Studia Islandica - 01.06.1962, Síða 191

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lars seem to agree not only that Njála is later than Laxdœla, but also
that it has been evidently and strongly marked by its predecessor.
Studies of Grettla have indicated that its author had known and used
sagas like Laxdœla and Eyrbyggja. A connection between Laxdæla
and Eyrbyggja seems indisputable, though experts do not agree as to
how that connection should be interpreted. Do the pair word statis-
tics confirm results which have been obtained by other methods? Can
they more subtly differentiate those results?
For the purpose of answering such questions new pair word series
have been arranged, where Egla. Laxdæla, Eyrbyggja, Njála and
Grettla are confronted in turn each with the other and within all four
word categories. The material is presented in Appendices XIII—XVI
and Tables X—XIII (pp. 144—178 and 68—71 respectively). The prin-
ciple is just the same as for the former series. But as the interest is
now directed to the relationship between the family sagas, Snorri A
and Snorri B have been put aside this time. This means that if e.g.
the adverb afskrœmiliga is listed as pair word between Eyrbyggja and
Grettla (App. XIII: g), then it functions as pair word in the actual
series, within the sphere of our five family sagas, but may well occur
in Snorri also. For certain purposes it has proved convenient, however,
to denote separately those pair words which are not to be found in
Heimskringla. They have been marked in the lists with an asterisk.
Before discussing what the new appendices and tables can tell us
about the relations between the family sagas one should, however,
note one point where they seem to throw more light upon the con-
nection between Snorri and Egla. It turns out that if we eliminate
those words which are to be found in Snorri too —- let us call them
“triple words” — this has a very different effect on the series which
include Egla than on those where Egla does not appear. (Pp. 43—44)
The other family sagas reveal a striking conformity on this point: in
round numbers half of their pair words in the actual series are also
“triple words” -with Snorri. For Egla the corresponding share is about
one third larger. This pronounced difference would have its natural
explanation, if one assumes that Heimskringla and Egla have the
same author.
The arrangement of Tables XIII—XVI, implying an application and
slight modification of the same simple principle used in the original
Tables I—III, is explained on pp. 44—45.
Table XII confirms in an interesting way the special connection be-
tween Njála and Laxdæla. Of the three sagas in the series which for
chronological reasons may have left impressions on the author of
Njála, Laxdæla shows twice as many pair words (79) with Njála
as does Egla (39), and one and a half as many as Eyrbyggja (53).