CANTO XXII.
Stanza 1. Budkavlen. Men were summoned to assemblies by staffs that were inscribed with runes and passed from house to house.
7. på öppet ting. See canto VIII: 87.
11. Odens ätt. See canto I: 35.
16. böndren, regular form, bönderna.
20. sköldemör, shield maidens. The valkyrs were sometimes called norns.
20. De bygga under tidens träd och ovanför. This refers to the norns who dwelt at the well of Urd by the world-tree Yggdrasil. But they also determine the fate of men on earth. Bygga means here build and dwell.
CANTO XXIII.
Stanza 2. o, den som, aldrig gungat däruppå! Note how Fritiof has changed his mind regarding life on the sea. Contrast this with canto XII: 143 seq.; XIV: 65 seq.; XIX: 27 seq.
5. Nidhögg, a dragon that was continually gnawing at the roots of Yggdrasil in order to bring about the destruction of the gods.