Poetic Edda
Encyclopedia
The Poetic Edda is a collection of Old Norse
poems primarily preserved in the Iceland
ic mediaeval manuscript
Codex Regius
. Along with Snorri Sturluson
's Prose Edda
, the Poetic Edda is the most important extant source on Norse mythology
and Germanic heroic legends, and from the early 19th century onwards has had a powerful influence on later Scandinavian literature
s, not merely through the stories it contains but through the visionary force and dramatic quality of many of the poems. It has also become an inspiring model for many later innovations in poetic meter, particularly in the Nordic languages, offering many varied examples of terse, stress-based metrical schemes working without any final rhyme, and instead using allitterative devices and strongly concentrated imagery. Poets who have acknowledged their debt to the Poetic Edda include Vilhelm Ekelund
, August Strindberg
, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ezra Pound
and Karin Boye
.
Codex Regius was written in the 13th century but nothing is known of its whereabouts until 1643 when it came into the possession of Brynjólfur Sveinsson
, then Bishop of Skálholt
. At that time versions of the Prose Edda were well known in Iceland but scholars speculated that there once was another Edda—an Elder Edda—which contained the pagan
poems which Snorri quotes in his Prose Edda. When Codex Regius was discovered, it seemed that this speculation had proven correct. Brynjólfur attributed the manuscript to Sæmundr the Learned, a larger-than-life 12th century Icelandic priest. While this attribution is rejected by modern scholars, the name Sæmundar Edda is still sometimes encountered.
Bishop Brynjólfur sent Codex Regius as a present to the Danish king, hence the name. For centuries it was stored in the Royal Library in Copenhagen but in 1971 it was returned to Iceland.
The Eddic poems are composed in alliterative verse
. Most are in fornyrðislag, while málaháttr
is a common variation. The rest, about a quarter, are composed in ljóðaháttr. The language of the poems is usually clear and relatively unadorned. While kenning
s are often employed they do not rise to the frequency or complexity found in skaldic poetry.
poems, passing orally from singer to singer and from poet to poet for centuries. None of the poems are attributed to a particular author though many of them show strong individual characteristics and are likely to have been the work of individual poets. Scholars sometimes speculate on hypothetical authors but firm and accepted conclusions have never been reached.
, composing in the latter half of the 10th century, uses in his Hákonarmál
a couple of lines also found in Hávamál
. It is possible that he was quoting a known poem but it is also possible that Hávamál, or at least the strophe in question, is the younger derivative work.
The few demonstrably historical characters mentioned in the poems, like Attila, provide a terminus post quem
of sorts. The dating of the manuscripts themselves provides a more useful terminus ante quem.
Individual poems have individual clues to their age. For example Atlamál hin groenlenzku is claimed by its title, and seems by some internal evidence, to have been composed in Greenland
. If so, it can be no earlier than about 985 since there were no Scandinavians in Greenland until that time.
In some cases old poems can have been interpolated with younger verses or merged with other poems. For example stanzas 9-16 of Völuspá
, the "Dvergatal" or "Catalogue of Dwarfs", is considered to be an interpolation
.
. Any young poems, on the other hand, are likely Icelandic in origin.
Scholars have attempted to localize individual poems by studying the geography, flora and fauna which they refer to. This approach usually does not yield firm results. While there are, for example, no wolves in Iceland we can be sure that Icelandic poets were familiar with the species. Similarly the apocalyptic descriptions of Völuspá
have been taken as evidence that the poet who composed it had seen a volcanic eruption in Iceland - but this is hardly certain.
Some poems similar to those found in Codex Regius are normally also included in editions of the Poetic Edda. Important manuscripts include AM 748 I 4to
, Hauksbók
and Flateyjarbók
. Many of the poems are quoted in Snorri's Edda but usually only in bits and pieces. What poems are included in an edition of the Poetic Edda depends on the editor. Those not in Codex Regius are sometimes called Eddica minora from their appearance in an edition with that title edited by Andreas Heusler and Wilhelm Ranisch in 1903.
English translators are not consistent on the translations of the names of the Eddic poems or on how the Old Norse forms should be rendered in English. Up to three translations are given below, taken from the translations of Bellows, Hollander, and Larrington with proper names in the normalized English forms found in John Lindow's Norse Mythology and in Andy Orchard's Cassell's Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend.
about mortal heroes. The heroic lays are to be seen as a whole in the Edda, but they consist of three layers, the story of Helgi Hundingsbani
, the story of the Nibelung
s and the story of Jörmunrekkr
, king of the Goths
. These are, respectively, Scandinavian, German and Gothic in origin. As far as historicity can be ascertained, Attila, Jörmunrekkr
and Brynhildr actually existed, taking Brynhildr to be partly based on Brunhilda of Austrasia
, but the chronology has been reversed in the poems.
The Niflung Cycle
The Jörmunrekkr Lays
, in particular, contains interesting poetic interpolations.
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
poems primarily preserved in the Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
ic mediaeval manuscript
Manuscript
A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
Codex Regius
Codex Regius
Cōdex Rēgius is an Icelandic manuscript in which the Poetic Edda is preserved. It is made up of 45 vellum leaves, thought to have been written in the 1270s. It originally contained a further 8 leaves, which are now missing...
. Along with Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson
Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was twice elected lawspeaker at the Icelandic parliament, the Althing...
's Prose Edda
Prose Edda
The Prose Edda, also known as the Younger Edda, Snorri's Edda or simply Edda, is an Icelandic collection of four sections interspersed with excerpts from earlier skaldic and Eddic poetry containing tales from Nordic mythology...
, the Poetic Edda is the most important extant source on Norse mythology
Norse mythology
Norse mythology, a subset of Germanic mythology, is the overall term for the myths, legends and beliefs about supernatural beings of Norse pagans. It flourished prior to the Christianization of Scandinavia, during the Early Middle Ages, and passed into Nordic folklore, with some aspects surviving...
and Germanic heroic legends, and from the early 19th century onwards has had a powerful influence on later Scandinavian literature
Scandinavian literature
Scandinavia literature or Nordic literature is the literature in the languages of the Nordic countries of Northern Europe. The Nordic countries include Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway , Sweden and associated autonomous territories .The majority of these nations and regions use North Germanic...
s, not merely through the stories it contains but through the visionary force and dramatic quality of many of the poems. It has also become an inspiring model for many later innovations in poetic meter, particularly in the Nordic languages, offering many varied examples of terse, stress-based metrical schemes working without any final rhyme, and instead using allitterative devices and strongly concentrated imagery. Poets who have acknowledged their debt to the Poetic Edda include Vilhelm Ekelund
Vilhelm Ekelund
Vilhelm Ekelund was a Swedish poet.The works of Ekelund were influenced by Friedrich Hölderlin, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Emanuel Swedenborg...
, August Strindberg
August Strindberg
Johan August Strindberg was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg's career spanned four decades, during which time he wrote over 60 plays and more than 30 works of fiction, autobiography,...
, J.R.R. Tolkien, Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound
Ezra Weston Loomis Pound was an American expatriate poet and critic and a major figure in the early modernist movement in poetry...
and Karin Boye
Karin Boye
was a Swedish poet and novelist.- Career :Boye was born in Gothenburg , Sweden and moved with her family to Stockholm in 1909. She studied at Uppsala University from 1921 to 1926 and debuted in 1922 with a collection of poems, "Clouds"...
.
Codex Regius was written in the 13th century but nothing is known of its whereabouts until 1643 when it came into the possession of Brynjólfur Sveinsson
Brynjólfur Sveinsson
Brynjólfur Sveinsson served as the Lutheran Bishop of the see of Skálholt in Iceland. His main influence has been on modern knowledge of Old Norse literature. He is currently pictured on the Icelandic 1000 krónur bill....
, then Bishop of Skálholt
Skálholt
Skálholt is an historical site situated in the south of Iceland at the river Hvítá.-History:Skálholt was, through eight centuries, one of the most important places in Iceland. From 1056 until 1785, it was one of Iceland's two episcopal sees, along with Hólar, making it a cultural and political...
. At that time versions of the Prose Edda were well known in Iceland but scholars speculated that there once was another Edda—an Elder Edda—which contained the pagan
Norse paganism
Norse paganism is the religious traditions of the Norsemen, a Germanic people living in the Nordic countries. Norse paganism is therefore a subset of Germanic paganism, which was practiced in the lands inhabited by the Germanic tribes across most of Northern and Central Europe in the Viking Age...
poems which Snorri quotes in his Prose Edda. When Codex Regius was discovered, it seemed that this speculation had proven correct. Brynjólfur attributed the manuscript to Sæmundr the Learned, a larger-than-life 12th century Icelandic priest. While this attribution is rejected by modern scholars, the name Sæmundar Edda is still sometimes encountered.
Bishop Brynjólfur sent Codex Regius as a present to the Danish king, hence the name. For centuries it was stored in the Royal Library in Copenhagen but in 1971 it was returned to Iceland.
Composition
Alliterative verse
In prosody, alliterative verse is a form of verse that uses alliteration as the principal structuring device to unify lines of poetry, as opposed to other devices such as rhyme. The most commonly studied traditions of alliterative verse are those found in the oldest literature of many Germanic...
. Most are in fornyrðislag, while málaháttr
Málaháttr
Málaháttr is a poetic metre in Old Norse poetry, which is usually described as "conversational style". It is similar to fornyrðislag except in that there are more syllables in a line, usually five.Poems with verses in this metre:* Atlakviða...
is a common variation. The rest, about a quarter, are composed in ljóðaháttr. The language of the poems is usually clear and relatively unadorned. While kenning
Kenning
A kenning is a type of literary trope, specifically circumlocution, in the form of a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun. Kennings are strongly associated with Old Norse and later Icelandic and Anglo-Saxon poetry...
s are often employed they do not rise to the frequency or complexity found in skaldic poetry.
Authorship
Like most early poetry the Eddic poems were minstrelMinstrel
A minstrel was a medieval European bard who performed songs whose lyrics told stories of distant places or of existing or imaginary historical events. Although minstrels created their own tales, often they would memorize and embellish the works of others. Frequently they were retained by royalty...
poems, passing orally from singer to singer and from poet to poet for centuries. None of the poems are attributed to a particular author though many of them show strong individual characteristics and are likely to have been the work of individual poets. Scholars sometimes speculate on hypothetical authors but firm and accepted conclusions have never been reached.
Time
The dating of the poems has been a lively source of scholarly argument for a long time. Firm conclusions are hard to reach. While lines from the Eddic poems sometimes appear in poems by known poets such evidence is difficult to evaluate. For example Eyvindr skáldaspillirEyvindr Skáldaspillir
Eyvindr Finnsson skáldaspillir was a 10th century Norwegian skald. He was the court poet of king Hákon the Good and earl Hákon of Hlaðir. His son Hárekr later became a prominent chieftain in Norway.His preserved works are:...
, composing in the latter half of the 10th century, uses in his Hákonarmál
Hákonarmál
Hákonarmál is a skaldic poem which the skald Eyvindr skáldaspillir composed about the fall of the Norwegian king Hákon the Good at the battle of Fitjar and his reception in Valhalla. This poem emulates Eiríksmál and is intended to depict the Christian Hákon as a friend to the pagan gods...
a couple of lines also found in Hávamál
Hávamál
Hávamál is presented as a single poem in the Poetic Edda, a collection of Old Norse poems from the Viking age. The poem, itself a combination of different poems, is largely gnomic, presenting advice for living, proper conduct and wisdom....
. It is possible that he was quoting a known poem but it is also possible that Hávamál, or at least the strophe in question, is the younger derivative work.
The few demonstrably historical characters mentioned in the poems, like Attila, provide a terminus post quem
Terminus post quem
Terminus post quem and terminus ante quem specify approximate dates for events...
of sorts. The dating of the manuscripts themselves provides a more useful terminus ante quem.
Individual poems have individual clues to their age. For example Atlamál hin groenlenzku is claimed by its title, and seems by some internal evidence, to have been composed in Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. If so, it can be no earlier than about 985 since there were no Scandinavians in Greenland until that time.
In some cases old poems can have been interpolated with younger verses or merged with other poems. For example stanzas 9-16 of Völuspá
Völuspá
Völuspá is the first and best known poem of the Poetic Edda. It tells the story of the creation of the world and its coming end related by a völva addressing Odin...
, the "Dvergatal" or "Catalogue of Dwarfs", is considered to be an interpolation
Interpolation (manuscripts)
An interpolation, in relation to literature and especially ancient manuscripts, is an entry or passage in a text that was not written by the original author...
.
Location
The problem of dating the poems is linked with the problem of finding out where they were composed. Since Iceland was not settled until about 870, anything composed before that time would necessarily have been elsewhere, most likely in ScandinaviaScandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
. Any young poems, on the other hand, are likely Icelandic in origin.
Scholars have attempted to localize individual poems by studying the geography, flora and fauna which they refer to. This approach usually does not yield firm results. While there are, for example, no wolves in Iceland we can be sure that Icelandic poets were familiar with the species. Similarly the apocalyptic descriptions of Völuspá
Völuspá
Völuspá is the first and best known poem of the Poetic Edda. It tells the story of the creation of the world and its coming end related by a völva addressing Odin...
have been taken as evidence that the poet who composed it had seen a volcanic eruption in Iceland - but this is hardly certain.
Editions and inclusions
AM 748 I 4to
AM 748 I 4to is an Icelandic vellum manuscript fragment containing several Eddaic poems. It dates to the beginning of the 14th century. The six sheets which have been preserved contain the following poems, all mythological.*Grímnismál...
, Hauksbók
Hauksbók
The Hauksbók is one of the few medieval Norse manuscripts of which the author is known. His name was Haukr Erlendsson , and as long back as it is possible to trace the manuscript it has been called the Hauksbók after its author. It was partly written by Haukr himself, partly by assistants...
and Flateyjarbók
Flateyjarbók
The Flatey Book, is an important medieval Icelandic manuscript. It is also known as GkS 1005 fol. and by the Latin name Codex Flateyensis.- Description :...
. Many of the poems are quoted in Snorri's Edda but usually only in bits and pieces. What poems are included in an edition of the Poetic Edda depends on the editor. Those not in Codex Regius are sometimes called Eddica minora from their appearance in an edition with that title edited by Andreas Heusler and Wilhelm Ranisch in 1903.
English translators are not consistent on the translations of the names of the Eddic poems or on how the Old Norse forms should be rendered in English. Up to three translations are given below, taken from the translations of Bellows, Hollander, and Larrington with proper names in the normalized English forms found in John Lindow's Norse Mythology and in Andy Orchard's Cassell's Dictionary of Norse Myth and Legend.
In Codex Regius
- VöluspáVöluspáVöluspá is the first and best known poem of the Poetic Edda. It tells the story of the creation of the world and its coming end related by a völva addressing Odin...
(Wise-woman's prophecy, The Prophecy of the Seeress, The Seeress's Prophecy) - HávamálHávamálHávamál is presented as a single poem in the Poetic Edda, a collection of Old Norse poems from the Viking age. The poem, itself a combination of different poems, is largely gnomic, presenting advice for living, proper conduct and wisdom....
(The Ballad of the High One, The Sayings of Hár, Sayings of the High One) - VafþrúðnismálVafþrúðnismálIn Norse mythology, Vafþrúðnismál is the third poem in the Poetic Edda. It is a conversation in verse form conducted initially between the Æsir Odin and Frigg, and subsequently between Odin and the giant Vafþrúðnir...
(The Ballad of Vafthrúdnir, The Lay of Vafthrúdnir, Vafthrúdnir's Sayings) - GrímnismálGrímnismálGrímnismál is one of the mythological poems of the Poetic Edda. It is preserved in the Codex Regius manuscript and the AM 748 I 4to fragment. It is spoken through the voice of Grímnir, one of the many guises of the god Odin, who is tortured by King Geirröth...
(The Ballad of Grímnir, The Lay of Grímnir, Grímnir's Sayings) - SkírnismálSkírnismálSkírnismál is one of the poems of the Poetic Edda. It is preserved in the 13th century manuscripts Codex Regius and AM 748 I 4to but may have been originally composed in heathen times...
(The Ballad of Skírnir, The Lay of Skírnir, Skírnir's Journey) - HárbarðsljóðHárbarðsljóðHárbarðsljóð is one of the poems of the Poetic Edda, found in the Codex Regius and AM 748 I 4to manuscripts. It is a flyting poem with figures from Norse mythology-Synopsis:...
(The Poem of Hárbard, The Lay of Hárbard, Hárbard's Song) - HymiskviðaHymiskviðaHymiskviða is a poem collected in the Poetic Edda. Its contents are somewhat confusing but can be summarized more or less as follows....
(The Lay of Hymir, Hymir's Poem) - LokasennaLokasennaLokasenna is one of the poems of the Poetic Edda. The poem presents flyting between the gods and Loki....
(Loki's Wrangling, The FlytingFlytingFlyting or fliting is a contest consisting of the exchange of insults, often conducted in verse, between two parties.-Description:Flyting is a ritual, poetic exchange of insults practiced mainly between the 5th and 16th centuries. The root is the Old English word flītan meaning quarrel...
of Loki, Loki's Quarrel) - ÞrymskviðaÞrymskviðaÞrymskviða is one of the best known poems from the Poetic Edda...
(The Lay of Thrym, Thrym's Poem) - VölundarkviðaVölundarkviðaVölundarkviða is one of the mythological poems of the Poetic Edda...
(The Lay of Völund) - AlvíssmálAlvíssmálAlvíssmál is poem collected in the Poetic Edda, probably dating to the 11th century, that relates a conversation between Thor and a Dvergr called Alvíss .-Plot:...
(The Ballad of Alvís, The Lay of Alvís, All-Wise's Sayings)
Not in Codex Regius
- Baldrs draumarBaldrs draumarBaldrs draumar or Vegtamskviða is an Eddic poem, contained in the manuscript AM 748 I 4to. It relates information on the myth of Baldr's death in a way consistent with Gylfaginning....
(Baldr's Dreams) - Rígsþula (The Song of Ríg, The Lay of Ríg, The List of Ríg)
- HyndluljóðHyndluljóðHyndluljóð or Lay of Hyndla is an Old Norse poem often considered a part of the Poetic Edda. It is preserved in its entirety only in Flateyjarbók but some stanzas are also quoted in the Prose Edda where they are said to come from Völuspá hin skamma.In the poem, the goddess Freyja meets the völva...
(The Poem of Hyndla, The Lay of Hyndla, The Song of Hyndla)- Völuspá in skamma (The short Völuspá, The Short Seeress' Prophecy, Short Prophecy of the Seeress) - This poem is included as an interpolation in Hyndluljóð.
- SvipdagsmálSvipdagsmálSvipdagsmál or The Lay of Svipdagr is an Old Norse poem, a part of the Poetic Edda, comprising two poems, The Spell of Gróa and The Lay of Fjölsviðr. The two works are grouped since they have a common narrator, Svipdagr. Moreover they would appear to have a common origin since they are closely...
(The Ballad of Svipdag, The Lay of Svipdag) - This title, originally suggested by Bugge, actually covers two separate poems:- GrógaldrGrógaldrGrógaldr or The Spell of Gróa is the first of two poems, now commonly published under the title Svipdagsmál found in several 17th century paper manuscripts with Fjölsvinnsmál. In at least three of these manuscripts, the poems are in reverse order and separated by a third eddic poem titled, Hyndluljóð...
(Gróa's Spell, The Spell of Gróa) - FjölsvinnsmálFjölsvinnsmálFjölsvinnsmál or The Sayings of Fjölsvinnr is the second of two Old Norse poems commonly published under the title Svipdagsmál "The Lay of Svipdagr". These poems are found together in several 17th century paper manuscripts with Fjölsvinnsmál...
(Ballad of Fjölsvid, The Lay of Fjölsvid)
- Grógaldr
- GróttasöngrGrottasöngrGrottasöngr or the Song of Grótti is an Old Norse poem, sometimes counted among the poems of the Poetic Edda as it appears in manuscripts that are later than the Codex Regius...
(The Mill's Song, The Song of Grotti) (Not included in many editions.) - Hrafnagaldur Óðins (Odins's Raven Song, Odin's Raven Chant). (A late work not included in most editions).
Heroic lays
After the mythological poems Codex Regius continues with heroic laysLai
A lai is a lyrical, narrative poem written in octosyllabic couplets that often deals with tales of adventure and romance.Lais were mainly composed in France and Germany, during the 13th and 14th centuries. A Provençal term for a similar kind of poem is descort.The English term lay is a...
about mortal heroes. The heroic lays are to be seen as a whole in the Edda, but they consist of three layers, the story of Helgi Hundingsbani
Helgi Hundingsbane
Helgi Hundingsbane is a hero in Norse sagas. Helgi appears in Volsunga saga and in two lays in the Poetic Edda named Helgakviða Hundingsbana I and Helgakviða Hundingsbana II. The Poetic Edda relates that Helgi and his mistress Sigrún were Helgi Hjörvarðsson and Sváva of the Helgakviða...
, the story of the Nibelung
Nibelung
The German Nibelungen and the corresponding Old Norse form Niflung is the name in Germanic and Norse mythology of the royal family or lineage of the Burgundians who settled at Worms....
s and the story of Jörmunrekkr
Ermanaric
Ermanaric was a Greuthungian Gothic King who before the Hunnic invasion evidently ruled an enormous area north of the Black Sea. Contemporary historian Ammianus Marcellinus recounts him as a "most warlike man" who "ruled over extensively wide and fertile regions"...
, king of the Goths
Goths
The Goths were an East Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin whose two branches, the Visigoths and the Ostrogoths, played an important role in the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe....
. These are, respectively, Scandinavian, German and Gothic in origin. As far as historicity can be ascertained, Attila, Jörmunrekkr
Ermanaric
Ermanaric was a Greuthungian Gothic King who before the Hunnic invasion evidently ruled an enormous area north of the Black Sea. Contemporary historian Ammianus Marcellinus recounts him as a "most warlike man" who "ruled over extensively wide and fertile regions"...
and Brynhildr actually existed, taking Brynhildr to be partly based on Brunhilda of Austrasia
Brunhilda of Austrasia
Brunhilda was a Visigothic princess, married to king Sigebert I of Austrasia who ruled the eastern kingdoms of Austrasia and Burgundy in the names of her sons and grandsons...
, but the chronology has been reversed in the poems.
In Codex Regius
The Helgi Lays- Helgakviða Hundingsbana IHelgakviða Hundingsbana IVölsungakviða, Helgakviða Hundingsbana I or the First Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane is an Old Norse poem found in the Poetic Edda...
or Völsungakviða (The First Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane, The First Lay of Helgi the Hunding-Slayer, The First Poem of Helgi Hundingsbani) - Helgakviða HjörvarðssonarHelgakviða HjörvarðssonarHelgakviða Hjörvarðssonar is a poem collected in the Poetic Edda, found in the Codex Regius manuscript where it follows Helgakviða Hundingsbana I and precedes Helgakviða Hundingsbana II...
(The Lay of Helgi the Son of Hjörvard, The Lay of Helgi Hjörvardsson, The Poem of Helgi Hjörvardsson) - Helgakviða Hundingsbana IIHelgakviða Hundingsbana IIVölsungakviða in forna, Helgakviða Hundingsbana II or the Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane is an Old Norse poem found in the Poetic Edda...
or Völsungakviða in forna (The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane, The Second Lay of Helgi the Hunding-Slayer, A Second Poem of Helgi Hundingsbani)
The Niflung Cycle
- Frá dauða Sinfjötla (Of Sinfjötli's Death, Sinfjötli's Death, The Death of Sinfjötli) (A short prose text.)
- GrípisspáGrípisspáGrípisspá or Sigurðarkviða Fáfnisbana I is an Eddic poem, found in the Codex Regius manuscript where it follows Frá dauða Sinfjötla and precedes Reginsmál....
(Grípir's Prophecy, The Prophecy of Grípir) - ReginsmálReginsmálReginsmál or Sigurðarkviða Fáfnisbana II is an Eddic poem, found in the Codex Regius manuscript...
(The Ballad of Regin, The Lay of Regin) - FáfnismálFáfnismálFáfnismál is an Eddic poem, found in the Codex Regius manuscript. The poem is unnamed in the manuscript, where it follows Reginsmál and precedes Sigrdrífumál, but modern scholars regard it as a separate poem and have assigned it a name for convenience.The poem forms a more coherent whole than...
(The Ballad of Fáfnir, The Lay of Fáfnir) - SigrdrífumálSigrdrífumálSigrdrífumál is the conventional title given to a section of the Poetic Edda text in Codex Regius....
(The Ballad of The Victory-Bringer, The Lay of Sigrdrífa) - Brot af SigurðarkviðuBrot af SigurðarkviðuBrot af Sigurðarkviðu is the remaining 22 stanzas of a heroic Old Norse poem in the Poetic Edda. In the Codex Regius, there is a gap of eight leaves where the first part of the poem would have been found, and also the last part of the Sigrdrífumál. Luckily, the missing narrative is preserved in the...
(Fragment of a Sigurd Lay, Fragment of a Poem about Sigurd) - Guðrúnarkviða IGuðrúnarkviða IGuðrúnarkviða I or the First Lay of Guðrún is simply called Guðrúnarkviða in Codex Regius where it was found together with the other heroic poems of the Poetic Edda. Henry Adams Bellows considered it to be one of the finest of the eddic poems with an "extraordinary emotional intensity and dramatic...
(The First Lay of Gudrún) - Sigurðarkviða hin skammaSigurðarkviða hin skammaSigurðarkviða hin skamma or the Short Lay of Sigurd is an Old Norse poem belonging to the heroic poetry of the Poetic Edda. It is one of the longest eddic poems and its name derives from the fact that there was once a longer Sigurðarkviða, but this poem only survives as the fragment Brot af...
(The Short Lay of Sigurd, A Short Poem about Sigurd) - Helreið BrynhildarHelreið BrynhildarHelreið Brynhildar or Brynhild's Hel-Ride is a short Old Norse poem that is found in the Poetic Edda. Most of the poem is also quoted in Norna-Gests þáttr....
(Brynhild's Hell-Ride, Brynhild's Ride to Hel, Brynhild's Ride to Hell) - Dráp NiflungaDráp NiflungaThe Dráp Niflunga is a short prose section in the Poetic Edda between Helreið Brynhildar and Guðrúnarkviða II. Henry Adams Bellows notes in his commentary that the purpose of the section is to serve as a narrative link between the poems....
(The Slaying of The Niflungs, The Fall of the Niflungs, The Death of the Niflungs) - Guðrúnarkviða IIGuðrúnarkviða IIGuðrúnarkviða II, The Second Lay of Gudrún, or Guðrúnarkviða hin forna, The Old Lay of Gudrún is probably the oldest poem of the Sigurd cycle, according to Henry Adams Bellows....
(The Second Lay of Gudrún or Guðrúnarkviða hin forna The Old Lay of Gudrún) - Guðrúnarkviða IIIGuðrúnarkviða IIIGuðrúnarkviða III, The Third Lay of Gudrun, is a short Old Norse poem that is part of the Poetic Edda. It has not left any traces in Völsunga saga and was probably not known by its compilers....
(The Third Lay of Gudrún) - OddrúnargrátrOddrúnargrátrOddrúnargrátr or Oddrúnarkviða is an Eddic poem, found in the Codex Regius manuscript where it follows Guðrúnarkviða III and precedes Atlakviða....
(The Lament of Oddrún, The Plaint of Oddrún, Oddrún's Lament) - AtlakviðaAtlakviðaAtlakviða is one of the heroic poems of the Poetic Edda. One of the main characters is Atli who originates from Attila the Hun. It is one of the most archaic Eddic poems. It is preserved in the Codex Regius and the same story is related in the Völsunga saga...
(The Lay of Atli). The full manuscript title is Atlakviða hin grœnlenzka, that is, The GreenlandGreenlandGreenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
Lay of Atli, but editors and translators generally omit the Greenland reference as a probable error from confusion with the following poem. - Atlamál hin groenlenzku (The Greenland Ballad of Atli, The Greenlandish Lay of Atli, The Greenlandic Poem of Atli)
The Jörmunrekkr Lays
- GuðrúnarhvötGuðrúnarhvötGuðrúnarhvöt is one of the heroic poems of the Poetic Edda. Gudrun had been married to the hero Sigurd and with him she had the daughter Svanhild. Svanhild had married the Gothic king Ermanaric , but betrayed him with the king's son, Randver...
(Gudrún's Inciting, Gudrún's Lament, The Whetting of Gudrún.) - HamðismálHamðismálThe Hamðismál is a poem which ends the heroic poetry of the Poetic Edda, and thereby the whole collection.Gudrun had been the wife of the hero Sigurd, whom her brothers had killed. With Sigurd she had had the daughter Svanhild, who had married to the Goth king Ermanaric...
(The Ballad of Hamdir, The Lay of Hamdir)
Not in Codex Regius
Several of the legendary sagas contain poetry in the Eddic style. Its age and importance is often difficult to evaluate but the Hervarar sagaHervarar saga
Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks is a legendary saga from the 13th century combining matter from several older sagas. It is a valuable saga for several different reasons beside its literary qualities. It contains traditions of wars between Goths and Huns, from the 4th century, and the last part is used as...
, in particular, contains interesting poetic interpolations.
- HlöðskviðaHlöðskviðaHlöðskviða or The Battle of the Goths and Huns is sometimes counted among the Eddic Poems. It has been preserved as separate stanzas interspersed among the text in Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks . It is generally agreed that it was originally a poetic whole...
(Lay of Hlöd, also known in English as The Battle of the Goths and the Huns), extracted from Hervarar sagaHervarar sagaHervarar saga ok Heiðreks is a legendary saga from the 13th century combining matter from several older sagas. It is a valuable saga for several different reasons beside its literary qualities. It contains traditions of wars between Goths and Huns, from the 4th century, and the last part is used as...
. - The Waking of AngantýrThe Waking of AngantyrHervararkviða is an Old Norse poem from the Hervarar saga, and which is sometimes included in editions of the Poetic Edda....
, extracted from Hervarar sagaHervarar sagaHervarar saga ok Heiðreks is a legendary saga from the 13th century combining matter from several older sagas. It is a valuable saga for several different reasons beside its literary qualities. It contains traditions of wars between Goths and Huns, from the 4th century, and the last part is used as...
.
Allusions and quotations
- As noted above, the Prose EddaProse EddaThe Prose Edda, also known as the Younger Edda, Snorri's Edda or simply Edda, is an Icelandic collection of four sections interspersed with excerpts from earlier skaldic and Eddic poetry containing tales from Nordic mythology...
of Snorri Sturluson makes much use of the Poetic Edda. - The VolsungasagaVolsunga sagaThe Völsungasaga is a legendary saga, a late 13th century Icelandic prose rendition of the origin and decline of the Völsung clan . It is largely based on epic poetry...
is a prose Germanic version of much of the Niflung cycle of poems. Due to several missing pagesGreat LacunaThe Great Lacuna is a lacuna of eight leaves where there was heroic Old Norse poetry in the Codex Regius. The gap would have contained the last part of Sigrdrífumál and most of Sigurðarkviða...
in the Codex Regius, the Volsungasaga is the oldest source for the Norse version of much of the story of Sigurð. Only four stanzas found on those pages are still extant, all of which are quoted in the Volsungasaga.
Original text
- Neckel, GustavGustav NeckelGustav Neckel was a German scholar of medieval German studies and Old Norse....
(Ed.). (1983). Edda: Die Lieder des Codex Regius nebst verwandten Denkmälern I: Text. (Rev. Hans Kuhn, 5th edition). Heidelberg: Winter. (A web text of the Poetic Edda based on this edition has been prepared by David Stifter and Sigurdur H. Palsson (1994), Vienna, corrections by Fabrizio Ducci (2001), Titus version by Jost Gippert, available at Titus: Text Collection: Edda.) - Jón HelgasonJón HelgasonJón Helgason was an Icelandic philologist and poet. He was head of the Danish Árni Magnússon Institute from 1927 to 1971 and professor of Icelandic studies at the University of Copenhagen from 1929 to 1970. He made significant contributions to his field. As a poet he was not prolific but noted for...
(Ed.). (1955). Eddadigte (3 vols.). Copenhagen: Munksgaard. (Codex Regius poems up to Sigrdrífumál.) (Reissue of the following entry.)- ————— (Ed.) (1951–1952). Eddadigte. Nordisk filologi A: 4 and 7–8. Copenhagen: Munksgaard.
- Finnur JónssonFinnur JónssonFinnur Jónsson was an Icelandic philologist who made extensive contributions to the study of Old Norse literature.Finnur graduated from Menntaskólinn í Reykjavík in 1878 and went to Denmark for further studies at the University of Copenhagen. He received a doctorate in philology in 1884 with a...
(Ed.). (1932). De gamle Eddadigte. Copenhagen: Gads. (Available in pdf format at septentrionalia.org.) - Boer, R. C. (Ed.). (1922). Die Edda mit historisch-kritischem Commentar I: Einleitung und Text. (2 vols.) Haarlem: Willink & Zoon. (Text and German translation.)
- Heusler, Andreas & Ranisch, Wilhelm (Eds.) (1903). Eddica Minora. Dortmund.
- Wimmer, E. A. & Finnur Jónsson (Eds.) (1891). Håndskriftet Nr 2365 4to gl. kgl. samling på det store Kgl. bibliothek i København (Codex regius af den ældre Edda) i fototypisk og diplomatisk gengievelse. (4 vols.) Copenhagen: Samfund til udgivelse at gammel nordisk litteratur. (A lithographic edition of the Codex Regius with diplomatic text.)
- Bugge, Sophus (Ed.). (1867). Sæmundar Edda. Christiania: P. T. Malling. (Available at Old Norse: etexts.)
- Munch, P.A. (Ed.). (1847). Den ældre Edda: Samling af norrøne oldkvad. Christiania [Oslo]: P.T. Malling. (Available in image format at books.google.com.)
- Sagnanet: Eddic poetry (Portal to graphic images of Eddic poems from manuscripts and old printed texts).
Original text with English translation
- Dronke, Ursula (Ed. & trans.) (1969). The Poetic Edda, vol. I, Heroic Poems. Oxford: Clarendon. ISBN 0-19-811497-4. (Atlakviða, Atlamál in Grœnlenzko, Guðrúnarhvöt, Hamðismál.)
- ————— (1997). The Poetic Edda, vol. II, Mythological Poems. Oxford: Clarendon. ISBN 0-19-811181-9. (Völuspá, Rígsthula, Völundarkvida, Lokasenna, Skírnismál, Baldrs draumar.)
- Bray, Olive. (Ed. & trans.) (1908). The Elder or Poetic Edda: Commonly known as Saemund's Edda, Part 1, The Mythological Poems. Viking ClubViking Society for Northern ResearchThe Viking Society for Northern Research, founded in London in 1892 as the Orkney, Shetland and Northern Society or the Viking Club, is a group dedicated to the study and promotion of the ancient culture of Scandinavia whose journal, Saga-Book, publication of editions, translations, and scholarly...
Translation Series vol. 2. London: Printed for the Viking Club. Reprinted 1982 New York: AMS Press. ISBN 0-404-60012-3 - Gudbrand VigfússonGuðbrandur VigfússonGuðbrandur Vigfússon, known in English as Gudbrand Vigfusson, was one of the foremost Scandinavian scholars of the 19th century.-Life:He was born of an Icelandic family in Breiðafjörður...
& Powell, F. YorkFrederick York PowellFrederick York Powell , was an English historian and scholar.- Biography :Frederick York Powell was born in Bloomsbury, London. Much of his childhood was spent in France and Spain, so that he early acquired a mastery of the language of both countries and an insight into the genius of the people...
(Ed. & trans.) (1883). Corpus Poeticum Boreale: The Poetry of the Old Northern Tongue. (2 vols.) Oxford: Oxford University Press. Reprinted 1965, New York: Russell & Russell. Reprinted 1965, Oxford: Clarendon. Translations from Volume 1 issued in Lawrence S. Thompson (Ed.). (1974). Norse mythology: the Elder Edda in prose translation.. Hamden, CN: Archon Books. ISBN 0-208-01394-6
English translation only
- Larrington, Carolyne. (Trans.). (1996). The Poetic Edda. Oxford World's Classics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-282383-3
- Terry, Patricia. (Trans.) (1990). Poems of the Elder Edda. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 0-8122-8235-3 hardcover, ISBN 0-8122-8220-5 paperback. (A revision of Terry's Poems of the Vikings of 1969, listed below.)
- Auden, W. H. & Taylor, Paul B. (Trans.). (1981). Norse Poems. London: Athlone. ISBN 0-485-11226-4. Also issued 1983, London: Faber ISBN 0-571-13028-3. (Revised and expanded edition of Auden and Taylor's The Elder Edda: A Selection of 1969, listed below.)
- Terry, Patricia. (Trans.) (1969). Poems of the Vikings: The Elder Edda. Indianapolis, IN: Bobbs-Merrill. ISBN 0-672-60332-2
- Auden, W. H. & Taylor, Paul B. (Trans.). (1969). The Elder Edda: A Selection. London: Faber. ISBN 0-571-09066-4. Issued in 1970, New York: Random House. ISBN 0-394-70601-3. Also issued 1975, Bridgeport, CN: Associated Booksellers. ISBN 0-571-10319-7
- Hollander, Lee M. (Trans.) (1962). The Poetic Edda: Translated with an Introduction and Explanatory Notes. (2nd ed., rev.). Austin, TX: University of Texas Press. ISBN 0-292-76499-5. (Some of the translations appear at Wodensharrow: Texts).
- Bellows, Henry AdamsHenry Adams BellowsHenry Adams Bellows was a lawyer, state legislator, and jurist born in Rockingham, Vermont. He was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives from Littleton, New Hampshire in 1839. He was subsequently elected again to the House from Concord, New Hampshire in 1856–1857, and served as...
. (Trans.). (1923). The Poetic Edda: Translated from the Icelandic with an Introduction and Notes. New York: American-Scandinavian Foundation. Reprinted Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellon Press. ISBN 0-88946-783-8. (Available at Sacred Texts: Sagas and Legends: The Poetic Edda. An HTML version transcribed with new annotations by Ari Odhinnsen is available at Northvegr: Lore: Poetic Edda - Bellows Trans..) - Thorpe, BenjaminBenjamin ThorpeBenjamin Thorpe was an English scholar of Anglo-Saxon.-Biography:After studying for four years at Copenhagen University, under the Danish philologist Rasmus Christian Rask, he returned to England in 1830, and in 1832 published an English version of Caedmon's metrical paraphrase of portions of the...
. (Trans.). (1866). Edda Sæmundar Hinns Froða: The Edda Of Sæmund The Learned. (2 vols.) London: Trübner & Co. 1866. (HTML version transcribed by Ari Odhinnsen available at Northvegr: Lore: Poetic Edda - Thorpe Trans.) Reprinted 1906 as "The Elder Eddas of Saemund" in Rasmus B. Anderson & J. W. Buel (Eds.) The Elder Eddas of Saemund Sigfusson. Tr. from the original Old Norse text into English by Benjamin Thorpe, and The Younger Eddas of Snorre Sturleson Tr. from the original Old Norse text into English by I. A. Blackwell (pp. 1–255). Norrœna, the history and romance of northern Europe. London, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Berlin, New York: Norrœna Society. (A searchable graphic image version of this text requiring DjVu plugin is available at University of Georgia Libraries: Facsimile Books and Periodicals: The Elder Eddas and the Younger Eddas.) - Cottle, A. S. (Trans.). (1797). Icelandic Poetry or the Edda of Saemund. Bristol: N. Biggs. (Oldest English translation of a substantial portion of the Poetic Edda.)
Commentary
- La Farge, Beatrice & Tucker, John. (Eds.). (1992) Glossary to the Poetic Edda Based on Hans Kuhn's Kurzes Wörterbuch. Heidelberg. (Update and expansions of the glossary of the Neckel-Kuhn edition.)
- Glendinning, Robert J. & Bessason, Haraldur. (1983). Edda: A Collection of Essays. Winnipeg, MB: University of Manitoba.
External links
- Eddukvæði Poetic Edda in Old Norse from heimskringla.no
- The Poetic Edda, Bellows translation at sacred-texts.com
- Critical editions of the Poetic Edda in pdf format at septentrionalia.net
- CyberSamurai Encyclopedia of Norse Mythology: Poetic Edda (Old Norse)
- CyberSamurai Encyclopedia of Norse Mythology: Poetic Edda (English), translated by Benjamin Thorpe (Elder Eddas) and I. A. Blackwell (Younger Eddas). (1906)