Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana - 01.06.1981, Qupperneq 20
Att sagans ofversåttande skett i Norge och snarast under det 13:de århundradets
forrå hålft, måste man på grund af de allmånna, genom andra fornskrifter till-
råckligt bekanta, literaturhistoriska forhållandena antaga. (p. viii)
It seems unlikely that Erec et Enide was not introduced to the Norwegian
court together with Chrétien’s other romances, especially since the com-
position of Erec antedates both Yvain and Perceval. In the past, the
provenance of Erex saga has been either ignored or disputed by literary
historians. Jon Helgason does not even mention Erex saga in his literary
history; Finnur Jonsson does in his, but assigns no date to the transla-
tion.11 Jan de Vries is of two minds regarding Erex saga. In the first
edition of Altnordische Literaturgeschichte (1942) de Vries considers Erex
saga one of the works translated at the court of Håkon Håkonarson (II,
353), but in the second edition (1967) he chooses to be vague. Since Erex
saga is discussed immediately after Parcevals saga, which de Vries dates
during Håkon Magnusson’s reign (1299-1319), one assumes that the case
is the same for Erex saga. Without explanation de Vries adds, however,
“Der islåndische Verfasser war offenbar ein Geistlicher” (II, 534). Sig-
uråur Nordal places both Erex saga and Parcevals saga into the reign of
Håkon Håkonarson.12 In this regard he agrees with the earlier historian
Eugen Mogk who, furthermore, considered the character of Erex saga, as
we know it today, the work of Icelandic redactors who had drastically
condensed the original Norwegian translation and also interpolated two
episodes.13 Mogk’s thesis is both reasonable and tenable, as will be dem-
onstrated (see pp. 192-98).
If there is some uncertainty regarding the genesis of the translation of
two of Chrétien’s romances, there is none - at least as far as patronage is
concerned - in the case of the Strengleikar. The preface States that King
Håkon had ordered the translation from French into Norwegian of a
book called Ijoda bok, that is, “Book of Lais” or “Song Book.” The
translator informs us that these lais were performed on strengleikar, that
is, various kinds of stringed instruments; hence the title by which the
Norwegian collection of lais has become known.14 Although the transla-
11 Vol. II, 2nd ed., p. 958.
12 “Sagalitteraturen,” Litteraturhistorie. Norge og Island. Nordisk Kultur, VIII B, ed.
Sigurdur Nordal (Uppsala: Almqvist & Wiksell, 1953), p. 224.
13 Geschichte der norwegisch-islåndischen Literatur. Zweite verbesserte und vermehrte
Auflage (Strassburg: Karl J. Triibner, 1904), p. 867.
14 The first edition of the translated lais was entitled Strengleikar eda Liodabok, ed. R.
Keyser & C. R. Unger (Christiania, 1850).
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