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The Poetic Edda

by Anonymous, Saemund Sigfusson (Alleged author)

Other authors: See the other authors section.

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
2,664265,435 (4.12)1 / 44
The great poetic tradition of pre-Christian Scandinavia is known to us almost exclusively though the Poetic Edda. The poems originated in Iceland, Norway, and Greenland between the ninth and thirteenth centuries, when they were compiled in a unique manuscript known as the Codex Regius. The poems are primarily lyrical rather than narrative. Terry's readable translation includes the magnificent cosmological poem Völuspá ("The Sibyl's Prophecy"), didactic poems concerned with mythology and the everyday conduct of life, and heroic poems, of which an important group is concerned with the story of Sigurd and Brynhild. Poems of the Elder Edda will appeal to students of Old Norse, Icelandic, and Medieval literature, as well as to general readers of poetry.… (more)
  1. 100
    Nibelungenlied by Anonymous (andejons)
    andejons: Much of the story of Nibelungenlied is also told in the poetic Edda, but in considerably shorter form but with some extra material. There are also many points that differ.
  2. 40
    The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún by J. R. R. Tolkien (guurtjesboekenkast)
    guurtjesboekenkast: De legende van Sigurd en Gudrún bevat twee epische gedichten die zijn gebaseerd op Oudnoorse mythen die bekendstaan als de Edda. Tolkien herschreef deze legende in twee modern Engelse gedichten. Samen vormen deze het verhaal van de drakendoder Sigurd, de wraak van Gudrún en de val van de Nibelungen.… (more)
  3. 30
    The Skalds A Selection of Their Poems, with Introduction and Notes by Lee M. Hollander (Rowntree)
    Rowntree: An interesting examination of skaldic verse forms.
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 Folio Society Devotees: The Poetic Edda LE313 unread / 313Inceptic, January 2021

» See also 44 mentions

English (19)  Dutch (3)  Swedish (2)  Spanish (1)  French (1)  All languages (26)
Showing 1-5 of 19 (next | show all)
The heroic section is like an expanded universe for my favourite saga of all time - the Volsung Saga. I'd been wondering what happened to Helgi and this book of traditional poems tells me that, plus a bunch of other tantalising details not contained in the saga. Despite being translated from old Norse poetry it is surprisingly readable.

From the mythological section I've developed a theory: I'm utterly convinced that Odin and Loki were lovers! Sounds bizarre but I swear the text supports it - they were actually blood brothers (not father and adopted son), when accusations of homosexuality are flying around neither of them denies it, Loki enjoys cross-dressing and switching genders, and they both practise traditionally-feminine types of magic. Case closed.

On a more serious note, it's somewhat surprising to see how accepting of disabilities the Vikings apparently were. There's a whole passage about how everyone is useful regardless of disability and most of the gods are maimed in some way or another. Tyr is one-handed, Odin lost an eye, Hod is blind, and at one point it's suggested that Heimdall traded his hearing for better vision (although at another point it's stated he has super-human hearing, so who knows).

Absolutely recommended for any lover of Viking mythology, as it's one of the extremely few original sources. ( )
  weemanda | Nov 2, 2023 |
[This rating and review refers to the Terry translation.]
This had been my favorite translation until my latest read through off my Eddas, and still ranks right up there. It's accurate, and it mostly scans like poetry should, keeping not only the sense but the feel of the original. A nice introduction and some endnotes on each poem. My only real complaint here is the lack of stanza numbering, or rather, the stanza numbers being referenced as a range at the top of the page. It can make comparative reading a bit of a chore. But still one of the best. ( )
  dhaxton | Jun 27, 2023 |
[This rating and review refers to the Larrington translation.]
A very competent and modern translation, but it just doesn't read (scan) like poetry. The most annoying thing here, though, is the note system. Notes are marked by an asterisk in the text, and then referenced by page number in an appendix. Which makes them practically useless. ( )
  dhaxton | Jun 27, 2023 |
[This rating and review refers to the Hollander translation.]
This was the first real Edda I owned and read. I think the goal of the translator here was to make sure that Chaucer could read the Edda in Middle English, because the translation surely is not to the modern language. This book hight eldritch like an etin. On the other hand, Professor Hollander was a true scholar, and his notes are extensive and helpful. A use edition to an Edda collection. ( )
  dhaxton | Jun 27, 2023 |
As far as I can judge, this is a competent translation of the collection of Old Norse poetry called the Poetic (or Elder) Edda. My Norse is rusty, but comparing the English text with quotations from the Norse, they make sense. It is comparable to Lee Hollander's version and more scholarly than W. H. Auden's though as this writer admits, Auden is very effective poetically. poetically. ( )
  antiquary | Nov 14, 2022 |
Showing 1-5 of 19 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (25 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Anonymousprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Saemund SigfussonAlleged authormain authorall editionsconfirmed
Dronke, UrsulaEditor and Translatormain authorsome editionsconfirmed
Jonsson, FinnurEditormain authorsome editionsconfirmed
Larrington, CarolyneTranslatormain authorsome editionsconfirmed
Bellows, Henry AdamsTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Brate, ErikTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Collinder, BjörnTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Dodds, JeramyTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Genzmer, FelixTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Hollander, Lee M.Translatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Jarzina, ThomasCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Larsson, CarlIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
May, EberhartCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Nyström, JennyIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Orchard, AndyEditorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Otten, MarcelTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Sörling, OlofIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Scardigli, PiergiuseppeEditorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Schier, KurtIntroductionsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Sigurdsson, GisliEditorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Simrock, KarlTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Stange, Manfred.Herausgebersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Terry, PatriciaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
von Rosen, GeorgIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Vries, Jan deTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Zorn, AndersIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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FOR JOHN [Larrington translation]
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Ongeveer vanaf het jaar870 werd Ijsland razendsnel gekoloniseerd.
INTRODUCTION [Larrington Translation] -- the old, one-eyed god Odin hands nine days and nights on the windswept ash-tree Yggdrasill, sacrificing himself to himself; the red-bearded Thor swings his powerful hammer against the giant enemy; the ravening wolf Fenrir leaps forward to seize the Father of the Gods in his slavering jaws, the terrible passion of Brynhild for the dragon-slayer Sigurd culminates in her implacable demand for his murder -- all these famous scenes from Old Norse myth and legend are found in their oldest and most original form in the Poetic Edda.
The Seeress's Prophecy (Voluspa), composed mainly in the fornyrdislag metre, is recited by a seeress who can remember before the beginning of the world and who can see as far ahead as after Ragnarok - the Doom of the Gods.

(translated by Carolyne Larrington, 1996)
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Please do not combine with the Prose Edda - a very different work
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The great poetic tradition of pre-Christian Scandinavia is known to us almost exclusively though the Poetic Edda. The poems originated in Iceland, Norway, and Greenland between the ninth and thirteenth centuries, when they were compiled in a unique manuscript known as the Codex Regius. The poems are primarily lyrical rather than narrative. Terry's readable translation includes the magnificent cosmological poem Völuspá ("The Sibyl's Prophecy"), didactic poems concerned with mythology and the everyday conduct of life, and heroic poems, of which an important group is concerned with the story of Sigurd and Brynhild. Poems of the Elder Edda will appeal to students of Old Norse, Icelandic, and Medieval literature, as well as to general readers of poetry.

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Inngangur; Texti Eddukvæða með nútímastafsetningu; Orða- og efnisskýringar. Handhæg kiljuútgáfa fyrir skóla og almenning.
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