[78] According to some local authorities, Ísafjörð is the mouth of the Ísafjarðardjúp. Mr Shepherd (p. 92) lays down that the bay-head and the town are called Ísafjörð, whilst Ísafjarðardjúp is the name of the whole.
[79] Ísa being the genitive plural of Íss, ice. See page 5, “The Thousandth Anniversary of the Norwegian Settlement of Iceland,” by Jón A. Hjaltalín, Reykjavik, 1874: the Standard (August 25, 1874) confounds this author with Dr Hjaltalín, “by far the greatest and most learned Icelander of the day.” Some have erroneously derived it from Ísa or Ýsa, a coal-fish or haddock, which is here plentiful: this Gadus carbonarius is known to western Scotland by many names. They are “cuddies” when six to eight inches long, excellent eating in October; when herring-sized they become “saythes,” somewhat coarse of flesh; and when full-grown “stane-lochs,” almost unfit for food.
[80] The Ursus albus maritimus or Thalarctos is called Bamsin and the female Bingsen: it is well known to be carnivorous, a “lahhám,” as the peasants of the Libanus term their small brown bears (U. Syriacus): moreover, it rises upon its haunches to scalp the huntsman, like the Himalayan bear (U. Thibeticus). The two others common in Norway are the Hesta-biörn or horse-bear (the common brown U. Arctos), and the Myre or small bear (possibly a variety of the former, like the black bear of Europe). The latter is valued for its hams, as the paws of the great grizzly (U. ferox), the most savage of its kind, are prized in the Western States of North America.
[81] It must not be confounded, as some travellers have done, with Eyra, an ear. Eyri is the modern form of Eyrr, the Shetland Urie, and the Swedish Ör: e.g., Helsing-ör, our Elsinore. Eyr-byggjar are men who build in Eyris; and, hence, the “Eyrbyggja Saga.” The feature, like the Holmr, was used for battle-plains; thus Ganga út á eyri, is to fight a duel (Cleasby).
[82] This common name for such features is one of the Semitic words (Arab. Karn) which has been naturalised in Aryan speech through Κέρας and Cornu. Another is “Botn,” flat or low land, e.g., Gulf of Bothnia, in Arab. Batn.
[83] Staðr (plur. Staðir), our “stead,” secondarily means a church establishment, see, convent, chapel, and so forth. The “church contest,” or struggle, between the clergy and laity about the ownership and administration of churches and glebes, which began at the end of the thirteenth century, and was partially settled by the agreement of A.D. 1296, has diffused this word far and wide through Iceland. Thus the heathen Fell, Hraun, Hóll, and Melr became Staðar-fell, Staðar-hraun, Staðar-hóll, and Mell-Staðar. On the other hand, the plural Staðir is frequent in local names of the pagan time, as Höskulds-Staðir, Alreks-Staðir, etc. (Cleasby).
[84] So the point was called by all on board; the map gives Krossanes (cross naze).
[85] The Lodbrokar Kviða (Lodbrog’s Quoth) or Krákumál, so called from the “mythical lady” Kraka, was translated (1782) by the Rev. James Johnstone, A. M., chaplain to the British Embassy at Copenhagen. It is given by Henderson (ii. 345-352), who believes—O sancta simplicitas!—that the ruffian, who probably never existed, himself composed the “warlike and ferocious song.” The word Kviða, or lay, derives from Kveðja, cognate with the English “quote” and “quoth.”
[86] This common term is explained in Chap. XIII.
[87] I know no reason why we should conserve such veteran blunders as “Hecla” and “Geyser.” The latter has already been explained. The former, whose full form is Heklu-fjall, derives from Hekla (akin to Hökull, a priest’s cope), meaning a cowled or hooded frock, knitted of various colours, and applied to the “Vesuvius of the North,” from its cap and body vest of snow. Icelanders usually translate it a chasuble, because its rounded black shoulders bear stripes of white, supposed to resemble the cross carried to Calvary.