The Icelandic connection - 01.03.2018, Qupperneq 30

28
ICELANDIC CONNECTION
Vol. 70 #1
many Icelandic poets who, as one might say,
‘strip down the language’ as he did, creating
humour with everyday words as in the poem:
A Forum Til Augnlaeknis (Going to the
Eye Doctor):
Silkispjara solin rara,
sin med her augu,
aetlar hann ad fara ad fara
ad fa ser gleraugu.
Silken cloth the sun through,
Across his eyes it passes;
As he gets going to go to go,
To getting himself some glasses
Or Else:
Eg fer ekki fyrr en eg haetti,
og fteri ekki,
]d6 ad eg matti,
og hastti ekki fyrr en eg fer.
I will not go before I stop,
Though I could go,
I would not,
Before I go, I will stop.
Language, both Icelandic and West-
Icelandic, was his plaything, and he relished
playing with both. An amusing example is
his poem called Agust H. which, as the title
indicates, is about Agust H. Bjarnason, PhD
in Natural Sciences and Psychology. He
was the first professor at the University of
Iceland with a PhD and was Chancellor of
the university from 1918 to 1928. He visited
the Icelandic communities in Canada and
the United States and gave lectures there.
He was always called Agust H., and Kainn
used this in the following poem:
Agust H.
Nu heilsa eg heimspeking frasgum
og hneigi mig. - Saell vert Jtu -
heidradi herra Agust,
H. - „do you do?”.
Vid bradum her sydra ad sja fyg
og setjast hja Jrer f „biT
og hlusta a pig, herra Agust,
H. — „do you feel?”
Pad er svo hressandi, heilnasmt,
og heimskuna daemir 1 bann,
ad hlusta a fyg, herra Agust,
H. - laerdan mann.
Peir sem ad Jaekkja j)ig vita,
jaegar ad komid er haust
heldur Jau heimleidis, Agust
H. - vadalaust.
Now I greet the famed man of learning
With a bow - Pleased to meet you,
Honoured sir, Mr Agust
H. - How do you do?
We here down south have longed to meet
you;
For us, this is a big deal
Let’s hear you talk, Mr Agust
H. - How do you feel?
So wholesome and invigorating,
All foolish thoughts you ban,
We devour your words, Mr. Agust
H. - such a learned man.
Those who know you surely know this:
That when summer turns to fall,
You’ll be heading homeward, Agust
H. - no doubt at all.
(transl. Ingrid Roed)
(Editor’s note: the play on the Icelandic/English
is in that the letter ‘H’ is pronounced as 'How
on Icelandic)
The way he plays with the language
and his agility and skill in versification
were perhaps the two things that best
accounted for his popularity. I say
“versification” - this word is sometimes
used pejoratively, as people say there is a