Skáldskaparmál - 01.01.1997, Page 151

Riti Kroesen
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hero — that is what maidens usually do — and that her old and unwanted suitor
as well as her father were slain.
But what about Lyngvi? His name is a derivation of lyng (the heather plant).
De Vries makes the apt remark that such a name does not seem very suitable for
a sea king/’1 Now from Beowulf we know that also Sigmundr slew a dragon.62
Neckel suspected that the more popular Sigurðr made people forget what his
father and predecessor did. This seems very likely.63
Perhaps Lyngvi originally was the name of the dragon slain by Sigmundr. A
dragon is usually seen as a huge serpent and a serpent is an inhabitant of the heath,
where the lyng grows. (Fáfnir is always spoken about as inn stóri ormr (“the big
serpent”) and he stays on the Gnitaheiðr). Some kennings testify to the idea that
a serpent is an animal that stays on the heath, such as lyngsfiskr, lyngs barði (“fish
and ship of the heath” = serpent).
What was the original link between Lyngvi and Hjördís? It must have been the
usual link between the monster and the maiden. Hjördís was distressed by Lyngvi
and she was liberated by Sigmundr. The dragon became an unwanted suitor! This
instance of a monster story was already surmised by Phillpotts.64
There is a treasure as well, the big treasure that Hjördís takes with her when
she goes to the battlefield. Why she does so is not explained. The motif seems
somewhat irrational as well as irrelevant. Is she going to bestow her hand as well
as her possessions on whoever is going to win the battle? But her appearance on
the field where she is only a passive spectator - like Hildr was - reminds us of the
fact that it is the natural place for valkyries to be.
Perhaps Hjördís is a shield maiden, and not a valkyrie. Supernatural traits are
lacking in her, although there is a link with Óðinn, through Sigmundr. If we
prefer to see her as a valkyrie, it is because of the many parallels with the heroines
of the Helgi lays and other ladies whose stories we have examined above. It is also
because of the interesting similarities between her and Sigrdrífa, whose story will
be the next one examined.
11. Sigrdrífa (Sigrdrífumál (Edda, pp. 189-97) and Vólsunga Saga (FSN I, pp.
156—163), where it paraphrases Sigrdrífumál, although she is called Brynhildr
here. The valkyrie is also called Brynhildr in the Helreið Brynhildar (Edda, pp.
219-22)).
Sigrdrífa is an exception among heroic valkyries, in that she comes from Valhöll
and is not called anybody’s daughter. Before her magical sleep she was a hand-
maiden of Óðinn, who sent her to do his work on the battlefield. She had
provoked Óðinn’s anger by intervening in a battle between two kings: she had
killed the old king, to whom Óðinn had decreed victory, and had granted victory
61 De Vries (1962), p. 192.
62 Beowulf (1950).
63 Neckel (1920).
64 Phillpotts (1920), pp. 146-59.