Hrafnars ýr (Ravens' yews)

In the Barony of Thescorre (located in Rochester, NY), we have excellent archers. In celebration of these fine folk, I wrote the following poem. It involves an attack by certain raiders from the Kingdom of Ealdormere and how they are repelled by the brave archers of the Barony. From what I understand, this  poem may well start a bardic war with our friends from across the Inland Seas.

If so, while I may perish, I will struggle to the end. To wit,

"HAVE AT YOU, WOLVES OF THE BREED!"

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Hrafnars ýr Fram norðt vargsfjǫll fimvig fjándr sigla svandalir; nautfé kaupangs unýtast níðings-sunnar rifsa gangandi til gunnar geirviðir af myrkskógi - akraspillir ekrum undír traðkað sunnhreinn. Athos goði ýskelfir ættfólk kallar snjallast: Virkismenn varðatu vals Yggs heim með hagl skóds. Á barna gylðis berbeinn bogaþruma dundu! Með undreyr svartast svǫrrblóð svíneyg ulfgrár dreiftu! Svara ýglǫð Eadmund enski : Bogar bendum svarttyrf hrafnars sverjum með skirir Hǫgna firra! þrir skora bog-menn þermsligr þrymu Ullar fljúgask. Hergaupur harki hagli Finna vinna. Nóttfǫrullars norðr nóra hlaunnar ǫrbursti. Flyja dreypandi frenjar til festa gaula hestr. Of vǫll lunda válandi vargmenn sigǫrs targa; rekald vargham Roaks hrylla til heim sigla.

The Ravens' Yews War-skilled fiends from wolf-fells northern sail swan-dales; niðings-bastards pillage townfolk's useless cattle. Spear trees from dark woods marching to battle - destroyers of fields trample sun-bright acres. Athos bow-shaker, chieftain, calls to his best kinsfolk: Yeomen, Yggs gull's homeland defend with weapons hail! On Gyldis's-bastards bare-legged rain down your bow-thunder! With blackest blood-birds' wound-reeds scatter swine-eyed grey-wolves!" Edmund yew-glad English answered: Bend we bows - Raven´s black-turf we swear to defend with Hogni's showers! " Three score fittest bow-men Join in Ullar´s Thunder; Rabble of war-lynxes suffer Sami's hail. Little northern night-thieves' buttocks arrow-bristle. They flee to mooring-horses dropping cattle lowing. Across the plain of puffins wolfmen – war-shafts targets; Roak’s wolfish jetsam horrid sail homeward.

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Kennings Used

svandalir > swan's dale > SEA
níðings-sunnar > níðings sons > RAIDERS
geirviðir > spear trees > WARRIORS
akraspillir > destroyers of fields > WARRIORS

vals Yggs > gulls of Ygg > RAVENS
vals Yggs heim > gulls of Yggs home > THESCORRE
barna gylðis > Gyldis's bastards > RAIDERS
bogaþruma > bow-thunder > ARROWS
undreyr svartast svǫrrblóð > blackest bloodbirds' wound-reeds > blackest ravens' wound-reeds > ARROWS
ulfgrár > grey wolves > RAIDERS

skirir Hǫgna > Hogna's showers > ARROWS
þrymu Ullar > Ullar's thunder > BATTLE
hagli Finna > Sami's hail > ARROWS

Nóttfǫrullars > Night thieves > RAIDERS
festa gaula > mooring horses > SHIPS
vǫll lunda > plain of puffins > SEA
sigǫrs targa victory (or war) shafts targets> arrows' targets > RAIDERS
rekald vargham Roaks > Roak's wolfish jetsam > RAIDERS

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Two verses on The Avengers

Yep. The Avengers is out on DVD. I saw The Avengers, and I enjoyed it, even if Steed and Mrs. Peel weren't in there. One battle scene was Elder Edda-ish for me and I've described it in there two verses, again in English.

Just For Fun!!!!! Anyone taking these seriously should get out more often......

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Stood then Loki steadfast

Stared at Green skinned terror,

Took in Chaos's cousin

Cool commanded, "FOOL!"

"Think I fear you Forsworn

Frog-hued Jotun's dog-leashed?

Kneel before me Null-brain

Now at my Wrath Cower!"

Jotun's leaf-man laughed then

Leered at Muspell's steersman,

Oðling tore from Terra

tossed the Trickster crossways.

Dale of Dain's kin dented 

Deep with godling creepy:

Green-clad Hulkster grinning

Growled, "Loon god's puny!"

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So, Jotun is a giant, the Muspell are monsters, Oðing is one of Loki´s aliases, Dain is a Dwarf, his kins' dale is the Earth.

I hope it works for you. You can comment below or here.

Geirþeyr (Spear Storm)

This poem is a revision of Vigþeyr which I wrote last year. As I noted in a post not too long ago, the main improvements lie in the stef which is now in true runhendr, in the rhyme schemes which have been tightened, and in the grammar, which I believe has been much improved.

As this is a significantly longer poem than most of my efforts, I know it's difficult to get a grasp on in a blog reading. Because of this, I'm putting it up as a pdf which you can download and read at your leisure. Also, there is a recording you can listen to.

The poem itself is designed as a call to war for the seven baronies of our Kingdom. I hope that many will choose to read it.

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As always, your comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated,

Questions! Do We get Questions?

Yesterday, I posted a little bit of a whine about not getting comments on my poetry. A friend replied that she felt unqualified to comment. My response to her (and anyone else who feels the same way) is that ANYONE and EVERYONE is qualified to comment, whether it is a detailed comment on grammar, vocabulary, etc,; or a general comment (I like the part about the raven's beak, or why did you use the blood-goose metaphor?, or how do you do this or that?)

So, here is MY promise to YOU

If you post a comment or question, beit here, on my facebook page, or to my e-mail, I will reply here within 24 hours (I may be asleep when you post it, so give me some time, ok?).

To prove my word, here is a first question from Facebook.

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QUESTION: "I would like to know, do you write in norse language first then translate or do you write in English first?"

ANSWER

Short answer: I start with an English idea, think in English, then Old Norse, then back to English again.

Long Answer: My general routine is to have a topic in my head, then "gather my troops" by hunting down images and words from the Old Norse dictionaries & databases (Cleasby-Vigfusson's dictionary is on-line, as is the Skaldic Poetry database which has a comprehensive list of kennings). Then I build the poem, thinking in English and finding words in Old Norse to "fill in the blanks".

After I've got the lines roughly written, I work on the grammar (using the on-line New Introduction to Old Norse grammar and my copy of the Syntax of Old Norse).

Finally, I translate the poem back into English. I do two forms of transltion: the Word-by-Word is for those who want better undersnd the vocabulary. The Prose Order is to get the over-all meaning to the readers.

Without the interwebs, I'd never attempt this madness. A searchable dictionary and kenning list is invaluable, and the on-line grammar makes things much simpler.

So there you are. Hope this helps. Thanks for the question!

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Ok, now it's YOUR turn. What's your question?

For Our King

It's only fair....

Since I wrote a verse for Her Majesty, Kallista, earlier this week, it's only fair that I write one for His Majesty, Andreas. I don't want to cause jealousy, after all. So, here you go:

Old Norse Verse	Word-by-Word Translation	Prose Order Translation
Vannt sigkrónu hvennær vegmaðr hugsa degum - Hár þá haslstangir hristaskjala lézt af. blóðdrukkinn var biðan bragning Yggjar gæsa Fyrir eik fagrbúin frægða sigrast dag sá.	Won you crown victory when stately man, I recall day Hár then hazel-poles shakers of shield slaughtered; blood-drunk were biding hero Yggr’s geese. For oak beautifully dressed glory you won day that.	I recall the day when you won crown victory, stately man; Then, Hár of hazel poles, you slaughtered the shakers of shields. Yggr’s biding geese were blood-drunk, ruler. That day, you won glory for The beautifully dressed oak.

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Kennings Used

Hár haslstangir > Har of hazel-poles > Odinn of the lists > ANDREAS
Hristaskjala > shakers of shields > WARRIORS
Yggjar gæsa > Yggr’s geese > Odinn’s goose > RAVEN
eik fagrbúin > oak beautifully dressed > KALLISTA
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COMMENTS

Please, give me your thoughts, either in the comment box below or at my e-mail.

Another Morguhn verse (or Two Couplets Revised)

Good morning! Last summer after my annual vacation at the Pennsic Wars, I wrote a post that has two couplets I wrote while on vacation. It is time for revision of these verses into a full verse.

The couplets with the translations I provided are as follows:

Verse One

haslaði á holm-gang
holinn-menn fyrir gull-hringr

Challenged (he) to holm-gang
bragging-men for gold-ring-the

Verse Two

röskar Morghun rauð-harr
ræti hamingja leitinn

brave Morguhn red-haired
rode (his) fortune seeking

When I looked at these couplets, I saw definite strengths, but considerable weaknesses in three areas: internal rhymes in the first lines, syllable counts, and inflections. These three are difficult, but can be overcome with practice. That caused me to revise these couplets and to expand them into a full verse. That verse follows.

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On Morguhn

Old Norse Verse	Word-by-Word Translation	Prose-Order Translation
Rǫskr Morguhn rauð-harr ræti auðna leitinn; létta skellihlátr lǫngun ofan ǫnda. Skora karpinn sverðum á sártíð fyrir dýrðum sjaufjald krúnas sinnum sló menn inni hǫsldala.	Brave Morguhn red-haired rode fortune seeking lightened roaring laughter longing up spirits. Challenged bragging swords to wound-hours for treasure; seven crown's times slew men in hazel-dale.	Brave red-haired Morguhn rode seeking (his) fortune; Roaring laughter lightened longing spirits up. Bragging swords (he) challenged to wound-hours for treasure; Seven times (he) slew men in the crown's hazel-dale.

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Kennings Used

karpinn sverðum > bragging swords > FIGHTERS
sártíð > wound-hours > BATTLES
hǫsldala > hazel-dale > LIST FIELD

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Comments

As always, I hope I got the grammar right. There are times when the inflections I use may be inadvertently incorrect. If you see a mistake, please let me know.

I keep coming back to this theme, The Legend of Morguhn, because it has some universal truths in it: chivalry, courtesy, prowess, and fate. I only know that these verities bear further consideration. If you have suggestions on different topics I can use to explore these ideas, please let me know through comments.

Finally, any other comments you have - questions, remarks, likes and dislikes - are very important to me. You can use the box below, or you can e-mail me.

For Queen Kallista

Yes, it's about time --- I know, I'm late. I started this on Saturday last at the Coronation of Kallista and Andreas, Queen and King of Æthelmearc. The verse is relatively straight forward, except that praise lines for Her Majesty are inserted between lines of action. In any case, here is the poem.




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Old Norse	Word-by-Word Translation	Prose-Order Translation
Sverðtré hvattu svartbrynn (svanni grœngeils fannvit) á frágǫrðum frœkligum (fríðast, sváss ok bliðust). Drjúgtmanna bjoða dróttningu (dreglaðr raftré fegna rauðharr verndar ratitosks) rausnarkona hraustviðs.	Sword-tree you prompted black-browed (swan of green-glen snow-white) To surpassing feats valiant (most beautiful, sweet, and gentlest) Crowds proclaim you queen (ribbon-trimmed amber tree joyful red-haired friend of squirrel) magnificent lady of the valiant woods.	You prompted the black-browed sword tree to valiant surpassing feats o snow-white swan of the green glen most beautiful, sweet, and gentlest. Crowds proclaim you queen, magnificent lady of the valiant woods Joyful ribbon-trimmed amber tree - red-tressed friend of the squirrel.

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Kennings Used

Sverðtré svart-brynn > sword tree black-browed > ANDREAS
grœngeils > of the green-glens > SYLVAN GLEN
svanni fannvit > swan snow-white > KALLISTA
raftré > amber tree > KALLISTA
hraustviðs > valiant woods > AETHELMEARC




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Reykvellir (Reek-seether)

Yes, volcanos. Two volcanic photos that appeared at the APOD blog inspired me for these verses. Once again, these are pretty kenning & heiti heavy.  The kennings and heiti are explained in my notes at the end.

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This is of an Ecuadorian volcano, but it's STILL nifty

(http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120402.html)

This is of Eyjafjallajokull, during its 2010 eruption

(http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100419.html)

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Old Norse	Word-by-Word	Prose-Order
Borgar liðdrjúg berg-buis byrræfr braut niðr dýrligt ok gilja inni gullin, glóa seyðir Hveðrungs. Bó­­­tar jǫrðhrist bergklædd bǫls darka élsólars; brandar fuðra brenn-steinn ok bróta duna Hlóriðs	Fortress mighty of mountain-dweller breeze-roof broke up glorious and gullies in golden glow fire-pits of Hveðrung. Boots earthquakes rock-clad trouble's stomp of storm-sun; brands flame of brimstone and breaks thunder of Hlórið.	Mountain-dweller's mighty fortress broke up the glorious breeze-roof and Hveðrung´s fire-pits glow in golden gullies. Storm-sun´s trouble´s rock-clad boots stomp earthquakes; brimstone brands flame and Hloriðd's thunder breaks.
Vaðil flæddi váðvæng velland neðan eld-fjall; reykvellir er rǫkvið ropað yfir snóplaxu. Jotunn brunnum átfrek ǫska fretar mǫkku; strangtvið þa er stráfall strjúpi ǫskeld uppvarp.	Wading streams flow perilous molten down fire-hill; twilit reek seether belches over snow-plains. Giant burning voracious ash farts clouds; strong-woods when straw-fall bleeding-trunk fire-ash throws up.	Molten wading-streams flow down perilous fire-hill; twilit reek seether belches over snow plains. Voracious giant farts burning ash clouds; when bleeding trunk vomits fire-ash strong wood straw-fall.

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Kennings and Heiti Used

Verse One

Borgar berg-buis > fortress of Mountain-dweller > VOLCANO
byrræfr > breeze-roof > SKY
seyðir Hveðrungs > Hveðrungs (a heiti for LOKI) seether (fire-pit) > VOLCANO CRATER
bǫls élsólars > trouble of the storm-sun > TROLL
bó­­­tar bǫls élsólars > the boots of the troll > TREMORS
brandar brenn-steinn > brands of brimstone > LIGHTNING
Hlóriðs > heiti for THOR

Verse Two

Vaðil flæddi velland > wading streams molten > LAVA
reykvellir > reek-seether > VOLCANO
Jotunn átfrek > giant voracious > VOLCANO
stráfall > straw-fall > PERISH, DIE
strjúpi > bleeding-trunk (spoken of a neck after the head is severed) > VOLCANO CRATER

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Hrafni-hattr (Raven-hat)

So, before Austin and San Antonio (The trip was, by and large great fun. We enjoyed great weather, got to be very touristy, saw a bit of South by Southwest, visited the Alamo, enjoyed wonderful food - if you like Tex-Mex, try Trudy's on Burnet Road - their Smoked Chicken Molé is a marvel! We saw The Artist, which is a great movie), I put up the following picture from the upcoming Lone Ranger  movie and a challenge.

Today it's my turn to post a verse. This may be a wee-bit far-fetched, but at least I left out, "Hi-ho, Silver! Away!" I´ll give you the Old Norse, followed only by a translation. It's truly THAT simple. Jackson Crawford - your turn!

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Skraelings hattr skraut-ligr

skrafa laga-mann afreks.

"farðu lags-manna fárs-morðs

frek-liga hefnd-rektú"

Grimu-ridi graman

grá-eygr sárlóm heyra:

"hǫfum vit á hefni

hraun-skegg eða deyjum!" 

Showy hat of the Skraeling

talks to law-man valiant.

"(you) Go and harshly vengeance gain

for kinsmen foully murdered!"

Masked rider grey-eyed listens 

to angry blood-loon:

"Gain we vengeance

Wild-man or we die!"

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NOTES and KENNINGS

Did you know that Tonto's name comes from the Potawatomie language and means "Wild One"? This explains "hraun-skegg" in line 8.

Skraelings hattr skraut-ligr > Skaeling's showy-hat > RAVEN

laga-mnn > law-man > the LONE RANGER

sárlóm > blood loon > RAVEN

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Elds-vimr (Fire-whims) # 2

A second pass at auroras today. I´m trying to get my imagery more consistent throughout a verse. In this verse, I´m using a martial imagery scheme. I hope it works for you.

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Old Norse	Line-by-Line Translation	Prose Order Translation
Egg fránn herjar Oðins élker norðan birta -- sverða glóa Svǫlnis svaðil ofan á hrylligr. Borgar manna birting blinda ljósa skjolda. Drauma hirðmanns drepa dreka krókar blóði.	Edge-flashing army Oðins storm-vessel northern brightens; sword glows of Svǫlnis frozen lands over ghastly. Wall men´s brightness blinds light-shields; dreams hirthman´s kill dragon coils bloody.	The flashing edge of Odin´s army brightens the northern storm-vessel; Svǫlnis´s sword glows over the ghastly frozen ground. The wall of light-shields blinds men´s brightness; Dragon's bloody coils kill hirthman´s dreams.

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Kennings Used

Egg fránn herjar Oðins > flashing edge of the Army of Oðin > the AURORA

élker > storm vessel > SKY

Svǫlnis sverða > sword of Svǫlnis [Oðinn] > the AURORA

Borgar ljósa skjólda > wall of light-shields > the AURORA

manna birting > man´s brightness > man´s VISION

dreka krókar blóði >  dragon´s bloody coils > the AURORA

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How do You like It?

Please leave your comments below!

A Chicken Posting

Today, Jackson Crawford, who runs the highly entertaining and instructive Tattúínárdǿla saga, posted a message about  The Temple of Vængr the wing-god.  I encourage you all to go have a look; it's good for laugh.  In honor of Vængr the wing-god, I present to you the following flokkr of verses, discovered in a middens filled with egg-shells, burnt bread crusts, and dark brown granular particulates. The manuscript, apparently written by the Boreal Master something 1000+ years ago, seems to refer to a warrior who may well have been a congregant at The Temple of Vængr the wing-god.  The manuscript, written on a piece of parchment covered with circular stains which have been identified as having similar characteristics to the dark brown granular particulates found in the midden, was wrapped around a shard of pottery similarly stained. At the head of the manuscript was written in red letters:

Hœna flokkr eggja-gæzlumaðr (which translates very roughly as The Flokkr of Henny Egg-protector-man)

The verses run as follows (taken from a diplomatic version edited by Alowishus T. Cornpone and published in Annals of Animal-Husbandry and Other Felonies, vol. 17, number 3 [March, 1946], pp. 47-48):

Hœna flokkr eggja-gæzlumaðr

Verse 1:

Poetic Order:

Hklaka mattigs óðar hylð þu
hauka tal þelli-hringa flokkr
Heppin bóru bana hœnaar
hviti-kjöt eggjaveðr mattig.

Prose order:

Hlyð þu mattigs óðar hklaka-hauka; tal þelli-hringa flokkr.  Heppen hviti-kjöt bóru mattig  eggjaveðr bana-hœnar.  

Translation:

Hear my mighty poem, Klucking-hawk; I tell of the fir-ring of the flock (> woman > chicken).  Well-starred (> lucky, fortunate) white-meat (> chicken) brought a mighty edge-windstorm (> battle) to the bane of hens (fox).

Verse 2:

Poetic Order:

Hœna réttir estu Hœna Pœna
Hverr fuglar es þer stóru verri

Prose Order:

Réttir hœna estu Hœna Pœna; hverr fuglar es þer stóru verri.

Translation:

A  mighty hen are you, Henny Penny; every bird is below you.

Verse # 3

hana-Óðinn sunginn hagstœðr
hróstinn burja Loxsi-lósti

Prose order:

Hagstœðr sunginn hana-Óðinn burja hróstinn Loxsi-lósti.

Translation:

Fair singing cock of Óðinn (> warrior rooster) struck bragging Loxsi-lusting (> fox).

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Unfortunately (or blessedly, depending on your point of view) the script following this flokkr is utterly scrambled, giving us no further clues as to the outcome of the saga.
  

Steff-granni (Stem-thin)

This is a revision. I want to make my poetry more grammatically correct as I go along, and I decided to take a few days to go over two or three recent verses and see if I can't make them "right".

The first is below, entitle "Steff-granni" after the first two words.  What you have is the original version, which was first posted on December 1.  It is followed by the revised verse. The meanings haven't changed, but, if I'm lucky, the grammar has improved.

On this one, I truly encourage those who know to give me corrections and take me to task. Part of the learning process, right?

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Original Verse	Revised Verse
Stef-grannr klofað stríðs-maðr staðfastr á flaðgs-mór; kyrtil gróm-lauss kongsgjøf kompásað miðli stríðs-manns. Folk-Tyr mattig (fagr-eygr) (furu-rafir) krúnu fara andvigr (fylgt hinn) feginn-samligr (legg ást).	Stef-granni klofa striðs-maðr ok staðfasti til flaðgar-mós; kyrtill gróm-lauss kongs-gjøf kompassar mitti striðs-manns. Folk-Tyr mattig (fagr-eyga) (furu-rafir) krúnu ferr vega (hann fylgja) fagnaðar (með ástum).

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Line-by-Line Meaning	Prose Order Meaning
stem-thin strides strife-man and stedfast to the ogress-moor Stainless belt the king's gift compasses middle of strife-man. Army-god mighty (fair-eyed) (fir tree of amber) crown goes to fight for (guide him) joyfulness-filled (by love)	Stedfast stem-thin strife-man strides to the ogress-moor; The King's gift, a stainless belt compasses the strife-man's waist The army-Tyr goes joyfully to fight for the crown; the fair-eyed amber fir-tree guides him by her love

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Ravens

I have been fascinated by ravens since I was a boy. I watched crows, and I read of their cousins, the ravens. Tales of ravens, such as Hugin and Munin, are part of what drew me to Norse mythology and, eventually, to the sagas and poetry. The Norse had a fascination with the ravens and their eerie behavior when scavenging. The kennings list at the Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages website shows no fewer than 125 different kennings for ravens.

A few years ago, I read Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds, by Bernd Heinrich, a fascinating book which discusses the intelligence of the birds. Recently, I came across a web posting on the same subject. In the article, the authors discuss the sophisticated communications system of ravens:

[R]avens use their beaks similar to hands to show and offer objects such as moss, stones and twigs. These distinct gestures were predominantly aimed at partners of the opposite sex and resulted in frequent orientation of recipients to the object and the signallers. Subsequently, the ravens interacted with each other, for example, by example billing or joint manipulation of the object. Ravens in particular can be characterized by complex intra-pair communication, relatively long-time periods to form bonds and a relatively high degree of cooperation between partners.

It is this highly developed communications strategy that helped inspire this verse describing a pair of ravens viewing a battlefield. I hope you will enjoy it!

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(http://corvidcorner.com/wordpress/2011/05/raven-desktop-wallpaper/)

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Hrafnar (Ravens)

Old Icelandic	Line-by-Line Translation	Prose-Order Translation
Blígja um braut brandéls blóðig nágagl eygt-svart; á hvíslur hast-ligu hreyr dæmum leyndar. Hrafnar einir heyra haug-mál hrylla-liga; skipta ein-hjal skáliga skárfir roða sára. Svipa í hlóði sveita svanir fæða á bana; boginn hǫfuð heyra hag-mæltr bana-mana. Eru stolen arm-hring offran fyrir Tyrs-náð. Eru stoliinn sagar sagði fyrir Herjans. Fljúga heim môr Hugins (Hanga-drótins sam-siði) vísi bjóða vigs-menn (veg-semd syngja víg-liðs) meyja Viðris máttkar (minni halda þinna) ok syngja á heim sálnar (ok sǫgur telja soks-mans)	Gaze over road of sword-storm bloody corpse-geese black-eyed; in whispers harsh corpses talk secrets. Ravens only hear cairn-talk horrid; bandying secrets baleful sea-gulls huddle of wounds. swoop silently blood swans to feed on death; bent heads listen (to) well-spoken dead-men. are stolen arm-rings offering for Tyr's grace. are stolen tales told for Herjans Fly home swarm of Hugin (Hanged-god's companion) Guide (and) offer war-men (glory sing of war-folk) (to) maids of Viðris mighty (hold your memories) and sing home the souls (and tales tell of attack-men)	Bloody black-eyed corpse geese Gaze over sword-storm road; corpses talk secrets in harsh whispers. Only ravens hear the horrid cairn-talk seagulls of wounds huddle bandying baleful secrets Blood swans silent swoop to feed on death; bent heads listen to well-spoken dead-men. Stolen arm-rings are offerings for Tyr's grace; Stolen tales are told for Herjans Swarm of Hugin, fly home and offer to guide to war-men Viðris's mighty maids and sing home the souls. Companion of the hanged-god sing the glory of war-folks hold your memories and tell the heroes' tales

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Kennings Used

braut brandéls   >  sword-storm road  >  BATTLE-FIELD

nágagl  >  corpse-geese  >  RAVENS

skárfir sára  >  wound sea-gulls  >  RAVENS

svanir sveita  >  blood-swans  >  RAVENS

môr Hugins  >  Hugin's swarm  >  RAVENS

Hanga-drótins sam-siði  >  Hanged-god's companion  >  ODIN'S companion  >  RAVEN

meyja Viðris  >  maid of Viðris  >  ODIN'S maid  >  VALKYRIE

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One note: In the third stanza, I did a tricky - I essentially split the two half-stanzas into four lines and mixed them together. So, when you look at the Old Icelandic and Line-by-Line versions, the parenthetical lines go together, as they do in the prose order translation. This is a rarely used technique, but an interesting one to use once in a while. I'm sorry if this causes confusion.

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Old Wine in New Bottles, Part Two

Another new verse, based on previously written material. Like the earlier verse today, this is for the Crown Tournament þáttr.

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Old Icelandic	Line-by-Line Translation	Prose-Order Translation
Stef-grannr klofað stríðs-maðr staðfastr á flaðg's-mór; kyrtil gróm-lauss kongsgjøf kompásað miðli stríðs-manns. Folk-Tyr mattig (fagr-eygr) (furu-rafir) krúnu fara andvigr (fylgt hinn) feginn-samligr (legg ást).	stem-thin strides strife-man stedfast to the ogress-moor Stainless belt the king's gift compasses middle of strife-man. Army-god mighty (fair-eyed) (fir tree of amber) crown goes to fight for (guide him) joyfulness-filled (by love)	Stedfast stem-thin strife-man strides to the ogress-moor; The King's gift, a stainless belt compasses the strfe-man's waist The army-Tyr goes joyfully to fight for the crown; the fair-eyed amber fir-tree guides him by her love

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KENNINGS USED

stríðs-maðr & stríðs-manns > strife-man > WARRIOR

flaðg's-mór > ogress-moor > BATTLE FIELD (the ogress being a symbol of disharmony)

Folk-Tyr > Army-god > WARRIOR

furu-rafir > fir tree of amber > WOMAN

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A New Verse from Old Parts

Today, taking a verse previously written in English and re-working it into Icelandic.

Old Icelandic	Word-by-Word Translation	Prose-Order Translation
Hæru-kollr til koma kasta á vøll-hasel; bregða skarpa bragr branda rjóðr rønd-fisk. Grimm-leitr klofað gramr gata-skalda glotti; hjó-staf greip haukstrandr - hefjum róggeisla.	Hoary-head to comes to cast on field of hazel brandishes sharp best sword reddener rim-fish. Grimly strides warrior gate of skald grins hew-stem grips hawk-strand he hefts battle-beam.	Hoary-head comes to cast his chance on the hazel-field; Best sword-reddener brings (the) rim-fish. Grimly strides the warrior skald-gates grinning; hew-stem is gripped by hawk´s strand (he) hefts the battle-beam

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KENNINGS USED

Hæru-kollr > Hoary-head >  an old WARRIOR

hasel-vøll > hazel-field > a LIST for fighting

rjóðr-branda > sword-reddener > WARRIOR

rønd-fisk > rim-fish > SWORD

gata-skalda > skald's gate > MOUTH or LIPS

hjó-staf > hew-stem > SWORD

haukstrandr > hawk strand > ARM

róggeisla > battle-beam > SWORD

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Hverja nótt húns (Every bear´s night) [NaPoWriMo # 4]

November 4 - Verse # 4


Today was a long day and I had very little inspiration to write. However, thanks to a set of replies to a "give me a word" posting, I got some inspiration. The verse is a description of winter, a kenning for which is Hverja nótt húns "Every bear's night".  There are a few kenningar in the verse - explained in the notes following it.


Enjoy!

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Hverja nótt húns

Old Icelandic	Line Translation	Prose Order Translation
Skikkja djupgr seil-ras snæugr hylja inn skógr-fjall; hærð orms gamla galla gellan kominn hélu. Sofari-hells síngjarn snerkja af vin-berja; af eplar-frosinn fuglar fátídir fors-fullr þrátta.	Mantle deep of earth-rope snowy hides mountain-forest; haired worms ancient gall yelling arrived rime. Greedy Cave-sleeper snores because of wine-berry; over apples-frozen birds strange angry quarrel.	The deep snowy mantle of earth-rope hides the mountain-forest; rime-haired ancient worm´s gall yelling arrived. The greedy cave-sleeper snores from berry-wine (while) strange angry birds quarrel about frozen-apples.

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NOTES

Kennings Used


seil-ras > earth-rope > SNAKE
orms galla > worm's gall > WINTER
sofari-hells  > cave-sleeper > BEAR

I hope you enjoyed the verse.  Comment below, please!

Hólm-ganga (the Duel), verse 1 [NaPoWriMo # 3]

November 3 - Day 3:

Yesterday's verse is tagged for future use in a þattr as I explained. Today´s verse is the second verse to go into the very same þattr about our hero fighting a hólm-gang (duel) against a foe who has insulted him.  The hólm-gang is traditionally ought on a small island, barely large enough for the two men to stand, with the battle being to the death.  If fought on land, a hólm-hring (duel ring) is drawn around the two combatants. To step beyond its limits, unless you are victorious, means death.  This is pretty serious stuff.

Today's verse features multiple kenningar which are explained in the notes following the verse.

Enjoy!

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Hólm-ganga

Old Icelandic	Line-by-Line	Prose Order Translation
Á sker-garða elg-stafna styri-flotna (fyr virðing) (sveigr mikill leiks-sára) (skorðir á holm) röri. Sól-geisli al-skarlat svaltung rauði fuðru; sam-hljóði át ströndu songar-sverða dverg-mælti.	to rock-reef elk of stems Wielder of men (for fame) (the brandisher great of wound-leek) (you challenged to a duel) you rowed. Sun-beams all-scarlet sword-tongues red blazed; harmony across the shore the sword-songs dwarf-talked.	Wielder of men you rowed the stem-elk to the rock reef; you challenged the great wound-leek brandisher to a duel for fame. Sun-beams all-scarlet blazed sword-tongues red; sword-songs dwarf-talked harmony across the shore.

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NOTES

Kennings Used

elg-stafna  > elk of stems > BOAT

styri-flotna  > wielder of men > WARRIOR LEADER

sveigr leiks sára > brandisher of the wound-leek > sword > WARRIOR

svaltung > sword-tongues > BLADES

songar-sverða > sword-songs > BATTLE

dverg-mælti > dwarf-talked > ECHOED (Note: This is not exactly a kenning, but still warrants explanation.

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I hope you enjoyed Day 3 of my NaPoWriMo exercise.  Please leave your comments below!

Sker-garðr (Rock-reef) [NaPoWriMo # 2]

Today is November 2nd ... Poem # 2 ...

Near our house runs a section of the Canandaigua Outlet, a prosaic name for a lovely stream that flows from the north end of Canandaigua Lake to the Seneca River to Lake Ontario.  For a number of years, I have seen a great blue heron fishing the outlet, and, as part of my November poetry project, I'm setting out to capture him on film. Today was day one of "The Hunt for Big Blue" which produced no heron, but several lovely photos. I've chosen a couple to inspire today's verse.

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Sker-garðr

Old Icelandic	Line-by-Line	Prose-Order Translation
Ek sá veg-sviðr ís-á (eyju-þoka) flótinn (stóð í miðju strauma) (stutta) át haf, djúpastr. Synt gæti (ey frá-skila) át strǫnd þaðan ønginn - stór-grýtta ey sker-garðr (sá blódhólm-ganga) kǫlluðu.	I saw way-swift ice-stream (islet-misty) flowing (stood in mid-stream) (stunted) to the ocean, deepest. Swam from (island isolated) to shore there no one - Stony island "rock-reef" (saw bloody duels) was called.	I saw a deepest, way-swift ice-stream flowing to the ocean. In mid-stream, a stunted misty islet stood. No one could swim from there to the shore; The lonely island saw bloody duels; The stoney island was called "rock-reef"

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Notes

The verse is intended to be the first of two or three describing a hólm-ganga or duel, fought on an island or within a restricted space. The finished poem will be included in a longer prose story called a þáttr. You can see one þáttr that I've written already here. I hope you enjoyed today's verse.  Please comment!

Elds-vimr ("Fire-Whims") [NaPoWriMo # 1]

With apologies to my friends who are participating in NaNoWriMo, I thought I´d try my hand at my variant, NaPoWriMo (National Poem Writing Month).  I hope to write a verse a day and post the results here on a daily basis this month. Wish me well!

Here is NaPoWriMo #1:

When I was in college at SUNY Geneseo, many long years ago, I was walking home one deep dark January night. Freezing as I walked, I happened to look up to the northern sky and I stood, transfixed, seemingly forever, by the sheets of light across the sky. It was the first time I had seen the aurora borealis. I have seen it a few times since, always deep into the night, always on the coldest, clearest night of the year.

I´m certain that you have heard by now of the fiery aurora that we experienced in the recent past. While there are excellent scientific explanations of this astounding phenomenon, I envision a more poetic cause.

≪http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1110/AuroraOntario_MPark1920.jpg ≫

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Elds-Vimr (Fire-Whims)

Old Icelandic	Line-by-Line	Prose Order Translation
sá of heiðu stjörnur snjóiga dala-lagið - kómu inn ljós kaltast kyndi heiðu himna á náttar-þelli illu, elds-vimr glóðu róðinn hring-serk blód-liga Hamðis hirðmenn ljósa dró fyrir	Saw (I) over bright stars snowy waste-land - Came the light coldest (and) kindled the clear sky. At dead of night evil, fire-whims glowed bloody; Ring-shirt bloody of Hamdis hirthmen (of) light veiled over.	I saw bright stars over snowy waste-land; the coldest light came and kindled the clear sky. At the evil dead of night, Bloody fire-whims glowed; Hamðis's bloody ring-shirt veiled the light's hirthmen.

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NOTES

elds-vimr > fire-whims > Aurora Borealis
hring-serk Hamðis > Hamdis's mail-shirt > the Aurora
hirðmenn ljósa > the light's hirthmen > the stars

For those who are new to my poetry, a brief explanation: the form is dróttkvætt (court meter), a poetic style most often associated with Medieval period Iceland.  Each line contains three accented syllables.  The first and next-to-last syllable of each odd numbered line alliterates with the first syllable of the following even-numbered line.  Finally, in each even numbered line, two syllables (generally either the first or third and (always) the next to last syllable must rhyme.  The verse breaks into two sections of four lines each - each of these sections (called a helmingr) is a separate syntactic unit.  The two half-verses (helmingar) are closely related.  The three poetic devices noted above are called kennings, essentially complex metaphors.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this poem.  Please leave a comment in the space below.

A New Lausavísr: Skáld-lofligr (Skald-Praising)

Hej!

Today's verse is in an unusual form called iðurmæltr “repeatedly said” by Snorri. You can find an original example in the Heilagra meyja drápa (‘Drápa about Holy Maidens’). This verse form uses repetition of the final word from one line to the first word of the following line, though in a different form.

My original verse was written in English:

Speak o glorious silk-Syf

Silken voices fill us -

Filled with sword din's fever

Fevered tales you're weaving.

Weaver of our wild dreams

Dreamers grasp your seemings

Seamless runs the silk-stream

Silky-smooth your speeches.

The re-crafted lausavísr, which you can hear here, is slightly different, as you would expect. It is rough, but I think it achieves my purpose of describing and praising a Skald:

Skáld-lofligr

Segðú hæra silk-smiðr

silki-raddir fyllum

fyllask sóttin sverða

sverða songar ferðir

ferða-maðr drómundr draumi

drauma-manna gripa þykkju

þykk-ligr rennr straum-silki

silki-liðka þinn sagðr

Skald-praising

Speak, highest silk-smith

Silken voices fill us

filled with the fever of swords

sword song exploits

Traveller the war-ship of dreams

Dreaming-men grasp thoughts

Thickly flows stream-silk

Silky-smooth your tellings

Prose order translation:

Speak, skald [silk-smiðr > Silk-maker > Smooth-speech-maker > skald]; (your) poetry [silki-raddir > Silken-voices > poetry] fills us. (You are) filled with thoughts of battle [sóttin sverða > fever of the sword > battle], with the battle's [sverða songar > songs of the sword > battle] exploits. Skald [ferða-maðr drómundr draumi > traveller (on) the war-ship of dreams > poet] – Listeners [drauma-manna > dreaming-men > listeners] grasp (your) thoughts. Thickly flow your words [straum-silki > silk-streams > poetry]; silky-smooth your speaking.

Please, comment on my postings. I always appreciate your remarks.

More next week.

Fridrikr