Gripla - 20.12.2008, Blaðsíða 138

GRIPLA136
Snorrungagoðorð.34 More importantly it renders Þorbjörg’s remarks a
new meaning: “Hví skal ek eigi gera þik þeim líkastan, er þú vill líkastr
vera.” Is Þorbjörg referring to Sturla’s Valhöll? Sturla’s búð is mentioned
only twice in Sturlu saga, and in neither case is its name revealed.35 As we
know from Sturlunga búðir usually had names. It is also noteworthy in this
context what character traits of Sturla the author of his saga underlines, the
description belonging to the same scene that called for Bishop Brandur’s
observation:
þá gekk Sturla fram á virkit fyrir búð sína, því at þat var oft háttr
hans at setja á langar tölur um málaferli sín, því at maðrinn var bæði
vitr ok tungumjúkr. Vildi hann ok, at þat væri jafnan frá borit, at
hans virðing yrði víðfræg.36
Sturla’s chief concern is honor and reputation, his weapons are cleverness
and oratorical skills. It is possible that he named his búð Valhöll as a move
towards this goal, forging a link between himself and the clever and tungu-
mjúkur Óðinn, a move that backfired. In either case, it seems secure to
conclude that it was either of the two, Snorri and his father, who named
his búð Valhöll as a positive reference, undoubtedly first and foremost to
secure and increase his honor, as the sources so explicitly reveal was of
primary importance to them both.
Freyr is referred to only once, when Þorvaldssynir refer to Sturla
Sighvatsson, their mortal enemy, with the phrase Dala-Freyr. Their first
use of it comes during their infamous Sauðafellsför in 1229. Having ter-
rorized Sturla’s household they thought they had a catch when coming to
Sturla’s sleeping space:
Þeir Þórðr gengu at lokrekkjunni ok hjuggu upp ok báðu Dala-Frey þá
eigi liggja á laun.37
Further:
34 His son, Jón, was formally put in charge of two thirds of it and Þórður, Snorri’s brother,
got a third.
35 Sturlunga saga I, 86, 113.
36 Ibid., 113.
37 Ibid., 326.