Session 110. Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies. 42 International Congress on Medieval Studies. 10 May 2007, Kalamazoo.
Richard L. Harris, Department of English, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Sask., Canada [heorot@sasktel.net]
Today I will talk about some proverbs which are found in Morkinskinna, a text, and physically a manuscript, containing sagas of the Norwegian kings. In studies of the kings’ sagas it is necessary to take into account the complexity of relationships between pertinent manuscripts and those texts to which they bear witness. Thus, the text of Morkinskinna (or “rotten parchment”) derives its name from the later 13th century manuscript, Gamle kongelige samling 1009 fol. Þormóður Torfason called the manuscript thus in using it for his Historia Rerum Norvegicarum which he published in 1711, covering Norwegian royal history to 1387. The manuscript contains orthographical archaisms of even distribution throughout its 37 extant leaves, and there is consensus that it is descended from an earlier version of the text, produced before or around 1220, which was perhaps descended from an even earlier form of the narrative. The earlier text itself is thought to have been partially indebted in turn to a couple of known literary sources, the Ancient History of the Norwegian Kings, written by Theodoricus the monk in 1177-88 and the Ágrip af Nóregs konunga sögum, from around 1190. After the completion of this earlier manuscript, but before the extant copy was made, the text of Morkinskinna was used in the compilation of Fagrskinna and of Heimskringla, and the Rotten Parchment is clearly indebted at some points to those texts as well. While we need not be troubled by these details of transmission in the paper I am reading today, it can be useful to keep in mind the existence of Morkinskinna as the result in one manuscript of a very complex process about which there are still many unanswered questions.
Thus, if we consider Theodoricus as one of the sources of material in Morkinskinna, we could be struck by the fact that his paroemial materials, which are sparse, are of learned rather than traditional origin. While Archer Taylor in 1930 remarked “the distinction [in proverbs] between “learned” and “popular” is meaningless and is concerned merely with the accidents of history” (5), he was writing in the structuralist terms of his time. Thorir the monk cites his sources, sometimes inaccurately, and they clearly have no immediate connections with oral traditions of the stories in which they are placed.
1. The notable exception to this general observation is found in the reported comment of Haraldr Sigurðarson before the Battle of Stamford Bridge, when his horse stumbles and he is thrown from it. “Seldom is a sign of this sort an omen of victory,” he observes, and the Ágrip (1190) follows in Old Norse, “Sjaldan fór svá, þá er vel vildi.”(‘Seldom did it go thus when luck wished well.’) (ÍF 39) In Morkinskinna, however, Harald’s reaction takes on a more positive tone: “Fall er farar heill.” (FJ, M, 274) he proclaims. His opponent, Harold Godwinsson, expresses a different view of the event: “Mikill maþr oc ítarliga. Oc er veNa at nv se farin at hamingio.” (274) which lends dramatic irony to the Norse invader’s optimism in the Morkinskinna and later versions of the story.
Both proverbial reactions as expressed by Haraldr to his fall, in the former and latter narratives, are found within a page of each other in Abbot Karl Jónsson’s Sverris saga, in a part likely composed at the court of King Sverrir himself in the 1180s. Here a figure different altogether from Haraldr, Erlingr jarl, who with his son King Magnús faces imminent attack by Sverrir and the Birkibeinir, anticipates trouble when a miraculous mist, sent we are told by St Olaf at the prayer of Sverrir, hides the invading forces. “Eigi fór þá svâ er vel vildi.”(FMS 8, 83-4.) “Luck fared not thus when it wished us well.”(Sephton 41) he complains. And yet later, going ashore to fight, he stumbles leaping from the ship, “ok steypdist fram á knèin, enn stakk niðr höndunum, ok mælti: fall er farar heill.”(FMS 8. 85) “and fell forward on his knees. Thrusting both hands into the ground, he said, ‘Fall portends fortunate journey.’”(Sephton 42)
This latterly expressed view, that a fall brings or is a sign of luck, seems current, at least, in the medieval North, where Saxo’s Erik the Eloquent, in Book 5, first going to meet Froði III, and stepping from his boat, “inadvertently tripped and fell to the earth. He interpreted the stumble as boding well and predicted that after this weak start more propitious events would ensure.” (Saxo, Fisher tr., Davidson notes. 126) Davidson recalls the tradition of William the Conqueror’s similar interpretation of his fall when he landed in England and whimsically ponders a relationship of such episodes to Livy’s story of the first Brutus’ deliberate fall to kiss the earth as secret fulfillment of the Delphic oracle’s prophecy. (Saxo, Notes, pgs 70 & 75) The fact that Harald’s more optimistic interpretation of his fall occurs first, in extant texts, in Morkinskinna leads one to consider whether its application thus was taken by the text’s composer from an unknown source about Haraldr, or whether it originated with him in this context based on more general northerly views of a fall as a good omen. In any case, it is especially interesting that Sverris saga places both proverbs in the mouth of one character within a few lines of each other shortly before he is killed.
2. For today’s presentation I have abbreviated and categorized citations of paroemial material from my on-line Concordance to the Proverbs in the Icelandic Sagas, the Morkinskinna file of which is not yet open to the public. In the first category of your handout are texts which have a Germanic currency or which have more general affinities with Germanic cultural traditions. Thus, when Ingigerðr, wife of Jaroslav, and daughter of Óláfr the Swede, to humble her husband forces him to foster King Óláfr of Norway’s illegitimate son, Magnús, she explains, “it is confirmed in the case of you two that it is the less distinguished man who fosters the other´s child.” (A-G 90). Another royal instance of this custom, again between a foreign and the Norse house, occurs when, in Heimskringla, Haraldr hárfagri sends his son Hákon to be fostered by the English King Æðalstan, who had first sent him a sword as a feudal symbolic means of establishing his own superiority to its receipient. In the Íslendingasögur, of course, fostering is common--a means of making peace, of binding families, and in several relevant episodes are references to this accepted inferiority of the one who fosters.
Some proverbs in this category reach far back into continental Germanic traditions, echoed in Eddic materials, commented upon by Susan Deskis in her discussion of paroemia in Beowulf. Such texts are, then, “Everybody’s got to die sooner or later.” and “Let fortune take its course.” “The cautious man’s business waits till evening.” and “It takes time to test a man/friend.” bespeak the suspicion and slowness to trust of medieval Iceland’s competitive society, and the latter is found, for instance, also in Grettis saga, Friðþjófs saga frœkna and Ljósvetninga saga. Yet it is also found in Medieval Latin and Spanish works and is probably in any case good advice anywhere. So the true test of the ethnic nature of a proverb lies not in its sentiments but rather in the data of its occurrence–and the general wisdom which proverbs tend to embody is not necessarily culturally specific in itself. Nevertheless, categorization of paroemial material found common to the corpus, say, of the Íslendingasögur, can be useful in various ways to our understanding of them and the purposes with which their composers undertook their composition.
Thus, when Steigar-Þórir Þorðarson is led to the gallows that will decapitate him, his imputed last words, “Ill counsels, ill outcomes,” (A-G 290) will remind readers of Njála where the proverb is twice used of the machinations of Hallgerðr, which will lead eventually to Gunnar’s death, and they may also think of the related proverb, “Evil from evil seed/roots” as it is twice applied to the even more deeply destructive scheming of Mörðr Valgarðsson as having sprung from “evil seed”in the words of Flosi Þorðarson, or as Njáll himself puts it, “from evil roots.”
3. Ármann Jakobsson and others have written on how the author of Morkinskinna is “extemely interested in the ideology of kingship, and in particular the necessary virtures of kings.” (“Royal Biographies”, ON-I Lit & Culture, 395). A number of proverbial texts speak of this concern, for instance, when Hákon Ívarsson attempts to inveigle Haraldr hárfagri into granting him the jarldom which the king has not quite promised him, “it is fitting for a king to keep his word,” he reminds him, not having listened carefully enough to Harald’s typically deceptive words. And again, Sigvatr Þórðarson tells Magnús the Good, “it is insolent of a king to harry in his own country” reminding him he has not kept those promises of good governance which he had made when he came to rule Norway. And we here today, reaching farther back in Germanic royal history , might bring to this text the example of the Danish king Heremod, used twice in Beowulf as a cautionary instance of a monarch who came to attack his own people.
4. Theodore M. Andersson has remarked on how the composer of Morkinskinna is concerned with the status of Icelanders in Norway, and we might well consider how other kinds of foreigners are treated in this text. In Haralds saga harðráða Georgios Maniakes as leader of the Byzantine troops is a leader notably inferior to the story’s hero. “Thus it often came about that victories were won when Harald was in command, whereas Georgios did not succeed.” Georgios blames this on lack of support from the Varangians, and Haraldr separates from him taking them and the Normans on further campaigns while the Greek commander retires to Constantinople. Snorri seems here to simplify a relationship developed more fully in Morkinskinna where the leaders clash over military techniques during the campaign they make together in Sicily. In this episode, where Norðbrigt devises ingenious schemes to overcome well fortified and seemingly impregnable towns, Gyrgir voices only discouragement, sometimes in rather curious proverbial terms: “Where the greater remedies don’t work, there’s no point in trying lesser ones” he says, and again, in a case of frustrating recalcitrance on the part of a town’s inhabitants, “Let us explore further and not commit the foolishness of undertaking what we cannot achieve.” And lastly, in the next sentence, the inexplicable admonition “It is no good to sit down more often than you get up.” as he urges Norðbrigt to lift this so far non-productive siege and move to a new area. While the first example is found in TPMA, which cites analogous texts from Medieval Latin, French and German, the latter two are not, and of those two the former, against undertaking what cannot be achieved, goes directly against the principles of North Germanic heroic behaviour. Consultation with Krumbacher’s Mittelgriechische Sprichwörter has not been productive, but one can’t help wondering whether these two paroemia come to the Old Icelandic text from outside Norse culture itself.
5. I´ve written and spoken elsewhere on how parts of Old Icelandic narratives are based on and thus informed by allusions to proverbs which are not given full expression in specific texts. Such proverbial references, or allusions, are first mentioned by Erasmus, who in the Introduction to his Adages says “Occasionally [proverbs] are alluded to in one word, as in Cicero in his Letters to Atticus: ‘Help me, I beg you; “prevention” you know’ where he refers to the proverb, ‘Prevention is better than cure.’ (Erasmus 1982 18). In more recent times Neal Norrick, in How Proverbs Mean, speaking of the didactic quality of proverbs, observed that “mention of one crucial phrase serves to call forth the entire proverb, the “kernel of the proverb.” “Proverbs bear much greater social, philosophical and psychological significance for speakers than do other idiomatic units.” The semantic density of proverbial material thus impresses such texts on our consciousness. “Consequently a speaker can call forth a particular proverb for his hearer with a brief allusion to its kernel.” (Norrick 1985 45) It is obvious that competence in a culture’s proverbial inventory is requisite for an awareness, or understanding of such allusions.
Thus, “the hand is soon sorry that it struck” used once in each of Njála’s three parts, echoes and enhances the moderating advice of Sigvatr Þórðarson to the not fully matured Magnús the Good, “the hand must be measured by moderation.” Hreiðarr the Fool, who ironically shows elsewhere, too, in his þáttur a sound knowledge of proverbial wisdom, begs King Magnús not to lodge him outside the court, away from his brother’s protection: “wiser to be near someone who cares for me like my brother Þórðr,” he observes, and the audience must recall the proverb found in Grettla and Njála, “bare is his back who has no brother.” We should remember, too, that both proverbs referred to here by allusion are found in their full text in Saxo, who seems to draw upon traditions of which there was strong awareness among saga composers. Orally based narratives such as the Icelandic sagas thus use not only proverbs among their building blocks, but also allusions such as these to proverbs, and where we are aware of them we may find further signals of the purposes motivating the composers of these stories.
6. Although the term Wellerism, used for a hybrid proverbial format which creates a humorous or ironic effect, derives from Charles Dickens’ character Sam Weller, of Pickwick Papers (1837), the form itself seems ageless if not universal, occurring as early as Greek and Roman literature, and yet quite unevenly distributed in later European cultures. Wolfgang Mieder has defined their triadic structure consisting of 1. An often proverbial statement, 2. Identification of speaker (which can be an animal) and 3. A phrase placing the statement in an unexpected situation. [Ex: “Everyone to his own taste,” said the farmer when he kissed the sheep.] Archer Taylor noticed that while in his observation Wellerisms were popular in northern medieval Germany they were much less so in its southern areas, to judge by extant sources (207-8) And while the form flourished in continental Scandinavia, its occurrence in Iceland in such texts as Sverris saga (FMS VIII 402) and in Morkinskinna probably derives from continental sources–certainly its recorded native presence is sparsely attested.
Of the four Wellerisms in Morkinskinna, two or three occur within lines of each other, uttered by Sveinki Steinarsson in heated public debate with King Magnús’ man, Sigurðr ullstrengr, sent to enforce his departure from his ancestral lands. The clustering of this material, if it is not of purely literary origin, seems likely the result of an episode having been composed orally and preserved in tact--the Wellerisms, like other paroemial material, acting in a mnemonic as well as a dramatic function. Indeed, this passage is also otherwise remarkable for the rhetoric displayed in Sveinki’s speeches. As he inveighs against King Magnús’ henchmen, he soars into a series of comparative proverbial phrases: “How dare you banish us? You weren’t so high and mighty as long as my foster son King Hákon was alive, since you were as timid as a mouse in a trap when you crossed his path. You skulked under cover like a dog on a boat. You were downtrodden like a grain in a sack. You were as nervous as a gelded plow ox in the mating pen. You had as much breathing space as an otter in a weir. Look here, you can thank your lucky stars if you escape with your life. Up, men, and let’s have at them!” (294) The rhetoric of Sveinki gains momentum and power to this point, the Wellerisms part of the gradual escalation to this urgent passage. While we cannot be sure of their origin, nor find them elsewhere in Norse literature, if they do not come from an unusually sophisticated orally transmitted episode about Sveinki’s defiance of Magnús and his campaign against the men of Elfr, then they are certainly a tribute to the eloquence of the composer to whom we owe them and the story in which the are embedded.
From this brief survey of the proverbs of Morkinskinna it is clear that much could be done in the way of paroemiological studies of this, as of other texts of the kings’ sagas. Some of the data we have seen represents the oldest ideas of pre-Christian Germanic heroic culture. Some is likely not of Icelandic origin, and could come from far abroad indeed. Some of it may be useful in the discussion of relationships between manuscripts. Most importantly from my point of view, some of it is helpful to our understanding of the points composers were trying to make about kings and their subjects, or about national identities, or about social differentiation–in other words, about that particular vision of history itself which they wished to convey to their audience. The continued pursuit of the objectives of my Concordance will, I hope, enhance our comprehension of what they wrote.
Applications 6. Handout. The Proverbs of Morkinskinna. A Preliminary Survey.
Session 110. Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies. 42 International Congress on Medieval Studies. 10 May 2007, Kalamazoo.
Richard L. Harris, Department of English, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Sask., Canada [heorot@sasktel.net]
ABBREVIATIONS:
ANF Arkiv för nordisk filologi.
A-G Morkinskinna. the Earliest Icelandic Chronicle of the Norwegian Kings (1030-1157) T.M. Andersson & Kari Ellen Gade, tr. Islandica 51. Ithaca. 2000.
FJ Morkinskinna, ed. Finnur Jónsson. S.T.U.A.G.N.L. 53. Copenhagen. 1932.
FSN Fornaldar sögur norðurlanda. Ed. Guðni Jónsson. 4 vols. Reykjavík, [repr. 1959].
GERING Gering, Hugo. "Altnordische Sprichwörter und sprichwörtlische Redensarten," ANF 32 1915-6. 1-31.
GJ Jónsson, Guðmundur. Safn af íslenzkum orðskviðum, fornmælum, heilræðum, snilliyrðum, sannmælum og málsgreinum. Copenhagen. 1830.
JÓNSSON Jónsson, Finnur. Íslenskt Málháttasafn. Copenhagen. 1920.
JÓNSSON, ARKIV. Jónsson, Finnur. "Oldislandske ordsprog og talemåder," ANF 30 1913-4. 61-111; 170-217.
TPMA Thesaurus Proverbiorum Medii Aevi. Lexikon der Sprichwörter des romanisch-germanischen Mittelalters. Ed. Kuratorium Singer der Schweizerischen Akademie der Geistes- und Sozialwissenschaften. 13 volumes and Quellenverzeichnis. Berlin, New York. 1995-2002.
1. Some paroemial material in Theodoricus, The Ancient history of the Norwegian Kings. Tr. D. & I. McDougall. London. 1998:
4. 7. After that the sons of his brother rose up against him, in the words of Lucan: ‘That is a fight for a poor kingdom.’ and as the same author says in another passage: ‘All power will be impatient of a consort.’
13. 17. He notes that some say that he was baptized in Bithynia in advanced old age, others in Constantinople, some at Rome by the blessed pope Sylvester. Who has written more truthfully is ‘a matter before the court.’
14. 19. And he reflected at the same time that Sveinn would scarcely be guided by brotherly love in dealing with him in other matters either, as those verses of Lucan put it: There is no faith between sharers in sovereignty;/and all power will be impatient of a consort.
17. 25. And the words of Scripture were fulfilled in them: ‘The impious man flees though none pursue him.’
27. 44. They knew perfectly well that any kingdom divided within itself would go to ruin; and therefore they made a firm agreement among themselves . . .
29. 45. When Harold drew near, most of the Norwegian forces, laden with booty, made for their ships. The remainder, though few, with steadfast courage prepared for battle. ‘But what can a few brave men do against so many thousands?’
28. 45. And as King Haraldr himself, mounted on horseback, endeavoured to draw up his battle line, his horse stumbled and he was thrown to the ground; whereupon he is reported to have said: ‘Seldom is a sign of this sort an omen of victory.’
30. 48. And when there were only boys remaining, he had bishops and priests ordained for them, who were to teach them the way of eternal salvation, since ‘a jar will long keep the scent of what it was once steeped in when new.’
31. 49. . . . so he wanted to reclaim them by force of arms if no alternative was offered. As Lucan says: . . to the man bearing weapons he grants everything.
2. Some paroemial material in Ágrip af Nóregs konunga sögum, Íslenzk fornrit 29. Reykjavík 1985, 3-54.
39. 41. Sjaldan fór svá, þá er vel vildi.
47. 44. Ill eru ill ráð.
47. 44. Illa koma hónum góðir frændr í hald.
3. Paroemial material in Morkinskinna, (www.usask.ca/english/icelanders/ksproverbs_MKN.html) tentatively arranged in useful categories:
A. GERMANIC TRADITIONS.
FJ 1. 2-3. at sa er ogaufgari er oþrom fostrar barnn.
A-G 1. 90. that it is the less distinguished man who fosters the other's child.
TPMA 7. 42. And see Hœnsa-Þóris saga, p. 7, note 1, in ÍF III (Borgfirð. s.)
FJ 2. 7. eigi munu aller jafnir j þui.
A-G 1. 92. not everyone should be cut over the same comb.
A-G 406. [Karl said: U 4.10-19 inserts a long passage from Flat
254.29-255.1, but with a few changes. FJ 7.11 appends the passage in a note.
FJ 2. 14. Deyia skal huer vm sinn.
A-G 1. 95. Everybody's got to die sooner or later
TPMA 11. 327.
FJ 2. 29-30. sid kueda aptans bida/oframs sok
A-G 3. 108. *18. the cautious man's business must wait until late in the evening.
TPMA 4. 125.
FJ. 3. 67-8. en giptan munde rada.
A-G 11. 138. let fortune take its course.
FJ. 3. 67-8. en þa hefir sa happ er hlytr og audit verdr.
A-G 11. 138. Luck goes to the lucky, as destiny determines.
TPMA 4. 488.
FJ 3. 73. margir ero fegiarnir.
A-G 12. 142. many people are eager for money.
FJ 5. 98. at braðgeþ er bernsca.
A-G 14. 156. youth is impetuous
TPMA 6. 376.
FJ 5. 98. Þat er fornt mal at enn vitrari scyli vegia
A-G 14. 156. the wiser man should yield.
TPMA 8. 308.
FJ 10. 108. goþr veri sa dagr er þinn ofsi steypiz.
A-G 19. 162. It will be a fine day when pride takes a fall.
FJ 12. 116. at braðgeþ verþa vngmenni.
A-G 21. 165. that youth is impatient.
TPMA 6. 376.
FJ 15. 125. fatt veit sa er søfr.
A-G 24. 171. The slug-a-bed is slow to learn.
TPMA 10. 105.
FJ 15. 126. at illt er litill at vera. þa er aflit ner ecki.
A-G 24. 172. It´s a disadvantage to be small and have almost no strength.
TPMA 7. 95.
FJ 17. 141. . . . yþr biþia at þer seþ vinir vina minna.
A-G 26. 182. I wish to request that you be a friend to my friends.
TPMA 4. 63.
FJ 27. 225. en sa happ hava er hlotið hafði
A-G 42. 238-9. each side was to keep what fortune allotted.
TPMA 4. 488.
FJ 33. 258. opt verdr villr saa er geta skal.
A-G 48. 259. the man who guesses often goes astray.7 7"Þat er fornt mál, herra, at opt verðr villr, sá er geta skal." The saying is not included in Halldór Halldórsson's Orðtakasafn.
TPMA 3. 41.
FJ 35. 274. Fall er farar heill.
A-G 50. 269. A fall is good fortune.
TPMA 3. 149.
FJ 35. 275-6. betra er at þiGia bana af brøþr sinom en veita honom bana
A-G 50. 270. It is better to suffer death at the hands of your brother than to be responsible for his death.
TPMA 11. 363. TOD/mort/death 5. Tod als Wert und Vorteil 5.3. Der Tod ist besser als das Leben 5.3.2. Spez. 5.3.2.1. Ehrenvoller Tod ist besser als ein Leben in Schande Nord.
FJ 35. 280. nv scylldo þeir fa sciott aNnathvart bana e. sigr.
A-G 50. 273. they would either die or gain the victory.
FJ 40. 304. Ill ero ill raþ.
A-G 55. 290. Ill counsels, ill outcomes
TPMA 9. 187.
FJ 41. 309. Nv er oc sva at hveR verþr sin at geta.
A-G 56. 293. Now everyone should save himself.
TPMA 12. 290.
FJ 41. 309. at hveR virþir sic.
A-G 56. 293. that everyone knows his own worth.
TPMA 9. 304.
FJ 41. 312. betra er at falla afe sino en flyia oþol sin.
A-G 56. 295. It is better to fall on one's land than to abandon one's inheritance.
FJ 41. 312. goþum dreng er þar gott sem hann lifir.
A-G 56. 295. An excellent man gets on well wherever he lives.
FJ 50. 356. þvi at þat verþr stvndom at monnum verþr harms sins at lettara er vm røtt.
A-G 65. 328. sometimes . . . people are relieved of their sorrows when the matter is discussed.
TPMA 7. 355.
FJ 59. 388. Mart kaN scipaz amaNz efiNi.
A-G 74. 350. Many things can change during a man's lifetime.
FJ 59. 389. Seint ma reyna mennina hvilikir ero.
A-G 74. 351. It takes a long time to test the true nature of men.
TPMA 8. 193.
FJ 64. 396. ecki sva eiNa agett. at eigi metti verþa aNat slict.
A-G 79. 356. nothing was so remarkable that it could not be matched.
Hrólfs saga kraka, FSN I. 37. 71. Taldi Hrólfr konungr fyrir þeim miklar fortölur, at þeir mætti nú sjá þat, at eigi væri neitt svá ágætt, sterkt eða stórt, at ekki mætti þvílíkt finna.
Völsunga saga, FSN I. 18. 153. “Sá ægishjálmr, er þú sagðir frá, gefr fám sigr, því at hverr sá, er með mörgum kemr, má þat finna eitthvert sinn, at engi er einna hvatastr..”
B. KINGSHIP.
FJ 2. 29. ofrausn er þat ræse/jnnanlandz ath vinna.
A-G 3. 107. *14. It is insolent of a king to harry in his own country.
Ed. note. The cautionary example of the Danish king Heremod in Beowulf.
FJ. 2. 36. ofiall ofiall fostri segir hann.
A-G 4. 113. Too great a jarl, too great a jarl, foster son.8 8"Too great a jarl" translates ofjarl. On the title "jarl," see Arne Bøe, "Jarl," in KLNM 7, 559-64. Ch. 48 of "Haralds saga Sigurðarsonar" (ÍF 28, 130; trans. Hollander, p. 615) tells us that in the time of Óláfr Haraldsson and Magnús, there was only one jarl in Norway. Such a jarl might therefore potentially be the king's most powerful rival.
FJ 27. 220. er þat konungligt at hallda vel orþ sinn.
A-G 42. 236. it is fitting for a king to keep his word.
TPMA 7. 130. KÖNIG/roi/king 3. Voraussetzungen, die ein (guter) König erfüllen muss 3.3 Der König muss mit Weisheit, tugend, Gerechtigkeit und Güte regieren 3.3.5. Der König soll sein Wort halten5 Nord. 80 Fastorðr skyli . . . vesa þengill Ein König soll sein Wort halten SIGVATR 11, 10 (= GERING 30). 81 Eigi muntu, konungr, vilja ganga á bak orðum þínum Du wirst, König, deine worte nicht zurücknehmen wollen SNORRI, HEIMSKRINGLA 163, 9 (Ólafs saga Tryggvasonar 28). 82 Oc er þat konungligt at hallda vel orþ sinn Und es ist königlich, sein Wort gut zu halten MORKINSKINNA 84, 39. 83 Þvi at eigi byriar konungligu valldi þvi at heita, sem at falsi reyniz Denn es ziemt sich für die königliche Herrschaft nicht, das zu versprechen, was sich als Betrug erweist HEIL. M. S. I, 414, 18 (Katerine saga).
FJ 60. 391. þat er vant viþ konvngenn.
A-G 75. 352. It is hard to contend with the king
C. THE THOUGHTS OF GYRGIR.
FJ 2. 67. hier mun eigi þat til ath taka et minna er eigi fæzth hid meira.
A-G 11. 137. Where the greater remedies won´t work, there's no point in trying the lesser. 6 6"Hér mun eigi þat til at taka et minna, er eigi fæsk et meira." The saying is not included in Halldór Halldórsson's Orðtakasafn.
TPMA 7. 95. also in MLat, Fr, Gmn.
FJ 3. 69. latum eigi þat hlægi henda oss ath briotazt uid þat er ecke verdr ath giort.
A-G 12. 139. Let us rather explore further and not commit the foolishness of undertaking what we cannot achieve.
FJ 3. 69. er illt ath setiazt optar nidr enn hann ris vpp.
A-G 12. 139. It is no good to sit down more often than you get up.1 1"Er illt at setjask optarr niðr en hann ríss upp." This saying is not registered in Halldór Halldórsson's Orðtakasafn.
D. PROVERBIAL ALLUSIONS.
FJ 2. 28. skal hond j hofi/ . . . of stytta.
A-G 3. 107. *13. the hand must be measured by moderation.
TPMA 10. 120. SCHLAGEN/battre/to hit 16. Die Hand freut sich nicht lange am Schlag Nord. 218 Þat er mælt, at skamma stund verðr hönd höggvi fegin Das wird gesagt, dass die Hand sich (nur) kurze Zeit am Schlag freut NJÁLS SAGA 42, 9 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 196. JÓNSSON 82).
FJ 15. 129. eigi mon sva mannfatt vera at eigi comi þat þo vpp er melt verðr.
A-G 24. 174. there are never so few people that word of what is said doesn´t get around,
TPMA 13. 241. WORT/parole/word 9. Vergänglichkeit und Unwiderruflichkeit der Worte Vgl. unten 612, 22.13. 9.3. Worte fliegen (fahren) davon (wie der Wind) Nord. 168 En þat var, sem mælt er, at ferr orð er mun líðr Und es war, wie das Sprichwort sagt, dass das Wort (davon) fährt, wenn es den Mund verlässt SNORRI, ÓLÁFS SAGA HELGA 120 (?FMS IV, 279 [= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 314]).
FJ 15. 129. vitrligra at vera helldr hia þeim er vm mic hyGr sem Þorðr er broþir minn
A-G 24. 174. wiser to be near someone who cares for me, like my brother Þórðr,
Ed. note. Proverbial allusion: "bare is his back"
TPMA 2. 128. BRUDER/frère/brother 1. Ein Bruder ist wertvoll und von grossem Nutzen 1.3. Wer keinen Bruder hat, ist nackt (ungeschützt) Mlat. 9 Nudum habere tergum fraternitatis inopem, referebat (scil. Ericus) Er (Ericus) rief, dass der Bruderlose einen ungeschützten Rücken habe SAXO GRAMM. 135, 19. Nord. 10.11 Berr er hverr á bakinu (NJÁLS SAGA: at baki), nema sér bróður eigi Jeder ist am Rücken nackt, ausser demjenigen, der einen Bruder hat GRETTIS SAGA 82, 13 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 25. GERING S. 6. JÓNSSON 22).
FJ 27. 231. hann kynni eigi sia efnitre sitt
A-G 42. 242. he did not know his own limitations well enough
TPMA 3. 28. ERKENNEN/(re)connaître/to recognize 12. Selbsterkenntnis 12.2. Beurteilung von Selbsterkenntnis 12.2.2. Wer sich selbst erkennt, ist weise Nord. 84 Ok er þat satt, at sá er svinnr, er sik kann Und das ist wahr, dass der klug ist, der sich kennt HRAFNKELS SAGA FREYSGOÐA 3 S. 106 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 403. JÓNSSON 163).
FJ 28. 240. en þat nafn þiccir eKi vel sama með oss at heita gridniþingr.
A-G 43. 248. The name of a truce-breaker does not sit well with us.
FJ 28. 241. þotti þat mest nauþsyn at sekia þangat fyrst til beinan er mestr var.
A-G 43. 248. it seemed important to go to where the greatest help was.9 9This passage apparently refers to the disbursement of tithes. According to the Icelandic tithe law, one fourth of the tithes was to be distributed among needy people with dependents, and the disbursement could be made in cloth, marketable furs, sheepskins, food, or any kind of livestock (except horses). However, tithes were not legislated until 1097, that is, considerably later than our story would imply. See Jón Jóhannesson 1974: 169, 174.
FJ 34. 263. frendr varir gøraz oss fiandr. þeira fiandmenn scolo oc þa vera minir frendr.
A-G 49. 262. Our kinsmen become our enemies, but their enemies can also be our kin."2 2Tostig elaborates the logic of "Hávamál," st. 43 (Neckel/Kuhn, Edda, p. 23): "Vin sínum/skal maðr vinr vera/þeim ok þess vin;/en óvinar síns/skyli engi maðr/vinar vinr vera" (A man should be a friend to his friend, and to that friend's friend; but no man should be a friend to his friend's enemy). The next step is to be a friend to your enemy's enemy.
TPMA 4. 63. FREUND/ami/friend Empfehlenswerte und verwerfliche Freudnschaften 5.6. Freundschaft mit dem Freund des Freundes is angemessen Nord. 1086 Vil ek yðr þess biðja, at þèr sèð vinir minna vina Ich will euch darum bitten, dass ihr Freunde meiner Freunde seid HARALDS SAGA HARÐRÁÐA 35 (? FMS VI, 226). 1087 Vertu vinr Vinar míns Werde du Freund meines Freundes! SKJALDEDIGTNING B II, 158, 55. 1088 Þess vil ec yþr biþja at þer seþ vinir minna Übers. wie 1086 MORKINSKINNA 46, 24.
FJ 35. 280. þeir hofþo meira lvt sem fiolmennari voro.
A-G 50. 273. the army with the greater numbers had the upper hand.
TPMA 12. 249. VIEL/beaucoup/much 2. Viel(e) als überlegene Mehrheit 2.2. Viele sind stärker und einflussreicher als wenige 2.2.1. Gegn viele ist nichts auszurichten 2.2.1.1. Allg. Nord. 26,27 Ecki ma við margnum Man kann gegen viele nichts ausrichten HALLFREÐAR SAGA 38, 1 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 275. JÓNSSON 116). KARLAMAGNÚS SAGA 97 (? JÓNSSON, ARKIV 275).
FJ 53. 362-3. þar þicciz hvaR oðrom meiri.
A-G 68. 332. each thinks he is superior to the other.
E. PROVERBIAL PHRASES.
FJ 2. 23. fyrr aa gomlum oxanum at bæsa en kalfinum.
A-G 2. 102. The old ox should be put in his stall before the calf
FJ 2. 31. so skorpnar skor aa fæti mer ath huergi ma eg vr stad komazt.
A-G 3. 109. My shoes pinch me so that I can't move from the spot.
FJ 10. 108. sva sem nv ertv hofþi heri en aþrir. scyldir þv bratt hofþi legri.
A-G 19. 162. By as much as you are now a head taller than everyone else, you will soon be a head shorter.
Ed. note. Closure to an apophthegmatic scene.
FJ 15. 125-6. þa scytr i tvau hornn meþ ocr. Þorþr. mer þøtti þvi betr er þu kømir þar siþr er fiolment veri.
A-G 24. 172. That makes for a real difference between us, . . . because the less you get into crowds the better off you seem to me.
TPMA 10. 81.
FJ 15. 132. fauc hann fyrir sem vindli.
A-G 24. 176. like a wisp of straw
FJ 15. 132. var hann fastr fyrir sem vegr.
A-G 24. 176. stood like a stone wall
FJ 18. 155. elldisc argalinn nv
A-G 30. 194. The old cock is drooping now.
FJ 20. 179-80. myrt er imalstofo konungs.
A-G 35. 210. It's hard to see in the king's quarters.
FJ 20. 179-80. hvat bita nv hvndar konungs.
A-G 35. 210. The king's dogs (FJ 180) have sharp fangs.
FJ 27. 233. engi dvgir sva sem Koþrans bani.
A-G 42. 243. No one does his job like Koðrán's Killer.
Derivative proverbial source phrase--fable and proverb links:
GJ 80: Ekki þarf Njáli ráð að kenna.
GJ 196: Látum Kormák kyrran liggja.
GJ 234: Misvitið var Njáll, því var hann inni brendr.
FJ 32. 252. ec emc Kattar s.
A-G 47. 256. I am the cat's son.
FJ 27. 272. at sia sem ismol veri.
A-G 50. 268. It looked just like gleaming ice.
Hrólfs saga kraka, FSN I. 37. 70. Ok svá kemr nú annarr jólaaftann, at eitt sinn, at Hrólfr konungr sat undir borðum, at spruttu upp dyrr hallarinnar, ok gengu þar inn tólf berserkir, allir gráir af járnum, svá sem á eina ísmöl sæi.
FJ 35. 275. hann scal hafa .vii. feta rum e. þvi lengra sem hann er heri en flestir menn aðrir.
A-G 50. 270. King Haraldr will have seven feet of sod, or as much more as he needs because he is taller than other men.
TPMA 4. 142.
FJ 41. 307. var sem a ismol veri at sia.
A-G 56. 292. it looked like gleaming ice.
FJ 41. 309-10. er þv vart sva hreddr ef þv vart aleiþ hans sem mvs i screppv. vartv sva hulþr fautom sem hvndr ascipi. var þer sva troþit ikyl sem corni ibelg. vartv sva eltr af oþolom3 sem arþzgelldingr or stoþi. attir þu einnveg andar rvm sem otr ikelpv.
A-G 56. 293-4. you were as timid as a mouse in a trap when you crossed his path. You skulked under cover like a dog on a boat. You were downtrodden like grain in a sack. You were as nervous as a gelded plow ox in the mating pen. You had as much breathing space as an otter in a weir.
TPMA 8. 158. MAUS/souris/mouse16. Redensarten und Vergleiche 16.2. Furchtsam wie eine Maus (in der Falle)
FJ 53. 363. Erat hera at borgnara at høna beri sciolld.
A-G 68. 333. It is no help for the hare that the hen bears a shield.
TPMA 6. 213.
FJ 53. 364. sem hvndr a beinom.
A-G 68. 333. like a dog gnawing a bone.
FJ 55. 380. at honom matti einom fingri dreyra vekia.
A-G 70. 344. flushed so that he could have been bled from one finger.
FJ 56. 383-4. greiptv aþvi kylino . . . at fyr longo myndi springa.
A-G 71. 346. you have hit the sore spot that . . . was ready to bleed.
F. WELLERISMS.
FJ 41. 308. Era hlvms vant q. refr dro horpo at isi.
A-G 56. 293. 'There´s no lack of an oar-handle,' (U 138) said the fox, and dragged the shell along the ice.
TPMA 4. 103. FUCHS/renard/fox 18. "Es fehlt kein Rudergriff", sagte der Fuchs und zog eine Muschel auf das Eis Nord. 212 Era hlums (Var.: hlús; CLEASBY 272 b: hlunns) vant, kvað Refr, dró hörpu at ísi "Es fehlt kein Rudergriff (keine Schiffsrolle)", sagte der Fuchs und zog eine Muschel auf das Eis MAGNÚS SAGA BERFŒTTS 10 (? FMS VII, 19). 213 Era hlvms vant qvaþ refr dro horpo at isi MORKINSKINNA 137, 39 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 327. JÓNSSON 135). 214 Sem melt er: 'Era hlunnz vannt', kvað refr, dró hörpu at ísi Wie gesagt wird: . . . MÁGUS SAGA 12 S. 22, 35 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 327).
FJ 41. 309. Sneliga snvGir sveinar qvoþo FiNar atto andra fala.
A-G 56. 293. ‘There's a whiff of snow lads,' said the Lapps. They had snowshoes for sale.4 4The proverb seems to mean that the Lapps are luring customers with false promises of snow. We are to understand that the king's words are equally false (Hermann Pálsson 1997: 25). This saying is also missing from Halldór Halldórsson's Orðtakasafn.
TPMA 10. 213. SCHNEE/neige/snow 14. Verschiedenes Nord. 58 Snæliga snuggir, kváðu Finnar, áttu andra fala "Es sieht nach Schnee aus", sagte Finnur; (da) hielten sie die Schneesschuhe feil MAGNÚS SAGA BERFŒTTS 10 (? FMS VII, 20). 59 Sneliga snyggir sveinar qvoþo Finnar atto andra fala "Es sieht nach Schnee aus, Leute", sagte . . . MORKINSKINNA 138, 13.
FJ 41. 309-10. Putt s. hann. scomm hvnda. scito refar ibrvnn carls.
A-G 56. 293-4. 'What shameful dogs,' he said. 'The foxes have fouled our wells.'
TPMA 6. 274. HUND/chien/dog 29. Hund und Hase (Fuchs) 29.1. Schande über die Hunde: Die Füchse haben in den Brunnen geschissen Nord. 901 Putt, putt, skömm hunda! skitu refar í brunn karls Pfui, pfui! Schande über die Hunde! Die Füchse haben in den Brunnen des Bauern geschissen MAGNÚS SAGA BERFŒTTS 10 (? FMS VII, 21 = [JÓNSSON, ARKIV 187. JÓNSSON 79]). 902 Putt . . . scomm hvnda. scito refar i brvnn carls Pfui! Schande . . . MORKINSKINNA 138, 34. 903 Skaumm hunndum, skitu refar í brunn karls Schande . . . MÁGUS SAGA12 S. 22, 49 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 187).
FJ 53. 362. Sticc imer q. reka.
A-G 68. 332. 'Dig me in,' said the spade
TPMA 10. 42. SCHAUFEL/pelle/shovel Nord. 1 Her mun nú at því koma, sem mælt er: stikk mer í, kvað reka Hier kann es nun dazu kommen, wie es heisst: "'Stich mir ein!' sagte die Schaufel" SIGURÐAR SAGA JÓRSALAFARA 25 (? FMS VII, 115). 2 Sticc i mer kvaþ reka MORKINSKINNA 172, 28 (= JÓNSSON, ARKIV 332. JÓNSSON 136). ? HACKE 3
APPENDIX.
[PHOTOGRAPH INSERT]
Ayensu, Edward S. Ashanti Gold. The African Legacy of the World’s Most precious Metal. London. 1997. Provides interesting illustrations of the significance of proverbs among the Ashanti, whose gold weights are shaped in figures representative of proverbs or proverb clusters, and he displays a photograph in which “Chiefs sit in state, with their linguists displaying their staffs of office. The various figures on the staff-top all have symbolic messages,” pertinent to the community’s storehouse of oral wisdom.
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