Interspersed among these poems are three others connected with the same story, but dealing with incidents unknown to the German version. The Helreið Brynhildar describes how Brynhildr on her way to Hell encounters a giantess, to whom she tells the story of her life. Guðrúnarkviða III relates how Guðrún was accused to Atli of adultery with Thióðrekr, but established her innocence by the ordeal. In Oddrúnargrátr a sister of Atli named Oddrún comes to Borgný, the daughter of a certain Heiðrekr, to relieve her in her travail, and gives an account of the relations between herself, Brynhildr and Gunnarr.
The last two poems—Guðrúnarhvöt and Hamðismál—are concerned with the story of the attack upon Iörmunrekr (Hermanaricus), to Jordanes' account of which we have already alluded (p. [10]). Here the story is connected with the preceding poems[10] by the fact that Svanhildr (Sunilda) is represented as the daughter of Guðrún and Sigurðr, while Hamðir and Sörli (Ammius and Sarus) are said to be the sons of Guðrún and a certain Iónakr, whom she had married after Atli's death. In the first poem Guðrún incites her sons to avenge their sister and then bewails her many misfortunes. The second describes the actual fighting, preceded however by the account of a quarrel in which Erpr, a stepson of Guðrún, is killed by his half-brothers. To his death is attributed the fact that Iörmunrekr, was able to survive the onslaught, though he lost both hands and both feet.
The prose Edda (Skaldskaparmál, cap. 43) contains a poem, Grottasöngr, which gives the story of two giant maidens who had to grind gold and peace for the Danish king Fróði. At the end there is an allusion to Halfdan and Hrólfr Kraki (see below). Besides this we have, both in the prose Edda and elsewhere, a number of fragments of poems, some of which refer to Sigurðr and his family and some to other stories. Among the latter mention may be made especially of a poem Biarkamál, which celebrated the achievements of the Danish king Hrólfr Kraki and the heroism of his retinue in the battle wherein he lost his life. In Hervarar Saga large portions of an early poem relating to the Goths and Huns have been preserved.
In addition to the poems enumerated above, all of which are anonymous, we have also a number of works by known poets. Most of these deal either wholly or in part with contemporary persons and events. The earliest date from the ninth century and are of Norwegian origin. Probably the oldest of all are the fragments of Bragi Boddason, the chief of which is a description of his shield (Ragnarsdrápa). From the reign of Harold the Fair-haired several poems are known, though nearly all of them are in a very fragmentary condition. Among them may be mentioned especially the Ynglingatal of Thióðolfr of Hvín, a genealogical poem which traces the descent of Rögnvaldr, a cousin of Harold, from the ancient kings of the Swedes and the god Frey. Another famous work by the same poet was the Haustlöng, which dealt with mythological subjects. Next perhaps in importance to Thióðolfr was Thórbiörn Hornklofi, from whom we have fragments of two poems (Hrafnsmál and Glymdrápa), celebrating the exploits of Harold. Somewhat later we hear of a poet named Goððormr Sindri, who is known chiefly from the remains of a work (Hákonardrápa) in honour of Haakon I. A famous fragment (Eireksmál) by an unknown poet, dating from shortly after the middle of the tenth century, celebrates the death of King Eiríkr Blóðöx and his reception by Othin in Valhalla. From this is copied the Hákonarmál of Eyvindr Skaldaspillir, celebrating the death of Haakon I at the battle of Fitje (A.D. 961). The same poet also composed a genealogical poem (Háleygiatal) in imitation of Ynglingatal. In it he traced the ancestry of Haakon, earl of Lade, who ruled Norway from about 975 to 995, back through the kings of Hálogaland to Othin and Skaði.
From this time onwards the cultivation of poetry seems to have been almost entirely limited to Icelanders, many of whom resided largely at the courts of various Scandinavian kings. Among them the most noteworthy and almost the earliest was Egill Skallagrímsson, who lived from about 900 to 982. He is known chiefly from the Höfuðlausn, composed for Eiríkr Blóðöx in England, the Arinbiarnardrápa, in honour of his friend Arinbiörn, and the Sonatorrek, an elegy over one of his sons. Of his younger contemporaries perhaps the best known are Kormakr Ögmundarson and Einarr Helgason. The latter is famous chiefly for his poem Vellekla, in which he celebrated the exploits of Earl Haakon. Many other distinguished poets flourished during the following half century—down to the time of Harold III (Harðráði)—but it is not necessary here to discuss their works.
By the time of Harold III the composition of prose narratives or sagas (sögur) had already begun to be cultivated by Icelanders, though it was not until towards the end of the following century that they were first committed to writing. Many sagas are based on old narrative poems; as for instance Ynglinga Saga, which is largely a paraphrase and expansion of Ynglingatal. Völsunga Saga, which gives the stories of Helgi, Sigurðr, Guðrún and Svanhildr, is derived mainly from the poems of the Edda, though it has used other materials. The earlier part, dealing with Sigmundr and his ancestors seems to have drawn upon some lost poems. In Sörla Tháttr[11] we meet with a story—found also in the prose Edda (Skaldsk. 50) and alluded to in Bragi's Ragnarsdrápa—which is clearly connected with that of the first part of the German poem Kûdrûn. Hildr, the daughter of Högni, is carried off in her father's absence by his friend Heðinn. They are overtaken and a battle follows, in which all the combatants are killed. Hildr by magic spells rouses the slain each night to renew the battle. In Hrólfs Saga Kraka we have an account of the Danish kings Helgi and Hróarr, the sons of Halfdan, and of Helgi's son, Hrólfr Kraki, which seems to be derived ultimately from old poems like Biarkamál. Certain incidents in the story, such as Hrólfr's dealings with the Swedish king Aðils, are related also in other sagas. The same characters figured prominently in Skiöldunga Saga, of which we have little except an abridged Latin translation. This saga also related at length the stories of Haraldr Hilditönn, Sigurðr Hringr and Ragnarr Loðbrók, parts of which are known also from other sources, especially Ragnars Saga Loðbrókar and the Tháttr af Loðbrókar sonum.
Among Latin authorities the most important is the great Danish History (Gesta Danorum) of Saxo Grammaticus, which dates from the end of the twelfth century and contains metrical translations or paraphrases of many old poems. Of these perhaps the most noteworthy are the Biarkamál and some of the poems attributed to Starkaðr (Starcatherus), particularly those addressed to Ingialdr (Ingellus). Here also we find a detailed account of the tragic story of Hagbarðr and Signý, which is very frequently alluded to in Old Norse poetry. Hagbarðr belonged to a family which was involved in vendetta with the Danish king Sigarr. But having fallen in love with Signý, the king's daughter, he visited her disguised as a woman—an adventure which ended in his being discovered and condemned to death. Signý and all her maidens destroyed themselves when he was led to the gallows. Many other stories are given entirely in prose, among them those of Heðinn and Högni, Iörmunrekr and Helgi Hundingsbani, though no mention is made of Sigmundr or Sigurðr. The adventures also of Haraldr Hilditönn and Ragnarr Loðbrók are related at considerable length. Lastly, we may mention a story which is not recorded by any Icelandic authority, namely that of the single combat fought by Uffo the son of Wermundus. It deserves notice here on account of its obvious identity with the English story of Offa.
In the course of this chapter we have reviewed briefly the secular narrative poetry produced by the various Teutonic peoples down to the end of the tenth century. In the case of works by historical Norwegian and Icelandic poets, owing to the abundance of material, we have restricted ourselves to mentioning only the leading names. Elsewhere we have endeavoured to give a more or less complete summary. On the other hand, among works dating from later than the tenth century, we have taken into consideration only those which are concerned with stories of ancient times. The stories themselves will be discussed in the following chapters.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Cf. Brandl in Paul's Grundriss d. germ. Philol.2, II pp. 1083 ff., 1087 f.