(specially)

1) wilderness, desert (úfœriligar auðnir);

2) uninhabited and uncultivated tract of land, waste (bygðust þá margar auðnir landsins);

3) deserted farm or habitation (sá bœr hét síðan á Hrappstöðum, þar er nú auðn);

4) desolation;

ríki mitt stendr mjök til auðnar, is in a state of desolation;

liggja (leggja) í auðn, to lie (to lay) waste;

5) destruction (auðn borgarinnar).

* * *

f. [auðr, adj.]

1. a wilderness, desert; auðn Sinai, Stj. 300.

β. land which has no owner or is waste, uninhabited; bygðust þá margar auðnir víða, many wide wastes were then peopled, Eg. 15; alla auðn landsins, Fms. i. 5, viii. 33, Greg. 33: the auðn was claimed as a royal domain; konungr á hér a. alla í landi, Fms. xi. 225; um þær auðnir er menn vilja byggja, þá skal sá ráða er a. á, the owner of the waste, N. G. L. i. 125: different from almenningr, compascuum or common.

2. more specially a deserted farm or habitation; sá bær hét síðan á Hrappstöðum, þar er nú a., Ld. 24; liggja í a., to lie waste, 96, Grág. ii. 214, cp. 278.

3. destruction; auðn borgarinnar (viz. Jerusalem), Greg. 40, Rb. 332, Ver. 43, Sd. 179 (where auðnu, f.); ríki mitt stendr mjök til auðnar, is in a state of desolation, Fms. xi. 320, Bret. 68: insolvency, utter poverty, Grág. i. 62.

COMPDS: auðnarhús, auðnaróðal, auðnarsel.

1. an uttered opinion; mun ek nú segja yðr hvat mitt á. er, Nj. 189, Sturl. i. 65 C; Ed. atkvæði (better): a command, Stj. 312, 208; með ákvæðum, expressly, Sks. 235: cp. atkvæði.

2. in popular tales and superstition it is specially used of spells or charms: cp. Lat. fatum from fari; cp. also atkvæði: the mod. use prefers ákvæði in this sense, hence ákvæða-skáld, n. a spell-skald, a poet whose words have a magical power, also called kraptaskald; v. Ísl. Þjóðs. I, where many such poets are mentioned; indeed any poet of mark was believed to possess the power to spell-bind with his verses; cp. The tales about Orpheus.

COMPDS: ákvæðisteigr, ákvæðisverk.

(-ar, -ir), f.

1) a small dome-shaped hill;

2) stronghold, fortification, castle;

3) fortified town, city.

* * *

ar, f., pl. ir, [Ulf. baurgs = πόλις, and once Nehem. vii.

2. = arx, castellum; A. S. burg, burh, byrig, = urbs and arx; Engl. borough and burgh; O. H. G. puruc, purc; late Lat. burgus; Ital. borgo; Fr. bourg; cp. Gr. πύργος; the radical sense appears in byrgja, to enclose; cp. also berg, a hill, and bjarga, to save, defend. Borg thus partly answers to town (properly an enclosure); and also includes the notion of Lat. arx, Gr. ακρόπολις, a castle. Old towns were usually built around a hill, which was specially a burg; the name is very freq. in old Teut. names of towns.]

I. a small dome-shaped hill, hence the Icel. names of farms built near to such hills, v. Landn. (Gl.) Hel. once uses the word in this sense, 81; v. the Glossary of Schmeller; brann þá Borgarhraun, þar var bærinn sem nú er borgin (viz. the volcanic hill Eld-borg), Landn. 78; göngum upp á borgina ( the hill) ok tölum þar, Ísl. ii. 216; er borgin er við kend, Landn. 127; Borgar-holt, -hraun, -dalr, -höfn, -fjörðr, -lækr, -sandr; Arnarbælis-borg, Eld-borg (above) in the west of Icel. It may be questioned, whether those names are derived simply from the hill on which they stand (berg, bjarg), or whether such hills took their name from old fortifications built upon them: the latter is more likely, but no information is on record, and at present ‘borg’ only conveys the notion of a ‘hill;’ cp. hólar, borgir og hæðir, all synonymous, Núm. 2. 99.

II. a wall, fortification, castle; en fyrir innan á jörðunni görðu þeir borg ( wall) umhverfis fyrir ófriði jötna … ok kölluðu þá borg Miðgarð, Edda 6; cp. also the tale of the giant, 25, 26; borg Ása, Vsp. 28; þeir höfðu gört steinvegg fyrir framan hellismunnann, ok höfðu sér þat allt fyrir borg (shelter, fortification), Fms. vii. 81; hann let göra b. á sunnanverðu Morhæfi ( Murrey), Orkn. 10, 310, 312, 396, Fms. i. 124, xi. 393, Eg. 160; the famous Moussaburg in Shetland, cp. Orkn. 398.

III. a city, esp. a great one, as London, Hkr. ii. 10; Lisbon, iii. 234; York, 156; Dublin, Nj. 274; Constantinople, Fms. vii. 94; Nineveh, Sks. 592; Zion, Hom. 107, etc. This sense of the word, however, is borrowed from the South-Teut. or Engl. In Scandin. unfortified towns have -bæ or -by as a suffix; and the termin. -by marks towns founded by the Danes in North. E.

COMPDS: borgararmr, borgargreifi, borgargörð, borgarhlið, borgarhreysi, borgarklettr, borgarkona, borgarlið, borgarlím, borgarlýðr, borgarmaðr, borgarmúgr, borgarmúrr, borgarsiðr, borgarsmíð, borgarstaðr, borgarveggr, Borgarþing, borgaskipan.

1) temporary dwellings booth;

farmanna búðir, merchants’ booths; esp. of the temporary dwellings at the Icelandic parliament;

tjalda búð, to fit up a booth (with tent-roof and hangings);

2) abode, dwelling place;

fara búðum, to change one’s abode;

hafa harða, kalda búð, to have a hard, cold abode.

(= búið, búit), used as adv., may be;

búð svá sé til ætlat, may be, it will come so to happen;

búð eigi hendi hann slíka úgiptu í annat sinn, may be he will not have such misfortune again.

* * *

I. [Engl. booth; Germ. bude; Dan. bod: not from búa], a booth, shop; farmanna búðir, merchants’ booths: setja búðir, Eg. 163; hafa búðir á landi, Grág. i. 91, the booths in the harbour being but temporary and being removed as soon as the ship went to sea.

β. specially used of the temporary abodes in the Icel. parliament, where, as the meeting only lasted two weeks a year, the booths remained empty the rest of the year; hence tjalda ( to dress) búðir, viz. during the session for the use of its owner. But every goði ( priest) and every family had their own ‘booth,’ which also took their names from a single man or ruling family, e. g. Allsherjar b., Sturl. ii. 44; Snorra b., 125; b. Skapta, Nj. 220; b. Hafliða, Sturl. i. 44: from families or districts, Ölfusinga b., Nj. 181; Möðruvellinga b., 182, 247; Skagfirðinga b., 182; Jöklamanna b., Sturl. ii. 158; Austfirðinga b., 158, 159; Saurbæinga b., 82; Dalamanna b., Nj. 48; Mosfellinga b., 164; Rangæinga b., 48, 180; Ljósvetninga b., 183, 223; Norðlendinga b., 228; Vatnsfirðinga b., 248; Vestfirðingu b., Bs. i. 21; Svínfellinga b., Lv. 18; Skarðverja b., Sturl. i. 199, etc.: other names, Byrgis-búð, 31; Grýta, ii. 45; Dilkr, 158; Valhöll, 126; Hlað-búð, 82, Nj. 244; Virkis-búð, 247. As the alþing was a public meeting, other booths are also mentioned, e. g. Trúða búðir, booths of Jugglers, Troubadours, Grág. ii. 84; Ölbúð, an Ale-booth, beer-shop, Sturl. ii. 125; Sútara búð, a Souter’s (cobbler’s) booth, Grág. ii. 84; Sverð-skriða b., a Tanner’s booth, id.; and Göngumanna búðir, Beggars’ booths, a troop of beggars being an appendage to any old feast or public meeting, cp. Gísl. 54–56: the law (Grágás) forbade the sheltering of beggars at the parliament, but in vain; see numberless passages referring to alþing or fjórðungsþing, esp. Grág. Þ. Þ., Nj., Sturl., Gísl. l. c., Korm. S., Kristni S. A short treatise, called ‘Catastasis of Booths,’ composed about A. D. 1700, is mentioned in Dasent’s Burnt Njal; but it is the mere work of a scholar, not founded upon tradition. As búð is opposed to bú, as a temporary abode to a permanent fixed one, so búðsetumaðr (búð-seta), a cottager, is opposed to bóndi; fara búðum is to change one’s abode, Hkr. ii. 110; Mýramanna-búð, Band. (MS.)

γ. in eccl., Tjald-búð is the Tabernacle.

2. in the compds í-búð, sam-búð, etc., ‘búð’ is a different word, being simply formed from the verb búa, and of late formation, prob. merely a rendering of Lat. habitatio; whilst búð, a booth, is not related to búa.

II. esp. in compds, í-búð, living in; sam-búð, living together; vás-búð, a cold berth, i. e. wet and cold; hafa harða, kalda búð, to have a hard, cold abode, Fms. x. 158 (belongs perh. to I.)

COMPDS: búðardvöl, búðardyr, búðargögn, búðarhamarr, búðarketill, búðarkviðr, búðarlið, búðarmaðr, búðarnagli, búðarrúm, búðarsetumaðr, búðarstaðr, búðarsund, búðartópt, búðarveggr, búðarvirki, búðarvist, búðarvörðr.

* * *

bœr, or býr, gen. baejar or býjar; gen. biar also occurs, esp. in Norse MSS. of the 14th century, Fb., but is rare and unclassical; pl. -ir, gen. -ja, dat. -jum. In Icel. people say bær; in Norway bö in Swed. and Dan. (always with y) by; the root word being búa, bú: this word is very freq. in local names of towns and villages throughout the whole of Scandinavia; and wherever the Scandinavian tribes settled the name by or bö went along with them. In the map of Northern England the use of this word marks out the limits and extent of the Norse immigration, e. g. the name Kirkby or Kirby; about twenty or thirty such are found in English maps of the Northern and Midland Counties, denoting churches built by the Norse or Danish settlers, as Whitby, Grimsby, etc., cp. Kirkjubær in Icel. In Denmark and Sweden local names ending in -by are almost numberless.

I. a town, village, this is the Norse, Swed., and Dan. notion; þeir brenna býi at köldum kolum, Fms. xi. 122; til bæjarins (of Niðarós), vii. 30; of Bergen, viii. 360, 438; Tunsberg, ix. 361; of the town residence of the earl of Orkney, Nj. 267: allit., borgir ok bæi, castles and towns, Ann. 1349, etc. etc.; baejar-biskup, a town-bishop, Fms. vii. 32; bæjar-prestr, a town-priest, D. N.; bæjar-lögmaðr, a town-justice, id.; bæjar-lýðr, bæjar-lið, bæjar-menn, town’s-people, Fms. viii. 38, 160, 210, Eg. 240, Bs. i. 78; baejar-brenna, the burning of a town, Fms. x. 30; bæjar-bygð, a town-district, viii. 247; bæjar-gjald, a town-rate, N. G. L. i. 328; bæjar-sýsla, a town-office, Fms. vi. 109; bæjar-starf, id., Hkr. iii. 441; bæjar-seta, dwelling in town, Ld. 73, Ísl. ii. 392.

II. a farm, landed estate, this is the Icel. notion, as that country has no towns; bær in Icel. answers to the Germ. ‘hof,’ Norweg. ‘ból,’ Dan. ‘gaard,’ denoting a farm, or farmyard and buildings, or both together; hence the phrase, reisa, göra, setja bæ, efna til bæjar, to build the farmstead, Eb. 10, 26, 254, Ld. 96, 98, Fs. 26, Landn. 126, 127, Eg. 131, Gísl. 8, 28, Bs. i. 26, Þorst. hv. 35; byggja bæ, Bs. i. 60; the phrase, bær heitir…, a farm is called so and so, Ísl. ii. 322, 323, 325, Ann. 1300, Hrafn. 22, Dropl. 5; the allit. phrase, búa á bæ…, Þorst. hv. 37; the passages are numberless, and ‘bær’ has almost become synonymous with ‘house and home;’ and as it specially means ‘the farm-buildings,’ Icel. also say innan-bæjar, in-doors; utan-bæjar, out-of-doors; í bæ, within doors; milii baejar ok stöðuls, K. Þ. K. 78; milli bæja; bæ frá bæ, from house to house; á bæ og af bæ, at home and abroad: things belonging to a bær, bæjar-dyr, the doors of the houses, the chief entrance; bæjar-hurð ( janua); bæjar-veggr, the wall of the houses; bæjar-bust, the gable of the houses; bæjar-lækr, the home-spring, well; bæjar-hlað, the premises; bæjar-stétt, the pavement in the front of the houses; bæjar-leið, a furlong, a short distance as between two ‘bæir;’ bæjar-sund, passage between the houses; bæjar-hús, the home-stead, opp. to fjár-hús, etc., where cattle is kept, or barns and the like; fram-bær, the front part of the houses; torf-bær, timbr-bær, a ‘bær’ built of turf or timber: phrases denoting the ‘bær’ as hearth and home, hér sú Guð í bæ, God be in this house, a form of greeting, cp. Luke x. 5; bæjar-bragr, the customs or life in a house; nema börn hvað á bæ er títt (a proverb).

adv. simply, Stj. 60, K. Á. 224: specially, singularly, Skálda 190, Alg. 354.

prefixed to adjectives or adverbs = Scot. unco = specially, greatly, very; e. vel, very well, Fms. xi. 18; e. fagr, very fine, beautiful, ii. 300; e. skjótt, with great speed, Eg. 354; e. trauðr, very unwilling, Fms. xi. 98; e. mjök, very much, viii. 186; e. lítill, very small, Fbr. 99 new Ed.: cp. Lex. Poët., (very freq. in mod. use.)

d, to appoint specially, Grág. i. 11.

adv. specially, D. N., Sks. 787.

m. delivery, esp. of a speech: með snjöllum framburði, Fms. ii. 199, Stj. 151, 260, 261: specially a law term, pleading, delivery, Grág. i. 42; f. um kviðinn, delivery of the verdict, Nj. 87: in mod. usage a gramm. term, pronunciation.

1) district;

2) country, opp. to bœr (town).

* * *

or hierat, n., pl. héruð or héröð, spelt hieroþ in the vellum, 656 C. 9, 673 A. 53, and in O. H. L. Cod. Upsal. hærað, see p. 113: [hérað is undoubtedly derived from herr (A. S. here), a host, and not from hér, here; the long vowel (é) is prob. caused by the characteristic j in her-r (herj-); so that hierað (hérað), through the after effect of the i sound, stands for heriað; cp. Dan. herred, Swed. härad: the Old Engl. and Scot. law term heriot may also be connected with the Scandin. word, in which case the original sense of hérað might be a tax to be paid to the lord in lieu of military service: the inflex. -að is derived from auðr, óðal, as has been suggested by the old commentators, e. g. Björn á Skarðsá]:—a county, district:

1. in Sweden esp. the word had and still has a fixed legal sense, county, jurisdiction, or the like, cp. Swed. härads-höfding = justice of peace, härads-ting = assize, härads-fogde = bailiff: so in local names, e. g. Dan. Thy-herred in Jutland, Kvenna-hérað, Vetta-h., in Norway, Hálfs. S., Fb. iii.

2. in Norway hérað, country, was usually opp. to bær, town, and answers to Icel. sveit in mod. usage; í bæ ok í héraði, D. N. iii. 35, 101; hérað eðr kaupstaði, Fms. vii. 187; í héraði né í kaupangi, N. G. L. ii. 39; allt þat er í kaupangi er gört þá skal þat at kaupangrs-rétti sækja, en allt þat er í héraði er gört millum héraðs-manna ok bíar-manna, þá skal þat allt at héraðs-rétti sækja, N. G. L. ii. 88 and passim; ef maðr á hús í kaupangi en bæ í héraði, id.; cp. héraðs-dómr, -höldr, -kirkja, -menn, -prestr, -réttr, -þing, etc., below.

3. in Icel. the sense varies, but is for the most part merely geographical, a district, valley, fjord, country, as bordered by mountains or within the same river-basin; thus the Skaga-fjörðr, Eyja-fjördr are each a hérað, and the former is specially so called, see Sturl. passim, Grett. 153 (hann sendi þegar eptir mönnum upp í Hérað); whence Héraðs-vötn, n. pl. Herad water, a river of that county, Landn.; so Fljótsdals-hérað, in the east of Icel., Hrafn. 2, 3; cp. þeir riðu ór héraði, Sturl. iii. 158; ef maðr ríðr um fjöll þau er vatnföll deilir af á millum héraða, Grág. (Kb.) ii. 61, 65; í héraði því (dale) er Reykja-dalr heitir, Sturl. i. 130.

β. gener. a neighbourhood; Gunnarr reið um héraðit at bjóða mönnum, Nj. 49.

4. generally a district; í Svíþjóð eru stór héruð mörg, Hkr. i. 5; í héraði því er Mesopotamia heitir, 623. 52; fjarlæg héruð, Fms. x. 374; sam-héraðs, within the same district; utan-héraðs, outside the district; innan-h., inside, passim; í öllum héruðum Gyðinga, 656 C. 9; í héraði því er á Fjóni heitir, Fms. xi. 43; Galilea-hérað, Campania-h., Cappadokia-h., Post., etc.

B. COMPDS: héraðsbóndi, héraðsbót, héraðsbrestr, héraðsbygð, héraðsdeild, héraðsdómr, héraðsfleygr, héraðsflótti, héraðsfundr, héraðsfærsla, héraðshæfr, héraðshöfðingi, héraðshöldr, héraðsíseta, héraðskirkja, héraðskona, héraðskonungr, héraðslýðr, héraðsmenn, héraðsprestr, héraðsréttr, héraðsriddari, héraðsríkr, héraðsrækr, héraðssekr, héraðssekt, héraðssókn, héraðsstefna, héraðsstjórn, héraðstakmark, héraðsvist, héraðsvært, héraðsþing.

f. a king’s or earl’s bodyguard; the king’s men (hann hefir á hirð um sik sem konungr).

* * *

f. [akin to A. S. hyred; cp. also Engl. hire], a king’s or earl’s body-guard, the king’s men of olden times: for the hirð, their rights, duties, statutes, see the Laws and Sagas passim; among the Laws, specially the Hirðskrá, N. G. L. ii. 390–450, Sks. ch. 24 sqq.; among the Sagas, the Fms. and Hkr. passim, Eg. ch. 5, 8, Fagrsk. ch. 5, the poem of Hornklofi, and 216, Ó. H. ch. 200 sqq., passim: hann hefir ok hirð um sik sem konungr, Eg. 47; ok hafði sína hirð hvárr þeirra, Fms. vi. 185; þá skipar hann hirðinni í eina fylking (opp. to bændr), Hkr. i. 155.

COMPDS: hirðardómr, hirðbiskup, hirðbróðir, hirðbúnaðr, hirðdrengr, hirðhestr, hirðkona, hirðlið, hirðlög, hirðmaðr, hirðmannseiðr, hirðmannalúðr, hirðmannanafn, hirðmannastefna, hirðmær, hirðpallr, hirðprestr, hirðprúðr, hirðprýði, hirðriddari, hirðsiðir, hirðskip, Hirðskrá, hirðstefna, hirðstjóri, hirðstjórn, hirðstofa, hirðsveinn, hirðsveit, hirðvist.

a. white (hvítt silfr); h. á hár, white-haired.

* * *

adj. [Ulf. hweits = λευκός; A. S. hwít; Engl. white; Hel. huît; O. H. G. hwîz; Germ. weiss; Swed. hvit; Dan. hvid]:—white; hvít skinn, white fur, 4. 24; h. motr, a white cap, Ld. 188; h. skjöldr, a white shield, Fms. x. 347; hit hvíta feldarins, Fbr. 148; hvítt blóm, white blossom, 4. 24; hvítt hold, white flesh (skin), id.; hvít hönd, a white band, Hallfred; h. háls, a white neck, of a lady, Rm.; h. hestr, a white horse, Fms. ix. 527; hvítr á har, white-haired, vi. 130; h. maðr ( fair of hue) ok vænn í andliti, x. 420; hvítan mann ok huglausan, Ld. 232; hvít mörk, white money, of pure silver, opp. to grátt ( grey) silver, B. K. 95; hvítr matr, white meat, i. e. milk, curds, and the like, opp. to flesh, in the eccl. law, K. Þ. K. 126; hvítr dögurðr, a white day meal, Sighvat; hvíta-matr, id, K. Þ. K. 102; mjall-hvítr, fann-h., snjó-h., drift-h., white as driven snow; al-h., white allover.

B. Eccl. use of the word white:

I. at the introduction of Christianity, neophytes in the week after their baptism used to wear white garments, called hvíta-váðir, f. pl. white weeds, as a symbol of baptism cleansing from sin and being a new birth; a neophyte was called hvít-váðungr, m. a ‘ white-weedling,’ one dressed in white weeds, Niðrst. 111: the Sagas contain many touching episodes of neophytes, esp. such as were baptized in old age, and died whilst in the white weeds; þat er sögn flestra manna at Kjartan hafi þann dag görzt handgenginn Ólafi konungi er hann var færðr ór hvíta-váðum ok þeir Bolli báðir, Ld. ch. 40; síðan hafði konungr þá í boði sínu ok veitti þeim ena virðuligustu veizlu meðan þeir vóru í hvítaváðum, ok lét kenna þeim heilög fræði, Fms. i. 230; Glúmr (Víga-Glúm) var biskupaðr í banasótt af Kol biskupi ok andaðisk í hvítaváðum, Glúm. 397; Bárðr tók sótt litlu síðar enn hann var skírðr ok andaðisk í hvítaváðum, Fms. ii. 153; Ólafr á Haukagili var skírðr ok andaðisk í hvítaváðum, Fs. (Vd.) 77; var Tóki síðan skírðr af hirðbiskupi Ólafs konungs, ok andaðisk í hvítaváðum, Fb. ii. 138; síðan andaðisk Gestr í hvítaváðum, Bárð. (sub fin.) Sweden, but above all Gothland, remained in great part heathen throughout the whole of the 11th century, after the neighbouring countries Denmark and Norway had become Christian, and so we find in Sweden Runic stones referring to Swedes who had died in the white weeds, some abroad and some at home; sem varð dauðr íhvítaváðum í Danmörku, Baut. 435; hann varð dauðr í Danmörku í hvítaváðum, 610; þeir dó í hvítaváðum, 68; sem dó í hvítaváðum, 271; hann varð dauðr í hvítaváðum, 223, 497. Churches when consecrated used to be dressed out with white; var Kjartan at Borg grafinn, þá var kirkja nyvígð ok í hvítaváðum, Ld. 230.

II. the white garments gave rise to new words and phrases amongst the first generation of northern Christians:

1. Hvíta-Kristr, m. ‘ White-Christ,’ was the favourite name of Christ; hafa láti mik heitan Hvíta-Kristr at viti eld, ef…, Sighvat; another poet (Edda 91) uses the word; and in prose, dugi þú mér, Hvíta-Kristr, help thou me, White-Christ! Fs. 101; ok þeir er þann sið hafa taka nafn af þeim Guði er þeir trúa á, ok kallaðr er Hvíta-Kristr ok því heita þeir Kristnir, mér er ok sagt at H. sé svá miskunsamr, at …, Fms. i. 295; en ef ek skal á guð nacquat trúa, hvat er mér þá verra at ek trúa á Hvíta-Krist en á annat guð? Ó. H. 204; Arnljótr svarar, heyrt hefi ek getið Hvíta-Krists, en ekki er mér kunnigt um athöfn hans eða hvar hann ræðr fyrir, 211; en þó trúi ek á Hvíta-Krist, Fb. ii. 137.

2. the great festivals, Yule (see Ld. ch. 40), Easter and Pentecost, but especially the two latter, were the great seasons for christening; in the Roman Catholic church especially Easter, whence in Roman usage the first Sunday after Easter was called Dominica in Albis; but in the northern churches, perhaps owing to the cold weather at Easter time, Pentecost, as the birthday of the church, seems to have been specially appointed for christening and for ordination, see Hungrv. ch. 2, Thom. 318; hence the following week was termed the Holy Week (Helga Vika). Hence; Pentecost derived its name from the white garments, and was called Hvíta-dagar, the White days, i. e. Whitsun-week; frá Páskadegi inum fýrsta skulu vera vikur sjau til Drottins-dags í Hvítadögum; Drottinsdag í Hvítadögum skulu vér halda sem hinn fyrsta Páskadag, K. Þ. K. 102; þváttdag fyrir Hvítadaga = Saturday next before Whitsunday, 126, 128; Páskadag inn fyrsta ok Uppstigningar-dag ok Drottinsdag í Hvítadögum, 112; þá Imbrudaga er um Hvítadaga verða, 120; vóru afteknir tveir dagar í Hvítadögum, Bs. i. 420; um várit á Hvítadögum, Orkn. 438: Hvítadaga-vika, u, f. White-day week = Whitsun-week, K. Þ. K. 126: in sing., þeir kómu at Hvítadegi (= Whitsunday) til Björgynjar, Fms. x. 63, v. 1.: Hvítadaga-helgi, f. the White-day feast, Whitsuntide, Fms. viii. 373, xi. 339, Sturl. iii. 206: Hvítadaga-hríð, a snow storm during the White days, Ann. 1330: Hvít-Drottins-dagr, m. the White Lord’s day, i. e. Whitsunday, the northern Dominica in Albis, Rb. 484, Fms. vii. 156, Bs. i. 62, where it refers to the 20th of May, 1056, on which day Isleif the first bishop of Iceland was consecrated. The name that at last prevailed was Hvíta-sunna, u, f. Whitsun, i. e. White-sun, D. N. ii. 263, 403: Hvítasunni-dagr, m. Whitsuday, Fb. ii. 546, Fms. viii. 63, v. l.: Hvítasunnudags-vika, u, f. Whitsun-week, Fb. ii. 546; Páskaviku, ok Hvítasunnudagsviku, ok þrjár vikur fyrir Jónsvöku, ok svá fyrir Michials-messu, N. G. L. i. 150; hvítasunnudagshátíð, Thom. 318. As the English was the mother-church of that of Norway and Iceland, the Icelandic eccl. phrases are derived from the English language. See Bingham’s Origg. s. vv. White Garments, and Dominica in Albis, where however no reference is given to Icel. writers. In modern Denmark and Norway the old name has been displaced by Pindse, i. e. Pfingsten, derived from the Greek word, whereas in Icel., as in Engl., only the name Hvítasunna is known, ☞ In Denmark the people make a practice of thronging to the woods on Whitsun morning to see the rising of the sun, and returning with green branches in their hands, the trees being just in bud at that season.

C. COMPDS: hvítabjörn, hvítadagar, hvítagnípa, hvítalogn, hvítamatr, Hvítasunna, hvítaváðir, hvítavalr, hvítarmr, hvítbránn, hvítbrúnn, hvítdreki, Hvítdrottinsdagr, hvítfaldaðr, hvítfjaðraðr, hvítflekkóttr, hvítfyrsa, hvítfyssi, hvíthaddaðr, hvíthárr, hvítjarpr, hvítklæddr, hvítmelingar, hvítröndóttr, hvítskeggjaðr, hvítskinn, hvítváðungr.

II. as pr. names, Hvítr, Engl. White, Dan. Hvid, Landn.; esp. as a surname, Hvíti, the White, Óláfr Hvíti, Þorsteinn Hvíti, Landn.: Hvít-beinn, m. White-hone, a nickname, Landn.; as also Hvíta-skáld, Hvíta-ský, Hvíta-leðr, Hvíta-kollr, Landn.: in local names, Hvíta-býr, Whitby; Hvíta-nes, Hvíta-dalr, Landn.; Hvít-á, the White-water, a name of several Icel. rivers flowing from glaciers, Hvítár-vellir, Hvítár-síða, Landn.; Hvítramanna-land, White-men’s-land, old name of the southern part of the present United States, Landn.

m., gramm. a ‘head-stave,’ head letter, capital, initial, used freq. in this sense by Thorodd: but grammarians use it specially of the letters h, q, v, þ, which can stand only at the beginnings of syllables, (see Gramm. p. xv, col. 1 at the bottom; Skálda 165–171):—in prosody, the third of the alliterative letters (ljóðstafir) standing ‘ahead’ of the second verse line, the preceding two being called stuðlar; thus in ‘þá var grund groin | grænum lauki,’ the g in ‘grænum’ is a höfuðstafr, but in ‘grund’ and ‘gróin’ a stuðill, Edda 120: in mod. usage höfuðstafir in pl. is used of all the alliterative letters, skáldskapr þinn er skothent klúðr | skakk-settum höfuðstöfum með, Jón Þorl.

(-s, -ar), m. heathen place of worship, cairn or altar of stone (hörg hann mér gørði hlaðinn steinum).

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m., never f., for the form hörg (Landn. 111) is merely an error; [A. S. hearg; O. H. G. haruc]:—a heathen place of worship. Distinction is to be made between hof ( temple) and horg; the hof was a house of timber, whereas the horg was an altar of stone (the hátimbraðr in Vþm. is not literal) erected on high places, or a sacrificial cairn (like haugr), built in open air, and without images, for the horg itself was to be stained with the blood of the sacrifice; hence such phrases as, to ‘break’ the horgs, but ‘burn’ the temples. The horg worship reminds one of the worship in high places of the Bible. The notion of a ‘high place’ still remains in the popular Icel. phrase, það eru ekki uppi nema hæstu hörgar, only the highest horgs jut out, when all lies under a deep snow. In provincial Norse a dome-shaped mountain is called horg (Ivar Aasen). The worship on horgs seems to be older than that in temples, but was in after times retained along with temple worship, and then, it seems, specially reserved for the worship of the goddesses or female guardians (dísir), Hervar. S. ch. 1, Hdl. l. c., Edda l. c., cp. also Hörga-brúðr, f. the bride of the horgs, see Hölgi. Many of the old cairns and hows are no doubt horgs or high places of worship of the heathen age. A third way of worshipping is recorded, viz. a portable booth or tabernacle in which the god was carried through the land, mentioned in Tacit. Germ. ch. 40; traces of this ancient worship were still found in Sweden at the close of heathendom, see the interesting tale of Gunnar Helming in Fms. ii. 73–78.

II. references; hörg hann mér görði hlaðinn steinum, nú er grjót þat at gleri orðit, etc., Hdl. 10; hofum ok hörgum, Vþm. 38; þeir er hörg ok hof hátimbruðu, Vsp. 7; hof mun ek kjósa, hörga marga, Hkv. Hjörv. 4; hátimbraðr h., Gm. 16; hamra ok hörga, skóga, vötn ok tré, Fms. v. 239; brjóta ok brenna hof ok hörga, Fms. i. 283, ii. 41; Oddr brenndi hof ok hörga braut, Fas. ii. 288 (in a verse); hauga né hörga, en ef maðr verðr at því kunnr eða sannr, at hann hleðr hauga, eðr gerir hús, ok kallar hörg, eða reisir stöng, N. G. L. i. 430, cp. ii. 496; höfðu frændr hennar síðan mikinn átrúnað á hólana, var þar görr hörg(r) er blót tóku til, trúðu þeir at þeir dæi í hólana, Landn. 111; þar vóru áðr blót ok hörgar, Kristni S. ch. 11; eitt haust var gört dísablót mikit hjá Álfi konungi, gékk Álfhildr at blótinu, en um nóttina er hón rauð hörginn …, Fas. (Hervar. S.) i. 413; þat var hörgr er gyðjurnar áttu, Edda 9, a paraphrase of the passage in the Vsp. l. c.; blóthús ok hörga, Rekst.

2. poët., brúna-hörgr, the ‘forehead-horg’ or peak = the horns of a steer, Ýt.; gunn-hörgr, a ‘war-horg’ = a helmet (not a shield), Hkr. i. 135 (in a verse); hörga herr, the host of the horgs = the heathen host, Knytl. S. (in a verse).

III. in Icel. local names, but not so freq. as Hof; Hörg-á and Hörgár-dalr, in the north; Hörga-eyrr, in the west; Hörgs-dalr and Hörgs-land, in the east; Hörgs-holt and Hörgs-hlíð, in the west, Landn., Kristni S., map of Icel.; Hörgs-hylr, Dipl., Ísl. Hörg-dælir, m. the men from Hörgárdalr, Sturl. In Norway, Hörg-in, Hörga-setr, Munch’s Norg. Beskr.

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(-s, -ar), m.

1) poet. a highborn, noble man or warrior;

2) earl (in dignity next to the king).

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m., older form earl, [Hel. erl; A. S. eorl; Engl. earl]: this word had a double sense, one old and common to the Saxons as well as the earliest Scandinavians, one later and specifically Norse, which afterwards became English through the Norse and Danish invasion, and was finally established by the Norman Conquest.

A. A gentle, noble man, a warrior, and collect. gentlefolk, as opp. to the churl folk or common people (karlar, búendr); thus the old poem Rígsmál distinguishes three classes, earls, churls, and thralls (jarla-ætt, karla-ætt, þræla-ætt); so also in A. S. eorl and ceorl are almost proverbially opposed; in the old Saxon poem Heliand, ‘erl’ is used about a hundred times = a man. Prof. Munch suggested that the name of the Teutonic people Eruli or Heruli simply represents an appellative ( warriors), which the Roman writers took to be a proper name. In the Scandin. countries this use of jarl is rare and obsolete, but remains in poët. phrases, in old saws, and in law phrases; oddar görva jarli megin, spears make the earl’s might, Mkv.; rudda ek sem jarlar forðum mér til landa, I won me lands like the earls of yore, Glúm, (in a verse): jarls yndi, an earl’s delight = a man’s delight, Hm. 96; jörlum öllum óðal batni, Gh. 21; hlaðit ér, earlar, eikiköstinn, 20; ítrar jarla-brúðir, ‘earl’s-brides,’ ladies, Gkv. 1. 3; alsnotrir jarlar, the gentle earls, 2; eggja ek yðr, jarlar, Am. 54; jarla einbani, ‘earl-slayer’ = ανδροκτόνος, Em., Hkm.; karl-fólk ok jarla, churlfolk and earl folk, Sighvat; eitt mein sækir hvern jarl, every earl (man) has his ill luck, Fb. ii. (in a verse): in the law, jarls jörð, an earl’s estate, is opp. to konungs jörð, a king’s estate, in the phrase, hálfan rétt skal hann taka er hann kömr á jarls jörð, en þá allan ok fullan er hann kömr á konungs jörð, Grág. (Kb.) i. 192, for this is undoubtedly the bearing of this disputed passage; jarlmaðr is opp. to búkarl, Fms. vii. (in a verse); so also karlmaðr (q. v.) in its oldest sense is opp. to jarlmaðr, = churl-man and earl-man; hirð-jarl = hirðmaðr, Fms. xi. 302, v. l.; berg-jarl, poët. a ‘crag-earl’ = a giant, Edda (in a verse); bak-jarl, a ‘back-earl,’ an enemy in one’s rear; of-jarl (q. v.), an ‘over-earl,’ an overbearing man.

B. A chief, as a title, specially Norse and Danish. The Landnáma, which is almost our only source for the political and personal history of Norway before king Harald Fairhair and the settlement of Iceland, records several chiefs of the 8th and 9th centuries who bore an earl’s name as a family dignity; Ívarr Upplendinga-jarl (Upplönd, a Norse county), Asbjörn jarl Skerja-blesi, Eyvindr jarl, 317; Atli jarl Mjóvi af Gaulum (a Norse county), Þorkell Naumdæla-jarl (earl in Naumdale, a Norse county), 281; Grjótgarðr jarl í Sölva (a county), 297: and as a family title, the famous Háleygja-jarlar (the earls of the Norse county Hálogaland, whose pedigree from Odin was drawn out in the old poem Háleygja-tal; Hákon jarl Grjótgarðsson, etc.): so also the Mæra-jarlar, the earls of Mæri (a Norse county), the foremost of whom was Rögnvaldr Mæra-jarl, the forefather of the earls of the Orkneys (Orkneyja-jarlar) and the earls of Rouen (Rúðu-jarlar = the dukes of Normandy).

II. along with the Danish and Norse invasion the name appears in England, Bjartmár jarl in Ireland, Landn.; Hunda-Steinarr, an earl in England, id.; see also the Saxon Chronicle passim, where the very name indicates a Danish or Norse connexion. It is very likely that many of the earls of the Landnáma were sovereign chiefs, differing from kings only in title, for in old poetry a king and an earl were addressed in the same way.

III. about the time of Harald Fairhair all the petty chiefs became liegemen under one king, the earl being in dignity nearest the king, answering to comes in mid. Lat. and graf in Germ. In Scandinavia both name and office became extinct about the 13th century: in Iceland, being a commonwealth, it never took root; see however Gizur jarl (died A. D. 1268) in the Sturlunga.—For references see the Sagas passim, esp. Har. S. Harf. ch. 6.

IV. in eccl. translation the Roman procurator provinciae is often rendered by jarl, e. g. Pílatus jarl, earl Pilate, Ver. 67, Pass. 20. 2.

COMPDS: jarlakappi, jarlaskáld, Jarlasögur, jarlsefni, jarlsmaðr, jarlsníð, jarlsríki, jarlssæti.

m. [kaup and vangr, dropping the v, rather than angr, q. v.]:—a market-place, village, town; ef maðr á hús í kaupangi en bú í héraði, Gþl. 93; í kaupangi sem í héraði, N. G. L. i. 303; allt þat sem í kaupangri er gört, þat skal at kaupangrs-rétti skipta, 53; þá skal hann fara til kaupangrs með föt sín, 304.

II. it is also freq. in Scandin. local names denoting old market-towns, Dan. Kjöbing, Nykjöbing, Kjöben-havn, Swed. Köping, Norköping, Engl. Cheap-side, Chipping-Ongar; Chipping-Norton, etc.: the Norse town Níðaróss was specially called Kaupangr, Fms. ii. 232, iii. 40, iv. 314, 340, v. 104, 117, x. 448, xii. passim, Ísl. ii. 391: also as a local name in northern Iceland, Lv., Rd. 274.

COMPDS: Kaupangsfjall, kaupangskonur, kaupangrslýðr, kaupangsmenn, kaupangsmannalög, kaupangrsréttr.

m. [old Swed. lagman; the president of the supreme court formerly held in Orkney was called the lagman]:—‘law-man.’ In the ancient Scandinavian kingdoms each legal community or state (lög) had its own laws, its own parliament (lögþing), and its own ‘law-man’ (lagh-mann, lögmaðr); the lagman was the first commoner and the spokesman of the people against the king and court at public assemblies or elsewhere; he was also the guardian of the law, and the president of the legislative body and of the law courts. As in the heathen time laws were not written, the lagman had to say what was the law of the land in any case of doubt; in the general assemblies, at least in Iceland, he had to ‘say’ the law (from memory) to the assembled people from the Law-hill (Lögbergi); hence in the Icelandic Commonwealth he was called lög-sögu-maðr (q. v.), the ‘law-speaker,’ ‘law-sayer,’ ‘speaker of the law,’ and his office lög-saga or lög-sögn = ‘law-speaking:’

1. Sweden and Gothland in olden times were the classical lands of lagmen, for the whole kingdom was a confederation of commonwealths, each with its parliament, law-speaker, and laws, who were all of them united under one king; see the various records in the old Swedish laws, Sveriges Gamla Lagar, as edited by Schlyter, as also the classical account given of lagman Thorgny in Ó. H. ch. 60 sqq.—í hverri þessi deild landsins er sitt lögþing, ok sín lög, yfir hverjum lögum er lögmaðr, … þat skulu lög vera sem hann réð upp at kveða; en ef konungr, eða jarl, eða byskupar fara yfir land ok eigu þing við búendr, þá svarar lögmaðr af hendi búenda …; aðrir lögmenn allir skulu vera undir-menn þess lögmanns er á Tíunda-landi er, Ó. H. 65.

2. in Norway the political institutions of the old patriarchal ages were greatly disturbed through the wars and conquest of Harald Fairhair; the ancient laws of Norway too have been preserved in a much more fragmentary state than those of Sweden; of some of the most interesting laws only the eccl. section has been preserved, often in Icelandic transcripts or abridged. The most interesting records of the lagmen are therefore not to be found in the Norse laws, but in the Sagas, e. g. the debates in the Hák. S. Gamla, ch. 71–80, 85–97 (in the Flatey book), as also in the Þinga-þáttr in Fms. vii. 123–150, and in stray passages in the Icelandic Sagas, in such phrases as lögmenn ok konungr, lögmenn ok dómendr, lenda menn ok lögmenn ok alla alþýðu, Eg. 352.

3. in the later Middle Age in Norway, and in Icel. after 1280, the lagman was a justice, who presided in the court lögrétta, at the lögþing (II), cp. Jb. passim.

4. in the Icelandic Commonwealth, the officer whose duties have been described above was specially called lögsögumaðr, and lögmaðr is only used = lagamaðr = a lawyer,—þat er ok, at lögsögumaðr skal svá görla þáttu alla upp segja, at engi viti einna miclogi görr, en ef honum vinsk eigi fróðleikr til þess, þá skal hann eiga stefnu við fimm lögmenn (lawyers, men skilled in law), en næstu dægr áðr, eðr fleiri, Grág. i. 2, 3; þat skal allt hafa er finnsk á skr þeirri er Hafliði lét göra … en þat eitt af annarra lögmanna fyrirsögn ( of other lawyers) er eigi mæli því í gegn, 7; Njáll var lögmaðr svá mikill ( so great a lawyer), at eingi fannsk hans jafningi, Nj. 30. At the union with Norway (A. D. 1272) the lögsögu-maðr of the Commonwealth was replaced by two lagmen of the Norse kind, so that in the Sagas composed after that date (e. g. the Grettla) or in Sagas preserved in later transcripts, the terms were now and then confounded, and ‘lögmaðr’ was, by way of anachronism, used of the lögsögu-maðr of the old Commonwealth, cp. Grett. 64, 115, 173, 191 new Ed., Nj. 24, 164, 237 (v. l.), Eg. 597, Ísl. (Gunnl. S.) ii. 208, 238, 256, Bs. i. (Hungrv.) 62, Fms. iv. 115, 176, where the Ó. H. edition has the true reading, being made from a vellum of the Commonwealth time.

β. two instances are recorded referring to the 10th century in Iceland, where a lögmaðr occurs as a kind of county sheriff or officer, viz. in the Háv. S. (begin.) and the Svarfdæla S. ch. 10; but both records seem to be spurious and adapted to the state of things in Norway, for neither Saga is preserved in its pure original state, but remoulded after the union; see Maurer’s Entstehung des Isl. Staates, Beiträge, 136 sqq. In Scandinavia during the Middle Ages, as the power of the king increased, so that of the old lagman sank, and at last died away. In England it is preserved in the Speaker of the House of Commons, whose very name recalls to mind the law-speaker of the old Scandinavian communities.

II. a pr. name, Lög-maðr, Orkn.

COMPDS: lögmannsdæmi, lögmannseiðr, lögmannslauss, lögmannsúrskurðr.

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(-da, -dr), v.

1) to name (nefndu þinn föðr); nefna sik, to name one’s name; nefna e-n á nafn, to name by name; Oddr er maðr nefndr, there is a man mentioned, of the name of Odd;

2) to mention by name, point out (nefni ek til þess Björn ok Helga);

3) to name, appoint, order (nefndi konungr nökkura menn at ganga upp á eyna);

4) a law term, to call (n. menn í dóm); to summon, cite (allir aðrir, þeir sem þannig vóru nefndir); to levy (n. lið ór heruðum);

5) refl., nefnast, to give one’s name as, call oneself (hann nefndist Hrappr).

f. naming, nomination (cf. dómnefna).

* * *

and nemna, d, [nafn; Goth. namnjan; Germ.; nennen], to name; kona Manue fæðir son ok nefnir Samson, Stj. 410; nefndú þinn föður! Hkv. Hjörv. 16; veit ek þann mann er þora man, … nefndú hann ! Nj. 89; á bréfi þessu vóru nefndir ( specially named) hinir stærstu höfðingjar, Fagrsk. 91; maðr er nefndr Mörðr, Nj. 2; nefna sik, to name one’s name, 6; Hallfreðr nefndi sik, Fms. ii. 86: n. e-n á nafn, to name by name; hann kallaði á menn mína ok nefndi á nafn, Nj. 211; nefna barn á nafn (in christening), N. G. L. i. 339: in a narrative, maðr er nefndr Mörðr, a man was named M., i. e. there was a man named Mord, Nj. 1; ‘maðr er nefndr N.’ is a standing phrase in the Sagas: Oddr er maðr nefndr, ok var Örlygsson, Gísl. 12; tveir menn eru nefndir, Þorkatlar tveir, 8; Bræðr þrír eru nefndir til sögunnar, hét einn … Nj. 22; sá maðr er nefndr til sögunnar er Geirr goði hét, now the story names a man who hight G., Nj, passim, cp. N. M. hét maðr.

2. to mention by name, to name, point out; vóru þessir staðir á nefndir, Bs. i. 731; hann nefndi til þess skipstjórnar-menn, Eg. 33; nefni ek til þess Björn ok Helga, Ld. 14; hann eggjaði mága sína ok nefndi til Hjarranda, Dropl. 24: instances influenced by the Latin, nefndr Eiríkr, the said E., Fms. xi. 412; opt nefndir menn, Dipl. v. 26; fyrr-nefndr, above-named.

II. to name, order, appoint; nemdi konungr nökkura menn at ganga upp á eyna, Fms. ii. 285; n. mann til skipstjórnar, Fb. i. 186: as a law term, to call, nefna vátta, n. mann í dóm, Nj. 14, Dropl. 13, Grág. i. 15, 72, passim; n. féránsdóm, Grág. i. 80; n. dóm á máli, Nj. passim: to summon, cite, allir aðrir þeir sem þannig vóru nefndir, Fms. ix. 279: to levy, n. lið ór héruðum, vii. 299; cp. nefnd, dómnefna.

III. reflex. to name oneself, give up one’s name; hann nefndisk Hrappr, Nj. 130; hanu spyrr hvat kvenna hón væri, hón nefndisk Hallgerðr, id.; hón nefndisk fyrir þeim Gunnhildr, Fms. i. 8; ok nefndisk Þýr, Rm. 10.

2. to be summoned, cited; ef sá maðr lætr í dóm nefnask, Grág. i. 16.

from njóta.

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f., gen. nytjar, [not; Scot. note], use, enjoyment, produce:

1. in sing. specially of the profit or produce of kine, milk; veiti vörð kú, ok þiggi af nyt ok hafi þat fyrir gras ok gæzlu, N. G. L. i. 24; gefa málsverð Jóladag ok nyt fjár þess, Vm. 169; nýta sér nyt fjár, Grág. i. 428: bregða nyt, to cease to give milk or give less milk, ii. 231, passim; ær-nyt, bú-nyt, milk, dairy produce; mál-nyta, id., or milch-kine; ‘fella saman nytina’ is said of a cow that is in profit or gives milk all the year round till she calves again.

2. plur. nytjar, use; víkingar tóku fé allt er þeir máttu nytjum á koma, Fms. ii. 2; hún leyfði Vala bróður sínum nytjar í Brekku-landi, use of the land or pasture, Korm. 152 (lands-nytjar).

II. use, enjoyment, esp. in plur.; Guð vildi eigi unna honum nytja af þvi barni, Sks. 692; hann kvaðsk engar nytjar hafa Helgu, Ísl. ii. 263; hann á fé allt hálft við mik en hefir engar nytjar ( interest) af, Fms. vi. 204; Íslendingar munu hennar hafa miklar nytjar ok langar ( they will derive lasting blessing from her) ok hennar afkvæmis, v. 322; litlar nytjar munu menn hafa Hafliða … mun hann verða skammlífr, Bs. i. 651; koma nytjum á e-t, to bring to use, make profitable, Fb. i. 300, Al. 112, 132.

2. seldom in sing.; þá á þess nyt þat at vera er ómaginn var deildr, Grág. i. 243; færa sér e-t í nyt, to bring into use, Fb. i. 118, and in mod. usage. nytja-maðr, m. a useful worthy man, Ísl. ii. 13, Sturl. i. 203.