Íslenzk tunga - 01.01.1959, Page 29

JÓMSVÍKINGA SAGA
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I(d) 3513—3619 divides into two parts: I(d.l) 3513~25, 3616-19
King Harald’s íruitless attack on Norway and his return to Den-
mark; I(d.2) 3525—36lc his threat to attack Iceland in order to
punish the Icelanders for the slanderous verses composed on him and
his steward Byrgir.
There has been controversy as to whether the whole text originated
as a unity, or whether part I is a later addition. The problem of the
sources for the material in part I has also aroused discussion.2 No
one, as far as I know, has tried to approach these problems through
any kind of linguistic analysis of the parts. The following notes are
the beginning to such an approach, sufficient to show that a further
detailed study of the manuscript may well be rewarding.3 They are
followed by a brief and unavoidably speculative discussion of the
way in which the results obtained might be applied to the problem of
the text’s origin.
Doubts must naturally be raised by the fact that the copy of Jvs. in
291 must be at least a second remove from the ultimate common
original of the extant Jvs. redactions, as is shown by the inter-
polations and omissions peculiar to it.4 The omissions may be due
2 See, e. g., G. Storm, „Om Redaktionerne af Jomsvikingasaga," Arkiv för
nordisk filologi, I (1883), 236—239; H. Hempel, „Die Formen der Iómsvíkinga
saga,“ ibid., XXXIX (1923), 15—16; S. A. Krijn, De Jómsvíkingasaga (Leiden
1914), 56 ff.; 62 ff.; L. M. Hollander, „Studies in the Jómsvíkingasaga,“ Arkiv
för nordisk filologi, XXXIll (1917), 210 ff.; 216 ff.; Finnur Jónsson, Den old-
norske og oldislandske Litteraturs Historie (2nd ed.; Kpbenhavn 1920—24), II,
658 and 654—655.
3 On the principles behind such au approach, see G. Lindblad, Studier i
Codex Regius av iildre Eddan (Lundastudier i nordisk sprákvetenskap, X;
Lund 1954), IX—X. The present notes have been made possible by the
posthumously puhlished work by L. Larsson, Glossar till Cod. AM 291, 4:to, ed.
St. Hast (Lundastudier i nordisk spr&kvetenskap, XIII; Lund 1956). I have, by
accident, noted the following omissions in this: s. v. liþ add gs liþs 35:24; s. v.
reckia add as rekio 4:1.
4 See, e. g., Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson, Om de norske kongers sagaer (Skrifter
'itgitt av Det Norske Videnskaps-Akademi i Oslo. II. Hist.-filos. Kl. 1936. No. 4;
Oslo 1937), 203.