Editiones Arnamagnæanæ. Series A - 01.06.2003, Blaðsíða 274
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INTRODUCTION
VI. H1 and H2: Orthography. Consonants.
1. <b) appears for etymological p in ‘Brinngs bala’ (so divided) H1,
‘Bringzbala’ H2, 60/1.
2. On <c> see 7 below.
3. <d) is regular for d/ð. On prefix ‘at’/‘ad’ and final d/t see 15 be-
low. <d> is normally written in forms of ‘Jslenndsk-’ in H' but some-
times omitted in H2. Both usually retain an etymological ð (written
<d» before middle voice -st endings (see exx. in 14 below) and before
the -sl- suffix in e.g. ‘fædslu’, ‘hrædslu’. In H' the superlative adv. is
‘helldst’, in H2 ‘hellst’. In H' <d) is once omitted in ‘Norlenndinga’
4/11, and in both H1 and H2 it is usually omitted in the ending of the
second pers. pl. verb before the pron. In both the comp. is ‘elldri’
12/44, 14/12, the adv. form always ‘harla’. H2 has <dd> in ‘munnddang-
ligu’ 78/36-37.
4. On intervocalic / see V 5 above; on <ft)/<pt) see 11 below. <f> is
always written before n in words like jafn, sofna, svefn. In H2 <ff> is
sometimes written for f, especially in proper names and in the first
lines of chapters where Jón Pálsson is keen to make an impression:
‘Olaffs’, ‘Ulffs’, ‘Leijffur’, ‘Steinolffur’, ‘Botölffur’, ‘Hoffe’, ‘effter’,
‘hoffum vær’, ‘haffde hafft’.
5. In H1 and H2 final <g> is universal in unabbreviated ok, mjök, mik,
þik, sik, and the letter is always found initially in forms of gnóg- and
derivatives. On palatal indication in gjör- see V 2 above. In H1 <g> is
not written in ‘martt’ 12/6, 77/8, but in ‘margt’ 7/12; the word is al-
ways with <g) in H2. Intervocalic <g> is not written in either of the
texts in pret. pl. ‘drou’ 31/18, 72/13, ‘lau’ 31/22; Tagu’ 53/6 in H1 is
Táu’ in H2. Unvoicing is shown in ‘glokt’ 53/23 (‘glogt’ in H2) and by
<x> spellings beside those in <gs>: these are more frequent in H2 than
in H1 and the texts show some mutual variation. Thus ‘huxa’ is usual
in both, but H1 generally prefers ‘vijgslu’ to ‘vijxlu’, H2 ‘vijxlu’ to
‘vijgslu’. H2 also has <x> endings in gen. sg. ‘Norex’, ‘heilax’, which
are absent in H1. Both simplify gg before a cons., ‘bygd’, ‘hrygd’,
‘hrygdist’, ‘Hrigleik’, ‘hygner’, ‘skignj’, but H1 also has ‘bygiligt’
33/32. Both have the modern form Tannggiæd-’, 18/11.
6. <h> is always written in the initial clusters /;/-, /;;;-, hr-, and is re-
tained in the proper name ‘Jllhugi’ 12/11, 13/24; H2 has ‘Illhuga’, H1
‘Jlluga’, where Gþ (L 10/13) has ‘Illugha’. Neither has initial <h> in ‘alfu’