Richard L. Harris, English Department, University of Saskatchewan, Canada [heorot@sasktel.net]
Sverris saga, the royal biography of King Sverrir of Norway [1151 (1177(84)- 1202], is oddly mixed in content. Born in Norway, to one Gunnhildr and a comb-maker or smith, around 1150 and coming at age 5 to the Faroes to be fostered by his paternal uncle, Hrói, bishop of Kirkjunes, Sverrir Unásson, [or Uni, from Latin source?] as he was first known, was clerically educated and ordained to the priesthood before his mother supposedly told him of his royal parentage as a son of King Sigurðr munn. His journey to the throne, beginning after this revelation in 1176 and finally accomplished in 1184 with the death of King Magnús Erlingsson, was succeeded by the almost immediate challenges of other claimants, and when these were quelled his energies were taken up with the defense of the crown's rights of power against the encroachments of the church, an endeavour in which Sverrir, as a son also of that institution, made an unusually knowledgeable and articulate royal opponent. At his death, he remarked, "The kingdom has brought me labour and unrest and trouble rather than peace and a quiet life. But so it is that many have envied me my rank, and have let their envy grow to full enmity. May God forgive them all; and let my Lord now judge between me and them, and decide all my cause." [Sephton, 231-2. "Hefi ei meira starf, ófrið ok vandræði haft í ríkinu en kyrrsæti eðr mikit hóglífi. Er svá at minni virðingu sem margir hafi verit mínir öfundarmenn, þeir er þat hafa látit ganga fyrir fullan fjándskap við mik, sem nú fyrirgefi Guð þeim þat öllum. Ok dæmi Guð milli vár ok allt mitt mál."]
The extant narrative of his life is preserved in four parchment manuscripts and some fragments. It is a chaotic assortment of episodes: prophetic dreams, political manouvres, but mostly action--strenuous marches through Norway seeking support to the throne, naval expeditions, battles on sea and on land against his royal opponents, the building and subsequent loss of ships and fleets and fortresses. His clerical background is stressed in scenes where the biographer shows his Christian magnanimity with defeated enemies, and his speeches, attributed by its most recent editor to the invention of the saga's primary composer, are so authentic in tone and incisive in argument that some scholars have taken them for interpolations of the king's own writing. The Prologue to Sverris saga in AM 327 4to, a Norwegian manuscript from around 1300, leaves no doubt as to its partial authorship by Abbot Karl Jónsson of Þingeyraklaustur, nor of the fact that the subject himself oversaw its composition – "which Abbot Karl Jónsson first wrote but King Sverrir himself sat over him and decided what should be written" [“er fyrst ritaði Karl ábóti Jónsson, en yfir sat sjálfr Sverrir konungr ok réð fyrir hvat rita skyldi”]. Since both men were educated ecclesiastics in the first place, it is not surprising that the king's purported speeches demonstrate remarkable rhetorical skill and training which, on Sverri's part, should have promised a good future in the church if he had not chosen his secular career instead.
Responsibility for the whole extant text is another matter, however, since the first part of the saga, about Sverri´r's ascent to power, composed under the king's eye, they called Grýla after the Norse monster of that name. [ “kölluðu þeir þann hlut bóku fyrir því Grýlu” ]. and the prologue adds, "That portion was not brought along far -- [ “er sú frásögn eigi langt fram komin.” [ÍF XXX, Reykjavík, 2007, 3] ] The composer of the remainder is not specifically identified in this earlier manuscript – nor, however, does the wording preclude its also having been written by the Abbot. Its sources are said to be derived from "the relation of those who remembered what happened, having actually seen or heard it, and some of them had been with King Sverrir in battles. Some of these stories were fixed in memory, having been written down directly the events occurred, and they have not been altered since." [Sephton 1]
While the intention of this earlier account is obviously to affirm the accuracy of the narrative, a more detailed passage in the Prologue to Sverris saga in the late 14th-century Flateyjarbók expands upon the saga's composition: "Priest Styrmir, the historian, followed that book [Karl's] when he wrote, and Priest Magnus Thorhallsson [one of the writers of Flateyjarbók] wrote this Saga of Sverrir following that book [of Styrmir's]" [239] [ “eftir þeira manna frásögn er minni höfðu til svá at þeir sjálfir höfðu sét ok heyrt þessi tíðendi, ok þeir menn sumir höfðu verit í orrostum með Sverri konungi.” [ÍF XXX, 285]] Ironically, these details are included with the explicit intention of further authenticating the text: "The narrative therefore cannot have become corrupted by passing from mouth to mouth." [[Sephton, 239] “Má því eigi þetta mál í munni gengizk hafa.” [IF, 285]]
Much of the scholarship of Sverris saga has thus been concerned with the extent of Abbot Karl’s composition and of the subsequent hand of Styrmir inn fróði or perhaps others in its production. From an early textual perspective, the abbot’s part ended with the conclusion of Grýla, that point in the text then also debated, but in any case with Styrmir writing the continuation to the end of the saga. Guðbrandur Vigfússon, however, proposed another view, that the entire work was Abbot Karl's. “The whole saga is of one cast, precluding any reasonable thought of a double authorship, least of all by men so far removed as were Karl and Styrmir.”[Prolegomena to Sturlunga saga, Oxford, 1878, I, lxxi] This view, with some variations among succeeding textual critics, has become the dominant one, with general but not unanimous agreement that Grýla ends with chapter 100, following the death of King Magnús and its aftermath. Today I will consider a few points of phraseological evidence regarding this puzzle of composition – proverbial allusions, humorous phrases of an almost formulaic nature, proverb clustering at some critical locations in the text, as well as repeated proverbs. In agreement with Vigfússon’s pronouncement, these items indicate a single hand at work, at least intermittently, through the entire text, but with the voice of the king intruding upon or combining with that of the abbot. In this collaborative process a narrative was created whose depths have yet to be analyzed definitively.
The combative rhetoric with which Sverrir was execrated by his enemies, particularly those emanating from the church, identifies in political terms that institution´s objection to his reign. Calling him a guðníðingr, a perpetrator of sacrilege, because as an ordained priest he should never have undertaken the secular office of kingship, let alone given up his sacerdotal duties, they made it clear that, whatever his claim to the Norwegian throne, he had discarded prior and more urgent spiritual commitments. It is in the light of such ideological opposition that the polemical intent of his dreams, as he and his biographer have constructed them, becomes more clear. Thus chapter 42 reports a complex dream Sverrir had before the Battle of Nidaros, where Erlingr Jarl was killed. A man leads him to a roasted male corpse and tells him to eat. Regarding the meal as unclean, the hero demures, but his dream man commands him to obey, for it is God's will: "You will eat and you shall eat; thus wills he who decides/governs all." [ "Þú vilt eta ok þú skalt eta; svá vill sá er öllu ræðr." ] Finding the meal unexpectedly enjoyable as he comes to the head of the corpse, he is admonished by his guide to stop, "and thus he had to leave off " says the Old Norse text. [ "ok varð þá við at skiljask." [IF 30. 42. 66.] ] Sverrir's interpretation of his dream included the death in battle of Erlingr Jarl and his most powerful barons, but also the escape of King Magnús, the leftover roasted head, in this instance. The import of this passage for the audience, however, is best understood in the context of a proverbial allusion established in the reference to God as one who rules, or decides, all. The traditional Old Norse proverb, with its origins in the wisdom of feud interactions, "Jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð" (die Beschlüsse) MÁLSHÁTTAKVÆÐI 23, 1 [R.Cook, "Sagas as dramas of the will"] is operative here and is invoked to emphasize Sverrir's contention throughout his biography that he has undertaken the pursuit of monarchy in deference to God's will rather than following his own. The sensitivity of the English translator to this situation is apparent in his loose rendering of "varð þá við at skiljask." with an explicit allusion to this proverb: "the stronger man had his way." Thus, at the same time as this dream engagingly admits Sverri's joy in conquest, it supports his contention that he was not in fact a guðningr but an initially reluctant follower of God's overwhelming will, a point which is made often in the course of the narrative.
The biography, or autobiography, of King Sverrir emphasizes consistently the monarch's adherence to the principles of his ecclesiastical background. He prays on his knees before battle--and in the midst of one where the results are crucial but uncertain he ceases fighting, falls on his knees and prays heroically for divine intervention. To the defeated and to those who throw themselves voluntarily upon his mercy he is unfailingly forgiving. Concomitant with what were meant to be viewed as signs of respect for his training and faith, however, critics for almost two centuries have remarked the presence of a dark and malicious humour, whether exercised by the nebulous biographer or represented by him as coming from the king's own mouth, or resulting from the collaborative dynamic of king and abbot in recounting the adventure. The very idea of titling the account of his ascent to power Grýla, after a monster -- a traditional personified embodiment of that which threatens accepted social order, perhaps even the order of the universe -- casts a viciously humorous light upon his long journey to power.
Aggressive humor at the expense of his enemies emerges with impressive frequency and rhetorical flourish at some points in the text, most notably in his speech following the death of Erlingr Jarl at the battle of Nidaros. He sneers at the promises of Archbishop Eystein to King Magnus's men that "all who die fighting for [him] , their souls will enter Paradise before their blood is cold upon the ground." He acknowledges that battle survivors who stand in sorrow now would have been happy had they been attending his own funeral instead! Senseless to grieve, given the promises of the Archbishop! "Rejoice!" he encourages his defeated enemies at their master's grave, for the "abundance of glorified saints in the town at this moment." --although, he thoughtfully adds, the newly deceased have as yet to perform any miracles. However, and his tone changes from ironic to admonitory, if "as my heart tells me" "all the fine promises . . . are unfulfilled" then "better to pray for the souls of those departed, and also for Erlingr jarl whose arrogance caused him to have the title of king given to his son." [Sephton 50-51.]
In numerous other places this jubilantly vicious humor is exercised, often adorned with proverbial support. On three occasions, the narrative proverbially compares the threat of the Birkibeins to "trolls", "at the door", or "between outhouse and home" humorously emphasizing the powerfully destructive potential of the insurgent forces. The narrator allows both sides to use such expressions of one another's situations, at several points likening the Birkibeins at disadvantage to "sheep in pens" awaiting slaughter, and their foiled pursuit of Erlingr Jarl leaves them "whistling after his track". But Sverrir's men fight so aggressively that "the sooner a man got away the happier he was" And when rebelling peasants' are disappointed in their attack, they are said to have discovered "they had a smaller steak on their spit than if they had had the king on it." "A hungry louse bites hard," exclaims King Sverrir in victory over Magnús, ironically comparing the desperate aggression of his finally successful warfare to the proverbial ferocity of the hungry wolf. No illusions trouble him in this victory--on two occasions the narrator speaks proverbially of his unpopular dominance with sharp irony: "Many a man kisses the hand that he would like to see chopped off." And yet, whatever his right to the throne, his hard-won de facto possession of it is presented always as the will of God, who decides all things -- among many examples, his pre-emptive attack on Thorgrim of Heidmork who was planning to ambush him is explained "their meeting was of another kind than Thorgrim had expected. For God ordered between them that the nobler man had the upper hand." And it is this appeal to God's ultimate power, surely the means to power for the upstart from the Faroes, that rings through his epic quest for Norway's throne. Any arguments de jure must be in defensive response to criticism that only his mother's word supported his royal descent, and that it had never been tried by ordeal--a process which was in any case officially abandoned by the church in 1215, a few years after the pretender's death.
This uncannily effective reliance upon inspiration, whether or not it comes from God, seems depicted in Sverrir's speech to his men before the battle of Íluveller in 1180: there he admits they face overwhelming odds--"the task of hewing timber in the woods is not like yours". But he then shares with them the advice of a farmer sending his son to battle. "Renown lives longest after one," says the farmer, quoting the pre-Christian wisdom of Hávamál, "Nought may send a man to his grave if his time is not come" and "if he is doomed to die, nought may save him." "To die in flight is the worst death of all." When the chips were down, Sverrir appealed to his soldiers with rhetoric of an earlier, heroic era, a rhetoric with which they remained familiar, despite the incursions of southerly, Christian ideologies. The Íslendingasögur also celebrate this proverbial wisdom, using it to recall the worldviews of a pre-Christian age. This whetting speech was truly a work of genius, whether from the teller or the king, nevertheless presenting the latter as an inspired leader, easily able to strike resonant heroic cords in the hearts of his warriors.
P. E Mueller remarks that the composer "does not avoid various episodes which for the attentive reader may cast a large shadow over the king's character." [Sagabibliothek, III, 424.] The king who prayed during battles and seemed to show Christian charity in giving quarter to all repentent enemies reveals flaws not only in that humor which must be attributed in part to him. Mueller remarks "It is certain that Sverrir permitted fraud in the falsification of a papal bull, and there are strong grounds for suspicion that he was the instigator of the murder of Eirik the King's brother, his family and the returning emissaries from Rome." [Sagabibliothek, III, 425.] Whatever this troublesome Grýla may really have believed of his own paternity, it is clear that his right to the throne stemmed practically from his competence in military and political strategy, his skill in showmanship, his gifted rhetorical accomplishments. His primary response to aspersions cast by King Magnus and his party on Sverrir's royal paternity was to insist that Magnus himself had claims only of maternal descent--a logical conclusion could be drawn from this that, if neither of them had ancestral right to the crown, then its possession was ultimately a matter of which contender had power to seize and maintain it. If the description of his death speech is accurate, then even at that moment he must have continued to embrace the ultimately persuasive Old Norse adage, Jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð. Practically speaking that was all that ever mattered in his career.
The biography of King Sverrir, explicitly a project of collaboration in its inception and early stages, contains a voice difficult to distinguish as belonging either to the writer or to the teller who sat over him. The Flateyjarbók Prologue attempts to explain the title Grýla from the fact that "Many declared that fear and dread did their full work in the war and great strife, since all probability seemed to point to the quick downfall and utter annihilation [of Sverrir], because of the strength and overwhelming odds against him." [240] This opinion of the title's origin and meaning was stated at the end of the 14th century, and the writer adds that Sverrir could never have succeeded without divine intervention in his long and harsh campaign. The persistent voice of Sverris saga, however, reinforced by the tone of its phraseology, seems to revel in the fear which the Grýla-like intruder and his army struck among the Norwegians. Abbot Karl and his king present his great undertaking as a threat to established society, but one justified (1) by his success, unexpected and brilliant, as if from God, and (2) by his accomplishments in the position he took with cunning force from the family of Sigurðr Jorsalafari, Magnússon. The large shadow which Mueller perceived in 1820 is as clear in the language of this saga as it is in those crimes of Sverrir's to which the teller alludes, but upon which he does not elaborate. The collaborative voice of Sverris Saga described a starkly practical king, not overly scrupulous of conscience, yet a diversely skill leader. the God who rules all would seem to have chosen his royal servant wisely.
Applications 13. Handout. Proverbial Allusions in Sverris saga and in Fóstbrœðra saga: Some Considerations.
AASSC Vancouver, 3 June 2008
Richard L. Harris, University of Saskatchewan, Canada [heorot@sasktel.net]
1. JAFNAN SEGIR ENN RÍKRI RÁÐ. SVERRIR'S UNLIKELY DREAM OF GOD'S WILL BEFORE THE DEATH OF ERLINGR JARL IN BATTLE:
ÍF XXX. 42. 66. Þá mælti draummaðr at hann skyldi niðr setjask ok matask, leggr síðan manninn fyrir hann. . . . "Þú vilt eta ok þú skalt eta; svá vill sá er öllu ræðr." . . . Ok svá lengi sem hann hafði etit þá þótti honum því minna fyrir er ofarr var. En er hann kom at höfðinu vildi hann þá ok eta þat. Ok sá maðr . . . tók höfuðit til sín ok kvað þá hætta skyldu. Þótti honum þá litlu minna fyrir frá at hverfa en til at taka fyrir öndverðu ok varð þá við at skiljask.
Saga of King Sverri. 42. 53-4. Then the vision bade Sverrir sit down and eat, placing the [roasted] man before him. . . . "Thou wilt and shalt eat, for so wills He who governs all things." . . . the longer he ate, the less disgust he seemed to feel at eating the remainder. Coming to the head, he was about to eat it also; but the man . . . told him to cease eating, and took the head himself. Sverrir's unwillingness to leave off now seemed to him little less than his former unwillingness to begin, but the stronger man had his way [sic].
ÍM 268. RÍKUR Jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð. M ríkur: voldugur Ríkari verður að ráða. FJ Hinn ríkari verður ráð að segja. E
FJ Proverb word 334. Page 181. ríkr (jfr heima) – jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð Mhk 23; jfr Eirspennill 47. ‘Altid er det den mægtigste (af to), der giver råd (?: med myndighed), hvis ikke segja ráð her er en blot omskrivning for ráða ‘råde’. Det samma findes i prosa således: hinn ríkari verðr at segja Clár 15 (247). Sammen hængen her taler bestemt for den sidst anførte opfattelse. = GJ: Ríkari verðr (hlýtr) að ráða.
TPMA 4. 460. GEWALT/pouvoir (subts./power 1. Der Mächtigere entscheidet (setzt seinen Willen durch) Nord. 1 En sá réð, Es ríkri vas Aber derjenige entschied, der mächtiger war SÓLARLJÓÐ 36, 4 (= GERING S. 11). 2 Jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð Immer sagt der Mächtigere, was zu tun ist (wörtl.: die Beschlüsse) MÁLSHÁTTAKVÆÐI 23, 1 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 334. JÓNSSON 137). 3 Stare penes libitum satagit vis celsa qui ritum. – Ee wil waaldh sijn wiliæ haffwæ Die hohe Gewalt der Quiriten will bei ihrer Willkür verharren. – Gewalt will immer ihren Willen haben LÅLE 1017. 4 Hinn ríkari verðr ráð at segja Der Mächtigere kann sagen, was zu tun ist (wörtl.: den Beschluss) CLÁRI SAGA 15, 5 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 334).
2. THE GRÝLA EFFECT; TROLLS AND DYNR -- THE DARK AND THREATENING HUMOR OF SVERRIR'S (AUTO-)BIOGRAPHER:
[1] ÍF XXX. 15. 26. Var þeim mönnum settr inn sami markaðr sem inum fyrrum, því at hvárirtveggju ætlaðu til Ívars at fara ef eigi kœmi troll milli húss ok heimar.5 5troll milli húss ok heima: óvættur fyrir dyrum úti.
Saga of King Sverri. 15. 19. Both fleets were intending to join Ivar, if there came no 'trolls in the way between the outhouse and home.'
[2] ÍF XXX. 156. 237. Skútur Bagla reru upp í ána ok fyrir bœinn svá at þeir lögðu allt upp til Skellingarhellu. En þeir réðu eigi til landgöngu við Bröttueyri ok þótti þar óhreint fyrir er þeir kenndu at Sigrflugan var á lofti.1 1óhreint fyrir AE, reimt fyrir Sk, troll fyrir dyrum F. – Sigrflugan: merki Sverris konungs.
Saga of King Sverri. 156. 195. The Bagals rowed their cutters into the river in front of the town, and placed them all the way up to Skellingarhella; they decided not to make a landing on Brott-eyri, for they thought it like a house door beset with trolls when they recognised the Sigrfluga aloft there.
[3] ÍF XXX. 175. 272. "Ok þá mynda ek eigi vita nema Baglar gengi af berginu, ok mætti þeir koma milli húss ok búanda."
Saga of King Sverri. 175. 225. "I expect the Bagals will then come down from the rock; so we shall place some of our troops in ambush close to it, and 'trolls will come between house and yeomen.'" The Icelandic contains an allusion to the proverbial phrase, troll milli húss ok heimar, which Sephton as translator has chosen to expand from reference to the full phrase itself.
AND
ÍF XXX. 23. 38. Erlingr jarl var þá í Víkinni austr ok spurði þetta. Hann lét þegar bjóða út leiðangri á bak jólum ok hugðisk mundu koma þeim dyn fyrir dyrr ok teppa þá inni í dölunum ok2 taka þá í kvíum sem sauði til skurðar. 2koma – ok: þannig EFSk, vantar í A. Orðtakið merkir að koma óvörum, gera dyn fyrir dyrum úti.
Saga of King Sverri. 23. 29. At this time Earl Erling was staying east in Vik, and heard of these proceedings. Immediately after Yule he summoned a levy, thinking to make a din at the door of the Birkibeins, and shut them up in the Dales, like sheep in pens ready for slaughter.
ÍF XXX. 76. 118. Konungr segir svá at hann vill ekki þá letja ok kvað þat líkara at Heklungar myndu vera konungi sínum litlir til varnar ef þeir vakna svefnœrir, – "Mun þeim mjök á felmt verða þá er vér komum þeim dyn fyrir dyrr. "5 5þeim – dyrr: EFSk, vantar í A; orðtakið er notað um að koma á óvart með ófriði, sbr. b.s 38 nm.
Saga of King Sverri. 76. 96. And the King answered that he would not prevent them. "It is likely," he said, "that the Heklungs will be of little use in defence of their King if they are roused up drowsy and drunk; and they will be terrified when we make a din at their doors."
ÍF XXX. 15. 25. En höfðingja þeir sem eftir váru hljópu hingat ok þingat sem mýss í holur.
Saga of King Sverri. 15. 18. . . .while the chiefs who escaped from the battle ran hither and thither like mice to their holes.
ÍF XXX. 15. 26. Þeir fengu þess konar kaupferð at þeir seldu klæði sín ok vápn í mót knúskan ok illleikni, létu ok allt laust þat er þeir höfðu fémætt.
Saga of King Sverri. 15. 19. Their crews did some trade--trade of this kind: they bartered their clothes and weapons for knocks and shame. They lost everything of value they possessed, . . .
ÍF XXX. 17. 29-30. Þar váru þrjú hundruð manna at því boði, en þó kómu fleiri en boðit væri. Birkibeinar sóttu ok til kirkjumessu ok bjoggusk þá til orrostu.
Saga of King Sverri. 17. 22. Three hundred were bidden, but more than three hundred attended; for the Birkibeins came to the festival, all prepared for battle.
ÍF XXX. 17. 30. Nú taka þeir veizlu er óboðit kómu, en hinir váru brot eltir er búa létu.
Saga of King Sverri. 17. 22. And now the unbidden guests were they that enjoyed the feast, and they that prepared it were chased away.
ÍF XXX. 21. 36-7. Hann fór þá nótt við fimtán menn ok kom til Þorgríms ok fann hann heima við níunda mann, ok varð þeira fundr með öðru móti en Þorgrímr hafði til hugat, því at Guð skipti svá með þeim at sá bar hæra hlut er tígnari var, ok var búandi bundinn en húskarlar hans barðir.
Saga of King Sverri. 21. 28. Taking five men with him, he went to seek Thorgrim, whom he found at home with eight men, and their meeting was of another kind than Thorgrim had expected. For God ordered between them that the nobler man had the upper hand.
ÍF XXX. 22. 37-8. Kómu þá aftr at jólunum ok í byggðina, ok varð þá at vera öllum jafnheimilt hversugi er vasikampr vildi. Hafði konungr inar beztu veizlur um öll jól.
Saga of King Sverri. 22. 29. He reached the district at Yuletide, and his menn all made themselves at home, [however the rustics might like it].
ÍF XXX. 23. 38. Erlingr jarl var þá í Víkinni austr ok spurði þetta. Hann lét þegar bjóða út leiðangri á bak jólum ok hugðisk mundu koma þeim dyn fyrir dyrr ok teppa þá inni í dölunum ok taka þá í kvíum sem sauði til skurðar.
Saga of King Sverri. 23. 29. At this time Earl Erling was staying east in Vik, and heard of these proceedings. Immediately after Yule he summoned a levy, thinking to make a din at the door of the Birkibeins, and shut them up in the Dales, like sheep in pens ready for slaughter.
ÍF XXX. 23. 38. Var hann þá fyrr í brotu ok austr á Vermalandi en jarl kom upp þannig, ok átti hann þá at blístra í spor honum.3. 3 þannig: þann veg, þangað. – blístra í spor e-m: kemur einnig fyrir í Kormáks sögu. Til er svipað þýskt orðtak sem vísar til fuglaveiðimanns eða manns sem blístrar eftir brotthlaupnum hundi án árangurs (Johan Fritzner, Ordbog over Det gamle norske Sprog I, 156-57; Ordbog over det norrøne prosasprog 2, d. 468).
Saga of King Sverri. 23. 29. As Yule passed on he drew south towards the main entrance, and before the Earl could reach that spot he was away east in Vermaland, leaving his pursuers to whistle in his rear.
ÍF XXX. 37. 59-60. Þessi maðr hét Eyvindr, hann svarar: "Vápn þau er ek ætla at berjask með munu koma í mót mér ór bœnum, ok jarlsmenn fara enn með þau."
Saga of King Sverri. 37. 48. The man's name was Eyvind, and he answered, "The weapons I am going to fight with are on their way from the town, the Earl's men have them still."
ÍF XXX. 47. 73. Hafa þeir þat flest lið er betr væri fallit til brúðmanna en hirðmanna ok meirr hefir vanizk mjöðdrykkja en herskap.
Saga of King Sverri. 47. 59. ". . . the greatest part of them are more at home at a wedding than a fight, and are more accustomed to mead-drinking than to warfare."
ÍF XXX. 49. 79. Bœndr reru þegar út ór Váginum er þeir kómu á skipin, ok varð sá fegnastr ef fyrst varð á brautu ok þótti sem var, at aldri varð verri ferð farin en sú við jafnmiklu liði.
Saga of King Sverri. 49. 63 When the yeomen were safe on board they rowed hastily out of the bay, and the sooner a man got away the happier he was. And the truth came to them, that no expedition so imposing in magnitude as theirs had ever fared worse.
ÍF XXX. 82. 126. En ef bœndr forðask fund várn ok vilja eigi sættask við oss þá skulum vér svá heðan fara at bœndr skulu eiga bakelda ok smíðarkol þar sem nú eru bœir þeira. Látið aldri kot eftir standa, nema þér gætið til um kirkjur þar er svá má.
Saga of King Sverri. 82. 103. "If the yeomen avoid meeting us, and will not come to terms, they must expect, when we go away hence, to find fires to warm their backs and smith's coals where now their homesteads lie. Let not a cottage stand anywhere; take care only of the churches wherever you can."
ÍF XXX. 86. 133. Magnús konungr mælti at engi maðr skyldi svá djarfr at lík þeira grœfi fyrr en hann kœmi aftr til bœjarins ok þét þó vera vel fellt at þeir biði þar hunds ok hrafns.
Saga of King Sverri. 86. 108. King Magnus ordered that no one should have the audacity to bury the bodies before he came back to the town; and declared it their rightful due, to be left to raven and to dog.
TPMA 6. 252. HUND/chien/dog 11. Futter und Fressen des Hundes 11.8 Verschiedenes Nord. 490 Óvant er at brjóta mat fyrir hund ok hrafn Das Futter für Hund und Rabe braucht nicht zerlegt zu werden SVERRIS SAGA 79 (? GERING 59). 491 Veit hundar hvad jetit hefuri Der Hund weiss, was er gefressen hat KÅLUND 82 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 187. JÓNSSON 78). 492 Martt finna hundar sier i haugum Viel finden die Hunde für sich auf dem Misthaufen KÅLUND 84 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 187. JÓNSSON 77).
ÍF XXX. 88. 136. "Þat mun ok þykkja líkara at vér hafim ekki vel vingazk við þá menn er fyrir búa hér í Sogni."
Saga of King Sverri. 88. 110. "You will doubtless feel that we have not made good friends of the people that dwell here in Sogn."
ÍF XXX. 89. 139. "En Sverrir hefir nú dreift liði sínu hingat ok þingat; eru nú hér lukðir ok inni byrgðir fyrir oss sem sauðir í kví."
Saga of King Sverri. 89. 113. "Sverri has now scattered his forces here and there, and has now but few men left him, and they are enclosed here before us, in the fiord, like sheep in a pen."
ÍF XXX. 90. 140. Þá mælti Ásbjörn: "Nú er sá dagr kominn er vér höfum allir langat til, at Sverrir ok þeir Birkibeinar eru hér nú fyrir oss reknir sem sauðir í kví, ok er nú lokit slœgðum hans ok brögðum, því at nú mun sá bregðask honum ok þeim Birkibeinum er hann hefir öll ráð af tekit, en þat er sá fjándinn er hann trúar á.
Saga of King Sverri. 90. 113. Then Asbiorn spoke: – "The day is now come that we have all longed for, when Sverri and the Birkibeins are here in front of us forced like sheep into a pen."
ÍF XXX. 90. 140. Sœkjum nú at þeim Birkibeinum, tveir eða þrír at einum ef þat þykkir léttara. Höggum stórt þat er at oss horfir, hirðum eigi hvar á kømr, því at óvant er at brytja mat fyrir hunda eða hrafna."
Saga of King Sverri. 90. 114. "Let us set on these Birkibeins, two or three on one if it makes the work lighter; and let us deal heavy strokes at all before us, careless where the blows fall, for we use no care in chopping meat for dogs or ravens. As for their souls, let the men of Soknadale show them where to go."
See above, 86. 133.
ÍF XXX. 95. 146. Kómu Sóknadœlir ok kaupangsmenn þá til hans, sættusk þá við hann ok mæltu þá engu í mót því er hann vildi at væri ok bundu þat svardögum. Kom þat þar fram er mælt er, at margr kyssir á þá hönd er hann vildi gjarna at af væri.
Saga of King Sverri. 95. 119. The men of the Soknadale and the market-town then came and made peace with him, and they said not a word now against the King's wish, but bound themselves by oath to perform it. And here was the saying fulfilled, "Many a man kisses the hand that he would fain see lopped."
TPMA 5. 382. HAND/main/hand 18. Verhalten bezüglich der Hand 18.4. Man küsst die Hand (beugt sich der Hand), die man gerne abgeschnitten (verbrannt) sähe Nord. 192 Kom þat þar fram, er mælt er: at margr kyssir á þá hönd, er hann vildi gjarna at af væri Es kam da so weit, wie es im Sprichwort heisst, das mancher die Hand küsst, von der er gerne wollte, dass sie abgeschnitten wäre SVERRIS SAGA 95 (? FMS VIII, 231 [= GERING 62]). 194 Margr lýtr sá nú hendinni, er gjarna vildi at af væri Mancher beugt sich nun der Hand, von der er gerne möchte, dass sie abgehauen wäre SVERRIS SAGA 99 (?FMS VIII, 243 [= GERING 62]). 195 Basio sepe volam cui glisco luem fore solam. - Man kysser offthe then haand han willæ aff wore Oft küsse ich eine solche Hand, der ich wünsche, dass sie allein die Pest hätte. - Mann küsst oft die Hand, die man abgeschnitten wünscht LÅLE 98. See below, 99. 154.
ÍF XXX. 95. 147. Þá mælti konungr til þeira: "Siti þér hér á fiskinni fast, eða hversu veiðisk?" Ok í því bili drógu þeir þar lík at borði. Konungr mælti: "Dýran drógu þér þar at borði, ok er yðr mikil gifta í þessu." "Já," sögðu þeir, "á hefir þá bitit mjök vel, herra, ef þetta er lík konungs." Sverrir konungr mælti: "Þetta er lík Magnúss konungs."
Saga of King Sverri. 95. 119. And the King said to them, "You sit hard a-fishing here; how does the catch go?" At that moment they dragged up a body. And the King said, "A noble man you have drawn there to the boat's side; you have good luck in this." "Yea," answered Liot, "an excellent bite that has been, Sire, if it is the King's body." And King Sverrir said, "That is King Magnus's body."
ÍF XXX. 96. 149. ". . . Sverrir konungr hefir nú beygt hálsana á meirum stórbukkum en þér eruð, húsbœndr, vasikamparnir ok kaupmenn."
Saga of King Sverri. 96. 121. ". . . for King Sverrir has now bent the necks of greater and mightier bucks than you, house-masters, rustics, and timid merchants, who tremble, one for his life, another for his money, and the third at wind and rain."
ÍF XXX. 99. 153. "Höfðu þeir með sér it bezta ráðuneyti er í var landinu, tóku öll ríki konunganna, þeira er ættbornir váru til, allt þar til er Guð sendi útan af útskerjum einn lítinn mann ok lágan at steypa þeira ofdrambi, en sá maðr var ek. Ekki tókum vér þat af oss sjálfum, heldr sýndi Guð þat hversu lítit honum var fyrir at steypa þeira ofdrambi. Ok kømr þar at því sem mælt er, at sárt bítr soltin lús."
Saga of King Sverri. 99. 124. "They were supported by the best counsellors in the land, and they seized all the realm of the kings who were the rightful heirs, until God sent from the outlying islands a mean and lowly man to bring down their pride. I was that man. We did not effect that of ourselves; God rather showed by us how easy it was for Him to lower their pride. And here the saying applies, 'A hungry louse bites hard.'"
FJ Proverb word 418. Page 194. úlfr – fangs er ván (þar er f. v.) at (af) frekum úlfi Eyrb 90, Sturl3 II 212, Laxd 57, Fms V 294, Reginsen 13. ‘Tag (Kamp) kan man vænte fra en grådig ulv’ = GJ.
ÍM 336. ÚLFUR Fangs er von að (af) frekum úlfi. Eyrb. 47. kap. o. v. fang: (hér) hörð viðureign.
TPMA 13. 165. WOLF/loup/wolf 1. Bösartigkeit des Wolfs 1.8. Von einem gierigen Wolf ist Kampf zu erwarten Nord. 22 Er mér fangs vón at frekom úlfi Von einem gierigen Wolf habe ich Kampf zu erwarten. REGINSMÁL 13, 4. 23 Er fangs ván af frekum úlfi Von einem gierigen Wolf ist Kampf zu erwarten LAXDŒLA SAGA 19, 27. 24 Er því fangs ván at frekum úlfi Es ist deshalf von einem gierigen Wolf Kampf zu erwarten EYRBYGGJA SAGA 47, 6. 25 Sem vera muni fángs von at frekum úlfi Wie von einem gierigen Wolf Kampf zu erwarten sein wird EYMUNDAR ÞÁTTR HRÍNGSSONAR 11 (? FMS V, 294). 26 Þotte þeim þar fangs ván at frekvm vlfe Es schien ihm, da sei von einem gierigen Wolf Kampf zu erwarten STURLUNGA SAGA II, 212, 22 (=JÓNSSON, ARKIV 418. JÓNSSON 170)3 3Gilt für alle nord. Belege dieser Gruppe.
ÍF XXX. 99. 154. "Fól væri Sverrir þá ef hann vildi þat til vinna til þessa vesla ríkis er á engarri stundu er með frelsi, ok þó væri einskis vert at með friði stœði, en týna þar í mót sálu sinni ok allri hjálpinni. Sýnisk mér svá sem hér vaði allt saman, kálfar ok úlfar. Kann vera at yðr þykki rúmborat sáld mitt. Margr lýtr sá nú hendinni er gjarna vildi at af væri. Sá kallar nú frændann er fyrir skömmu kallaði fjándann. Ok þat hygg ek ef hér mætti ný sjá hvers manns hug þess er hér er kominn, ok stœði hverjum horn ór enni er mér hyggr illa, at margr skyldi þá hér nú knýflóttr fram ganga
Saga of King Sverri. 99. 125. "Sverri would be a fool indeed if, for this miserable realm, which at no time has been held in peace – yea, and if it were founded on peace, would be of no value – he so laboured as to lose for it his soul and all salvation. It seems to me as if all are mixed together here calves and wolves. Perhaps you think my sieve is a coarse one. Many a man now bows to the hand he would fain see lopped, and he who lately called me foe now calls me friend. This I think, that if we could see the thoughts of every one who has come here, and if a horn stood out of each man's forehead who thinks ill of me, many a man here would carry a short horn."
See above, 95. 146.
ÍF XXX. 101. 156. Jón hafði áðr verit munkr í Höfuðey. Hann lagði kuflinn, þann er Birkibeinar festu við hann, ok kölluðu hann kuflung, gáfu hann þat fyrir konungs nafn.
Saga of King Sverri. 101. 127. Jon had formerly been a monk at Hofudey. He gladly laid aside his cowl; but the Birkibeins replaced it on him, saying that by right of his monastery he could not retain less than the name, and they called him Kuglung, giving him the title for King's name.
ÍF XXX. 123. 188. Síðan gerði hann menn eftir Nikolási byskupi, ok er byskup kom til konungs þá heimti konungr hann á tal ok sagði at hann var þess varr orðinn at öll þau svikræði er þeir Hallkell höfðu haft við Sverri konung þá höfðu fyrst upp komit undan tungurótum byskups. Bar konungr þat á hendr honum með jartegnum.
Saga of King Sverri. 123. 154. He told the Bishop that he had come to know that all the treasonous plot which Hallkel and others had devised against the King had its origin under the roots of the Bishop's tongue, and he supported the charge against the Bishop with proofs.
ÍF XXX. 133. 200. Konungrinn, sá er ríkinu stýrir, þarf bæði at vera harpr ok ráðvandr. En oss sýnisk svá, þó at Nikolás sé tungusnjallr maðr, sem hann hafi hérra hjarta en ótryggð sem refrinn, því at jafnan hefir oss nú svá reynzk."
Saga of King Sverri. 133. 164. "The King who governs the realm needs to be both severe and upright; and though Nikolas is glib of tongue, he seems to me to have the heart of a hare and the falseness of a fox; such has always been my experience of him."
TPMA 5. 411. HASE/lièvre/hare 1. Eigenschaften des Hasen 1.1. Die Furchtsamkeit des Hasen 1.1.2. Ein Hasenherz (Einen Hasen in der Brust) haben2 Nord. 10 Sem hann hafi hèra hjarta Der das Herz eines Hasen habe SVERRIS SAGA 133 (? FMS VIII, 314). 11 Ílt at fylgja þeim manni, er hèra hjarta hefir í brjósti Schlecht ist es, dem Mann zu folgen, der das Herz eines Hasen in der Brust hat GROSSE ÓLÁFS SAGA TRYGGVASONAR 173 (? FMS II, 68). 2Vgl. TOBLER - LOMMATZSCH II, 1118, 35 f. u. V, 439, 43 ff.
ÍF XXX. 163. 253. Þá talar konungr enn: "Hafizk enn vel við, góðir drengir, þó at vér hafim fengit slag nökkut.2 Oft verðr slíkt á sæ kvað selr, var skotinn í auga. Fengit hafa bœndr sigr á oss, þann sem þeir munu." 2slag: áfall, árás.
Saga of King Sverri. 163. 209. Then the King said: "Bear up boldly, my gallant fellows, though we have suffered a slight defeat. 'Happens often so at sea,' as the seal said when he was shot in the eye. The yeomen have all the victory they will get."
TPMA 10. 355. SEEHUND/phoque/seal Nord. 1 Opt verðr slíkt á sæ, kvað selr, var skotinn í auga "Dies geschieht häfig zur See", sagte der Seehund, als er ins Auge geschossen wurde SVERRIS SAGA 163 (? FMS VIII, 402[= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 350. JÓNSSON 143]).
ÍF XXX. 165. 259. "En ef vér förum heim við svá búit ok ljáum Birkibeinum vald á oss þá strjúkum vér aldri síðan frjálst höfuð."
Saga of King Sverri. 165. 214. "If we go home as we are, and allow the Birkibeins to have sway over us, we shall never henceforth have a free head to stroke."
ÍF XXX. 165. 259. Konungr stóð upp ok mælti: "Þat man hér sannask um þessa bœndr sem mælt er, at seint þrýtr þann er verr hefir."
Saga of King Sverri. 165. 214. And the King stood up and said: "The proverb may be very truly applied to these yeomen, 'He that has the worse case is slow to withdraw.'"
TPMA 10. 173. SCHLECHT/mauvais/bad 7. Verschiedenes Nord. 721 Þat man hér sannast um þessa bændr, sem mælt er, at seint þrýtr þann er verr hefir Das, was man sagt, sollte sich hier an diesen Bauern bewahrheiten, dass denhenigen die Kräfte spät verlassen, der schlect dran ist23 SVERRIS SAGA 165 (? FMS VIII, 412[=JÓNSSON, ARKIV 198]. 722 Þrýtra þann er verr hefr valt (lies mit Möbius u. Jónsson: ávalt) Je schlimmer es geht, um so weniger verlässt ihn die Kraft (Möbius)24 MÁLSHÁTTAKVÆÐI 26, 1 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 198. JÓNSSON 86). 723 Eigi gengr ilt til allz Nicht für alles ist Schlechtes die Ursache BÓSA SAGA 25, 6 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 198. JÓNSSON 85). 23Anders CLEASBY 746 s.v. þrióta ("the man with a bad case has a hundred excuses") u. BAETKE 783 s.v. þrjóta ("wer eine schlechte Sache verficht, der gibt nicht so leicht auf"). 24Wörtl. Den verlassen die Kräfte nicht, der immer schlecht dran ist.
ÍF XXX. 165. 260. Ok er konungr heyrði þat lét hann blása herblástr ok reið fram djarfliga. Fundu þá bœndr at þeir mundu smæra steikt hafa, en haft konung á teini.4 4en – teini: þannig EFSk 8, en þeir ætluðu A.
Saga of King Sverri. 165. 215. When the King heard it, he ordered a war-blast to be blown, and rode forward boldly; and the yeomen discovered that they had a smaller steak on the spit than they imagined [sic]. -- than to have had the king on the spit.
3. JAFNAN SEGIR ENN RÍKRI RÁÐ. ALLUSIONS IN FÓSTBRÆÐRA SAGA.
1. Chapter 1 (Present only in Möðruvallabók and R) The farmers, resigned to Þorbjörg’s use of her power to save Grettir from them:
ÍF VI. 1. 122. “Hafa muntu ríki til þess, at hann sé eigi af lífi tekinn, hvárt sem þat er rétt eða rangt.”
CSI 330 “Right or wrong, you have the power to prevent him from being executed.”
2. Hávarr responds to Vermund’s sentence that he must remove his family from Ísafjörðr:
ÍF VI. 2. 126. Hávarr segir: “Ráða muntu því, Vermundr, at vér munum ráðask í brott ór Ísafirði með fé várt, . . .”
CSI 332 Havar said, “Vermund, you have the power to make me leave Isafjord with all my belongings, . . .”
Ed. note. Proverbial reference to Ríkari verður að ráða.
ÍM 268. RÍKUR Jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð. M[álsháttakvæði] ríkur: voldugur Ríkari verður að ráða. FJ Hinn ríkari verður ráð að segja. E[imreiðin 10. Árg. 1904]
FJ Proverb word 334. Page 181. ríkr (jfr heima) – jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð Mhk 23; jfr Eirspennill 47. ‘Altid er det den mægtigste (af to), der giver råd (?: med myndighed), hvis ikke segja ráð her er en blot omskrivning for ráða ‘råde’. Det samma findes i prosa således: hinn ríkari verðr at segja Clár 15 (247). Sammen hængen her taler bestemt for den sidst anførte opfattelse. = GJ: Ríkari verðr (hlýtr) að ráða.
GÓ 128. 2717. Rikare verda ad ráda. [GJ 27616]
TPMA 4. 460. GEWALT/pouvoir (subts./power 1. Der Mächtigere entscheidet (setzt seinen Willen durch) Nord. 1 En sá réð, Es ríkri vas Aber derjenige entschied, der mächtiger war SÓLARLJÓÐ 36, 4 (= GERING S. 11). 2 Jafnan segir enn ríkri ráð Immer sagt der Mächtigere, was zu tun ist (wörtl.: die Beschlüsse) MÁLSHÁTTAKVÆÐI 23, 1 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 334. JÓNSSON 137). 3 Stare penes libitum satagit vis celsa quiritum. – Ee wil waaldh sijn wiliæ haffwæ Die hohe Gewalt der Quiriten will bei ihrer Willkür verharren. – Gewalt will immer ihren Willen haben LÅLE 1017. 4 Hinn ríkari verðr ráð at segja Der Mächtigere kann sagen, was zu tun ist (wörtl.: den Beschluss) CLÁRI SAGA 15, 5 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 334).
Ed. note. Conceptual linkage. FJ Proverb word 74. Page 76. dróttinn – dýrt er (mun verða; láta menn) dróttins orð Laxd 182, Bisk I 484, 803, II 51, Fms II 269, IV 175, Isls II 445, Alex 128 (honum væri dýrt látanda d. o.) DraumJ. 5, Mhk. 5. TPMA 6. 42. HERR/seigneur/lord 5. Eigenschaften des Herrschers 5.1. Der Herr hat Macht und Autorität 5.1.3. Die Worte des Herrn haben Gewicht 5. 1. 3. 1. Die Worte des Herrn gelten viel Nord. 214-222 Dýrt er drottins orð Das Wort des Herrn ist viel wert SNORRI, ÓLAFS SAGA HELGA 82 (® FMS IV, 175 [= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 74]. SNORRI, HEIMSKRINGLA 248, 36 (Ólafs saga helga 85). 356, 13 (Ólafs saga helga 165). GROSSE ÓLAFS SAGA TRYGGVASONAR 235 (® FMS II, 269 [= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 74]). BISKUPASÖGUR I, 484. I, 803. II, 51 (® JÓNSSON, ARKIV 74). DRAUMA-JÓNS SAGA 5, 48 (1. H. Jh. [® ZFDPH 26, 304 = JÓNSSON, ARKIV 74]). KJÁLNESINGA SAGA 15 S. 35. 223 Dýrt láta menn dróttins orð Man bezeichnet das Wort des Herrn als etwas Kostbares MÁLSHÁTTAVKÆÐI 5, 5 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 74, JÓNSSON 31). 224 Dýrt mun mér verða dróttins orð Das Wort des Herrn soll mir gewichtig sein LAXDŒLA SAGA 47, 19 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 74. JÓNSSON 31). 225 At honom vere sem auðrom dyrt latannda drottins orð Dass das Wort des Herrn für ihn ebensoviel bedeute wie für einen andern ALEXANDERS SAGA 128 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 74). 226 Jussio sueuit hero celsi sublimis haberi. – Høyt ær herræ bwdh Der Befehl eines hohen Herrn wird gewöhnlich hochgehalten. – Hoch steht (wörtl.: ist) das Gebot eines Herrn LÅLE 521.
3. Þorgeirr uses the arbitary imposition of his power to save the thief, Veglágr:
ÍF VI. 13. 188. Þá segir Þorgeirr: "Hvat sem yðr sýnisk rétt vera um þetta mál, þá mun yðr þó verða maðrinn dýrkeyptr í þessu sinni, ok eigi mun hann af lífi tekinn, ef ek má því ráða."
CSI 360. Then Thorgeir said, "Despite what you think is the right course of action, in this instance the man's price will be too costly for you. He will not be executed if I have any say in the matter."
4. THE TROLLS OF FÓSTBRÆÐRA SAGA.
ÍF ÍF VI. 1. 121. . . . ok þar, sem hann kom, hafði hann þat nær af hverjum, er hann kallaði, ok [þó] at hann kallði þat gefit eða þeir, er laust létu féit, þá váru þær gjafar þann veg, at margir menn myndi sitt fé eigi laust láta fyrir honum, ef þeim sýndisk eigi troll fyrir durum.
CSI II. 1. 329-30. . . . and wherever he went he managed to have people give him what he wanted. However, what Grettir called gifts would not have been regarded as such, or so readily given away, had people not felt that they had a troll on their doorstep.
ÍF ÍF VI. 9. 161. ". . . at vera kann, at þeir menn, er til hafa görzk at biðja hennar, ef þeir vissi, at þú ert nökkut riðinn við hennar mál -- má vera, at þeim sýnisk troll standa fyrir durum, þar sem þú ert."
CSI II. 9. 349. ". . . it's just that any man who might be thinking about proposing marriage to her will regard you as a troll on his doorstep."
Select Bibliography.
Editions. Sverris saga. Ed. Þorleifur Hauksson. Íslensk fornrit XXX. Reykjavík, 2007.
Sverris saga etter Cod. AM 327 4to. Ed. Gustav Indrebø. Kristiania, 1920.
Fóstbrœðra saga in Íslenzk fornrit VI. Vestfirðinga sögur. Eds. Björn K. Þórólfsson and Guðni Jónsson. Reykjavík, 1943.
Translations. The Saga of King Sverri of Norway (Sverrissaga). Tr. J. Sephton. London, 1899. Repr. Llanerch Publishers, Felinfach, 1994.
The Saga of the Sworn Brothers, tr. Martin S. Regal. In The Complete Sagas of Icelanders, II. Ed. Viðar Hreinsson. Reykjavík, 1997.
Studies:
Ármann Jakobsson. "Sinn eiginn smiður. Ævintýrið um Sverri Konung," Skírnir 179 2005.
Árni Björnsson. Jól á Íslandi. Reykjavík, 1963. "Tröll og forynjur -- Grýla" 139-146.
Bagge, Sverre. "Ideology and Propaganda in Sverris saga," ANF 108, 1993.
Einar Ól Sveinsson. "Sagnaritun í Húnaþingi," V-XIV of "Formáli", Vatnsdœla saga, etc. Íslenzk fornrit VIII. Reykjavík, 1939.
Hermann Pálsson. Tólfta Öldin. Reykjavík, 1970. "Stofnun Þingeyraklausturs," 92-102.
Janus Jónsson. Um klaustrin á Íslandi. Reykjavík, 1887. "I. Þingeyraklaustur," 182-200.
Jonas Kristjánsson. Um Fóstbræðrasögu. Reykjavík, 1972.
Larús H. Blöndal. Um uppruna Sverrissögu. Reykjavík, 1982.
Ljungqvist, Fredrik C. "Kristen kungaideologi i Sverris saga," Scripta Islandica: Isländska Sällskapets Årsbok 57 2006.
Lönnroth, Lars. "Sverrir's Dreams," Scripta Islandica: Isländska Sällskapets Årsbok 57 2006.
Müller , Peter Erasmus. Sagabibliothek med Anmærkninger og indledende Afhandlinger. "Sverres Saga," III. 413-426. Copenhagen, 1820.
Þorleifur Hauksson. "Sverris saga and early saga-style," delivered at The Thirteenth International Saga Conference. Sunday 6th August 2006 - Saturday 12th August 2006. [http://www.dur.ac.uk/medieval.www/sagaconf/thorleifur.htm]
Other works:
Thesaurus Proverbiorum Medii Aevi, ed. by the Kuratorium Singer. 13 volumes and Quellenverzeichnis. Berlin & New York, 1996-2002. (Abbrev. TPMA)
Hugo Gering, "Altnordische sprichwörter und sprichwörtlische redensarten," ANF 32 1915-16. (Abbrev. Gering)
Finnur Jónsson, "Oldislandske ordsprog og talemåder," ANF 30 1913-14. (Abbrev. FJ)
Return to Proverbial Allusions in Sverris saga and in Fóstbrœðra saga, Applications, Concordance.
Return to Applications, Concordance.