The Iceland year-book - 01.01.1927, Síða 84

original Icelandic can form an adequate conception of the
stupendous difficulties which the translator must overcome
in order to accomplish what Professor Craigie has done. But
even if they are not conversant with Icelandic prosody, or
in a position to make a comparison with the original, many
will probably be interested to see a specimen. To satisfy
that curiosity a verse of less than average difficulties, in-
telligible to all without any racking of brains, may be
quoted. The poet, Sighvatur ThorSarson (d. 1047), is la-
menting the death of his liege lord St. Olaf, king of Norway:
All, me seemed, were smiling
Softly Norway’s lofty
(Far I sailed a-faring)
Fells, while Olaf held them:
Now, me seems, their summits
(Sorrows mark me) darken
(Sore I missed my master
Mild) with tempest wildest,
It has been said that I)r. Johnson’s epitaph on Oliver
Goldsmith (Nullum quod tetigit non ornavit) would be ap-
propriately applied to Professor Craigie. Those who are
acquainted with his work in the field of Icelandic studies
will be ready to believe that dictum.
Sir Israel Gollancz. It is, of course, as Shakespearean
scholar and authority on Old English that Sir Israel Gol-
lancz is best known among the English-speaking nations.
His scholarship in Icelandic has naturally attracted less
notice, though it is said to be equally remarkable. However,
some readers of the Year-Book will be familiar with his
Hamlet in Iceland, and his translation of Matthias Jochums-
son’s ode on the Tercentenary Commemoration of Shake-
speare in 1916 (Oxford University Press) bears fine testi-
mony to his familiarity with modern Icelandic.
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