í hƒfu› mér.
Hvárt vakir ﬂú ﬁórr? Mál mun vera upp at standa ok klæ›ask. En
ekki eigu› ﬂér nú langa lei› fram til borgarinnar er kallat erÚtgar›r. Heyrt hefi ek at ﬂér hafi› kvisat í milli y›var at ek væraekki lítill ma›r vexti, en sjá skulu› ﬂér ﬂar stœrri menn ef ﬂérkomi› í Útgar›. Nú mun ek rá›a y›r heilræ›i: láti› ﬂér eigi
stórliga yfir y›r. Ekki munu hir›menn Útgar›aloka vel ﬂola
ﬂvílíkum kƒgursveinum kƒpuryr›i. En at ƒ›rum kosti hverfi› aptr,
ok ﬂann ætla ek y›r betra af at taka. En ef ﬂér vili› fram fara, ﬂá
stefni› ﬂér í austr, en ek á nú nor›r lei› til fjalla ﬂessa er nú munu›
ﬂér sjá mega.”‘Tekr Skr‡mir nestbaggann ok kastar á bak sér ok sn‡r ﬂvers ábraut í skóginn frá ﬂeim, ok eigi er ﬂess getit at Æsirnir bæ›i ﬂá
heila hittask.
‘ﬁórr fór fram á lei› ok ﬂeir félagar ok gekk fram til mi›s dags.
ﬁá sá ﬂeir borg standa á vƒllum nokkvorum ok settu hnakkann á
bak sér aptr á›r ﬂeir fengu sét yfir upp, ganga til borgarinnar okvar grind fyrir borghli›inu ok lokin aptr. ﬁórr gekk á grindina ok
fekk eigi upp lokit, en er ﬂeir ﬂreyttu at komask í borgina ﬂá
smugu ﬂeir milli spalanna ok kómu svá inn, sá ﬂá hƒll mikla ok
gengu ﬂannig. Var hur›in opin. ﬁá gengu ﬂeir inn ok sá ﬂar margamenn á tvá bekki ok flesta œrit stóra. ﬁví næst koma ﬂeir fyrir
konunginn Útgar›aloka ok kvƒddu hann, en hann leit seint til
ﬂeira ok glotti um tƒnn ok mælti:‘“Seint er um langan veg at spyrja tí›inda. E›a er annan veg en
ek hygg, at ﬂessi sveinstauli sé ¯kuﬂórr? En meiri muntu veraen mér lízk ﬂú. E›a hvat íﬂrótta er ﬂat er ﬂér félagar ﬂykkisk veravi› búnir? Engi skal hér vera me› oss sá er eigi kunni nokkurs
konar list e›a kunnandi um fram flesta menn.”‘ﬁá segir sá er sí›arst gekk, er Loki heitir: “Kann ek ﬂá íﬂrótt er
ek em albúinn at reyna, at engi er hér sá inni er skjótara skal eta
mat sinn en ek.”

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Gylfaginning‘ﬁá svarar Útgar›aloki: “Íﬂrótt er ﬂat ef ﬂú efnir, ok freista skalﬂá ﬂessar íﬂróttar,”—kalla›i útar á bekkinn at sá er Logi heitirskal ganga á gólf fram ok freista sín í móti Loka. ﬁá var tekit trog
eitt ok borit inn á hallar gólfit ok fyllt af slátri. Settisk Loki atƒ›rum enda en Logi at ƒ›rum, ok át hvártveggi sem tí›ast okmœttusk í mi›ju troginu. Haf›i ﬂá Loki etit slátr allt af beinum en
Logi haf›i ok eti› slátr allt ok beinin me› ok svá trogit, ok s‡ndisk
nú ƒllum sem Loki hef›i látit leikinn.
‘ﬁá spyrr Útgar›aloki hvat sá hinn ungi ma›r kunni leika, en
ﬁjálfi segir at hann mun freista at renna skei› nokkvor vi›
einhvern ﬂann er Útgar›aloki fær til. Hann segir, Útgar›aloki, at
ﬂetta er gó› íﬂrótt ok kallar ﬂess meiri ván at hann sé vel at sér
búinn of skjótleikinn ef hann skal ﬂessa íﬂrótt inna, en ﬂó lætrhann skjótt ﬂessa skulu freista. Stendr ﬂá upp Útgar›aloki ok gengr
út, ok var ﬂar gott skei› at renna eptir sléttum velli. ﬁá kallarÚtgar›aloki til sín sveinstaula nokkvorn er nefndr er Hugi ok ba›
hann renna í kƒpp vi› ﬁjálfa. ﬁá taka ﬂeir it fyrsta skei›, ok er
Hugi ﬂví framar at hann sn‡sk aptr í móti honum at skei›s enda.
ﬁá mælir Útgar›aloki:‘“ﬁurfa muntu, ﬁjálfi, at leggja ﬂik meir fram ef ﬂú skalt vinna
leikinn, en ﬂó er ﬂat satt at ekki hafa hér komit ﬂeir menn er mér
ﬂykkir fóthvatari en svá.”‘ﬁá taka ﬂeir aptr annat skei›, ok ﬂá er Hugi kemr til skei›senda ok hann sn‡sk aptr, ﬂá var langt kólfskot til ﬁjálfa. ﬁá mælir
Útgar›aloki:‘“Vel ﬂykki mér ﬁjálfi renna skei›it, en eigi trúi ek honum nú athann vinni leikinn. En nú mun reyna er ﬂeir renna it ﬂri›jaskei›it.”‘ﬁá taka ﬂeir enn skei›. En er Hugi er kominn til skei›s enda ok
sn‡sk aptr, ok er ﬁjálfi eigi ﬂá kominn á mitt skei›it. ﬁá segja allir
at reynt er um ﬂenna leik.
‘ﬁá spyrr Útgar›aloki ﬁór hvat ﬂeira íﬂrótta mun vera er hannmuni vilja birta fyrir ﬂeim, svá miklar sƒgur sem menn hafa gƒrtum stórvirki hans. ﬁá mælir ﬁórr at helzt vill hann ﬂat taka til at
ﬂreyta drykkju vi› einhvern mann. Útgar›aloki segir at ﬂat má velvera ok gengr inn í hƒllina ok kallar skutilsvein sinn, bi›r at hanntaki vítishorn ﬂat er hir›menn eru vanir at drekka af. ﬁví næstkemr fram skutilsveinn me› horninu ok fær ﬁór í hƒnd. ﬁá mælir
Útgar›aloki:‘“Af horni ﬂessu ﬂykkir ﬂá vel drukkit ef í einum drykk gengr

Gylfaginning41

af, en sumir menn drekka af í tveim drykkjum. En engi er svá lítill
drykkjuma›r at eigi gangi af í ﬂrimr.”‘ﬁórr lítr á hornit, ok s‡nisk ekki mikit ok er ﬂó heldr langt. En
hann er mjƒk ﬂyrstr, tekr at drekka ok svelgr allstórum ok hyggr at
eigi skal ﬂurfa at lúta optar at sinni í hornit. En er hann ﬂraut
eyrindit ok hann laut ór horninu ok sér hvat lei› drykkinum, ok
lízk honum svá sem alllítill munr mun vera at nú sé lægra í horninu
en á›r. ﬁá mælti Útgar›aloki:‘“Vel er drukkit, ok eigi til mikit. Eigi mundak trúa ef mér værisagt frá at Ásaﬂórr mundi eigi meira drykk drekka, en ﬂó veit ek atﬂú munt vilja drekka af í ƒ›rum drykk.”‘ﬁórr svarar øngu, setr hornit á munn sér ok hyggr nú at hannskal drekka meira drykk ok ﬂreytir á drykkjuna sem honum vansk
til eyrindi, ok sér enn at stikillinn hornsins vill ekki upp svá mjƒksem honum líkar. Ok er hann tók hornit af munni sér ok sér í, lízk
honum nú svá sem minna hafi ﬂorrit en í inu fyrra sinni. Er nú gottberandi bor› á horninu. ﬁá mælti Útgar›aloki:‘“Hvat er nú, ﬁórr? Muntu nú eigi sparask til eins drykkjar
meira en ﬂér mun hagr á vera? Svá lízk mér, ef ﬂú skalt nú drekka
af horninu hinn ﬂri›ja drykkinn sem ﬂessi mun mestr ætla›r. En
ekki muntu mega hér me› oss heita svá mikill ma›r sem Æsir kalla
ﬂik ef ﬂú gerir eigi meira af ﬂér um a›ra leika en mér lízk sem um
ﬂenna mun vera.”‘ﬁá var› ﬁórr rei›r, setr hornit á munn sér ok drekkr semákafligast má hann ok ﬂreytir sem lengst at drykknum. En er hannsá í hornit ﬂá haf›i nú helzt nokkut munr á fengizk. Ok ﬂá b‡›rhann upp hornit ok vill eigi drekka meira. ﬁá mælir Útgar›aloki:‘“Au›sét er nú at máttr ﬂinn er ekki svá mikill sem vér hug›um.
En viltu freista um fleiri leika? Sjá má nú at ekki n‡tir ﬂú hér
af.”‘ﬁórr svarar: “Freista má ek enn of nokkura leika. En undarliga
mundi mér ﬂykkja ﬂá er ek var heima me› Ásum ef ﬂvílíkir
drykkir væri svá litlir kalla›ir. En hvat leik vili› ﬂér nú bjó›amér?”‘ﬁá mælir Útgar›aloki: “ﬁat gera hér ungir sveinar, er lítit markmun at ﬂykkja, at hefja upp af jƒr›u kƒtt minn. En eigi mundak
kunna at mæla ﬂvílíkt vi› Ásaﬂór ef ek hef›a eigi sét fyrr at ﬂú ert
myklu minni fyrir ﬂér en ek hug›a.”‘ﬁví næst hljóp fram kƒttr einn grár á hallar gólfit ok heldr
mikill. En ﬁórr gekk til ok tók hendi sinni ni›r undir mi›jan

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Gylfaginningkvi›inn ok lypti upp. En kƒttrinn beyg›i kenginn svá sem ﬁórrrétti upp hƒndina. En er ﬁórr seildisk svá langt upp sem hann mátti
lengst ﬂá létti kƒttrinn einum fœti ok fær ﬁórr eigi framit ﬂenna
leik. ﬁá mælir Útgar›aloki:‘“Svá fór ﬂessi leikr sem mik var›i: kƒttrinn er heldr mikill, enﬁórr er lágr ok lítill hjá stórmenni ﬂví sem hér er me› oss.”‘ﬁá mælir ﬁórr: “Svá lítinn sem ﬂér kalli› mik, ﬂá gangi nú til
einnhverr ok fáisk vi› mik! Nu em ek rei›r!”‘ﬁá svarar Útgar›aloki ok litask um á bekkina ok mælti: “Eigi sé
ek ﬂann mann hér inni er eigi mun lítilræ›i í ﬂykkja at fásk vi›
ﬂik.” Ok enn mælir hann: “Sjám fyrst. Kalli mér hingat kerlinguna
fóstru mína Elli, ok fáisk ﬁórr vi› hana ef hann vill. Felt hefir hon
ﬂá menn er mér hafa litizk eigi ósterkligri en ﬁórr er.”‘ﬁví næst gekk í hƒllina kerling ein gƒmul. ﬁá mælir Útgar›aloki
at hon skal taka fang vi› Ásaﬂór. Ekki er langt um at gera. Svá fór
fang ﬂat at ﬂví har›ara er ﬁórr knú›isk at fanginu, ﬂví fastara stó›hon. ﬁá tók kerling at leita til brag›a, ok var› ﬁórr ﬂá lauss á
fótum, ok váru ﬂær sviptingar allhar›ar, ok eigi lengi á›r en ﬁórrfell á kné ƒ›rum fœti. ﬁá gekk til Útgar›aloki, ba› ﬂau hætta
fanginu, ok sag›i svá at ﬁórr mundi eigi ﬂurfa at bjó›a fleirummƒnnum fang í hans hƒll. Var ﬂá ok li›it á nótt. Vísa›iÚtgar›aloki ﬁór ok ﬂeim félƒgum til sætis ok dveljask ﬂar náttlangt í gó›um fagna›i. En at morni ﬂegar daga›i stendr ﬁórr upp
ok ﬂeir félagar, klæ›a sik ok eru búnir braut at ganga. ﬁá kom ﬂarÚtgar›aloki ok lét setja ﬂeim bor›. Skorti ﬂá eigi gó›an fagna›,
mat ok drykk. En er ﬂeir hafa matazk ﬂá snúask ﬂeir til fer›ar.
Útgar›aloki fylgir ﬂeim út, gengr me› ﬂeim braut ór borginni. En
at skilna›i ﬂá mælir Útgar›aloki til ﬁórs ok spyrr hvernig honum
ﬂykkir fer› sín or›in, e›a hvárt hann hefir hitt ríkara mannnokkvorn en sik. ﬁórr segir at eigi mun hann ﬂat segja at eigi hafi
hann mikla ósœm› farit í ﬂeira vi›skiptum.
‘“En ﬂó veit ek at ﬂér munu› kalla mik lítinn mann fyrir mér, ok
uni ek ﬂví illa.”‘ﬁá mælir Útgar›aloki: “Nu skal segja ﬂér it sanna er ﬂú ert út
kominn ór borginni, at ef ek lifi ok megak rá›a ﬂá skaltu aldri
optar í hana koma. Ok ﬂat veit trúa mín at aldri hef›ir ﬂú í hanakomit ef ek hef›a vitat á›r at ﬂú hef›ir svá mikinn krapt me› ﬂér,ok ﬂú haf›ir svá nær haft oss mikilli ófœru. En sjónhverfingar hefi
ek gert ﬂér, svá at fyrsta sinn er ek fann ﬂik á skóginum kom ek til
fundar vi› y›r. Ok ﬂá er ﬂú skyldir leysa nestbaggann ﬂá haf›akGylfaginning

43

bundit me› grésjárni, en ﬂú fant eigi hvar upp skyldi lúka. En ﬂvínæst laust ﬂú mik me› hamrinum ﬂrjú hƒgg, ok var it fyrsta minzt
ok var ﬂó svá mikit at mér mundi endask til bana ef á hef›i komit.
En ﬂar er ﬂú sátt hjá hƒll minni setberg, ok ﬂar sáttu ofan í ﬂrjá daliferskeytta ok einn djúpastan, ﬂar váru hamarspor ﬂín. Setberginu
brá ek fyrir hƒggin, en eigi sátt ﬂú ﬂat. Svá var ok of leikana er ﬂérﬂreyttu› vi› hir›menn mína. ﬁá var ﬂat it fyrsta er Loki ger›i.
Hann var mjƒk soltinn ok át títt, en sá er Logi heitir, ﬂat var
villieldr ok brendi hann eigi seinna trogit en slátrit. En er ﬁjálfi
ﬂreytti rásina vi› ﬂann er Hugi hét, ﬂat var hugr minn, ok var
ﬁjálfa eigi vænt at ﬂreyta skjótfœri hans. En er ﬂú drakt af horninu
ok ﬂótti ﬂér seint lí›a—en ﬂat veit trúa mín at ﬂá var› ﬂat undr er
ek munda eigi trúa at vera mætti: annarr endir hornsins var út í
hafi, en ﬂat sáttu eigi, en nú er ﬂú kemr til sjávarins ﬂá muntu sjá
mega hvern ﬂur› ﬂú hefir drukkit á sænum.”‘ﬁat eru nú fjƒrur kalla›ar. Ok enn mælir hann:‘“Eigi ﬂótti mér hitt minna vera vert er ﬂú lyptir upp kettinum,ok ﬂér satt at segja ﬂá hræddusk allir ﬂeir er sá er ﬂú lyptir af jƒr›ueinum fœtinum. En sá kƒttr var eigi sem ﬂér s‡ndisk: ﬂat var
Mi›gar›sormr er liggr um lƒnd ƒll, ok vansk honum varliga
leng›in til at jƒr›ina tœki spor›r ok hƒfu›. Ok svá langt seildisk
ﬂú upp at skamt var ﬂá til himins. En hitt var ok mikit undr um
fangit er ﬂú stótt svá lengi vi› ok fell eigi meir en á kné ƒ›rum fœtier ﬂú fekzk vi› Elli, fyrir ﬂví at engi hefir sá or›it, ok engi munver›a ef svá gamall er at elli bí›r, at eigi komi ellin ƒllum til falls.
Ok er nú ﬂat satt at segja at vér munum skiljask, ok mun ﬂá betr
hvárratveggju handar at ﬂér komi› eigi optar mik at hitta. Ek mun
enn annat sinn verja borg mína me› ﬂvílíkum vælum e›a ƒ›rum
svá at ekki vald munu› ﬂér á mér fá.”‘En er ﬁórr heyr›i ﬂessa tƒlu greip hann til hamarsins ok breg›r
á lopt, en er hann skal fram rei›a ﬂá sér hann ﬂar hvergiÚtgar›aloka. Ok ﬂá sn‡sk hann aptr til borgarinnar ok ætlask ﬂáfyrir at brjóta borgina. ﬁá sér hann ﬂar vƒllu ví›a ok fagra en øngaborg. Sn‡sk hann ﬂá aptr ok ferr lei› sína til ﬂess er hann kom aptr
í ﬁrú›vanga. En ﬂat er satt at segja at ﬂá haf›i hann rá›it fyrir sér atleita til ef saman mætti bera fundi ﬂeira Mi›gar›sorms, sem
sí›an var›. Nú ætla ek engan kunna ﬂér sannara at segja frá ﬂessi
fer› ﬁórs.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Allmikill er fyrir sér Útgar›aloki, en me›vælum ok fjƒlkyngi ferr hann mjƒk. En ﬂat má sjá at hann er mikill

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44

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Gylfaginningfyrir sér at hann átti hir›menn ﬂá er mikinn mátt hafa. E›a hvárt
hefir ﬁórr ekki ﬂessa hefnt?’
Hár svarar: ‘Eigi er ﬂat ókunnigt, ﬂótt eigi sé frœ›imenn, at ﬁórrlei›rétti ﬂessa fer›ina er nú var frá sagt, ok dval›isk ekki lengi
heima á›r hann bjósk svá skyndiliga til fer›arinnar at hann haf›ieigi rei› ok eigi hafrana ok ekki fƒruneyti. Gekk hann út ofMi›gar› svá sem ungr drengr, ok kom einn aptan at kveldi tiljƒtuns nokkurs; sá er Hymir nefndr. ﬁórr dval›isk ﬂar at gistingu
of nóttina. En í dagan stó› Hymir upp ok klæddisk ok bjósk at róa
á sæ til fiskjar. En ﬁórr spratt upp ok var skjótt búinn ok ba› atHymir skyldi hann láta róa á sæ me› sér. En Hymir sag›i at lítil
li›sem› mundi at honum vera er hann var lítill ok ungmenni
eitt.
‘“Ok mun ﬂik kala ef ek sit svá lengi ok útarliga sem ek em
vanr.”‘En ﬁórr sag›i at hann mundi róa mega fyrir ﬂví frá landi at eigi
var víst hvárt hann mundi fyrr bei›ask at róa útan, ok reiddisk ﬁórrjƒtninum svá at ﬂá var búit at hann mundi ﬂegar láta hamarinn
skjalla honum, en hann lét ﬂat vi› berask ﬂvíat hann hug›isk ﬂá atreyna afl sitt í ƒ›rum sta›. Hann spur›i Hymi hvat ﬂeir skyldu hafa
at beitum, en Hymir ba› hann fá sér sjálfan beitur. ﬁá snerisk ﬁórrá braut ﬂangat er hann sá øxna flokk nokkvorn er Hymir átti.
Hann tók hinn mesta uxann, er Himinhrjótr hét, ok sleit af hƒfu›it
ok fór me› til sjávar. Haf›i ﬂá Hymir út skotit nƒkkvanum. ﬁórrgekk á skipit ok settisk í austrrúm, tók tvær árar ok røri, ok ﬂótti
Hymi skri›r ver›a af ró›ri hans. Hymir reri í halsinum fram ok
sóttisk skjótt ró›rinn. Sag›i ﬂá Hymir at ﬂeir váru komnir á ﬂær
vaztir er hann var vanr at sitja ok draga flata fiska, en ﬁórr kvezk
vilja róa myklu lengra, ok tóku ﬂeir enn snertiró›r. Sag›i Hymirﬂá at ﬂeir váru komnir svá langt út at hætt var at sitja útar fyrirMi›gar›sormi. En ﬁórr kvezk mundu róa eina hrí› ok svá ger›i, enHymir var ﬂá allókátr. En ﬂá er ﬁórr lag›i upp árarnar, greiddi
hann til va› heldr sterkjan ok eigi var ƒngullinn minni e›aóramligri. ﬁar lét ﬁórr koma á ƒngulinn oxahƒfu›it ok kasta›i fyrirbor›, ok fór ƒngullinn til grunns. Ok er ﬂá svá satt at segja at engu
ginti ﬂá ﬁórr minnr Mi›gar›sorm en Útgar›aloki haf›i spottat ﬁór
ﬂá er hann hóf orminn upp á hendi sér. Mi›gar›sormr gein yfiroxahƒfu›it en ƒngullinn vá í góminn orminum. En er ormrinn
kendi ﬂess, brá hann vi› svá hart at bá›ir hnefar ﬁórs skullu út ábor›inu. ﬁá var› ﬁórr rei›r ok fœr›isk í ásmegin, spyrndi vi› svá

Gylfaginning45

fast at hann hljóp bá›um fótum gƒgnum skipit ok spyrndi vi›
grunni, dró ﬂá orminn upp at bor›i. En ﬂat má segja at engi hefirsá sét ógurligar sjónir er eigi mátti ﬂat sjá er ﬁórr hvesti augun áorminn, en ormrinn star›i ne›an í mót ok blés eitrinu. ﬁá er sagt
at jƒtunninn Hymir ger›isk litverpr, fƒlna›i, ok hræddisk er hann sáorminn ok ﬂat er særinn fell út ok inn of nƒkkvann. Ok í ﬂví bili erﬁórr greip hamarinn ok fœr›i á lopt ﬂá fálma›i jƒtunninn til
agnsaxinu ok hjó va› ﬁórs af bor›i, en ormrinn søktisk í sæinn. En
ﬁórr kasta›i hamrinum eptir honum, ok segja menn at hann lysti af
honum hƒfu›it vi› grunninum. En ek hygg hitt vera ﬂér satt at
segja at Mi›gar›sormr lifir enn ok liggr í umsjá. En ﬁórr reiddi til
hnefann ok setr vi› eyra Hymi svá at hann steyptisk fyrir bor› oksér í iljar honum. En ﬁórr ó› til lands.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hafa nokkvor meiri tí›indi or›it me›Ásunum? Allmikit ﬂrekvirki vann ﬁórr í ﬂessi fer›.’Hár svarar: ‘Vera mun at segja frá ﬂeim tí›indum er meira ﬂóttivert Ásunum. En ﬂat er upphaf ﬂessar sƒgu at Baldr inn gó›adreym›i drauma stóra ok hættliga um líf sitt. En er hann sag›iÁsunum draumana ﬂá báru ﬂeir saman rá› sín, ok var ﬂat gert atbei›a gri›a Baldri fyrir alls konar háska, ok Frigg tók svardaga til
ﬂess at eira skyldu Baldri eldr ok vatn, járn ok alls konar málmr,steinar, jƒr›in, vi›irnir, sóttirnar, d‡rin, fuglarnir, eitr, ormar. En
er ﬂetta var gert ok vitat, ﬂá var ﬂat skemtun Baldrs ok Ásanna athann skyldi standa upp á ﬂingum en allir a›rir skyldu sumir skjóta
á hann, sumir hƒggva til, sumir berja grjóti. En hvat sem at vargert, saka›i hann ekki, ok ﬂótti ﬂetta ƒllum mikill frami. En er
ﬂetta sá Loki Laufeyjarson ﬂá líka›i honum illa er Baldr saka›iekki. Hann gekk til Fensalar til Friggjar ok brá sér í konu líki. ﬁáspyrr Frigg ef sú kona vissi hvat Æsir hƒf›usk at á ﬂinginu. Hon
sag›i at allir skutu at Baldri, ok ﬂat at hann saka›i ekki. ﬁá mælir
Frigg:‘“Eigi munu vápn e›a vi›ir granda Baldri. Ei›a hefi ek ﬂegit afƒllum ﬂeim.”‘ﬁá spyrr konan: “Hafa allir hlutir ei›a unnit at eira Baldri?”‘ﬁá svarar Frigg: “Vex vi›arteinungr einn fyrir vestan Valhƒll.
Sá er mistilteinn kalla›r. Sá ﬂótti mér ungr at krefja ei›sins.”‘ﬁví næst hvarf konan á brut. En Loki tók mistiltein ok sleit upp
ok gekk til ﬂings. En Hƒ›r stó› útarliga í mannhringinum ﬂvíat
hann var blindr. ﬁá mælir Loki vi› hann:‘“Hví sk‡tr ﬂú ekki at Baldri?”

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Gylfaginning‘Hann svarar: “ﬁvíat ek sé eigi hvar Baldr er, ok ﬂat annat at ek
em vápnlauss.”‘ﬁá mælir Loki: “Ger›u ﬂó í líking annarra manna ok veit Baldrisœm› sem a›rir menn. Ek mun vísa ﬂér til hvar hann stendr. Skjót
at honum vendi ﬂessum.”‘Hƒ›r tók mistiltein ok skaut at Baldri at tilvísun Loka. Flaugskotit í gƒgnum hann ok fell hann dau›r til jar›ar, ok hefir ﬂatmest óhapp verit unnit me› go›um ok mƒnnum. ﬁá er Baldr var
fallinn ﬂá fellusk ƒllum Ásum or›tƒk ok svá hendr at taka til hans,ok sá hverr til annars, ok váru allir me› einum hug til ﬂess er unnit
haf›i verkit. En engi mátti hefna, ﬂar var svá mikill gri›asta›r. En
ﬂá er Æsirnir freistu›u at mæla ﬂá var hitt ﬂó fyrr at grátrinn kom
upp svá at engi mátti ƒ›rum segja me› or›unum frá sínum harmi.
En Ó›inn bar ﬂeim mun verst ﬂenna ska›a sem hann kunni mesta
skyn hversu mikil aftaka ok missa Ásunum var í fráfalli Baldrs. En
er go›in vitku›usk ﬂá mælir Frigg ok spur›i hverr sá væri me› Ásumer eignask vildi allar ástir hennar ok hylli ok vili hann rí›a á Helveg
ok freista ef hann fái fundit Baldr ok bjó›a Helju útlausn ef hon
vill láta fara Baldr heim í Ásgar›i. En sá er nefndr Hermó›r inn
hvati, sveinn Ó›ins, er til ﬂeirar farar var›. ﬁá var tekinn Sleipnir,
hestr Ó›ins, ok leiddr fram, ok steig Hermó›r á ﬂann hest ok
hleypti braut. En Æsirnir tóku lík Baldrs ok fluttu til sævar.
Hringhorni hét skip Baldrs. Hann var allra skipa mestr. Hann
vildu go›in fram setja ok gera ﬂar á bálfƒr Baldrs. En skipit gekk
hvergi fram. ﬁá var sent í Jƒtunheima eptir g‡gi ﬂeiri er Hyrrokkinhét. En er hon kom ok rei› vargi ok haf›i hƒggorm at taumum ﬂá
hljóp hon af hestinum, en Ó›inn kalla›i til berserki fjóra at gætahestsins, ok fengu ﬂeir eigi haldit nema ﬂeir feldi hann. ﬁá gekk
Hyrrokkin á framstafn nƒkkvans ok hratt fram í fyrsta vi›brag›i
svá at eldr hraut ór hlunnunum ok lƒnd ƒll skulfu. ﬁá var› ﬁórr rei›r
ok greip hamarinn ok myndi ﬂá brjóta hƒfu› hennar á›r en go›inƒll bá›u henni fri›ar. ﬁá var borit út á skipit lík Baldrs, ok er ﬂat sá
kona hans Nanna Nepsdóttir ﬂá sprakk hon af harmi ok dó. Var
hon borin á bálit ok slegit í eldi. ﬁá stó› ﬁórr at ok víg›i bálit me›Mjƒllni. En fyrir fótum hans rann dvergr nokkurr. Sá er Litr
nefndr. En ﬁórr spyrndi fœti sínum á hann ok hratt honum í eldinn
ok brann hann.
‘En at ﬂessi brennu sótti margs konar ﬂjó›: fyrst at segja fráÓ›ni, at me› honum fór Frigg ok valkyrjur ok hrafnar hans, enGylfaginning

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Freyr ók í kerru me› gelti ﬂeim er Gullinbursti heitir e›a
Slí›rugtanni. En Heimdallr rei› hesti ﬂeim er Gulltoppr heitir, en
Freyja kƒttum sínum. ﬁar kømr ok mikit fólk hrímﬂursa ok
bergrisar. Ó›inn lag›i á bálit gullhring ﬂann er Draupnir heitir.
Honum fylg›i sí›an sú náttúra at hina níundu hverja nótt drupu af
honum átta gullhringar jafnhƒfgir. Hestr Baldrs var leiddr á bálitme› ƒllu rei›i. En ﬂat er at segja frá Hermó›i at hann rei› níunætr døkkva dala ok djúpa svá at hann sá ekki fyrr en hann kom tilárinnar Gjallar ok rei› á Gjallar brúna. Hon er ﬂƒk› l‡sigulli.
Mó›gu›r er nefnd mær sú er gætir brúarinnar. Hon spur›i hann at
nafni e›a ætt ok sag›i at hinn fyrra dag ri›u um brúna fimm fylkidau›ra manna,‘“En eigi dynr brúin minnr undir einum ﬂér ok eigi hefir ﬂú lit
dau›ra manna. Hví rí›r ﬂú hér á Helveg?”‘Hann svarar at “ek skal rí›a til Heljar at leita Baldrs. E›a hvárt
hefir ﬂú nakkvat sét Baldr á Helvegi?”‘En hon sag›i at Baldr haf›i ﬂar ri›it um Gjallar brú, “en ni›r
ok nor›r liggr Helvegr.”‘ﬁá rei› Hermó›r ﬂar til er hann kom at Helgrindum. ﬁá stéhann af hestinum ok gyr›i hann fast, steig upp ok keyr›i hannsporum. En hestrinn hljóp svá hart ok yfir grindina at hann kom
hvergi nær. ﬁá rei› Hermó›r heim til hallarinnar ok steig af hesti,
gekk inn í hƒllina, sá ﬂar sitja í ƒndugi Baldr bró›ur sinn, okdval›isk Hermó›r ﬂar um nóttina. En at morni ﬂá beiddisk
Hermó›r af Helju at Baldr skyldi rí›a heim me› honum ok sag›ihversu mikill grátr var me› Ásum. En Hel sag›i at ﬂat skyldi svá
reyna hvárt Baldr var svá ástsæll sem sagt er,‘“Ok ef allir hlutir í heiminum, kykvir ok dau›ir, gráta hann, ﬂáskal hann fara til Ása aptr, en haldask me› Helju ef nakkvarrmælir vi› e›a vill eigi gráta.”‘ﬁá stó› Hermó›r upp, en Baldr lei›ir hann út ór hƒllinni ok tók
hringinn Draupni ok sendi Ó›ni til minja, en Nanna sendi Frigg
ripti ok enn fleiri gjafar; Fullu fingrgull. ﬁá rei› Hermó›r aptr lei›sína ok kom í Ásgar› ok sag›i ƒll tí›indi ﬂau er hann haf›i sét ok
heyrt.
‘ﬁví næst sendu Æsir um allan heim ørindreka at bi›ja at Baldrværi grátinn ór Helju. En allir ger›u ﬂat, menninir ok kykvendin
ok jƒr›in ok steinarnir ok tré ok allr málmr, svá sem ﬂú munt sét
hafa at ﬂessir hlutir gráta ﬂá er ﬂeir koma ór frosti ok í hita. ﬁá er

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sendimenn fóru heim ok hƒf›u vel rekit sín eyrindi, finna ﬂeir íhelli nokkvorum hvar g‡gr sat. Hon nefndisk ﬁƒkk. ﬁeir bi›jahana gráta Baldr ór Helju. Hon segir:“ﬁƒkk mun gráta
ﬂurrum tárum
Baldrs bálfarar.
Kyks né dau›snautka ek karls sonar:
haldi Hel ﬂví er hefir.”‘En ﬂess geta menn at ﬂar hafi verit Loki Laufeyjarson er flest
hefir illt gert me› Ásum.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Allmiklu kom Loki á lei› er hann olli fyrst
ﬂví er Baldr var veginn, ok svá ﬂví er hann var› eigi leystr frá
Helju. E›a hvárt var› honum ﬂessa nakkvat hefnt?’
Hár segir: ‘Goldit var honum ﬂetta svá at hann mun lengi
kennask. ﬁá er gu›in váru or›in honum svá rei› sem ván var, hljóp
hann á braut ok fal sik í fjalli nokkvoru, ger›i ﬂar hús ok fjórar
dyrr at hann mátti sjá ór húsinu í allar áttir. En opt um daga bráhann sér í laxlíki ok falsk ﬂá ﬂar sem heitir Fránangrsfors. ﬁá
hugsa›i hann fyrir sér hverja væl Æsir mundu til finna at taka hann
í forsinum. En er hann sat í húsinu tók hann língarn ok rei› áræxna svá sem net er sí›an. En eldr brann fyrir honum. ﬁá sá hannat Æsir áttu skamt til hans ok haf›i Ó›inn sét ór Hli›skjálfinni
hvar hann var. Hann hljóp ﬂegar upp ok út í ána ok kasta›i netinu
fram á eldinn. En er Æsir koma til hússins ﬂá gekk sá fyrst inn er
allra var vitrastr, er Kvasir heitir. Ok er hann sá á eldinumfƒlskann er netit haf›i brunnit ﬂá skil›i hann at ﬂat mundi væl vera
til at taka fiska, ok sag›i Ásunum. ﬁví næst tóku ﬂeir ok ger›u sér
net eptir ﬂví sem ﬂeir sá á fƒlska at Loki haf›i gert. Ok er búit var
netit ﬂá fara Æsir til árinnar ok kasta neti í forsinn. Helt ﬁórr enda
ƒ›rum ok ƒ›rum heldu allir Æsir ok drógu netit. En Loki fór fyrir
ok legsk ni›r í milli steina tveggja. Drógu ﬂeir netit yfir hann ok
kendu at kykt var fyrir ok fara í annat sinn upp til forsins ok kasta
út netinu ok binda vi› svá ﬂungt at eigi skyli undir mega fara. Ferrﬂá Loki fyrir netinu, en er hann sér at skamt var til sævar ﬂá hleyprhann upp yfir ﬂinulinn ok rennir upp í forsinn. Nú sá Æsirnir hvar
hann fór, fara enn upp til forsins ok skipta li›inu í tvá sta›i, enﬁórr ve›r ﬂá eptir mi›ri ánni ok fara svá til sævar. En er Loki sér
tvá kosti—var ﬂat lífs háski at hlaupa á sæinn, en hitt var annarr atGylfaginning49

hlaupa enn yfir netit—ok ﬂat ger›i hann, hljóp sem snarast yfir
netﬂinulinn. ﬁórr greip eptir honum ok tók um hann ok rendi hanní hendi honum svá at sta›ar nam hƒndin vi› spor›inn. Ok er fyrirﬂá sƒk laxinn aptrmjór.
‘Nú var Loki tekinn gri›alauss ok farit me› hann í helli
nokkvorn. ﬁá tóku ﬂeir ﬂrjár hellur ok settu á egg ok lustu rauf á
hellunni hverri. ﬁá váru teknir synir Loka, Váli ok Nari e›a Narfi.
Brug›u Æsir Vála í vargs líki ok reif hann í sundr Narfa bró›ur
sinn. ﬁá tóku Æsir ﬂarma hans ok bundu Loka me› yfir ﬂá ﬂrjá
steina—einn undir her›um, annarr undir lendum, ﬂri›i undir
knésfótum—ok ur›u ﬂau bƒnd at járni. ﬁá tók Ska›i eitrorm ok
festi upp yfir hann svá at eitrit skyldi drjúpa ór orminum í andlit
honum. En Sigyn kona hans stendr hjá honum ok heldr mundlaugu undir eitrdropa. En ﬂá er full er mundlaugin ﬂá gengr hon
ok slær út eitrinu, en me›an dr‡pr eitrit í andlit honum. ﬁá kippisk
hann svá hart vi› at jƒr› ƒll skelfr. ﬁat kalli› ﬂér landskjálpta. ﬁar
liggr hann í bƒndum til ragnarøkrs.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hver tí›indi eru at segja frá um ragnarøkr?
ﬁess hefi ek eigi fyrr heyrt getit.’
Hár segir: ‘Mikil tí›indi eru ﬂa›an at segja ok mƒrg. ﬁau in
fyrstu at vetr sá kemr er kalla›r er fimbulvetr. ﬁá drífr snær órƒllum áttum. Frost eru ﬂá mikil ok vindar hvassir. Ekki n‡tr sólar.
ﬁeir vetr fara ﬂrír saman ok ekki sumar milli. En á›r ganga svá
a›rir ﬂrír vetr at ﬂá er um alla verƒld orrostur miklar. ﬁá drepask
brœ›r fyrir ágirni sakar ok engi ﬂyrmir fƒ›ur e›a syni í manndrápume›a sifjasliti. Svá segir í Vƒluspá:Brœ›r munu berjask
ok at bƒnum ver›ask,
munu systrungar
sifjum spilla.
Hart er me› hƒl›um,
hórdómr mikill,skeggjƒld, skálmƒld,skildir klofnir,vindƒld, vargƒld,á›r verƒld steypisk.

ﬁá ver›r ﬂat er mikil tí›indi ﬂykkja, at úlfrinn gleypir sólna, ok
ﬂykkir mƒnnum ﬂat mikit mein. ﬁá tekr annarr úlfrinn tunglit, ok
gerir sá ok mikit ógagn. Stjƒrnurnar hverfa af himninum. ﬁá er ok
ﬂat til tí›inda at svá skelfr jƒr› ƒll ok bjƒrg at vi›ir losna ór jƒr›u

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upp, en bjƒrgin hrynja, en fjƒtrar allir ok bƒnd brotna ok slitna. ﬁá
ver›r Fenrisúlfr lauss. ﬁá geysisk hafit á lƒndin fyrir ﬂví at ﬂá sn‡sk
Mi›gar›sormr í jƒtunmó› ok sœkir upp á landit. ﬁá ver›r ok ﬂat at
Naglfar losnar, skip ﬂat er svá heitir. ﬁat er gert af nƒglum dau›ramanna, ok er ﬂat fyrir ﬂví varnanar vert ef ma›r deyr me›óskornum nƒglum at sá ma›r eykr mikit efni til skipsins Naglfars
er go›in ok menn vildi seint at gert yr›i. En í ﬂessum sævargang
fl‡tr Naglfar. Hrymr heitir jƒtunn er st‡rir Naglfara. En Fenrisúlfr
ferr me› gapanda munn ok er hinn efri kjƒptr vi› himni en hinnne›ri vi› jƒr›u. Gapa mundi hann meira ef rúm væri til. Eldar
brenna ór augum hans ok nƒsum. Mi›gar›sormr blæss svá eitrinu
at hann dreifir lopt ƒll ok lƒg, ok er hann allógurligr, ok er hann áa›ra hli› úlfinum. Í ﬂessum gn‡ klofnar himinninn ok rí›a ﬂa›an
Muspells synir. Surtr rí›r fyrst ok fyrir honum ok eptir bæ›i eldr
brennandi. Sver› hans er gott mjƒk. Af ﬂví skínn bjartara en af
sólu. En er ﬂeir rí›a Bifrƒst ﬂá brotnar hon sem fyrr er sagt.
Muspells megir sœkja fram á ﬂann vƒll er Vígrí›r heitir. ﬁar kemr
ok ﬂá Fenrisúlfr ok Mi›gar›sormr. ﬁar er ok ﬂá Loki kominn ok
Hrymr ok me› honum allir hrímﬂursar, en Loka fylgja allir Heljar
sinnar. En Muspells synir hafa einir sér fylking; er sú bjƒrt mjƒk.
Vƒllrinn Vígrí›r er hundra› rasta ví›r á hvern veg.
‘En er ﬂessi tí›indi ver›a ﬂá stendr upp Heimdallr ok blæss
ákafliga í Gjallarhorn ok vekr upp ƒll gu›in ok eiga ﬂau ﬂing
saman. ﬁá rí›r Ó›inn til Mímis brunns ok tekr rá› af Mími fyrir sér
ok sínu li›i. ﬁá skelfr askr Yggdrasils ok engi hlutr er ﬂá óttalauss áhimni e›a jƒr›u. Æsir hervæ›a sik ok allir einherjar ok sœkja framá vƒlluna. Rí›r fyrstr Ó›inn me› gullhjálm ok fagra brynju ok geirsinn er Gungnir heitir. Stefnir hann móti Fenrisúlf, en ﬁórr fram áa›ra hli› honum ok má hann ekki duga honum ﬂvíat hann hefir
fullt fang at berjask vi› Mi›gar›sorm. Freyr bersk móti Surti okver›r har›r samgangr á›r Freyr fellr. ﬁat ver›r hans bani er hannmissir ﬂess hins gó›a sver›s er hann gaf Skírni. ﬁá er ok laussor›inn hundrinn Garmr er bundinn er fyrir Gnipahelli. Hann er it
mesta fora›. Hann á víg móti T‡ ok ver›r hvárr ƒ›rum at bana.
ﬁórr berr banaor› af Mi›gar›sormi ok stígr ﬂa›an braut níu fet. ﬁá
fellr hann dau›r til jar›ar fyrir eitri ﬂví er ormrinn blæss á hann.
Úlfrinn gleypir Ó›in. Ver›r ﬂat hans bani. En ﬂegar eptir sn‡sk
fram Vi›arr ok stígr ƒ›rum fœti í ne›ra keypt úlfsins. (Á ﬂeim fœtihefir hann ﬂann skó er allan aldr hefir verit til samnat: ﬂat eru
bjórar ﬂeir er menn sní›a ór skóm sínum fyrir tám e›a hæl. ﬁvíGylfaginning51

skal ﬂeim bjórum braut kasta sá ma›r er at ﬂví vill hyggja at komaÁsunum at li›i.) Annarri hendi tekr hann inn efra keypt úlfsins ok
rífr sundr gin hans ok ver›r ﬂat úlfsins bani. Loki á orrostu vi›
Heimdall ok ver›r hvárr annars bani. ﬁví næst slyngr Surtr eldi yfirjƒr›ina ok brennir allan heim. Svá er sagt í Vƒluspá:
Hátt blæss Heimdallr
horn er á lopti.
Mælir Ó›innvi› Míms hƒfu›.
Skelfr Yggdrasils
askr standandi,
ymr it aldna tréen jƒtunn losnar.
Hvat er me› Ásum?
Hvat er me› álfum?
Ymr allr Jƒtunheimr.
Æsir ró á ﬂingi.
Stynja dvergar
fyrir steindurum,
veggbergs vísir.
Vitu› ér enn e›a hvat?
Hrymr ekr austan
hefisk lind fyrir.
Sn‡sk Jƒrmungandrí jƒtunmó›i.
Ormr kn‡r unnir,
ƒrn mun hlakka,
slítr nái ni›fƒlr,Naglfar losnar.
Kjóll ferr austan,
koma munu Muspellsof lƒg l‡›ir
en Loki st‡rir.
ﬁar ró fíflmegirme› freka allir.
ﬁeim er bró›ir
B‡leists í fƒr.
Surtr ferr sunnanme› sviga lævi.
Skínn af sver›isól valtíva.

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Grjótbjƒrg gnata
en gífr rata,
tro›a halir Helveg
en himinn klofnar.
ﬁá kømr Hlínar
harmr annarr framer Ó›inn ferrvi› úlf vega,
en bani Belja
bjartr at Surti:
ﬂar mun Friggjar
falla angan.
Gengr Ó›ins sonvi› úlf vega,Vi›arr of veg
at vald‡ri.
Lætr hann megi Hve›rungs
mund of standahjƒr til hjarta.
ﬁá er hefnt fƒ›ur.
Gengr inn mærimƒgr Hlƒ›ynjar
nepr at na›ri
ní›s ókví›num.
Munu halir allir
heimstƒ› ry›ja
er af mó›i drepr
Mi›gar›s véorr.
Sól mun sortna,
søkkr fold í mar.
Hverfa af himni
hei›ar stjƒrnur.
Geisar eimi
ok aldrnari,leikr hár hitivi› himin sjálfan.

Hér segir enn svá:
39

Vígrí›r heitir vƒllr
er finnask vígi at
Surtr ok in svásu gu›.

Gylfaginning

53

Hundra› rasta
hann er á hverjan veg.
Sá er ﬂeim vƒllr vita›r.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvat ver›r ﬂá eptir er brendr er himinn okjƒr› ok heimr allr ok dau› go›in ƒll ok allir einherjar ok allt
mannfólk? Ok hafi› ﬂér á›r sagt at hverr ma›r skal lifa í
nokkvorum heimi um allar aldir?’ﬁá segir ﬁri›i: ‘Margar eru ﬂá vistir gó›ar ok margar illar. Bazt
er ﬂá at vera á Gimlé á himni, ok allgott er til gó›s drykkjar ﬂeim
er ﬂat ﬂykkir gaman í ﬂeim sal er Brimir heitir. Hann stendr ok áhimni. Sá er ok gó›r salr er stendr á Ni›afjƒllum, gjƒrr af rau›u
gulli. Sá heitir Sindri. Í ﬂessum sƒlum skulu byggja gó›ir menn oksi›látir. Á Nástrƒndum er mikill salr ok illr ok horfa í nor›r dyrr.
Hann er ok ofinn allr orma hryggjum sem vandahús, en ormahƒfu› ƒll vitu inn í húsit ok blása eitri svá at eptir salnum renna
eitrár, ok va›a ﬂær ár ei›rofar ok mor›vargar, svá sem hér segir:
Sal veit ek standa
sólu fjarri
Nástrƒndu á.
Nor›r horfa dyrr.
Falla eitrdropar
inn of ljóra.
Sá er undinn salrorma hryggjum.
Skulu ﬂar va›aﬂunga strauma
menn meinsvara
ok mor›vargar.

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En í Hvergelmi er verst:
ﬁar kvelr Ní›hƒggr
nái framgengna.’ﬁá mælir Gangleri: ‘Hvárt lifa nokkvor go›in ﬂá? E›a er ﬂánokkvor jƒr› e›a himinn?’
Hár segir: ‘Upp sk‡tr jƒr›unni ﬂá ór sænum ok er ﬂá grœn okfƒgr. Vaxa ﬂá akrar ósánir. Vi›arr ok Váli lifa svá at eigi hefirsærinn ok Surtalogi grandat ﬂeim, ok byggja ﬂeir á I›avelli, ﬂar
sem fyrr var Ásgar›r. Ok ﬂar koma ﬂá synir ﬁórs, Mó›i ok Magni,
ok hafa ﬂar Mjƒllni. ﬁví næst koma ﬂar Baldr ok Hƒ›r frá Heljar.
Setjask ﬂá allir samt ok talask vi› ok minnask á rúnar sínar ok

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rœ›a of tí›indi ﬂau er fyrrum hƒf›u verit, of Mi›gar›sorm ok um
Fenrisúlf. ﬁá finna ﬂeir í grasinu gulltƒflur ﬂær er Æsirnir hƒf›uátt. Svá er sagt:Vi›arr ok Váli
byggja vé go›aﬂá er sortnar Surtalogi.
Mó›i ok Magni
skulu Mjƒllni hafa
Vingnis at vígﬂroti.

En ﬂar sem heitir Hoddmímis holt leynask menn tveir í Surtaloga
er svá heita: Líf ok Leifﬂrasir; ok hafa morgindƒggvar fyrir mat.
En af ﬂessum mƒnnum kemr svá mikil kynsló› at byggvisk heimr
allr. Svá sem hér segir:
Líf ok Leifﬂrasir,en ﬂau leynask munu
í holti Hoddmímis.
Morgindƒggvar
ﬂau sér at mat hafa,
en ﬂa›an af aldir alask.

Ok hitt mun ﬂér undarligt ﬂykkja er sólin hefir getit dóttur eigiófegri en hon er, ok ferr sú ﬂá stigu mó›ur sinnar, sem hér segir:
Eina dóttur
berr Alfrƒ›ulá›r hana Fenrir fari.
Sú skal rí›aer regin deyja
mó›ur braut mær.

En nú ef ﬂú kant lengra fram at spyrja ﬂá veit ek eigi hva›an ﬂérkemr ﬂat, fyrir ﬂví at øngan mann heyr›a ek lengra segja framaldarfarit. Ok njóttu nú sem ﬂú namt.’
ﬁví næst heyr›i Gangleri dyni mikla hvern veg frá sér, ok leit útá hli› sér. Ok ﬂá er hann sésk meir um, ﬂá stendr hann úti á sléttum
velli, sér ﬂá ønga hƒll ok ønga borg. Gengr hann ﬂá lei› sína brautok kemr heim í ríki sitt ok segir ﬂau tí›indi er hann hefir sét ok
heyrt. Ok eptir honum sag›i hverr ma›r ƒ›rum ﬂessar sƒgur.
En Æsir setjask ﬂá á tal ok rá›a rá›um sínum ok minnask á
ﬂessar frásagnir allar er honum váru sag›ar, ok gefa nƒfn ﬂessi hinsƒmu er á›r eru nefnd mƒnnum ok stƒ›um ﬂeim er ﬂar váru, tilGylfaginning55

ﬂess at ﬂá er langar stundir li›i at menn skyldu ekki ifask í at allirværi einir, ﬂeir Æsir er nú var frá sagt ok ﬂessir er ﬂá váru ﬂausƒmu nƒfn gefin. ﬁar var ﬂá ﬁórr kalla›r—ok er sá Ásaﬂórr hinn
gamli, sá er ¯kuﬂórr—ok honum eru kend ﬂau stórvirki erﬁórr (Ector) ger›i í Troju. En ﬂat hyggja menn at Tyrkir hafi sagt
frá Ulixes ok hafi ﬂeir hann kallat Loka, ﬂvíat Tyrkir váru hanshinir mestu óvinir.

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General notes
6/26–7 ‘from the fact that the names of their ancestors are written’, i.e.
from the names that are recorded in their genealogies, which could beseen to belong to the language of the ‘Æsir’.
6/29–30 The reference seems to be to the existence of non-Germanic,i.e. Celtic, place-names in England. Snorri makes a comparable remark
in Hkr I 153; cf. ÍF XXXV 39 (probably derived from the beginningof Skjƒldunga saga).
7/4 The Gefjun described here and in Hkr I 14–15 has a different naturefrom the one mentioned at 29/21, but there is no real conflict, because
this is one of the human Æsir of the prologue, whereas the figures
within the dialogue are the divine ones they worship. The Gefjun thatappears in Ls 19–20 seems more like the one in this story. In various
Icelandic versions of Latin writings Gefjun is used as an equivalent of
Diana, though in the Norwegian biblical commentary in Stjórn (ed.
C. R. Unger, Christiania 1862, 90) she is made equivalent to Venus.
Cf. AH Studier 69–71.
7/12–19 This verse is thought to be part of Bragi’s chief surviving poem
Ragnarsdrápa, in which he described illustrations depicting various
legends on a shield supposed to have been given him by Ragnarrlo›brók (see Skáld 50–1, 69–70, 72–3). It is also quoted in Hkr I 15,
but otherwise the poem is only preserved in manuscripts of SnE (seeSkj A I 1–4). A different interpretation of the first four lines, based onan emended text, is given by R. Frank, Old Norse Court Poetry, The
Dróttkvætt Stanza (Islandica XLII), Ithaca 1978, 108–10.
7/16 ok links fjƒgur haufu› and átta ennitungl, and the whole phrase is
the object of báru.
7/27–8 Cf. 39/24–5.
7/31–4 is also quoted in Fagrskinna (ÍF XXIX 68) and Flateyjarbók I
574, in both of which it is attributed, as here, to ﬁjó›ólfr; and in Hkr I
117, where it is attributed, probably correctly, to ﬁorbjƒrn hornklofi, aNorwegian poet who flourished around AD 900. It is thought to be partof a poem known as Haraldskvæ›i or Hrafnsmál about Haraldr hárfagri(died c.940), and refers ironically to the rout of that king’s opponents
at the battle of Hafrsfjƒr›r (c.885), who are described as having usedtheir shields to protect their backs as they fled.
ﬁjó›ólfr of Hvinir in Norway was also associated with Haraldr
hárfagri, and the poems Haustlƒng (quoted in Skáld) and Ynglingatal(quoted in Snorri’s Ynglinga saga) are attributed to him. Cf. Skáldatal,
SnE III 273, and see Skj A I 7–21.

58

General notes

7/36–8/1 Cf. Vm 8.
8/10–15 = Háv 1.
8/22–3 Cf. Vm 7. Gylfi is to demonstrate his wisdom by his ability to
ask questions (cf. Háv 28, 63) and his opponents will be defeated if hecan think of a question they cannot answer; cf. 36/32–40 and note,and 54/28–30.
8/24–5 are metrical enough to be arranged as verse, but whether they
are a quotation, and if so from what, it is impossible to say. Cf. Vm
9, 11.
8/29–32 All these names, or variants of them, appear both in the ﬂulaof Ó›inn names in SnE II 472–3 and in the verses quoted from Grm,
21/32–22/15 below. When there are alternative forms here, it is thesecond form that corresponds to Grm and the ﬂula. In the version ofthis passage in U only one of each of the alternatives is given, again
generally the second.
8/35–9/5 Compare St Óláfr’s description of Jesús Kristr in Hkr II 369.
9/12–19 = Vsp 3. The differences from the PE texts are taken to imply
different oral versions of the poem, but Snorri may have deliberately
excluded Ymir at this point.
9/22–4 These rivers are among those listed in Grm 27–8. Cf. 33/21–5
and note. On Gjƒll cf. 47/9.
9/29 The phrase endi veraldar occurs only here in Gylf. From 25/26 theword ragnarøkr is used.
9/31–8 = Vsp 52 (cf. 51/38–52/4).
10/14 ﬂess could be neuter, but nevertheless it seems likely that the originof the kraptr is conceived as a personal agency (Alfƒ›r or Surtr?). Cf.
Klaus von See, Mythos und Theologie im Skandinavischen Hochmittelalter (Skandinavistische Arbeiten 8), Heidelberg 1988, 53–4.
10/18–25 = Hdl 33 (preserved in Flateyjarbók). Verses 29–44 of thispoem are thought to have constituted what was apparently known to
Snorri as Vƒluspá hin skamma.
10/27–35 = Vm 30–1; lines 27–9 are a question asked by Ó›inn in the
poem, who has assumed the name Gagnrá›r (cf. the textual note toline 26); lines 30–5 are Vafﬂrú›nir’s answer, and órar (line 33) refers
to the giants, whose various family lines extend back in time and meetin a common progenitor (line 34).
11/16–19 Cf. 3/36 ff., 4/9 ff., and 8/27–36: the name the Æsir have given
to the almighty ruler whose existence they have deduced from natural
phenomena by means of their jar›lig skilning is Ó›inn, because thatis the name of the greatest being they know, and they presume the two
are identical; and Hár invites Gangleri to accept this identification.

General notes

59(At 13/4–17, however, Alfƒ›r/Ó›inn appears again to be euhemerised
as a human king, and even here he is far from eternal.) Sá ma›r (line18) relates to the following er-clause which refers to Ó›inn Borsson.
In line 17 hann refers to st‡randi, and svá means the name Ó›inn, as
in line 18. Line 19 implies that if Gangleri is going to address thealmighty he ought to address him by this name. This is thus the fullest
answer yet to Gangleri’s enquiry at 8/27. Note that Ó›inn Borsson,
the god, is always distinct from Ó›inn Friallafsson, the human king of
the prologue.
The whole paragraph is the words of Hár. There is no justification
for taking part of it as an interposition by the author, breaking into thedramatic framework to state his own belief. Snorri is imaginatively
trying to re-create a heathen credo. Similarly ﬂér (line 19) is not to betaken to refer to the reader: it means Gangleri primarily, though it
may include his Scandinavian contemporaries generally.
11/27–32 = Vm 35. The speaker is Vafﬂrú›nir, the wise old giant.
11/35 ff. Grm 40–1, quoted at 12/28–39, is the main source, but cf. Vm
21 and Vsp 4. See also 3/18 ff.
12/1 The second ger›u is from the verb ger›a.
12/2–3 Cf. 37/29.
12/4 ff. Kennings based on these legends are mentioned in Skáld ch. 23;
see R. Meissner, Die Kenningar der Skalden, Bonn and Leipzig 1921,104.
12/9–11 Snorri here distinguishes the stars that are ‘fixed’ (to the inverted
bowl of the sky) from those that ‘move’ (planets, and perhaps comets
and shooting stars).
12/11 The forn vísindi may be just eddic poems (e.g. Vm 23 and 25 aswell as Vsp 6), but Snorri may also have had in mind twelfth-century
Icelandic books on astronomy and the calendar such as that whichsurvives in the Royal Library, Copenhagen, as GkS 1812 4to (see Äldsta
delen af cod. 1812 4to Gml. Kgl. Samling, ed. L. Larsson, København
1883, and Alfræ›i íslenzk II, ed. N. Beckman and K. Kålund,
København 1914–16). Cf. also Genesis 1: 14.
12/13–18 = Vsp 5.
12/19 ‘It was the same with the earth before this took place’, or perhaps‘thus it was above the earth (i.e. in the sky) before this took place’.
The words of jƒr› are only in R, but it is hard to see that the sentence
makes better sense if they are omitted.
12/23–4 It is not quite clear on which side of the surrounding ocean thegiants live. It is perhaps most natural to take it that they were on theinside, round the edge of the world inhabited by men, but the story of60

General notesÚtgar›aloki suggests that some at least lived beyond the ocean(37/28–9). Eddic poems provide no clear statement on this.
12/28–39 = Grm 40–1.
13/6 hinn fyrsti is presumably Ó›inn; cf. Vsp 17–18. The vagueness ofidentification here is presumably because the author knew that Vsp
has Hœnir and Ló›urr in place of Vili and Vé in this episode.
13/8 ﬂeim is attracted into the case of the relative clause, and mannkindin
is construed as if a plural (cf. ólusk).
13/10 kalla›r is abbreviated kall with a line and curl through -ll, as at
14/23, 19/35, 39, 23/2, and elsewhere. The gender seems to be
influenced by that of the complement Ásgar›r; kƒllu› (to agree withborg, as in W) would be more normal; T has kallat. Cf. 30/7 and note,and 39/11, where the neuter form is written. At 4/27–8 W has ﬂat hús
ok herbergi . . . er kƒllu› var Troja; see also 29/26 and note.
13/10–17 Here the gods worshipped by the human Æsir of the frame
story are themselves euhemerised and represented as having lived onearth in the past (note the tense of settisk at 13/13), and as being theancestors of the human Æsir. Cf. 8/28–9 and 15/23. At 20/5, however,Hli›skjálf is said to be in heaven.
13/20 Although the phrases gera einhverri barn, gera barn af einhverri
occur in the sense ‘beget a child on (with) someone’ (see J. Fritzner,
Ordbog over det gamle norske Sprog, Oslo 1954, s.v. barn and gera 7),
the phrase used here suggests ‘make (a child) out of (in this case)earth’, and the ambiguity may be intentional.
13/25 If Jƒr› here, as at 13/19, is a personification of the earth, Snorri
evidently knew more than one legend about her ancestry. Cf. 3/29–33,
and 30/36.
13/31 The origin of dew; cf. 19/24–9.
13/34 ff. Snorri appears to be combining several originally distinct
aetiological stories about the sun and moon (night and day). Besides
13/22–33, 13/34–14/7, 14/8–17, he has yet another account at 12/7–19(referred to at 13/40). Note also 54/20–7 and Skáld 90/1–2. Some ofthese stories may represent popular tradition, others may have a morelearned origin, or at least have been modified by learned speculation(and perhaps scaldic word-play?); cf. A. Holtsmark, ‘Bil og Hjuke’,
Maal og Minne 1945, 139–54. Only some parts of these accounts are
represented in extant eddic poetry; cf. Vm 12, 14, 23, 25, Grm 37, 39,
Vsp 5–6, 40, and the note to 14/14–17. See also SnE II 431/3–4 (notpart of Snorri’s work), which is perhaps part of a lost poem.
14/2 í sumum frœ›um: i. e. presumably Grm 37; see note to 12/11.
14/6 i.e. stƒngin (heitir) Simul. For sá (line 5) see sár (1) in glossary.

General notes

61

14/14–17 The two wolves are also mentioned in Grm 39 and (as Skalli
and Hatti) in one manuscript of Hei›reks saga (p. 81). The statement
here that the wolf that goes ahead of the sun will catch the moon is
only in R and W and could be an interpolation, though it is repeated in
all manuscripts at 49/38. In any case it is probably only a deduction
from Grm 39 and Vsp 40 (quoted at 14/28–35), where tungl (here =sun) was probably taken by some medieval readers to mean the moon.
Mánagarmr (14/23) does not appear in other sources and, unless he is
the same as Hati Hró›vitnisson, must represent a different tradition,
though he may be merely Snorri’s rationalisation of Vsp 40–1. Yetanother version of the destruction of the sun appears in Vm 46–7
(quoted at 54/22–7), where it is Fenrir who swallows it.
14/28–15/3 = Vsp 40–1. The second verse, like 14/23–6 above, is aprophecy about ragnarøkr.
15/31 Cf. Vsp 8. The significance of this verse and the identity of thethree females are obscure in the poem, and Snorri does not offer any
clarification. But Jƒtunheimar symbolises for him the forces ofdestruction and chaos that conflict with the order and civilisation
fostered by the Æsir.
15/39–17/4 corresponds to Vsp 9, 10/5–8, 11–13, 15 and 16/1–4. Vsp
10/1–4 and 14 are paraphrased in prose. Snorri’s version differs
considerably from PE, but the fact that all the dwarf-lists (conflated
as they evidently are from several overlapping ﬂulur) appear both inSnorri’s version and in the texts of Vsp in the Codex Regius of the
eddic poems and Hauksbók means that if they are an interpolation in
Vsp the interpolation was made at an early stage in the poem’s textual
history. There is no textual evidence that they are spurious.
16/3–4 See Tryggvi Gíslason, ‘hverr skyldi dverga dróttir skepia’, Festskrift til Ludvig Holm-Olsen på hans 70-årsdag den 9. juni 1984, ØvreErvik 1984, 84–8.
16/11 hon is the prophetess (vƒlva) who is the speaker in Vsp.
17/18 At 25/40 Gjallarhorn is in the possession of Heimdallr (cf. 50/23).
If Heimdallar hljó› in Vsp 27 means Gjallarhorn, it is there said to be
hidden under Yggdrasill.
17/21–8 = Vsp 28/7–14.
17/27 The meaning of af ve›i is obscure: 17/18 suggests that Snorri
took it to be a vessel, and believed that this was Gjallarhorn. In Vsp
27, however, the ve› (presumably Ó›inn’s eye) seems to be conceived
as the source of the flow of mead, or something over which it flows.
17/35 Baldr has not been mentioned before. For a moment Snorri seems
to have forgotten his dramatic framework, and that to Gangleri Baldr

62

General notes

will need an introduction (cf. 23/14), though one would not of course
have been necessary for Snorri’s contemporary readers. His death andburial are related in Gylf ch. 49 (pp. 45–7 in this edition).
l7/38–18/6 = Grm 29. The precise reason why ﬁórr has to walk andwade is not apparent either from the verse or from the prose.
18/11 allt is presumably adverbial, either with ﬂar . . . fyrir ‘everywhere
there’ or with gu›lig vƒrn ‘entirely, absolutely’.
18/17–22 = Fm 13. The speaker is the serpent Fáfnir. This is the only
quotation in Gylf from an eddic poem usually classed as ‘heroic’ rather
than ‘mythological’. It may be that the verse was known to Snorri aspart of another poem, but the content of this and other verses inFáfnismál is mythological and Snorri may have considered the poem
mythological as it stands.
18/34 barr normally means the foliage of conifers. But Snorri was notnecessarily ignorant of the nature of the ash, which he would have
known from his visits to Scandinavia. Bíta barr is an alliterating phrase,and barr may have been extended in reference, at any rate in poetry,
to include all kinds of foliage (see glossary and cf. Skáld ch. 34: barre›a lauf). Alternatively, since Yggdrasill was evergreen (19/26) it may
have been imagined to partake of the nature of a conifer.
18/38–19/13 = Grm 35 and 34. The conflicting information about the
number of stags at 18/34 is derived from Grm 33; Grm 32, 34 and 35
also conflict on the number of serpents (note Snorri’s compromise at
18/35–6). The reason for the apparent contradictions in Grm may bethat the poem we have was compiled from variant versions of poetical
myths, just as Háv included variant versions of gnomic utterances.
19/18 This idea may have been suggested by the so-called petrifying springs
in Iceland which coat objects in their vicinity with a white deposit.
19/20–7 = Vsp 19. æ (line 26) can be taken either with grœnn (i.e.
evergreen) or with stendr.
20/11–18 = Vsp 64.
20/22 ﬂessum himni = ‘our heaven (sky)’, i.e. the one humans see; annarr
himinn (line 21) = Andlangr; ﬂenna sta› line 24 = Gimlé.
20/24–5 i.e. no men are to be found in these places yet (cf. 9/3).
Presumably these heavens will be peopled with good men after theend of the world; cf. 53/9. In Christian tradition humans did notnormally enter heaven until after the Redemption, though some writers
assume that they will not do so until after Doomsday.
20/33–8 = Vm 37.
21/3 svá fró›r i.e. as Gangleri claims to be.
21/13 The number twelve does not include Ó›inn, and ﬁórr is number

General notes63

one (cf. Annarr 23/14, ﬂri›i 23/28). Loki, as an afterthought (26/34),
makes a thirteenth. Cf. the beginning of Skáld (p. 1) where the list of
twelve Æsir similarly excludes Ó›inn (and Baldr and Hƒ›r, though
since Nanna is present among the Ásynjur this cannot be because theepisode takes place after Baldr’s death), but has in addition Hœnir,and includes Loki. In spite of the different terminology in U at 22/28(go›anna e›a Ásanna) and 22/31 (sterkastr Ása ok allra gu›anna ok
manna), it does not seem that Snorri intended to distinguish Æsir fromother gods (i.e. Vanir), though the exclusion of the latter (i.e. Njƒr›r
and Freyr) from the tally in Gylf would leave exactly twelve includingÓ›inn and Loki. But Njƒr›r is described as an Áss at 23/28 (in all
manuscripts, including U) in spite of the statement at 23/32 (which R
omits).
21/21–6 This seems to be a conflation of Ls 29/1, 4–6, 21/1–2 and 47/3.
Snorri may have known a different oral version of the poem from that
preserved in PE, but the differences may be just due to his faulty
memory.
21/29 Snorri seems to be identifying the einherjar in Valhƒll with therétt si›a›ir menn in Gimlé (9/2–3) by associating both places with Vingólf.
21/32–22/15 = Grm 46–50 and 54, but again with considerable differences. Cf. 8/29–32 and note.
22/16–19, 24–5 Cf. Grm 48–50, where some of Ó›inn’s names are said
to have arisen from his various adventures; such adventures are known
from PE, Skáld, Ynglinga saga and various heroic sagas (fornaldar
sögur) which may have existed as oral tales in Snorri’s time, and fromsome stories of hagiographic tendency associated with Óláfr Tryggvason, e.g. in Flateyjarbók. 22/20–4 harks back to the explanation in the
prologue, 4/9–12.
22/30–1 The names Ásaﬂórr and ¯kuﬂórr are probably here intended to
distinguish this ﬁórr from ﬁórr son of Munon (4/37), as at 55/3–4. Cf.
13/20.
22/33–4 ‘the biggest ever built’: menn is here used in its widest nonspecific sense as indefinite subject, and does not mean ‘humans’ as
opposed to ‘divine beings’; the statement paraphrases 22/38–40.
22/35–40 = Grm 24. Ó›inn is the speaker in the poem, and his (principal)
son is ﬁórr (13/20).
23/18–19 See textual note. This sentence is concerned with attributes
other than physical, so the emendation seems justified.
23/20 Brei›ablik has already been mentioned (19/38) but this seems tohave been forgotten; U adds ﬂann sta› er . . . fyrr er nefndr.
23/22–7 = Grm 12.

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General notes

23/33–5 The conflict between Æsir and Vanir is mentioned again in Skáld(p. 3), and in Vsp 24, Ls 34, Vm 39; and in greater detail in Ynglinga
saga (Hkr I 12), where it is almost divested of its mythical character.
More details about Njƒr›r’s marriage are given in Skáld 2, cf. Skáld
18 (ch. 6); see also Ynglinga saga (Hkr I 21–2) and the verses of
Háleygjatal quoted there. In Saxo Grammaticus, Book I, 8, the storyof Haddingus and Regnilda appears to be a euhemerised version of
the legend of Njƒr›r and Ska›i, and the two verses Snorri quotes(24/3–15), though they are not recorded elsewhere in Old Norse, were
evidently known to Saxo in some form. They presumably form part ofan otherwise lost poem about Njƒr›r.
24/19–24 = Grm 11.
24/32–7 = Grm 14; cf. 21/27–9. On Freyja’s role here where Frigg might
have been expected cf. Egils saga (ÍF II 244) and Sƒrla ﬂáttr (Flateyjarbók I 276). See also Skáld ch. 20, where Freyja is called eigandi valfalls,
and Skáld chs 18 (p. 24) and 19 (p. 30), where Frigg is said to be theowner of the bird-shape which in ﬁrk 3 and Skáld 2/11 seems to belong
to Freyja.
25/6–8 Gylfi here discovers the apparent answer to his question at 7/22–3.
25/14–19 This story is told in more detail in Gylf ch. 34, pp. 27–9.
25/29–30 Clearly a reference to the story of the loss of the apples andthe near-disaster that resulted, told in Skáld 1–2; the ek refers perhaps
as much to Snorri as to Hár. The reference does not necessarily meanthat Gylf was written after Skáld, since it could have been added later,or perhaps means simply that Snorri was reserving the story for a later
place in his work.
26/1 hƒfu› is the subject. The sentence is not in U here and really belongs
in Skáld; see Skáld ch. 8 (where sem fyrr er ritat presumably refers to
the present passage in Gylf ) and ch. 69. The legend underlying theserather puzzling passages has not been preserved. Cf. Háttatal st. 7/1–2
and SnE II 498–9; ÍF VlI 208 n.
26/2–7 = Grm 13.
26/8–10 Nothing more survives of Heimdalargaldr, though it is referredto again at Skáld 19/12, and Heimdallr’s parentage is mentioned in
the verse of Úlfr Uggason quoted at Skáld 20. There is a later eddictype poem known as Hrafnagaldr Ó›ins or Forspjallsljó› (PE 371–6).
26/12–14, 15. Cf. p. 46 and 50/37 ff. below.
26/28–33 = Grm 15.
27/10 A comma at fa›erni, making ﬁá . . . sér in line 11 the main clauseof the sentence beginning at line 6, might make the passage smoother,
but all manuscripts indicate a major break at fa›erni (new paragraphGeneral notes

65

RW, new sentence TU). The use of ok to introduce a main clause after
a subordinate clause (line 9) is not uncommon (see ok in glossary).
27/15 ‘over the nine worlds’ (see heimr in glossary); i.e. all who died ofsickness or old age in any of the nine worlds came under Hel’s
jurisdiction, though her actual authority was over the one of the nine
to which all such people were obliged to go (Niflheimr).
27/18–21 The list is extended in U, and another more elaborate accountis found in AM 748 I b 4to (SnE II 494: ‘Frá híb‡lum Heljar’).
27/40–28/1 There seem, however, to be no examples of the use of thesesayings in Old Icelandic.
28/5–12 There is a metrical version of the composition of Gleipnir in
AM 748 I b 4to and AM 757 a 4to (SnE II 431–2 and 515).
29/26 Verb and participle are attracted into agreement with the complement hnossir. The subject is ﬂat er fagrt er (‘whatever is beautiful
and valuable is called a hnoss’). According to the ﬂula in Skáld 115(verse 435), Hnoss had a sister called Gersemi (‘treasure, jewel’).
29/28–9 Another attempt to explain the multiplicity of names for a single
figure in Norse mythology. Cf. 22/16–27 and note. There are morenames for Freyja in the ﬂula in Skáld 115 (verse 435).
29/31 Vanadís: Freyja was technically not one of the Ásynjur, just asNjƒr›r and Freyr were not really Æsir (see 23/32 and 24/25–6 and cf.
note to 21/13).
30/7 kallat is written kall with abbreviation sign in R and W, cf. note to
13/10; the neuter form is probably intended here since the participle
relates to both a masculine and a feminine noun (snotr could be masculine or feminine, but not neuter), but note the masculine sá. U has kƒllu›.
30/11–20 These verses are only known from here.
30/25–33 = Grm 36 (the speaker is Ó›inn).
30/38–31/26 There is a poetical version of this story in Skm; 31/27–32 =Skm 42.
31/33–4 Freyr is in several places referred to as bani or dólgr (enemy)
Belja, see 52/9 (= Vsp 53) and Skáld 18 (verse 61, = Háleygjatal 5)
and Skáld 89 (verse 328), but nothing more is known of the storyreferred to. In Haustlƒng 18, quoted at Skáld 23 (verse 69), Beli isused as a characteristic name for one of the giants.
31/40–32/2 i.e. at ragnarøkr, see 50/13–14, 30–2.
32/4 Cf. 21/29 and note, 24/31, and 9/3 and 15/26. There certainly seemto be inconsistencies, but one of them would be resolved if Vingólf/
Gimlé is taken to be part of Valhƒll.
32/8–9 i.e. at ragnarøkr, when as many einherjar as possible will beneeded to help defend the gods from the wolf Fenrir and their other

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General notes

enemies. This idea is also found in scaldic poetry, e.g. Eiríksmál(Skjaldevers, ed. Jón Helgason, København 1962 (Nordisk filologi A12), 22–3; E. V. Gordon, An Introduction to Old Norse, rev. A. R.
Taylor, Oxford 1957, 148–9).
32/11 ﬂessi spurning (nominative) is not syntactically linked to the restof the sentence, since ﬂykki is impersonal and líkara neuter, but it ispicked up by hér . . . af (‘concerning this matter’) in the last clause.
32/15–20, 26–31, 32/37–33/3 = Grm 18–20.
33/6–7 Cf. Eiríksmál (see note to 32/8–9) and Eyvindr skáldaspillir’s
Hákonarmál (Hkr I 186–97).
33/16–17 Gangleri’s reply is unmistakably ironic. Thus Snorri draws
attention to the naïve aspects of the mythology he treats.
33/18–25 Cf. Grm 26–8. But at 9/20–24 Hvergelmir was described as aspring (bru›r) which existed before Valhƒll and Eikﬂyrnir did, andSnorri is evidently giving two incompatible versions of the source ofthe rivers. Five of those named at 33/21–5 are among those listed at
9/22–4 (though some in variant forms), and all the names in both lists(or variants of them) are included in Grm 27–8. Many also appear in
the ﬂula in Skáld 124–6.
33/34–9 = Grm 23.
34/8–13 = Vm 41.
34/16–24 = Grm 44. The use of the plural Ásanna at 34/15 is odd, sinceÓ›inn alone is the speaker in the poem. Hár may be referring to its
transmission. It is difficult to know whether Snorri seriously thoughtthat eddic poems were composed by the Æsir. But he carefully excludes
scaldic poems from the dialogue in Gylf, almost certainly because of
the anachronism of putting quotations from the work of historical poets
into the mouths of prehistoric characters. This implies that he thought
the eddic poems they do quote were composed in prehistoric times,
before the migration of the Æsir.
The human poet Bragi would fit rather uncomfortably into these
mythological surroundings, and it may be that it is the god Bragi who
is meant at 34/22.
34/33–4 Freyja was particularly coveted by giants (cf. ﬁrk 8, 23, Vsp
25, Skáld 20/34). The sun and moon are obviously included becauseof Vsp 25/5–6, but it is uncertain whether Snorri is right to connect
Vsp 25–6 (which are quoted at 35/36–36/11; verse 26 is also paraphrased
at 35/28–30) with this story.
35/10 The builder was evidently not building the wall course by course
but to its full height a stretch at a time, starting at one end and finishingat the other.

General notes

67

35/14–17 Cf. 48/10–11 and 27/2–3. Loki is tormented to make him speak(like Ó›inn in the prose introduction to Grm) in Skáld 24 (ch. 18); cf.
Skáld 1, 2, 41. In Gylf ch. 50 (49/5 ff.) his torture is retributive.
35/20–1 hestr and merr are the words for stallion and mare; hrossnormally denotes the species without distinction of sex. Hvat hrossi
ﬂetta var: ‘what sort of horse it was’, i.e. that it was a mare.
35/29–30 Cf. ﬁrk 32.
35/32 i.e. below the lowest world (see 9/4–5 and Vm 43), such was theforce of the blow.
35/33 hann = Loki. An eight-legged horse is depicted on picture-stones
from Gotland made in the eighth or ninth centuries. See S. Lindqvist,
Gotlands Bildsteine (Stockholm 1941–2), I figs. 137 and 139. Cf. theriddle in Hei›reks saga 44.
35/36–36/11 = Vsp 25–6.
36/16–17 These dwarfs appear also in Skáld 41–2 (ch. 35) where the makingof the ship is again mentioned. Cf. also Grm 43 (quoted at Skáld 18–19,
verse 62). In Ynglinga saga (Hkr I 18) Ó›inn is said to own Skí›bla›nir.
36/31 The last four words relate both to til ﬂess and to ﬂví. Snorri attributesto Hár the belief that there is an orthodoxy in the heathen religion. Cf.
21/6, 11–12.
36/32–3 If Gangleri is right, he will have won the contest of wisdom;see 8/23 and note, 36/39–40, and cf. 21/3 ff., 22/26, 44/3.
37/3–43/38 There is no poetical source extant for the story of ﬁórr andÚtgar›aloki, but some motives in it appear in eddic poems: ﬁórr’s
taking refuge in a glove is referred to in Hrbl 26 (where the giant iscalled Fjalarr) and Ls 60, his inability to undo the food-bag in Ls 62,
and the lameness of his goat in Hym 37 (but here Loki is maderesponsible and the context is different; the goats are mentioned several
times in this poem). ﬁjálfi is only mentioned in one eddic poem (Hrbl),
Rƒskva in none. A kenning for old age based on ﬁórr’s wrestling with
Elli is found in Egils saga verse 1 (ÍF II 60), but this verse may not be
as old as the saga claims.
37/7 ﬂeir lagsmenn = ﬁórr and Loki, see glossary.
37/29 hafit: cf. 12/2–3, 22–3, 27/12–13, 44/3–45/13. There is no
explanation of how ﬁórr crossed it in R, T and W, though in U he issaid to have swum. Perhaps he waded (cf. 17/36 and 45/13).
37/32 A foreshadowing of 40/9 ff.
37/33 From here on the presence of Rƒskva in the party seems to beignored; the pronoun ﬂau still occurs sporadically (37/39–38/1, 38/30),
but ﬂeir gradually supersedes it, and Rƒskva takes no further part in
the action.

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General notes

39/11 kallat: the masculine or feminine form would be more normal (cf.
note to 13/10 above).
39/17 ﬂann, i.e. kost (alternative).
40/13–14 hann (= Útgar›aloki) is the subject of lætr, ﬂessa is the genitive
with freista, skulu is impersonal; the direct speech equivalent of theclause is ﬂessa skal skjótt freista (cf. 40/1–2).
40/30 ok: see ok in glossary and note to 27/10.
40/35–6 ﬂat má vel vera: ‘that may well be’, i.e. (presumably) that he isgood at that, or that that is his chief accomplishment; or ‘that will be
fine’. On ﬁórr’s drinking cf. Skáld 20 and ﬁrk 24–5.
41/6 See note to 40/30.
41/7 ‘there must be a very little difference by which it is lower’, i.e. it
must be by a very small amount that it is lower.
41/22–3 ‘than it seems to me will be the case with this one (game)’.
41/33 This is the first speech of ﬁórr to Útgar›aloki given in his own
words, and he uses the ‘polite’ plural form of the pronoun (unless heis including all those present in his question), while Útgar›aloki
consistently uses the ‘familiar’ singular form in addressing ﬁórr (cf.
42/7, 32).
42/32 i.e. ﬁórr views his loss of future reputation as more serious thanhis present humiliation.
42/38 haf›ir: perhaps an error for hef›ir (so WT): ‘and that you would
have’, ‘and that you were going to have (brought us)’.
42/39 kom ek: i.e. it was I who came.
43/16 ﬁat . . . kalla›ar: an aetiological aside. The nú makes it clear that
it is not part of Útgar›aloki’s speech, but whether the speaker is ﬁri›i,or whether Snorri has for a moment broken through the dramatic frameof his story is perhaps open to doubt. Ok . . . hann must be spoken byﬁri›i, referring to Útgar›aloki.
43/24–5 sá corresponds logically, though not syntactically, to ƒllum
(anacoluthon).
43/30–2 In lifting the hammer above his head with both hands, ﬁórr has
for a moment had to take his eyes off Útgar›aloki. Note the similarity
to the end of Gylf, where Gangleri, surprised by the sudden noise(54/31), for a moment takes his eyes off his interlocutors, and they
disappear.
44/3 ‘It is not unknown even (to those who) are not scholars’: eventhose who are not scholars know this story—another comment on
Gangleri’s ignorance (cf. 15/5, 21/3, 22/26, 33/6, 29, 34/27–8), and
Hár does not on this occasion even need ﬁri›i’s help to tell it.
The following story figures in Húsdrápa and Ragnarsdrápa andGeneral notes69

other scaldic poems used by Snorri (see Skáld verses 24, 42, 48, 51,
54, 55, 56, 153, 210, 316, 366, SnE II 499; Skj A I 3–4, 6, 137, 140) as
well as in Hym; see SG Kommentar 255–6. It is depicted on stones
from Altuna (Uppland, Sweden), Hørdum (Hassing, Thisted, Denmark), and Gosforth, Cumberland (see MRN, plate 21; Einar Ó.
Sveinsson, Íslenzkar bókmenntir í fornöld I, Reykjavik 1962, 343 and346; P. Foote and D. M. Wilson, The Viking Achievement, London
1970, plate 26).
44/16 fyrir ﬂví . . . at: ‘for this reason . . . that’.
45/10 ek = Hár. The hammer never misses (Skáld 42/32–3), but on theother hand the Midgard serpent survives to fight at ragnarøkr (50/3).
Snorri does not attempt to reconcile the two, but appeals to the existenceof more than one version of the story. The first (‘segja menn’) is
supported by Úlfr Uggason’s Húsdrápa (Skáld 17, verse 56), which
also supports the reading hrƒnnunum in W and T for grunninum. The
second version (hitt) probably corresponded to Bragi’s Ragnarsdrápa(cf. Skáld 96, verse 366), though the conclusion of the story in whatsurvives of this poem is not quite clear. Hym also seems to be defectiveat this point in the story, but it differs from Snorri’s account in that
there Hymir survives the expedition.
45/16 ff. Baldr’s death figures in Úlfr Uggason’s Húsdrápa (Skáld verses
8, 14, 19, 63, 242), Vsp, Bdr, and other poems. Saxo Grammaticus(Book III) includes a euhemerised version of the story.
46/7–8 ‘that was the greatest disaster ever brought to pass’.
46/9 fellusk . . . ordtƒk ok svá hendr: zeugma.
46/26 ‘The steed of the troll(-wife)’ is a well-known kenning for wolf,
possibly based on this story. See, for example, Hkr III 178 and Ormsﬂáttr Stórólfssonar, verse 7 (ÍF XIII 412); and cf. Hkr III 177 andHelgakvi›a Hjƒrvar›ssonar, prose after verse 30 (PE 176). A carved
stone from Hunnestad, Skåne (Sweden), depicts a wolf as a mount,see MRN, plate 22. Cf. R. Meissner, Die Kenningar der Skalden, Bonnand Leipzig 1921, 124–5.
46/29 The ship evidently had the prow facing up the beach and waslaunched stern first.
47/4 Cf. 47/32, where Ó›inn gets the ring back again. The inclusion ofsí›an (47/5), which T omits, makes this statement conflict with Skáld
42, where the ring is said to have had this property from the beginning.
But there are other such contradictions in Snorra Edda, and it is notcertain that sí›an is an addition. Cf. also Skm 21 and Skáld 45.
48/4–9 This verse is not found elsewhere, but it may be from an otherwise
lost poem about the death of Baldr.

70

General notes

48/22 ‘in the way in which nets have been ever since’, an aetiologicalcomment, like that at 49/3–4.
48/39 hitt, i.e. the opposite course (at . . . netit); annarr, i.e. lífs háski.
49/5 ff. Loki’s capture and punishment are related briefly, and with certain
differences (particularly in the names of Loki’s sons), in the concludingprose in Ls. There the episode is not connected with the death of Baldr.
49/16 ‘That is what you call an earthquake’: Hár’s comment to Gangleri.
Another aetiological aside.
49/20 ﬁau: i.e. tí›indi.
49/27–36 = Vsp 45.
49/37 ff. The present tenses in this and the following passages of dialogue
are to be taken as referring to future time. Up to 49/17 all narratives
have related to past events, though present tenses have often describedactions continuing through the present (e.g. 29/8–10, 49/13–17).
49/37–9 Cf. 14/14–17, 22–6, 34, 54/24 and notes to 13/34 ff. and 14/14–17.
50/5–7 The syntax is rather unclear, but fyrir ﬂví probably relates to theat-clause, and the ef-clause explains the varnan, i.e. the precaution isagainst letting (one ought not to let) a man die with uncut nails. Cf.
vi›vƒrunarvert, ÍF XII 274.
50/16 Cf. 15/9.
50/24 Cf. 51/8–9 (Vsp 46); Ynglinga saga, Hkr I 13 and 18; Sd 14.
50/31–2 Cf. 31/21–3, 31/40–32/2.
50/40 i.e. when shoes are being made and the shape is cut from a pieceof leather, leaving waste scraps, which would often be triangular inshape (bjórar), at the toes (fyrir tám: not ‘for the toes’) and heel.
51/6–52/36 = Vsp 46/5–8, 47/1–4, 48, 50–3, 55–7. There are considerable
differences between the texts.
51/13 The jƒtunn here could be Fenrisúlfr (29/10, 50/2), or Garmr (50/32–3;
cf. Vsp 44, 49, 54, 58) or Loki (49/17, cf. 26/36).
51/22 and 51/33 conflict with 50/8; 51/31–2 with 50/13–14. Snorri may
have intentionally departed from the account in Vsp, and originally he
may not have included all the verses here quoted (many of them arelacking in U), since their inclusion draws attention to the discrepancies.
52/5 Hlín is thought to have been another name for Frigg, in spite of
30/4. Her first grief would have been the death of her son Baldr (seeSkáld chs 5, 19; Ls 27–8).
52/24 Both the Codex Regius of the eddic poems and the manuscripts of
SnE have ókví›num (RW; ókví›jum T; the text of Hauksbók is illegiblehere), and the word therefore relates to na›ri: ‘unafraid of shamefulacts, not holding back from his wicked deed’. The emendation ókví›inn

General notes

71(relating to mƒgr, i.e. ﬁórr) would give easier sense (‘unashamed of
disgrace, having no fear of belying his reputation’) but has no manuscript support.
52/29–30 Cf. Arnórr jarlaskáld (born c.1012), ﬁorfinnsdrápa 24, quoted
in Skáld 33:
Bjƒrt ver›r sól at svartri,søkkr fold í mar døkkvan.
It is usually assumed that Arnórr was influenced by Vsp rather thanvice versa.
52/38–53/3 = Vm 18.
53/6–7 Ok . . . aldir may be a statement or reminder rather than a question.
53/8–13 Cf. 9/2–3, 20/7–18 and note to 32/4. Ó›inn himself does notsurvive ragnarøkr.
53/15 conflicts with 53/21–2.
53/16 Cf. 9/4–5, which also conflicts with 27/14–16.
53/17–31= Vsp 38–9. In the versions of Vsp in PE there is no mention of
Hvergelmir, and Ní›hƒggr seems to be at Nástrƒnd.
54/4–9 = Vm 51.
54/14–19 = Vm 45. The first line is syntactically incomplete; it is theanswer to the question Hvat lifir manna . . . in Vm 44, and the verb of
the question has to be supplied in the answer.
54/22–7 = Vm 47. berr refers to future time. Cf. 49/37–9 and note.
54/29 ﬂat could refer either to the question (‘how you will be able to ask
such a question’) or to the answer (‘where you will get an answer
from’). Cf. note to 8/22–3.
54/30 Cf. Háv 164 and note to 8/10–15.
54/31–3 Cf. note to 43/30–2.
54/35 This is how the stories are supposed to have reached the author(cf. note to 34/16–24). Snorri is on other occasions concerned to givea realistic explanation for the transmission of information, e.g. Hkr I
298, II 358. See Sigur›ur Nordal, Snorri Sturluson, Reykjavík 1920,
201–2. Cf. also Grettis saga (ÍF VII 205), ¯rvar-Odds saga (ed. R. C.
Boer, Leiden 1888, 194–5), Njáls saga (ÍF XII 330–1), Orms ﬂáttr
Stórólfssonar, ch. 8 (ÍF XIII 414–6).
54/38 ﬂar, i.e. in Scandinavia, to men of their own company and to the
localities in their new homeland. Cf. 6/24–30 and notes.
55/2 er nú var frá sagt, i.e. the Æsir about whom stories have been told in
Gylf (er á›r eru nefnd, 54/38). Their names and exploits are now being
attributed by a deliberate policy of deception to the ‘historical’ Æsir

72

General notes(ﬂessir 55/2) emigrant from Asia, to whom Gangleri has been talking,so that the local people and their descendants would believe them to be
identical.
55/3–4 i.e. someone there was given the name of ﬁórr, that is the namethat had belonged to the original (god) ﬁórr (¯kuﬂórr), and to him
were attributed the deeds of (H)ector of Troy, which were supposed tobe symbolically represented in myths relating to ¯kuﬂórr (see Skáld
5/36–6/29); cf. 4/35–5/9.
55/5–7 i.e. the uncomplimentary myths about Loki are supposed to derivefrom Turkish (i.e. Trojan, and hostile) accounts of Ulysses.

General notes

73

Textual notes
The text (from 5/13) is based solely on R: readings from other manuscripts are
only quoted when the text of R is incoherent or has obvious omissions. Verses
from eddic and scaldic poems are also printed (and glossed) in the form inwhich they appear in R, and there is no attempt at a critical text.
The text of the first part of the prologue is based on K. The only medieval
heading preserved is that in U (see Introduction) 3/1 skapa›i] NJWU; skóp K
3/2 tvá] NJW; ﬂá K 3/4 ﬂá] NJW; K omits 3/6 ok (1)] NJW; K omits 3/7
í ƒrkinni váru] NJW; váru í ƒrkinni K 3/8–9 ok kómu . . . ættir] NJW; K omits
3/9 ﬂá] NW; ﬂegar K
3/10 allr] NJWU; mestr K
3/11 afrœktusk] JW,afrœktisk U; afrœktu K
3/13 Svá] NThJW; Ok svá K
3/14 eigi (1)] W, ei
NThJ; engi K
3/15 jar›ligar giptir] NJWU; veraldligar giptur K
3/16
Mi›la›i hann] JW; Hann mi›la›i K spekina] NTh, spekinni K at] NJW; K
omits
3/18 ﬁat] NThJWU; ﬁó K
3/19 saman] NThJWU; sam K
3/20hætti] NThJW; háttum K at (2)] NJW, er K 3/21 ok (1)] NJWU; ﬂá K vatn
upp] NJW; upp vatn K 3/23 ok] NThJW; sem K ¯nnur náttúra er sú] NJWU;
Sú er ƒnnur náttúra K
3/24 á jƒr›unni gras] JW; gras á jƒr›u K
3/25 at]
NThJWU; K omits
3/26–8 ﬁat er . . . jƒr›unni] based on N; K omits
3/26
er (2)] JW; N omits
3/27 ﬂá] ThJWU; at ﬂá N
moldu] ThJWU; jƒr›u e›amoldu N 3/28 á] NThJ; í K 3/29 svá] NWU; K omits 3/31 í] NJW; at K
3/32 –4/6 Fyrir . . . jar›arinnar] based on N; K omits 3/32 nafn] ThJW; nƒfnN 3/33 ﬁat] here T begins gƒmlum frændum] JWT, fe›rum N 3/34 váru]
JWT; var N 3/35 himintungl] JWT; tungl himins N 4/1 nokkurr] ThJWTU;
einnhverr N
4/2 sá] JWTU; hann N
ríkr mjƒk] ThT; mjƒk ríkr N
ok
máttugr] ThJWT; máttugr ok mikill N 4/3 ﬂess] JWT; ﬂessu N ef] JWT; er
N ré›i] ThJT; ré› NW hƒfu›skepnunum] JWT; hƒfu›skepnunni N 4/6
ávexti] ThJWT; atvexti N 4/6–9 er . . . ve›ranna] T; KNTh omit 4/11–12 ok
hefir . . . greindusk] WT; KNTh omit 4/13 ﬂeir] JT; ﬂeir af K 4/14 spek›in]
WT; skynsem› K
4/19 sá] JWT; K omitse›a Enea] JWTU, e›a Evea Th,e›a Ena N; K omits
4/20 byggja] NThJWU; byggja sƒkum frosta K
4/21
austrhálfur] NJWT; austrhálfu K kallat] NWT, kƒllu› K 4/22 ávaxtar] JW,ávƒxtr NTh; K omits 4/23 verƒldin] NJWTU; verƒld K ok (2)] NThJWTU;
en K 4/23–4 fegri ok betri] NJWT; betri ok fegri ok gnœgri K 4/25 giptum]
ThJW; giptunum K
aflinu] ThWT; aflinu ok K
4/26 kunnustu] W,kunnastinnar T, kunnáttu NThJ; kunstum K
4/28 Troja] NThJWT; Troju K
4/29 gƒrr] NThJWT; put after hagleik in K
meira] JWT; myklu meira K
marga lund] NThJWT; margar lundir K
4/34 manndómliga] NThJWT;
veraldliga K
4/35 Mennon] WT, Menon K
4/36 hƒfu›konungs] NThJW,hƒfu›konungsins KT 4/37 uppfœzlu] NJWT; uppvexti ok uppfœzlu K 4/40
er (2)] ThJWT; var K
5/2 ﬁá . . . senn] NWT; K omits
5/4 Thracia] JWT;
Thraciam K 5/5 allar] NThT; KW omit alla] ThJWT; K omits 5/6 heims]
JWT; heimsins K 5/9–13 ﬁeira . . . Scialdun] based on Th; K and N omit 5/9
Lori›i] WT; Hleri›i Th
fe›r] JWT; fƒ›ur Th
5/10 var] JWT; Th omits

74

Textual notes

Einri›i] T; Irides er vér kƒllum Indri›a Th
Vingeﬂórr] JWU; Vingﬂórr Th
5/11 Vingenir] JWTU; Hnikarr Th
hans son Mó›a] JWU, hans son Mó›i T;
Th omits Magi] JWU; Majus er vér kƒllum Magna Th Sescef] T; Leifr Th
5/12 Be›vig] WU; Bƒ›vígi Th hans son Athra] JWTU; Th omits er] JWTU;
en Th
5/13 Ítrmann] WU; Trógranni Th
Heremó›] JWT; Hermó›r Th
Scialdun] JWTU; Ska›vígi Th er] here R begins 5/15 hans son Finn] WT;
no longer legible in R
Friallaf] WT (altered from Frilleif in T); Fiarllaf R
5/34 Freovin] W; Freovit R Wigg] Uuigg or Yvigg R; Yvigg W, Uuig T 5/35
er vér k-] W; hole in R 5/36 Rerir] WU; Verir R 6/2 -min e-] W; hole in R
6/9 ﬂat] WT; R omits 6/12 Skipa›i] WTU, Skipa R 6/17 til] WTU; R omits
7/1 There is no medieval heading in RWT; the name Gylfaginning is from theheading in U. 7/4 af] WT; at R 7/8 -un landi-] WT; hole in R 8/19 sá (1)]WT; R omits
8/35 allar] WT; hole in R
9/4 í Ni-] WTU; hole in R
9/12
alda] WTU; halda R 9/23 Fjƒrm] W; Fjƒrni U, Fƒrm RT; cf. 33/21 Fimbulﬂul]
written as two words in RT and split over line division in W; cf. 33/22
9/32
lævi] WU; leifi RT; cf. 51/39
10/3 úr] WT; en R 10/7 hƒfugleik] WTU; written hƒf|leik over line division
R 10/26 RT add ﬁá spur›i Gangleri after jƒtunn (the name abbreviated G. in
T; perhaps for Gagnrá›r?—see explanatory note to 10/27–35) 10/36 R adds
saman after ættir 11/1 at] WT; hole in R 11/11 dag] WU; R omits 11/19
ﬂér] WT; R has the abbreviation for ﬂeir 11/23 R adds ﬂú after drektu 12/9
eldingum] TU; eldinum R
12/31 bjƒrg] WT; bjƒrgr R
13/5 menn] writtenwith the abbreviation for mƒnnum R
13/7 ok (2)] WT; hole in R
13/19
fullgert] WT; fullt gert R
13/20 ﬂat] WT; ﬂar R
13/24 Au›r] WTU; U›r R
13/35 át-] WTU; hole in R 14/20 Já- (1)] WU; hole in R 15/2 ve›r] W; ver›r
RTU
15/25 ger›u] written twice in R
15/29–30 ok ƒll rei›igƒgn] WT; R
omits 15/37 -›so-] WTU; hole in R 16/4 dr-] WTU; hole in R 16/20 Óri]W; Órinn T, Órr U; R omits
16/38–9 er kominn] WU; eru komnir R
17/2
Eikinskjaldi] as one word U (spelt -skjalli), Eikinn, Skjaldi R; split over line
division WT
17/7 R has Ydrasils here and at 18/3; elsewhere Yggdrasils
17/22 ﬂú] WTU; á R 17/23 í] WTU; ór R 17/25 mjƒ›] WTU; mƒ› R 17/27
ve›i] WTU, vei›i R 17/35 Léttfeti] WTU; Léttfet R
17/36 dómsins] WT;
dóms síns R 18/11 er] WU; eru RT vƒrn] WT, vƒtn R 19/13 mei›s] WU;
me›s RT
19/14 vi›] WTU; R omits
19/16 eigi] WTU; R omits
19/21
Yggdrasill] WTU; Yggdrasils R 19/26 grœnn] WT; grunn R 19/29 b‡flugur]
WTU; bl‡flugur R
19/33 -fu›-] WTU; hole in R
20/4 -skjálf WTU; -skjaf R
20/22 Andlangr] WT; Andlang R
21/12 á]WTU; R omits
21/21 -rr e-] WTU; hole in R
21/28–9 -eim sk-] WTU;
hole in R 21/33 Ganglari] W; Gangari RT, Gangleri U 22/1 Bil-] WTU; TilR
22/20 upp] WTU; R omits
22/22 atbur›] WT; atbur›r R
23/4 á lopt]
WTU; R omits 23/13 ek] WTU; R omits 23/18 fegr›] WTU; hole in R á(1)] WTU; R omits 23/18–19 fegrst tala›r] WTU; fegrstr tali›r R 23/32 Eigi
. . . ættar] WU; R omits
23/39 nætr] WTU; vetr R
24/1 a›rar] T; a›ra R
24/4 á] WT; R omits 24/10 máttigak] máttak R, mátka T, ne mátta W 24/27
skini] WTU; skiln R
25/3 tignar-] WTU; R omits
25/14 R adds hans afterTextual notes

75

eitt 25/16 en] WTU; er R 25/18 úlfli›r] WTU; úlfri›r R 25/36 at] WTU;
ok R 26/20 Ullr] WTU; Ulli R 26/31 ﬂar] U and PE; ﬂat RT, ﬂá W 26/32
flestan] WT; flestum R 26/37 Helblindi] WTU; Heldlindi R 27/3 Sigyn] W(spelt Sygin) and T; Lygin R
Nari] WTU; R perhaps has Nati
27/15 Rperhaps has skipta, in which case skyldi should be supplied before the word
(thus WTU) 27/19 Ganglƒt] W; Ganlƒt RT Fora›] WTU; Fora R 27/38–9
ok knú›isk . . . fjƒturinn] WT (though T has spyrndi); R omits, but has spyrnirvi› in the margin and a caret sign after sik in line 38 27/39 fjarri] TU; færri
R
28/5 sex] WU; fimm RT (Roman numerals)
28/8 at (1)] WTU; ok R
28/9 hafa] WTU; R omits
29/10 ﬁar] WTU; ﬁá R
29/22 Fulla] WT; Fua R
30/3 ósanna] WTU; ásanna R 30/17 lí›k] T; lí›r RW 30/36 -nan] WTU;
hole in R
30/37 eru] WU; hole in R
31/4 lauk] written twice in R
31/6
heimar] WT; R omits 31/34 drap] WT; diarp R 32/10 Sæ(h)rímnir] WTU;
Sæmnir R 32/11 apt-] WU; hole in R 32/12 af] WT; R omits 32/19 En]
WTU; at R
32/27 -tami›r] WT; -tamigr R
32/34 sendir] WTU; sendi R
33/18 Eikﬂyrni] W; Eirﬂyrni R
33/19 hans] WU; RT omit
33/24 Veg] W;
Vog RT 34/24 Garmr] WU; Gramr RT 34/36 einum] WT; enum R 35/1
at hann] WT; R omits 36/24 Hvárt is written with a large capital in RWU, andT also indicates a major break at this point
36/27 ﬁá] WT; ﬁar R
36/30
eigi] WTU; R omits
36/36 mun (1)] T; munu R
37/5 ﬂar] WT; R has theabbreviation for ﬂeir 37/23 ok] WT; at R 37/31 dag] WT; R omits 39/12
Útgar›r] WTU; Útgar› R
39/21 eigi] TU; RW omit
39/35 ﬂat er] WT; R
omits
40/21 ﬂeir] WT; written with the abbreviation for ﬂér in R
40/23 kemr]
WTU; kominn R 40/26 ﬂykki mér ﬁjálfi] WTU; ﬂykkja mér ﬂit R 40/40 í]
WTU; R omits
41/15 í] U; R omits
41/25 ﬂreytir] WU; ﬂr‡tr R
42/1
beyg›i kenginn] WTU; baug›i kengit (or hangit) R 42/2 seildisk] WT; seldisk
R 42/8 einnhverr] WTU; einnhvern R 42/21 í] WT; á R 43/1 eigi] WU;
RT omit 43/6 ﬂér] WT; R omits 43/9 trogit en slátrit] WT; slátrit en trogit
R 43/23 er ﬂú stótt . . . fœti] WT; R omits 43/35 En] WT; at R 43/37 ﬂér]WT; written with the abbreviation for ﬂeir in R
44/3 -menn] W; R has theabbreviation for -mƒnnum
44/4 frá] WT; R omits
44/10 á] WT; R omits
44/35 grunns] WTU; brunns R 44/36 minnr] WT; R omits 44/40 svá] WU;
R omits 45/24 standa] WT; standi R 46/14 ﬂeim mun] W; ﬂeimun R 46/20
er] WT; en R 46/33 af] WT; á R 46/36 fœti sínum] WT; fœtum R 46/38
at (1)] WT; R omits, and ﬂessa (without preposition) may have been intended
47/13 minnr] WU; jafnmjƒk RT
48/8 karls sonar] W, karlsonar T;
kaldsonar R 48/9 haldi] WTU; hafi R 48/26 eldinum] WT; eldinn R 49/3
nam] WTU; naf R 49/8 sundr] WTU; hole in R 49/10 R may have had eggbefore steina, like U; the edge of the page is damaged
50/17 ﬂann vƒll] WT; ﬂingvƒll R
50/18 ﬁar] WTU; ﬁá R
50/20 einir]
WTU; yfir R
50/24 rí›r] WTU; rei› R
50/28 Gungnir] W; Gugnir RT
50/39 hefir (2)] WTU; omitted from the text in R, but was added in the margin;
there is a caret sign in the text 51/8 Mælir] WU; Mey R 51/26 kn‡r] WT;k‡r R
51/29 Naglfar] WT; Naglfal R
51/39 lævi] W; leifi RT (cf. 9/32)

76

Textual notes

52/6 harmr] T; hamr RW
52/25 halir] WT; hallir R
52/26 heimstƒ›] WT;
heimstei› R
53/8 segir ﬁri›i] TU, svarar ﬁri›i W; illegible in R
53/9 á
Gimlé] TU; á Gimlein (i.e. á Gimlé inn?) R allgott] WT; allt gott R 53/30
ﬁar] WTU; ﬁá R
54/1 of (2)] T, um W; R has the sign for ok
54/7 Mó›i]
WTU; Megi R 54/18 sér] so PE; er R, W omits 54/27 The abbreviation for-ir may be written after braut in R; WTU have brautir
55/4–5 er ﬁórr ger›i í
Troju R, with Ector written between the lines above ﬁórr; WT have er Ectorgjƒr›i í Troju

Textual notes

77

Glossary
All words except common pronouns are glossed, but only select references are
given. † before a word or its explanation indicates that the usage is specificallypoetical. Idiomatic usages of prepositions and adverbs are generally explained
under the verbs with which they are associated. The following abbreviations
are used:a.
abs(ol).
acc.
adv.
art.
aux.
comp.
conj.
dat.
def.
e–m
e–n
e–s
e–t
e–u
f.
gen.
imp.
impers.
indecl.
inf.
interrog.
intrans.
irreg.
m.
md.
n.

adjective
absolute(ly)accusative
adverb(ial)articleauxiliarycomparative
conjunction
dativedefinite
einhverjum
einhvern
einhvers
eitthvert
einhverju
feminine
genitive
imperativeimpersonal
indeclinableinfinitive
interrogative
intransitive
irregular
masculine
middle voiceneuter

neg.
nom.
num.
OE
ord.
o–self
p.
pers.
pl.
poss.
pp.
prep.
pres. (p.)
pret.-pres.
pron.
rel.
sg.
s–one
s–thing
subj.
subst.
sup.
sv.
trans.
var.
vb.
wv.

negativenominative
numeral
Old English
ordinaloneself
past
personpluralpossessive
past participle
preposition(al)present (participle)
preterite-present
pronounrelativesingularsomeonesomethingsubjunctive
substantive
superlativestrong verb
transitive
variant
verb
weak verb†-a neg. suffix with vbs.; vara 9/14; with 2nd pers. pron. ne legskaﬂu(double neg. for emphasis) 21/23; combined with 1st pers. pron. varka
24/4, máttigak 24/10, nautka 48/8. See -k.
á (1) pres. of eiga.
á (2) f. river 9/22, 41.
á (3) prep. (1) with acc., on, onto 7/24, 28/34; †separated from its noun(lú›r) 11/32; in, into 12/8, 18/9; at 41/3, 45/25; to 23/30, 41/12; up to
39/26; along (a road) 46/17; á lopt into the air 23/4; as regards, withregard to 23/18; of manner, in 4/11, 21/31; of time, on 24/36, through
35/8, 42/21. (2) with dat., in, on 3/27, 7/36, 8/15, 23/20; †postposition
24/11; at 9/28; about 3/14; over 43/29; from in 48/29; on, with 35/3,
44/37; with parts of the body, belonging to 23/5; of time, in 3/24,

78

Glossary

13/29, within 34/31. (3) as adv., in (it) 41/19; on (them) 24/4; to 25/3;
ﬂar á on it 46/24.
á›r adv. previously, before, earlier 9/10, 38/25, 53/6; above (in a book)
54/38; á›r . . . nú already . . . now 28/7. As conj., before 8/11, 44/5;
with dat. of length of time 11/28 (correlative with ﬂá); implying
purpose, in order that 36/24, 39/25; á›r (. . .) en before 9/6, 39, until,
had not, if (the gods) had not 46/31.
af prep. with dat., from 3/29, 31/5; away from 5/21; off 41/36, 46/27;
because of 4/8, 18, 27/10; in 5/17; by (agent) 29/36, 31/6, (instrument,
cause) 15/31; by means of 5/19, 13/32; as a result of 22/21; from(origin) 34/27; from among 7/4, 14/22 (2); (made) of 15/30, out of
4/14, 11/36; (full) of 17/17; (filled) with 40/4; (name) after 25/21 (2);about, concerning 19/32; vera af originate from 25/3, forfeit 34/37; af
ƒllu afli with (using) all his strength 39/5, cf. 52/27; af ﬂví at as conj.,from (by) this (fact, circumstance) that 6/26. As adv., off 3/26, 25/18;
from (it) 33/15, from (them) 12/27, 27/9 (1); about it 36/36; ﬂar (. . .)af from it 11/6, from this 12/1, by means of this 13/21, about it 18/30,
about them 11/35; ﬂa›an af from them 13/8, from there or that 9/22,
13/11, by means of this or these 12/12, 15/28, from that origin, fromthis 30/5; hér (. . .) af in this 41/30, about this 32/12.
afar adv. very, extremely 17/12.
afhús n. side room 37/38, 38/12.
afi m. grandfather; man; †hverr ósvi›ra afa any old fool 19/7.
afl (1) n. strength 4/25, 13/21; sometimes physical strength as opposed
to supernatural power 36/26; honum haf›i a. vaxit his strength had
grown 27/35.
afl (2) m. forge 15/27.
afrœkjask (kt) wv. md. neglect 3/11.
aftaka f. deprivation, loss 46/15.
ágirni f. greed (with gen., for s–thing) 3/10, 49/25.
agnsax n. bait-knife (a knife for cutting bait) 45/8.
ágæti n. glory 5/24.
ágætr a. outstanding, excellent (af e–u or at e–u in s–thing) 5/17, 25/20;
renowned (for) 27/33; sup., most excellent 4/27, 11/18, 24/27.
áheit n. prayer 29/33.
aka (ók) sv. drive (with dat. of vehicle or draught animals) 23/2, 25/2,
47/1.
ákafliga adv. mightily 29/6; with great speed 14/11; with great zeal,
strenuously 28/1; fervently 37/23; sup. sem ákafligast má hann as hard
as he can 41/25.

Glossary79ákall n. invocation 22/24.
akarn n. acorn 38/37.
akr m. cornfield 53/35.
ala (ól) sv. nourish; md., be produced, begotten 13/8, 54/19; alask vi›
feed on, live on 32/20.
álarendi m. strap-end 38/24.
albúinn a. (pp.) quite prepared, ready and able (at gera e–t to do s–thing)
39/39.
aldarfar n. the course of the world (of history), progress of time 54/30.
aldartal n. count of time, age 3/31.
†aldinn a. aged 51/12; in aldna the aged one (f.) 14/28.
aldr m. Iife, course of (one’s) life, destiny 18/13, 26; allan a. throughout
all time 50/39.
†aldrdagar m. pl. life-days; of aldrdaga for ever and ever 20/17.
aldri adv. never 9/1; a. er never will there be 32/9.
†aldrnari m. nourisher of life, i.e. fire 52/34.
†álfkunnr a. descended from (of the race of) elves 18/21.
álfr m. elf 18/16, 51/15.
álit n. appearance; dat. pl., in appearance 4/39, 11/13.
allfagr a. very beautiful 15/26.
allgó›r a. very good; n. as adv. or subst. allgott er e–m til e–s there isplenty of s–thing for s–one 53/9.
allhar›r a. very violent 42/18.
alllítill a. very small 41/7.
allmikill a. very great 32/6, 34/2; a very great deal of 36/23; a. fyrir sér
see mikill; n. as subst., a great deal 25/27, 48/12.
allógurligr a. very terrible 50/12.
allókátr a. very unhappy, uncheerful 44/32.
allr pron. a. all 3/1, 16; (a, the) whole 3/10, 9/30, 11/12; all the 40/6;
every 8/10; all (other) 5/20; all kinds of 5/17, 47/38; hann . . . allr it all(i.e. all over, entirely) 53/14; pl., they all 21/18, 26/26, 27/9, everyone
6/9, 21/4, 23/15; ƒllum senn all together 5/2; ƒllum . . . ﬂeim er for all
who 18/9; alls ﬂess er of all that which 13/18; gen. pl. with sup., (fairest)of all 20/7; allt everything 3/32, 17/21 (all about where, or adv.,
completely); ﬂat allt all that 10/35, 13/17. As adv., completely, all theway 6/24, 10/4; allt til all the way to 4/21, (of time) right on up to
25/25; everywhere 18/11 (see note).
allsterkr a. very strong 27/26.
allstórr a. very great; dat. pl. as adv., very mightily 41/4.
allvegligr a. very glorious 29/19.

80

Glossary

allﬂrƒngr a. very crowded 33/27.
almáttigr a. almighty 3/1.
†ámáttugr a. very powerful (usually with supernatural power), very
terrible; weak form ámátki 24/21.
ambátt f. female slave 27/19.
andask (a›) wv. md. die 29/21.
andi m. breath 28/6.
andligr a. spiritual 4/13.
andlit n. face 49/12, 15.
†angan n. delight; a. Friggjar = Ó›inn 52/12.
annarr pron. a. and num. other 4/24, 6/19; another, a second 3/23, 8/29,
48/39 (sc. lífs háski); the other 51/4; the second 4/18, 5/31; a different
6/30, 38/15; anyone else 46/13; annarr en other than, besides 15/22;
annat s–thing else 33/11; ﬂvíat . . . ok ﬂat annat at because . . . andbecause of this also that 46/1; one (of two) 13/36, 37/15; ƒ›rum fœtiwith one foot 38/27, 50/38, cf. 51/2; annarr . . . annarr the one . . . theother 11/2, 40/5, 48/31; hverr til annars at each other 46/10; hverr
ƒ›rum to each other 28/23; hvert upp frá ƒ›ru one above the other
8/16; pl., others 4/29, 18/16; allir a›rir all the others 45/24; ﬂær a›rar
er those others who 30/23; ƒnnur ﬂau the others 37/39; ƒnnur gu›inthe other gods 21/17, cf. 49/38; a›ra menn ﬂá er (all) other men who
4/33; a›rir ﬂrír three other 49/24; a›rar níu the second nine 24/1.
aptann m. evening (the latter part of the day, from mid-afternoon
onwards) 32/11, 44/7.
aptr adv. back 24/1, 32/35; again (or in the reverse direction?) 40/23;
lúka a. close 39/26.
aptrmjór a. tapering behind 49/4.
ár (1) adv. early; †ár alda far back in time 9/12 (or ár here may be aneuter noun meaning ‘beginning (of ages)’).
ár (2) n. year 3/24; prosperity (of the land) 6/9, 24/28.
ár (3) f. oar 44/25, 32.
ár (4) pl. of á (2).
áratal n. count of years 12/12.
ársali m. bed-hangings 27/20.
Ásagísling f. the Æsir’s hostaging, hostage from the Æsir 23/33.
ásamt adv. together; e–t kemr á. me› e–m s–one reaches agreement abouts–thing 35/14.
ásjóna f. appearance, shape; face 13/6.
aska f. ashes 9/2.
askr m. ash (tree) 17/7, 34/16.

Glossary81†Áskunnr a. descended from (of the race of) the Æsir 18/20.
ásmegin n. divine (Áss-) strength 23/7 (honum his), 38/5, 44/40.
ást f. love; pl., with sg. meaning 46/17, loving relationships 29/32, loveaffairs 25/5.
ástsæll a. beloved, popular 47/27.
at (1) prep. with dat., at 18/3, 19/33; in 8/28, 30/13, †postposition 52/39;
in, i.e. obtainable from 44/12; into 10/4; to 9/1, 46/38; up to 27/24,
35/20; as far as 4/16, 39/6; against 52/10; on 37/22; (of time) at 32/35,
in 42/23, to 34/6; in (respect of) 4/24; as regards 26/38; about 33/3;
with 7/35; in accordance with 4/2, 46/6 (2); as 7/2 (2), 23/33, 25/17.
As adv., there 46/34; in it 31/39; in this 33/18; at ﬂar er up to where
38/27; eigi at sí›r none the less 3/15.
at (2) particle with inf. to, in order to 29/29, 46/38 (2); for the purposeof 40/15; til at so as to 12/9; hvat er at segja what is to be told 17/9.
at (3) conj. that 3/9, 13; so that 6/24; in order that 13/29; in that, by thisthat 44/1; with comp., ﬂví . . . at the . . . in that 7/25; ﬂat (. . .) at this,that 5/19, 6/27, 45/30; af ﬂví at because 6/26; til ﬂess at so that 4/10;
with at repeated 55/1; sá . . . at such (of such a kind) that 6/8, 23/19,
35/33; engi sá . . . at no one . . . such that 43/24–5; ﬂau er . . . at suchthat . . . that they 6/30; svá at so that 5/24; †at . . . ne lest . . . not 33/2;
ﬂá . . . at if (under those circumstances that) 14/9, 43/27; correlativewith svá 11/1, with fyrir ﬂví 13/18.
át see eta.
†atall a. terrible 10/35.
atbur›r m. event 36/34; a. til event giving rise to 22/18, 24; circumstance
22/22; atbur›ir af hverju hann kom circumstances of his origin 34/27.
atganga f. attack; veita atgƒngu start to assail 35/17.
atgervi f. accomplishments 5/17, 26/22.
athœfi n. activity (cf. hafask at) 13/14.
atkvæ›i n. decree 15/35.
átrúna›r m. belief, religion 4/11.
átt f. direction, region 9/26, 48/18, 49/22 (cf. ætt).
átta (1) see eiga.
átta (2) num. eight 3/8, 7/16.
átti (1) see eiga.
átti (2) ord. num. (the) eighth 8/31, 17/34, 29/33.
áttungr m. member of a (certain) family line; ﬂeir áttungar those two
members of the family 21/9 (cf. ætt).
au›igr a. rich 23/30.
au›kendr a. (pp.) easily recognisable 27/22.

82

Glossaryau›r m. wealth (with gen., of or in s–thing) 23/31.
au›sénn a. (pp.) obvious 41/28 (cf. sjá).
au›s‡nn a. evident 37/1.
auga n. eye 17/20, 18/31 (honum his), 37/20.
auka (jók) sv. increase, pile up 10/4 (impers. or intrans.; or hvert could
be the object and hrímit the subject); pres. eykr adds, contributes 50/6;
weak p. md. auka›isk increased, became numerous 9/40 (cf. 3/3
fjƒlga›isk, 3/9 fjƒlmentisk).
auki m. increase, addition (with gen., to s–thing) 7/15 (in apposition to
djúprƒ›ul: ‘which became an addition’).
aurr m. mud 19/15, 23.
ausa (jós) sv. with dat., pour 19/16; a. e–t e–u drench, lave s–thing withs–thing 19/20.
austan adv. from the east 51/22, 30; fyrir a. with acc., to the east of
14/19.
austr (1) n. the east 39/18.
austr (2) adv. in the east 14/28; to the east 37/28.
austrhálfa f. eastern region 4/21.
austrrúm n. baling-seat (the rowing-seat in the lowest part of the boat,
rear of centre) 44/25.
ávƒxtr m. growth, produce 4/6, 22, 24/28 (dependent on fyrir 24/27).
bá›ir a. pron. (n. bæ›i) both 37/6, 44/39.
†ba›mr m. tree 12/32 (generic sg.), 19/22.
baggi m. pack, bundle 38/17.
bak n. back; á baki on their backs 7/31; á bak sér on(to) his back 38/17,
39/20, onto their backs 39/25.
bál n. pyre 46/34, 47/4.
bálfƒr f. funeral, cremation 46/24; pl. 48/6.
banaor› n. news of s–one’s death; bera b. af e–m i.e. kill s–one 50/35.
band n. band 28/26, 27, 30; bond 49/11, 17, 50/1.
bani m. death 14/10, 33/10; slayer 51/4, 52/9; cause of death (e–m fors–one) 43/3; hans b. the cause of his death 50/31; ver›a at bana e–mcause s–one’s death 29/16, 50/34; ver›ask at bƒnum slay each other 49/28.
banna (a›) wv. forbid 29/35.
barn n. child 13/35, 21/18.
barnaeign f. the having of children; family 29/11.
barr n. needles (of a pine tree), but in the alliterative phrase bíta barr
apparently the foliage of any tree taken as food 18/34, 33/12. (Inmodern Icelandic the word can also mean ‘bud’.)Glossary83

batt see binda.
baztr a. sup. best 17/32, 32/18, 53/8.
be›r m. (gen. be›jar) bed 24/11.
bei›a (dd) wv. ask, bid (e–n s–one) 15/19 (with inf.); b. e–n or›a try to
get s–one to speak 31/10; b. e–s e–m ask for s–thing for s–one 45/20.
Md., ask for o–self, beg (with noun clause) 34/39, 47/24 (af e–m fromor of s–one); bei›ask e–s ask for s–thing for o–self 17/19; with inf.,
ask that one may 8/1, 44/17.
bein n. bone 3/28, 11/37; ivory 4/40.
beina (d) wv. set in motion; b. flug exert o–self to fly 20/31.
beita f. bait 44/21.
bekkr m. bench, platform 39/30, 42/9; útar á bekkinn down to thelower end of the bench 40/2.
bera (bar) sv. carry 18/33, 29/23; have on one’s body 7/16; take 27/27;
bring 30/26; serve 30/23, 33; b. til ketils i.e. put on to cook, boil 37/6;
berandi bor› a margin for carrying (space between top of liquid andrim of vessel so that it can be carried without spilling) 41/17; bear,
endure 46/14; give birth to 35/33, 54/23 (future time); b. e–n at syni
bear s–one as one’s son 25/33; vera borinn be born 11/29, 18/15; b.
saman rá› sín take counsel together 45/19; impers. berr saman fundia meeting (confrontation) takes place (ﬂeira between them) 43/36.
Md. vi› berask be prevented; láta e–t vi› berask (decide to) refrainfrom s–thing 44/19.
bergrisi m. mountain giant 18/9, 23/4.
berja (bar›a) wv. beat, strike, pound (instrument in dat.) 7/32, 45/25;
thrash 35/8; md., fight 8/8, 31/33 (vi› e–n with s–one); fight against
each other 49/27.
berserkr m. berserk 5/5, 46/27 (cf. Hei›reks saga 5, 93; the berserk cultwas particularly associated with the cult of Ó›inn. The connection
with bears suggests shamanistic practices. See also Ynglinga saga,
Hkr I 17).
betr adv. comp. better 43/26.
betri a. comp. better 4/24, 33/9, 39/17; with dat., better than 20/13.
beygja (g›) wv. bend; b. kenginn bend (into) an arch, arch the back
42/1.
bezt adv. sup. best, most 25/10.
beztr a. sup. the best 15/23, 23/15; with gen. pl. 17/10, 36/13, (with def.
art.) 36/15; very good, of the best kind 29/20; predicative, which isvery valuable 23/6.
bí›a (bei›) sv. undergo, experience, suffer 43/25.

84

Glossarybi›ja (ba›) sv. ask, order (with at-clause) 40/36, 44/10; b. e–n e–s pray
to s–one for s–thing (to be granted); hvert b. skal hverrar bœnarinnar
which one to address each (kind of) prayer to 25/8; b. e–s e–m beg fors–thing for s–one 46/32; b. sér e–s beg for s–thing for o–self 37/23;
with acc. and inf., ask, tell s–one to do s–thing 27/27, 28/21; bæ›i ﬂá
heila hittask wished them to meet again happily, i.e. bade them farewell39/21; with gen., ask in marriage 31/18, 24 (e–m for s–one).
bik n. pitch 19/38.
bil n. moment 38/35, 45/6 (er when, at which).
bilt n. a. as adv. in the phrase e–m ver›r bilt one is afraid, hesitates,
lacks the determination (at gera e–t to do s–thing) 38/6. The phrase
perhaps originally implied being paralysed with fear, terror-striken.
binda (batt) sv. tie (up), bind 28/2, 38/17; b. ﬂungt vi› tie heavy weights
on (i.e. to the bottom of the net), weight down heavily 48/34.
birta (t) wv. make light; reveal, display 40/33; md., be illuminated 31/6.
bíta (beit) sv. bite 18/34, 25/18 (af off); b. á take bites from (on, of)
25/25; b. af take bites from 33/19; b. í hold by the teeth 27/14.
bjarg n. rock 3/28, 11/37; mountain 28/6, 10.
bjarnstaka f. bear-skin 5/2.
bjartr a. bright 23/16, 50/20; comp. 20/8; comp. n. as adv. 50/15.
bjó see búa.
bjó›a (bau›) sv. offer (e–m e–t s–one s–thing) 41/33, 46/18; challenge(s–one to s–thing) 42/20; b. e–m til sín invite s–one to stay with one
33/6; b. e–m til e–s me› sér invite s–one to share s–thing 37/8; with
at-clause, offer 6/6, 37/23, suggest 38/16; with inf., offer 34/30; b.
upp hand back, give up 41/26.
bjórr m. a triangular piece of (waste) leather 50/40, 51/1.
bjƒrn m. bear 28/6.
blanda (blett) sv. mix, defile, taint (e–u with s–thing) 36/1.
blár a. black, livid 27/21.
blása (blés) sv. blow 50/22, 51/6; with dat., breathe out, blow out s–thing
45/4, 50/11.
blástr (rs) m. blast 25/40.
blautr a. soft 28/17.
blí›r a. dear, kind, friendly 12/35; pleasant 21/8.
blíkja (bleik) sv. glitter, gleam 7/31.
blindr a. blind 26/11, 45/39.
bló› n. blood 3/23, 11/23.
bló›refill m. point of a sword 29/8.
bló›ugr a. bloody 16/5.
blóm n. flower 3/24.

Glossary85

blóta (a›) wv. worship, sacrifice to 7/23.
blær m. air-stream 10/13.
bo›or› n. commandment 3/6.
bogi m. bow 24/17; (rain)bow 18/8.
bogma›r m. archer 26/20.
bógr m. shoulder 14/1.
bólsta›r m. dwelling-place, mansion 27/17.
bor› n. (1) table 32/23, 42/25. (2) the margin by which the liquid in a
vessel is below the rim 41/17. (3) side of ship, gunwale 44/40; af bor›ioff, away from the gunwale 45/8; fyrir b. overboard 44/35.
bor›búna›r m. table-ware, articles used for eating and drinking 30/23.
bor›hald n. fare 32/21.
borg f. city, stronghold (= Troy) 4/32; (= Ásgar›r) 7/27, 54/33; (= Ásgar›r
inn forni) 13/9, 15/20; castle (= Útgar›r) 39/11, 24, 42/27; fortification,
rampart (around Valhƒll) 34/31, 35/3, (= Mi›gar›r) 12/24.
borgarger› f. the building of the fortification 35/9.
borghli› n. gateway, entrance to the fortification 35/10, 39/26.
borgsta›r m. site for a town or castle 6/12.
brá (1) see breg›a.
brá (2) f. eyelash, eyelid 12/25, 34, 23/17.
brá›na (a›) wv. melt 10/13.
brag› n. trick, feint 42/17.
bragr m. (1) a name for poetry 25/21 (the complement, not the subject).
(2) paragon (with gen., among), chief, one outstanding (among) 25/22.
braut f. road, way 54/27; á b., í b., á brut, braut as adv., away, off 26/26,
29/27, 45/37, 46/22.
breg›a (brá) sv. with dat., move (with a swift movement); b. á lopt, b.
upp lift up, wave in the air 37/14, 43/30; b. e–u fyrir e–t move s–thing
into the path of s–thing 43/6; b. e–m (sér) í líki e–s change (turn)s–one (o–self) into the form of s–thing 45/28, 48/18, 49/8; b. e–u á sik
put on o–self, assume 7/24; intrans. b. vi› react, move back, jerk away
44/39.
brei›r a. broad; n. as adv., widely 17/12.
brenna (1) (brann) sv. intrans., burn, be consumed by fire 4/18, 9/2;
pres. p., burning 9/26, 18/8, 50/15 (see AH Studier 29, 85).
brenna (2) (d) wv. trans., burn 9/30, 17/36, 20/20.
brenna (3) f. burning, funeral 46/38.
breyta (tt) wv. with dat., alter, change (til in accordance with, to suit)
22/23; md., change 4/12.
brig›a (›) wv. fail to keep one’s word 29/38.
brim n. surf 16/5.

86

Glossary

brjóta (braut) sv. break (trans.) 11/39, 27/35; break down, destroy 43/33;
smash 46/31; md. brjótask um struggle 28/40.
bró›ir m. (pl. brœ›r) brother 11/16, 26/37, 47/23.
brot n. fragment 27/39.
brotna (a›) wv. break (intrans.) 15/9, 27/30, 35/32.
brú f. bridge 15/6, 20/3, 34/21.
bru›r, brunnr m. spring, well 9/21, 14/5, 17/16, 19/14.
†brú›r f. bride 24/23.
brullaup n. wedding 31/25.
brún f. (pl. br‡nn) eyebrow 37/20.
brunnr = bru›r.
brut = braut.
brynja f. coat of mail 50/27.
búa (bjó) sv. dwell 14/19, 19/36; b. til e–s prepare for s–thing, get on
with s–thing (y›r for yourself) 38/21. Md., prepare (o–self to dos–thing), get ready 44/9; búask til (at gera e–t) prepare, begin (to dos–thing) 38/15; búask til fer›arinnar set out 44/5. See búinn.
búandi m. householder, farmer 37/5, 10.
†bugr m. bend; me› bugum all included 22/37.
búi m. = búandi 37/9.
búinn pp. (of búa) ready 27/37, 44/10; finished 48/29; b. at ready to,about to 42/24; var búit at hann mundi he was on the point of 44/18;
b. at sér of e–t endowed with s–thing 40/13; b. til ready for 38/29; b.
vi› proficient in 39/36.
búsgƒgn n. pl. household effects 15/29.
bústa›r m. dwelling-place 23/37.
b‡fluga f. bee 19/29.
byg› f. dwelling, settlement; a place to live 13/8; colonisation 34/29; til
byg›ar to live in 12/23; pl., areas inhabited by (with gen.) 33/23.
byggja, byggva (g›) wv. inhabit 3/8, 13/3; live in 13/16, 20/9 (future
time?), 20/25; abs., live (i.e. have a home) 4/20, 11/5; b. í live in
35/31; b. á live on 53/36. Md., become settled 3/9, 54/12.
b‡r pres. of búa.
byrja (a›) wv. begin; b. fer› sína, b. fer›ina set out, depart (af from)
5/21, 37/28.
byrr m. fair (favourable) wind 36/19.
bæ›i adv. (conj.) both 12/8, 23/18; fyrir honum ok eptir bæ›i (therewas) both in front of him and behind him 50/14. Cf. bá›ir.
bœn f. prayer, petition 22/24, 25/8.
bœr m. farm, estate, dwelling 24/30, 29/18, 31/3.

Glossary87

daga (a›) wv. dawn 42/23.
dagan f. dawn 32/34, 38/2.
dagr m. day 11/11, 17/8; acc. sg. dag in a day 7/3, by day 25/38; ﬂann
dag allan throughout the day 37/31; um daga in the daytime 48/18;
eptir um daginn the next day 35/25.
dalr m. (acc. pl. dali and dala) valley 3/22, 43/4.
dau›i m. death 35/16.
dau›r a. dead 46/7, 50/4, 53/5 (sc. eru); inanimate 47/28.
deild f. section 4/18.
deili n. pl. details (á of) 3/14, 34/27. (According to AH Studier 84 theequivalent of Latin ratio.)
deyja (dó) sv. die 3/32, 14/24, 50/5.
digrleikr m. thickness 28/22.
diskr m. plate 27/18.
djarfleikr m. boldness 25/14, 27/23 (til at enough to).
djarfr a. bold 26/18; sup., 25/10.
djúpr a. deep 3/22, 12/23; n. as adv. 7/6, 38/35; sup. (i.e. deeper thanthe other two) 43/5.
†djúprƒ›ull m. sun or circle of deep, i.e. gold or jewel or island (construe
as object of dró, in apposition to auka) 7/13 (cf. Hkr I 15–16).
dómr m. judgement, sentence, decree 23/20; (judicial) court 15/32 (seerétta), 17/7, 36.
dómsta›r m. place of judgement, court 17/30, 26/26.
dómstóll m. seat of judgement 35/11 (cf. rƒkstóll).
dóttir f. daughter 4/36, 11/14; †female descendant 18/22.
draga (dró) sv. draw, pull 7/7, 13/39; drag 38/10, 48/31; catch (fish witha line) 44/28; d. segl hoist sail 36/19; d. upp pull up, plough up 7/3.
draumr m. dream 45/18, 19.
dregill m. ribbon 28/25.
dreifa (›) wv. (with dat.) scatter; (with acc.) besprinkle, bespatter 50/12;
md., disperse, spread 3/3, 17/11; impers. 6/25.
dreki m. dragon 5/6.
drekka (drakk) sv. drink 8/7, 17/18; d. af drink from 40/37, 43/11, drain
41/1, 11, 19.
drekkja (kt) wv. with dat., drown 3/6, 11/23.
drengr m. youth 44/7.
drepa (drap) sv. kill 5/2, 11/22; strike, smite 27/39, 28/1 (impers., one
knocks (s–thing)); md., kill each other 49/24.
dreyma (›) wv. impers. e–n dreymir e–t s–one dreams s–thing 45/18.
†dreyri m. gore 14/39.

88

Glossarydrífa (dreif) sv. drive (intrans.) 49/21.
drjúpa (draup) sv. drip 10/13, 49/15.
dropi m. drip, dripping, series of drops 33/20.
†drótt f. company 16/4, 20/16.
†dr‡gja (g›) wv. carry out; endure 18/39.
drykkja f. drink 30/23, 34/7; (the act of) drinking 40/35, 41/13.
drykkjuma›r m. drinker, man of prowess in drinking 41/2.
drykkr m. drink 8/21, 32/25; (the act of) drinking 41/6, 25; draught
40/40, 41/18.
drœgi p. subj. of draga.
duga (›) wv. with dat., help 50/29.
dúkr m. cloth 36/22.
duna (a›) wv. thunder, rumble 38/33.
dur- see dyrr.
dveljask (dval›isk) wv. md. stop, stay 5/26, 37/13; be delayed, be put astop to 35/24; d. munu stundirnar much time will be taken up (whiledaway) 23/11.
dvergr m. dwarf 12/6, 16/3 (gen. pl.), 16/9.
†dyggr a. trusty, good 20/15.
dylja (dul›a) wv. conceal, dissemble, disguise; md. (reflexive) 7/25;
pp. duli›r e–s ignorant of s–thing 21/6.
dynja (dun›a) wv. rumble, resound, clatter 47/13.
dynr m. noise (e–s made by s–thing) 28/5, 9; pl. 54/31.
d‡r n. (wild) animal 3/19, 25, 24/17.
dyrr f. pl. (n. pl. 37/39) doorway 37/35; doorways 33/29; gen. dura
30/1, 33/34; dat. duru(nu)m 7/35, 33/28.
d‡rr a. dear; n. as adv., at a high price 33/9.
dœgr n. day (period of 12 hours); pl., day(s) and night(s) 12/12, 13/3; áhverjum tveim dœgrum every 24 hours 13/29.
dœma (›) wv. judge; adjudge, decide 15/20; d. lƒg administer laws 6/l4;
intrans., pass judgement 18/2.
dœmi n. example; s–thing on which to base a judgement (dómr), origin,explanation, underlying story 22/18; (piece of) evidence (til e–s toprove s–thing) 28/8, 34/14, 36/30.
dƒgg f. dew 19/24, 28; precipitation in general? 4/5.
dƒgur›armál n. dinner-time 32/35, 34/6 (the main meal was taken earlyin the day in the Middle Ages).
dƒgur›r m. dinner 38/15.
døggva (g›) wv. bedew 13/31.

Glossary89

døkkálfar m. pl. dark elves 19/36, 38 (see ljósálfar and Svartálfaheimr
in index of names).
døkkr a. dark 13/23, 47/8.
e›a conj. or, and 4/10, 8/29, 25/28; linking two parts of a question, and8/33, 9/39, 10/36; hvárt . . . e›a 7/22; linking a question to a statement,
but 25/8, 34/3, 48/14, kona e›a karlma›r whether woman or man 25/23.
e›li n. nature, characteristic(s) 3/19, 20, 31, 7/22, 30/22.
ef conj. if 4/3, 11/33; correlative with ﬂá 18/23, 21/4, 28/26, 40/40, withﬂar 39/13; in case 35/7; on condition that 46/18 (2); whether 8/22,
36/38, 38/13.
efna (d) wv. perform, carry out (successfully) 40/1.
efni n. material, substance 4/15, 50/6.
efri a. comp. upper 29/8, 50/9, 51/2.
efstr a. sup. uppermost 3/27.
egg f. edge 49/6.
eggskurn n. egg-shell 19/19.
eggsteinn m. edged (sharp) stone 49/10, textual note.
ei neg. adv. not 3/14, textual note.
ei›r m. vow, promise, oath 29/37, 35/17.
ei›rofi m. oathbreaker 53/16.
eiga (átta) pret.-pres. vb. have 3/35, 8/29; hold 17/7; own 17/32; possess
13/32, 54/3; get (possession of) 24/30, 37; have as children 13/22,
27/4; be married to 4/36, 13/25; be master of 8/2, 17/17; rule 5/32;†with suffixed neg. eigut they have not 18/19; e. skamt til be a short
way off from 48/23; e. allmikit undir have a great deal dependent on(at the mercy of), risk a great deal on 25/27.
eigi neg. adv. not 3/12, 21.
eigintunga f. native tongue, mother tongue 6/25.
eign f. property, wealth (with gen., consisting in) 4/22; belongings,
contents, attributes: alla e. ﬂeira everything in them 8/38.
eigna (a›) wv. take possession of (sér for o–self) 5/3; md., get possessionof, take to o–self 3/32, 5/27, (as wife) 34/33; get for o–self, win, earn
34/35, 46/17.
eik f. oak 4/40, 38/19, 30.
eimi m. steam 52/33.
einhendr a. one-handed 25/19.
einherjar m. pl. the warriors in Valhƒll, champions 21/29, 30/33 (lit.
united warriors? unique warriors? those who fight alone?).

90

Glossaryeinkamál n. private agreement 29/37.
einn a., num., and pron. (1) one 3/20, 7/3; one of them 43/5; with gen. oraf-phrase, one of 7/4, 23/3; with pl. noun ór einum durum from one
doorway 33/38; a 54/22; a certain 7/2, 14/19; e. sá sta›r a certain
place 19/38; e. Ássinn one of the Æsir 26/11; einum fœtinum the oneof its legs 43/19; with sup., the very . . . -est: e. hin mesta a particularly
great 5/6; sá e. mátkastr that one especially mighty 14/23; einna
nokkurr one special one, one in particular 14/33; the same 46/10;
identical 55/2. (2) alone 21/4, 27/23; e. saman all alone, on his own
5/5; einir sér of their own, separate, ‘alone to themselves’ 50/20; gulleitt nothing but gold, pure gold 15/24; undir einum ﬂér under just you
47/13; e. samt just by itself 37/21; only 20/24, 24/5, 44/13.
einnhverr pron. a. a certain 28/1; someone 28/35, 42/8; einhvern mannsome person 40/35; einhvern ﬂann er someone whom 40/11.
einvígi n. single combat 26/23.
eira (›) wv. with dat., spare, not harm 45/21, 34.
eitr n. poison 10/4, 45/4.
eitrá f. river of poison 53/16 (cf. AH Studier 31).
eitrdropi m. drop of poison 10/31, 49/14 (acc. pl. or dat. sg., collective;cf. dropi), 53/21 (cf. AH Studier 31).
eitrkvikja f. poisonous (or icy) flow (or fermentation? suppuration? cf.
AH Studier 31) 10/1.
eitrormr m. poisonous snake 49/11.
ekr pres. of aka.
ekki pron., n. of engi.
eldask (d) wv. md. grow old 25/25.
elding f. fiery body (i.e. such as stars and planets) 12/9.
eldr m. fire 9/30, 20/27; flames 46/30; pl. 50/10; furnace (for smelting)
10/2.
elli f. old age 43/25.
ellidau›r a. who has died of old age 27/16.
ellipti ord. num. (the) eleventh 8/32, 17/35, 29/40.
elska (a›) wv. love 3/10.
elskugi m. love 29/32.
elztr a. sup. eldest 8/27, 21/16.
en conj. but, and 3/12, 6/5; beginning a sentence, now 7/4, 19/17; only
sometimes a full adversative, as at 16/30 (2), 16/38, 17/19, 18/24, 26,
43/33; with comparatives, than 3/22, 4/24; á›r (. . .) en, fyrr en before
7/26, 9/6, 39, until 5/25, 15/30; á›r en had not 46/31; annarr (. . .) en,
fleiri (. . .) en other than, besides 6/30, 15/22, 19/33; framar en to agreater extent than 25/23; heldr (. . .) en rather than that 21/6, 28/34.

Glossary91

enda conj. and so, and of course 28/30.
endask (d) wv. md. last, be sufficient (e–m for s–one) 32/10, 33/5; beenough (til to bring about, to become) 43/3.
endi m. end 9/28, 20/3, 40/18; (of time) 9/29.
endir m. end 43/13.
engi, øng- pron. a. (acc. sg. m. engi, engan, øngan) no one 5/8, 23/9;
no 10/39, 38/23; engi . . . fegri sta›r no fairer place 19/39; engi . . .
dómr hans none of his judgements (decisions) 23/19; engi . . . sá (thereis) no one (no, not a) 15/15, 39/39, 43/24, 45/2; n. ekki nothing 9/13,
23/21; no 9/19, 44/6, 49/23; as adv., not 25/13, 28/30, 49/22; dat. sg.
n. øngu, engu nothing 41/12; with comp., no (less) 44/35.
enn adv. still 38/40, 45/11; also 29/22, 33/23; yet (or yet more) 15/3;
further 41/31; again 3/9, 27/32, 43/28; yet again 40/29; in addition
20/2, 3; moreover, as well 19/14, 41/14; in the future 32/8; with comp.,
still, even 27/10, 29/5, yet 25/9; enn á fleiri vega in still more ways
21/30.
†ennitungl n. forehead-star, i.e. eye 7/17.
epli n. apple 25/24.
eptir prep. (1) with dat., after 14/14, 45/9; behind 50/14; for, to fetch
35/19, 46/25; along, through 18/33, 48/38; over 40/15; in accordancewith 13/27; e. ﬂví sem in imitation of that which 48/29; e. honum basedon his account 54/35. (2) with acc., after (of time) 3/8, 6/16. (3) asadv., afterwards 15/1; e. um daginn the next day 35/24; after, in pursuit
35/23; ganga e. follow 8/6; behind 37/27; vera e. remain, be left 7/9;
grætr e. remains behind weeping, or weeps for (him) 29/27; ﬂar e.
from this 23/17; e. er as conj., after 53/4.
eptri a. comp. hinder 37/15.
er rel. particle and conj. (1) who, which, that 3/2, 4/6; with pron., sá(. . .) er 8/19, 9/25, ﬂat (. . .) er 4/27, 6/17, 35/31 (such that; similarly
ﬂau er 6/30); ﬂat er that part which 10/6, what 36/40; allt ﬂat er
everything that 25/39; til ﬂess er until 43/34; ﬂeim er to whom 13/8;
sjá ﬂann er the sea with which 12/1. (2) introducing noun clause, that
8/39, 25/3 (2), 31/7, 45/27; ﬂat . . . er that . . . (in) that 7/21, 9/21, 50/31;
ﬂat er this, that (i.e. when) 9/13, 29/36, 31/40, how 45/6; ﬂat er gras
vex grass growing 25/38. (3) where 23/26, 24/20, 44/28, 52/39; when
3/3, 20/31; while 48/21; if, since 15/13 (twice); since, seeing that 25/7,
28/29; in that 18/24; with adv. ﬂá (. . .) er, er . . . ﬂá when 3/9, 4/38,
13/2; ﬂegar er immediately that, when 36/19; sí›an er after 3/34, since
27/35; nú . . . er now that 42/34; ﬂar (. . .) er where 6/12, 7/17 (as);ﬂangat er to where 44/22; ﬂar fyrir er over where 5/36; ﬂar til er until
6/16; hvárt er whether 31/19; ﬂví hardara er the harder that 28/40.

92

Glossary†ér = ﬂér 15/3, 51/21.
erfi›i n. trouble, hardship, suffering 18/39.
eski n. box (made of ash) 25/24; (containing personal possessions) 29/23.
eta (át) sv. eat 38/15, 39/39.
eykr pres. of auka.
eyra n. ear 32/32, 45/12.
eyrindi n. (1) errand, business 8/20 (purpose in coming); sitt e. result of
his errand 31/26; ﬂakka e–m sitt e. thank s–one for carrying out one’s
errand 28/19; pl., mission 48/1; at eyrindum on errands 30/8. (2) breath
41/6, 14.
fá (fekk) sv. get, obtain 17/19 (object understood), 31/24; become subject
to 11/1; have (children) 11/15; adopt, hit on (a course of action) 27/26;
give, supply 36/39; fá sér find o–self 44/21; fá e–m e–t give s–one
s–thing 31/22, 32/5; fá e–m í hƒnd put into s–one’s hand, hand tos–one 40/38; fá til provide, procure 40/11; with gen., marry 5/7, 11/14;
with pp., be able, manage (to do s–thing), get (s–thing done) 28/2,
36/30, 39/25; svá at ek fæk eigi (see -k) so that I cannot 28/32; á›r svá
fái gert in order to (be able to) make such a thing 36/24. Md. fásk um
react violently, make a fuss 29/6; be obtained, achieved (á in it) 41/26;
grapple, wrestle 42/8, 43/24.
fa›erni n. paternity, the nature of one’s father 13/27, 27/10.
fa›ir m. (gen. sg. fƒ›ur 4/39; dat. sg. fe›r 5/9, fƒ›ur 21/18; dat. pl.
fe›rum 23/5) father 5/30, 13/18.
fagna›r m. entertainment, cheer 33/10, 42/25; í gó›um fagna›i withhospitable treatment 42/23.
fagr a. ( f. fƒgr) beautiful 4/39, 11/13; fine, excellent 6/11, 50/27;
pleasant, decent 37/2; eru á himni fagrir in heaven are beautiful, arein heaven which are beautiful 18/10; comp. fegri 4/23, with dat. sólu
fegra fairer than the sun 20/12; sup. fegrstr 20/8; n. as adv. 23/18.
fall n. fall 43/25.
falla (fell) sv. fall 3/25, 19/25; 2nd pers. sg. p. fell 43/23; fall down
37/21, 38/28; (die) 11/22, 52/12; flow (down) 9/22, 33/20; fellr hverr
á annan each falls on (attacks) the other, or they fall one on top of(after) another 34/5. Md. e–t fellsk e–m s–thing fails s–one 46/9 (‘theywere speechless’).
fálma (a›) wv. grope; f. e–u til grope, fumble at (it) with s–thing 45/7.
falslauss a. without deceit or trickery; n. as adv. 28/36.
fang n. grip, hold; hafa fullt f. have one’s hands full 50/30; wrestlingbout 42/15, 21; wrestling 42/16, 20; pl., materials, resources 4/30.

Glossary93

fár a. few; f. ma›r few men, it is a rare man (that) 36/27; pl. as subst.
fáir few people 32/12, 19.
fara (fór) sv. go 6/6, 7/24; travel 5/4, 5/23; pres. p. farandi vagrant 7/2;
extend (?) 30/21; flow 11/40; with a., go around (in a certain way)
29/22; with adv., fare, get on (in a certain way) 36/25, turn out 42/5;
with acc., travel, go on (an errand, one’s way, etc.) 31/21, 43/34, 54/21,
suffer 42/31, overtake, catch 54/24; f. ok herja go and harry 9/29,
similarly 15/10, 31/23, cf. taka; with inf., go to, set forth to (do s–thing)
52/7, with at and inf. 33/39; f. á me›al pass between (people), betransacted 36/7; f. me› take 44/24 (var farit me› hann he was taken49/5), sail (a ship), drive (animals, a vehicle) 36/20, 37/3 (was driving);
f. me› e–u, e–m treat, do (with it or him) 27/29, treat, handle s–thing
37/17, use, deal in, practise s–thing 43/40; f. saman succeed each other,follow each other without a break 49/23; md., perish, pass away 20/9.
fast adv. hard 27/38, 38/22; firmly, tightly 47/20; deeply 38/32, 39/3.
fastr a. firm; comp. n. as adv. 42/16.
fávíss a. having little knowledge 21/4.
fax n. mane 13/32.
fé n. (gen. fjár) wealth 3/10, 15.
fe›- see fa›ir.
fegr› f. beauty 4/22, 25, 6/11, 23/18.
fegr- see fagr.
feig› f. the coming of death 30/35.
feigr a. close to death, doomed, dying 14/37.
†feiknstafr m. horror-rune, evil intent 23/27.
fela (fal, fólginn) sv. hide; deposit 17/22; vera í fólgit be contained in
17/16; f. sik and md. felask take refuge, go into hiding 48/17, 19.
félagi m. companion 38/15; ok ﬂeir félagar (he) and his companions
39/23, 42/22, 24.
fella (d) wv. fell, lay low 42/12; knock down 46/28.
fer› f. journey 5/21, 7/23; travelling 7/26; movements 6/8; expedition
45/15; ‘faring’, how one gets on, experience 42/29, 44/4; behaviour,
dealings (til towards, with) 35/33; pl., travels 22/25, arrival 6/5.
ferskeyttr a. (pp.) square 43/5.
festa (st) wv. fix 4/10, 29/4; f. saman fasten together 12/1.
festr f. cord, halter 29/2 (i.e. the free end), 29/6.
fésæla f. wealth, prosperity 24/29.
fésæll a. wealthy 23/31.
fet n. pace 50/35.
†fíflmegir m. pl. monstrous brood 51/34 (cf. mƒgr).

94

Glossaryfíll m. elephant 4/40.
fimbulvetr m. mighty winter 49/21.
fimm num. five 22/33, 33/34.
fimti ord. num. (the) fifth 8/30, 17/34, 29/21.
fingrgull n. gold ring (for the finger) 47/33.
finna (fann) sv. find, meet 5/7, 13/5; discover 5/19, 28/8; notice 37/16;
f. til discover, think up, invent (for a certain purpose) 48/20. Md., befound 3/14; exist 9/16, 34/15; meet each other 52/39.
fiski f. fishing; róa til fiskjar go fishing 44/10.
fiskr m. fish 28/7, 44/28, 48/28.
fjall n. mountain 23/37, 39/18; í fjalli on or in a mountain 48/17 (the hús
may be a cave).
fjalltindr m. mountain top 3/21.
fjár see fé.
fjara f. low tide 43/16.
fjarri adv. far away (e–u from s–thing) 27/39, 53/18.
fjór›i ord. num. (the) fourth 8/30, 17/33, 29/20.
fjórir num. (n. fjƒgur) four 7/19, 22/33, 33/35.
fjórtándi ord. num. (the) fourteenth 30/7.
fjƒ›r f. feather 3/26.
fjƒlbreytinn a. changeable, capricious 26/38.
fjƒl›i m. multitude 5/22; allr f. the majority 3/10.
fjƒlgask (a›) wv. md. multiply 3/3.
fjƒlkunnigr a. skilled in magic 7/20.
fjƒlkyngi f. magic, witchcraft 36/24, 43/40.
fjƒlmennask (t) wv. md. become peopled, become full of people 3/9.
fjƒlmenni n. crowd (of people) 32/6, 7.
fjƒlmennr a. containing many people 6/24.
fjƒr n. (dat. fjƒrvi) life; body, flesh, blood? 14/24, 36.
fjƒturr m. fetter, shackle 25/15, 50/1.
flá (fló) sv. skin 37/6.
flatr a. flat 44/28.
fleginn pp. of flá.
fleiri a. comp. (dat. pl. fleiri, fleirum) more 3/5, 10/37; further, other
25/31, 42/20; hvárt fleira (n.) er eyrindi hans whether he had any
further business 8/20; hvat . . . fleira (with partitive gen.) what other
18/28, 19/33 (en than, besides).
flesk n. meat (pork) 32/10, 18.
flestr a. sup. most, nearly every 12/2, 22/21; = all 39/30; flestan dag i.e.
always 26/32; flest (adv. ?) hefir illt gert has done most evil (or evilmost) 48/10.

Glossary

95

flet n. boards (of a hall, i.e. the wooden platforms or ‘benches’ used forseating) 8/15.
fljóta (flaut) sv. float; be launched? 50/8.
fljúga, fljúgja (flaug) sv. fly 10/9, 13/40, 32/34.
fló› n. flood 3/8.
flokkr m. herd 44/22.
flugr m. flight 20/31.
flytja (flutta) wv. carry, transport 11/35, 46/22 (in both cases object
understood).
flær› f. deceit, fraud 26/35.
fogl = fugl.
†fold f. earth 52/30.
fólgit pp. of fela.
fólk n. people 8/7; race (of creature) 19/35; host 47/3.
fora› n. evil, destructive creature, monster 50/34.
for›a (a›) wv. save, enable to escape (vi› e–u from s–thing) 30/5; md.,
avoid, escape 30/5.
for›um adv. formerly, once 17/13.
forkunnar adv. exceptionally 27/17, 33/16.
forn a. ancient 6/29, 12/11, 24/24 (former?); (h)inn forni the old (asopposed to the new one) 8/28, 13/16.
fors m. waterfall 48/21, 33.
fóstra f. foster-mother, nurse 42/12.
fóstri m. foster-father 5/3.
fóthvatr a. fleet of foot; comp. 40/22, sup. 37/32.
fótr m. (pl. fœtr) foot or leg 3/23, 11/2, 17/33; dat. sg. fœti 37/16; á kné
ƒ›rum fœti on his knee with one leg, i.e. onto one knee 42/19.
frá prep. with dat., from 3/8, 10/19 (descended from); †after the noun
34/12; about 5/24, 18/28; elliptical, with gen., from the abode of 53/38;
skamt frá a little way from 38/2; innar frá on the inside of 37/40; útarfrá beyond 37/10; upp frá above 20/23; su›r frá to the south of 20/21.
As adv., from 3/2; about (it) 36/30, 41/10; inn í frá inwards on fromthere (there was) 10/7.
fráfall n. death (‘decease’) 46/15.
fram adv. forward 38/26, 46/25, 50/28; on (distance) 39/11; into thewater 46/29; forward, out 46/21; up, out in front 8/24; through (a door,
into the presence of those inside) 8/11; in the front 44/26; in front of
him 48/25; of time, by 3/3, on 39/23 (2); lengra fram (information
about events) further on in time 54/28, 29; um fram with acc., beyond,to a greater extent than 5/20, 27/1, superior to 4/33, 25/12 (vera um
fram excel, surpass).

96

Glossary

framar adv. comp. ahead (ﬂví so far) 40/18; f. en more than, beyond, inexcess of 25/23.
framast adv. sup. most outstanding 22/30.
framaverk n. deed of distinction, achievement 8/34.
†framgenginn a. (pp.) departed (i.e. dead) 53/31.
frami m. fame, glory; til frama to achieve glory: hvat . . . til frama what
glorious deeds 22/29; advantage, benefit, or distinction, honour 45/26.
framstafn m. prow 46/29.
frásagnarver›r a. worth the telling, worth making a story about 34/28.
frásƒgn f. narrative, story 22/25, 54/37.
fregna (frá) sv. ask 8/24; hear, learn 36/11.
freista (st) wv. with gen., make trial of, put to the test 40/1, 14; f. sín try
one’s prowess 40/3; f. um (of) e–t have a try at (with) s–thing 41/29,
31; with inf., attempt 40/10, 46/12; f. ef try if, see if 46/18.
†freki m. wolf (= Fenrir) 51/35.
fremja (fram›a) wv. perform, carry out 42/3.
fri›r m. peace 6/9, 24/28; amnesty, quarter, grace 37/23, 46/32.
frí›r a. beautiful 13/36, 26/37.
frjósa (fraus) sv. freeze (at into) 10/4.
fró›leikr m. (fund of) knowledge, learning; mikill f. sá er kann a great
deal of learning which would know (i.e. he would need great learning
who could explain) 22/17.
fró›liga adv. intelligently, learnedly, like a learned man 15/5 (i.e. you
are not well-informed if you need to ask that; cf. fró›r, frœ›i).
fró›r a. wise, having knowledge 8/22, 10/29, 11/31; well-informed 21/3;
learned 22/26, 23/9; comp. 8/23.
frost n. frost 47/39, 49/22 (pl.; so also in textual note to 4/20).
fróva f. lady 25/4 (a loan-word from Low German; cf. frúva, Hkr I 25).
frumkve›i m. originator (with gen., the first to speak with or disseminates–thing) 26/35.
fr‡ja (fr‡›a) wv. disparage, cast aspersions on (e–s); f. e–m hugar
question s–one’s courage 28/34.
fræg› f. fame 28/25.
frægr a. famous 27/36.
frændi m. relative 3/33, 23/6.
frœ›i n. pl. records, sources 14/2 (referring to Grm).
frœ›ima›r m. learned man, scholar, man of wide knowledge 44/3.
fugl, fogl m. bird 3/19, 28/7.
fulldrukkinn a. (pp.) quite satisfied with drink 33/15.
fullgera (›) wv. accomplish, bring into being 13/19.

Glossary97

fullr a. full 49/14, 50/30; f. af full of 17/17, 31/7; complete, absolute27/2; full-grown, fully developed 5/1; at fullu thoroughly 29/2.
fúna (a›) wv. rot, decay 9/1, 19/2, 19/17.
fundr m. meeting 43/36 (ﬂeira Mi›gar›sorms between him and M.); tilfundar vi› e–n to meet s–one 42/40.
fundu p. pl. of finna.
fur›u adv. amazingly 12/20, 29/11.
fur›uliga adv. terribly 3/30.
fúss a. willing, eager 31/12 (‘but (that he was) not eager, but without
eagerness’).
fyl n. foal 35/33.
fylgja (g›) wv. with dat., accompany 14/7, 42/27; ﬂar fylg›i accompanied
them 10/1; attend 6/8; i.e. serve 37/27; take 8/3; appertain to 23/19,
47/5; belong to 3/2, 6/27; be a property of, be a characteristic of 13/21,
25/7; depend upon 4/6 (ﬂví = skini ok dƒgg).
fylki n. division (in an army), host, troop 47/11 (cf. ‘fylki eru fimm tigir’,
Skáld 107).
fylking f. troop, division, army, battle array 50/20.
fylla (t) wv. fill (e–t s–thing; e–s, e–u or af e–u with s–thing) 33/13(‘with which it fills’), 40/4; md., fill o–self, become full (e–u or me›
e–u with s–thing) 10/7, 14/24, 36 (future).
fyr = fyrir.
fyrir prep. (1) with acc., in front of 7/6, 37/20; into the presence of
39/30; into the way of (to ward off) 43/6; (of time) before 39/3; f.
austan, f. vestan to the east, west of 14/19, 45/35; for, on account of
3/32, 15/14, 49/3; f. e–s sakar see sƒk; in respect of, against 30/2; as,in place of 54/11. (2) with dat., in front of 31/5, 33/28, i.e. across
39/26; ahead of 8/5, 14/16; in the presence of 40/33; at, by, near 50/40;
on behalf of 22/24, 50/24; rá›a f. rule over 4/3, 5/29; against 12/25,
34/31, 45/20; because of 37/21, 50/36, after noun 24/12; f. hví why
29/12; f. ﬂví (. . . at) for this reason (. . . that) 3/6, 13/17, 29/35, 50/5;
f. ﬂví at because 17/17, 35/6, 54/29; mikill (lítill, minni) f. sér of great(little, less) account or importance 25/6, 41/38, 42/32. (3) as adv., infront 8/15, 48/31; ahead 38/18; vera f. be there, in the way 48/33; ﬂar. . . f. around them, protecting them 18/11; ﬂar f. er over where 5/36; f.
innan on the inside 12/24; in exchange, in payment 37/24.
fyrr adv. comp. before 3/9; formerly 53/37; previously 6/14; on previous
days 35/25; above (in the book) 30/22, 50/16; gera e–t fyrr be the firstto do s–thing 44/17; spyrja e–n fyrr be the first to ask s–one, accost
s–one by asking 7/36; var hitt ﬂó fyrr yet the first thing that happened

98

Glossarywas 46/12; fyrr (. . .) en as conj., before 4/4, earlier than (with dat. oflength of time) 9/20, until 5/25, 17/20, 25/16, 28/38.
fyrri (1) a. comp. former 16/30; previous 41/16, 47/11 (i.e. the day before
yesterday? the other day?).
fyrri (2) adv. in front, ahead 13/30.
fyrrum adv. formerly, once upon a time 54/1.
fyrst adv. sup. first 8/22, 9/25; originally 10/29, 15/34; firstly, primarily
27/9; f. . . . ok svá firstly . . . and also 48/12.
fyrstr a. sup. (usually weak) first 11/11, 13/6, (strong) 50/27.
f‡sask (t) wv. md. desire, be eager 5/21.
færri a. comp. fewer 27/39, textual note.
fæstr a. sup. fewest, very few 23/27.
fœ›a (dd) wv. feed (trans.) 3/31, 11/8; give birth to or nurse, foster 14/21(at sonum as her sons), 14/30; bring up 27/23; f. upp bring up, raise
23/32; md., feed or be born (af from) 19/29; fœ›ask vi› live on 11/9;
fœ›ask upp be brought up, bred 27/7.
fœra (›) wv. bring 27/11, 28/18; f. á lopt raise in the air 45/7; f. í frásagnir
make the subject of narratives 22/25. Md. fœrask í put o–self, fly into(a passion) 35/26, put on, imbue o–self with, summon up 44/40.
fœri n. range (from which s–thing can be done), opportunity, chance (todo s–thing); koma í f. get a chance 39/1.
fœrr a. passable; ef ƒllum væri fœrt if it was possible for everyone to go
18/10; f. til (with inf.) capable of (doing s–thing), able to 36/33.
fœtr see fótr.
fƒlna (a›) wv. grow pale 45/5; fade 3/25.
fƒlski m. paleness (of ash lying in the form of s–thing burnt) 48/27, 29.
fƒr f. journey, expedition 46/20; vera í f. e–m be in company with s–one
51/37.
fƒruneyti m. company, companionship 38/13, 44/6.
gamall a. old 3/30, 5/22; belonging to ancient times, primitive, original?
11/3, 14/21; as surname, (hinn) gamli the old (i.e. belonging to ancient
times) 7/11, 55/4.
gaman n. pleasure, amusement; e–t ﬂykkir g. e–m s–one takes pleasurein s–thing 53/10.
ganga (1) (gekk) sv. go 7/6, 21; walk 17/36; move 37/36; be (going)
39/38; (continue to) be 21/6; pass, come (of time) 49/23; g. lei› sína
go one’s way 54/33; with inf., g. sofa go to sleep 38/30; g. vega advanceto fight 52/13; g. á e–t enter into s–thing, begin 34/34; g. af e–m passfrom s–one (of a mood) 37/24; impers. gengr af it is drained 40/40,

Glossary99

41/2; g. at e–m attack s–one 52/21; g. at e–u allow o–self to take partin s–thing 31/25; g. eptir follow 8/5; g. fram move (forward, i.e. down
the beach) 46/24, go on, forward 39/23, out 40/3; á›r gangi fram before
one goes through (a door) 8/11 (see fram); g. fyrir e–u go in front ofs–thing, draw s–thing 7/17; impers. er inn gengr where one enters
27/20; g. til approach 41/40, 42/7, go up 42/19; g. upp be lifted up 7/9,
go ashore 37/29. Md. gangask á be disregarded, broken, gone back on
36/4.
ganga (2) f. course 12/11, 14/3; going, motion 14/9, 23/29.
gangr m. movement, course 3/35, 4/5, 13/34.
gap n. abyss 9/18.
gapa (›) wv. gape 29/6, 50/9, 10.
gar›r m. fence, wall 27/17; enclosed place, courtyard 34/5.
gátt f. door-opening 8/10.
gefa (gaf) sv. give (e–m e–t) 3/32, 7/2; give away 31/36; apply 54/37;
e–t er gefit (e–m) s–thing is given, granted (to s–one) 4/13, (a name)is taken, derived 6/30; er ﬂá váru . . . gefin to whom then were given
55/3; ﬂeim er byg›in var gefin to whom a dwelling-place was given
13/9 (see note); give in marriage 36/3 (pp. agreeing with direct object;
ætt is indirect object); g. (e–u) sta›(ar) stop (s–thing) 5/25, 10/3.
gegna (d) wv. with dat., mean 3/19.
geirr m. spear 50/27.
geisa (a›) wv. rage, surge 52/33.
geit f. (she-) goat 33/11, 16.
gelti see gƒltr.
gera (›) wv. (pp. gerr, gƒrr, gjƒrr; imp. ger›u 46/3) do 15/13, 37/22;
perform 7/26; act 46/3; make 15/27, 27/26; build 4/27, 34/30; create
9/7; pp., finished 50/7; bezt gert the best that has been built 15/23; pp.
agreeing with direct object gerva 23/24; var ﬂat (sc. rá›) gert it was
decided 45/19; g. af 13/20, see note; g. af sér make (s–thing) of o–self,achieve distinction, be successful (um e–t in s–thing) 41/22; g. at do(about s–thing), try 45/26; ekki er langt um at g. there is not a great
deal to say about it 42/15. Md. (1) take place 13/11, 22/25; svá mikit
gerdisk af ﬂví this went so far 3/11. (2) become 37/26, 45/5; be created,
come into being (mannlíkun as subject, dvergar in apposition) or bemade into, turn into (mannlíkun as complement) 16/8.
ger›a (›) wv. fence around (cf. gar›r); er ﬂeir ger›u with which they
contained, enclosed 12/1.
gersemligr a. costly, precious 5/23, 29/26.
geta (gat) sv. (1) beget (used of either parent) 11/13, 54/20; g. vi› e–m

100

Glossary

beget on s–one 11/2, 27/5. (2) with gen., mention, speak of 49/19; eigi
er ﬂess getit the story does not mention 39/21; guess, suppose, presume
48/10.
geysask (t) wv. md. rush, flow furiously 50/2.
geysi adv. mighty, extremely 18/24, 22/16 (probably colloquial; sometimes used ironically, e.g. 33/16?).
†-gi neg. suffix 21/26.
†gífr n. troll (-wife) 9/36, 52/2.
gimsteinn m. gemstone 4/23.
gin n. mouth 51/3.
gína (gein) sv. open the mouth (yfir over, round, at) 44/37.
ginna (t) wv. make a fool of 44/36.
†ginnheilagr a. most holy (magically, supernaturally holy?) 16/1, 35/38.
†ginnunga gen. pl. (or sg.?) of the mighty spaces? 9/18; cf. ginning
illusion, magical deception; perhaps ‘filled with magic power’? (cf.
AH Gudesagn 24).
gipt f. gift 3/15, 4/25.
gipta (1) f. good fortune 3/15, textual note.
gipta (2) (pt) wv. give in marriage 13/24, 35/12; md. with dat., marry
29/24.
girnd f. desire 3/5.
gísla (a›) wv. give as hostage 23/33.
gisting f. being a guest; at gistingu as a guest 44/8.
gjalda (galt) sv. pay 35/29; repay, requite: goldit var honum ﬂetta he
was repaid for this 48/15.
gjƒf f. gift 31/38, 47/33.
gjƒrr pp. of gera.
gla›r a. happy 7/13, 26/7.
gleypa (t) wv. swallow 14/24, 49/37, 50/37 (the meaning is future in all
three instances).
glotta (tt) wv. smile ironically or derisively; g. um tƒnn grin showing
the teeth, i.e. insincerely 39/32.
gnaga (a›) wv. gnaw 17/15.
†gnata (a›) wv. clash, crash 9/35, 52/1.
gneisti m. spark 10/8, 12/7.
gnógliga adv. abundantly 15/29.
gnúpleitr a. with drooping face 27/22.
gn‡ja (gnú›a) wv. roar, rage 14/26 (future).
gn‡r m. noise (usually of wind, waves, etc.) 38/1; uproar 50/13.
gnæfa (a›) wv. tower high up 30/21.

Glossary101gnœgri a. comp. more abundant, better supplied (at with) 4/23–4, textualnote.
go› n. pl. (heathen) gods 8/27, 9/29; referring to Æsir as opposed to
Vanir 23/33, 34, to gods as opposed to men 5/25, 13/18, 26/13, 35,
35/34, 46/8, 50/7, 53/5; cf. gu› and note to 21/13 (at 13/18 and 17/6 R
may have u rather than o).
go›kunnigr a. divine, descended from gods 13/17, 18/15; spelt gu›21/13 (Æsir gu›kunnigir Æsir who are of divine ancestry or nature).
go›mƒgn n. pl. divine powers 7/23.
gó›r (n. gott) a. good 3/4, 15/15; gó› til áheita well-disposed towards
prayers or good for praying to 29/33; gott skei› at renna a good runningcourse 40/15; n. as subst. or adv. er gott (e–m) it is good (for one)
24/28, 25/4, 11; gott at segja good (things) to be told 23/14; er gott til
e–s there is plenty of s–thing 37/33 (‘food was not easy to come by’);inn gó›i as surname, the good 45/17.
goldit pp. of gjalda.
gólf n. (earth) floor (in the centre of the hall, as opposed to the boarded
platforms or benches down the sides of the hall) 40/3, 4, 41/39; room,compartment, alcove (section of the building marked off by pillars)
8/6, 22/33, 35.
gómr m. gum (e–m of s–one) 29/8, 44/38.
gómsparri m. gum-prop 29/8 (sparri: a length of wood to hold s–thing
apart).
grafa (gróf) sv. dig 3/21, 22, 27; pp., inlaid 4/40.
granda (a›) wv. with dat., harm 45/32, 53/36.
grár a. grey 35/34, 41/39.
gras n. grass 54/2; vegetation 3/24, 4/20, 9/19; plant 23/16, 17.
gráta (grét) sv. weep 29/27, 47/30; shed tears 47/39; g. e–n weep fors–one 47/28; g. e–t tárum weep tears for, at, because of s–thing 48/4.
grátr m. weeping 46/12, 47/26.
grei›a (dd) wv. with til (adv.) prepare, put in order, get ready for use
44/32.
grein f. branch, division 22/22; particular, detail 3/17, 13/11 (the gen.
loptsins ok jardarinnar at 3/17–18 presumably mean the same as ájƒr›unni ok í lopti at 13/11–12).
greina (d) wv. divide 4/16; distinguish, make distinct 12/12; md., divide
into branches 4/12.
grenja (ja›) wv. howl 29/9.
grésjárn n. iron wire? magic wire? puzzle lock? 43/1 (the first element
is thought to be a loan-word from Old Irish grés m. handicraft); grésjárn

102

Glossary

also appears as a variant to gerjárn in Gƒngu-Hrólfs saga, ch. 1(Fornaldar sögur Nordrlanda, ed. C. C. Rafn, Kaupmannahöfn,
1829–30, III 240, note 1), where a sword is made of it.
gri› n. truce; pl., assurances of safety, immunity (fyrir from, in respectof) 45/20.
gri›alauss a. without a (sworn) truce, assurances or guarantee of safety
or inviolability; without quarter 49/5; n. as adv. 35/7.
gri›asta›r m. place of sanctuary (inviolability) 29/14, 46/11 (‘it wassuch an inviolable place, a place of such sanctuary’).
grimligr a. fierce-looking 27/22.
grimmr a. grim 10/11 (vb. to be understood), 21/10.
grind f. (barred) gate 39/26, 47/21; pl. grindr 27/17.
grípa (greip) sv. grasp 38/26, 45/7; g. til snatch up 43/30; g. eptir makea grab at or for (as s–thing passes) 49/2.
gripr m. precious possession 23/6; er mikill g. er í which is very valuable
23/8.
grjót n. stones (collective) 7/32, 11/37, 35/3, 45/25.
grjótbjƒrg n. pl. rocky precipices 9/35, 52/1.
gróa (greri) sv. grow 3/27.
gruna (a›) wv. impers. e–n grunar one suspects (wonders if, thinkss–thing likely) 3/36, 39/9.
grunnr m. bottom (of sea) 44/35, 45/10; g. e–u bottom of s–thing 19/26,
textual note.
grœnn a. green (in leaf) 19/26, 53/34.
gu› m. when sg., God 3/1, 13; m. also at 8/33 ( = Ó›inn), gender uncertain
at 10/37, 39 (= Ymir) and 32/36 (= Ó›inn; cf. ƒndurgu›). Elsewheren. pl. (= heathen gods, generally the Æsir; cf. go›) 11/34, 13/10 etc.
gu›kunnigr = go›kunnigr.
gu›ligr a. divine 18/11.
gull n. gold 4/22, 15/24; gulli betra better than gold 20/13; gulli studdr
supported by gold, i.e. golden pillars, or with walls of gold? 26/29.
gullaldr m. golden age 15/30.
gullband n. gold band 29/22.
gullhjálmr m. golden helmet 50/27.
gullhringr m. gold ring (bracelet) 47/4, 6 (cf. fingrgull).
gulltafla f. golden piece (for a game like chess or draughts) 54/2.
†gunntami›r a. (pp.) accustomed (trained) to battle 32/27 (epithet ofÓ›inn).
gustr m. blowing 10/7.
gy›ja f. goddess 15/25.

Glossary103g‡gr f. giantess 14/19, 27/4, 46/25.
gyltr a. (pp.) gilded, golden 7/29.
gyr›a (›) wv. tighten a (horse’s) girth 47/20 (the animal in acc., hann).
gæta (tt) wv. with gen., look after 29/23, 30/23; protect 20/19; guard
30/1, 46/27; g. e–s fyrir e–m guard s–thing against s–one 25/36; g. til
take pains, be concerned (to do s–thing) 29/31; g. ef keep watch, pay
attention (to see) whether 39/2. Md., concern o–self, deliberate, takecounsel (of about) 16/2, 35/39.
gæzla f. keeping, guardianship, guard 25/27; sett til gæzlu yfir given thefunction of guarding 30/4; setja til lands gæzlu put in charge of thecountry 5/28.
gƒfugligr a. noble (in appearance), stately, magnificent 19/34.
gƒgnum, í gƒgnum prep. with acc., through 29/3, 45/1, 46/7.
gƒltr m. pig (boar) 32/10; dat. sg. gelti 47/1.
gƒrr (n. gƒrt) pp. of gera.
haf n. sea 4/19 (Mediterranean), 7/7 (Baltic), 43/14; ocean 27/13, 37/28(the ocean encircling the earth); pl. 20/27.
hafa (›) wv. have 3/19, 9/28; have in one’s possession 53/38; get 26/16,
36/19; keep 36/22; bring 6/28, 31/18; with pp. 4/28 (‘which was themost splendid there has ever been’), 7/9; with inf., have available fora certain purpose 32/5; h. at e–u use as (for) s–thing 33/4, 46/26, 54/18(sér for themselves); h. at minnum remember 26/13; h. fyrir e–t use
as, make serve as s–thing 27/40, 29/5; hafa e–n (e–t) me› sér take,keep s–one (s–thing) with one 5/21, 6/20, be endowed with s–thing
42/37; h. e–n nær e–u bring s–one close to s–thing 42/38; h. e–t til e–s
use s–thing for s–thing 12/25; h. e–t til have sufficient of s–thing 27/23;
vera haft uppi be remembered, famous 5/20; h. e–t vi› use, employs–thing on (it), for a certain purpose 36/24. Md. hafask at do, be (-come)engaged in 9/6, 11/33, 45/29; hvat hafask ﬂeir at what is theiroccupation 22/29; hafask lind fyrir hold a shield in front of o–self
51/23.
hafr (rs) m. (he-) goat 23/1, 37/3, 44/6.
hafrstaka f. goat-skin 37/9, 11, 14.
haga (a›) wv. with til (adv.) contrive (things), arrange it (that) 35/18.
hagleikr m. skill 4/29; workmanship, ingenuity 36/16.
hagliga adv. skilfully 12/21.
hagligr a. handy (e–m for s–one), beneficial, useful 33/16.
hagr m. convenience, advantage, benefit (á in it) 41/19.
halda (helt) sv. with dat., hold 27/33, 48/30; haldi Hel ﬂví er hefir let

104

Glossary

Hel keep what she has 48/9; h. á e–u hold s–thing in the hand 37/12;
h. upp support 17/12. Md., stay, remain, be kept 47/29; be kept safe
11/25; remain valid, be fulfilled 23/20.
hálfa f. region, continent 4/16, 5/5.
hálfr a. half 27/21; half share of 24/31; sjá hálf h‡nótt half this night of
waiting 31/32; dat. sg. n. hálfu with comp., twice as, much (more)
27/31, 35/4; vaxa hálfu double, increase enormously 23/7.
hallmæli n. blame 15/14.
†halr m. man 9/37, 52/3, 25.
háls m. bow (of a ship) 44/26.
haltr a. lame (with dat., in s–thing) 37/15.
hamarr m. hammer 15/27, 23/3.
hamarskapt n. handle of hammer 37/22, 40.
hamarspor n. pl. prints, marks of a hammer 43/5.
hamr m. shape, form 14/35, 20/31.
handaafl n. strength of the hands 28/23.
handan adv. from beyond (see he›an) 14/26.
handaverk n. pl. handiwork 26/13.
handsax n. short sword, knife 7/35.
hang n. coil (of a serpent), loop of back 42/1, textual note (reading
uncertain, and the word is not recorded elsewhere).
hanzki m. glove, mitten (i.e. a glove with a thumb but no divisions forthe fingers) 38/10, 11, 13.
happskeytr a. who is a good shot 26/19.
hár (1) n. hair 3/25, 11/12.
hár (2) a. tall, high 3/21, 19/22; acc. sg. f. háva 7/27, nom. pl. m. hávir
27/17; n. as adv. 30/21, loud(ly) 51/6.
har›fœrr a. difficult to overcome, negotiate, deal with 36/28.
†har›mó›igr a. hard-hearted, stern, cruel 12/38.
har›na (a›) wv. grow hard, set 10/2; grow tough 28/39.
har›r a. hard, tough 50/31; n. as adv., hard 38/34, 44/39; strongly 7/6,
47/21; calamitous, full of trouble 49/31; comp. n. as adv. 28/40, 42/16.
harmr m. sorrow, unhappiness 31/8; grief 46/13, 52/6.
harmsfullr a. full of sorrow, miserable 31/16.
háski m. danger 30/5, 45/20; lífs h. mortal danger 48/39.
hásæti n. throne 8/16, 15/22.
hátt n. of hár (2).
hátta (a›) wv. arrange, construct 12/21.
háttr m. (dat. sg. hætti) kind, type 3/20; me› nokkurum hætti in someway 3/30; pl., habits, activity, behaviour 26/38.

Glossary105

haufu› = hƒfu›.
haukr m. hawk 18/32, 34/23.
hauss m. skull 12/4, 33, 23/5, 35/31.
háv- see hár (2).
he›an adv. hence; h. ok handan to and fro 14/26.
hefja (hóf) sv. lift 41/36, 44/37; begin, open (a speech) 8/26; md., begin;hversu hófsk how did everything begin 9/9.
hefna (d) wv. take vengeance 46/11; h. e–m take vengeance on s–one(e–s for s–thing) 29/38, 48/14; h. e–s get one’s own back for s–thing
44/2; impers. er hefnt e–s s–one is avenged 52/20; hefnir e–m e–t
s–one pays (is punished) for s–thing 31/6.
hei›r a. bright (unclouded) 52/32 (i.e. even though there are no clouds).
heilagr a. (inflected helg-) holy 17/30, 25/33, 31/7.
heili m. brain 12/26, 37.
heill a. whole, unharmed 8/23, 32/11; bæ›i ﬂá heila (acc. pl.) hittask
said they wished them (Skr‡mir and the Æsir) to have a happy reunion
39/22.
heilræ›i n. salutary advice 39/14.
heim adv. home 31/8, 35/7; back 31/19; h. til back to 34/6, up to, in to
47/22; h. í back to 46/19.
heima adv. at home 27/23, 41/32.
heimama›r m. member of (one’s, e–s) household 37/10.
heimill a. free, at s–one’s service (with dat. of person); h. er matr honum
he was welcome to food 8/21.
heimr m. world 3/5, 9/30; nor›r hingat í heim north to this part of theworld 6/28; the inhabited world 12/25, 53/5; one of the nine worlds ofnorthern mythology 9/5, 25, 53/7, pl. 13/13, 40, 30/8. The number istraditional (see 9/5, 27/15, Vsp 2, Vm 43) though they are nowherelisted and nowhere systematically described. They presumably includeÁsgar›r, Mi›gar›r, Vanaheim(a)r, Álfheimr, Jƒtunheim(a)r, Niflheimror Niflhel, Muspellsheimr, and perhaps Svartálfaheimr and Gimlé, or
possibly Útgar›r; cf. the ‘heavens’, 20/21–5 and Skáld 133 (verse 516),
SnE II 485–6.
†heimstƒ› f. the world, the world of time 52/26.
heit n. promise 31/24 (with suffixed art.).
heita (hét) sv. (1) (pres. heitir) be called 4/36, 7/1; heitir is the name ofa place 24/19, 32, sometimes with a pl. n., e.g. 25/35 (‘in a placecalled H.’), contrast 6/12, 20/2 (cf. note to 29/26); ok heitir and it iscalled, which is called 15/6; Gymir hét ma›r there was a man called
G. 30/38. (2) (pres. heitr) call out (á to) 37/37, pray (to) 25/3; h. á e–n

106Glossary

til e–s pray to s–one, invoke s–one for (concerning) s–thing 23/30,
25/5. Md. heitumsk I call myself 21/32.
heiti n. name 6/29, 21/7.
heitr a. hot 4/18, 9/26.
héla (d) wv. freeze (over) 10/3.
heldr adv. comp. rather (often with the suggestion of litotes) 27/22, 38/18,
41/3; quite 44/33; better, more easily 4/10; instead 35/30; h. . . . enrather . . . than 21/5; h. en . . . ﬂá rather than that . . . (instead) 28/34.
helg- see heilagr.
helgista›r m. holy place 17/5.
hella f. slab (of stone) 29/3, 49/6.
hellir m. cave 48/2, 49/5.
helzt adv. sup. most of all 41/26; chiefly, most willingly of all 40/34.
hendi, hendr dat. sg. and nom. acc. pl. of hƒnd.
hér adv. here 36/38, 39/36; to this place 40/21; in this matter 22/17; inthe following examples (evidence) 28/8; in the following quotation
10/26, 11/26; hér af from this (game) 41/29; hér . . . af about this
32/12; hér inni in here 39/39, 42/10; hér . . . nær at hand, close by
36/35.
herbergi n. lodging, dwelling-place 4/27.
herbúna›r m. war equipment 36/19.
her›a (›) wv. squeeze, grip, clench 37/21.
her›ar f. pl. shoulders 49/10.
herja (a›) wv. wage war 9/29, 15/16, 32/2.
herma›r m. warrior 26/22.
herr m. host, army 34/3.
hertogi m. duke 4/38.
hervæ›a (dd) wv., h. sik put on armour 34/4, 50/26.
hestr m. (male) horse, stallion 13/28, 25/34; steed 46/27, 28.
heyra (›) wv. hear 12/20, 21/5; h. e–n segja hear s–one tell 54/29; h.
sagt hear tell 36/34; h. e–t sagt hear s–thing said, hear about s–thing
33/30; h. getit e–s hear tell of s–thing 49/19; impers. heyrir e–t one
hears s–thing, s–thing is audible 25/40.
heyrn f. hearing 13/7.
himinn m. heaven (often in phrase himinn ok jƒr›) 3/1, 8/37; himins inheaven 4/9; sky 9/38, 12/4; upp frá ﬂessum himni above this sky ofours 20/22; pl., the heavens (places in heaven?—but cf. 20/21–4) 19/32.
himintungl n. pl. heavenly bodies 3/35, 13/2.
hingat adv. to this place 6/28, 31/19, 42/11.
hinn (n. hitt) art. and pron. the 4/17, 19; hitt this on the contrary, theGlossary107

opposite 33/31; the opposite course 48/39; followed by an er-clause,
this also, this other thing 43/17, 22, but this, this moreover 8/39; withanother pron. for emphasis, sá hinn with a. and noun 11/31, 12/38,
35/31 (er such that); hinn ﬂri›ja drykkinn 41/20, similarly 44/23; ﬂessi
hin sƒmu 54/37; einn hinn mesta 5/6; hans hinir mestu 55/7. Cf. inn.
hinna f. membrane 19/18.
hir›ma›r m. a member of s–one’s (e–s) hir›, or following; retainer
39/15, 40/37, 43/7, 44/1.
hirtir see hjƒrtr.
hiti m. heat 10/13, 14, 47/39; (= flames) 52/35.
hitt (1) see hinn. (2) pp. of hitta.
hitta (tt) wv. meet, come across 42/29; visit 43/27; hit upon, discover
35/16; h. fyrir sér find (s–thing) opposing one, come up against (s–thingof a certain kind) 36/25. Md., meet each other 39/22; er ﬂeir Beli
hittusk when he and B. met (i.e. joined battle) 31/39.
hjá prep. with dat., near, beside 43/4, 49/13; compared with 24/8, 42/6.
hjálp f. help 28/33.
hjarta n. heart 52/19.
hjó see hƒggva.
hjón, hjún n. member of a household 37/16, 23.
hjƒlt n. pl. hilt 29/8.
†hjƒrr m. sword 52/19.
hjƒrtr m. (pl. hirtir) stag 18/34, 31/34, 33/18.
†hlakka (a›) wv. screech with joy (anticipation) 51/27.
hlaup n. running 28/9.
hlaupa (hljóp) sv. run 11/23 (flow), 14/16; gallop 35/20, 24; jump, leap
47/21, 48/24; rush 48/39; push, force one’s way ( fótum with the feet)
45/1; h. af jump off, dismount from 46/27; h. at rush up to 39/4.
hleina (d) wv. lie low, take refuge? 30/6 (not recorded elsewhere; cf. OE
hlinian, hlænan).
hleypa (t) wv. with dat., make (a horse) gallop 46/22 (sc. honum).
hli› f. (dat. hli›u) side 19/2; á a›ra h. e–m on one side of s–one 50/13;
líta út á h. sér look out to one side (sideways), turn one’s eyes 54/32.
hljóta (hlaut) sv. get 28/25.
†hlóa vb. boil, rush, be turbulent? 18/6 (not recorded elsewhere).
hlunnr m. pieces of wood forming a slipway 46/30.
hlutr m. part 4/17, 10/8; piece 36/21; thing 3/1, 4/34, 28/11; engi h. er
sá there is nothing 15/15; allir hlutir with gen., everything to do with,in (s–thing) 4/8.
hl‡›a (dd) wv. listen (á to) 29/37; h. ef listen (to find out) whether 36/38.

108

Glossaryhl‡›ni f. obedience (e–s to s–one) 3/11.
hlæja (hló) sv. laugh 29/1; h. vi› laugh at what is said 15/5, 25/29.
hlær a. warm, mild 10/12.
hnakki m. the back of the head 39/24.
hnefi m. fist 44/39, 45/12.
hnipinn a. (pp.) downcast, depressed 31/14.
hnoss f. treasure, precious ornament 29/26.
hof n. temple 15/22.
hóf see hefja.
hold n. flesh 11/37, 12/28.
hólmr m. (small) island 28/20.
holt n. wood or (in Iceland) a small stony hill 54/10, 16.
hórdómr m. (sexual) depravity, immorality, especially adultery 49/32.
horfa (›) wv. face, point (í towards) 53/13, 20; extend (til towards, to)17/16.
horn n. (1) corner 12/6. (2) (drinking) horn 17/18, 30/26; horn of a stag
33/19; (musical instrument) 51/7.
hrafn m. raven 32/32, 46/39.
hráki m. spit 28/7.
hratt see hrinda.
hreyfa (›) wv. move, shift (trans.) 38/24.
hreystima›r m. man of valour, man of action 25/12.
hrí› f. period of time; litla h. for a short time 37/31; eina h. for a while
44/31; langar hrí›ir for a long while 5/27.
hrím n. rime, hoar-frost 10/4, 11/6; pl., layers of rime? 10/13.
hrímsteinn m. rime-stone 11/10.
hrímﬂurs m. frost-giant 9/8, 10/15.
hrína (hrein) sv. whinny, neigh (vi› at s–thing) 35/21.
hrinda (hratt) sv. with dat., push, thrust 46/29, 36.
hringr m. circle 12/2; (arm-) ring, bracelet 47/32 (cf. fingrgull).
hrista (st) wv. shake 27/38.
hrjóta (hraut) sv. (1) snore 38/3, 22, 32. (2) fly 46/30.
†hró›igr a. triumphant 32/28.
hross n. horse (of either sex) 35/24; hvat hrossi what sort of horse, i.e.
what sex of horse 35/21.
hryggr m. back, spine; of serpents, body 53/14, 24.
hrynja (hrun›a) wv. fall down 50/1.
hræ›a (dd) wv. make afraid 28/30; pp. hræddr afraid 14/9, 35/17; md.,
be afraid of (with acc.) 14/9, 15; become afraid, panic 43/18, 45/5.
hræzla f. terror 37/24.

Glossary109hrœra (›) wv. move, stir (trans.) 20/27.
hrœring f. motion, ability to move (or emotion?) 13/6.
huga›r a. (pp.) endued with courage; bezt h. most courageous 25/11.
hugr m. mind, thought(s) 29/31, 43/10; kom ﬂat í hug it occurred to him
27/35; mind, attitude, feeling (til e–s towards s–one) 46/10; courage 28/35.
hugsa (a›) wv. consider 3/18, 7/22; think to o–self 27/34; determine
39/1; h. fyrir sér turn over in one’s mind, ponder, think out 48/20.
hunangfall n. honey-dew 19/28.
hundr m. dog 34/24, 50/33.
hundra› n. (pl. hundra› and hundru›) hundred (but probably usuallysignifying 120; with partitive gen. 3/34, 22/33; as a. (indecl.) 50/21.
hur› f. door 31/4, 39/29.
hús n. house, building 4/27, 15/23; dwelling, chamber, cave? 48/17, 21,
25 (see under fjall).
hva›an adv. whence, where . . . from 10/27, 15/33, 54/28; interrog.
13/3, 20/26.
hvar adv. where 4/7, 8/14; sá h. hann fór saw where he went, i.e. saw
him go 48/36; sér h. lá ma›r saw a man lying 38/2; til h. towards
where 46/4; h. sem wherever, correlative with ﬂá 5/23 (‘whatevercountries they travelled through’), 6/8 (‘whatever countries they
stopped in’), 24/30. Interrog. 8/33, 11/5, 17/5.
hvárki adv. neither 31/8.
hvárr pron. each (of two) 50/34, 51/4; interrog., which (of two), pl.,which side, which party 11/20.
hvárt adv. whether 38/28; ﬂat . . . h. this . . . whether 7/22, 47/27; h. er
as conj., whether 31/19; interrog., introducing direct questions(pleonastic) 32/21, 36/13.
hvártveggi pron. a. each (of two) 40/5; gen. pl., of both (of us) 43/27.
hvass a. sharp, keen, strong 49/22.
hvat pron. what (in both direct and indirect questions) 15/3, 38/37, 44/20;
vi› h. on what 11/5; h. lei› what was happening, how it was going on
41/6; h. er what is the matter 41/18, 51/14; hvat . . . ﬂat er what . . .
which 33/4; with partitive gen., what 8/33, how much 12/16, whatsort of 39/35; h. ﬂeira íﬂrótta which of those accomplishments (ofhis) 40/32; h. er fleira stórmerkja what further remarkable things are
there 18/28; with dat., what kind of 35/21 (i.e. what sex of), 41/33; h.
látum what the cause of the noises 38/4; h. sem whatever 35/18, 45/25.
hvata (a›) wv. with dat., hasten (trans.) 14/9.
hvatr a. bold, active, swift 46/20.
hvé adv. interrog. how 31/29.

110

Glossary

hverfa (hvarf) sv. go away, disappear 49/39, 52/31; h. á brut go off,
vanish 45/37; h. aptr turn back 39/16.
hvergi adv. nowhere, on no occasion 36/25; nowhere = not at all 46/25(‘refused to move’), 47/22; ﬂar h. nowhere there 43/31.
hvernig adv. how 42/28; interrog. 10/36, 12/21, 28/14.
hverr pron. (acc. sg. m. hvern, hverjan) (1) each (of more than two)
3/24, 34/10; every 13/29, 30/34; sér til hvers ﬂessa nafns to each ofthese names individually 22/18; hina níundu hverja every ninth 47/5;
with partitive gen., every, any 19/7, each 28/37; with forms of annarr:
h. annan each other 35/11, h. ƒ›rum one to another 28/22, hvert yfir
annat one (layer) on top of the other 10/4, hvert upp frá ƒ›ru one
above the other 8/16. (2) who, which (of indefinite number) 8/2, 25/8;
what 8/17, 43/15 (‘how great a’), ﬂat . . . hverju 3/18; hverjum withwhom 31/11; af hverju from what origin 34/28; h. sá væri . . . er who
there was . . . who 46/16; h. er whoever 33/31. (3) interrog., who,
which 3/12, 8/27; what 14/18; hverir eru Æsir ﬂeir er who (or which)are the Æsir whom 21/11.
hversu adv. how 27/24, 37/19; h. mikill how much, what (a) great 46/15,
47/26; interrog. 9/9, 39, 13/34.
hvert adv. whither; h. er (to) wherever 36/19.
hvessa (t) wv. sharpen; h. augun á fix with a piercing gaze 45/3.
hví pron. (dat. of hvat) why 21/1, 31/14; fyrir hví for what reason 29/12.
hvinverskr a. from Hvinir (Kvinesdal in the south of Norway) 7/29.
hvirfill m. crown (of the head); í hvirfil honum on his crown 38/34.
hvítna (a›) wv. whiten (intrans.) 37/22.
hvítr a. white 19/18, 23/16; declined weak 19/23, 25/32; sup. 23/17.
hyggja (hug›a) wv. think 18/18, 39/34; ﬂat h. menn it is believed 55/5;
en ﬂat of hyggi than imagine, expect it (‘than it would have been thoughtby’) 19/7; ek hug›a I should have thought 32/5; sometimes with subjectof at-clause before main vb. 20/24, 21/25 (cf. 6/17); intend, determine
41/4, 12; with at and inf., intend, prepare (to do s–thing) 38/1; vilja h.
at e–u be concerned about s–thing, think s–thing important, wish totake thought about s–thing 51/1; pres. p. hyggjandi thoughtful, sensible(referring scornfully to warriors saving themselves by flight) 7/34;
with acc. and inf., think s–thing is s–thing 20/24, 45/10; svá hygg ek
vera thus I believe there are 33/36; with inf. understood 22/37 (‘this I
believe B. to consist of’). Md. with inf., think that one (will do s–thing)
37/20; with at and inf., intend, plan (to do s–thing) 44/19.
hylli f. favour, goodwill 46/17.
h‡nótt f. night(s), period of waiting before a wedding; sjá hálf h. halfGlossary111

such a wedding eve (or ‘this half-wedding night’, when one partner isabsent?) 31/32.
h‡ski n. household, family 11/24.
hæll m. (1) heel 50/40; á hæla e–m on s–one’s heels, immediately behinds–one 8/6. (2) anchoring peg or post 29/6.
hæri a. comp. higher (cf. hár); n. as adv., more loudly 25/39.
hætta (1) (tt) wv. with dat., stop, make an end of 42/19.
hætta (2) f. danger; leggja sik í hættu take some risk 27/36.
hætti see háttr.
hættligr a. boding danger 45/18.
hættr a. dangerous 44/30.
hœgri a. comp. right (as opposed to left) 28/38, 37/38.
hƒf›ingi m. ruler 4/33, 8/17; lord, prince 31/35, 34/2.
hƒfu›, haufu› n. head 3/23, 7/19, 11/12; í h. e–m on s–one’s head 38/27,
39/9.
hƒfu›konungr m. supreme king 4/36 (cf. yfirkonungr 4/31).
hƒfu›ma›r m. leader, ruler 6/13.
hƒfu›skepna f. (natural) element 4/3.
hƒfu›sta›r m. chief place, most important (cult) centre 17/5, 19/33 (seeAH Studier 60).
hƒfu›tunga f. chief language 4/32.
hƒfugleikr m. heaviness 10/7.
hƒgg n. blow 35/31, 39/2, 43/2.
hƒggormr m. poisonous snake, viper 46/26.
hƒggva (hjó) sv. strike; cut 45/8; h. til aim blows 45/25. Md. (reciprocal)
fight 34/10.
†hƒl›r m. man 49/31.
hƒll f. hall, palace 7/28, 22/32.
hƒnd f. arm 11/1, 31/4; hand 25/17, 28/35; hendi sinni with his hand
41/40; á hendi sér on his hand 44/37; í hendi honum in his hand 49/3;
fellusk (ﬂeim) hendr i.e. they were paralysed 46/9; e–m til handa fors–one, on s–one’s behalf 31/18; hvárratveggju handar on the side ofeach (party), for both our sakes 43/27; til hœgri handar on the righthand side 37/38.
hƒrgr m. sanctuary (generally not a building) 15/25.
hƒrund f. flesh 27/21.
í prep. (1) with acc., into 4/16 (1), 7/27, 9/4, 11/35, 35/12; to 4/16 (2),43/35; towards 39/18; in 6/13 (1); on 15/32; onto 27/14 (1), 39/9,
50/38; when faced with 26/17; as, for 37/25; í alla heima as far as,

112

Glossary

throughout all worlds 25/40; ﬂar í brunninn into that spring 19/17; oftime, on, in, at 37/13, 48/33, during 54/10 (dat.?). (2) with dat., in 3/6,
19; from in 19/15; with names, of, who lives at 24/25; in or on 48/17(see fjall); í ﬂeim sta› kalla menn that place is called 15/24 (see sta›r);
as regards, in respect of 49/25; of time, on 41/16, in, at 9/29, 38/35,
46/29; í ﬂví at that moment 38/5. (3) as adv., in (it) 15/22, 36/26, 41/15;
into it 46/34; about (it) 55/1; ﬂann er . . . í in which 23/8; ﬂar ofan ídown in it 43/4.
i›rask (a›) wv. md. repent (e–s of s–thing) 31/38.
ifask (a›) wv. md. doubt, be in doubt (í about s–thing) 55/1.
íkorni m. squirrel 18/32.
il f. sole of the foot 45/13.
illa adv. badly; with difficulty 42/33; not at all 45/27.
illiliga adv. horribly 29/9.
illr a. evil 10/40, 18/27; unpleasant 24/7, 31/13; n. as subst., evil 27/9, 29/13.
inn (1) adv. in 27/20, 30/1; inwards 10/7; inside 8/18; inland 4/16; inn í(inside) into 7/27, 40/36.
inn (2) (n. it) pron. art. the 5/35, 8/18; with a. after noun 7/29, 30/35;
combined with demonstrative for additional emphasis í ﬂeim inum
17/23, ﬂau in fyrstu (sc. tí›indi) 49/20, ﬂat it fyrsta the first thing (NBleikr is m.) 43/7; it ﬂri›ja skei›it 40/27; treble demonstrative for ironicemphasis hafit ﬂat it djúpa 37/29 (see note). Cf. hinn.
inna (t) wv. perform (i.e. with success) 40/13.
innan adv. on the inside, within 15/24; i. vi› on the inside of 19/18; fyriri. on the inside, on the inner edge 12/24; with following gen. ﬂar i.
lands within that country (those countries) 6/23.
innar adv. comp. further in 37/40.
inni adv. inside, within 8/22; hér i. in here 39/39, 42/10.
ísarnkol n. bellows 14/3; cf. Grm 37, where it is probably to be understood as analogous to the bellows of a forge.
íss m. ice 10/2, 3, 7.
it n. of inn (2).
íﬂrótt f. accomplishment, feat 39/35, 40/1.
jafn a. equal; n. as adv., equally well, just as well (sem as) 25/38.
jafna (a›) wv. with dat. compare; j. e–u til e–s liken s–thing to s–thing,i.e. call s–thing after s–thing 23/16.
jafnan adv. always, continually 27/2, 30/36; for ever 37/27.
jafnbrei›r a. just as wide (e–u as s–thing) 37/35 (‘and it was as wide as
the whole width of the hall’).

Glossary113

jafngnógliga adv. as abundantly, with as great sufficiency (sem as) 33/5.
jafngó›r a. equally good (sem as) 31/36, 36/13.
jafnhƒfugr a. equal in weight, of the same weight (as itself) 47/6.
jafnlangt n. a. as adv., equally far 3/23.
jafnmikill a. equally large 36/13.
jafnmjƒk adv. as much 47/13, textual note.
jafnsannr a. equally true 28/11.
jafnskjótt n. a. as adv. immediately 35/28.
jar›ligr a. earthly 3/15, 17; worldly (as opposed to andligr) 4/13.
jarl m. jarl, earl 6/19, 33/7.
jarmr m. crying 24/12.
járn n. iron 45/21.
járnfjƒturr m. iron fetter 28/29.
járnglófar m. pl. iron gloves 23/8 (cf. Skáld 24–5).
játa (tt) wv. say yes, agree (e–u to s–thing) 38/14, 16; acknowledge(e–n e–t s–one to be s–thing) 10/39.
jaxl m. back tooth, molar 11/38.
†jór m. (male) horse 34/20.
jƒr› f. earth, world 3/1, 15/4; the ground 5/2, 15/33, 27/38; earth = soil
11/37; land as opposed to sea 12/1, 21; personified 13/19 (cf. Jƒr› inindex of names).
†jƒrmungrund f. the mighty earth 32/39.
jƒtunmó›r m. a giant fury 35/27, 50/3, 51/25.
jƒtunn m. giant 7/5, 10/24; with name 10/26, 11/15, 12/26; = Loki or
Fenrisúlfr? 51/13.
-k enclitic pron. = ek, munak 28/25, lí›k 30/17, mundak 41/9, 36, megak
42/35, haf›ak 42/40; with ek, ek fæk 28/32; with suffixed neg. -a andek, varka ek 24/4, nautka ek 48/8; ek máttigak 24/10 (emended; cf.
Noreen 531 note 1); erumk = eru mér 24/3.
kala (kól) sv. impers. with acc., one gets cold, freezes 44/14.
kaldr a. cold 4/20, 21/2; n. as subst. 10/10.
kalla (a›) wv. (1) call: with two acc., call a person or a place s–thing
10/15, 40, 12/26, (with pron. and a.) say that s–one is s–thing 42/7;
assert, declare, reckon (s–thing or s–one to be s–thing) 36/39, 41/33,
42/32; kallar ﬂess meiri ván declares it more likely 40/12; er svá kallat
it is said 30/21; vera kalla›r be called, be known as 4/17, 6/6; pp.
agreeing with complement rather than subject 7/10, 13/10, 29/26 (seenote); ekki kalla›r not said to be, said not to be 25/19; Heimdalarsver› er kallat hƒfu› the head is called H.’s sword 26/1; name, give a114

Glossary

name to 55/3; e–t er kallat s–thing takes its name (from s–thing) 29/36.
(2) call out 37/23, 40/2; summon 28/20 (2), 31/9; k. á call on, invoke
35/28; k. til (adv.) summon 46/27.
kanna (a›) wv. explore, get to know 5/5.
kanntu, kannﬂu = kannt ﬂú, see kunna.
kapp n. rivalry, competition, race; pl. 40/17.
karl m. man, male 5/22, 25/22, 29/32; old man (Ó›inn) 48/8.
karlma›r m. male 13/7, 25/23, 30/7.
kasta (a›) wv. with dat., throw 27/12, 37/11; object understood 12/27,
39/20; cast (a net) 48/30, 33; impers. kastat haf›i had been thrown 12/7.
kaup n. terms, bargain (vi› with) 34/35; (agreed) reward, payment 34/33;
making of agreement 35/5; vera af kaupinu forfeit his reward 35/16.
kaupa (keypta) wv. buy, pay for 33/9.
kengr m. (keng n. textual note) bow, arch (see beygja) 42/1.
kenna (d) wv. recognise, know, perceive, feel 23/4, 35/21; be able totell, realise 37/17, 38/9; with gen., feel 44/39; k. e–t e–m attributes–thing to s–one 55/4. Md., feel (it) 48/16.
keppask (t) wv. md. compete (vi› e–n with s–one) 26/21.
kerling f. old woman 42/11, 14; the old woman 42/17.
kerra f. chariot 13/28, 39, 47/1.
ketill m. cooking-pot 32/13, 37/6.
ketti dat. sg. of kƒttr.
keyptr = kjƒptr.
keyra (›) wv. drive 13/38; k. (hest) sporum drive (a horse) on with spurs,
spur (a horse) on 47/20.
kind f. kind(red), (member of a certain) race; in poetry, child: Fenris
kindir = wolves, possibly literally F.’s offspring 14/31.
kippa (t) wv. snatch; md. kippask vi› flinch, jerk away, be convulsed (inreaction to s–thing) 49/15.
kjóll m. a kind of ship 51/30.
kjósa (kaus) sv. choose 24/36; k. sér choose for o–self 6/11; k. e–t á e–nallot s–one s–thing 30/35; k. val choose (i.e. decide) who shall beslain (cf. valkyrja) 30/36, select one’s victim, kill 34/11.
kjƒptr, keyptr m. jaw 50/9, 38, 51/2.
kljúfa (klauf) sv. cleave; pp. klofinn cloven, split (vb. to be understood)
49/34.
klofna (a›) wv. split (intrans.) 9/38, 50/13, 52/4.
klæ›a (dd) wv. dress; k. sik or md. klæ›ask get dressed 34/4, 37/14.
klæ›i n. pl. clothing 13/7.
kné n. knee 42/19, 43/23.
knésfót f. hough, the hollow or back of the knee 49/11.

Glossary115

knífr m. knife 27/18, 37/12.
knúi m. knuckle 37/22.
knútr m. knot 38/24.
kn‡ja (knú›a) wv. beat, churn up 51/26; md., exert o–self, struggle (ate–u in, with, at s–thing) 27/38, 42/16.
kólfskot n. (distance of) arrow shot, bowshot 40/24 (kólfr is a bluntheaded arrow; the more usual term is ƒrskot).
koma (kom) sv. come 4/40, 7/27; arrive 7/26; come (from), originate(af from) 13/3, 34/28; descend (from) 3/2, 5/37; at hann komi that hewill come 8/23; ok kominn and (said he had) come 8/1; kom ok rei›came riding 46/26; svá kom thus it came about 3/13; komandinn the
newly arrived one 8/20; láta k. put, fasten 44/34; k. e–m bring s–one
27/2, 43/25 (compel); k. e–u á lei› bring s–thing about 48/12; k. á findits mark, hit 43/3; k. at reach 35/10; er kom at dagan when dawn
arrived 38/1; k. fram come to pass, happen 52/5, proceed, go on,
advance, come ashore? 15/11; k. fyrir be paid in compensation, atone
37/24; k. saman converge, unite 10/34; k. upp come out, be emitted
46/12; k. vi› (verr) suit (worse), be (less) convenient, proper, advantageous (er that) 32/1. Md., bring o–self, manage to go, get (somewhere) 12/3, 39/27; komask undan get away, escape 11/24.
kona f. woman 5/22, 7/2; female 13/8, 25/23 (1, 2); wife 5/3, 11/14,
25/23 (3).
konar m. gen. sg. in phrases alls k. of all kinds 45/20, nokkurs k. ofsome kind 39/37, margs k. many kinds of 46/38.
konungdómr m. kingdom 4/30, 32.
konungr m. king 4/35, 8/18; as title after name 7/20, 21/31.
kosta (a›) wv. impers. e–n kostar e–t til it costs s–one s–thing (for it, to
do it) 35/19.
kostgripr m. treasure, special possession, favourite thing 23/3.
kostna›r m. expense; expensive decoration? 4/30.
kostr m. (good) quality 4/24; alls kostar all kinds of 4/26; at ƒ›rum
kosti otherwise, alternatively, as a second choice 36/39, 39/16;(difficult) choice, alternative, possibility 48/39; pl., terms, conditions
34/39; lands kostir geographical conditions 6/11; rá›a sessa kostum
arrange the facilities, decide on the allocation of seats (i.e. who shallbe admitted) or on the arrangement of the seats (and the fare?) 24/34.
kraptr m. (physical) strength 42/37; (creative) power 10/14, 13/19, 25/7.
krefja (kraf›a) wv. demand (e–n e–s s–thing of s–one) 45/36; k. e–nor›a try to speak with s–one 31/9.
kringlóttr a. circular, disc-shaped 12/22 (hon = the inhabited earth, orbis
terrarum).

116

Glossary

kunna (kann, kunna; kanntu, kannﬂu = kannt ﬂú) pret.-pres. vb. know
(nearly always with reference to ability to give information) 3/14,
22/18; be able to, i.e. have the knowledge to (with inf.) 20/29, 22/26,(with at and inf.) 5/8, 25/29; be able to perform 39/36; know how to(with inf.) 40/9, (with at and inf.) 41/37; kann vera at maybe 15/7.
kunnandi f. ability, accomplishment (s–thing one knows how to do)
39/37.
kunnátta f. (technical) knowledge, skill, expertness 4/26, textual note,
15/8.
kunnigr a. having supernatural knowledge and ability 7/21.
kunnusta f. knowledge, ability 4/26.
kunst f. art, accomplishment 4/26, textual note.
kvánfang n. match, woman to be a wife 6/22.
kve›a (kva›) sv. say; †with unexpressed indefinite subject, kve›a theysay (with acc. and inf.) 20/37, 26/3; in prose often refers to speaking
in verse 24/2, 9, 31/26; with acc. and inf. 28/23, 31/13, with inf.
understood 35/15, with acc. understood 28/21. Md. with inf., say that
one will do s–thing 31/12, 44/28, 31.
kve›ja (kvadda) wv. speak to, greet 39/31.
kveld n. evening (the end of the day, nightfall) 11/11, 35/19, 44/7 (cf.
aptann).
kvelja (kval›a) wv. torment, torture 53/30.
kvenna gen. pl. of kona.
kvi›r m. belly 42/1.
kvikna (a›) wv. be generated, come to life 15/33; impers. kvikna›i there
was a quickening, a coming to life 10/14.
kviknun f. quickening, coming to life 15/35.
kvikudropi m. flowing drop; pl., fermenting fluid? 10/13.
kvikvendi, kykvendi n. living being, creature 3/7, 29, 31, 13/21; pl.,animals (as opposed to men) 47/37.
kvisa (a›) wv. whisper 39/12.
kvistr m. branch 19/13, 39/9.
kvæmi p. subj. of koma.
kykr a. alive 3/29, 48/7; animate 47/28; n. as subst., s–thing alive 48/33.
kykvendi = kvikvendi.
k‡ll m. bag (for food) 37/32.
kyn n. family, species 19/30.
kynsló› f. progeny 3/3, 54/12; family line 13/15.
k‡r f. cow 11/6, 9.
k‡ss pres. of kjósa.

Glossary117kœla (d) wv. cool 14/2.
kƒgursveinn m. child in arms, puppy 39/16 (cf. Hrbl 13, where ﬁórruses the word of Hárbar›r. The literal meaning is unknown; cf.
kƒgurbarn, also used derogatively, in ¯rvar-Odds saga, ed. R. C. Boer,
Leiden 1888, 120, and Maríu saga, ed. C. R. Unger, Christiania 1871,
1056).
kƒpuryr›i n. overbearing speech, uppish speech, cheekiness 39/16.
kƒttr m. cat 25/2, 28/5, 41/36.
kømr = kemr, pres. of koma.
lá see liggja.
lag›r, lagi›r pp. of leggja.
lágr a. short 42/6.
lagsma›r m. companion, fellow 37/37; ok ﬂeir lagsmenn and (both) thecompanions, i.e. he and his companion with him 37/7.
lágu p. pl of liggja.
land n. land 7/7, 12/23 (pl.); country 5/4, 6/26; district? 6/29; territory(pl.) 7/1; ﬂar til landa over those territories 6/1; land as opposed tosea 50/2; shore 44/16, 45/13.
landskjálpti m. earthquake 37/36, 49/16.
landslƒg n. pl. laws of the land 6/14.
landvƒrn f. defence of the land 9/28.
langfe›gar m. pl. ancestors, (male) family line 5/36, 6/27.
langr a. long 5/27, 18/25; n. as subst. or adv., far 10/1, a long way 29/4;
segja langt speak at length 37/18, gera langt um make a long tale
about it 42/15.
láta (lét) sv. (1) lose 29/1, 40/8. (2) make a noise 25/39; say, declare(with inf., that s–thing shall be done) 40/13; l. yfir sér behave, expresso–self (in a certain manner), put on a certain manner 39/14. (3) let,allow (with acc. and inf., s–one to do s–thing) 11/19 (‘agree to call
him that’), 27/28, 44/11, 46/19; with inf. in passive sense, allow s–thing
to be done 27/37, 28/34; make s–thing do s–thing, cause s–one ors–thing to do s–thing 7/31, 13/38, have s–thing done 42/25; lét eigi
did not allow (or cause) 31/23; l. gera have made 28/4; l. koma put
44/34; l. kalla e–n have s–one summoned 31/9; cause to be (with pp.)32/15; l. eptir leave behind 37/27; l. fram put forward 28/38.
látprú›r a. courtly in behaviour 30/6.
látum dat. pl. of læti.
laufsbla› n. leaf of foliage, a single leaf 38/28.
laun (1) f. secrecy 7/24.

118

Glossarylaun (2) n. pl. reward, payment 7/2.
launa (a›) wv. reward (e–m e–t s–one for s–thing) 31/20.
launrá› n. secret counsel, secret thought 29/23.
lausafé n. movable wealth, money 23/31.
laushárr a. with flowing (unbound) hair 29/22.
lauss a. free 50/2, 32; not still, not fixed, unsteady 42/17; uncontrolled
12/7; unconfined 11/40. Comp., less tight 38/25.
lax m. salmon 49/4.
laxlíki n. the shape, form of a salmon 48/19.
leggja (lag›a, pp. lag›r, lagi›r) wv. lay, put 11/32, 25/15; place 25/16,
27/36; deposit 17/20; build 15/27; cover (e–u with s–thing) 7/28; l. sikfram put o–self out, make an effort, take pains 40/20; nær lag›i ﬂatófœru it brought disaster close 25/29; l. e–t til vi› e–n grant s–thing tos–one, agree to s–thing with s–one (include in the conditions) 35/2;
vera lag›r til be set to, destined to (cause) 27/25; l. upp ship (oars)
44/32. Md., lay o–self, lie (down) 38/20, 48/32; stop, be silent 21/23(legskaﬂu, with suffixed neg. and 2nd pers. pron.).
leggr m. leg, bone of leg (or arm) 16/6.
lei› (1) f. way 15/4; fara l. sína go (on) one’s way 43/34; fara fram á l.
continue on one’s way 39/23; ek á nú nor›r l. my way now lies to thenorth 39/18; distance 39/11; langar lei›ir long distances 29/27; komae–u á l., snuá e–t til lei›ar bring s–thing about 13/1, 48/12.
lei› (2) p. of lí›a.
lei›a (dd) wv. lead, conduct 8/18, 46/21.
lei›r a. hateful 24/3.
lei›rétta (tt) wv. put right, achieve redress for 44/4.
leika (lék) sv. play; perform 40/9; juggle (at with) 7/35; of flames, play
52/35.
leikr m. game, sport 8/7, 34/5; competition, contest 40/8, 41/22; hvat
leik (dat.) what sort of contest 41/33.
leita (a›) wv. with gen., look for 29/29; try to find, try to fetch 47/15; tryto think of 35/11; l. e–m e–s seek out, find s–thing for s–one 37/35,
38/19; l. á assault, (take by) storm 35/9; l. sér til e–s try to find o–selfs–thing 37/33; l. til e–s try (to use), resort to s–thing 42/17; l. til ef try
whether, seek an opportunity for 43/36. Md. leitask fyrir explore, feel
one’s way 37/38.
lemja (lam›a) wv. strike, lame, damage, crush (e–t á e–m s–one’ss–thing) 23/5.
lén n. reward, emoluments, wealth, success 18/25.
lendir f. pl. loins 49/10.
leng› f. length; leng›in his length 43/21.

Glossary119

lengi adv. long 31/16, 43/23; for a long time 24/4, 44/4, i.e. for ever
26/13, 48/15; eigi lengi it was not long 42/18.
lengr adv. comp. for a longer time, any longer 21/6.
lengri a. comp. longer 3/36; n. as adv., further 3/22, 29/5; lengra framfurther on in time 54/28, 29.
lengst adv. sup. furthest 42/3; sem 1. as long as possible 41/25.
létta (tt) wv. with dat., lift 42/3. Md., become free of moisture, clear up(of the sky) 10/8.
leyfi n. permission (til for) 29/34.
leyna (d) wv. hide (e–t e–n s–thing from s–one) 29/40. Md., take refuge,
lie hid 54/10, 15.
leysa (t) wv. untie, undo 38/14, 24, 42/40; release, free 25/16, 27/2;
redeem 48/13; uproot 7/6 (impers., was uprooted?); impers. (subj.)
leysi one gets (s–thing) free 27/40. Md., free o–self, get free 27/30.
li› n. people, following, retinue 5/22, 50/25; troop, company, number
48/37; help (til for, towards, in) 34/38, 35/1; at li›i e–m to s–one’s
assistance 51/2.
lí›a (lei›) sv. move 30/13, 17 (with suffixed pron., cf. -k); impers.,
progress (or drain away, of the liquid?) 43/12; hvat lei› drykkinum
how the drinking was getting on (how it was going with regard to thedrinking) 41/6; of time, pass 3/4, 55/1; impers. lí›r at e–u it gets nearto s–thing, s–thing approaches 34/6; á lei› vetrinn = lei› á vetrinn(acc.) the winter passed by, drew to a close 35/8; var li›it á nótt thenight was far spent, advanced 42/21.
li›sem› f. help, assistance 44/12.
líf n. life 3/29, 13/6.
lifa (›) wv. live 3/8, 9/2; l. vi› live on (as sustenance) 11/5, 32/31.
liggja (lá) sv. lie 19/6; be situated 7/10, 9/21; lie concealed? 23/26; befound 19/19; extend 27/12, 43/20; l. (ﬂar) til belong to (it), be subject
to (it) 4/31, 13/16.
lík n. corpse 46/22, 32.
líka (a›) wv. with dat., please; sem honum líkar as he would like, as hewants 41/15; e–t líkar e–m vel (illa) s–one likes (dislikes) s–thing
25/4, 45/27.
líkami m. body 9/1.
líkandi n. form 10/15.
líki n. body, shape, appearance 7/24, 15/36; form 14/22, 49/8.
líkindi n. pl. likelihood; en l. ﬂœtti á than appeared probable 28/22.
líking f. pattern; í ﬂá líking sem in imitation of the way that 6/13; gera íl. e–s follow s–one’s example 46/3.
líknsamastr a. sup. most kind, merciful, gracious 23/19.

120

Glossarylíkr a. like (e–m to s–one) 5/9; comp., more like 5/24; comp. n. as adv.,
more likely, very likely (at that) 32/12.
limar f. pl. branches 17/10, 33/19.
lind f. shield (of lime wood) 51/23.
língarn n. linen yarn, flaxen thread 48/21.
list f. art 15/8, 28/26, 36/21; skill 39/37.
líta (leit) sv. look 31/3, 39/31 (til at). Md., appear, seem (e–m to s–one)
39/35, 42/13; impers. lízk e–m (svá) sem it looks to s–one as if 36/32,
41/7, 15, 22; e–m lízk á e–t s–thing looks to one (svá sem as if) 28/25.
litask (a›) wv. md., l. um(b) look around 8/8, 42/9.
lítill a. little 18/25, 41/35; small 38/3, 41/33; thin 28/27; short (of time)
37/30; poor, insignificant, inadequate 41/1; l. vexti of small stature
39/13; l. fyrir sér of small account (cf. mikill) 42/32; n. as subst., little
11/35; litlu fyrir shortly before 39/3.
lítilræ›i n. s–thing beneath one’s dignity, a demeaning act (í in it) 42/10.
litr m. colour 15/8, 27/21, 47/13.
litverpr a. changeable (changed) in colour 45/5.
ljóri m. roof-opening (for smoke and light), skylight 53/22.
ljósálfar m. pl. light elves 19/35, 37, 20/24 (there is no source older thanSnorri for the distinction of light and dark elves; cf. AH Studier 37).
ljóss a. light, bright 9/26, 10/11, 13/27.
ljósta (laust) sv. strike 35/31, 45/9; knock 49/6; with dat. of instrument
27/38; l. í, á strike at, against, onto 38/27, 39/5; l. e–n hƒgg strikes–one a blow 43/2.
ljúga (laug) sv. lie 36/37; impers. passive er logit at ﬂér you have beenlied to 28/8.
lof n. (1) glory 18/25. (2) permission 29/35.
lofa (a›) wv. (1) praise 23/15, 29/36 (‘and similarly when things arepraised highly’). (2) permit 34/39.
loga (a›) wv. burn (intrans.); pres. p., flaming 9/26, 28.
logi m. flame; dat. sg., in, with flame(s) 18/5.
lokinn pp. of lúka.
lokka (a›) wv. lure, entice, trick 25/15.
lopt n. air, sky 4/9, 10/12; loptsins in the sky 3/17; pl., sky, skies 8/37,
14/25, 50/12; í lopt, á lopt into the sky, into the air, aloft 12/27, 23/4;
á lopti in the air, aloft 7/36, 51/7; at lopti in the air or into the air?
30/13, 17.
losna (a›) wv. become free, untied 50/4, 51/13; l. upp become uprooted
49/40.
lú›r (rs) m. (1) trumpet 25/40. (2) coffin or cradle (with prep. á) 11/32(probably coffin, but evidently associated by Snorri with ƒrk whichGlossary121

could mean both coffin and ark, and this seems to have led to hisinterpreting the verse as referring to a Norse deluge); ark 11/25. Cf.
AH Gudesagn 25.
lúka (lauk) sv., l. fyrir e–m close against s–one 30/1; l. fyrir sér open (toenter) 31/4; l. aptr shut 39/26; l. upp open 39/27; hvar upp skyldi l.
where the opening was 43/1; l. e–u finish s–thing: eigi mun lokit ver›a
verkinu the job would not be finished 35/26. Md., shut itself, slam to
8/6.
lund f. manner, way 4/11, 29.
lustu p. pl. of ljósta.
lúta (laut) sv. bow the head 41/5 (i.e. to begin a second draught); l. ór
e–u stand up from s–thing, cease to bend over s–thing 41/6.
l‡›ir m. pl. people, followers, subjects, troops 51/32.
lypta (pt) wv. with dat., lift 5/2, 42/1, 43/17.
l‡sa (t) wv. illuminate 12/9, 13/40; impers. l‡sir it shines, light is shed
23/16, 31/5; l‡sir e–t light is shed over s–thing 13/32.
l‡sigull n. shining gold, gold that emits light (shines in the dark) 47/9
(cf. Skáld 40–1, ch. 33; Grettis saga, ÍF VII 57).
lysti p. subj. of ljósta.
†læ n. (dat. sg. lævi) destruction, that which destroys (with gen.); sviga
læ destroyer of sticks, kenning for fire 9/32, 51/39; = darkness 36/1.
lægi p. subj. of liggja.
lægri a. comp. lower (in level) 41/7.
læknir m. physician 29/20.
lærleggr m. upper leg, thigh-bone, ham-bone 37/12.
læti n. noise 38/4.
lƒgr m. sea 51/32; lopt ok lƒg 30/9, 31/5, 50/12.
má (›) wv. with dat., damage, eat away, destroy 19/13.
ma›kr m. maggot, grub, worm 15/34, 35.
ma›r m. person 5/17, 18/15, 50/5; man 7/24, 11/2; human being(s) 8/39(‘man’, generic sg.); being 11/18; eigi sá m. er no one who 3/14; flestum
manni to most people 12/2; pl., people 3/8, 4/33; men 30/35; ﬂeir
menn er any men who 40/21; mƒnnum for men (people) 18/13; asindefinite subject 18/40; kalla menn i.e. is called 15/24, 19/28; svá atmenn hafa gert ever made 22/34.
mál n. (1) time (with inf., to do s–thing) 39/10; m. at sofa time for sleep,
i.e. not yet time to get up 38/40. (2) speech, conversation 8/26; powerof speech 13/6 (with def. art.); language 8/28; agreement, contract
36/6; transaction 29/38; affair, matter, case 30/2, 36/39, 37/3.
málmr m. metal 15/28, 29, 45/21, 47/38.

122

Glossarymálsnild f. eloquence 25/20.
man see muna.
mána›r m. month 31/30.
máni m. moon 12/15, 34/34.
manndómligr a. human 4/34.
manndráp n. killing, homicide 49/25.
mannfjƒl›i m. number (multitude) of people 32/9, 34/1.
mannfólk n. mankind 53/6; with art. 3/4, 10, 9/40; people 4/24.
mannhringr m. circle of people 45/38.
mannkind f. mankind 13/8 (construed as n. pl.).
mannlíkan n. human form, being in human shape 16/7.
mannvit n. human intelligence 17/16; as cognate object vitandi mannvits
conscious with human intelligence 15/36.
mansƒngr m. love-song, erotic verse 25/4.
már m. gull 24/15.
margr a. (n. mart) many 3/34, 9/20; with sg. noun, many a 4/11, 23/5;
m. sá many a one 33/8; n. as subst., a lot 18/30, 31 (gen.), 36/28.
mark n. sign (um e–t of s–thing) 25/14; importance, significance (ate–u in s–thing) 31/39, 41/35; m. at of e–t something of importanceregarding s–thing 33/18.
marka (a›) wv. note, infer 23/17.
†marr m. sea 52/30.
mart n. of margr.
matask (a›) wv. md. eat; hafa matazk have finished one’s meal 38/29,
42/26.
matr m. food 8/21, 27/24; meal 37/8.
mátti see mega.
máttr m. might, power, ability 41/28, 44/1.
máttugr a. mighty 3/31, 4/2, 24/26; sup. mátkastr 14/23, 36/31.
máttu, mátﬂu = mátt ﬂú, see mega.
me› prep. (1) with dat., with 3/7, 29/24 (1); (instrument) 9/30, 38/7,
43/1; by means of 10/14, 27/3, 47/1; in company with 15/20, 37/4;
living with 9/8; along with, as well as 10/28; including 22/37; equallywith (next to?) 29/24 (2); among 4/40, 46/16, (i.e. for) 49/31; me›sjálfum sér among themselves 4/10; between 23/34; carrying 36/18,
40/38; vera me› have 15/8; me› einum hug til of one mind towards
46/10; hafa me› sér see hafa; engaged in 8/7; fara me› treat 37/17,
act with 43/39; (of place) by, along 12/23, 13/4; against 33/39 (error
for vi›?—so W and U); (accompanying circumstances) in 3/30, with
50/5, 9; regarding 51/13, 14. (2) with acc., taking 35/20, 50/27; komaGlossary123me› bring 26/25; fara me› take 36/20, 37/3 (drive). (3) as adv., aswell, with it 19/15, 40/7; ok ﬂat me› and this also 27/34; ﬂar me› also
4/7; with (by means of) them 49/9; fara me› treat (it), do with (it)27/29, take (it) 44/24.
me›al, á m. prep. between; as adv., between (them) 36/7.
me›an adv. meanwhile 49/15; as conj., while 8/24.
mega (má, mátta) pret.-pres. vb. be able, can 7/28, 36/18; máttu, mátﬂu
you can 23/17, 28/8; subj. mega ek, megak can I, I can 31/29, 42/35;
máttigak I was not able (see -k, -a) 24/10; may 11/19, 40/35; bepermitted 23/21; have the right to 13/17, 22/26; with neg., must 23/9;
eigi mátti did not have the opportunity 45/3; m. minna have less power
21/14; hvat má hann what power has he 8/33; sem hann mátti lengst
as he could furthest, as the furthest he could 42/2. Impers., be possible
48/34; má one can 4/20, 6/30; mátti, mætti one could 3/17, 4/10; hann(acc.) má vefja it can be folded 36/21; eigi mátti it was impossible
35/9.
megi (1) pres. subj. of mega. (2) dat. sg. of mƒgr.
megin n. might, power 12/16.
megingjar›ar f. pl. girdle of might 23/6, 38/5.
meginligr a. mighty, solemn 36/6.
megir nom. pl. of mƒgr.
†mei›r m. tree (= Yggdrasill) 19/13.
mein n. injury 27/9; mischief, source of harm 49/38; handicap (e–m fors–one) 31/37.
meinsvari a. (weak declension only) perjured, who swears falsely 53/27(not a synonym of ei›rofi 53/16, which probably refers specifically to
breakers of vows: meinsvari is a more inclusive term).
meir adv. comp. more (in degree) 14/9, 33/3, 40/20; further 43/23, 54/32;
from then on, after that, or once more, still 34/13 (or m. um the more?).
meiri a. comp. greater 4/29 (2), 18/40; larger 4/29 (1), 39/34; more
important 45/14; me› list ok kunnáttu meiri with greater art and skill
15/8; n. as subst., more, a greater amount 41/19, 27; n. as adv., to agreater extent 50/10.
méldropi m. drop (of foam) from a horse’s bit 13/31.
mergr m. marrow 37/12.
merr f. mare 35/20, 22.
mest adv. sup. most 4/25; most of all, especially 25/20.
mestr a. sup. greatest 5/6, 11/18 (see vita), 17/10; the biggest 15/23,
22/40; of greatest significance 8/39; hefir ﬂat mest óhapp verit unnit(predicative) this (deed) was done (so as to be) the greatest misfortune,

124

Glossary

this was the unluckiest deed ever done 46/8; it mesta a very great, ofthe greatest kind 50/34; n. as subst. (or adv.) mest af skáldskap mostabout poetry (i.e. more than anyone else) 25/21.
metna›r m. glory 3/11.
mey, meyjar acc. sg. and nom. acc. pl. of mær.
mi›la (a›) wv. share out, distribute 3/16.
mi›r a. (n. mitt) mid, middle of 4/23, 27, 38/32; í honum mi›jum in the
middle of it 9/21.
mikill a. much 5/24, 11/23; a great deal of 49/32, 50/6; numerous 54/12;
big, large 25/1, 42/5; great 5/22, 31/6, 45/26; severe 49/22; important
12/20, 46/11; m. fyrir sér mighty, of great importance or power, agreat man (person) 25/6, 29/12, 34/14; n. as subst. or adv., much 3/11,
13/1, 21/1; dat. sg. myklu with comp., much, by far, many 3/5, 4/29,
32/8.
mikillæti n. arrogance 31/6 (er in which, which consisted in the factthat).
mildr a. gentle, kind 29/33.
milli, í m., á m. prep. with gen., between 18/31, 39/28, 48/32; sín á m.
between themselves, between each other 29/37; as adv. 49/23.
minjar f. pl. keepsake, token, souvenir, reminder 47/32.
minn a. my 38/10.
minnask (t) wv. md. recall, call to mind, discuss 15/32; m. á e–t talks–thing over 53/39, 54/36.
minni (1) n. memory 4/10; hafa at minnum keep in memory, as s–thing
to remember 26/13.
minni (2) a. comp. less 25/37; shorter 31/31; less mighty 44/33; m. fyrirsér (a person) of less significance (cf. mikill) 41/38; n. as subst. oradv., less 21/15, 41/16, 43/17.
minnr adv. less 44/36, 47/13.
minztr a. sup. least, smallest 43/2.
missa (1) f. loss (e–m for s–one) 46/15.
missa (2) (t) wv. with gen., be without 23/9, 32/1, 50/32.
misseri n. season, period of six months (or year?) 34/31.
mistilteinn m. mistletoe 45/36, 37, 46/6.
mitt n. of mi›r 11/36.
mjólká f. river of milk 11/7.
mjór a. slender 28/26, 28.
mjƒ›r m. mead 17/25, 26/7, 33/13.
mjƒk adv. very (with adjectives) 4/2, 17/30, 26/19; very much 7/21,
29/36; much, far 41/14; very nearly 35/10; often 24/16; a lot,Glossary125

particularly (i.e. this is his or her characteristic role) 25/11, 29/31,
43/40.
mó›erni n. descent on the mother’s side 27/10.
mó›ir f. (pl. mœ›r) mother 26/9, 36, 54/21, 27 (gen. sg.).
mó›r m. fury 36/9, 37/25, 52/27.
mold f. soil, earth (as substance) 3/27, 9/1, 15/33, 16/30.
moli m. small fragment; í smán mola (collective sg.) into bits 35/32.
mor›vargr m. murderer 53/16, 28.
morgindƒgg f. morning dew 54/11, 17.
morgunn (dat. sg. morni) m. morning 13/31, 17/26, 24/15, 42/23, 47/24.
móti, á m., í m. prep. with dat., against 40/3, 50/30; towards 50/28; tomeet 6/6, 40/18; in the face of, on the side facing 10/8; gera e–t í m.
e–m receive s–one with s–thing 7/26; ﬂ‡›a á m. see ﬂ‡›a; í mót asadv., in exchange 23/33; back (to meet his gaze) 45/4.
mu›r m. (inflected munn-) mouth 25/17, 50/9; í munn mér into mymouth 28/35, similarly 29/7, 41/12, 15; striking face or edge of hammer
38/35.
muna (man, mun›a) pret.-pres. vb. remember 11/30.
†mund f. hand; dat. (instrumental) sg., with his hand 52/18.
mundlaug f. hand basin 49/13.
munn see mu›r.
munr m. difference (at by which) 41/7, 26; ﬂeim mun (+ sup.) . . . sem
by so much . . . in that, to this degree . . . that 46/14; fyr øngan mun by
no means, certainly not 10/39.
munu (mun, munda) pret.-pres. vb. (1) indicating future time: will 9/29,
14/15; be about to 38/30; with vb. to be understood, it will be 43/26(2); p. tense mundi future in the past, would 5/19, 48/20, was to 3/12;
myndi would have, was about to 46/31; munak (see -k) I shall 28/25;
muntu = munt ﬂú 28/30; p. inf. mundu would 27/32, 44/31. (2)indicating probability, mun, muni, myni will 12/2, 19/12, must 11/16,
17, 33/17; would need 36/24; with vb. to be understood, must be 41/20;
muntu vera you must be 39/34; muntﬂu hafa you have surely 28/9;
hvárt munu sitja can there be sitting 39/8; vera mun at segja frá ﬂeim
tí›indum I daresay there are tidings to be told 45/16; p. tense, would
7/22, 23, 18/9; must 4/1, 2; might 3/18; might well 26/12; eigi mundak(see -k) I would not have 41/9, 36; p. inf., would 28/24, 37/21.
myklu see mikill.
myrkr a. dark 37/33; n. as subst. 37/32.
mæla (t) wv. say 8/9, 37; speak (til to) 31/8, 42/28; ﬂat er mælt they say
25/13; m. til demand 34/35; m. e–t sér til kaups stipulate s–thing as126

Glossary

one’s payment 34/32; m. vi› e–n speak to s–one, say to s–one 21/20,
31/11, talk with s–one (s–thing)? 51/8; m. vi› (adv.) be opposed (tos–thing), object 47/30.
mær f. (pl. meyjar) maiden, virgin 18/12, 25/33, 29/21, 54/27 (thesubject, with sú 54/25); acc. sg. mey †girl, i.e. wife, beloved 36/3.
†mærr a. renowned, splendid, excellent 17/23, 52/21.
mœtask (tt) wv. md. (reciprocal) meet each other 10/12 (sg. with pl.
subject), 40/6.
mƒgr m. (pl. megir) son 26/9, 52/22; míns magar that of my (i.e. Ó›inn’s)son (i.e. ﬁórr) 22/40; dat. sg. megi (with hjarta) 52/17. In the phrase
Muspells megir 15/10, 50/17 the word could mean ‘men, troop’ (cf.
51/31–2), but cf. 15/16, 32/1, 50/14, 20.
mƒrk f. forest 37/31.
mƒtuneyti n. food-sharing; leggja m. sitt pool their food, put all theirfood together 38/16.
ná (›) wv. with dat., get (possession of), possess 31/17.
†na›r (rs) m. adder, serpent; = Mi›gar›sormr 52/23.
nafn n. name 3/13, 32; generic sg. 4/10.
nafnfrægr a. famous; er mjƒk er nafnfrægt whose name is well known
33/12.
nagl m. nail (of the body) 50/4, 6.
nakkvarr (n. nakkvat) = nokkurr.
nákvæmr a. close; attentive; sup. nákvæmust monnum til á at heita (the)most convenient (approachable) for people to pray to 25/2.
námunda prep. with dat., close to, to the neighbourhood of 10/11.
†nár m. corpse; acc. pl. nái 51/28, 53/31.
náttból n. night-quarters 37/35.
náttlangt adv. all night 42/22.
náttsta›r m. lodging-place for the night 8/1, 37/5.
náttúra f. nature, characteristic quality, property 3/23 (cf. e›li), 3/26,
23/19, 47/5.
náttver›r m. supper 37/7 (cf. nóttur›r).
†ne neg. adv. not 12/13, 15, 17; reinforcing suffixed neg. -a 21/23.
né conj. nor 9/14, 15, 17, 31/9; without a neg. preceding 48/7.
ne›an adv. below 12/9, 19/3; from below, underneath 17/15; up(wards)
45/4.
ne›ri a. comp. lower 29/8, 50/10, 38.
nefna (d) wv. name, call 4/35, 5/16; mention 54/38; speak the name of
3/12, 26/12; er nefndr is the name of 14/6, 47/10; ﬂessar eru enn

Glossary127

nefndar these are the names of others 33/23. Md. nefndisk said his
name was 7/36, 38/7; hefir hann nefnzk á fleiri vega he called himself
by various (other) names 21/31.
neita (a›) wv. say no; ﬂá er hann (ma›r T, W and U) neitar when one
denies 30/3.
nema (1) conj. except 3/7, 29/1; with inf. 14/12; introducing a clause,
except that 11/24; with subj., without, except by 46/28, if . . . not,unless 8/23.
nema (2) (nam) sv. take; n. sta›ar stop, come to rest 7/7, (get a grip)
49/3; n. vi› e–u push against, be stuck against s–thing 29/7; learn,acquire knowledge 54/30 (‘may the knowledge you have acquired doyou good’).
†nepr a. with difficulty? dying? 52/23.
nes n. headland 7/11.
nest n. food for a journey 38/17.
nestbaggi m. food-bag, knapsack 38/14, 21, 39/20, 42/40.
net n. net 48/22, 24, 27, 34, 49/1.
netﬂinull m. the rope along the (top) edge of a net 49/2.
neztr a. sup. (cf. ne›ri) lowest 8/18.
ni› n. darkening, waning of the moon 14/3.
ní› n. insult, imputation of dishonour 52/24.
†ni›fƒlr a. pale as rust? or as the waning moon? darkly pale? 51/28(with ƒrn).
ni›r adv. down, downwards 9/4, 18/33, 47/17.
ni›ri adv. down 15/33, 19/36.
níu num. nine 23/39, 25/33.
níundi ord. num. (the) ninth 8/31, 17/34.
njóta (naut) sv. with gen., enjoy 20/18; get benefit from 48/8 (nautka =naut-ek-a, see -a), imp. njóttu (= njót ﬂú) 54/30; subj. svá njóta (ek)trú minnar at by my faith (salvation) 34/1; impers. ekki n‡tr sólar thesun does no good, there is no (benefit from) sunshine 49/22.
nokkurr, nokkvorr, nakkvarr pron. a. a certain, some (or other) 3/30,
7/8; any 8/22, 34/37; anyone 36/38, 47/29; n. mundi vera stjórnari
there must be some controller 4/1; with def. art., any of the 53/32; órskóginum nokkvorum from the wood that happened to be nearby orfrom somewhere in the wood 35/20; einna n. one in particular 14/33;
n. as adv. nokkut, nakkvat somewhat 41/26, at all 47/16, 48/14; dat. ofdegree with comp., somewhat 28/21, 35/33.
nor›an adv. from the north; n. ór . . . from . . . in the north 7/5.
nor›anver›r a. northern, northerly 20/29.

128

Glossarynor›r (1) n. north 4/19, 10/6.
nor›r (2) adv. north, northwards 5/26, 6/4, 39/18.
nor›rhálfa f. the northern region (often referring to Europe), the northern
continent 5/6, 20; pl. 6/24.
nor›rætt f. northerly direction 31/3.
norn f. norn 18/14, 18, 23, 26, 27, 19/14, 30/35.
nótt f. (pl. nætr) night 23/39, 31/24, 27, 37/13; acc. sg., in a night 7/3,
by night 25/38.
nóttur›r m. supper (= náttver›r) 38/21.
nú adv. now 12/20, 15/5; just now 10/37, 28/14; in a moment 28/17,
31/18; at present 20/24; nú it fyrsta sinn now for the first time 36/37;
referring to time of author 5/26, 32, to time of fictional narrator 43/16;
correlative with er 41/16 (1), 42/34 (now that); er . . . ﬂá . . . nú 41/26;
nú er . . . ﬂá 43/14; á›r . . . nú 28/8.
n‡ n. new moon, waxing of the moon 14/3.
nyr›ri a. comp. more northerly 4/20.
n‡ta (tt) wv. derive benefit (af from), be successful (in), get somewhere(with) 41/29; md., thrive, be successful 38/25.
n‡vakna›r a. (pp.) just awoken 38/40.
nær adv. close, near 14/11, 47/22; nearly 14/8; as prep. with dat., near(to) 4/27, 23/38, 42/38.
næst adv. (sup.) next 11/6; ﬂar n., ﬂví n. next to him 8/19, next after that
13/9, 24; sterkr n. ﬂví sem ﬁórr er almost equal in strength to ﬁórr26/16.
næstr a. sup. closest (e–u to s–thing), next (to) 9/24.
nætr pl. of nótt.
nƒkkvi m. row-boat 44/24, 45/6; equivalent to skip 46/29 (cf. also 44/25,
45/1).
nƒs f. nostril 50/11.
óask (a›) wv. md. be afraid for, about (at . . . ne lest . . . not) 33/1.
ó› see va›a.
ó›ul n. pl. property inherited as of right; homeland; eiga ﬂar ó. be native
there 9/27.
†of (1) adv. pleonastic with verbs in verse 11/30, 32, 12/29, 39, 36/11 etc.
of (2) archaic prep. (later replaced by um and yfir) with acc. (1) of place,over, across 39/6, 44/6; through, over 45/6, 53/22; throughout 13/13,
20/6; around 27/13; above or on? 12/19 (or as sense 3 below); of veg
forward 52/15. (2) of time, through(out) 8/35; during 15/1, 38/4; atabout 37/36. (3) of subject, concerning 33/18; about 16/2, 54/1; with

Glossary129

40/13, 43/6; freista of try at 41/31. (4) †with dat. ok of fjórum tøgum
33/35 (cf. 22/36): perhaps adv. (quasi-comp.), ‘beyond that, more thanthat by forty’, rather than ‘over forty’.
ofan adv. above 12/8, 19/1; from above, i.e. down 28/3, 37/20; ﬂar o. í
down in it 43/4.
ofarst adv. sup. uppermost 8/19.
ofdramb n. arrogance 13/38.
ófegri a. comp. less beautiful 54/21.
ofinn pp. (of vefa) woven (with dat., out of, with s–thing) 53/14 (serpentswere twisted in the walls, or the walls were woven out of serpents; cf.
53/23).
oflítill a. too small 32/8.
ofrefli n. superiority in power (e–m over s–one), something beyond one’s
strength 27/28, 36/26.
ófri›r m. hostility 12/25.
ófró›liga adv. ignorantly 21/5.
ófúss a. reluctant 28/33.
ófœra f. s–thing impossible to traverse, an impossible undertaking 12/3;
peril, disastrous situation 25/29, 42/38.
ófœrr a. impassable, untraversable (e–m by s–one) 9/27.
ógagn n. disadvantage, mischief 49/39.
ógjƒrr a. (pp.) undone, unfinished 34/37.
ógurligr a. terrible 45/3.
óhapp n. misfortune, disaster 27/9, 46/8.
óhelgari a. comp. less holy 21/14.
óhreinn a. impure, evil 23/21.
ójafn a. unequal, diverse 3/35; n. as adv., unequally, unfairly 18/24.
ójafnask (a›) wv. md. become unequal, diverse 3/4.
ok adv., conj. and 3/1, 9/21; also 3/16, 22 (1); besides 42/21; taka ok see
taka; indicating accompanying circumstances, with 29/22 (2), 48/17(2) (‘and there were . . .’), 49/23, but 31/12; ok kominn and (said hehad) come 8/1; svá hart ok yfir so hard over, so hard and (high) over,so strongly and in such a way over 47/21; pleonastic, introducing mainclause and correlative with er 27/9 (2), 40/30, 41/6 (3), 49/1; correlativewith ﬂá er 10/14 (see note to 27/10 and Den første og anden grammatiske
afhandling i Snorres Edda, ed. V. Dahlerup and Finnur Jónsson, København 1886, 78; J. Fritzner, Ordbog over det gamle norske Sprog,
Kristiania 1886–96, under ok conj. 9).
ók see aka.
ókunnigr a. unknown, secret 44/3.

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Glossaryókunnr a. unknown, strange 29/29.
†ókví›inn a. unafraid (e–s of s–thing), unconcerned, not anxious (about)
52/24.
ókyrr a. unquiet, violent 14/26.
ólíkr a. unlike 3/20 (note the n. form: ‘it was different, there wasdissimilarity’); with dat., unlike to, different from 6/10, 19/36; comp.
19/37.
olli see valda.
ólusk see ala.
ómaki m. trouble, inconvenience 14/13.
opinn a. open 39/29.
opna (a›) wv. (cut) open 3/27.
opt adv. often 27/2, 31/30.
optar adv. comp. again, more than this once 41/5, 42/36, 43/27.
ór prep. with dat., from 7/5, 10/9; out of 10/2, 30, (material) 12/28,
16/5, 6; from among 14/32, coming from, leading from 29/2 (withfjƒtrinum); as adv., out of them 10/32.
óramligri a. comp. less mighty-looking 44/34.
órar = várar, see várr.
or› n. word 34/15, 46/13; pledged word 36/5; pl., speech, conversation
31/9, 11.
or›fimi f. skill in words, command of language 25/21.
or›inn pp. of ver›a.
or›snild f. eloquence 25/23.
or›tak n. saying 25/12, 27/40, 29/40, 30/3, 5; pl., speech 46/9.
órlaustn f. solution, answer (e–s to s–thing) 36/39.
ormr m. serpent 18/36, 19/5, 45/22, 49/12, 53/14, 24; = Mi›gar›sormr
27/12, 13, 44/37, 38, 45/2, 4, 6, 8, 50/36, 51/26.
orrosta f. battle 25/11, 26/19.
órœkja (kt) wv. neglect, fail to heed 3/5.
ósáinn a. (pp.) unsown, without being sown 53/35.
ósanna (a›) wv. refute 30/3.
óskasonr m. adopted son 21/28.
óskorinn a. (pp.) uncut 50/6 (cf. skera).
óskƒp n. pl. misfortune, evil fate, curse 18/27.
ósterkligri a. comp. less strong-looking 42/13.
ósvi›r a. not clever, foolish 19/7.
ósœm› f. loss of honour, loss of face 42/31.
ótrúligr a. unbelievable, incredible 8/8, 38/23; ótruligir at sannir munivera incredible that (they) can be true, unlikely to be true 36/35 (theGlossary131

construction seems to be a mixture of ‘which it seems to us incrediblethat can be true’ and ‘which seem to us incredible’).
ótta f. the last part of the night, the time just before dawn 37/13.
óttalauss a. unafraid 50/25; ekki var óttalaust at sofa it was not possible
to sleep without fear, securely 38/31.
óttask (a›) wv. md. be afraid 28/2.
óvinr m. enemy 8/14, 55/7.
óvíss a. uncertain 8/13 (‘one cannot know with certainty’).
óx see vaxa.
oxahƒfu› n. ox-head 44/34, 38.
plógr m. plough 7/6.
plógsland n. plough-land, acre, the amount of land that can be ploughedin a certain time 7/3.
pr‡›i f. splendour 4/22.
pungr m. purse 36/22.
rá› n. counsel 45/19 (see bera); taka r. af consult 50/24; scheme, plan,course of action 27/26, 35/16 (til at so that, by which); leita rá›adiscuss what to do 35/11; rá›a rá›um sínum take counsel, hold aconference 34/34, 54/36.
rá›a (ré›) sv. (1) with dat., control 4/5, 8/36; rule 7/1, 18/23; determine,assign 30/35, 36; have power over 24/28; be the cause of 35/15; vera
e–s rá›andi be responsible for s–thing 6/9; r. ﬂví er (or at) bring it
about (by one’s advice) that, be responsible for the decision that(to) 35/1, 12, 14; abs., have one’s way 42/35; r. rá›um see rá›. (2)with preps. r. fyrir rule over 4/3, 5/29, control 23/29; r. fyrir sér determine, make up one’s mind 43/35; r. um decide about, be in charge of
15/20. (3) with acc., advise; r. heilræ›i give good advice (e–m to s–one)
39/14.
ragna gen. of regin.
ragnarøkr (rs) n. twilight of the powers 25/26, 29/10, 49/17, 18. This is
the word consistently used (sometimes spelt with -kk-) in Snorra Eddaand (once) in Ls. Other eddic poems, however, use the form ragnarƒk, doom of the powers.
ramr a. (physically) strong, powerful (but sometimes referring to magicalpower) 36/29; n. as subst., svá ramt something so powerful, such power
36/25.
†rann n. building 22/38 (gen. pl., with mest), 26/6.
rás f. race, running 43/10.

132

Glossaryrata (a›) wv. (1) travel about, be abroad. (2) fall. In this text the word
occurs only at 9/36 and 52/2 and it is uncertain which meaning was
intended.
rau›r a. red (of blood) 14/39, (of fire) 18/8, (of gold) 20/1, 29/28, 53/11.
rauf f. hole 49/6.
refilstigr m. trackless way? secret path? 8/1.
†regin n. pl. (divine) powers 12/35, 14/38, 15/39, 54/26.
regn n. rain 24/27.
regnbogi m. rainbow 15/7.
rei› (1) f. carriage, chariot 23/1, 25/2, 37/4, 44/6; riding 30/10 (2).
rei› (2) p. of rí›a.
rei›a (dd) wv. lift, swing (a weapon) 38/33, 39/4; r. fram swing down
and forward, i.e. strike 43/31; r. til (adv.) swing up or round, bringforward 45/11.
rei›ask (dd) wv. md. be(come) angry (e–m, e–u with s–one or at s–thing)
13/37, 44/17.
rei›i n. harness, trappings 47/7.
rei›igƒgn n. pl. utensils (cf. rei›a f., service) or riding equipment (cf.
rei› f., riding) 15/30.
rei›r a. angry (e–m with s–one) 31/11, 38/26.
reip n. rope; pl., tackle 35/22.
reka (rak) sv. pursue, fulfil (an errand) 48/1.
rekja (rak›a) wv. trace; r. spádóma til at discover prophecies implyingthat 27/8.
rekkja f. (gen. pl. rekna) bed 38/29.
renna (1) (d) wv. slip, glide, slide 48/36, 49/2.
renna (2) (rann; 3rd pers. sg. pres. renn, rennr) sv. run 10/2, 11/7;
with acc., run (gallop) over or through 30/9; r. skei› run a race orcourse 40/10.
†renniraukn n. swiftly moving draught animal 7/14.
reri see róa.
rétt adv. right(ly) 3/4, 9/2.
rétta (tt) wv. make right or straight; stretch 42/2; r. dóma sína issue
their judgements or set up their courts 15/32.
réttlátr a. righteous (cf. láta (2) behave) 20/10.
réttr m. law 6/14.
reyna (d) wv. try, make trial of 27/27, 32, 44/20; attempt, have a go at
39/39; put to the test, prove, find out about by testing 28/12, 40/27(‘now we shall see’), 47/27; reynt er it is decided, a decisive result has
been obtained 40/31.

Glossary133

reynd f. reality, what is found out about the nature of a thing by
experience 19/37 (dat. pl., ‘in reality’).
rí›a (rei›) sv. (1) ride 13/29, 17/31; with the mount in dat. 13/30, 46/26,
47/2; with acc., ride across, over or through 15/10, 47/7, 50/16; r. lei›sína ride on one’s way 47/33; r. braut ride a path, track 54/25. (2) knit,
tie; r. ræxna á (adv.) tie knots in (it) 48/21.
rífa (reif) sv. tear 49/8, 51/3.
rifja (ja›) wv., r. upp delve into, explicate, rehearse (a subject) 22/20.
ríki n. kingdom, realm 4/7, 5/4, 7/3, 8/35; hann á ﬂar r. er he rules overa place which 22/32.
ríkiskona f. noblewoman 25/3.
ríkisma›r m. nobleman, ruler, man of authority or rank 6/10, 19, 33/7.
ríkr a. powerful (often referring to spiritual or political power orauthority) 4/2, 5/29; n. as noun svá ríkt such power 36/25; comp. 11/21,
42/29.
ríkuligr a. successful, prosperous, glorious 18/24.
ripti n. article made of linen; robe? 47/33.
risi m. giant 5/6.
rjó›a (rau›) sv. redden (trans.) 14/38.
rjúka (rauk) sv. steam 7/15.
†ró = eru (after words ending in -r) 19/9, 51/17, 34.
róa (rera, røra) sv. row 44/25, 26, 29; go out in a boat 44/9, 11.
ró›r (rar) m. rowing 44/26, 27.
rógberi m. carrier of slander or (false) accusations 26/34 (see AH Studier66).
rót f. (pl. rœtr) root 17/11, 28/6.
rúm n. space (til for s–thing) 50/10.
rún f. mystery, secret wisdom 53/39.
ry›ja (rudda) wv. clear, empty; i.e. leave, evacuate 52/26.
r‡›r pres. of rjó›a.
ræfr n. roof (‘of which I know the roof’; W and T have rept, pp. of repta
to roof, i.e. ‘which I know (to be) roofed’) 22/39.
ræxn m. knot, knotted loop 48/22.
rœ›a (dd) wv. speak, discuss (of about) 54/1.
rœtr pl. of rót.
†rƒkstóll m. judgement seat 15/40, 35/37.
rƒst f. an indefinite distance roughly equivalent to a league 25/38, 50/21, 53/1.
røri p. of róa.
sá (1) pron. a. that, this, it 53/12; he 7/36, 46/19; separated from noun

134

Glossary

53/3, 54/25; outside clause 6/30; ﬂat anticipating noun clause 3/18,
50/31, cf. 25/38, 45/3 (how), ok ﬂat er and how 45/6; anticipating inf.
41/35; ﬂat er whatever 29/26, when 9/13; ﬂat referring to f. noun 19/28,
with pl. vb. 6/2, 7/5 (cf. ﬂat); ﬂeir in apposition to sg. nouns 5/30(‘these, Vitta and Sigarr’); with (h)inn and a., ﬂau in fyrstu these (are)the first (tidings) 49/20, sá hinn 11/31, 12/39, hafit ﬂat it djúpa 37/29;
aurinn ﬂann er 19/15, sólarinnar ﬂeirar er of the sun which 13/39;
mannkindin ﬂeim er the humans to whom 13/8; engi sá no person
39/39, 43/24, 45/3.
sá (2) p. of sjá 4/4, 37/20, 45/5.
sá (3) acc. of sár (1).
saga f. story 40/33, 45/17, 54/35.
saka (a›) wv. impers., harm; e–n sakar s–one is harmed 45/26, 27, 30.
sakarvandræ›i n. pl. difficult legal disputes, disputes difficult of settlement 26/26.
†salnæfr (rar) f. ‘hall-bark’: shingles made of bark of trees were used
for thatching (the pl. refers to the separate shingles of bark). Sváfnir’s(Ó›inn’s) hall was thatched with shields, so ‘Ó›inn’s hall-shingles’
means shields 7/33.
salr m. hall 15/25, 18/11; †pl., dwelling, home 12/14.
saltr a. salty 11/10.
saman adv. together 12/1, 34/13; in common 3/19, 18/19; fara s. follow
each other without a break 49/23; koma s. converge (in a common
origin) 10/34; einn s. all alone 5/5.
samgangr m. union 29/34; confrontation, conflict 50/31.
samna (a›) wv. gather; s. til collect (material) for 50/39 (impers., ‘forwhich material has been being collected, which has been in the making’).
samr a. pron. (usually declined weak) same 3/24, 33, 34; s. sem same as
32/21; slíkt sama, it sama as adv., likewise 4/6, 26/30.
samt adv. together 53/39; einn s. alone 37/21.
sandr m. sand 9/14.
sannr a. (n. satt) true 28/8, 34/14; n. as subst. satt, it sanna the truth 32/12,
42/34; me› sƒnnu truly 33/32; comp. n. as adv., more accurately 43/37.
sár (1) m. tub 14/5.
sár (2) n. wound 11/23, 33/10.
satt n. of sannr.
sáttr a. reconciled, in agreement 26/26; at peace 34/13 (um about it? cf.
meir).
sau›r m. sheep 25/39.
saurga (a›) wv. defile 29/15.

Glossary135

sé (1) pres. subj. of vera 11/34, 14/8, 20/21, 23. (2) pres. 1st pers. of sjá.
†se›ja (sadda) wv. satiate, feed 32/27.
sefask (a›) wv. md. calm down 37/25.
sefr pres. of sofa.
†seggr m. man 7/34.
segja (sag›a) wv. say 7/11, 8/35; speak 37/18; tell (e–m s–one) 5/8,
28/11, 16; tell (stories) 8/25, 55/5 (frá about); s. spár make prophecies
21/19; s. ørlƒg foretell or pronounce, i.e. ordain, destinies? 21/26;
with acc. and inf. of vb. to be understood 16/11 (‘these she says (are)the names of the dwarfs’); s. frá talk about (it or them) 4/10, 36/30,
speak of 10/37, tell of, about 55/2, relate 44/4. Impers. segir it says, it
it told 6/19, 9/30; svá er sagt it is said 10/40; ﬂá er sagt it is said thatthen 38/6; er ﬂér eigi sagt have you not been told 15/6; ef mér værisagt frá if I had been told about it (i.e. if I had not seen it with my owneyes) 41/10; hvat er at s. what is there to tell 17/9, 34/26; ﬂat er at s.
frá Hermó›i at as for Hermó›r 47/7; mart er at s. there is much to tell
18/30; er gott at s. there are good things to say 23/15; eru at s. are to
be told 49/18, 20; svá er at s. this can or must be said, the story goes
38/23; ﬂat er (svá, ﬂér) satt (me› sƒnnu) at segja at to tell (you) thetruth, the fact is that 33/32, 38/31, 43/26, 35, 44/35; en ek hygg hittvera ﬂér satt at s. but I think the contrary is correct to report 45/11;
ﬂat má s. this can be said, I can tell you this 45/2; fyrst at s. frá first(there is) to tell about 46/38.
segl n. sail 36/19.
sei›berandi m. (pres. p.) one who practises sei›r (sorcery, divination)
10/22 (pl.).
seilask (d) wv. md. reach (with the hand) 42/2, 43/21; s. til reach out,
over 38/11.
seinn a. slow; seint er it takes a long time 39/33 (‘news travels slowly’);n. as adv., slowly 43/12; i.e. never 50/7 (with gert); mér mun seintver›a at it will be a long time before I, I will have to wait a long time
before I 28/33; leit seint til ﬂeira was slow to turn to them 39/31; n.
comp. as adv. seinna more slowly 43/9.
selja (ld) wv. give 28/22; s. fram hold out, offer 28/38.
sem conj. as 15/13; like 5/9; s‡nask sem, lítask sem look as though 40/8,
41/20, 22; as long as 41/13; correlative with svá 4/12, 40, with jafn33/5, jafnt 25/38, samr 32/21, slíkt 6/7, ﬂeim mun 46/14, ﬂvílíkr 31/35;
ﬂar sem where 6/4, in a place which 54/10; hvar sem wherever 5/23;
hvat sem whatever 35/18; as rel., who, which 19/17, 42/6; that which(or to the extent that?) 54/30; with sup., as . . . as possible 40/5, 49/1.

136

Glossary

senda (d) wv. send 28/2, 30/8; s. eptir e–m send for s–one 46/25; s. til(adv.) send there 10/14, 27/11.
sendifer› f. errand, mission 31/21.
sendima›r m. messenger 28/3, 18, 48/1.
senn adv. at the same time, together 5/2, 7/36, 33/38.
sér (1) pres. of sjá.
sér (2) dat. of sik.
sess m. seat, bench 24/34.
sét pp. of sjá.
setberg n. flat-topped mountain 43/4, 5.
setja (tt) wv. set, put, place 7/6, 12/5, 39/24; set down 7/8; put in position
13/2; establish 34/29; appoint, ordain 6/13; s. e–m bor› set up (prepare)a table for s–one 42/25; s. fram launch 46/24; s. syn fyrir make a denial
30/3; s. til establish, appoint, ordain as, for (a certain function) 5/28,
30/2, 4; s. ﬂar til landa (til ﬂess ríkis) set up (as a ruler) over thoseterritories (over that realm) 6/1, 17; s. e–t vi› e–u thrust s–thing againsts–thing 45/12. Md., sit down 13/13; take (up) one’s position 15/32,
37/39; setjask á tal sit down to discuss 54/36; setjask til sit down to
37/7; setjask upp sit up 39/6.
sétti ord. num. (the) sixth 8/31, 17/34.
sex num. six 28/5.
sía f. molten particle 10/8, 12/7, 13/40.
si›a›r a. (pp.) having morals of a certain kind; rétt s. of good life,
righteous, virtuous 9/2.
sí›an adv. afterwards 24/25, 27/40; again 39/2; (ever) since 48/22; s. at
kveldi the following evening, that evening 38/18; s. er as conj., since
27/35, s. er . . . ﬂá after 3/34.
sí›ar adv. comp. later (with dat. of the amount of time) 31/24, 35/33.
sí›arst adv. sup. last of all, finally 3/2, 13/25; in the rear 39/38.
si›látr a. virtuous, of good life 53/13.
sí›r adv. comp. less; eigi at s. none the less 3/15.
sifjar f. pl. relationship, bonds of affinity 49/30.
sifjaslit n. breaking of the bonds of affinity 49/26; the word usually has
the more specialised meaning of incest.
síga (seig) sv. sink 37/20.
sigr (rs) m. victory 25/11, 30/35, 36/29.
sigra (a›) wv. defeat 5/5, 9/29; be victorious over 13/21.
sik, sín, sér reflexive pron. (refers to subject of clause) himself, herself,
itself, themselves; á ƒxlum sér on their shoulders 14/5; fyrir sjálfum
sér for themselves (individually) 22/24; sér respectively, in eachGlossary137

separate instance 22/18, for himself 44/21; sér til kaups as his payment
34/32; til sín to stay with him 33/6. At 27/28 sér refers to the logicalsubject (úlfinum), cf. sinn.
silfr n. silver 20/2, 5, 26/30.
silkiband n. silken (silky) band 28/21, 29.
silkirœma f. silken ribbon 28/17.
sin f. sinew 28/6.
sindr n. slag, clinker 10/2.
sinn (1) (n. sitt) reflexive a. (generally refers to subject of clause) his,her, its, their 3/34, 6/19; one’s 36/22; their own 22/23; at 27/28 refers
to subject of inf. (hann, acc.); at 42/29 to logical subject (honum);sinn (sc. ma›r) í hverju one (man) in each (throne) 8/17.
sinn (2) n. time, occasion 30/9, 41/16; annat s. next time 43/28; it fyrsta
s. the first time 27/29 (er that), for the first time 36/37; eitt sinn, einu
sinni once 21/5, 25/29, for once 38/6; at sinni on this occasion, for thetime being 41/5.
sinni m. companion; pl., company (?) 50/20.
sitja (sat) sv. sit 8/16, 18/30; sit fishing 44/14, 30; remain idle 36/10; bepositioned 9/28; s. fyrir be present (already?), lie in wait? 8/15.
sjá (1) pron. this (rarely that); sjá . . . er s–one who 36/35.
sjá (2) (sá, pp. sét) sv. see 4/4, 7/27; perceive 6/10; find 41/14; understand
28/14; look (til towards, at) 28/37, 41/15; sáttu = sátt ﬂú you saw
43/4; sjám let us see 42/11; ek sé eigi I cannot see 46/1; sjá sik set eyeson himself, i.e. open his eyes, become conscious 39/2; sá mann ok lék
saw a man playing 7/35; with acc. and inf. 39/24; sjá e–n sitja see
s–one sitting 47/23; impers. sér one can see, there is visible 45/13; sjá
má (mátti) one can see (could be seen) 3/17, 41/29; má sjá can be seen
43/40; ﬂat er sá augnanna (as for) what could be seen of the eyes
37/20. Md. sjásk at be afraid about 33/3; sjásk fyrir hesitate, be waryor cautious 25/13; sjásk um look around 54/32.
sjafni m. (a word for) love 29/33.
sjaldan adv. seldom (i.e. never) 36/10.
sjálfr a. pron. self, himself, themselves 4/11 (‘among themselves’), 6/7;
yourself 8/3; itself, on its own 31/22; itself, the very 52/36; †sjálfgi
not herself (see -gi) 21/26; sjálfra ﬂeira their own 7/22; fyrir sjálfum
sér for themselves (individually) 22/24.
sjár = sær.
sjau num. seven 7/35.
sjaundi ord. num. (the) seventh 8/31, 17/34, 29/31.
sjávargangr = sævargangr.

138

Glossarysjó›a (sau›) sv. cook; pp. so›inn 32/10, 17, 37/7.
sjón f. sight 13/7, 37/21, 45/3.
sjónhverfingar f. pl. optical illusions, magical deceptions, false appearances 7/27, 42/38.
†sjƒt n. dwelling 14/38.
ska›i m. harm, injury, destruction, loss 27/26, 46/14.
skáld n. poet 7/11, 34/22.
skáldskapr m. poetry 25/21, 22 (‘poetry is called bragr’).
skalf see skjálfa.
skáli m. hall, building 37/34, 35, 39, 38/12.
†skálmƒld f. age of swords 49/33 (skálm f. short sword).
skammr a. short 10/17, 18/25; n. as subst., a short distance 48/35; eiga
skamt til be a short distance from 48/23; n. as adv., a short way 38/2;
comp. skemri 3/36.
skapa (a›, p. skóp 3/1, textual note) wv. create 3/1, 11/28; make, shape
13/5, 20/28; ordain, determine, shape (e–m for s–one) 12/11, 18/13.
Md. impers., develop, come about 10/36.
skapari m. creator 3/14.
skapker n. vat 33/14.
skaplyndi f. character, nature 21/10, 26/38.
skapt n. handle 23/9, 39/6.
skarpr a. sharp; comp., tougher 28/40.
skaut n. corner (as of a square cloth) 12/5.
skegg n. beard 28/5, 9.
†skeggjƒld f. age of battle-axes (i.e. of warfare) 49/33.
skei› n. race, course (both the race and the ground over which it is run)
40/15 (‘a good course for running’), 17, 23; s. nokkvor races over acertain distance 40/10.
skemtun f. entertainment 34/3, 45/23; skemtunar sinnar for his (i.e.
Gylfi’s) entertainment 7/2.
†skepja (skap›a) wv. create 16/4.
skera (skar) sv. slaughter 37/6.
†sker›a (›) wv. bite pieces (notches) out of, damage, diminish 19/3
(object understood).
skí› n. ski 24/17.
skí›fœrr a. able to ski, good at skiing 26/21.
skilja (l›) wv. understand 3/16, 4/13; perceive, deduce, tell 6/30, 28/13;
realise 48/27; svá skil›u ﬂeir they deduced, it was their understanding,interpretation 4/14; distinguish: impers. hví skilr svá mikit why is there
such a large difference 21/1. Md., part from one another 43/26.

Glossary139

skilna›r m. parting 42/28.
skilning f. understanding 4/13.
skin n. shining 4/5, 14/25, 24/27.
skína (skein) sv. shine 9/33, 51/40; impers. 50/15.
skip n. ship 34/18, 36/13; boat 44/25, 45/1.
skipa (a›) wv. (1) with dat., organise, establish 6/12, 14; md., be arranged,
be organised 9/39 (‘what were things like?’), 15/34 (‘take shape’?).
(2) with acc., occupy, man 36/18; eigi er ﬂrøngra at s. hana en gangaí hana it is not more crowded when it is occupied than when it is being
entered 33/32; fill (e–t e–m a place with people), allot (people a place)
21/29.
skipta (pt) wv. with dat., share out, apportion 18/23 (object understood),
27/15 (me› among, between); divide 48/37; impers. e–u var skipt
s–thing was divided, separated 13/2. Md., become separate, distinct;
disperse 4/12.
skipun f. organisation, arrangement (government?) 15/20.
skírr a. bright, pure 20/5, 24/23.
skjálfa (skalf) sv. tremble, shake 37/37, 46/30.
skjall n. the skin round the white of an egg 19/18.
skjalla (skall) sv. with dat., crash on 44/19; s. á bang against 44/39.
skjóta (skaut) sv. shoot 24/17; with dat. object, push, shove 29/5, 7; s.
(e–u) á e–n or at e–m shoot (a missile) at s–one 45/24, 30, 46/4, 6; s.
e–u út launch (push into the water) a boat 44/24; impers. e–u sk‡tr
upp s–thing shoots up, is raised up, emerges (ok er ﬂá and (it) is then)
53/34.
skjótfœri n. speed in running 43/11.
skjótleikr m. speed in running 40/13.
skjótr a. quick; n. as adv., fast 14/8, 44/27; soon 28/8, 28; quickly,
immediately 38/6, 40/14; comp. n. as adv. skjótara more quickly 39/39;
sup. skjótast at segja to put it most briefly 22/21.
skjƒldr m. (pl. skildir) shield 7/29, 30, 49/34.
skógr m. wood, forest 14/19, 35/20.
skóklæ›i n. pl. footwear 29/23.
skolla (d) wv. hover; keep one’s distance? refuse to have anything to do(with s–one)? waver, change one’s mind? 28/33.
skór m. shoe 26/15, 50/39, 40.
skorta (t) wv. impers. e–t skortir til s–thing is lacking for s–thing, thelack of s–thing is an obstacle 31/23; eigi skortir e–n e–t s–one does
not lack s–thing, s–one has plenty of s–thing 42/25.
skósveinn m. valet, chamberlain 31/10.

140

Glossaryskot n. missile 46/7.
skri›r m. (fast) movement 44/26 (ironic understatement).
skrifa (a›) wv. write (down) 6/26.
skulfu p. pl. of skjálfa.
skulu (skal, skylda) pret.-pres. vb. (1) indicating necessity, obligationor duty: ought, should 25/8, 51/1; must 13/29; have to 17/40, 25/24;
subj. skyli ought 8/12; impers. skyldi one needed to 43/1; hvert er faraskal wherever it is (required) to go 36/20; in ‘gnomic’ statements skal
indicates what is proper or normal, the ‘gnomic’ shall 8/25, 17/7, 21/1,
23/30. (2) indicating future time: shall, will 9/1, 20/8; skaltu = skalt
ﬂú 28/17; indicating purpose or intention (subj.) 19/16, 49/12, be about
to, try to 38/23, 42/40, be going to 41/19; be supposed to 25/7; futurein the past, should, would 23/39, 34/35, 39/2; skyldu hafa were tohave 44/20; with inf. understood skyldi would be 34/37; impers. nú
skal segja ﬂér now you shall be told 42/34; eigi skyli one would not,no one (nothing) would 48/34; eigi skal fara me› hann it is not to besailed 36/20. (3) indicating permission: were to 3/15, might 6/7, may
30/1, 39/36.
skutilsveinn m. serving boy (or man) 40/36, 38.
sk‡ n. cloud 12/27, 39.
†skygnask (d) wv. md., s. um be carefully looked round 8/12.
skykkjum adv. (dat. pl.) in shakes, with heaving movements 37/37.
skyldr a. obliged, under a duty (to do s–thing) 36/31; (e–m) er skylt it isnecessary, proper, a duty (for s–one) 21/6, 11, 36/30; skyldir ﬂjónustumenn bondservants 37/26.
skyn n. understanding; kunna s. (e–s) understand, know details, the true
nature (of s–thing) 22/18, 25/8; kunna mesta s. have the greatest understanding, perception 46/15.
skyndiliga adv. hastily 38/39, 44/5.
skynja (ja›) wv. understand, deduce (af from, by) 6/26.
skynsamliga adv. reasonably, carefully, sensibly 37/17.
skynsem› f. wisdom, understanding 4/14, textual note.
skynsemi f. wisdom, discernment 22/20 (‘it requires great wisdom’, or‘it would be very instructive, brings great understanding, it is a matterof great interest’).
sk‡tr pres. of skjóta.
slá (sló) sv. strike 38/6; s. e–n hƒgg strike s–one a blow 39/1; with dat. s.
e–u út throw, pour s–thing away 49/15; impers. var slegit eldi í it was
set fire to 46/34.
slátr n. meat 40/4, 6, 7, 43/9.

Glossary141

slefa f. saliva 29/9.
sleikja (kt) wv. lick 11/10, 11.
sléttr a. smooth 28/16, 40/15; level 54/32.
slíkr a. such 27/33; slíkt . . . sem as much . . . as 6/7; n. as subst. slíkt
such things 36/11; n. as adv. slíkt sama similarly 4/6.
slíta (sleit) sv. break (trans.), tear apart 28/21, 26, 51/28; s. af tear off
44/23; s. upp pull up, pluck 45/37.
slitna (a›) wv. break (intrans.) 28/23, 50/1.
slyngja (slƒng) sv. with dat., fling 51/4.
slœg› f. cunning 27/1.
smár a. small 8/36, 35/32.
smí› f. structure, construction, work of skill 12/21, 15/9, 14; (the workof) building 35/24.
smí›a (a›) wv. make (out of some material), shape 4/14, 8/37; fashion,
work (a material) 15/28; hvernig var› fjƒturrinn smí›a›r what did thefetter look like 28/15; var› ekki svá smí›at not as much building wasdone 35/25.
smí›arkaup n. reward or wages for building work 35/30.
smi›r m. builder 34/30, 35/5.
smjúga (smaug, smó) sv. creep, squeeze 39/28.
snarr a. swift; sup. n. as adv. 49/1.
sneri p. of snúa.
snertiró›r (rar) m. (short) spurt of rowing 44/29.
sní›a (snei›) sv. cut 50/40.
snimma adv. early 34/29.
snotr (rs) a. wise, clever, sensible 30/7.
snúa (snera) sv. turn 39/20; s. til lei›ar bring about 13/1; with dat., turn,
direct 29/31. Md., turn and go 8/5, 44/21; direct o–self 50/37; fly (intoa rage) 50/2; writhe 51/24; snúask aptr turn back 40/18, 24, 43/32;
snúask eptir turn (aside) after, follow 3/5; snúask til fer›ar set off 42/26.
snær m. snow 49/21.
so›inn pp. of sjó›a.
sofa (svaf, pres. sefr) sv. sleep 11/1, 24/10.
sofna (a›) wv. go to sleep, fall asleep 38/20, 39/3, 4.
sól f. (the) sun 3/35, 13/2; with def. art. 13/39, 14/8, 20/8, 49/37, 54/20.
sólskin n. pl. (periods of) sunshine 14/40.
soltinn a. (pp. of svelta) hungry, starved 43/8.
son, sonr m. (pl. synir) son 4/36, 5/9; the son 24/25, 37/9; pl., †descendants, race 10/28, 12/36.
sortna (a›) wv. grow black (i.e. be extinguished) 52/29, 54/6.

142

Glossarysótt f. sickness 45/22.
sóttdau›r a. who has died by sickness 27/16.
sótti p. of sœkja.
spá f. prophecy 21/19, 27/25, 29/15.
spádómr m. the gift of prophecy 5/18, 7/25; pl., prophecies 27/8.
spákona f. prophetess 5/7.
spánﬂak n. shingle roof (roof with overlapping wooden tiles) 7/29.
spara (›) wv. save; md., save for o–self 41/18.
spek› f. wisdom 4/14, 17/16.
speki f. wisdom 3/16, 4/25, 5/17, 25/20; branch, kind of learning 27/1.
speni m. teat 11/7, 33/13.
spenna (t) wv. with dat., gird on, put round, fasten 23/7; s. sik e–u girdo–self with s–thing 38/4.
spilla (t) wv. with dat., spoil, destroy, injure 35/12, 49/30; md., be spoiled
15/31.
spor›r m. tail (of a fish or snake) 27/14, 43/21, 49/3; end (of bridge)
20/3.
spori m. spur 47/21.
spotta (a›) wv. mock, make a laughing-stock of 44/36.
sprakk see springa.
spretta (1) (tt) wv. split (trans.); s. á (adv.) e–u make a split in (s–thing),
split (s–thing) open with s–thing 37/12.
spretta (2) (spratt) sv. spring 3/21, 44/10.
springa (sprakk) sv. burst; be overcome by shock 46/33.
spurall a. having a questioning nature 29/39.
spurning f. question 32/11.
spurt pp. of spyrja.
spyrja (spur›a) wv. ask (e–n s–one; ef, hvárt whether) 8/2, 20, 35/11,
38/13; learn, find out (by asking) 3/33, 8/22; spyr›u = spyrr ﬂú you
ask (at whether, or imagining that) 33/6; s. hverjum ask with whom
31/11; eigi er nú fró›liga spurt that is not an intelligent question 15/5;
with gen., ask s–thing 33/29, learn, hear s–thing 39/33; s. e–n e–s ask
s–one s–thing 36/33; s. e–n nafns or at nafni ask s–one his name 7/36,
8/3; s. til e–s get information about s–thing 6/5.
spyrna (d) wv. kick 28/39; s. fœti á kick (with the foot) against, at 46/36;
s. vi› (e–u) kick out (against s–thing), push with the feet (againsts–thing) 27/29, 44/40.
spƒlr m. rail, bar 39/28.
sta›r m. place 4/24, 28, 20/25 (pl.); position 12/11,18; í ﬂeim sta› thatplace 15/24 (cf. place-names formed with preps., see Two Icelandic
Stories, ed. A. Faulkes, London 1967, 96, note to 2/85–6); í tvá sta›i intoGlossary

143

two sections 48/37; gefa, nema sta›ar stop 7/7, 10/3, 49/3; gefa e–usta› or sta›ar stop s–thing 5/25, fix s–thing 12/9.
standa (stó›) sv. stand 19/26, 45/38; imp. stattu 8/24; pres. p. standandi(yet still) standing 51/11; be situated 15/22; extend 17/11; s. af. e–u
arise from s–thing, come from s–thing (e–m for s–one) 10/4, 10, 27/9;
s. at stand by 46/34; s. til hjarta e–m stick in s–one’s heart 52/18; s.
undan come from under 20/31; s. upp get up 37/13, stand up 50/22; s.
vi› withstand 43/23.
stara (›) wv. stare 45/4.
stattu see standa.
ste›i m. anvil 15/27.
ste›r pl. of sto›.
stefna (d) wv. direct one’s steps, make for (í, móti) 39/18, 50/28.
steikari m. cook 32/13.
†steindyrr f. pl. doorway(s), entrance(s) in rocks (i.e. to dwarfs’ dwellings) 51/19.
steinn m. stone 3/28, 11/11; rock 15/37.
sterkleikr m. physical strength 13/21.
sterkliga adv. mightily 38/3.
sterkr a. (acc. sg. m. sterkjan) strong 15/8, 20/26; mighty, powerful
35/5; stout 44/33; comp. 27/31; sup. 22/31.
steypask (t) wv. md. plunge 45/12; fall in ruins 49/36.
stíga (steig, sté) sv. step 38/26, 50/38; s. stórum take large steps 38/18;
s. á mount 46/21; s. af dismount from 47/19; s. upp mount 47/20.
stigr m. path 54/21 (pl.).
stikill m. point 41/14.
stilla (t) wv. control, moderate, regulate 4/1, 23/29.
stjarna f. star 12/17, 49/39, 52/32.
stjórna (a›) wv. with dat., rule, control 8/35.
stjórnari m. controller 4/1.
stjórnarma›r m. ruler, governor 15/19.
stjúpsonr m. stepson 26/20.
sto› f. (pl. ste›r) support, post, pillar 20/1.
stólpi m. pillar 20/1.
stórliga adv. arrogantly 39/15.
stórmenni n. (collective) great (big) men 42/6.
stórmerki n. notable thing 18/28; mystery, act of mystical significance 3/13.
stormr m. storm 4/7 (perhaps an error for straumi, see straumr).
stórr a. great 5/38; large 33/30; important 45/18; dat. pl. as adv., mightily,
with large steps 38/18; comp. stœrri bigger 39/13.
stórsmí›i n. mighty piece of work 27/33 (pl.).

144

Glossary

stórtí›indi n. pl. important events 22/27.
stórvirki n. pl. mighty deeds, achievements 23/10, 40/34, 55/4.
stótt 2nd pers. sg. p. of standa.
straumr m. current 53/26.
strjúka (strauk) sv. rub, stroke (of over, i.e. with the hand) 39/6.
strƒnd f. shore 12/23, 13/4.
stukku p. pl. of støkkva (1).
stund f. a period of time; an hour 23/11; pl., time, ages 3/4, 55/1.
sty›ja (studda) wv. support; pp. 26/29.
†stynja (stun›a) wv. groan 51/18.
st‡ra (›) wv. with dat., control 13/34, 14/3; steer, be captain of 50/8,
51/33; (have at one’s) command 34/2.
st‡randi m. (pres. p.) controller 11/17 (see AH Studier 25).
styrkr a. (= sterkr) strong 26/11.
stœrri comp. of stórr.
stƒng f. pole (for two people to carry s–thing between them) 14/6 (see note).
støkkva (1) (stƒkk) sv. fly, shoot (in a spray) 10/31.
støkkva (2) (kt) wv. sprinkle, bespatter (e–u with s–thing) 14/25 (future).
su›r (1) n. south 4/16, 21.
su›r (2) adv. south (frá of) 20/21.
su›rhálfa f. southern region 9/25.
sumar n. summer 15/1 (pl.), 21/1.
sumr a. pron. some 3/19, 14/2; pl., some of them 6/23 (sc. tóku kvánfƒng),12/10; some people 3/4, 18/24, 26/34.
sund n. sound, strait 7/8 (i.e. Øresund).
sundr adv. apart 28/28; í s. apart 28/26.
†sundrborinn a. (pp.) of different parentage or descent 18/17.
sunnan adv. from the south 9/31, 51/38.
sunnanver›r a. southern, southerly 20/7.
svá adv. so 31/14; such 21/3; thus 15/11; this 44/31; as follows 9/22;
likewise 5/18; also 6/19, 40/7, 48/13; similarly 43/6; svá eru ok d‡r it
is also thus with animals 3/22; svá hart ok yfir 47/21 see ok; svá . . . okthus . . . so that 31/33; ﬂat . . . svá . . . hvárt it (should be tested) in thefollowing manner, whether . . . 47/26; en svá than this (than you)
40/22. With at: so that, so . . . that 3/11,16; such . . . that 54/12; thus . . .
that 3/13, 4/14, this, that 3/29, this . . . that 20/21, 44/35; as follows,that 42/20; to such an extent that 4/20; sterkr svá at so strong that
20/26; vitr svá at so wise that 25/13, cf. 23/15–16; sufficiently . . . to32/12; . . . enough to 43/25; in such a way that 7/14; in such a way as
to 35/13; so much that 49/40; of such a kind that 49/23; such that

Glossary145

22/33; it being the case that 53/35; when 31/36; in asseverations, so. . . inasmuch as 34/1. With sem: (just) as 6/19, 42/5; thus . . . as, in theway that 6/14; like 10/2; corresponding to 7/10; in proportion as 4/12;
as much as 35/25; to the same extent as 42/1; as . . . as 4/39, 28/17; asif 14/8, 28/25; as though (= that) 41/7; in the form of, in the pattern of
7/29; in the way in which 48/22; having assumed the appearance of
44/7; such . . . as 40/33; svá sem hon er sterk (ﬂá) strong as it is (yet)15/9; svá lítinn sem ﬂér kalli› mik (ﬂá) little as you say I am, however
little . . . (nevertheless) 42/7, cf. 21/17; in accordance with the factthat 47/38; svá sem . . . svá just as . . . so also 10/10, in proportion as. . . so 4/23; svá . . . sem . . . at this . . . which . . . that 38/23; svá . . . ef
. . . sem this . . . if . . . that 41/19; svá langt upp sem hann mátti lengst
as far up as the furthest he could 42/2.
svaf see sofa.
svalbrjósta›r a. (pp.) cold-hearted 21/10.
svalr a. cool, cold 9/15.
svanr m. swan 19/30, 24/8. Originally the male swan (the female beingálpt), but normally only found in poetry. See AH Studier 47–8.
svar n. reply 31/13.
svara (a›) wv. answer, reply 8/2, 18; s. øngu make no reply 41/12.
svardagi m. oath, vow, solemn promise 45/20.
svartr a. black 13/23, 14/40 (dark); comp. 19/38.
svásligr a. delightful 21/8.
†sváss a. dear 52/40.
svefn m. sleep 25/37.
sveinn m. boy 41/35; servant (follower?) or son 46/20 (T, W and U haveson(r) here; sveinn normally has the meaning ‘son’ only in poetry, but
at 47/23 Hermó›r is called brother of Baldr).
sveinstauli m. little boy 39/34, 40/16.
sveiti m. sweat; fá sveita to sweat 11/1; †blood? 12/30 (cf. 11/36).
svelgja (svalg) sv. swallow 41/4.
sver› n. sword 26/1, 29/7.
sverja (svar›a) wv. swear (an oath) 35/17.
svi›i m. burning pain, severe pain 33/10.
†svigi m. stick 9/32, 51/39 (cf. læ).
svima (svam) sv. swim 15/10.
svipting f. sharp pulling back and forth, wrenching, jerking 42/18.
†svæfa (›) wv. lull to sleep (metaphorically), i.e. settle 26/33.
sy›ri a. comp. more southerly 4/17, 10/8.
syn f. denial (cf. synja) 30/3.

146

Glossarys‡n f. sight; dat. pl., in appearance 19/36, 37, 26/38.
s‡na (d) wv. show 28/20; md., seem, look, appear (e–m to s–one) 28/27,
40/8, 41/3, 43/19.
syni dat. sg. of sonr; synir nom. pl. of sonr.
synja (ja›) wv. refuse; s. e–m at refuse to let s–one (do s–thing), prevent
s–one from 35/30 (i.e. forced him to leave the world).
systir f. (pl. systr) sister 25/33.
systkin n. pl. brother(s) and sister(s) 13/38, 27/7, 8, 29/12.
systrungar m. pl. cousins (on the mother’s side), sons of sisters 49/29.
sæfarar f. pl. sea journeys, seafaring 23/30.
sæing f. bed 27/20.
sæla f. happiness, prosperity 3/15.
sællífr a. having a blissful life 21/7.
sær, sjár (gen. sævar, sjávar) m. sea 6/16, 9/14; sævarins to do withthe sea 4/9.
sæti n. seat, throne 15/22, 32, 20/6, 31/7; place (in a hall, for sitting,eating and sleeping) 42/22.
sætt f. agreement, reconciliation; hvat var› um ﬂeira s. how did they get
on together 11/20; means of agreement, terms, pledge of truce 23/34;(payment in) settlement, atonement, indemnity 37/25.
sættask (tt) wv. md., s. á ﬂat at come to an agreement that, settle on this,that 23/39.
sættir m. reconciler, bringer of concord (with gen., between) 25/19.
sævargangr, sjávargangr m. surge of sea 3/6, 50/7.
sœkja (sótta) wv. pursue 14/12; prosecute, press, achieve, gain 28/1;
make one’s way (fram forward, i.e. advance; upp ashore) 50/3,17; s.
at e–u (s. e–t) attend s–thing 46/38; s. til e–s obtain s–thing 8/1. Md.,
be advanced, progress 35/8, 44/27.
sœm› f. honour 46/4.
sœri n. oath 35/6, 36/5.
sƒk f. cause, reason 3/32, 5/21; ﬂessi sƒk er til er this is the reason why
31/33; lawsuit, dispute 26/33; fyrir e–s sakar because of, for the sakeof s–one 31/16; through, out of s–thing 49/25; as far as s–thing wasconcerned, to judge from s–thing 28/22; as a result of or as regardss–thing 36/26; sƒkum e–s because of s–thing 4/20, textual note.
sƒngr m. (dat. sƒngvi) song, music 24/8.
søkkva (sƒkk) sv. sink 38/35, 39/5, 52/30.
søkkvask (kt) wv. md. (let o–self) sink, slide back 45/8.
†-t neg. suffix with vbs. 18/19.
tá f. toe 50/40.

Glossary147

taka (tók) sv. take 7/4, 11/35; receive 28/33; accept 37/25; obtain 45/20;
get 27/11; bring out 40/37; catch 14/15; capture 49/5; take hold of,grasp 45/37; reach, touch 43/21; perform, undertake 40/17; tóku sér. . . en sumir sonum sínum found for themselves . . . and some of them(did so) for their sons 6/22; t. kviknun come to life 15/34; t. at withinf., begin to 41/4, 42/17; tók ok leysti went and undid 38/14, similarly
48/28 (cf. fara); t. e–t af choose s–thing: ﬂann (sc. kost) ætla ek y›r
betra (sc. vera) af at t. this alternative is I think the better one for you
to choose 39/17; t. til at set to work to 35/2; t. til e–s touch s–one, picks–one up 46/9; t. e–t til undertake s–thing 40/34; t. um get one’s hand round49/2; t. undir e–t take hold underneath s–thing 41/40; t. upp pick up
13/5; t. upp hƒndum put out (up) one’s arms 31/4; t. vi› e–u take possessionof s–thing 4/39; t. vi› e–m oppose s–one, stop s–one’s advance 6/16.
tal n. conversation, discussion 34/34, 54/36.
tala (1) f. speech, account 43/30.
tala (2) (a›) wv. talk; md. talask vi› talk together 53/39.
tala›r a. (pp.) spoken, having speech of a certain kind 23/19.
tal›r, tali›r see telja.
tár n. tear 29/27 (pl., cf. note to 29/26), 48/5.
taumr m. rein 46/26.
tennr pl. of tƒnn.
telja (tal›a, pp. tali›r, tal›r) wv. reckon, count 3/34, 26/34; trace 3/32,
6/18; number, enumerate 18/36; recount 23/10; declare (with at-clause)
37/16, (with acc. and inf.) 27/32. Md., say that one is, consider o–self
27/37.
tí›ast see títt.
tí›indi n. pl. tidings, news, information 12/20, 19/32, 32/33; account(s),tale(s) 23/10, 37/1; events 13/11, 45/14; ﬂat er til tí›inda this (noteworthy event) takes (will take) place 49/40.
tiginn a. noble, of high rank; sup. 29/24.
tigna (a›) wv. honour (af with) 4/25, 5/20.
tignarnafn n. (honourable) title 25/3.
tigr, tøgr m. (set of) ten; fjórir tigir forty 22/33; similarly 22/36, 33/35.
til (1) adv. too 10/35, 41/9.
til (2) prep. with gen., (1) direction or distance: to 3/23, 4/18, 17/36,
40/24; towards 17/15, 43/32; about 6/5; to the home of 37/5. (2)purpose: for 3/22, 9/28, 47/32; as 28/14, 30/4; for the purpose of 22/23(2); to obtain 23/32; to indicate 34/15; giving rise to 22/24; til ﬂess atin order that 4/9, to this effect that 45/20; ﬂar til landa over thoseterritories 6/1; gott til plenty of 37/32. (3) time: until 25/26, 35/10; tilﬂess er until 43/34. (4) as adv., direction or destination: to that place

148

Glossary

10/14; up to it 41/40; there, to them 27/11; up to me, them 42/7, 19; tilhvar towards where 46/4; ﬂar til er to where 6/16, (time) until 47/19;
purpose, for it 35/19; ﬂar til for them or in addition 15/27; vera til beavailable 4/30; til at for this (purpose) that 43/21, in order to 13/39, so
as to 12/9, enough to 27/23, designed to 48/28; til er for this that 31/33.
tilkváma f. coming, arrival 15/31.
tilvísun f. guidance, direction 46/6.
tími m. prosperity, success 6/8.
títt n. of tí›r a. frequent; of concern (to s–one); hvat er t. um ﬂik what is
the matter with you, what are you up to 38/37; as adv., eagerly, strongly,
quickly 38/34, 43/8; sup. tí›ast 40/5.
tíu num. ten 4/38, 5/2.
tíundi ord. num. (the) tenth 8/32, 17/35, 29/39.
†tjúgari m. snatcher, destroyer 14/34.
tól n. tool 15/28.
tólf num. twelve 4/30, 5/1, 6/13.
tólfti ord. num. (the) twelfth 8/32, 30/4.
topt f. site (of a dwelling) 24/24 (pl., collective?).
traust n. support, reliability, protection, help 26/17.
traustr a. reliable 28/17; comp. 28/22.
tré n. tree 17/10, 33/12; wood 15/29; log 13/5.
tréna (a›) wv. harden, dry up, die 19/16.
treysta (st) wv. use (all) one’s strength on, pull hard at 28/23. Md., relyon (with dat.); treystask sér be confident, be safe 15/16.
†tro›a (tra›) sv. tread (trans.) 9/37, 52/3.
trog n. utensil (characteristically of wood and square or oblong in shape)such as was used for separating cream from milk; a large kitchen tray
for serving food 40/3, 6, 7, 43/9 (in many stories such a utensil isassociated with trolls and monsters).
tros n. brushwood, rubbish 39/9.
trúa (1) f. (gen. sg. trú) belief, faith 11/16, 34/2; ﬂat veit t. mín at by myfaith 22/17, 28/10, 31/38, 33/8, 42/36, 43/12. This expression is notrecorded in other early texts but becomes common in romance sagas;
it is apparently a hybrid of ﬂat veit gu› and par moi foi (cf. ﬂat veitgu› ok trú mín, Strengleikar, ed. R. Cook and M. Tveitane, Oslo 1979,
94). It probably originated in learned style rather than in colloquial
usage. See AH Studier 20–21 and Mediaeval Scandinavia 4 (1971), 34–5.
trúa (2) (›) wv. believe 4/8, 6/9; with two acc., believe s–one to bes–thing 10/37; with dat., t. e–u believe s–thing 36/31, 36, t. e–m attrust s–one to, have faith in s–one that 25/16, 40/26; er ek munda eigiGlossary

149t. at vera mætti which I would not have believed could happen 43/13;
t. á believe in 21/12; pp. rétt trúa›r orthodox 3/5. (Cf. AH Studier 18.)
trúna›r m. good faith, integrity 15/12, 25/28.
trúr a. reliable 34/31.
tryggr a. (n. trygt) safe 35/6.
trƒll n. troll, monster 14/35, 35/8.
trƒllkona f. troll-wife 14/20.
tún n. (enclosed) dwelling, courtyard; pl., courts 34/9.
tunga f. language 4/12, 6/25, 27, 30, 22/22, 23; tongue 18/36.
tungl n. heavenly body (cf. himintungl); in sg. usually = the moon 13/34,
14/3, 16, 35/13, 30, 49/38; at 14/24 the word could be pl., and at 14/34
probably means the sun. See note to 14/14–7.
tveir num. (gen. tveggja) two 3/2, 13/5, 48/32.
t‡hraustr a. valiant as T‡r 25/12 (or divinely valiant? see T‡r in index
of names. The compound is not found elsewhere in Old Icelandic, but
cf. t‡framr ‘divinely bold or excellent’, Skáld 30 (verse 92; Haustlƒng),and t‡margr, Hkr III 53 (ﬁjó›ólfr Arnórsson), where the first element
may be simply an intensive like regin-).
t‡na (d) wv. with dat., lose 14/25 (future); forget 3/13. Md., perish, be
destroyed 9/1.
t‡spakr a. wise as T‡r 25/14 (not elsewhere in Old Icelandic; see undert‡hraustr).
tƒng f. tongs 15/27.
tƒnn f. (pl. tennr) tooth 3/28, 11/38.
tøgr = tigr.
úlfli›r m. wrist (wolf-joint) 25/18.
†úlfr m. wolf 14/14, 24/6; often = Fenrir, e.g. 25/17, 27/23, 28/20, 32/9,
50/13, 37, 51/3, 52/8, 14.
ull f. wool 25/39.
um, umb prep. with acc., over 3/3, 4/21, 6/24, 17/31; across 34/32;
through 5/4; throughout 49/24; round 6/17, 23/7, 27/12; concerning,with (regard to) 4/34, 38/38; about 40/34, 54/1; um fram see fram; oftime, during 35/24, 48/18, in 37/5; with dat. 22/36 = of (2) (4). As adv.,
around, round 8/8, 12, 54/32; about it 34/13 (or meir um the more?).
umhverfis prep. with acc., around 12/24, 13/29.
umsjár m. the surrounding sea, ocean 45/11 (cf. 6/16–17, 12/2, 22, 27/12;
and see AH Studier 33).
una (›) wv. with dat., be content with; u. e–u illa find s–thing hard tobear 42/33.

150

Glossary†und = undir 19/6.
undan adv. away (from some threat) 11/24, 14/12, 35/23 (vb. of motion
understood); prep. with dat., from under 20/31.
undarliga adv. strangely, wonderfully 20/28; surprising(ly) 41/31; u.
spyr›u you are asking a strange question 33/6.
undarligr a. surprising 14/11, 23/5; marvellous 33/26, 54/20.
undinn pp. of vinda.
undir prep. with acc., under 11/1, 12/5; with dat., beneath 12/10, 13/9;
dependent on 25/27; as adv., underneath 48/34.
undr n. marvel 35/4, 43/12; u. mikit er (it is) a great marvel that, howstrange that 31/35.
undrask (a›) wv. md. be amazed at 3/18, 7/20.
ungmenni n. young person 44/12.
ungr a. young 5/22, 25/25; sup. in yngsta the youngest 30/35.
unnit pp. of vinna.
†unnr f. wave 9/15, 51/26.
†unz conj. until 10/32.
upp adv. up 3/21, 7/3; ashore 37/30; aboard 44/32; (go) up 41/14; upp
frá above 8/16, 20/21, 23.
uppfœzla f. fostering; vera at uppfœzlu me› be brought up by 4/37.
upphaf n. beginning 9/9, 15/19, 37/3.
†upphiminn m. the sky above 9/17.
uppi adv. up; current, in remembrance 5/19; u. á up on top of 33/12.
uppspretta f. spring 10/1.
úr n. misty rain, condensation, moisture 10/3, 7.
ur› f. heap of stones, scree 11/38.
ur›u p. pl. of ver›a.
út adv. out 7/7, 8/23, 28/19.
útan adv. (on the) outside 15/23; round the edge 12/22 (1); back (toshore) 44/17; ú. um e–t round the outside of s–thing 12/2; ﬂar ú. um
around it 12/22.
útar adv. comp. further out, on the side nearer the doors; ú. frá beyond
37/10; ú. á bekkinn further down the bench (towards the doors, where
the lower-ranking seats were) 40/2; further out to sea 44/30.
útarliga adv. far out (from land) 44/14; towards the outside, at the edge
45/38.
úti adv. outside, out of doors 54/32.
útlausn f. ransom 46/18.
útlendr a. foreign, alien, not native 9/27.
útvegr m. escape, way out 14/12.
uxi m. (pl. øxn) ox 7/3, 44/22, 23.

Glossary151

vá p. of vega.
va›a (ó›) sv. wade (with acc., in or through s–thing) 17/36, 45/13, 53/16, 25.
va›r m. fishing-line 44/33, 45/8.
vaka (›) wv. be awake 39/10.
vakna (a›) wv. wake up 38/5, 28.
vald n. power 6/7, 43/29 (á e–m over s–one); authority 27/14.
valda (olla) irreg. vb. with dat., cause, be the reason for 7/23; be thecause of, be responsible for 18/27, 48/12; have power over, rule 26/4.
†vald‡r n. slaughterous (or carrion) beast (i.e. Fenrir) 52/16.
valkyrja f. valkyrie (lit. chooser of the slain) 30/34, 46/39.
valr m. the slain in battle 24/31, 30/36, 34/11; falla í val die in battle
21/28.
†valrauf f. spoils, plunder (lit. from the slain); v. vineyjar (descriptivegen.) plundered island of meadows 7/19.
†valtívi m. god of slain 9/34, 51/41 (either gen. sg. = of Surtr, or gen. pl.
= of the Æsir; and either with sver›i or with sól; if the latter, sól could
be dat. in apposition to sver›i, and sól valtíva could be a kenning forsword (cf. Skáld 1/6–7); skínn would then be impers.).
†vályndr a. evil-natured, hostile 15/2.
ván f. hope, expectation; e–m er v. e–s s–one can expect s–thing 29/13;
kva› illra svara vera v. said one could expect unpleasant replies 31/13;
sem v. var as was to be expected 37/23, 48/16; ﬂess meiri v. at it wasmore (very, quite) likely that 40/12 (cf. líkr).
vandahús n. wattled house 53/14.
vandliga adv. carefully, in detail 22/20.
vándr a. wicked 9/4.
vandræ›i n. difficulty, trouble, strait, fix 27/2; tvau v. a dilemma 28/37.
vangi m. cheek, side of the head 39/7.
vanr a. accustomed 6/15 (to), 40/37 (at to).
vápn n. weapon 8/7, 36/18.
vápngafigr a. (= -gƒfugr; thus W and PE) splendidly, gloriously armed
32/30.
vápnlauss a. without a weapon 31/33, 46/2.
vara (›) wv. impers., e–n varir s–one expects 42/5.
várar f. pl. plighted troth 29/38.
var›veita (tt) wv. keep 25/24.
vargr m. wolf 14/21, 46/26, 49/8 (perhaps not synonymous with úlfr inspite of Hei›reks saga 81: vargr often seems to have associations withthe supernatural or with shape-changing, and also means outlaw,
accursed criminal. In Strengleikar, ed. R. Cook and M. Tveitane, Oslo
1979, 86, vargúlfr is used to mean werewolf).

152

Glossary†vargƒld f. age of wolves (or criminals) 49/35.
varka see vera, -k and -a.
varla adv. hardly 7/28.
varliga adv. scarcely, i.e. not quite? 43/20.
varnan f. (pre-)caution, taking care to avoid (ef lest) 50/5.
varr a. (f. vƒr) with gen., aware (of s–thing) 29/40.
várr poss. a. our 8/28; †pl. órar 10/33.
vásk md. p. of vega.
vatn n. (gen. sg. vaz) water 3/21, 22, 19/15, 33/5; pl. vƒtn 18/6; lake
7/9, 11/37 (pl.), 28/19.
vaxa (óx, pres. vex) sv. grow 3/24, 4/20, 27/13; e–m vex there grows on
or in s–one 3/25, 38/5; óx it grew, there was growth 10/32.
vaz gen. of vatn.
vazdrykkr m. drink of water, water to drink 33/9.
vaztir f. pl. fishing-ground 44/28.
vé n. sanctuary, dwelling-place of a god 26/4, 29/14, 54/5.
ve› n. pledge (e–m to s–one) 17/20, 25/17, 28/35.
ve›r (1) pres. of va›a.
ve›r (2) n. weather, esp. wind 15/2 (pl.); gen. pl. ve›ranna relating to
the weather (winds) 4/9.
vefja (vaf›a) wv. wrap; hann má v. saman one can fold it up 36/21.
vega (vá) sv. fight, wield a weapon (vi› against) 52/8,14; v. me› fightagainst? 33/39 (W and U have the more usual vi› here); kill 48/13; v.
í pierce, cut into 44/38; md., wield itself, fight on its own 31/22.
†veggberg n. cliff 51/20.
veggr m. wall 20/1.
vegr m. way, direction; á hvern (hverjan) veg each way 50/21, 53/2;
hvern veg frá sér in every direction from himself, i.e. all round him
54/31; of veg forward, on his way? 52/15; distance 39/33 (1); manner
21/31; annan veg en otherwise than 39/33 (i.e. ‘can it really be true?’).
vei›r f. hunting, fishing 23/30.
veita (tt) wv. give 3/15; pay 46/3; v. sín á milli exchange 29/37; v. e–matgƒngu make, bring an attack against s–one, attack s–one 35/17.
vekja (vak›a) wv. wake (trans.) 24/13, 50/23.
vel adv. well 18/26, 31/19; heartily 28/18; highly 40/12; a lot 25/4;
thoroughly, successfully 48/1; easily 20/29, 39/15; without hesitation,with propriety 11/18.
velli dat. sg. of vƒllr.
vendi dat. sg. of vƒndr.
†véorr m. protector (i.e. ﬁórr) 52/28 (or perhaps ‘encircler’, i.e.
Mi›gar›sormr; but ﬁórr is called Véorr in Hym 11, 17, 21).

Glossary153

vera (var) sv. be 3/10; pres. for future 14/26; with suffixed neg. vara
9/14, suffixed pron. erumk = eru mér 24/3, suffixed pron. and neg.
varka 24/4 (see -k, -a); ertu = ert ﬂú 21/21; verit hafa have been in
existence 4/4, have lived 4/33; ﬂar hafi verit it was 48/10; næst var
ﬂat the next thing to happen was 11/6; ﬂat eru it consists of 50/39;
ﬂetta eru these are 12/20; aldri er there can never be 32/9; ﬂér er at it
is for you to 37/2; ﬂat er at segja this is to be told 47/7; vera mun atsegja no doubt there are to be told 45/16; hvat er what is up 38/37,
51/14; sem um ﬂenna mun vera that the case will be with this one
41/23; er honum serves for him as 32/25. With pp. forming passive
4/16, 5/24, forming perfect of intrans. vbs. 3/2, 9/41; v. at e–m beforthcoming from s–one 44/12; v. frá be descended from 10/18; v.
fyrir be there (in the way) 48/33; v. vi› enjoy, possess 3/16.
veraldligr a. worldly, textual notes to 3/15 and 4/34.
ver›a (var›) sv. happen 3/9; take place 37/36; become 6/23, 27/32; turninto 10/2; turn out to be 21/4, 28/16; come to be 14/23 (future), 32/8;
turn out 42/29; come, be produced 33/20; come into being 9/39, 10/14;
appear 37/31; exist 43/24, 25; e–m mun seint ver›a at it will be long
before one 28/33. With pp. forming passive 28/14, 48/13, 50/7, impers.
passive 35/25, 26, 28, 48/14; with at and inf. need to, have to 27/36; v.
af be caused by 28/9, result from 44/26; v. at turn into 49/11, fulfil therole of, become (the instrument of) 23/34, 29/16, md. reciprocal (toeach other) 49/28; v. fyrir meet, become subject to 18/27; v. til giverise to, be the origin of 22/18, offer o–self for, undertake 46/20.
ver›r a. with gen., deserving (of s–thing) 15/14, 35/15; worth, of value
to observe 50/5; minna vert less impressive 43/17; meira vert moresignificant 45/17.
verja (var›a) wv. defend 38/1, 43/28.
verk n. work 34/38, 35/26; labour 38/25; deed, act 15/22, 46/11.
verr adv. comp. worse, less (well) 32/1.
verri a. comp. worse; n. as subst. or adv. 27/10.
verst adv. sup. worst; with least equanimity 46/14.
verstr a. sup. worst 53/29.
verƒld f. world 3/10, 9/29.
vestan adv. from the west; fyrir v. with acc., west of 45/35.
vestr (1) n. west 4/16, 18.
vestr (2) adv. westwards 7/7.
vetr m. (pl. vetr) winter 21/2, 35/8; year 3/34; tíu vetra ten years old
4/38.
vex pres. of vaxa.
vexti dat. sg. of vƒxtr.

154

Glossaryvi› prep. (1) with acc., with 34/35; against, in competition with 40/10,
42/8, (in opposition to) 31/33, 52/8; in contact with, in connection
with 23/9; against, on 27/28, 52/36; by the side of 18/12, 25/35; near
25/36; at 49/3. (2) with dat., against, in contact with 45/10, 50/9, 10(touching?). (3) as adv., with (in possession of) 3/15; in reply 15/5,
25/29, at him 35/21.
ví›a adv. widely, in many places 5/4; extensively 5/27; sup., in mostplaces 3/13.
vi›arteinungr m. shoot of a tree 45/35.
vi›brag› n. (re)action, push, (quick) movement (against s–thing), touch
46/29.
†ví›ir m. ocean 24/14.
vi›r m. tree 33/17, 45/22.
ví›r a. wide, large 7/18, 50/21 (with gen. of extent); extensive 43/33.
vi›skipti n. pl. dealings 42/31.
víg n. battle 24/30, 34/12, 50/34; †vígi at in battle 52/39; pl., killings (inbattle) 30/36.
vígja (g›) wv. consecrate, bless 37/14, 46/34.
†vígﬂrot n. end of (or in?) battle 54/9 (‘when V. fights no more’).
vík f. (pl. víkr) bay 7/10.
vili m. (dat. vilja) wish 4/2, 7/21.
vilja (ld) wv. (3rd. sg. pres. vil, vill) want, wish 3/12, 6/7; viltu = vilt ﬂú
41/29; be willing 21/5, 28/38, 31/19; be desirous (to) 46/17; intend(to) 41/11; be going (to) 38/20; try (to) 29/7; v. eigi refuse 25/17, 47/30;
v. ekki (with inanimate subject) will not 41/14 (inf. understood); with
at-clause, desire 30/26 (with subject of clause preceding), 50/7 (withadv. seint preceding the clause it belongs in).
villieldr m. wildfire (magical, deceptive fire?) 43/9.
vín n. wine 32/24, 29.
vinda (vatt) sv. twist, weave, entwine (e–u with or out of s–thing) 53/23.
vindbelgr m. bellows 14/2.
vindlauss a. without wind, still 10/12.
vindr m. wind 4/6, 14/26, 20/31, 49/22.
†vindƒld f. age of wind 49/35.
†viney f. meadow-island 7/18 (descriptive gen. with valrauf ).
vinna (vann, pp. unnit) sv. do, achieve 8/34, 45/15; perform, commit,
bring about 36/8, 46/8; v. ei› swear an oath, give a solemn promise
45/34; win 40/20, 27; v. sigr á win victory over (it) 36/30. Md. vinnask
e–m til last s–one for it (i.e. for drinking) 41/13, be sufficient for s–one(at so that) 43/20.

Glossary155

vinstri a. comp. left 11/1.
vir›a (›) wv. value; v. mikils value highly 29/14; v. e–t vel judge s–thingleniently, favourably, consider s–thing acceptable 21/5.
vísa (a›) wv. with dat. v. e–m til direct, show s–one to 42/21, direct,
point s–one towards 46/4.
vísindi n. pl. knowledge, science, learning 5/19, 17/17; lore, sources
12/11 (see note).
víss a. wise, well-informed 32/12; ver›a v. e–s find out about s–thing
29/40, 32/35; pl. †vísir e–s those well-acquainted with s–thing,frequenters of 51/20; n. víst certain 44/17; n. as subst. at vísu indeed,certainly 28/13, til víss for certain 35/27; comp. ﬂví vísari at the wiser(the better informed) inasmuch as 7/25.
vist f. food 32/23, 24, 33/5; lodging-place 53/8 (‘mansion’: vist translates
mansio at John 14: 2 in Heilagra manna søgur, ed. C. R. Unger,
Christiania 1877, I 249); pl., provisions 27/15 (or lodgings?), 32/5,
37/33.
vit n. intelligence 6/11; consciousness 13/6.
vita (veit, vissa) pret.-pres. vb. (1) know 3/30, 8/13; understand 13/14,
51/21; realise 18/40; imagine 37/18; veiztu = veizt ﬂú 34/27; v. e–tme› e–m share (be privy to) the knowledge of s–thing with s–one
29/23; with acc. and inf. 20/11, 23/26; with inf. understood, know
s–one or s–thing to be s–thing: sá ma›r er vér vitum mestan the greatest
being we know (of) 11/18; ask veit ek ausinn I know an ash (that is)laved 19/20; míns veit ek mest magar I know my son’s (to be) the
greatest 22/40; with at and inf., be able to, have the knowledge to beable to 21/3, 36/36 (tí›indi is object of segja); v. til at know about this,
that, find out that 27/7; pp., proved, confirmed, tested and found true
45/23; vita›r e–m marked out, destined for s–one, allotted to s–one
53/3. (2) face 53/15; v. upp face upwards 39/5; be on the side facing
10/11; ﬂat er vissi til nor›rs ættar the part which faced in a northerly
direction 10/6.
vitandi a. (pres. p.) conscious 15/36; margs v. having wide knowledge
18/31.
vítishorn n. sconce-horn, forfeit horn 40/37 (víti n., punishment; avítishorn was a large horn which a feaster would be required to drain
as a forfeit if he offended one of the rules of the house. Cf. ÍF V 254,
269 and VIII 162).
vitja (ja›) wv. with gen., visit, go and find; e–s er at vitja s–thing is tobe got, found 33/10.
vitkask (a›) wv. md. come to o–self, recover one’s wits 46/16.

156

Glossary†vitki m. wizard 10/20.
vitni n. that by which an oath is sworn, witness, attestation 35/6.
†vitnir m. wolf (= Fenrir) 33/39.
vitr a. wise, intelligent 7/20, 25/13; sup., wisest, cleverest 23/18, 48/26.
væl f. trick, wile 27/1, 43/28, 40; device (til at designed to) 48/20, 27;
trickery, cunning 28/27 (cf. AH Studier 85–6, vél).
vælræ›i n. pl. trickery, scheme(s) involving deception 27/3.
vængr m. wing 20/31 (honum his), 20/36.
væni n. prospect, expectation; ﬂótti ƒllum ills af (adv.) v. they all thought
evil was to be expected from them 27/9.
vænn a. likely, promising; e–m er vænt at s–one is likely to be successfulin (s–thing), s–one is to be expected to (be able to do s–thing) 43/11.
vænta (t) wv. with gen., expect, think likely 4/3.
væri p. subj. of vera.
værr a. comfortable, pleasant 26/6.
vætta (tt) wv. impers. e–n vættir one expects, supposes 36/27 (fár ma›r
is the subject of the at-clause: ‘I guess there are not many men who
can . . .’).
vƒllr m. (dat. velli) flat open uncultivated ground, plain 40/15, 50/17;
pl., fields, open grassy landscape (as opposed to forest) 39/24, 43/33,
50/27.
vƒlva f. prophetess 10/18.
vƒmm f. blemish, disgrace 26/35.
vƒndr m. (dat. sg. vendi) stick, thin rod 46/5.
vƒr›r m. guardian, watchman 25/36, 26/5.
vƒrn f. defence 30/2; v. ﬂar fyrir defence protecting it or them 18/11.
vƒtn see vatn.
vƒxtr m. growth, size, stature; dat. sg. vexti in size 39/13.
yfir prep. (1) with acc., over 17/11, 47/21, 48/32; all over 18/7, 32/39(after noun); across 15/10; through 5/24; over (to) the top of 7/28; on
top of 10/4; above 12/5, 49/12; round 44/37. (2) with dat., over 17/11,
27/15; above 19/26 (with brunni). (3) as adv., across, on top 10/3; ﬂary. across it 12/3; y. upp up over (the top) 39/25.
yfirkominn a. (pp.) defeated, beaten 36/40.
yfirkonungr m. supreme king 4/31 (cf. hƒfu›konungr).
‡miss a. (inflected yms-) various 29/28, 30/8; n. as adv., variously 21/8.
†ymja (um›a) wv. whine, groan, resound, make a noise; be in uproar?
51/12, 16.
ymr m. noise 38/1.

Glossary157

yn›i n. enjoyment, bliss 20/18.
yngstr sup. of ungr.
yr›i p. subj. of ver›a.
ﬂá (1) acc. sg. f. and acc. pl. m. of sá (1) 3/1, 5/7, 10/40, 12/26.
ﬂá (2) adv. then 3/12, 5/2; after that 11/33; at that time 9/8; afterwards
23/39; by then 40/6; by now 38/29; now 38/30 (1); just then 38/39; asa result 25/25, 38/24; therefore 40/2; moreover 4/7. Introducing mainclause after subordinate clause (cf. ok): er . . . ﬂá 3/4, 4/38; sí›an er. . . ﬂá 3/34; nú er . . . ﬂá 43/14; á›r . . . ﬂá 11/29; hvar sem . . . ﬂá 5/24;
til ﬂess at . . . ﬂá 4/10; ﬂat er . . . ﬂá 37/20; ﬂeir menn er . . . ﬂá 18/27(anacoluthon), cf. allir er . . . ﬂá fara allir 26/26; ef . . . ﬂá 18/23, 21/5,
28/32; ﬂótt . . . ﬂá 36/30; heldr en . . . ﬂá 28/35; svá (. . .) sem . . . ﬂá
15/9, 22/22, 42/7; er . . . ﬂá . . . nú 41/26. Anticipating subordinate
clause: ﬂá . . . er 13/1, 15/17; ﬂá . . . at (= if) 14/9, 43/26; ﬂá . . . ef
40/40; ﬂá . . . á›r en 46/31; ﬂá er as conj., when 11/6, 25/25; ﬂá er . . .
ﬂá 3/9, 26, 9/41–10/2.
ﬂa›an adv. from there 6/24, 9/4; from them, that, him 5/37, 10/16, 19/24;
about that 33/11; as a result 14/25; ﬂ. af from it, from there 9/22, fromthem 13/8, from that origin 14/22, as a result of this or from then on
13/11, by means of this 12/12, by means of them or from that beginning
15/28; ﬂ. braut away from it 50/35.
ﬂak n. roof 7/28, 20/1.
ﬂak›r pp. of ﬂekja.
ﬂakka (a›) wv. thank (e–m e–t s–one for s–thing) 28/18.
ﬂangat adv. to that place 17/31; in that place 33/10; ﬂ. er as conj., towhere 44/22.
ﬂannig adv. thither, in that direction, or in the same way 10/3; towards it
39/29; (in)to it 37/39.
ﬂar adv. there 4/23, 25; ﬂar var there was there 6/4; ﬂar hafi verit it was
48/10; to that place 17/18; to him 10/33; to them 42/24; ﬂar fylg›iaccompanied them 10/1; ﬂar hvergi nowhere there 43/31. With preps.
(advs.) equivalent to a pron.: ﬂar á on it 46/24; ﬂar (. . .) af from it
11/6, 40, about that 11/35, as a result 13/21 (therewith?), 32/35; ﬂar
eptir behind there 37/27, in accordance with that 23/17; ﬂar allt . . .
fyrir round all those places 18/11; ﬂar me› therewith, as well 4/7, in
addition 24/27; ﬂar næst next (to him) 8/19; ﬂar ofan í down in it
43/4; ﬂar (. . .) til thereto 13/16, for them or in addition 15/27; ﬂar . . .
upp up there 3/21; ﬂar útan um around it 12/22; ﬂar yfir over it 12/3.
With adv. phrases: ﬂar á ƒngulinn onto that hook 44/34; ﬂar fyrir durum

158

Glossaryin front of those doors 33/27; ﬂar í hásæti in that throne 13/13 (cf.
20/6); ﬂar í jƒr›u there in the earth 16/7; ﬂar í sal in that hall 24/33;
ﬂar í ƒndugi there on a high-seat, in the seat of honour 47/23; ﬂar
innan lands in that country or those countries 6/22; ﬂar til hans to him
6/19; ﬂar til ﬂess ríkis to that kingdom 6/17. With conjunctions: ﬂarsem (to) where, to a place which 6/4; ﬂar (. . .) er where, in (to) a (the)place which 6/12, 7/1, 31/25, while, as 7/17; at ﬂar er to where 38/27;
ﬂar fyrir er over that place which 5/36; ﬂar til er to where, until 6/16,
47/19.
ﬂarmar m. pl. guts, intestines 49/9.
ﬂat n. of sá (1). Often refers to a m. or f. noun, e.g. 10/2 (= ár 9/41?)
13/17, 20, 15/7, 25, 19/28, 29/9, 35/9, 38/12, and sometimes precedes
a pl. vb., e.g. 6/2, 7/5, 11/3, 14/14, 50/39 (cf. sá (1)). In some cases
ﬂat is in the nature of an indefinite subject, or refers to a whole phrase
or concept rather than to a specific noun.
ﬂegar adv. immediately 8/6, 44/18; as conj., when, as soon as 42/23, ﬂ.
er 36/19.
ﬂegit pp. of ﬂiggja.
ﬂegja (ﬂag›a) wv. be silent 37/2 (see vera).
ﬂekja (ﬂak›a) wv. roof (trans.; e–u with s–thing) 7/30, 20/5; cover?
pave? 47/9 (see Gjƒll in index of names).
ﬂiggja (ﬂá) sv. receive, get 34/38; obtain 45/32.
ﬂing n. assembly, parliament, judicial assembly 30/2; meeting 45/24,
29, 50/23.
ﬂingvƒllr m. assembly plain 50/17, textual note.
ﬂinull m. the rope along the (top) edge of a net 48/36.
ﬂjó› f. a people, nation 4/12, 22/23, 29/29; race of beings (gods, giants,etc.) 46/38.
ﬂjó›land n. country 4/31.
ﬂjóna (a›) wv. with dat., serve, be subservient to 21/17; attend 29/21;
act as servant 30/23. The word perhaps has overtones of religious
service, see AH Studier 71, 86.
ﬂjónustuma›r m. servant 37/26.
ﬂjƒkkr a. thick 26/15.
ﬂó adv. yet 3/20, 12/10; however 9/25; nevertheless 21/5; as conj., andyet 30/16, 33/3.
ﬂola (›) wv. endure, suffer 33/10; ﬂ. e–m e–t put up with s–thing froms–one 39/15.
ﬂora (›) wv. dare (with inf.) 31/9.
ﬂorrit pp. of ﬂverra.

Glossary

159

ﬂótt (1) conj. although 9/1, 21/19; even if 34/32, correlative with ﬂá
28/7 (ﬂóttu = ﬂótt ﬂú), 36/28 (2); ﬂ. eigi sé even (to those who) are not
44/3.
ﬂótt (2) pp. of ﬂykkja 36/28 (1).
ﬂraut f. difficulty, trial, danger 26/17.
ﬂrekvirki n. deed of strength, heroic achievement, mighty exploit 35/5,
45/15.
ﬂreskƒldr m. threshold 27/20.
ﬂrettándi ord. num. (the) thirteenth 30/6.
†ﬂreyja (ﬂrá›a) wv. suffer love-longing 31/29.
ﬂreyta (tt) wv. struggle, try hard (with inf., to do s–thing) 39/27; ﬂ. áe–t, at e–u strive at s–thing 41/13, 25; ﬂ. e–t vi› e–n contend, compete
at s–thing with s–one 40/35, 43/10; ﬂ. skjótfœri e–s contend withs–one’s speed 43/11.
ﬂri›i ord. num. (the) third 3/26, 5/35, 11/12; inar ﬂri›ju the third kind
18/16.
ﬂrír num. (n. ﬂrjú; dat. ﬂrim, ﬂrimr) three 4/16, 17/11, 34/31, 41/2;
ﬂrjár for three (nights) 31/29.
ﬂrjóta (ﬂraut) sv. impers. e–n ﬂr‡tr e–t s–one runs out of s–thing 41/5.
†ﬂryngva (ﬂrƒng) sv. press; pp. ﬂrunginn e–u swollen, loaded withs–thing 36/9.
ﬂræll m. slave 27/19.
ﬂrƒngr a. crowded; comp. n. as adv. ﬂrøngra 33/32.
ﬂumlungr m. thumb (-piece) 38/13.
ﬂungi m. heaviness, weight 10/7.
ﬂungr a. heavy 53/26 (i.e. difficult to cross? strong? viscous?); n. as
subst. or adv. 48/34.
ﬂunnvangi m. temple 39/5.
ﬂur›r m. decrease, lessening 43/15.
ﬂurfa (ﬂarf, ﬂurfta) pret.-pres. vb. need 25/37, 32/24; with at and inf.
22/23, 38/9, 40/20; ﬁórr mundi eigi ﬂ. at there was no point in ﬁórr . . .
42/20; impers., be necessary (always with neg., there is, was, will be
no need) 3/21, 26/12, 37/18, 41/5.
ﬂurr a. dry 48/5 (i.e. no tears at all).
ﬂverra (ﬂvarr, pp. ﬂorrit) sv. decrease 41/16.
ﬂvers adv. abruptly, at a sharp (right) angle 39/20.
ﬂvertaka (-tók) sv. refuse absolutely 29/35.
ﬂví dat. sg. n. of sá (1), therefore, for this reason 10/35, 23/2, 29/38; af
ﬂví for this reason 4/8; ﬂví næst next 27/30, 35/29; with comp., ﬂvíhar›ara er . . . ﬂví skarpara the harder . . . the tougher 28/40, similarly

160

Glossary

42/16; ﬂví vísari at the wiser inasmuch as 7/25; ﬂví framar at so far
ahead that 40/18.
ﬂvíat conj. because 4/13, 6/9, 18/4.
ﬂvílíkr a. such 39/16, 41/32; suchlike 3/36; similar 43/28; ﬂ. hƒf›ingi
sem Freyr er such a lord as F. is 31/35; n. as subst., such a thing 41/37.
ﬂ‡›a (dd) wv. make equivalent (á móti to), interpret as (correspondingto) 3/28.
ﬂykkja (ﬂótta) wv. seem (e–m to s–one) 5/24, 12/3, 32/1; be considered(to be) 40/40, 49/37; impers. with nom. (sometimes pl.) and inf., (e–m)
ﬂykkir e–t vera/ver›a one thinks there is s–thing 28/37, 44/25, ﬂykki
mér I think 25/27, 40/26; eigi ﬂótti mér go›in gera I do not think thegods made 15/12; ﬂótti mér ﬂeir hafa I think they had 13/1; eigi ﬂóttimér hitt minna vera vert I do not consider that was less significant
either 43/17; with inf. of vb. to be understood, one considers s–thing
to be s–thing 6/11, 8/8, 27/9, 28, 32/11 (see note), 40/22, 42/29, 49/38;
er eigi mun lítilræ›i í ﬂ. who will not think in it (to whom it will notseem) s–thing beneath his dignity 42/10; er lítit mark mun at ﬂ. inwhich there will seem little significance 41/36. Md. (with inf.), thinkthat one 6/26, 22/23, 39/35 (impers. or subj.?).
ﬂyrma (›) wv. with dat., spare, show mercy to 49/25; impers. passive
e–u var› eigi ﬂyrmt no respect or reverence was shown for s–thing 35/28.
ﬂyrstr a. thirsty 41/4.
†ﬂytr m. howling 24/6.
ﬂƒgull a. silent 26/15.
ﬂƒk› pp. f. of ﬂekja; ﬂƒk›u p. pl. of ﬂekja.
†æ adv. always, for ever, continually 10/35, 19/12, 26, 32/31.
ætla (a›) wv. think, be of the opinion (that) 11/17; with acc. and inf.
43/37, with inf. of vb. to be understood, think s–thing is s–thing 39/17;
pp. ætla›r (be) intended (to be) 41/20. Md. ætlask fyrir at plan to,resolve to 43/32.
ætt f. (1) direction, region 10/6 (cf. átt). (2) family line 5/37; stock,tribe 14/23; ancestry, descent, origin 5/8, 14/18, 18/19, 47/11; race
11/23, 36/2 (dat.); álfa, Ása ættar (gen. sg.) of the race of elves, Æsir18/16, 23/32; kominn af ﬂeira ætt descended from them 13/15; semhon átti ætt til in accordance with her ancestry 13/23. Pl. (lines of)descendants 3/9, 13/11; generations, family lines 3/2, 10/33; dynastic
lines 6/22; ancestry (of their families), genealogies 3/33; race 10/16,
13/16; ættirnar the races (of mankind) 9/39.
ætta›r a. (pp.) descended; vel æ. of good parentage 18/26.
ættma›r m. descendant 10/40.

Glossary161

œ›ask (dd) wv. md. become frantic, go mad 35/22.
œrit adv. (quite) enough, amply; i.e. only too 26/11, (pretty, very) 39/30.
†œrr a. raving 21/21.
œsa (t) wv. stir up, make (more) violent 20/27.
œztr a. sup. highest 8/27, 21/16, 29/18; most eminent, best 34/17.
ƒ›li (or ø›li?) n. fatherland, inherited land 7/13 (partitive gen., with
djúprƒ›ul; often emended to ó›la adv. swiftly).
ƒ›rum dat. of annarr.
ƒfundaror› n. pl. words of envy or malice 18/33.
ƒl n. ale 30/33.
ƒld f. age, time 15/30; allar aldir all ages 8/35, 20/10, 53/7; fyrr mƒrgum
ƒldum en many ages before 9/20; †pl., mankind, men 54/19.
ƒlgƒgn n. pl. drinking vessels, utensils for ale 30/24.
ƒnd f. breath, spirit, soul 9/1, 13/6.
ƒndugi n. seat of honour 47/23.
ƒndurdís f. ski-goddess 24/18 (cf. Hkr I 22, Skáld 34/20, verse 110).
ƒndurgu› n. ski-deity 24/17 (cf. Skáld 19/32 (Ullr), 32/4, verse 98).
ƒndver›r a. the beginning of, the early part of (a period of time) 34/29.
ƒngull m. hook 44/33, 34.
ƒrk f. ark 3/7.
ƒrn m. eagle 18/30, 20/30, 51/27.
ƒxl f. shoulder; á ƒxlum e–m on s–one’s shoulders 14/5, 32/32.
øng- see engi.
ørindreki m. messenger, envoy 47/36 (cf. eyrindi, reka).
ørlƒg n. pl. fate(s), destiny (-ies) 15/20, 18/23, 21/19; segja ø. makeprophecies or pronounce, i.e. decide, destinies? 21/24.
†øróf n. a huge number; ørófi vetra á›r (it was) many many years earlier
than 11/27.
øruggr a. safe, secure 34/31 (fyrir against).
†ørviti a. out of one’s mind 21/22.
øxn see uxi.

Index of names
Accents are printed over vowels in proper names only when their length is certain.

Adam m., 3
Affrica f. Africa, 4
Ái m. a dwarf, 16Álfheimr m. the world of elves, 19(Grm 5)Álfr m. a dwarf, 17Álfrƒ›ul f. a name for the sun, 54
Alfƒ›r m. ‘All-father’, one of Ó›inn’snames (though not identified withÓ›inn until 13/18), 8, 13, 15, 17, 20,
21, 22, 27, 28, 29, 33 (Skáld 6). In
MSS often spelt All-, which is usually an intensive prefix meaning‘very’. Cf. H. Kuhn, Kleine Schriften,
Berlin 1969–72, I 476–7
Áli m. = Váli, son of Ó›inn, 26. Thisequivalence is found only in Snorra
Edda; Váli and Áli are both includedin the ﬂula of sons of Ó›inn in Skáld
verse 429. Cf. Áli e›a Vi›arr =Elenus, Skáld 6/27. There is also anÁli son of Loki mentioned at Skáld
20/2, see note (but nowhere else), who
may be the same as Váli son of Loki
Alsvi›r m. a horse of the sun, 14 (Skáld
90/1, Sd 15, Grm 37)
Alﬂjólfr m. a dwarf, 16 (cf. Alﬂjófr,
Vsp 11)Ámsvartnir m. a lake, 28 (SnE II 431)
Andhrímnir m. cook in Valhƒll, 32
Andlangr m. one of three heavens, 20(Skáld 85/17, 133, verse 516/8, SnE
II 485)
Andvari m. a dwarf, 16 (Skáld 45, 46,
48; Rm 23)
Angrbo›a f. a giantess, 27 (Hdl 40)
Annarr m. (acc. sg. m. Annan) = OEHa›ra, 5; second husband of Nótt,
13 (in W and T Ánarr, in U and Skáld
35, 36, 81 Ónarr; cf. Skj A I 369, Hkr
I 161. There is similar variation in
the name of the dwarf Ónarr, and in

all three cases the name had probably
been associated with the ord. num.
annarr)Árvakr m. a horse of the sun, 14 (Skáld
90/1, Grm 37, Sd 15)Ásafólk n. the people (or race) of theÆsir, 7 (see Áss)Ásaﬂórr m. ﬁórr of the Æsir (cf. note
to 22/30–1), 13, 22, 38, 41, 42, 55;
cf. ﬁórr (Hrbl 52, Skáld 21)
Ásbrú f. bridge of (made by?) the Æsir(= Bifrƒst), 17, 18
Ásgar›r m. the dwelling of the Æsir(the home of the ‘historical’ Æsir in
Sweden), 7; the fortified dwelling of
the mythical Æsir 15, 46, 47, 53(Hym 7, ﬁrk 18, Skáld); Ásgar›r (innforni), i.e. Troy, 8, 13 (15, 53?) (cf.
Hkr I 11, 14, 22, Skáld 6/22). Cf.
Valhƒll, Mi›gar›r, Útgar›r
Asia f., 4
Asiamenn m. pl. people of Asia (cf.
Æsir), 6 (Skáld 5/33, SnE II 94)
Askr m. the first male human being,
13 (Vsp 17)
Áss m. (pl. Æsir) one of the race ofgods associated with Ó›inn (cf.
Vanir), 21, 37 (Loki, although sonof a giant; cf. Ls 33); 23 (Njƒr›r,
although originally one of the Vanir);
25 (T‡r, Heimdallr); 26 (Hƒ›r, Vi›arr);elsewhere plural, the ‘historical’ Æsirmigrating from Asia, 6, 7, 54 (cf.
Asiamenn), Ása ætt, 7, Ása ættir, 13;
the mythical gods (often heathen
Scandinavian gods in general without reference to the distinction between Æsir and Vanir, cf. note to
21/13), 17, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27,
28, 29, 33, 34, 35, 36, 39, 41, 45, 46,
47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 54, 55; Ása ættar
belonging to the race of Æsir, 13, 23

164

Index of namesÁsynja f. female Áss, goddess, 21, 24,
29, 30 (Ls 11, 31, ﬁrk 14, Bdr 1, Sd 4,
Hdl 10)Athra m. = Hathra in OE royal genealogies, 5 (cf. Annarr)
Atrí›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22
Au›humla f. a primeval cow, 11 (cf.
Skáld 131)
Au›r m. son of night, 13 (Skáld 35, 36)
Aurbo›a f. a giantess, 30 (Hdl 30)
Aurgelmir m. primeval giant, identified by Snorri with Ymir, 10; otherwise known only from Vm 29–30
Aurvangar m. pl., 16 (Vsp 14; aurr m.
‘mud’, vangr m. ‘field’)Austri m. a dwarf, 12, 16 (Skáld 33, 34)
Austr Saxaland n. eastern Germany(Saxony), 5; cf. Saxland
Austrvegr m. eastern parts, 35 (oftenpl.; usually means east of the Baltic,
Russia; Skáld 20, 40, 101, 103, Hrbl
prose, Ls 59; in Ynglingatal 9 (Hkr
I 36) and Skj A I 240 (Hkr II 145)
for Sweden)
Báfurr m. a dwarf, 16
Baldr m. = Beldegg, 5; a god, 17, 23,
26, 45, 46, 47, 48, 53 (Vsp, Grm, Ls,
Bdr, Hdl, Sƒgubrot af fornkonungum
55, Málsháttakvæ›i 9, Skj A II 132,
Skj A I 595). The name may be related to OE bealdor ‘lord’ (cf. Freyr).
There is little evidence for the worshipof Baldr (see AH Gudesagn 40–1),
though he is mentioned in an Old
High German charm (see MRN 122–
3). Baldrsbrá (see 23/17) is the
Icelandic name for the scentless
camomile (matricaria), but the association of this with Baldr is probably
due to folk etymology
Báleygr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22
Barey f., 31 (? barr n. ‘barley’, ey f.
‘island’; W and T have the form
Barrey. Possibly the same as Barrain the Hebrides, though Skm has theform Barri and describes the place
as a grove, lundr.)

Be›vig m. = OE Bedwig, 5Beldegg m. = OE Bældæg, 5Beli m. (acc. and gen. Belja) a giant(?) killed by Freyr, 31 (ﬂeir Beli =Freyr and B.); bani Belja = Freyr,
52 (Skáld 18, 89; cf. 23, verse 69)
Bergelmir m. a giant, 11 (Vm 29)
Bestla f. mother of Ó›inn, 11 (Skáld11, ÍF VIII 253; cf. Háv 140)
Biaf m. = OE Beaw, 5Bifli›i, Biflindi m. names of Ó›inn, 8(cf. Grm 49 and Blindi; Bifli›i is notfound elsewhere)Bifrƒst f. a bridge, 15, 17, 18, 20, 25,
34, 50 (Forspjallsljó› 9, PE 372; in
Grm 44 and Fm 15 called Bilrƒst,see AH Studier 51–4). Cf. Ásbrú
Bifurr m. a dwarf, 16
Bil f. companion of Máni; counted asan Ásynja, 14, 30. See A. Holtsmark,‘Bil og Hjuke’, Maal og Minne 1945,
139–54. Bil is frequent in kenningsfor ‘woman’, e.g. Od 33
Bileygr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22
Bilskirnir m. a hall, 22 (Skáld 14, 16)
Bjárr m. = Biaf, 5 (cf. Skáld 89, verse
330)
Bláinn m. a dwarf (? cf. SnE II 469) ora name for Ymir?, 16
Blíkjanda Bƒl n. Hel’s bed-hangings, 27(blíkja sv. ‘gleam’, bƒl n. ‘misfortune’)Blindi m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (cf.
Biflindi, Grm 49)
Borr m. father of Ó›inn, 11, 13 (spelt
Burr in Codex Regius Vsp 4; cf. Hdl
30, Egils saga, ÍF II 169)
Bragi (gamli) m. 9th-century Norwegian poet, 7, 34 (see notes to 7/12–
19 and 34/16–24; cf. Hákonarmál
and Eiríksmál, Skj A I 66 and 175;
Skj A I 1–5; Skáldatal, SnE III 270)
Bragi m. god of poetry, 25 (cf. bragrin glossary; Ls 12–13, 18, Sd 16; see
MRN 185, AH Gudesagn 48–9;
Skáld 1 etc.)
Brandr m. = OE Brand, 5Brei›ablik n. pl. Baldr’s dwelling, 19, 23

Index of names
Brimir m. a hall, 53 (in Vsp 37 Brimir
may be the name of the owner of thehall rather than of the hall itself,
and in Codex Regius Vsp 9 (cf. 16/5
above) Brimir seems to be anothername for Ymir). Cf. Skáld 5/38
Brísingamen n. a necklace, 29 (mentioned in various mythological contexts in Old Icelandic (Skáld 19, ch.
8, 20/3, cf. verse 64, 30, ch. 20, 32,verse 100; ﬁrk 13, 15, 19; Sƒrla
ﬂáttr, Flateyjarbók I 275–6; cf. noteto 24/32–7). See also Beowulf 1198–9
and note, ed. F. Klaeber, 3rd ed.,
Boston 1936, 178 and references
there.)
Búri m. grandfather of Ó›inn, 11 (Skáld11, verse 26)
B‡leistr m. brother of Loki, 26, 51 (insome MSS B‡leiptr; see also SnE I
268, Hdl 40)
Byrgir m. a spring or well, 14Bƒ›vígi m. = Be›vig, textual note to
5/12Bƒll f. a river, 33 (Hƒll in T, W, U, andGrm 27)
Bƒlverkr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (seeHáv 109, Skáld 4)
Bƒlﬂorn m. a giant, 11 (Bƒlﬂórr Háv 140)Bƒmbƒrr m. a dwarf, 16 (Bƒmburr W
and Vsp 11)
Dagr m. (personification of) day, 13(Skáld 35/22, Vm 25)
Dáinn m. (1) a stag, 18 (Grm 33). (2)a dwarf, 16 (Hdl 7; cf. Háv 143)
Danakonungar m. pl. kings of theDanes, 6Danmƒrk f. Denmark, 6, 7
Dellingr m. father of Dagr, 13 (Háv160, Vm 25; cf. Hei›reks saga 34–5)
Dólgﬂvari m. a dwarf, 16 (Dólgﬂrasir
Vsp 15)Dóri m. a dwarf, 16
Draupnir m. (1) a dwarf, 16. (2) a ring,
47 (cf. Skáld 17, 42, Skm 21–2;
common in kennings, see Skáld 34,verse 109, 40, ch. 32, 60, verse 188)

165

Drómi m. name of a fetter, 27, 28 (SnEII 431)
Dúfr m. a dwarf, 16
Duneyrr m. a stag, 18 (Grm 33)
Duraﬂrór m. a stag, 18 (Grm 33)
Durinn m. a dwarf, 15, 16
Dvalinn m. (1) a stag, 18 (Grm 33).
(2) a dwarf, 16, 18 (dœtr Dvalins =of the race of dwarfs; cf. Háv 143,
Vsp 14, Alv 16, Flateyjarbók I 275)
Ector m. Hector, 55
Eikinskjaldi m. a dwarf, 17
Eikﬂyrnir m. a stag, 33 (Grm 26)
Einri›i m., 5 (cf. Ein(d)ri›i, a name ofﬁórr, Skáld 24, verse 70, 113, verse
428, Hkr I 241)
Eir f. a goddess, 29 (Skáld 115, verse
436/5 var., see SnE I 557); notknown from elsewhere, though thename is common in kennings for
woman)
Ekin f. a river, 33 (Eikin Grm 27 inCodex Regius)Eldhrímnir m. a pot, 32
Eljú›nir m. Hel’s hall, 27 (Málsháttakvæ›i 9, Skj A II 132)
Élivágar m. pl. name of rivers, 9, 10(cf. Hym 5, Skáld 22/25; the relationof these rivers to those at 9/22–4 and33/21–5 is not clear, though Snorri
seems to assume they are the same)
Elli f. (personification of) old age, 42,43 (cf. Egils saga, ÍF II 60, and thephrase fásk vi› elli, ÍF V 111)
Embla f. the first female human being,
13 (Vsp 17; cf. Egils saga, ÍF II 269)
Enea m. a name for Europe, 4. The
name is also found in Ynglinga saga
(Hkr I 9, see note ad loc.), but
nowhere else. Snorri may use theterm to mean the land settled by thedescendants of Aeneas (various European nations besides the Romans,
most notably the Franks, claimed in
the Middle Ages to have been foundedby survivors of the fall of Troy). But
the origin of the name may have been

166

Index of names

a mechanical scribal error in the firstplace
England n., 6
Evropa f. Europe, 4
Eva f. Eve, 3
Falhófnir m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30,
Skáld 89)
Fallanda Fora› n., 27 (falla sv. ‘fall’;fora› n. ‘dangerous place, pitfall’;the phrase as a whole may mean
‘stumbling-block’)
Falr m. a dwarf, 17 (Fjalarr PE)
Fárbauti m. a giant, 26 (Skáld 19, 20,verse 64, 31, verse 96)
Farmagu› m. a name of Ó›inn, 21 (notrecorded elsewhere)
Farmat‡r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22(Skáld 5/23, 7, verse 5, 78, verse 278)
Fenrir m. a mythical wolf, 14, 54 (Ls 38,
Skáld 132, verse 514); Fenrisúlfr m.
the wolf Fenrir (descriptive gen.),25, 27, 50, 54 (Ls prose, HH 40,
Skáld 6/23, 19/24, 20/1, Hkr I 197)
Fensalr m. Frigg’s dwelling, 45; pl.
Fensalir, 29 (Vsp 33, Skáld 30)
Fi›r m. a dwarf, 17Fili m. a dwarf, 16
Fimbulﬂul f. a river, 9, 33 (Grm 27,
Skáld 125, verse 483; sometimes
written as two words, i.e. two names)
Finn m. = OE Finn, 5Fjƒlnir m. a name of Ó›inn, 8, 22 (Rm18; common in kennings)Fjƒlsvi›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22Fjƒrgvinn m. father of Frigg, 13 (in theform Fjƒrgynn at Skáld 30/9). Snorri
is presumably basing his information
on Ls 26, where Frigg is called Fjƒrgyns mær, though there mær may
mean wife rather than daughter, andFjƒrgynn may be a name of Ó›inn.
The f. Fjƒrgyn is a name for ﬁórr’s
mother Jƒr› in Hrbl 56 and Vsp 56,
and is found as a synonym for ‘earth’in scaldic verse; cf. Od 11, Skáld
130, verse 501
Fjƒrm f. a river, 9, 33 (Grm 27)

Fólkvangr m. Freyja’s dwelling, 24; pl.
Fólkvangar, 24
Forseti m. son of Baldr, 26 (known only
from SnE and Grm, cf. Skáld 1, 17,114, verse 432; a Frisian god Fosite ismentioned by Alcuin, Vita Willibrordi
I, ch. 10 (Patrologia Latina, ed. J. P.
Migne, Parisiis 1844–64, 101, col.
700), and there is a Norwegian placename Forsetlund. See AH Studier
75–7, AH Gudesagn 300, 304)
Frakland n. land of the Franks, 5
Fránangrsfors m. a waterfall, 48 (PE122)
Freki m. a wolf, 32. Cf. 51/35, Vsp 44
Freovin m. = OE Freawine, 5Freyja f. a goddess, 24, 29, 34, 35, 47(Ls 30–2, ﬁrk, Od 9, Hdl 6, Flateyjarbók I 275; appears frequently in
Skáld). As a common noun freyjameans ‘lady’Freyr m. a god, 24, 28, 31, 36, 47, 50(appears in many poems; originallya common noun, ‘lord’, cf. OE frea,
frigea; see AH Gudesagn 44–6)
Friallaf m. = OE Frealaf, 5Fri›leifr m. (1) = Friallaf son of Finn,
5. (2) son of Skjƒldr, 6 (Skáld 51,
52, verse 159)
Frigg f. = Frigida, wife of the ‘historical’ Ó›inn, 5; a goddess, wife of themythical Ó›inn, mother of Baldr,
13, 21, 29, 30, 45, 46, 47, 52 (cf.
Hkr I 12, PE 76; Paulus Diaconus,
Historia Langobardorum I 7–8, see
MRN 72–3; the second Merseburg
charm, see MRN 122–3; AH Gudesagn 60)
Frigida f. = Frigg, 5; there is presumably an association with Phrygia in
the author’s mind (in W (SnE I 20)
the association is made explicit; cf.
Hauksbók 155 and Frigialand, Skáld
6/29). According to Servius, commentary on Aeneid I 182, and later writers
Phrygia was named after a daughterof Aesopus

Index of names
Frio›igar m. = OE Freo›egar, 5Fró›i m. = Frio›igar, 5
Frosti m. a dwarf, 17
Fulla f. a goddess, 29, 47 (Skáld 1, 30,
40, 43, 114, verse 433; appears in a
number of kennings in scaldic verse.
She is called Frigg’s eskimær (cf.
29/23) in PE 76, but in the second
Merseburg charm (see under Frigg)
Volla is said to be Frigg’s sister)
Fundinn m. a dwarf, 16
Gagnrá›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 10/26
textual note (Vm 8–17)
Gandálfr m. a dwarf, 16
Ganglari m. a name of Ó›inn, 21 (var.
Gangleri, Gangari)
Ganglati m. slave or servant of Hel,27 (ganga sv. ‘walk’, latr a. ‘lazy’;
name of a giant in Skáld 114, verse
431; cf. the f. form Ganglƒt below)
Gangleri m. assumed name of Gylfi,
7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17,
18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 28, 29,
31, 32, 33, 34, 36, 43, 45, 48, 49,
53, 54. Also a name of Ó›inn, see
Ganglari (ganga sv. ‘walk’, -leri a.
‘weak, weary’)Ganglƒt f. slave or serving-maid ofHel, 27 (cf. Ganglati)Gar›rofa f. a mare, 30
Garmr m. a dog, 34, 50. Cf. Vsp 44,
49, 58, where Garmr may be thesame as Fenrir, while Snorri evidently assumes they are different. Cf. also
Mánagarmr
Gautr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (Skáld
105/30; cf. Bdr 2, 13; common inscaldic kennings)
Gavir (or Gavér?) m. = Gevis, 5 (cf. theﬂula of names of sea-kings, Skáld
227, note to verse 416/3, var.; Gevarus
in Saxo Grammaticus, Book III)
Gefjun f. one of the ‘historical’ Æsirin Sweden, 7; one of the mythicalgoddesses, 29 (Skáld 1, 40, 114,verse 433; cf. note to 7/4 above andVƒlsa ﬂáttr, Stories from the sagas

167of the kings, ed. A. Faulkes, London
1980, 57)
Gefn f. a name of Freyja, 29 (Skáld
44/24, 115, verse 435; common inscaldic kennings, cf. SnE II 489)
Geirahƒ› f. a valkyrie, 30 (Geirƒlul,Geirrƒmul Grm 36, var.)
Geirrø›r m. a giant, 21 (see Grm)
Geirvimul f. a river, 33 (Grm 27)
Gelgja f. a rope, 29 (cf. SnE II 431,
Egils saga, ÍF II 144)
Ger›r f. beloved of Freyr, 31 (Skm,
Hdl 30, Skáld 1, 30, 114, verse 433;
Hkr I 24; common in kennings for‘woman’)Geri m. a wolf, 32
Gevis m. = OE Gewis, 5
Gils m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30, Skáld 89,
verse 327, sometimes written Gísl)
Gimlé n. a place in heaven, 9 (Gimlé e›a
Vingólf ), 20, 53
Ginnarr m. a dwarf, 17
Ginnungagap n. mighty (or magic)
abyss, space, 10, 11, 17 (see ginnunga
and gap in glossary and cf. AH
Gudesagn 24)
Ginnungahiminn m. mighty (or magic)
heaven, firmament, 12
Gipul f. a river, 33 (Grm 27)
Gjallarhorn n. Heimdallr’s trumpet,
17, 25, 50 (Vsp 46; cf. gjalla sv.
‘resound’)Gjƒll f. (1) a stone slab, 29 (cf. SnE II431). (2) the river separating theworld of the living from the worldof the dead, 9, 47; Gjallar brú thebridge over the river Gjƒll, 47 (Grm28; cf. gjalla sv. ‘resound’, andcompare the bridge in Grettis saga,ÍF VII 173 and note; SG Kommentar
199; Skj A II 114, 115, 404; cf. also
víggjƒll, Háttatal st. 6/8)
Gla›r m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30, Skáld
90/2)
Gla›sheimr m. temple of the Æsir, 15(Grm 8)Glapsvi›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22

168

Index of names

Gleipnir m. a fetter, 25, 28 (SnE II
431–2)
Glenr m. husband of Sól, 13 (Skáld 39/2)
Glitnir m. a place in the heavens, 19, 26
Glóinn m. a dwarf, 16 (Glói Codex
Regius of PE)
Glora f. = Lora, 5. Cf. Hlóra, Skáld 14/30
Glær m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30, Skáld
89, verse 327)
Gná f. a goddess, 30 (common in
kennings for ‘woman’)Gnipahellir m. ‘jutting cave’, 50 (Vsp44, 49, 58; Gnipalundr in U, cf.
Vƒlsunga saga and ﬁorsteins ﬂáttrbœjarmagns)
Góinn m. a serpent, 19
Grábakr m. a serpent, 19Grá› f. a river, 33 (Grm 27)
Grafvitnir m. a serpent, 19
Grafvƒllu›r m. a serpent, 19
Gramr m. a dog, 34/24, textual note
Grímnir m. a name of Ó›inn, 22
Grímnismal n. pl. ‘the speech of Grímnir’, the name of an eddic poem, 22,30, 33
Grímr m. a name of Ó›inn, 21Gu›ólfr m. = OE Godulf, 5Gu›r f. a valkyrie, 30 (Gunnr Vsp 30,
HH II 7; common in scaldic kennings)
Gugnir see Gungnir
Gullinbursti m. a boar, 47 (cf. Skáld
18/27, Hdl 7)
Gullintanni m. a name of Heimdallr,
25 (not recorded in extant verse)
Gulltoppr m. a horse, 17, 25, 47 (Skáld
19, 88, verse 325, Grm 30)
Gungnir m. Ó›inn’s spear, 50 (sometimes written Gugnir; cf. Sd 17,
Skáld 10, verse 21, 41, 42, 121, verse
464, SnE II 134)
Gunnﬂrá f. a river, 9 (cf. Grm 27 andGunnﬂró below)
Gunnﬂráin f. a river, 33 (cf. Grm 27,
Gunnﬂorin)
Gunnﬂró f. a river, 33 (Grm 27, cf.
Gunnﬂrá above)
Gylfi m. legendary king in Sweden, 6,

7; cf. Gangleri; name of a sea-kingin Skáld 74–5, 109, verse 412
Gyllir m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30, Skáld
89, verse 327)
Gymir m. father of Ger›r, 30 (Skm, Ls
42, Hdl 30; name of a giant in Skáld
110, verse 417)
Gƒll f. a valkyrie, 30Gƒmul f. a river, 33 (Grm 27)
Gƒndlir m. a name of Ó›inn, 22Gƒpul f. a river, 33 (Grm 27)
Hábrók f. a hawk, 34 (cf. Hrólfs saga
kraka)
Háleygjatal n. list (i.e. genealogy) of
the men (jarls) of Hálogaland, 6. This
was a poem by Eyvindr skáldaspillir,a Norwegian poet of the 10th century,
preserved fragmentarily in Skáldskaparmál and kings’ sagas (Hkr,
Fagrskinna, Flateyjarbók; see Skj A I
68–71). It traced the ancestry of Hákon
jarl (d. 995) back to mythical times.
Hallinskí›i m. a name of Heimdallr,
25 (Hkr I 204)
Hamskerpir m. a horse, 30 (cf. Hamskarpr, SnE II 487)
Hangagu› m. a name of Ó›inn, 21(Skáld 7, verse 2; cf. Hangat‡r, Skáld
5/23, 7, verse 3)
Haptagu› m. a name of Ó›inn, 21 (cf.
hapta bei›ir, hapta snytrir, Skáld 12,verse 32, 31, verse 94)
Hár m. a name of Ó›inn, 21; one of
Gylfi’s informants, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12,
13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22,
23, 25, 28, 29, 31, 32, 33, 34, 36,
44, 45, 48, 49, 53; weak form Hávi,
8 (High, the high one, cf. Háv 109,
111, 164; but in some cases the name
Hárr may have been intended, i.e.
‘hoary’ (cf. Skáld, Háttatal), thoughother etymologies have been proposed, e.g. Háarr, ‘high ruler’; cf. Vsp
21 and the dwarf-name Hárr; notealso Ágrip 2, and Flateyjarbók I 564)
Hárbar›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (cf.
Hrbl)

Index of names
Hárr m. a dwarf, 16 (Hánarr Vsp 13;
sometimes written Hár, see under
Hár)
Hati m. a wolf, 14 (see note to 14/14–17;
there is a giant called Hati in Helgakvi›a Hjƒrvar›ssonar, PE 173–5)
Hávi see Hár
Hei›rún f. a goat, 33 (Grm 25, Hdl 46–7)
Heimdalargaldr (rs) m. name of a lost
poem, 26 (Skáld 19/12; galdr m.
‘incantation’)
Heimdallr m. (gen. Heimdalar) an Áss,25, 26 47, 50, 51. Often mentioned
in early sources (e.g. Húsdrápa,
Skáld 10, verse19, 20, verse 64; Hdl
35–8; Rígsﬂula, prose introduction,
PE 141; Vsp 1, 27; Ls 48; ﬁrk 15;Sƒgubrot af fornkonungum 55) but
there is no evidence that he was theobject of a cultHeingestr m. = OE Hengest, 5
Hel f. (1) the abode of the dead, 9, 47
48 (cf. Niflhel). (2) daughter of Loki,27, 46, 47, 53. It is doubtful whichis the appropriate meaning at 48/9
and 50/19 (companions of Hel or(company of) inhabitants of Hel?—
presumably the same as the fíflmegir
at 51/34, though Snorri may havedevils or an army of dead men inmind). The name is personified onlyin Icelandic: elsewhere it is always
a place. In most Old Norse poems it
can be taken to mean the place, but
the context is often ambiguous, ase.g. at Vsp 43, Grm 31
Helblindi m. (1) brother of Loki, 26.
(2) a name of Ó›inn, 21
Helgrindr f. pl. gates of Hel, 9, 47 (cf.
Hei›reks saga 16)
Helvegr m. the way to Hel, 9, 46, 47,
52 (Hei›reks saga 35, Vsp 47)
Heptifili m. a dwarf, 16 (Hepti, Víli
Vsp 13)
Heremó› m. = OE Heremod, 5. Cf.
Hermó›r
Herfjƒtur f. a valkyrie, 30

169

Herjafƒ›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 32(herr m. ‘host, army’; Vsp 43, Vm
2, Grm 25, 26)
Herjan m. a name of Ó›inn, 8, 21 (Vsp30)
Hermó›r m. servant or son of Ó›inn,
46, 47 (see sveinn in glossary: he islisted with sons of Ó›inn in Skáld
113, verse 429, SnE II 636. He
appears as a prominent inhabitant ofValhƒll in Hdl 2, Hákonarmál 14(Skáld 8, verse 11), Málsháttakvæ›i
9 (Skj A II 132), Sƒgubrot af fornkonungum 55, but does not seem tohave the nickname inn hvati elsewhere. He is perhaps identifiable with
the Heremod of Beowulf 901, 1709
and OE genealogies, see Heremó›
and textual note to 5/13)
Herran m. a name of Ó›inn, 8 (cf.
herra, ‘lord’, often used of Christ;
harra, var. herra, appears in a kenning for Ó›inn in Skj A I 168)
Herteitr m. a name of Ó›inn, 21
Hildr f. a valkyrie, 30 (cf. Vsp 30)
Himinbjƒrg n. pl. a place in the heavens,
20, 25, 26
Himinhrjótr m. an ox, 44 (cf. Skáld 90,
verse 331, 130, verse 504)
Hjálmberi m. a name of Ó›inn, 21
Hjúki m. companion of Máni, 14 (notmentioned in surviving poems)
Hle›jólfr m. a dwarf, 16 (Hlévangr,-vargr Vsp 15)
Hleri›i = Lori›i, textual note to 5/9
Hli›skjálf f. Ó›inn’s watchtower, 13,31; with art., 20, 48 (see prose
introductions to Grm and Skm; Akv
14, Skáld 11, verse 22, Skj A I 168,
AH Studier 39–42)
Hlín f. a goddess, 30, 52 (= Vsp 53;
Skáld 114, verse 434). The name does
not appear elsewhere either in theProse or Poetic Edda, though it iscommon in scaldic verse in kenningsfor ‘woman’. See note to 52/5.
Hlƒ›yn f. a name for Jƒr›, mother of170

Index of namesﬁórr, 52 (the first vowel is sometimes taken to be ó; cf. Skáld 86,
130, verse 501, Hkr I 256)Hlƒkk f. a valkyrie, 30 (common in
kennings for ‘battle’ and ‘woman’)Hnikarr m. (1) a name of Ó›inn, 8, 21(cf. Rm 18 ff., SnE II 142, 417, 472).
(2) = Vingenir, textual note to 5/11
Hniku›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 8, 22(SnE II 472)
Hnoss f. daughter of Freyja, 29 (Skáld
30, 43, 114, verse 434, 115, verse
435, Hkr I 25)
Hoddmímir m. perhaps the name of agiant, or just a kenning for ‘generousman’, 54 (hodd n. pl. ‘hoard’)Hófvarfnir m. a horse, 30 (SnE II 487)
Hrí› f. a river, 9 (Grm 28)
Hrímfaxi m. a horse, 13 (Vm 14, Skáld
90/1)
Hringhorni m. a ship, 46 (Skáld 17/29,
128, verse 492)
Hrist f. a valkyrie, 30 (common inscaldic kennings)
Hró›vitnir m. a mythical wolf, 14(Grm 39; cf. Hró›rsvitnir in Ls 39,
which looks like a name for Fenrir,
and Skáld 132, verse 514)
Hroptat‡r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (cf.
Háv 160, Skáld 8, verses 8, 11)
Hrymr m. a giant, 50, 51
Hræsvelgr m. a giant, 20 (hræ n.
‘corpse’, svelgja sv. ‘swallow’)Hrƒnn f. a river, 33 (Grm 28)
Hugi m., 40, 43 (personification ofhugi m. ‘thought’; cf. Huginn. Hugi
is also a personal name in Orkneyinga saga, ÍF XXXIV 95, Hkr III
222–3, Skj A I 442, and Flóamannasaga, ÍF XIII 263, 310, in each caserelating to non-Scandinavians and in
the first three corresponding to thename Hugo)
Huginn m. a raven, 32, 33 (cf. hugr,
hugi m. ‘thought’, and Hugi above;
SnE II 142, 417; in verse often used
as a common noun for ‘raven’)

Hugstari m. dwarf, 16 (Haugspori Vsp 15)
Hungr (rs) m. Hel’s dish, 27. Cf. thekennings Heljar diskr, askr for ‘hunger’ in 13th-century poems, Skj A II
46, 146
Hve›rungr m. apparently a name for
Loki; son of H. = Fenrir, 52 (see 27/5
and cf. Ynglingatal 32, Hkr I 79,
where Hel is described as the daughterof Hve›rungr. The name also appears
in ﬂulur among names of giants,
Skáld 110, verse 417, and names ofÓ›inn, SnE II 472)
Hvergelmir m. a spring or well, 9, 17,
18, 33, 53 (Grm 26; hverr m. ‘cauldron’, in Iceland a hot spring. Cf. AH
Studier 49–50)
Hymir m. a giant, 44, 45 (cf. Hym; also
Ls 34, Skáld 32, verse 100, 111,
verse 418, Skj A I 24. In Gylf the
MSS frequently omit the H, making
the name identical with Ymir)
Hyrrokkin f. a giantess, 46 (cf. Skáld17, verse 58, 112, verse 424)Hœnir m. an Áss, 23 (Skáld 1, 19, 31,verse 94, 32, verse 98, 33, verse 103,
45; Vsp 18, 63; Rm, prose introduction; Hkr I 12–13; Sƒgubrot af
fornkonungum 55)
Hƒ›r (rs) m. an Áss, 26, 45, 46, 53 (Skáld17, 19, 113, verse 429 var. (see SnE
I 554), 114, verse 432. In Vsp 32–3
Hƒ›r is killed in vengeance for Baldr’s
death; cf. Vsp 62, Bdr 10–11)Hƒll see BƒllHƒrn f. a name for Freyja, 29 (Skáld
44, verse 147, 115, verse 435/4, see
textual note; common in kenningsfor ‘woman’)Hƒrr m. a dwarf, 16 (Hár Vsp 15)
I›avƒllr m. an open place in Ásgar›r,
15, 53 (Vsp 7, 60; AH Gudesagn 30)
I›unn f. an Ásynja, 25 (Skáld 1, 2, 19,
20, 30, 40, 114, verse 433; Ls 16–18)
Indri›i m. = Einri›i, textual note to 5/10
Ingi m. a dwarf, 17 (Yngvi Vsp 16)
Irides m. = Einri›i, textual note to 5/10

Index of namesÍtrmann m. = OE Iterman, 5Ívaldi m. a dwarf, 36 (Skáld 18, verse
62 = Grm 43; Skáld 41). Synir Ívalda
perhaps means ‘descendants of Í.’,and may be a kenning for dwarfs ingeneralJafnhár m. a name of Ó›inn, 22; oneof Gylfi’s informants, 8, 9, 10, 11,
17, 21, 36 (‘equally high’, cf. Hár)Jálg, Jálkr m. names of Ó›inn, 8, 22(Grm 49, 54; cf. ¯lgr, Ólgr, SnE II
472, 556)
Járnvi›jur f. pl. ‘ironwood dwellers’,
trollwives, 14 (cf. Hkr I 21, Skáld
112, verse 426)
Járnvi›r m. ‘iron wood’, 14
Jat m. = OE Eat, 5
Jótland n. Jutland, 6Jƒr› f. (1) daughter of Nótt, 13 (Skáld
35; see under Annarr). (2) mother ofﬁórr, 30, cf. 13/19 (Skáld 14, 30, 35,
114, verse 433 and various otherverses, SnE II 296; Ls 58, ﬁrk 1)
Jƒrmungandr m. a name for the midgard serpent, 27, 51 (Skáld 15, verse
42, 20, 90)Jƒruvellir m. pl. ‘Jara plains’, 16 (Vsp14; vƒllr m. ‘plain, field’)Jƒtunheimar m. pl. giant-land, 7, 13,
15, 27, 35, 37, 46; m. sg. Jƒtunheimr,
51 (= Vsp 48; pl. also appears in Vsp
in verse 8; Skáld 2, 20, 21, 22, 32,verse 98, Skm prose and 40, ﬁrk (alsojƒtna heimar), Egils saga, ÍF II 247.
Cf. heimr in glossary)
Kerlaug f. name of two rivers, 17
Kili m. a dwarf, 16
Kjalarr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (Skáld18, verse 59)
Kvasir m. a wise man created from thespittle of the gods, 48 (cf. Hkr I 12,
Skáld 3, 4, 11, 12, verse 27, 14)
Kƒr f. Hel’s bed, 27 (kƒr f. ‘sick-bed’)Kƒrmt f. a river, 17
Laufey f. mother of Loki, 26, 35, 45,
48 (Skáld 19/35, SnE II 489, Ls 52,
ﬁrk 18, 20, Flateyjarbók I 275)

171

Leginum see Lƒgrinn
Leifr m. = Sescef, textual note to 5/11
Leifﬂrasir m. human survivor of ragnarøkr, 54 (‘persistent, defiant remains’?
—Vm 45 has Lífﬂrasir in the Codex
Regius, which might mean ‘persistent or defiant life’, ‘life-striver’)
Leiptr f. a river, 9 (Grm 28, HH II 31)
Léra›r m. a tree, 33 (Læra›r Grm 25–6)
Léttfeti m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30, Skáld
88, verse 325)
Ley›ingr m. a fetter, 27 (SnE II 431,
515; the first vowel is sometimes
written æ or œ, or might have been ø)
Líf n. (or f.?) human survivor of ragnarøkr, 54 (cf. líf n. ‘life’)
Litr m. a dwarf, 16 (= Vsp 12), 46 (cf.
Skáld 50, verse 153, 130, verse 504,
SnE II 470, Áns saga bogsveigis andﬁorsteins saga Víkingssonar)
Lofarr m. a dwarf, 16 (Vsp 14, 16)
Lofn f. a goddess, 29 (Skáld 114, verse
433; not mentioned in eddic poems,
but common in scaldic poems in kennings for ‘woman’)Logi m. personification of fire, 40, 43(cf. Hkr I 37–8; logi m. ‘flame’)
Loki m. one of the Æsir (although sonof a giant, see 26/36), 21, 26, 27, 29,
35, 37, 39, 40, 43, 45, 46, 48, 49,
50, 51, 55 (= Ulixes) (see referencesin AH Gudesagn 56; AH Studier
65–8; in several eddic poems andfrequently in Skáld)
Loptr m. a name of Loki, 26 (Skáld
26, verse 73, 32, verse 99, Ls 6, Hdl
41, Hkr I 219)
Lora (Glora) f. foster-mother of Tror/ﬁórr, 5 (cf. Skáld 14/30, where ﬁórris said to be foster-son of Vingnirand Hlóra)
Loricus m. foster-father of Tror/ﬁórr,4, 5 (no convincing explanation of
the name has been found; it may be a
corruption of some Latin or Greek
name, e.g. Illyricus)
Lori›i m., 5 (cf. Hlór(r)i›i, a name for172

Index of namesﬁórr, Hym, ﬁrk, Ls 54, Hkr I 242,
Skáld 113, verse 428)
Lygin f. error for Sygin, textual note to
27/3
Lyngvi m. an island, 28 (SnE II 431)
Lƒgrinn m. (‘the water’) lake Mälar in
Sweden, 7 (dat. sg. Leginum)
Magi m. one of the descendants ofTror/ﬁórr son of Munon, 5 (var.
Magni, Majus); the name probably
chosen because of its similarity tothat of Magni son of the god ﬁórrMagni m. son of the god ﬁórr, 53, 54(Skáld 6, 14, 15, verse 44, 22, Hrbl
9, 53)
Mánagarmr m. a wolf, 14 (‘dog of the
moon’); only mentioned in Snorra
Edda, and apparently deduced fromtungls tjúgari in Vsp 40 (14/34); buttungl can refer to any of the heavenly bodies, not just the moon, and in
this verse clearly means the sun.
There is only one sky-wolf in Vsp.
There are two in Grm 39 (paraphrased
by Snorri at 14/14–17) but neither
is associated with the moon. Cf.
Garmr and note to 14/14–17
Máni m. (personification of) the moon,
13, 14 (Vm 23, Rm 23)Mardƒll f. a name of Freyja, 29 (cf.
Skáld 115, verse 435; also appears
in kennings for gold)
Megi m. written in R instead of Mó›i
at 54/7
Mennon m. (var. Menon) = Munon, 4Mi›gar›r m. the rampart surrounding
the world of men and protecting itfrom giants, 12, 13 (undir Mi›gar›i‘under the protection of M.’?), 14,
34, 44, 52 (Vsp 4, Hrbl 23, Hdl 11,
16, Skáld 14/28). The original meaning may have been ‘middle-earth’, theworld of men situated between Ásgar›r, the world of gods, and Útgar›r,
the world of giants; it may retain thismeaning in Vsp and at 14/19 (atSkáld 60, verse 188, it is a synonymfor ‘ground’). Cf. OE middangeard.
The original meaning of gar›r was‘enclosed land’ (ger›a ‘to enclose’).
The fact that in Grm, Mi›gar›r is
said to have been made from Ymir’seyelashes or eyelids (12/35–7) may
have led to the assumption that theword referred to an enclosing rampart or palisade rather than to the enclosure itself
Mi›gar›sormr m. the midgard serpent
which lies in the sea surroundingMi›gar›r, 27, 43, 44, 45, 50, 54(Skáld 6, 14, 20, Hym title (in Codex
Regius))Mi›jar›arsjár m. the Mediterraneansea, 4
Mímir m., 17, 50; Mímis brunnr, 17, 50.
Mímr, 51, is apparently an alternative form of the name (also in Vsp
46, Sd 14, Háttatal st. 3), cf. Hoddmímir. There is another account of
Mímir in Ynglinga saga (Hkr I 12–
13, 18). Míms vinr means Ó›inn(Skáld 9, verse 15, 13, verse 37,
Háttatal st. 3), and Mímir appears
among names of giants in Skáld 110,
verse 417. It has been suggested that
he is the son of Bƒlﬂor(n) mentionedin Háv 140 (SG Kommentar 38, 151)
Mist f. a valkyrie, 30Mjƒllnir m. ﬁórr’s hammer, 23, 35, 37,
38, 46, 53, 54 (Skáld 14, 22, 24, cf.
ch. 35, Hym 36, Ls 57, 59, 61, 63,
ﬁrk 30)Mó›a m. (var. Mó›i) one of the descendants of Tror/ﬁórr son of Munon,
5; the name probably chosen because of its similarity to that of Mó›i
son of the god ﬁórrMó›gu›r f. guardian of Gjallar brú,
47 (cf. Gjallar man, Skj A II 114)
Mó›i m. son of the god ﬁórr, 53, 54(here written Megi in R); cf. Skáld
6/26, 14/26, Hym 34. Common in
kennings for ‘man’Mo›sognir m. a dwarf, 15 (cf. Vsp 10)

Index of names
Móinn m. a serpent, 19
Mundilfœri m., 13 (Vm 23; the thirdvowel appears in MSS with o, ƒ, a,e, æ; cf. Sva›ilfœri)Muninn m. a raven, 32, 33 (cf. munapret.-pres. vb. ‘remember’, but see
MRN 58, 294; SnE II 142, 417; used
as a common noun for ‘raven’ inscaldic verse)
Munon, Mennon m. king in Troy or
Tyrkland, son-in-law of Priam, 4. Cf.
Memnon in accounts of the Trojan
war, whose name appears as Men(n)onin Tms 71–2, 108, etc.
Muspell m., 9, 10: the name of theworld of fire, apparently the sameas Muspellsheimr, 10, 12, 13; but
earlier in Norse mythology the nameof a person (who presumably lived
in Muspellsheimr, unless the firstelement of that name is a descriptive
gen., cf. Yggdrasill), 36 (á = owns).
Elsewhere in Gylf, Muspell always
appears in the gen. with l‡›ir (51),megir (15, 50) or synir (15, 32, 50;
these are presumably all giants).
Besides Vsp 51 (quoted at 51/30) the
name is found in poetry only in thephrase Muspells synir in Ls 42. The
quantity of the first vowel is uncertain. The name is probably connected with the words muspille,
mudspelle, mutspelli in Old Saxon
and Old High German Christianpoems, where they mean the end of
the world or doomsday (the second
element means ‘destruction’, thefirst is perhaps from Latin mundus‘world’). It was probably therefore
originally an abstract noun, whichin eddic poems was personified andfinally in Snorra Edda became a place(through misunderstanding of theoriginally possessive gen. in Muspellsheimr as descriptive gen.?)Mƒ›vitnir m. a dwarf, 16 (Mjƒ›vitnir
in T, W, U, and Vsp 11)

173

Naglfari m. (1) husband of Nótt, 13.
(2) a ship, 36, 50; Naglfar n., 50, 51(the first element is probably related
to Latin necare ‘to kill’; the connection with nagl m. ‘nail’ is probably
due to folk etymology)
Náinn m. a dwarf, 16
Nál f. = Laufey, 26 (Skáld 19/36; Sƒrla
ﬂáttr, Flateyjarbók I 275)
Nanna f., 26, 46, 47 (Skáld 1, 17, 30,
114, verse 434, SnE II 489; cf. Vsp
30, Hdl 20; in scaldic verse in kennings for ‘woman’)Nár m. a dwarf, 16
Narfi m. (1) = Nari, 27, 49 (cf. proseat the end of Ls, but in the text aspreserved in the MS a different personfrom Nari; Hkr I 34, 246, Egils saga,ÍF II 149. (2) = Nƒrfi, 13
Nari m. son of Loki, 27, 49 (Skáld 20;
cf. prose at the end of Ls; Egils saga,ÍF II 188)
Nástrandir f. pl., 53; Nástrƒnd f., 53(nár m. ‘corpse’, strƒnd f. ‘shore’)
Nepr m. father of Nanna, 26, 46
Ni›afjƒll n. pl., 53 (Vsp 66; cf. á Ni›avƒllum, Vsp 37, altered in Codex
Regius from á Ni›afjƒllum. Cf. ni›
n. ‘waning moon’, i.e. darkness? andfjall n. ‘mountain’)Ní›hƒggr m. a serpent, 17, 18, 19, 53(Vsp 66, Grm 32)
Ni›i m. a dwarf, 16
Niflheimr m., 9, 10, 17, 27 (nifl- ‘mist,
darkness’ (only in compounds); cf.
Niflhel below and heimr in glossary.
Niflheimr does not occur in poetry)
Niflhel f., 9, 35 (Vm 43, Bdr 2)
Nikarr m. = Hnikarr, a name of Ó›inn, 8
Nikuz m. = Hniku›r, a name of Ó›inn,
8 (not recorded elsewhere)
Nipingr m. a dwarf, 16Njƒr›r (dat. Nir›i) m. a god, 23, 24, 31(Skáld 1, 2, 18, 40, 114, verse 432;
Ynglinga saga, Hkr I 12–23, Vm 38–
9, Grm 16, Ls 34. Njƒr›r was widely
worshipped in Scandinavia, but not174

Index of names

much in Iceland; his name is frequently used in scaldic kennings for‘man’. Cf. Nerthus in Tacitus, Germania 40; the story of Njƒr›r andSka›i is reflected in that of Hadingus
and his wife in Saxo Grammaticus,
Book I)
Nóatún n. pl. Njƒr›r’s home, 23, 24(Skáld 2, Grm 16, ﬁrk 22; ‘enclosureof ships’, i.e. the sea?)
Nói m. Noah, 3Nor›ri m. a dwarf, 12, 16 (Skáld 33)
Nóregr m. Norway, 6
Nóregskonungar m. pl. kings of Norway, 6
Nori m. a dwarf, 16
Nótt f. (personification of) night, 13(Vm 25)N‡i m. a dwarf, 16
N‡r m. a dwarf, 16N‡rá›r m. a dwarf, 16
Nyt f. a river, 33 (Grm 28)
Nƒnn f. a river, 33 (Grm 28)
Nƒrfi, Narfi m. a giant, father of Nótt,
13 (cf. Alv 29: Nótt . . . in Nƒrvi
kenda, and Vm 25: Nótt var Nƒrvi
borin. The nom. of these forms
would be Nƒrr)Nƒt f. a river, 33 (Grm 28)
Ó›inn m. a king in Asia, 5, 6; a god,
11, 13, 17, 20, 21, 23, 24, 26, 29,
30, 32, 34, 46, 47, 48, 50, 51, 52 (cf.
Skáld, particularly 4–14, chs G58,
2–3, Ynglinga saga, Hkr I 11–22,
Háv, Vsp, Bdr, Gautreks saga, Fornaldar sögur Nordrlanda, ed. C. C.
Rafn, Kaupmannahöfn 1829–30,
III 7 ff., esp. 31–4)
Ó›r m. husband of Freyja, 29, 36 (Vsp25, Hdl 47, Skáld 30, 43, 69, verse
232, 115, verse 435, Hkr I 25)Ófnir m. a serpent, 19Óinn m. a dwarf, 16 (Ái W and Vsp
11; cf. Rm 2)
Ómi m. a name of Ó›inn, 8, 22 (SnE
II 472)Ónarr m. a dwarf, 16. Cf. Annarr.

Óri (var. Órinn, Órr) m. a dwarf, 16(Án PE at 16/20)
Óski m. a name of Ó›inn, 8, 22 (SnE
II 473)
Priamus (gen. Priami) m. Priam, 4Rá›grí› f. a valkyrie, 30 (nom. -grí›ror acc -grí›i would be more usual,cf. Skáld 24/37, 112, verse 423; SnE
II 490)Rá›svi›r m. a dwarf, 16
Randgrí› f. a valkyrie, 30 (see Rá›grí›; SnE II 490)
Ratatoskr m. a squirrel, 18 (Grm 32)
Reginleif f. a valkyrie, 30
Rei›gotaland n. a name for Jutland, 5,
6. Cf. Skáld 105–6, Hkr I 35, Vm 12;
Hei›reks saga xxvi; Beowulf, line
445 (ed. F. Klæber, 3rd ed., Boston
1936, see note on p. 144); further
references in SG Kommentar 165
Rekkr m. a dwarf, 16 (Reginn Vsp 12)
Rerir m. grandson of Ó›inn, 5 (Vƒlsungasaga, see under Siggi)
Rindr f. Ó›inn’s mistress, mother of
Váli; probably a giantess, 26, 30(Skáld 9, verse 12, 19, 30, 35, 36, verse
122, 85, verse 308, 114, verse 434,
Bdr 11; AH Gudesagn 130; Saxo
Grammaticus I 70–3 (Book III, IV))
Rota (or Róta?) f. a valkyrie, 30 (otherwise only perhaps in the kenninggeir-Rótu gƒtvar (if that is the rightform; = armour), in Egill, ÍF II 149,
and Hallfre›r, Skáld 71, verse 248;
cf. SnE II 486)Rƒskva f. sister of ﬁjálfi, 37 (Skáld 14,
15, verse 44)Sa›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 21
Sága f. an Ásynja, 29 (Grm 7; common
in scaldic kennings)
Sanngetall m. a name of Ó›inn, 21
Saxland n. Saxony (i.e. Germany), 5,
6. Cf. Austr Saxaland; Skáld 80.
Scialdun m. = OE Scealdwa, 5 (cf.
Skjƒldr)
Sekin f. a river, 33 (Sœkin Grm 27)
Selund n. Zealand, Sjælland, 7 (Sælund

Index of names
W; sometimes f., e.g. Hkr I 158; later
Icelandic Sjáland, e.g. Hkr I 163,
272; cf. Hkr I 15)
Sescef m. = OE se Sce(a)f ‘this aforementioned Sce(a)f’, 5 (cf. Reliquiæ
Antiquæ, ed. T. Wright and J. O.
Halliwell, II, London 1843, 173)
Sessrúmnir m. Freyja’s hall, 25 (Skáld
30; not found as a name of a hall inverse; cf. the ship-name, Skáld 127,
verse 491)
Síarr m. a dwarf, 16 (Svíurr Vsp 13)
Sibil f. a prophetess, wife of Tror/ﬁórr,5 (cf. Sibylla, Virgil, Aeneid VI 10, 98;a Sibilla spákona is mentioned in
Katerine saga, Heilagra manna søgur,ed. C. R. Unger, Kristiania 1877, I
404. In Hauksbók 185 the nameSibilla is used for the queen of Sheba)
Sí› f. a river, 33 (Grm 27)
Sí›hƒttr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22
Sí›skeggr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22
Sif f. = Sibil, wife of Tror/ﬁórr son of
Munon, 5; wife of the god ﬁórr, 26(Skáld 14, 15, verse 46, 19, 20, 30,
35, 40, 41, 42; Hrbl 48, Hym 3, 15,34, ﬁrk 24; used as equivalent ofJuno in Tms 3–4, 10–11, 88 andBreta sögur, Hauksbók 233)
Sigarr m. = OE Siggar, 5Sigfƒ›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22
Siggi m. son of Ó›inn, 5 (Sigi T, W,
U, and Vƒlsunga saga, ed. R. G.
Finch, London 1965, 1–2)
Sigtúnir f. pl. Sigtuna (in Sweden), 6(sometimes Sigtún n.; cf. Hkr I 16
and note)
Sigyn f. wife of Loki, 27, 49 (Vsp 35,
prose at the end of Ls, Skáld 1, 20,
32, verse 98, 114, verse 434)
Silfrtoppr m. a horse, 17 (Silfrintoppr
T, W, and Grm 30; cf. Skáld 88,
verse 326)
Simul f. a pole, 14 (cf. Simul, a trollwife, HH 42, Skáld 112, verse 425)
Sindri m. a hall, 53 (but in Vsp 37 it is
the name of the ancestor of the175

owners or inhabitants of the hall,presumably a dwarf; cf. Skáld, textual notes to 41/36 and 42/2)
Sinir m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30, Skáld
88, verse 326)
Sjƒfn f. an Ásynja, 29 (Skáld 114, verse
434, otherwise found only in a few
kennings for ‘woman’; cf. SnE II
490. See AH Gudesagn 61–2)
Ska›i f., wife of Njƒr›r, daughter ofﬁjazi, 23, 24, 49 (cf. Skáld 2, 18, 20,
40, 114, verse 433, Grm 11, Skm
prose introduction, Ls prose, 49, 51,
Hkr I 21. Her function at 49/11 may
have been determined by association
with ska›i m. ‘harm’, but she had
loved Baldr (SnE I 212–14). In Grm
11 (24/23) she is called skír brú›r
gu›a ‘bright (or pure) bride of gods’)
Ska›vígi m. = Scialdun, textual note
to 5/13
Skafi›r m. a dwarf, 16Skeggjƒld f. a valkyrie, 30
Skei›brimir m. a horse, 17 (Grm 30,
Skáld 89, verse 327)
Skí›bla›nir m. a ship, 34, 36 (cf. Skáld18, 41, 42, 127, verse 491, Hkr I 18)
Skilfingr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (alsoa general term for ‘king’, see Skáld
103, 105, Hkr I 53)
Skinfaxi m. a horse, 13 (Vm 12, Skáld
90/2; skin n. ‘shining’, fax n. ‘mane’)Skírnir m. Freyr’s servant, 28, 31, 50(Skm)
Skirpir m. a dwarf, 16 (Skirfir T, W,
U, and Vsp 15)
Skjƒldr (dat. Skildi) m. (1) son of
Heremó›, = Scialdun, 5. (2) son ofÓ›inn king in Asia, 6 (Skáld 51, 103,
113, verse 429, Hkr I 15; Skjƒldunga
saga, see Introduction, p. xxii, note 12)Skjƒldungar m. pl. descendants ofSkjƒldr, 6 (Skáld; cf. Skjƒldr (2))
Skr‡mir m. a giant (= Útgar›aloki), 38,
39 (Skáld 111, verse 420). Cf.
Útgar›aloki; in Ls 62 Skr‡mir could
be the name of ﬁórr’s knapsack.

176

Index of names

Skuld f. a norn, 18, 30 (Vsp 20; at Vsp
30 Skuld is the name of a valkyrie,
and the identification of the two may
be due to Snorri; cf. Skáld 115, verse
436 and SnE II 490. There is a witch
called Skuld in Hrólfs saga kraka,
ed. D. Slay, Copenhagen 1960, 33
etc., esp. 110. Cf. skulu vb. ‘must’,skuld f. debt)
Skƒgul f. a valkyrie, 30 (Vsp 30, Skáld8, verse 7, 115, verse 436, Hkr I 193)
Skƒll m. a wolf, 14 (see note to 14/14–
17; Skáld, glossary under skólkinni)
Sleipnir m. a horse, 17, 34, 46 (cf. Skáld
20, 88, verse 325, 211, note to verses
328–30, Sd 15, Bdr 2, Hdl 40)
Slí›r f. a river, 9 (Vsp 36, Grm 28 (Slí›))Slí›rugtanni m. a boar (= Gullinbursti),
47 (cf. Skáld 19/8)
Snotra f. an Ásynja, 30 (otherwise only
mentioned in a ﬂula, Skáld 114, verse
433)
Sól f. (personification of) the sun, 13,30 (Vm 23, Skáld 114, verse 434)
Su›ri m. a dwarf, 12, 16 (Skáld 29, verse
87, 33)
Sultr m. (= hunger, famine), 27
Sumarr m. (personification of) summer,
21 (Vm 27, Skáld 39)
Surtalogi m. the flame of Surtr (Surti),
20, 53, 54 (Vm 50, Skáld 6/25)
Surtr m. (Surti as first element of acompound), 9, 50, 51, 52 (Skáld 11,
verse 23; also Vsp 47, Vm 18, 51,
Fm 14, Vƒlsunga saga; listed among
giants in Skáld 111, verse 420). His
nature is never specified. He allies
himself with giants, but perhaps canmore appropriately be described asa demon (of fire). The name is used
for a giant in general in scaldic verse
Sva›ilfœri m. a horse, 35 (Hdl 40; thethird vowel appears in MSS with ae, o, ƒ; cf. Mundilfœri)Sváfnir m. (1) a serpent, 19 (Grm,
Skáld 90/11, SnE II 487). (2) a nameof Ó›inn, 7 (Grm 54, SnE II 472;

cf. Skáld 4/33, where Ó›inn turns
himself into a serpent)
Svarinshaugr m. ‘Svarinn’s mound’,16 (cf. HH 31, HH II prose afterverse 13; haugr m. ‘grave-mound’)Svartálfaheimr m. the world of theblack elves (see heimr in glossary
and cf. døkkálfar), 28 (Skáld 45/21;
svartálfar also Skáld 41/32, butneither mentioned in poetry. Seeljósálfar in glossary). Svartálfar are
perhaps the same as dwarfs (see AH
Studier 37)
Svarthƒf›i m. ancestor of sorcerers, 10(svartr a. ‘black’, hƒfu› n. ‘head’)
Svásu›r m. father of Sumarr, 21 (Vm 27)
Svebdegg m. = OE Swæbdæg, 5
Svi›arr m. a name of Ó›inn, 8 (cf.
Svi›urr, which is the form W and U
also have here)
Svi›rir m. a name of Ó›inn, 8, 22 (SnE
II 472)
Svi›urr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (Skáld
105/31, SnE II 472; cf. Svi›arr)
Svinn f. a river, 33 (cf. Veg; Vegsvinn
Grm 28)
Svipall m. a name of Ó›inn, 21
Svipdagr m. = Svebdegg, 5 (cf. Skáld
58/32)
Svíﬂjó› f. Sweden, 6, 7
Svƒl f. a river, 9, 33 (Grm 27)
Sylgr f. a river, 9 (Grm 28)
Syn f. an Ásynja, 30 (Skáld 115, verse
434 and in kennings for ‘woman’)S‡r f. a name of Freyja, 29 (Skáld 115,
verse 435 and in scaldic kennings)Sæhrímnir m. a boar, 32Sæmingr m. son of Ó›inn, 6 (Hkr I 21,
Skáld 113, verse 429; ancestor of thejarls of Hla›ir. In Hkr I 4 son of YngviFreyr)Sœgr m. a tub, 14 (AH Gudesagn 26)
Søkkvabekkr m. dwelling of Sága, 29(Grm 7)
Tanngnjóstr m. one of ﬁórr’s goats, 23(otherwise mentioned only in a ﬂula,
Skáld 131, verse 508)

Index of names
Tanngrisnir (or -grísnir) m. one of ﬁórr’sgoats, 23 (otherwise mentioned only
in a ﬂula, Skáld 131, verse 508)
Thracia f. Thrace, 4, 5 (cf. Tms 71–2,
Hauksbók 155)
Troan, f. daughter of Priam of Troy, 4(see Tms 9/19, 56/22 (Hauksbók
text); the name is supposed to originate in a misunderstanding of a Latin
phrase like uxorem troianam filiam
Priami in one of the sources of thatsaga)
Trógranni m. = Ítrmann, textual note
to 5/13
Troja f. Troy (dat. Troja and Troju), 4,
6, 13, 55 (cf. Skáld 5, 6. Only thereferences in the prologue are included in U)
Tror m. son of Munon, grandson of
Priam, 4 (cf. Tros (grand)son of
Dardanus (Dictys Cretensis, Ephemeridos belli Troiani libri, ed. W.
Eisenhut, Leipzig 1973, 8, 100),
written Thror in Stjórn, ed. C. R.
Unger, Christiania 1862, 82)
T‡r m. an Áss, 25, 27, 28, 29, 50 (cf.
Hym 4, 33, Ls 37–40, Sd 6. The word
is also a common noun meaning‘god’. See MRN 180–2).
Tyrkir m. pl. Turks (i.e. Trojans), 6, 55(Skáld 5, Hauksbók 155). The Trojans
are commonly called Tyrkir in Trójumanna saga: both were inhabitantsof Asia Minor, but there may also
have been association with the name
Teucri. Cf. Ari’s genealogy at theend of Íslendingabók and Upphaf
allra frásagna, ÍF XXXV 39–40,
which is derived from the lost Skjƒldunga saga.
Tyrkland n. Turkey, land of the Turks(i.e. Trojans) 4, 5 (Hkr I 14, 27)U›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 21 (cf. ﬁu›r)
Ulixes m. Ulysses (Odysseus), 55
Ullr m. an Áss, 26 (Skáld 1, 14, 19,
30, 211, note to verses 328–30; Grm
5, 42, Akv 30; often mentioned in

177

scaldic verse. He was the object ofwidespread cult in the North though
he is not prominent in surviving
mythology)Ur›r f. a norn, 18; Ur›ar brunnr, 17,
19 (Skáld 70, verse 241, 76; Vsp 19,
20, Háv 111: cf. ur›r m. ‘fate’ andOE wyrd; and the vb. ver›a (p. pl.
ur›u))
Útgar›aloki m. a giant, 39, 40, 41, 42,
43, 44; cf. Skr‡mir. Útgar›aloki is
not mentioned in poems, but cf.
Thorkill’s voyage in Saxo Grammaticus I 239–47 (Book VIII, XIV–XV)Útgar›r m. dwelling of giants, 39.
Contrasted with Ásgar›r, Mi›gar›r:
út often means ‘beyond the sea’ (cf.
12/23 and note). Not mentioned in
poems (cf. heimr in glossary)
Váfu›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (Skáld
44, verse 149, SnE II 556, Hkr I 188)
Vafﬂrú›nir m. a giant, 10 (Vm, Skáld
111, verse 421)
Vakr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (name ofa horse in Skáld 89, verse 329)
Valaskjálf f. a building belonging toÓ›inn, 20 (Grm 6)Valfƒ›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 17, 21(also Vsp 1, 27, Grm 48)
Valhƒll f. the palace of the ‘historical’Æsir in Sweden, 7; the mythicalpalace of the gods, 21, 30, 32, 33,
34, 45 (cf. Hkr I 20, 193–4, andÁsgar›r; Skáld, Vsp 33, Grm 8, Hdl
1, HH II prose after verse 38, Akv 2,
14; valr m. ‘the slain’, hƒll f. ‘hall’)Váli m. (1) son of Loki, 49; presumably
a deduction from Vsp 34 (he does
not appear elsewhere) which is onlyin the Hauksbók text, and the correct
reading perhaps ought to be Váli
(nom.) rather than Vála (gen.), andif the verse is genuine at all, it maybe
refers to Váli son of Ó›inn. Compare
the prose passage at the end of Ls.
At Skáld 20/2 (see note), the text canbe read to mean that Loki had a son

178

Index of names

Áli (the footnote in SnE I 268 giving
the reading of W as Váli is erroneous), cf. the alternation Áli/Váli forÓ›inn’s son. (2) son of Ó›inn, 26,
30, 53, 54 (Skáld 1, 19, 113, verse
429, 114, verse 432; Hdl 29, Bdr 11,
emendation). (3) a dwarf, 16 (NáliVsp 13)
Ván f. a river, 29 (Grm 28, Skáld 124,verse 479, SnE II 432; cf. ván f.
‘hope’)
Vanadís f. a name of Freyja, 29 (cf.
Vanir and dís f. ‘lady’, often ofsupernatural or semi-divine nature;
she is called Vana brú›r in Skáld
44/24, cf. Ska›i)
Vanaheimar m. pl. the land of the
Vanir, 23 (Vanaheimr Vm 39, Hkr I
10, 13, 27; cf. heimr in glossary)
Vanir m. pl. a race of gods different
from the Æsir, 23, 30 (Skáld, Vsp 24,
Vm 39, Skm 17, 18, ﬁrk 15, Alv, Sd
18, Hkr I 10–13)
Vár f. an Ásynja, 29 (ﬁrk 30, also in
kennings for ‘woman’. Vár and Vƒr
are not distinguished in U, but bothare included in the ﬂula in Skáld 114–
5, verse 434)
Vásu›r m. grandfather of Vetr, 21 (notmentioned in surviving poetry)
Vé m. brother of Ó›inn, 11 (cf. Véi, Ls
26, and Hkr I 12, 14; see under Vili)Ve›rfƒlnir m. a hawk, 18
Veg f. a river, 33 (cf. Svinn; Vegsvinn
Grm 28)Veggdegg m. son of Ó›inn, = OEWægdæg, 5
Verat‡r m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (Grm 3)Ver›andi f. a norn, 18 (Vsp 20; pres.
p. of ver›a sv. ‘happen’, cf. Ur›r)
Verir m. = Rerir, textual note to 5/36
Vestfal n. Westphalia (western Germany), 5
Vestri m. a dwarf, 12, 16 (Skáld 33)
Vetr m. (personification of) winter, 21(Vm 27, Skáld 39)

Ví› f. a river, 9, 33 (Grm 27, 28, Skáld
124, verse 479)
Vi›arr (or Ví›arr) m. an Áss, son ofÓ›inn, 26, 50, 52, 53, 54 (Skáld 1,
6, 19, 24, 40, 113, verse 429, 114,verse 432; Vsp 55 (cf. Hauksbók
text), Vm 53, Grm 17, Ls prose and10)
Ví›bláinn m. one of three heavens, 20(otherwise only in ﬂulur, Skáld 85/18,
133, verse 516, SnE II 485, twice)Vi›finnr m. father of Bil and Hjúki,
14 (not mentioned in poems)Vi›ólfr m. ancestor of prophetesses, 10Vi›rir m. a name of Ó›inn, 8 (Ls 26,
HH 13, Skáld 74, Ágrip 2; common
in scaldic verse. Cf. Vi›urr)
Vi›urr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (SnE II
472 and various scaldic kennings)
Vigr m. a dwarf, 16 (Veigr, Veggr Vsp 12)
Vígrí›r m. a battlefield, 50, 52
Vili m. brother of Ó›inn, 11 (cf. Ls 26,
Hkr I 29, and Vílir, Hkr I 12, 14,
Egils saga, ÍF II 255, Skáld 9, verse
15). The roles of Vili and Vé at 13/4
ff. are in Vsp 17–18 taken by Hœnir
and Ló›urr (cf. note to 13/6; there
is another trio of gods at Skáld 1/16–17
and 45/4). Ó›inn (Alfƒ›r), Vili (i.e.
will), and Vé or Véi (the holy) forma striking parallel to the Christiantrinity of Father, Son (often identified with the Father’s will) and Holy
Ghost (cf. E. H. Meyer, Völuspa,
Berlin 1889, 81–2)
Vilmei›r m. ancestor of witches, 10
Vin f. a river, 33 (Grm 27, Skáld 125,verse 482)
Vína f. a river, 33 (Grm 28, Skáld 125,verse 482)
Vindálfr m. a dwarf, 16
Vindlóni m. father of Vetr, 21 (notmentioned in poems)
Vindsvalr m. = Vindlóni, 21 (Vm 27,
Skáld 39; listed with giants, Skáld
111, verse 421)

Index of names
Vingenir m. descendant of Tror/ﬁórr,5 (cf. Vingnir)Vingeﬂórr m. descendant of Tror/ﬁórr,5 (cf. Vingﬂórr, a name of ﬁórr, ﬁrk
1, Alv 6, Skáld 113, verse 428)
Vingnir m. a name of ﬁórr (or possiblyÓ›inn?), 54 (cf. Vm 51 and 53; atSkáld 14/30 ﬁórr is called fóstri
Vingnis (foster-son of V.). Cf. thename Vingﬂórr, ﬁrk 1, Alv 6, Skáld
113, verse 428. Vingnir is also a
name of Ó›inn, SnE II 472, and of agiant, Skáld 24, verse 70 (here too it
could mean ﬁórr), 111, verse 421)
Vingólf n., 9, 15, 21 (alternative toGimlé at 9/3, conflicting information at 15/26. Not mentioned insurviving eddic poems except thelate Forspjallsljó› (PE 374), or inscaldic verse. The first element could
be related to vinr m. ‘friend’ (cf.
21/28) or to vín n. ‘wine’ (cf. 32/24
ff.); the second presumably heremeans ‘apartment’. See AH Gudesagn 30–1)
Virpir m. a dwarf, 16 (Virfir T, W, U,
and Vsp 15)
Vitr m. a dwarf, 16
Vitrgils m. = OE Wihtgils, 5Vitta m. = OE Witta, 5Voden m. OE form of Ó›inn, 5
Vog = Veg, textual note to 33/24
Vƒlsungar m. pl. the Volsungs, 5 (Skáld
50, verse 153, 103, 104, HH 52, HH
II prose; Vƒlsunga saga)Vƒluspá f. name of a poem (Vsp), 9,
12, 14, 15, 17, 20, 35, 49, 51 (thename is only known from Gylf; cf.
vƒlva f. ‘prophetess’, spá f. ‘prophecy’.
The poem provided Snorri with muchof the material and with the generaloutline of the structure for Gylf (itis also quoted at 19/20 and 53/17).
It is usually assumed to have been
composed c.1000 AD in Iceland).
Vƒluspá hin skamma, 10: the verse

179

attributed to this poem is otherwise
preserved only in Flateyjarbók I 15
as verse 33 of a poem which there
has the title Hyndluljó›; verses 29–
44 are thought to belong to the poem
Snorri knew as Vƒluspá hin skamma(= ‘the short V.’). Both Hdl and Vƒluspá hin skamma were probably compiled by antiquarian scholars in the
12th century
Vƒr f. an Ásynja, 29 (in the ﬂula, Skáld
114, verse 434, and rarely in kenningsfor ‘woman’; in several female personal names (e.g. Steinvƒr). Cf. Vár;
varr a. ‘wary, aware’)
Wigg m. = OE Wig, 5Yggdrasill m. an ash tree, 17, 18, 19,34, 50, 51 (except at 19/21 always
descriptive gen., askr Yggdrasils.
Cf. Yggr and drasill m. ‘horse’: thename may refer to the event relatedin Háv 138 ff. See also Grm 30–2;
AH Gudesagn 32–3)
Yggr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (Skáld 9,verse 12, 16, verse 50, 62, verse 197,
83, verse 300b, 85, verse 308, 99,verse 382, 114, verse 432, Háttatal
st. 31, 50; Vm 5, Hym 2, Fm 43;
common in scaldic kennings. Cf.
ugga wv. ‘fear’, yggt n. a. ‘fearful’,Atlamál 1, PE 292 (in MS alteredfrom yggr))
Ylgr f. a river, 9 (Grm 28)
Ymir m. a giant, 10, 11, 12, 15. See
Vsp 3, Vm 21, 28, Skáld 6, 33, 35,
36, 110, verse 417; cf. Aurgelmir,
Bláinn, Brimir, Hymir.
Ynglingar m. pl. descendants of Yngvi,
kings of Sweden and Norway, 6(Skáld 103, 104, Hdl 16; cf. Ynglinga
saga)
Yngvi m. son of Ó›inn, 6 (Skáld 8,verse 7, Hkr I 34; cf. Skáld 103, Rm
14, HH 55. Perhaps the same as
Yngvi-Freyr, Skáld 113, verse 429,
114, verse 432, Hkr I 4, 24, 25, 280,

180

Index of names

and Ingunar-Freyr, Ls 43, Hkr II
421. Cf. ÍF XXXV 39 (Ingifreyr),and Arngrímur Jónsson’s version ofSkjƒldunga saga, ÍF XXXV 3 (Ingo),
see Introduction p. xxii, note 12; also
Ari’s genealogy in Íslendingabók,
ÍF I 27. Freyr, however, is son ofNjƒr›r, and so is Yngvi-Freyr in thosegenealogies that include him)
ﬁekkr m. (1) a name of Ó›inn, 21. (2)a dwarf, 16
ﬁjálfi m. servant of ﬁórr, 37, 40, 43(Hrbl 39, Skáld 14, 21, 22, 27, verse
81. The name was also apparently
held by historical persons, see e.g.
Hkr III 224–5 (but see footnote) and
S. B. F. Jansson, Swedish Vikings in
England, The Evidence of the Rune
Stones, London 1966, 15)
ﬁjazi m. a giant, 23, 24 (Skáld 2, 30,
54, verse 167, 110, verse 417, Hrbl
19, Ls 50–1, Hdl 30)
ﬁjó›numa f. a river, 33 (Grm 28)
ﬁjó›ólfr inn hvinverski (from Hvinir)
m. 9th-century Norwegian poet, 7(see note to 7/31–4; Skáld 8, 22, etc.)
ﬁorinn m. a dwarf, 16
ﬁórr m. = Tror son of Munon, 4; =Ector (Hector), 55 (cf. Skáld 6/14 =Hector, 6/25 = Jupiter); one of thecompanions of Ó›inn king in Asia
on his migration to Sweden, 55; agod, son of the god Ó›inn, 17, 22,
23, 26, 30, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40,
41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 48, 49, 50,
53. Cf. Ásaﬂórr, ¯kuﬂórr, Vingeﬂórr,Vingnir (see note to 22/30–1). He frequently appears in poetry, and in Skáld
ﬁri›i m. a name of Ó›inn, 21 (Skáld 8,verse 10, 26, verse 74, SnE II 472,
Ágrip 2); one of Gylfi’s informants,
8, 9, 10, 12, 21, 37, 53. Cf. Sigur›ur
Nordal, Snorri Sturluson, Reykjavík

1920, 114, and references under
Hár.
ﬁróinn m. a dwarf, 16 (cf. ﬁrár, ﬁráinn
and ﬁorinn, Vsp 12)
ﬁrór m. (1) a name of Ó›inn, 22. (2) adwarf, 16
ﬁrú›heimr m. = Thracia, 5 (Grm 4; cf.
ﬁrymheimr, ﬁrú›vangar)ﬁrú›r f. a valkyrie, 30 (SnE II 490; invarious kennings for ‘woman’. Cf.
ﬁrú›r daughter of ﬁórr, Skáld 14, 15,verse 45, 29, verse 88, 30, 69, verse
237, 115, verse 434)
ﬁrú›vangar m. pl. home of ﬁórr, 22,
43 (Skáld 22; ﬂrú›- ‘might’, vangr m.
‘field, plain’. Cf. ﬁrú›heimr)
ﬁrymheimr m. home of the giant ﬁjazi,23, 24 (Skáld 2/5; in Jƒtunheimar,
see Skáld 2/12–13. Always writtenﬁrú›heimr in U; cf. ﬂrymr m. ‘noise’,ﬂruma f. ‘thunder’)ﬁu›r m. a name of Ó›inn, 21 (ﬁundr
Grm 46 (Codex Regius), ﬁu›ru›r as
one word W and U)
ﬁul f. a river, see Fimbulﬂulﬁundr m. a name of Ó›inn, 22 (Háv145, Skáld 13, verse 37, Háttatal st.
68; cf. ﬁu›r)
ﬁviti m. a stone, 29 (SnE II 431)
ﬁyn f. a river, 33 (Grm 27, Skáld 125,verse 480)ﬁƒkk f. name assumed by Loki, 48(ﬂƒkk f. ‘thanks’)ﬁƒll f. a river, 33 (Grm 27, Skáld 125,verse 480)Æsir m. pl. see Áss¯kuﬂórr m. ‘driving ﬁórr’, a name ofﬁórr, 22, 23, 37, 39, 55 (Skáld 6; notfound in poetry. See note to 22/30–1;
aka sv. ‘drive (a chariot)’; generally
written Aka-, Aku- in T and W)¯rmt f. a river, 17 (Skáld 126, verse484)