Íslenskt mál og almenn málfræði - 13.07.1981, Page 257

Atlamál hin grœnlenzku
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HEIMILDASKRÁ
Brate, Erik. Samunds Edda. Stockholm 1913.
Detter, F., R. Heinzel. Sœmundar Edda II. Leipzig 1903.
Dronke, Ursula. The Poetic Edda I. Oxford 1969.
Finnur Jónsson. De gamle Eddadigte. K0benhavn 1932.
Flóamannasaga. Fornsögur. Hgg. von Guðbrandur Vigfússon und Theodor Mö-
bius. Leipzig 1860.
Fritzner, Johan. Ordbog over Det gamle norske Sprog II, IV. Oslo 1954, 1972.
Gering, Hugo. Kommentar zu den Liedern der Edda II. Hgg. von B. Sijmons.
Halle 1931.
Guðbrandur Vigfússon and F. York Powell. Corpvs Poeticvm Boreale I. Oxford
1883.
Littleton, C. Scott. The „Kingship in Heaven“ Theme. Myth and Law among the
Indo-Europeans. Ed. by Jaan Puhvel. Berkeley 1970.
Neckel, Gustav, Hans Kuhn. Edda. Heidelberg 1962.
Ólafur Briem. Eddukvœði. Reykjavík 1968.
Perkins, Richard. The Dreams of Flóamanna saga. Saga-Book XIX. 1975-76.
Sveinbjörn Egilsson. Lexicon Poeticum. Hafniæ 1860.
SUMMARY
Atlamál, verse 73, has never been satisfactorily explained. By interpreting kné
‘knee’ as ‘family, clan’, a meaning attested in Old Icelandic, cf. especially knérunnr,
as well as in a number of other languages, the following translation emerges, lines
3-4: “A fist will hit the clan, if its offspring (lit. sprigs) is no more.” And lines 5-6:
“A tree will fall, if its roots are cut.” In this way Atli is addressed by Guðrún
who repeats the same idea in two different ways. Atli does not understand her point
with the well-known dire consequences.