Volsunga saga
Encyclopedia
The Völsungasaga is a legendary saga
, a late 13th century
Iceland
ic prose rendition of the origin and decline of the Völsung
clan (including the story of Sigurd
and Brynhild and destruction of the Burgundians
). It is largely based on epic poetry. The earliest known pictorial representation of this tradition is the Ramsund carving, Sweden
, which was created c. 1000 AD.
The origins of the material are considerably older, however, and it echoes real events in Central Europe during the Migration period
. On the other hand, the only manuscript of the saga, Ny kgl. Saml. 1824 b 4to, which is held by the Royal Library of Denmark, dates to about 1400. In this manuscript, the saga leads straight in to Ragnars saga loðbrókar
.
The Middle High German
epic poem
Nibelungenlied
is based largely on the old stories, which were commonly known in all of the Germanic lands from the early Middle Ages on, but reworks the material into a courtly medieval setting.
Among the more notable adaptations of this text are Richard Wagner
's operatic tetralogy, Der Ring des Nibelungen
, Ernest Reyer
's opera Sigurd
, William Morris
's epic poem The Story of Sigurd the Volsung and the Fall of the Niblungs
, and J.R.R.Tolkien's The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun
.
, the foremost among Norse deities, associated with “war, wisdom, ecstasy, and poetry.” He is typically depicted as a mysterious, hooded old man with one eye.
Odin appears a number of times to assist characters with his magic and powers. At the start of the saga, he guides his son Sigi
out of the underworld. He also sends a wish maiden to Sigi’s son Rerir
with an enchanted apple that finally allowed Rerir and his wife to have a child. Later, he appears as an old, one-eyed stranger and sticks his sword into the tree Barnstokk during a feast at the palace of King Volsung
, declaring that “he who draws this sword out of the trunk shall receive it from me as a gift, and he himself shall prove that he has never carried a better sword than this one,” which King Volsung’s son Sigmund
does.
Odin also directly intervenes during key points in the narrative. During a battle, Odin, again in the guise of an old, one-eyed man, breaks Sigmund’s sword, turning the tide of the battle and ultimately leading to his death. He also stabs Brynhild with a sleeping thorn and curses her to never win another battle as an act of revenge for killing Hjalmgunnar, a rival king to whom Odin had promised victory.
even though he is seen only through about half of the tale. However, the slaying of Fafnir
, the serpent-brother of Regin
, is a critical point in this epic. This is the decision that Sigurd makes in his reach for a glorious life full of fame.
When Regin
makes a sword for Sigurd
that lives up to his standards, he requests that Sigurd
fulfills a vow and kills Fafnir
, who is hiding treasure. After avenging his father and other kinsmen, Sigurd
agrees to attempt to kill the dragon. They arrive at the spot where Fafnir
guards the treasure and Sigurd
delivers a fatal blow to the dragon. Before Fafnir
dies, they have an important conversation that reveals the truth to Sigurd
about the treasure. With this enlightenment, Sigurd
takes a taste of the blood of the dragon and can hear the birds speaking of the two men.
"There sits, Sigurd, roasting Fafnir's heart. Better he should eat it himself."..."There lies Regin, who wants to betray the one who trusts him."..."He should strike Regin's head off; then he alone would control the huge store of gold."
With this advice and the other words from the birds, Sigurd
drew his sword and cut off Regin
's head and took all the gold from the treasure that Fafnir
had previously guarded.
Legendary saga
A Legendary saga or Fornaldarsaga is a Norse saga that, unlike the Icelanders' sagas, takes place before the colonization of Iceland. There are some exceptions, such as Yngvars saga víðförla, which takes place in the 11th century...
, a late 13th century
13th century in poetry
- Events :* The Sicilian School, Dolce Stil Novo, and later the Tuscan School mark the emergence of literary Italian- Works :* Nibelunglied written approximately 1180–1210* Lucas de Tuy and others, Chronicon Mundi ; Spain...
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 prose rendition of the origin and decline of the Völsung
Volsung
In Norse mythology, Völsung was the son of Rerir and the eponymous ancestor of the ill-fortuned Völsung clan , including the greatest of Norse heroes, Sigurð...
clan (including the story of Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
and Brynhild and destruction of the Burgundians
Burgundians
The Burgundians were an East Germanic tribe which may have emigrated from mainland Scandinavia to the island of Bornholm, whose old form in Old Norse still was Burgundarholmr , and from there to mainland Europe...
). It is largely based on epic poetry. The earliest known pictorial representation of this tradition is the Ramsund carving, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, which was created c. 1000 AD.
The origins of the material are considerably older, however, and it echoes real events in Central Europe during the Migration period
Migration Period
The Migration Period, also called the Barbarian Invasions , was a period of intensified human migration in Europe that occurred from c. 400 to 800 CE. This period marked the transition from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages...
. On the other hand, the only manuscript of the saga, Ny kgl. Saml. 1824 b 4to, which is held by the Royal Library of Denmark, dates to about 1400. In this manuscript, the saga leads straight in to Ragnars saga loðbrókar
Ragnar Lodbrok
Ragnar Lodbrok was a Norse legendary hero from the Viking Age who was thoroughly reshaped in Old Norse poetry and legendary sagas.-Life as recorded in the sagas:...
.
The Middle High German
Middle High German
Middle High German , abbreviated MHG , is the term used for the period in the history of the German language between 1050 and 1350. It is preceded by Old High German and followed by Early New High German...
epic poem
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
Nibelungenlied
Nibelungenlied
The Nibelungenlied, translated as The Song of the Nibelungs, is an epic poem in Middle High German. The story tells of dragon-slayer Siegfried at the court of the Burgundians, how he was murdered, and of his wife Kriemhild's revenge....
is based largely on the old stories, which were commonly known in all of the Germanic lands from the early Middle Ages on, but reworks the material into a courtly medieval setting.
Among the more notable adaptations of this text are Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
's operatic tetralogy, Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
, Ernest Reyer
Ernest Reyer
Ernest Reyer, the adopted name of Louis Étienne Ernest Rey, was a French opera composer and music critic .- Biography :...
's opera Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
, William Morris
William Morris
William Morris 24 March 18343 October 1896 was an English textile designer, artist, writer, and socialist associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement...
's epic poem The Story of Sigurd the Volsung and the Fall of the Niblungs
The Story of Sigurd the Volsung and the Fall of the Niblungs
The Story of Sigurd the Volsung and the Fall of the Niblungs is an epic poem by William Morris, telling the tragic story of the Norse hero Sigmund, his son Sigurd and Sigurd's wife Gudrun...
, and J.R.R.Tolkien's The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun
The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún
The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún is a narrative poem composed by J. R. R. Tolkien. The book was released worldwide on May 5, 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and HarperCollins....
.
Odin in the Volsunga Saga
Throughout the saga, elements of the supernatural are interwoven into the narrative. One recurring theme is the periodic appearance of OdinOdin
Odin is a major god in Norse mythology and the ruler of Asgard. Homologous with the Anglo-Saxon "Wōden" and the Old High German "Wotan", the name is descended from Proto-Germanic "*Wodanaz" or "*Wōđanaz"....
, the foremost among Norse deities, associated with “war, wisdom, ecstasy, and poetry.” He is typically depicted as a mysterious, hooded old man with one eye.
Odin appears a number of times to assist characters with his magic and powers. At the start of the saga, he guides his son Sigi
Sigi
In the Völsung cycle, Sigi is the ancestor of the Völsung lineage. In the Völsunga saga , he is said to be one of the sons of Odin. He is also listed among Odin's sons in the Nafnaþulur. He had a son called Rerir....
out of the underworld. He also sends a wish maiden to Sigi’s son Rerir
Rerir
In Völsunga saga, Rerir, the son of Sigi, succeeds his murdered father and avenges his death. He rules the Huns in Hunaland and becomes a powerful ruler. Rerir's son is Völsung....
with an enchanted apple that finally allowed Rerir and his wife to have a child. Later, he appears as an old, one-eyed stranger and sticks his sword into the tree Barnstokk during a feast at the palace of King Volsung
Volsung
In Norse mythology, Völsung was the son of Rerir and the eponymous ancestor of the ill-fortuned Völsung clan , including the greatest of Norse heroes, Sigurð...
, declaring that “he who draws this sword out of the trunk shall receive it from me as a gift, and he himself shall prove that he has never carried a better sword than this one,” which King Volsung’s son Sigmund
Sigmund
This article is about the mythological hero Sigmund; for other meanings see: Sigmund .In Norse mythology, Sigmund is a hero whose story is told in the Völsunga saga. He and his sister, Signý, are the children of Völsung and his wife Hljod...
does.
Odin also directly intervenes during key points in the narrative. During a battle, Odin, again in the guise of an old, one-eyed man, breaks Sigmund’s sword, turning the tide of the battle and ultimately leading to his death. He also stabs Brynhild with a sleeping thorn and curses her to never win another battle as an act of revenge for killing Hjalmgunnar, a rival king to whom Odin had promised victory.
Sigurd the Dragon Slayer
The subtitle of the book, "The Norse Epic of Sigurd the Dragon Slayer," implies that the entire book is about SigurdSigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
even though he is seen only through about half of the tale. However, the slaying of Fafnir
Fafnir
In Norse mythology, Fáfnir or Frænir was a son of the dwarf king Hreidmar and brother of Regin and Ótr. In the Volsunga saga, Fáfnir was a dwarf gifted with a powerful arm and fearless soul. He guarded his father's house of glittering gold and flashing gems...
, the serpent-brother of Regin
Regin
Reginn, often Anglicized as Regin, in Norse mythology, was the son of Hreiðmarr and foster father of Sigurd. His brothers are Fafnir and Ótr. When Loki mistakenly kills Ótr, Hreiðmarr demands to be repaid with the amount of gold it takes to fill Ótr's skin and cover the outside. Loki takes this...
, is a critical point in this epic. This is the decision that Sigurd makes in his reach for a glorious life full of fame.
When Regin
Regin
Reginn, often Anglicized as Regin, in Norse mythology, was the son of Hreiðmarr and foster father of Sigurd. His brothers are Fafnir and Ótr. When Loki mistakenly kills Ótr, Hreiðmarr demands to be repaid with the amount of gold it takes to fill Ótr's skin and cover the outside. Loki takes this...
makes a sword for Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
that lives up to his standards, he requests that Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
fulfills a vow and kills Fafnir
Fafnir
In Norse mythology, Fáfnir or Frænir was a son of the dwarf king Hreidmar and brother of Regin and Ótr. In the Volsunga saga, Fáfnir was a dwarf gifted with a powerful arm and fearless soul. He guarded his father's house of glittering gold and flashing gems...
, who is hiding treasure. After avenging his father and other kinsmen, Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
agrees to attempt to kill the dragon. They arrive at the spot where Fafnir
Fafnir
In Norse mythology, Fáfnir or Frænir was a son of the dwarf king Hreidmar and brother of Regin and Ótr. In the Volsunga saga, Fáfnir was a dwarf gifted with a powerful arm and fearless soul. He guarded his father's house of glittering gold and flashing gems...
guards the treasure and Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
delivers a fatal blow to the dragon. Before Fafnir
Fafnir
In Norse mythology, Fáfnir or Frænir was a son of the dwarf king Hreidmar and brother of Regin and Ótr. In the Volsunga saga, Fáfnir was a dwarf gifted with a powerful arm and fearless soul. He guarded his father's house of glittering gold and flashing gems...
dies, they have an important conversation that reveals the truth to Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
about the treasure. With this enlightenment, Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
takes a taste of the blood of the dragon and can hear the birds speaking of the two men.
"There sits, Sigurd, roasting Fafnir's heart. Better he should eat it himself."..."There lies Regin, who wants to betray the one who trusts him."..."He should strike Regin's head off; then he alone would control the huge store of gold."
With this advice and the other words from the birds, Sigurd
Sigurd
Sigurd is a legendary hero of Norse mythology, as well as the central character in the Völsunga saga. The earliest extant representations for his legend come in pictorial form from seven runestones in Sweden and most notably the Ramsund carving Sigurd (Old Norse: Sigurðr) is a legendary hero of...
drew his sword and cut off Regin
Regin
Reginn, often Anglicized as Regin, in Norse mythology, was the son of Hreiðmarr and foster father of Sigurd. His brothers are Fafnir and Ótr. When Loki mistakenly kills Ótr, Hreiðmarr demands to be repaid with the amount of gold it takes to fill Ótr's skin and cover the outside. Loki takes this...
's head and took all the gold from the treasure that Fafnir
Fafnir
In Norse mythology, Fáfnir or Frænir was a son of the dwarf king Hreidmar and brother of Regin and Ótr. In the Volsunga saga, Fáfnir was a dwarf gifted with a powerful arm and fearless soul. He guarded his father's house of glittering gold and flashing gems...
had previously guarded.
External links
- R. G. Finch (ed. and trans.), The Saga of the Volsungs (London: Nelson, 1965), available at VSNRweb-publications.org. A fine translation with facing page Old Icelandic text and a good (if dated) introduction.
- Fornaldarsögur Norðurlanda and Völsunga saga in Old Norse from «Kulturformidlingen norrøne tekster og kvad» Norway.
- Read the Volsunga Saga Here, translated by William MorrisWilliam MorrisWilliam Morris 24 March 18343 October 1896 was an English textile designer, artist, writer, and socialist associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement...
and Eirikr MagnussonEiríkr MagnússonEiríkr or Eiríkur Magnússon was an Icelandic scholar who was Librarian at the University of Cambridge, taught Old Norse to William Morris, translated numerous Icelandic sagas into English in collaboration with him, and played an important role in the movement to study the history and literature of...
. Free audiobook from LibriVox - Timeless Myths: Volsunga Saga
- The Story of Sigurd. The Volsunga Saga retold by Andrew LangAndrew LangAndrew Lang was a Scots poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University of St Andrews are named after him.- Biography :Lang was born in Selkirk...
. - Proverbs and proverbial materials in Völsunga saga
- Read the Icelandic Text and the English translation by Kaaren Grimstad