E-text prepared by Carla Foust, Stephen Hutcheson,
and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team
(http://www.pgdp.net)
OLD ENGLISH POEMS
TRANSLATED INTO THE ORIGINAL METER
TOGETHER WITH
SHORT SELECTIONS FROM OLD ENGLISH PROSE
BY
COSETTE FAUST, Ph.D.
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH IN THE SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY
AND
STITH THOMPSON, Ph.D.
INSTRUCTOR IN ENGLISH IN THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS
SCOTT, FORESMAN AND COMPANY
CHICAGO NEW YORK
Copyright, 1918
By Scott, Foresman and Company
ROBERT O. LAW COMPANY
EDITION BOOK MANUFACTURERS
CHICAGO, U.S.A.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. PAGAN POETRY 1. EPIC OR HEROIC GROUP PAGE [Widsith] 15 [Deor’s Lament] 26 [Waldhere] 29 [The Fight at Finnsburg] 34 2. GNOMIC GROUP Charms [1. Charm for Bewitched Land] 38 [2. Charm for a Sudden Stitch] 42 Riddles [1. A Storm] 44 [2. A Storm] 45 [3. A Storm] 46 [5. A Shield] 48 [7. A Swan] 49 [8. A Nightingale] 49 [14. A Horn] 50 [15. A Badger] 51 [23. A Bow] 52 [26. A Bible] 52 [45. Dough] 54 [47. A Bookworm] 54 [60. A Reed] 54 [Exeter Gnomes] 56 [The Fates of Men] 58 3. ELEGIAC GROUP [The Wanderer] 62 [The Seafarer] 68 [The Wife’s Lament] 72 [The Husband’s Message] 75 [The Ruin] 78 II. CHRISTIAN POETRY 1. CÆDMONIAN SCHOOL. [Cædmon’s Hymn] 83 [Bede’s Death Song] 84 [Selection From Genesis—The Offering of Isaac] 85 [Selection From Exodus—The Crossing of the Red Sea] 90 2. CYNEWULF AND HIS SCHOOL a. Cynewulf [(1) Selections from Christ] 95 [1. Hymn to Christ] 96 [2. Hymn to Jerusalem] 96 [3. Joseph and Mary] 97 [4. Runic Passage] 100 [(2) Selections from Elene] 103 [1. The Vision of the Cross] 103 [2. The Discovery of the Cross] 105 b. Anonymous Poems of the Cynewulfian School [(1) The Dream of the Rood] 108 [(2) Judith] 116 [(3) The Phœnix] 132 [(4) The Grave ] 157 III. POEMS FROM THE CHRONICLE [The Battle of Brunnanburg] 159 [The Battle of Maldon] 163 APPENDIX—PROSE SELECTIONS [Account of the Poet Cædmon] 179 [Alfred’s Preface to His Translation of Gregory’s “Pastoral Care”] 183 [Conversion of Edwin] 187 [Voyages of Ohthere and Wulfstan] 189
PREFACE
These selections from Old English poetry have been translated to meet the needs of that ever-increasing body of students who cannot read the poems in their original form, but who wish nevertheless to enjoy to some extent the heritage of verse which our early English ancestors have left for us. Especially in the rapid survey of English literature given in most of our colleges, a collection of translations covering the Anglo-Saxon period and reflecting the form and spirit of the original poems should add much to a fuller appreciation of the varied and rich, though uneven, literary output of our earliest singers.
In subject-matter these Old English poems are full of the keenest interest to students of history, of customs, of legend, of folk-lore, and of art. They form a truly national literature; so that one who has read them all has learned much not only of the life of the early English, but of the feelings that inspired these folk, of their hopes, their fears, and their superstitions, of their whole outlook on life. They took their poetry seriously, as they did everything about them, and often in spite of crudity of expression, of narrow vision, and of conventionalized modes of speech, this very “high seriousness” raises an otherwise mediocre poem to the level of real literature. Whatever may be said of the limitations of Old English poetry, of its lack of humor, of the narrow range of its sentiments, of the imitativeness of many of its most representative specimens, it cannot be denied the name of real literature; for it is the direct expression of the civilization that gave it birth—a civilization that we must understand if we are to appreciate the characteristics of its more important descendants of our own time.
Although the contents of these poems can be satisfactorily studied in any translation, the effect of the peculiar meter that reinforces the stirring spirit of Old English poetry is lost unless an attempt is made to reproduce this metrical form in the modern English rendering. The possibility of retaining the original meter in an adequate translation was formerly the subject of much debate, but since Professor Gummere’s excellent version of Beowulf and the minor epic poems,[1] and other recent successful translations of poems in the Old English meter, there can be no question of the possibility of putting Anglo-Saxon poems into readable English verse that reproduces in large measure the effect of the original. To do this for the principal Old English poems, with the exception of Beowulf, is the purpose of the present volume.
Except for the subtlest distinctions between the types of half verse, strict Old English rules for the alliterative meter have been adhered to. These rules may be stated as follows:
1. The lines are divided into two half-lines, the division being indicated by a space in the middle.
2. The half-lines consist of two accented and a varying number of unaccented syllables. Each half-line contains at least four syllables. Occasional half-lines are lengthened to three accented syllables, possibly for the purpose of producing an effect of solemnity.
3. The two half-lines are bound together by beginning-rime or alliteration; i.e., an agreement in sound between the beginning letters of any accented syllables in the line. For example, in the line
Guthhere there gave me a goodly jewel
the g’s form the alliteration. The third accent sets the alliteration for the line and is known as the “rime-giver.” With it agree the first and the second accent, or either of them. The fourth accent must not, however, agree with the rime-giver. Occasionally the first and third accents will alliterate together and the second and fourth, as,
The weary in heart against Wyrd has no help;
or the first and fourth may have the alliteration on one letter, while the second and third have it on another, as,
Then heavier grows the grief of his heart.
These two latter forms are somewhat unusual. The standard line is that given above:
Guthhere there gave me a goodly jewel,
or
A hundred generations; hoary and stained with red,
or
With rings of gold and gilded cups.
All consonants alliterate with themselves, though usually sh, sp, and st agree only with the same combination. Vowels alliterate with one another.
In the following passage the alliterating letters are indicated by italics:
Then a band of bold knights busily gathered,
Keen men at the conflict; with courage they stepped forth,
Bearing banners, brave-hearted companions,
And fared to the fight, forth in right order,
Heroes under helmets from the holy city
At the dawning of day; dinned forth their shields
A loud-voiced alarm. Now listened in joy
The lank wolf in the wood and the wan raven,
Battle-hungry bird, both knowing well
That the gallant people would give them soon
A feast on the fated; now flew on their track
The deadly devourer, the dewy-winged eagle,
Singing his war song, the swart-coated bird,
The horned of beak.
[Judith], vv. 199-212.
Besides the distinctive meter in which the Old English poems are written, there are several qualities of style for which they are peculiar. No one can read a page of these poems without being struck by the parallel structure that permeates the whole body of Old English verse. Expressions are changed slightly and repeated from a new point of view, sometimes with a good effect but quite as often to the detriment of the lines. These parallelisms have been retained in the translation in so far as it has been possible, but sometimes the lack of inflectional endings in English has prevented their literal translation.
Accompanying these parallelisms, and often a part of them, are the frequent synonyms so characteristic of Old English poetry. These synonymous expressions are known as “kennings.” They are not to be thought of as occasional metaphors employed at the whim of the poet; they had, in most cases, already received a conventional meaning. Thus the king was always spoken of as “ring giver,” “protector of earls,” or “bracelet bestower.” The queen was the “weaver of peace”; the sea the “ship road,” or “whale path,” or “gannet’s bath.”
Old English poetry is conventionalized to a remarkable degree. Even those aspects of nature that the poets evidently enjoyed are often described in the most conventional of words and phrases. More than half of so fine a poem as [The Battle of Brunnanburg] is taken bodily from other poems. No description of a battle was complete without a picture of the birds of prey hovering over the field. Heroes were always assembling for banquets and receiving rewards of rings at the hand of the king. These conventional phrases and situations, added to a thorough knowledge of a large number of old Germanic myths, constituted a great part of the equipment of the typical Old English minstrel or scop, such as one finds described in [Widsith] or [Deor’s Lament].
It would be a mistake, however, to conclude that the poems are convention and nothing more. A sympathetic reading will undoubtedly show many high poetic qualities. Serious and grave these poems always are, but they do express certain of the darker moods with a sincerity and power that is far from commonplace. At times they give vivid glimpses of the spirit of man under the blighting influence of the “dark ages.” After reading these poems, we come to understand better the pessimistic mood of the author of [The Wanderer] when he says,
All on earth is irksome to man.
And we see how the winsome meadows of the land of the [Phœnix] must by their contrast have delighted the souls of men who were harassed on every side as our ancestors were.
All of these distinguishing features of Old English poetry—the regular alliterative meter, the frequent parallelisms, the “kennings,” and the general dark outlook on life will be found illustrated in the poems selected in this book. They cover the entire period of Old English literature and embrace every “school.”
The order in which the poems are printed is in no sense original, but is that followed in most standard textbooks. Naturally such artificial divisions as “Pagan” and “Christian” are inexact. The “pagan” poems are only largely pagan; the “Christian” predominatingly Christian. On the whole, the grouping is perhaps accurate enough for practical purposes, and the conformity to existing textbooks makes the volume convenient for those who wish to use it to supplement these books.
In addition to the poems, four short prose passages referred to by most historians of the literature have been included so as to add to the usefulness of the volume.
In the translation of the poems the original meaning and word-order has been kept as nearly as modern English idiom and the exigencies of the meter would allow. Nowhere, we believe, has the possibility of an attractive alliteration caused violence to be done to the sense of the poem.
The best diction to be used in such a translation is difficult to determine. The temptation is ever present to use the modern English descendant of the Anglo-Saxon word, even when it is very archaic in flavor. This tendency has been resisted, for it was desired to reproduce the effect of the original; and, though Old English poetry was conventional, it was probably not archaic: it was not out of date at the time it was written. Since the diction of these poems was usually very simple, it has been the policy of the translators to exclude all sophisticated expressions, and to retain words of Germanic origin or simple words of Latin derivation that do not suggest subtleties foreign to the mind of the Old English poet.
The texts used as a standard for translation are indicated in the introductory notes to the different poems. Whenever a good critical edition of a poem has been available, it has been followed. Variations from the readings used in these texts are usually indicated where they are of any importance. In the punctuation and paragraphing of the poems, the varying usage of the different editors has been disregarded and a uniform practice adopted throughout.
Following these principles, the translators have attempted to reproduce for modern English readers the meaning and movement of the Old English originals. It is their earnest hope that something of the fine spirit that breathes through much of this poetry will be found to remain in the translation.
Cosette Faust.
Stith Thompson.
March, 1918.
[1]The Oldest English Epic, New York, 1909.
I. PAGAN POETRY
1. EPIC OR HEROIC GROUP
WIDSITH
[Critical edition: R. W. Chambers, Widsith: a Study in Old English Heroic Legend. Cambridge, 1912.
Date: Probably late sixth or early seventh century.
Alliterative translation: Gummere, Oldest English Epic (1910), p. 191.
“Widsith—‘Farway’—the ideal wandering minstrel, tells of all the tribes among whom he has sojourned, of all the chieftains he has known. The first English students of the poem regarded it as autobiographical, as the actual record of his wanderings written by a scop; and were inclined to dismiss as interpolations passages mentioning princes whom it was chronologically impossible for a man who had met Ermanric to have known. This view was reduced to an absurdity by Haigh.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
“The more we study the growth of German heroic tradition, the more clear does it become that Widsith and Deor reflect that tradition. They are not the actual outpourings of actual poets at the court of Ermanric or the Heodenings. What the poems sung in the court of Ermanric were like we shall never know: but we can safely say that they were unlike Widsith.... The Traveller’s tale is a fantasy of some man, keenly interested in the old stories, who depicts an ideal wandering singer, and makes him move hither and thither among the tribes and the heroes whose stories he loves. In the names of its chiefs, in the names of its tribes, and above all in its spirit, Widsith reflects the heroic age of the migrations, an age which had hardly begun in the days of Ermanric.”—Chambers, p. 4.
Lines 75, 82-84 are almost certainly interpolated. With these rejected “the poem leaves upon us,” says Chambers, “a very definite impression. It is a catalogue of the tribes and heroes of Germany, and many of these heroes, though they may have been half legendary already to the writer of the poem, are historic characters who can be dated with accuracy.”]
Note.—In the footnotes, no attempt is made to discuss peoples or persons mentioned in this poem unless they are definitely known and are of importance for an understanding of the meaning of the lines.
Widsith now spoke, his word-hoard unlocked,
He who traveled the widest among tribes of men,
Farthest among folk: on the floor he received
The rarest of gifts. From the race of the [Myrgings]
5 His ancestors sprang. With [Ealhhild] the gracious,
The fair framer of peace, for the first time
He sought the home of the [Hræda king],
From the [Angles] in the East —of [Eormanric],
Fell and faithless. Freely he spoke forth:
10 “Many a royal ruler of a realm I have known;
[Every leader should live] a life of virtue;
One earl after the other shall order his land,
He who wishes and works for the weal of his throne!
Of these for a while was [Hwala] the best,
15 But [Alexander] of all of men
Was most famous of lords, and he flourished the most
Of all the earls whom on earth I have known.
[Attila] ruled the Huns, Eormanric the Goths,
[Becca the Banings], the Burgundians Gifica.
20 [Cæsar] ruled the Greeks and Cælic the Finns,
[Hagena] the Holm-Rugians and [Heoden] the Glommas.
Witta ruled the Swabians, [Wada] the Hælsings,
Meaca the Myrgings, Mearchealf the [Hundings],
[Theodoric] ruled the Franks, Thyle the Rondings,
25 [Breoca] the Brondings, Billing the Wernas.
Oswine ruled the Eowas and the Ytas Gefwulf;
[Finn Folcwalding] ruled the Frisian people.
Sigehere ruled longest the Sea-Dane’s kingdom.
Hnæf ruled the Hocings, Helm the Wulfings,
30 Wald the Woings, Wod the [Thuringians],
Sæferth the [Secgans], the Swedes [Ongentheow].
Sceafthere ruled the Ymbrians, Sceafa the [Lombards],
Hun the Hætweras and Holen the Wrosnas.
Hringweald was called the king of the pirates.
35 [Offa] ruled the Angles, Alewih the Danes:
Among these men he was mightiest of all,
But he equalled not Offa in earl-like deeds.
For Offa by arms while only a child,
First among fighters won the fairest of kingdoms;
40 Not any of his age in earlship surpassed him.
In a single combat in the siege of battle
He fixed the frontier at Fifeldore
Against the host of the Myrgings, which was held thenceforth
By Angles and [Swabians] as Offa had marked it.
45 [Hrothwulf and Hrothgar] held for a long time
A neighborly compact, the nephew and uncle,
After they had vanquished the Viking races
And Ingeld’s array was overridden,
Hewed down at Heorot the Heathobard troop.
50 So forth I fared in foreign lands
All over the earth; of evil and good
There I made trial, torn from my people;
Far from my folk I have followed my travels.
Therefore I sing the song of my wanderings,
55 Declare before the company in the crowded mead-hall,
How gifts have been given me by the great men of earth.
I was with the Huns and with the [Hræda-Goths],
With the Swedes and with the [Geats] and with the southern Danes,
With the Wenlas I was and with the Vikings and with the Wærna folk.
60 With the [Gepidæ] I was and with the [Wends] and with the Gefligas.
With the [Angles] I was and with the Swæfe and with the Ænenas.
With the [Saxons] I was and with the Secgans and with the Suardones.
With the Hronas I was and with the Deanas and with the [Heatho-Raemas].
With the Thuringians I was and with the Throwendas;
65 And with the [Burgundians], where a bracelet was given me.
[Guthhere] there gave me a goodly jewel,
As reward for my song: not slothful that king!
With the [Franks I was and with the Frisians] and with the Frumtingas.
With the [Rugians I was and with the Glommas] and with the Roman strangers.
70 Likewise in Italy with [Ælfwine] I was:
He had, as I have heard, a hand the readiest
For praiseworthy deeds of prowess and daring;
With liberal heart he lavished his treasures,
Shining armlets —the son of [Eadwine].
75 [I was with the Saracens] and with the [Serings];
With the Greeks I was and with the Finns and with far-famed Cæsar,
Who sat in rule over the cities of revelry—
Over the riches and wealth of the realm of the [Welsh].
With the Scots I was and with the Picts and with the [Scride-Finns].
80 With the [Lidwicingas] I was and with the Leonas and with the Longobards,
With the Hæthnas and with the Hærethas and with the [Hundings];
With the Israelites I was and with the Assyrians,
And with the Hebrews and with the Egyptians and with the Hindus I was,
[With] the Medes I was and with the Persians and with the Myrging folk,
85 And with the Mofdings I was and against the Myrging band,
And with the Amothingians. With the [East Thuringians] I was
And with the Eolas and with the [Istians] and with the Idumingas.
And I was with [Eormanric] all of the time;
There the king of the Goths gave me in honor
90 The choicest of bracelets —the chief of the burghers—
On which were six hundred pieces of precious gold,
Of shining metal in shillings counted;
I gave over this armlet to [Eadgils] then,
To my kind protector when I came to my home,
95 To my beloved prince, the lord of the Myrgings,
Who gave me the land that was left by my father;
And [Ealhhild] then also another ring gave me,
Queen of the doughty ones, the daughter of Eadwine.
Her praise has passed to all parts of the world,
100 Wherever in song I sought to tell
Where I knew under heavens the noblest of queens,
Golden-adorned, giving forth treasures.
Then in company with Scilling, in clear ringing voice
’Fore our beloved lord I uplifted my song;
105 Loudly the harp in harmony sounded;
Then many men with minds discerning
Spoke of our lay in unsparing praise,
That they never had heard a nobler song.
Then I roamed through all the realm of the Goths;
110 Unceasing I sought the surest of friends,
The crowd of comrades of the court of Eormanric.
Hethca sought I and Beadeca and the Harlungs,
[Emerca] sought I and Fridla and East-Gota,
Sage and noble, the sire of Unwen.
115 Secca sought I and [Becca], Seafola and Theodoric,
Heathoric and [Sifeca], Hlithe and Incgentheow.
[Eadwine sought I and Elsa] Ægelmund and Hungar
And the worthy troop of the With-Myrgings.
[Wulfhere sought I and Wyrmhere]: there war was seldom lacking
120 When the host of the [Hrædas] with hardened swords
Must wage their wars [by the woods of Vistula]
To hold their homes from the hordes of Attila.
Rædhere sought I and Rondhere, Rumstan and Gislhere,
Withergield and Freotheric, [Wudga and Hama]:
125 These warriors were not the worst of comrades,
Though their names at the last of my list are numbered.
Full oft from that host the hissing spear
Fiercely flew on the foemen’s troopers.
There the wretches ruled with royal treasure,
130 [Wudga and Hama], over women and men.
So I ever have found as I fared among men
That in all the land most beloved is he
To whom God giveth a goodly kingdom
To hold as long as he liveth here.
135 [Thus wandering widely] through the world there go
Minstrels of men through many lands,
Express their needs and speak their thanks.
Ever south and north some one they meet
Skillful in song who scatters gifts,
140 To further his fame before his chieftains,
To do deeds of honor, till all shall depart,
Light and life together: lasting praise he gains,
And has under heaven the highest of honor.
[4.] Myrging. Nothing is known with any degree of certainty about this tribe. Chambers concludes that they dwelt south of the River Eider, which is the present boundary between Schleswig and Holstein, and that they belonged to the Suevic stock of peoples. See [vv. 84, 85, below].
[5.] Ealhhild. See notes to [vv. 8] and [97], below. Much discussion has taken place as to who Ealhhild was. Summing up his lengthy discussion, Chambers says (Widsith, p. 28): “For these reasons it seems best to regard Ealhhild as the murdered wife of Eormanric, the Anglian equivalent of the Gothic Sunilda and the Northern Swanhild.”
[7.] Hræda king. That is, the Gothic king.
[8.] Angles. One of the Low Germanic tribes that later settled in Britain, and from whom the name England is derived. Their original home was in the modern Schleswig-Holstein. Eormanric. See [v. 88, below], and [Deor’s Lament, v. 21]. He was a king of the Goths. After his death, about 375 A.D., he came to be known as the typical bad king, covetous, fierce, and cruel. According to the Scandinavian form of the story, the king sends his son and a treacherous councillor, Bikki (the Becca of [v. 19]) to woo and bring to the court the maiden Swanhild. Bikki urges the son to woo her for himself and then betrays him to his father, who has him hanged and causes Swanhild to be trampled to death by horses. Her brothers revenge her death and wound the king. At this juncture the Huns attack him, and during the attack Eormanric dies.
[11.] The proverb, or “gnomic verse,” is very common in Old English poetry.
[14.] Hwala appears in the West Saxon genealogies as son of Beowi, son of Sceaf (see Beowulf, vv. 4, 18).
[15.] Alexander [the Great]. The writer speaks of many celebrities who were obviously too early for him to know personally. This passage is usually considered to be an interpolation.
[18.] Becca. See [note to v. 8]. The Banings are not definitely identified. The Burgundians were originally an East Germanic tribe. During the second and third centuries they were neighbors of the Goths and lived in the modern Posen. Later they moved west, and finally threatened Gaul, where in the middle of the fifth century they were defeated by the Roman general, Aetius. Shortly afterward they were defeated by the Huns. The remnant settled in Savoy, where they gradually recovered, and by the middle of the sixth century became an important nation. Gifica (or Gibica) was traditionally spoken of as an early king who ruled over the Burgundians while they were still in the east, living as neighbors of the Goths on the Vistula.
[20.] Cæsar, was the name given to the Emperor of the East—the “Greek Emperor.” The Finns were at that time located in their present home in Finland.
[21, 22.] Hagena, Heoden, Wada. These heroes all belong to one myth-cycle, which was told in Europe for many centuries. It is difficult to reconstruct the story as it was known at the time Widsith was written, for it has received many additions at the hands of subsequent writers. The essential parts of the tale seem to be these: Heoden asks his servant, the sweet-singing Heorrenda, for help in wooing Hild, the daughter of Hagena. Heorrenda, enlisting the services of Wada, the renowned sea-monster (or sea-god) goes to woo Hild. By means of Wada’s frightful appearance and skill in swordsmanship they attract Hild’s attention, and Heorrenda then sings so that the birds are shamed into silence. They then woo Hild and flee with her from her father’s court. Hagena pursues, and Heoden, after marrying Hild, engages him in battle. Each evening Hild goes to the battlefield and by magic awakens the warriors who have fallen, and they fight the same battle over day after day without ceasing. Heorrenda, the sweet singer of the Heodenings (i.e., of the court of Heoden) is mentioned in Deor’s Lament, vv. [36 and 39]. Wada is a widely-known legendary character. He had power over the sea. He was the father of Weland, the Vulcan of Norse myth (see [Deor’s Lament], and [Waldhere, A, v. 2]). The Holm-Rugians and the Hælsings were in the fourth century on the Baltic coast of Germany. The Glommas are unknown.
[24.] Theodoric, son of Chlodowech, king of the Franks, is meant, and not the famous Gothic king. Cf. [v. 115, below].
[25.] Breoca: the same as Breca, prince of the Brondings, the opponent of Beowulf in his famous swimming match (Beowulf, vv. 499-606).
[27, 28.] Finn Folcwalding was the traditional hero of the Frisians. For fragments of the stories connected with him, see Beowulf, vv. 1068-1159, and the fragmentary poem, The Fight at Finnsburg ([p. 34, below]). Hnæf, son of Hoc (hence ruler of the Hocings) also figures in the Finn story. Hnæf’s sister marries Finn. For a summary of the story see the Introduction to The Fight at Finnsburg.
[30.] Thuringians. These people dwelt near the mouths of the Rhine and the Maas.
[31.] Ongentheow, the king of Sweden, is frequently mentioned in Beowulf (e.g., vv. 2476 and 2783). The Secgans are unknown, but they are mentioned in [v. 62, below], and in [The Fight at Finnsburg, v. 26].
[32.] The ancient home of the Longobards (or Lombards) was between the Baltic and the Elbe.
[35.] Offa: a legendary king of the Angles, while they still lived on the continent toward the end of the fourth century. Legends of him are found in Denmark and in England. Chambers concludes that the Danish form is perhaps very near that known to the author of Widsith. Offa, the son of the king, though a giant in stature, is dumb from his youth, and when the German prince from the south challenges the aged king to send a champion to defend his realm in single combat, Offa’s speech is restored and he goes to the combat. The fight was held at Fifeldore, the River Eider, which was along the frontier between the Germans and the Danes. Here Offa fought against two champions and defeated them both, thus establishing the frontier for many years. Note that the author of Widsith, who is of the Myrging race, is here celebrating the defeat of his own people.
[44.] Swabians probably refers to the Myrgings, who were of the stock of the Suevi.
[45.] Hrothwulf and Hrothgar. See Beowulf, vv. 1017 and 1181 ff. Hrothgar is Hrothwulf’s uncle, and they live on friendly terms at Heorot (Hrothgar’s hall). Later it seems that Hrothwulf fails to perform his duties as the guardian of Hrothgar’s son, thus bringing to an end his years of friendliness to Hrothgar and his sons. The fight referred to is against Ingeld, Hrothgar’s son-in-law who invaded the Danish kingdom. (See Beowulf, vv. 84, 2024 ff.)
[57.] See [v. 18, above].
[58.] The Geats were probably settled in southern Sweden. They were the tribe to which Beowulf belonged.
[60.] The Gepidæ were closely related to the Goths and were originally located near them at the mouth of the Vistula River. The Wends were a Slavonic tribe who finally pressed up into the lands vacated in the great migrations by the Germans between the Elbe and the Vistula.
[61.] Angles. See [vv. 8] and [44], above. Swæfe. See [line 44, above].
[62.] The Saxons, who with the Angles and Jutes settled Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries, lived originally near the mouth of the Elbe.
[63.] The Heatho-Raemas dwelt near the modern Christiania in Norway. See Beowulf, line 518, in which Breca in the swimming match reaches their land.
[65.] Burgundians. See [v. 19].
[66.] Guthhere was a ruler of the Burgundians ([v. 19]). He was probably at Worms when he gave the jewel to Widsith. Guthhere, because of his great battle with Attila and his tragic defeat, became a great legendary hero. (See [Waldhere, B, v. 14].)
[67.] The Franks and the Frisians are spoken of together in Beowulf (vv. 1207, 1210, 2917), where they together repulse an attack made by Hygelac. The Frisians probably dwelt west of the Zuider Zee.
[68.] The Rugians and the Glommas. See [note to v. 21], above.
[70.] Ælfwine: (otherwise known as Alboin), the Lombard conqueror of Italy. He was the son of Audoin (Eadwine).
[75-87.] Most scholars agree that these lines are interpolated, since they do not fit in with the rest of the poem.
[75.] Serings: possibly Syrians.
[78.] Welsh: a term applied to the Romans by the Old English writers.
[79.] The Scride-Finns were settled in northern Norway—not in Finland, where the main body of Finns were found. They are perhaps to be identified with the modern Lapps.
[80.] Lidwicingas: the inhabitants of Armorica. Longobards. See [v. 32].
[81.] The Hundings are also mentioned in [line 23].
[84, 85.] Myrging. See [line 4].
[86.] East Thuringians. Probably those Thuringians dwelling in the sixth century east of the Elbe.
[87.] Istians. Probably the Esthonians mentioned in the [Voyage of Wulfstan]. (See [p. 194, line 151, below].) The Idumingas were neighbors of the Istians. Both were probably Lettish or Lithuanian tribes.
[88.] Eormanric. See [note to v. 8], above.
[93.] Eadgils was king of the Myrgings.
[97.] Ealhhild. See [note to v. 5], above. She was (v. 98) daughter of Eadwine, King of the Lombards ([v. 74]). The meaning here is not absolutely clear, but Chambers makes a good case for considering her the wife of Eormanric. He thinks that she followed her husband’s gift to Widsith by a gift of another ring, in return for which Widsith sings her praises.
[112, 113.] Emerca and Fridla, the Harlungs, were murdered by their uncle, Eormanric. East-Gota, or Ostrogotha, the king of the united Goths in the middle of the third century, was a direct ancestor of Eormanric.
[115.] Becca. See [note to v. 8]. Seafola and Theodoric: probably Theodoric of Verona and his retainer, Sabene of Ravenna. On the other hand, the references may be to Theoderic the Frank. (See [v. 24].)
[116.] Sifeca: probably the evil councillor who brought about the murder by Eormanric of his nephews, the Harlungs. (See [vv. 112, 113, note].)
[117-119.] These names are all very obscure.
[120.] Hrædas: the Goths.
[121.] The struggle between the Goths and the Huns did not actually occur in the Vistula wood, but after the Goths had left the Vistula.
[124, 130.] Wudga and Hama. The typical outlaws of German tradition. Hama appears in Beowulf (v. 1198) as a fugitive who has stolen the Brising necklace and fled from Eormanric. Wudga, the Widia of Waldhere ([B, vv. 4, 9]) came finally to be known for his treachery. He was connected with the court of Theodoric and received gifts from him, but he is later represented as having betrayed the king. The traditions about both of these men are badly confused.
[135-143.] One of the passages that give us a definite impression of the scop, or minstrel, and his life. It serves very well for the conclusion of a poem descriptive of the life of a minstrel.
DEOR’S LAMENT
[Critical text and translation: Dickins, Runic and Heroic Poems, Cambridge University Press, 1915, p. 70.
Alliterative translation: Gummere, Oldest English Epic (1910), p. 186.
The metrical arrangement of this poem into strophes with a constant refrain is very unusual in the poetry of the Anglo-Saxons, though it is common among their Scandinavian kinsmen. This fact has led some scholars to believe that we have here a translation from the Old Norse. Professor Gummere, however, makes a good case against this assumption.
The first three strophes refer to the widely known story of Weland, or Wayland, the Vulcan of Norse myth. The crafty king, Nithhad, captures Weland, fetters him (according to some accounts, hamstrings him), and robs him of the magic ring that gives him power to fly. Beadohild, Nithhad’s daughter, accompanied by her brothers, goes to Weland and has him mend rings for her. In this way he recovers his own ring and his power to fly. Before leaving he kills the sons of Nithhad, and, stupefying Beadohild with liquor, puts her to shame.]
To [Weland] came woes and wearisome trial,
And cares oppressed the constant earl;
His lifelong companions were pain and sorrow,
And winter-cold weeping: his ways were oft hard,
5 After Nithhad had struck the strong man low,
Cut the supple sinew-bands of the sorrowful earl.
That has passed over: so this may depart!
[Beadohild] bore her brothers’ death
Less sorely in soul than herself and her plight
10 When she clearly discovered her cursed condition,
That unwed she should bear a babe to the world.
She never could think of the thing that must happen.
That has passed over: so this may depart!
Much have we learned of [Mæthhild’s life]:
15 How the courtship of Geat was crowned with grief,
How love and its sorrows allowed him no sleep.
That has passed over: so this may depart!
[Theodoric] held for thirty winters
The town of the [Mærings]: that was told unto many.
20 That has passed over: so this may depart!
We all have heard of [Eormanric]
Of the wolfish heart: a wide realm he had
Of the Gothic kingdom. Grim was the king.
Many men sat and bemoaned their sorrows,
25 Woefully watching and wishing always
That the cruel king might be conquered at last.
That has passed over: so this may depart!
Sad in his soul he sitteth joyless,