Gripla - 20.12.2008, Síða 231

229PASSÍUSÁLMAR KINGOS
ABSTRACT
There has hitherto been no discussion of the Icelandic translations of the Danish
baroque poet Thomas Kingo (1634–1703); this article will try to improve matters
by giving an account of all the Icelandic translations of his works.
An initial effort to translate both parts of his Aandelig Siunge-Koor was
attempted shortly after they were published in Denmark, at the instigation of
Bishop Þórður Þorláksson. Stefán Ólafsson’s translation of the first part of Aande-
lig Siunge-Koor was printed with Martin Moller’s Paradísarlykill in 1686, twelve
years after it was published in Denmark: seven morning hymns, seven evening
hymns, and seven of David’s Penitential Psalms – 21 in all. Árni Þorvarðsson’s
translation of the second part of Aandelig Siunge-Koor was printed in a separate
edition, Andlega saungkors Annar Partur, thirty-seven hymns altogether, in 1693,
also twelve years after their appearance in Denmark. Later, all of the translations
which Stefán Ólafsson had made of Söngkórinn appeared in Sálmabók 1751 and
Höfuðgreinabók 1772, both of which books were intended for household devotions
as well as the church liturgy.
Shortly after Kingo’s death his Passionssalmer (in Vinterparten af Danmarks
og Norges kirkers forordnede psalmebog 1689) were translated into Icelandic. The
translation was not complete and remained unprinted. JW are the initials of the
translator. I have assembled evidence to suggest that the translator was Bishop Jón
Vídalín (1666–1720), Þórður Þorláksson’s successor in Skálholt and the author of
the Vídalínspostilla.
Thus we have three early translations of Kingo’s hymns; in addition his hymns
have been translated almost up to our time. Thirteen translators are known, the
latest being Professor Jón Helgason (1899–1986).
The accompany chart shows the number of hymns by Kingo in printed hymn-
books from 1751 to 1997. It turns out that the greatest number of them, twenty-
five, are in the Sálmabók of 1886, and that this number decreases to seven or eight
in the most recent hymnals. All of Kingo’s morning and evening hymns, except
for one, have now disappeared from the hymn-book. The explanation is simple:
the book is no longer intended for household devotions. This was the role played
by earlier hymnals such as Kingo’s morning and evening hymns.
Sigrún Steingrímsdóttir
Department of Icelandic Language and Literature
444 University College
University of Manitoba, Winnipeg
steingri@cc.umanitoba.ca