337

n. a plot of arable land, D. N. ii. 123 (Fr.)

einginn, in old writers more freq. spelt ‘eng’ (which accords with the mod. pronunciation), engi, enginn, qs. einn-gi from einn, one, and the negative suffix -gi:—none.

A. THE FORMS vary greatly:

1. the adjective is declined, and the suffix left indeclinable; obsolete forms are, dat. eino-gi or einu-gi ( nulli), ægishjálmr bergr einugi, Fm. 17; einugi feti framar, not a step further, Ls. 1; svá illr at einugi dugi, Hm. 134; in old laws, ef maðr svarar einugi, Grág. (Þ. Þ.) i. 22; acc. sing. engi, engi mann, Hkv. 1. 37; engi frið, Hm. 15; engi jötun (acc.), Vþm. 2; engi eyjarskeggja, Fas. i. 433 (in a verse); also in prose, engi mann, Ó. H. 68; engi hlut, 33, 34: engi liðsamnað, 36, Mork. passim; engi knút fékk hann leyst, ok engi álarendann hreift, Edda 29.

2. the -gi changes into an adjective termination -igr; gen. sing. fem. einigrar, Hom. 22, Post. 645. 73; dat. sing. fem. einigri. Hom. 17; acc. sing. fem. einiga, Fas. i. 284 (in a verse); nom. pl. einigir, Jd. 1; fem. einigar, Grág. i. 354; gen. pl. einigra, Post. 73; dat. einigum: this obsolete declension is chiefly used in the sense of any, vide below.

3. declined as the pronom. adj. hverr or nekverr (= nokkur); dat. sing. fem. engarri; gen. pl. aungvarra, Fms. ix. 46, Stj. 70; dat. sing. fem. aungvarri, Mork. 187; hereto belongs also the mod. neut. sing. ekkert.

4. the word is declined as the adj. þröngr, with a final v; nom. fem. sing. öng sorg ( no sorrow), Hm. 94; nom. masc. öngr or aungr, Skv. 2. 26, Nj. 117 (in a verse), Fms. vi. 42 (Sighvat), i. 132 (Vellekla), etc.

5. adding -nn, -n to the negative suffix, thus einginn, fem. eingin, neut. pl. eingin (or enginn, engin); in the other cases this n disappears. Out of these various and fragmentary forms sprung the normal form in old and modern writings, which is chiefly made up of 1, 4, and 5: old writers prefer nom. engi or eingi, but modern only admit einginn or enginn; gen. sing. masc. neut. eingis, einskis or einkis (enskis, Grág. i. 163; einskis, 25 C), engis or eingis, Eg. 74, 714, 655 xxxii. 10; einkis, Fms. x. 409: in mod. usage einskis and einkis are both current, but eingis obsolete: neut. sing. ekki assimilated = eit-ki or eitt-ki, in mod. usage ekkert, a form clearly originating from 3 above, but which, however, never occurs in old MSS.,—Fms. iii. 75, Landn. (Mant.) 329, Gþl. 343 (cp. N. G. L. ii. 110), are all paper MSS.,—nd only now and then in those from the end of the 15th century, but is common ever since that time; the N. T. in the Ed. of 1540 spelt ekkirt: in the nom. sing. old writers mostly use eingi or engi alike for masc. and fem. (eingi maðr, eingi kona), whereas modern writers only use einginn, eingin (einginn maðr, eingin kona); this form also occurs in old MSS., though rarely, e. g. engin hafði þess gáð, Stj. 6; einginn karlmaðr, 206; eingin atkvæði, Fms. v. 318: eingin hey, Ísl. ii. 138; chiefly in MSS. of the 14th or 15th centuries: acc. sing. masc. engan or öngan is in MSS. much commoner than eingi (engi), see above, e. g. engan háska, Fms. ii. 322; fyrir engan mun, Gþl. 532, etc.: in the other cases the spelling and pronunciation are at variance. Editions and mod. writers usually spell engra, engrar, engri, engum, engu, engan, enga, engir, engar, but these forms are pronounced throughout with ö or au, öngra, öngrar, öngri, öngum or öngvum, öngu or öngvu, öngan or öngvan, önga or öngva, öngir or öngvir, öngar or öngvar; that this is no mod. innovation is amply borne out by some of the best vellum MSS., e. g. Arna-Magn. 468, Ó. H., Fb., Mork.; öngum manni, Nj. 82; öngri munuð, 10; öngvar sakir, 94; önga fárskapi, 52; aungu vætta, Stj. 208; öngvan þef, 7; öngu nýtr, Fb. i. 284, 365; öngvan hlut, 166; öngum, 25; aungum várum bræðra, 63; avngir, Ó. H. 184; öngva, 146; öngu, 184 (freq.); avnga menn, Ísl. ii. 349 (Heið. S. MS. Holm.); öngvir diskar, 337; öngum, Grág. i. 27; avngver menn, Bs. i. 337 (Miracle-book); öngom, 346, 347; önga björg, 349; en sér öngu at una, Hm. 95, Mork. passim, etc.: these forms are clearly derived from 4 above. [The word is exclusively Scandin.; Dan. ingen, neut. intet; Swed. ingen, inga, intet; Ivar Aasen ingjen, neut. inkje.]

B. THE SENSE:

I. ‘not one;’ used as adj. with a subst. none, no, not any; þeir vissu sér eingis ótta ván, Eg. 74; man hann einigrar (= ongrar) ömbunar vætta af Guði, Post. 73, and in numberless cases.

2. used absol. (Lat. nemo) as subst. none, naught; ekki er mér at eigna af þessu verki, Fms. ii. 101; enda virðask einkis vætti þau er þeir bera, Grág. i. 25; enginn konungs manna, Fms. i. 104; ok lét þá ekki ( naught) hafa af föðurarfi sínum, Eg. 25; eingi þeirra, Skálda 165; fur hann var enskis örvænt, Ísl. ii. 326; en svarar engu, Ld. 202; at öngu, for naught, Fms. iv. 317; öngum þeim er síðarr kemr, Grág. i. 27; þa skal enga veiða, none of them, ii. 338; engi einn, none, Fms. v. 239; sem engin veit fyrri gert hafa verit, K. Á. 28; ekki skorti þá (ekkert, Ed. from paper MS.), Fms. iii. 75.

β. neut. ekki with gen. pl. in a personal sense, ekki manna, ‘nought of men,’ = engir menn or enginn maðr, no man, not a single man, Ó. H.; ekki vætta, nought, Fms. viii. 18; öngu vætta, nought (dat.), xi. 90; ekki skipa, not a single ship, etc. (freq. in old writers): einskis-konar, adv. in nowise, Sks. 713: engan-veginn, adv. noways.

3. neut. ekki is freq. used as adv. = eigi, q. v., Edda 20, Fms. ii. 81, vii. 120, xi. 22, Grág. i. 206, Eg. 523.

II. any; this sense is rare and obsolete, and probably also etymologically different from the preceding (cp. A. S. ânig):

α. after a negative; á hón eigi at selja fjárheimtingar sínar, né sakar einigar, Grág. i. 354; er eigi saurgisk í einigri líkams úhreinsun, Hom. 17; hvat sem engi segir, Þiðr. 178; aldregi skalt þú þat heyra né engi annarra, 128; aldri fyrr í engri herferð, 29; má eigi þar fyrri undir búa eingi sá er tempraðan bólstað vill hafa, Sks. 45 new Ed.; né önnur eingi, Skálda (Thorodd) 165; því at hanu má hvárki vaxa nó þverra, né á engi veg skapask í sínu at kvæði, 166; eigi skal maðr gildra í mörku annars til einigra dyra, N. G. L. i. 242.

β. after a comparative; prettvísari en ekki annat kvikendi, Mar.; þíðari ok fegri en engi maðr annarr, Stj. 524; sæmilegri en engan tíma fyrr hafði hann verit, 196; um þat fram (= framar) en engi hans frænda hefir haft fyr hánum, Fagrsk. 11.

pron. any (í nekkhverjum hlut), = nakkvarr, nökkurr.

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indef. pron.; this word is a compound of the negative particle né (q. v.) and the pronoun hverr, qs. nih-hverr, ne-hverr, nekkverr; the double k (in the oldest MSS. often represented by cq) may be due to the final h of the particle, as the compd was formed at a time when the final h had not been absorbed into né: [Dan. nogen; Swed. någon. Mr. Uppström, and since Bugge, derive this word from ne-veit-hverr, instead of Grimm’s ne-hverr, cp. A. S. nâthwæt = ne-wât-hwæt = Icel. nakkvat; this would better account for the double k, but otherwise it has no influence on the inflexive changes of the word.]

A. THE FORMS: this pronoun has undergone great changes. The earliest declension is the same as that of hverr, see Gramm. p. xxi; nekkverr, nekkver, Bs. i. 353, Greg. 13, 26, 33, Grág. ii. 205, 206, 304, Fms. x. 389, 393: gen. nekkvers, nekkverrar, passim: dat. nekkverjum, nekkverju, nekkverri, Greg. 16, 79, Eluc. 27, Bs. i. 352: acc. nekkvern, nekkverja, Grág. i. 41, ii. 251, 270, 313, Fms. x. 381, 390, 391, Greg. 15, Bs. i. 337, 344 (line 14), 352: nom. pl. masc. and fem. nekkverir, nekkverjar, Grág. ii. 205, Bs. i. 355: gen. nekkverra, Greg. 23, 28, and so on. The word then underwent further changes,

α. by dropping the j; nekkveru, Grág. ii. 281; nekkverar, Fms. x. 381; nekkverum, 382; nekkvera, 393, 415.

β. by change of the vowels; nakkverr or nekkvarr, or even nakkvarr, nakkvat, see below; nakkvert, Bs. i. 342 (line 12); nakkvara, Ó. H. 62, 116; nakkvars, Fms. vii. 388, xi. 29, Edda 48; nakkvarir, Fms. vii. 337, Mork. 169; nakkvarar, Fms. vii. 328, Greg. 9; nakkvarra (gen. pl.), D. I. i. 185; nakkvarrar, Ó. H. 116; nakkverrar (gen. fem. sing.), Bs. i. 393.

γ. the a of nakk through the influence of the v was changed into ö (nökk), and then into o, and the final va into vo, and in this way the word became a regular adjective, nökkvorr or nokkvorr, nokkvor, Mork. 57, Fms. x. 261; nokkvot, Bs. i. 393; nökkvoð, Mork. 62, Fms. x. 383, 391; nokkvors, passim; nokkvoru, Nj. 34, Fms. x. 393, 394; nokkvorum, 305; nokkvorrar, Edda i. 214; nokkvorn, 210; nokkvorir, Fms. vi. 5, x. 294.

δ. the v dropped out; nökkorr, nokkurr, nokkorr, nokkor, Vsp. 33 (Bugge), Greg. 9, Grág. (Kb.) i. 66, 75, 208, ii. 3, Mork. 168, Ó. H. 224, Grág. i. 1, ii. 366, Nj. 267, Fms. ix. 276, x. 135; nokkoð, Hkv. 2. 5; nokkort, Grág. i. 460; nokkorum, Skv. 3. 58 (Bugge), Grág. i. 45, 361, Fms. ix. 370, Nj. 7; nokkoru, Fms. i. 1, x. 420, Grág. ii. 129, Nj. 41, Eg. 394, Hkr. iii. 160; nökkorn, Fms. x. 409; nokkorn, xi. 6, Nj. 6, Mork. 205, Ld. 30; nokkorir, Mork. 205; nokkorar, Nj. 252, Fms. x. 388; see Gramm. p. xxi.

ε. finally in mod. usage we have contracted forms before a vowel, thus nokkrir, nokkrum, nokkrar, except that the gen. pl. and gen. fem. sing. are still pronounced as trisyllables, nokkurrar, nokkurra; these contracted forms have erroneously crept into Editions from paper MSS. (as Vd. in the Fs.), where nokkrir etc. should be restored to nokkurir etc. ☞ All the above forms occur confusedly even in very old MSS., and even the latest form nokkorr occurs in vellums as old as Cod. Reg. of the elder Edda, in the Mork., Greg., Grág. (Kb.) In addition to the above, there are mixed forms, nekkurr, 623. 41; nekkorar, Fms. x. 388; nekkers, Grág. (Kb.) 22; nökkurja, 623. 50; nakkor, B. K. 124; nokkverja, Fms. xi. 6; nauccverjar, navcqveriom, Mork. 62, 64, 65.

II. nakkvat, n. subst., answering to hvat (q. v.), Ó. H. 72, Bs. i. 344, 348, 350, 353, Am. 32, Bugge. 2. nökkvi (Lat. aliquanto), an obsolete dat. (subst.) answering to hví; svá nökkvi, Hallfred (Fs. 89); í nökkvi, in aught, Hom. 43; af nökkvi, for aught, Fs. 94 (v. l.), Fms. iii. 27; noqvi, Hkv. 2. 26 (Bugge); nökkvi ofarr, Fms. vii. 304 (in a verse); nökkvi síðarr, ix. 533 (in a verse): in prose, nökkvi yngri, xi. 96; neykvi nær sanni, Hkr. iii. 360; nekkvi réttligar, 677. 11; nökkvi helst, Fms. xi. 78, MS. 677. 6; véla e-n í nökkvi, Grág. ii. 22, 367; því nökkvi, 129; nær sanni nökkvi, Fms. x. 420; neykvi, Am. 26 (Bugge); framast nekkvi.

III. the neut. sing. is thus distinguished; nakkvat, nokkvoð, nokkuð (answering to hvat), are often used as a substantive, but nekkvert, nokkvort, nokkurt (answering to hvert), as an adjective. ☞ The primitive hverr has partly undergone the same metamorphosis as the compd nehverr, and in western Icel. is sounded kvur, and in mod. Norse dialect kor, shewing the complete change.

B. THE SENSE: the negative particle, the first part of the compound, has quite lost its force, as is the case with neinn, q. v.; but the word is used in negative sentences = any; á öngum bæ fannsk nökkurr maðr, Fms. ix. 355, and so freq. in mod. usage.

2. single and without a preceding negative; ef nökkurr maðr veit eigi, if anybody know not, Grág. ii. 209; er nökkverr Guð sem várr Guð, 623. 35; ef hann vissi nökkurn hest jafnskjótan, Fms. vii. 169.

3. as subst., nokkut = anything, nokkur = anybody; ef þér segit nokkurum, if you tell it to anybody, Nj. 7; ef nokkurr hefir, Grág. ii. 366; eldi eða því nokkuru, fire or any such thing, 129; styrkja e-n at nokkuru, Nj. 41; ef hann meiðir í nökkuru lönd manna, Grág. ii. 281; kanntú nokkut í lögum, Nj. 33: with gen., nekkverr yðar, any of you, 677. 13; nokkort þessarra húsa, Grág. i. 460; nakkverr þeirra manna, 232: with prep., nokkura af þessum konum, any of these women, Ld. 30; nökkut manna, Fms. vi. 121.

II. some, a certain …, Lat. quidam; maðr nokkurr, kona nokkur, konur nokkurar, Nj. 252, passim; nokkora hríð, for some time, 2, Fms. xi. 6; nekkverja lund, Grág. ii. 251; nakkvorir stórir höfðingjar, Fms. vii. 338; nokkvorir Íslenzkir menn, x. 294; nokkor góð verk, nekkver íll verk, 677. 9, 25, 26; um dag nekkvern, a certain day, Fms. x. 391; þann bjargkvið nekkvern ( some such), Grág. i. 41; at þeim hlut nokkorum, 361; nokkvot þorp, Fms. x. 294; ráð nakkvað, xi. 16; fé nökkvart, Grág. ii. 262: as subst., nokkuru fyrir vetr, a while before winter, Eg. 394; nokkuru meir, somewhat more, Fms. i. 1:—of some importance, þeim er nokkorir eru í skapi, iv. 80; þeir einir menn ef nokkut var til, of any weight, Eg. 267, and so in countless instances.

III. spec. usages, added to a numeral, about; þrjú nokkur, Nj. 267; nokkur sex skip eða sjau, Fms. ix. 276; braut nokkur tíu skip, x. 135; með nokkur fimm hundrað manna, ix. 276; til nokkurra fjórtán hundraða, H. E. i. 418; nokkurum tveim sinnum eða þrim, Fms. ix. 370.

2. svá nokkut, thereabouts; lið svá nokkuru mart, Fms. xi. 48; svá nokkoru mikit, x. 4; svá nokkuru mjök, Nj. 228; svá nokkvoru mun yðar leita farit, 34; svá nakkvarn, Fms. v. 319; nokkurs til þungr, Ld. 128; nokkurs til seinir, Fms. xi. 29; slíkt nökkut, iv. 283; svá nokkuru, í nökkvi öðru, Hom. 25; svá nökki, about so, Hallfred; stórt nokkuð, somewhat great, Ld. 104:—about, var kveðit á viku stef nokkut, a notice of about a week was given, Eg. 394.

IV. adverbial usages, the neuter being used as adverb; something, a deal, marka nakkvat skaplyndi hans, Fms. xi. 78; breytask nökkvat, 99; henni var skapþungt nokkut, Nj. 11: in some way, somehow, at hann skyldi nokkot benda hvat sveinninn skyldi heita, 625. 86: nökkut svá, a bit, somewhat; hann gékk um teiginn uokkut svá, Ísl. ii. 354; stóð höfuð gneipt af bolnum nakkvat svá, Eb. 244; sefask konungr n. svá, Fms. xi. 11, 129:—neykvi nær sanni, somewhat nearer the truth, Hkr. iii. 360; var þat nær sanni nökkvi, Fms. x. 420, see the references above (A).

2. perhaps, may be; vilt þú nökkut taka við fjárfari mínu? Nj. 40; viltú n. sonu þína við láta vera, 65; ef hann hefði nokkut siglt til annarra landa, 41; ef Gunnarr hefði n. þess leitað, 47.

C. COMPDS: nokkurnig, nokkurskonar, nokkursstaðar.

(að), v. to order, set in order order, ordain (rare).

* * *

að, [from Germ. schicken], to order, ordain, Fb. iii. 337 (the third hand), Fas. iii. 295, 337 (of the 15th century); for in Sks. 803 the old vellum B has skipaðr, Bs. ii. 306 (verse 8).

(að), v.

1) to number, tax, value (akta fólkit, akta vísaeyri konungs);

2) to examine, search into (aktið þér ok öll leyni þau, er hann má felast);

3) to devote attention to, to study (akta ýmisligar íþróttir, bókligar listir);

4) to procure (akta þá hluti er hinum sjúka henta); akta e-t inn, to furnish, supply;

5) to debate, discuss in parliament (nú sem þetta var aktat, gengu menn til lögréttu).

* * *

að, [for. word, which therefore does not observe the contraction into á, which is the rule with genuine words; it appears esp. in eccl. writers and annalists at the end of the 13th and 14th centuries, Arna b. S., K. Á., Stj., the Norse Gþl., etc.: cp. A. S. eahtan; Hel. ahton, censere, considerare; Germ. achten; mid. Lat. actare, determinare et actare, Du Cange in a letter of the year 1284.]

I. to number, tax, value, take a census; akta fólkið, Stj. 2 Sam. xxiv. 10; fóru þeir víða um land ok öktuðu vísaeyri konungs, taxed, Bs. i. 707; nú byggir maðr dýrra en vandi hefir á verit, akti ( tax) því fremr dýrra ok fremr til leiðangrs ok landvarnar, he shall be taxed in due proportion, Gþl. 337.

2. to examine, enquire; aktið inniliga öll þau leyni sem hánn má í felast, to take diligent heed of all the lurking-places, Stj. 479. 1 Sam. xxiii. 23; aktið þó áðr, and look, that, id. 2 Kings x. 23; hann aktaði eptir ( looked after) urn eignir staðarins, Bs. i. 778.

3. to devote attention to, study; hann aktaði mjök bókligar listir, Bs. i. 666, 680.

II. a law term, esp. in the Arna b. S., to debate, discuss in parliament; mú er þetta var aktað ( debated) gengu menn til lögréttu, Bs. i. 719; var þá gengit til lögréttu, ok lesit bréf konungs ok drottningar ok aktað ( stated) af leikmanna hendi hversu prestar höfðu af stöðum gengit, 735; lögbók öktuð á alþingi, the code of law debated at the althing, H. Ann. 419. 19. Now only used in the sense of to care for, feel respect for, but a rare and unclassical

m. esp. in pl. ar, lines (taumar) to trim (aka) the sail, distinguished from höfuðbendur, the stays of the mast, perhaps the braces of a sail (used by Egilsson to transl. ύπέραι in Od. 5. 260), Þórarinn stýrði ok hafði aktaumana um herðar sér, þvíat þröngt var á skipinu, had the braces round his shoulders, because the boat was blocked up with goods, Ld. 56; the phrase, sitja í aktaumum, to manage the sail; ef ek sigli með landi fram, ok sit ek í aktaumum, þá skal engi snekkja tvítugsessa sigla fyrir mér, eða ek vilja svipta ( reef the sail) fyr en þeir, Fms. v. 337; reiði slitnaði, svá at bæði gékk í sundr höfuðbendur ok aktaumar, Fas. iii. 118; reki segl ofan, en a. allir slitni, 204; slitnuðu höfuðbendur ok aktaumar, Bær. 5, Edda (Gl.) That the braces were generally two may be inferred from the words við aktaum hvárntveggja hálf mörk, N. G. L. i. 199.

2. metaph., sitja í aktaumum, to have the whole management of a thing; mun yðr þat eigi greitt ganga ef þér erut einir í aktaumum, if you are alone in the management of it, Ísl. ii. 49; einir um hituna is now used in the same sense. (The Engl. yoke-lines, as aktaumar is sometimes interpreted (as in the Lat. transl. of the Ld.), are now called stjórntaumar. Aktanmr is obsolete. See ‘Stones of Scotland,’ tab. liv. sqq.)

now algörlegleikr, s, m. (theol.) perfectness, perfection, Stj. 21, Fms. x. 337, Rb. 316.

m. aggression, invasion; fyrir á. Skota ok Dana, Eg. 267, Fms. i. 224, iii. 143, Eg. 337.

COMPDS: ágangsmaðr, ágangssamr.

adj. giving a willing ear, listening readily; ekki á., obstinate, self-willed, Fms. vi. 431; á. um fjártökur, greedy of gain, vii. 209, where, however, the Morkinsk. (p. 337) reads, á. um fortölur, easy to persuade, which suits the context better; á. til grimleiks, Fms. x. 380, Thom. 28.

1) back (binda bagga á bak sér);

fig. bera sök á baki, to be guilty;

leggja bleyðiorð á bak e-m, to charge one with being a coward;

hafa marga vetr á baki, to be advanced in years;

snúa baki við, to turn the back, flee;

ganga á bak heitum, orðum, to go back on one’s word;

2) = hestbak;

fara á bak, to mount;

fara, stíga, spretta af baki, to dismount;

3) the backside of a thing (cf. handarbak, hurðarbak, húsbak);

á baki húsunum, at the back of the houses;

gøra e-t á baki e-m, in one’s absence, behind one’s back;

ríða at baki e-m, behind him on the same horse;

berr er hverr at baki nema sér bróður eigi, bare is one’s back without a brother behind it;

á bak,

a) behind;

koma á bak e-m, to attack in the rear;

b) after;

á bak jólum, after Christmas;

hvat sem á bak kemr, whatever may come after or follow;

c) absol., falla á bak aptr, to fall backwards;

brjóta á bak orð e-s, to refute, make them null and void;

brjóta á bak Rómverja, to defeat them.

* * *

n. [A. S. bäc], Lat. tergum, back, Eg. 218, Edda 29, 30, Hkr. i. 337: in metaph. phrases, bera sök á baki, to be guilty, Gþl. 539; leggja bleyðiorð á bak e-m, to load, charge one with being a coward. Fas. ii. 530; hafa mörg ár á baki, to ‘carry a weight of years’ Ísl. ii. 456: of horseback, léttr á baki, Sturl. ii. 195; fara á bak, to mount; stíga af baki, to dismount, Eg. 397, Grág. ii. 95: in other relations, as adv., at hurðar-baki, behind the door; at húsa-baki, at the back of the houses; að fjalla-baki, behind the mountains; handar-bak, the back of the hand.

2. á bak or á baki used as a prep. or as an adv.; á bak (acc.) if denoting motion, á baki (dat.) if without motion:

α. loc. behind, at the back of; á baki húsunum, Háv. 49, Nj. 28; at baki þeim, at their back, Eg. 91, Nj. 261, 262, 84, Eg. 583; Hrútr kveðst þat ætla, at hans skyldi lítt á bak at leita, he should not be found in the rear, Ld. 278; berr á baki, unbacked, helpless, in the proverb, Nj. 265, Grett. 154: metaph., ganga á bak e-u, orðum, heitum …, to elude, evade one’s pledged word, Fms. ii. 209, Ísl. ii. 382; göra e-t á baki e-m, in one’s absence, behind one’s back, N. G. L. i. 20; á bak aptr (= aptr á bak), backward; falla; á b. a., Eb. 240, Nj. 9, Eg. 397, Háv. 48 new Ed.; til baks, better til baka, to back, Sturl. ii. 203; brjóta á bak, prop. to break one’s back, Fms. viii. 119; to break, subdue, and also to make void, annul; brjóta á bak Rómverja, to ‘break the back’ of the R., defeat them, 625. 65; Heiðrekr vildi öll rúð fóður síns á bak brjóta, Fas. i. 528.

β. temp. with dat. past, after; á bak Jólum, after Yule, Fms. viii. 60; á b. Jónsvöku, ix. 7: metaph., Héðinn kvaðst eigi hirða hvat er á bak kæmi, H. said he did not care for what came after, Fas. i. 402; muntú eigi vera mót Njáli, hvat sem á b. kemr, Nj. 193.

n. a straight-shooting, good shot, Fms. vii. 120, v. 337, viii. 140, v. I.

(gen. -s or -jar, pl. -ir), m. bench; œðri bekkr, the upper bench (along the north side of the hall, looking towards the sun); úœðri bekkr, the lower (inferior) bench (along the southern side); breiða, strá bekki, to cover, strew the benches (in preparation for a feast or wedding).

(gen. -s or -jar, pl. -ir), m. beck, brook (poet.).

* * *

jar, m. pl. ir, gen. pl. ja, dat. jum, [A. S. benc; Engl. bench, bank; Germ. bank; Dan. bænk; Icel. per assimil. kk; the Span. banco is of Teut. origin]

1. a bench, esp. of the long benches in an old hall used instead of chairs; the north side of a hall (that looking towards the sun) was called æðri bekkr, the upper bench (Gl. 337, Ld. 294); the southern side úæðri bekkr, the lower (inferior) bench, Nj. 32, Eg. 547, Fms. iv. 439, xi. 70, Glúm. 336, Ld. l. c.; thus sitja á enn æðra or úæðra bekk is a standing phrase: the placing of the benches differed in Icel. and Norway, and in each country at various times; as regards the Icel. custom vide Nj. ch. 34, Sturl. i. 20, 21, the banquet at Reykhólar, A. D. 1120, ii. 182, the nuptials at Flugumýri, Lv. ch. 13, Ld. ch. 68, Gunnl. S. ch. 11, Ísl. ii. 250, cp. Nj. 220: á báða bekki, on both sides of the ball, Ísl. ii. 348, cp. Gísl. 41 (in a verse), etc.: as to foreign (Norse) customs, vide esp. Fagrsk. ch. 216, cp. Fms. vi. 390, xi. (Jómsv. S.) 70, Glúm. ch. 6, Orkn. ch. 70, Sturl. ii. 126; see more minutely under the words skáli, öndvegi, pallr, etc.; breiða, strá bekki, is to strew or cover the benches in preparing for a feast or wedding; bekki breiði (imper. pl., MS. breiða), dress the benches! Alvm. 1; bekki at strá, Em. verse 1; standit upp jötnar ok stráit bekki, Þkv. 22; brynjum um bekki stráð, the benches (wainscots?) covered with coats of mail, Gm. 44: in these phrases bekkir seems to be a collective name for the hall, the walls of which were covered with tapestry, the floor with straw, as in the Old Engl. halls. The passage Vtkv. 10—hveim eru bekkir baugum sánir—is dubious (stráðir?); búa bekki, to dress the benches; er Baldrs feðr bekki búna veit ek at sumblum, Km. 25; breitt var á bekki, brúðr sat á stól, Ísl. Þjóðs. ii. 466; vide brúðarbekkr.

COMPDS: bekkjarbót, bekkjargjöf.

2. as a law term, cp. Engl. bench; the benches in the lögrétta in Icel. were, however, usually called pallr, v. the Grág.

3. the coloured stripes in a piece of stuff.

s, and jar, m. [North. E. beck; Germ. bach; Dan. bæk; Swed. bäck], a rivulet, brook. In Icel. the word is only poët. and very rare; the common word even in local names of the 10th century is lækr (Lækjar-bugr, -óss, etc.); Sökkva-bekkr, Edda, is a mythical and pre-Icel. name; in prose bekkr may occur as a Norse idiom, Fms. vi. 164, 335, viii. 8, 217, Jb. 268, or in Norse laws as in Gþl. 418. At present it is hardly understood in Icel. and looked upon as a Danism. The phrase—þar er (breiðr) bekkr á milli, there is a beck between, of two persons separated so as to be out of each other’s reach—may be a single exception; perhaps the metaphor is taken from some popular belief like that recorded in the Lay of the Last Minstrel, note to 3. 13, and in Burns’Tam o’ Shanter—‘a running stream they dare na cross;’ some hint of a like belief in Icel. might be in Ísl. Þjóðs. i. 356. It is now and then used in poetry, as, yfir um Kedrons breiðan bekk, Pass. 1. 15.

COMPDS: bekkjarkvern, bekkjarrás.

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(að and -ta), v.

1) to flutter, wave (of the leaves of a tree);

2) with dat., blaka vængjunum, to flap the wings;

3) with acc., blaka e-n, to give one a slap.

1) veil (cf. silkiblaka);

2) fan.

* * *

að, to slap, Ann. 1394.

2. neut. to wave, flutter, of the wings of birds, b. vaengjum, to flutter with the wings, Stj. 74: of the leaves on a tree moved by a soft breeze, lauf viðarins blakaðu hægliga, Barl. 161; austan blakar laufið á þann linda, Fornkv. 129; blakir mér þari um hnakka, Fms. vi. 376 (in a verse). In mod. usage, blakta, að or t, is freq. used of leaves, of the flaring of a light, ljós blaktir á skari, the flame flutters on the wick; hence metaph., öndin blaktir á skari, Snót 128; blaktir önd á brjósti, 121: the phrase, blaktir ekki hár á höfði, not a hair moves on one’s head.

u, f. a veil of silk, Fas. iii. 337; a pan, Mar. 153: now also = blaðka, v. above s. v. blað.

* * *

f. the mouthpiece of bellows.

(að), v. to whistle; blístra í spor e-m or e-s, to whistle after one who has run away.

* * *

að, to whistle, Fb. i. 553, Fas. iii. 337, Bret. 26: the phrase, b. í spor e-m, prob. a hunting term, to run whistling after one, Korm. 62, Fms. viii. 60.

2. of snakes, to hiss, Fr.

1) blood; rann honum mjök blóð, he lost much blood; nema (taka) e-m blóð, to bleed one; vekja e-m blóð, to draw blood of one; ganga blóði, to have a hemorrhage or dysentery, blanda bloði saman, to enter into foster-brothership by mixing blood together;

2) offspring, blood-relations.

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n. [Ulf. bloþ, common to all Teut. idioms]:—the blood, Lat. sanguis; ‘dreyri’ is cruor; ‘hlaut,’ q. v., is blood shed in sacrifice, cp. Eb. ch. 4, Nj. 107, Eb. 242, Fms. i. 46; nema, láta (mod. taka) b., to take, let blood (blóðlát), vii. 269, Grág. ii. 133; ganga blóði, to have a hemorrhage, Bs. i. 337: the phrase, blanda blóði saman, to mix blood together, Ls. 9, refers to the old heathen rite of entering foster-brothership, defined in Gísl. 11, Fbr. 7, Fb. ii. 93, Fas. iii. 376: metaph. offspring, Stj. 47; hjart-blóð, heart’s blood; dauða-blóð, life-blood, gore: metaph. compound words are rare. In poets ‘blood of Quasir’ means poetry; the blood of the giant Ymir, the sea, vide Edda 47, 5. Fél. ix. 198, 199, records many medic, compounds, blóðfall and blóðlát, menorrhagia; blóðhella, congestio ad viscera; blóðkýli, ulcus; blóðmiga, haematuria; blóðnasir, f. pl. epistaxis; blóðrás, hemorrhagia; blóðsótt, dysenteria; blóðhrækjur, haemoptysis; blóðspýja, haematemesis, etc. Other COMPDS: blóðabrúðgumi, blóðsakr, blóðslitr, blóðspeningar, blóðsúthelling.

1) sudden or brisk movement; moment; bragðs, af bragði, at once; af (or á) skömmu bragði, shortly, quickly, in a short time;

2) fig., in many phrases, verða fyrri (skjótari) at bragði, to make the first move, to be beforehand with (þeir hafa orðit fyrri at bragði at stefna en vér); vera í bragði með em, skerast í bragð með em, to lend one a helping hand; taka et bragðs or til bragðs, to take some step (to get out of difficulties); úviturligt bragð, a foolish step; úheyriligt bragð, an unheard of proceeding; gerðist þar at sví mikit bragð, at, it went so far that; lítit bragð mun þá at (it must be very slight), ef þú finnr ekki;

3) trick, scheme, device, chiefly in pl.; beita en bröðum, hafa brögð við en, to deal cunninly with, impose upon; ferr at fornum brögðum, in the old way; búa yfir brögðum, to brood over wiles; leika em bragð, to play or serve one a trick hefir hann miklu bragði á oss komit, he has played a bad trick upon us;

4) countenance, look, expression þannig ertu í bragði sem, thou lookest as if; með betra bragði, in a better mood; bleyðimannligr í bragði, having the look of a coward; Sturla gerði þat bragð á (made as if), at hann hefði fundit Pál prest;

5) embroidered figure (hekla saumuð öll brögðum).

* * *

n. [cp. bregða].

I. the fundamental notion is that of a sudden motion:

1. temp. a while, moment, cp. auga-bragð; in adverb, phrases, af bragði, at once, Hrafn. 17, Gs. 18, Am. 2; af (á) skömmu bragði, shortly, Fms. vi. 272, viii. 236, 348; í fyrsta bragði, the first time (rare), Gþl. 532, Js. 129; skams bragðs, gen. used as adv. quickly, in a short time, Bs. i. 336, 337, Fms. viii. 348, v. l.; cp. ‘at a brayd,’ ‘in a brayd,’ Engl. Ballads.

2. loc. a quick movement; við-bragð (cp. bregða við), knífs-bragð (cp. bregða sverði), a slash with a knife.

3. metaph. in many phrases, verða fyrri (skjótari) at bragði, til bragðs, to make the first move; þeir hafa orðit fyrri at b. at stefna en vér, Nj. 241, Bs. ii. 106; svá at þú verðir skjótari at b. at veiða þenna níðing, Fms. i. 206, ix. 288; vera í bragði með e-m, to lend one a helping hand, mostly in something uncanny, Gísl. 5, Bs. i. 722; snarast í bragð með e-m, id., Ld. 254; taka e-t bragðs, til bragðs or bragð, to take some step to get clear out of difficulties, Nj. 263, 199, Fms. ix. 407, Grett. 75 new Ed.; þat var b. (step, issue) Atla, at hann hljóp …, Háv. 53; úvitrligt b., a foolish step, Nj. 78; karlmannligt b., a manly issue, 194; gott b., Fs. 39; úheyriligt b., an unheard-of thing, Finnb. 212.

II. [bregða A. III], a ‘braid,’ knot, stitch, chiefly in pl.; hekla saumuð öll brögðum, a cloak braided or stitched all over, Fms. ii. 70; fáguð brögðum, all broidered, v. 345, Bret. 34; rístu-bragð, a scratched character.

2. in wrestling, bragð or brögð is the technical phrase for wrestlers’ tricks or sleights; mjaðmar-bragð, leggjar-bragð, hæl-bragð, klof-bragð …, the ‘bragð’ of the hip, leg, heel …, Edda 33; [fang-bragð, wrestling], hence many wrestling terms, fella e-n á sjálfs síns bragði, to throw one on his own bragð.

3. gen. a trick, scheme, device, [A. S. brægð, bræd; Engl. braid = cunning, Shakesp.], chiefly in pl., með ymsum brögðum, margskyns brögð, Fas. i. 274, Fms. x. 237; brögð í tafli, a trick in the game, a proverb, when things go not by fair means, Bs. ii. 318; ferr at fornum brögðum, in the old way, Grett. 79 new Ed.: but also sing., sér konungr nú bragð hans allt, Fms. xi. 106; hafði hann svá sett bragðit, x. 305, Eg. 196 ( a trick); ek mun finna bragð þar til, at Kristni mun við gangast á Íslandi, Hkr. i. 290; bragð hitta þeir nú í, Lv. 82.

β. with a notion of deceit, a trick, crafty scheme; með brögðum, with tricks, Hkr. ii; búa yfir brögðum, to brood over wiles, Fas. i. 290; hafa brögð undir brúnum, to have craft under one’s eyebrows, look crafty, Band. 2; undir skauti, under one’s cloak, id., Bs. i. 730; beita e-n brögðum, metaphor from hunting, to deal craftily with one, Rm. 42, Ísl. ii. 164; hafa brögð við e-n, Njarð. 382, 378; vera forn í brögðum, old in craft, of witchcraft, Ísl. ii. 399: hence such phrases as, bragða-karl, a crafty fellow, Grett. 161; bragða-refr, a cunning fox; brögðóttr, crafty, etc. In Swed. ‘bragder’ means an exploit, action, whilst the Icel. implies some notion of subtlety or craft; yet cp. phrases as, stór brögð, great exploits, Fb. ii. 299; hreysti-brögð, hetju-brögð, great deeds, (above I. 3.)

III. [bregða C; cp. A. S. bræd, Engl. breath], countenance, look, expression; hón hefir hvíti ok b. várt Mýramanna, Ísl. ii. 201, v. l.; þannig er bragð á þér, at þú munir fás svífast, thou lookest as if …, cp. brögð undir brúnum above, Fms. ii. 51; heilagleiks b., to look like a saint, Bs. i. 152; þat b. hafði hann á sér sem, Ld. 24; ekki hefir þú b. á þér sem hérlenzkir menn, Fms. x. 227; þannig ertu í bragði sem …, thou lookest as if …, Ísl. ii. 149; með illu bragði, ill-looking, Sturl. i. 170; með hýru, glöðu b., Bs. ii. 505; með beztu bragði, stern, Pass. 21. 1; með hryggu bragði, with gloomy look; með betra bragði, in a better mood, Nj. 11; bleyði-mannligr í b., cowardly, Fms. ii. 69: metaph., Sturla görði þat bragð á, at hann hefði fundit …, S. put that face on a thing, Sturl. ii. 176.

IV. [bergja, gustare], taste; vatns-bragð, beisku-bragð, bitter taste, of water; ó-bragð, a bad flavour, etc.

2. [= bragr], mode, fashion; in vinnu-brögð, working; hand-bragð, handicraft; lát-bragð, manners; trúar-brögð, pl. religion, mode of faith; afla-brögð, mode of gaining one’s livelihood, etc.: very freq. in mod. usage, but in old writers no instance bearing clearly upon the subject is on record; cp. however the phrase, bragð er at e-u, a thing is palpable, tangible: lítið bragð mun þar at ( it must be very slight) ef þú finnr ekki, Ld. 136; ærit b. mun at því, Nj. 58; görðist þar at svá mikit b., it went so far that …, Fms. i. 187, Grett. 158 new Ed.

f. an away-going, departure, Fms. i. 69, Grág. i. 274, Sks. 337, Fs. 7, Eg. 750. brottferðar-öl, n. a parting banquet, Hkr. i. 216.

(að), v. to chop (brytja mat);

brytja lið heiðingja, to put to the sword;

brytja niðr, to cut down.

* * *

að, [brjóta-brotinn; A. S. bryttjan = to deal out], to chop, esp. of butcher’s meat, Ísl. ii. 337; svá brytju vér grísina, Sd. 163; b. búfé, Al. 80, Stj. 411. Judg. xiv. 6 (as he would have ‘rent’ a kid); b. niðr, to cut down, as a carcase, Fms. vii. 123; b. mat, to chop meat, viii. 221.

* * *

(-ða, -ðr), v., older form byggva;

1) to settle in a place, as colonist; sumar þat, er þeir Ingólfr fóru at byggja Ísland, when I went out to settle in Iceland; Ingólfr bygði fyrstr landit, was the first settler; absol., Helgi bygði norðr í Eyjafirði, settled in E.;

2) to people (eptir Nóaflóð lifðu átta menn, er bygðu heiminn) Ísland bygðist (was peopled) ór Norvegi;

3) to inhabit, live in a country (þá er landit hafði sex tigi vetra bygt verit); þess get ek, at menn byggi húsit, that the house is inhabited; byggja bœ, to settle on a farm (hann bygði bœ þann er í Eyju heitir); absol., kona, er bygði (lived) í einum afdal; hvar byggir þú, where dwellest thou?;

4) to dwell in, occupy (byggja höll, helli); byggja eina sæng, to share the same bed (of a niarried couple; also absol., byggja með erri); bygði hann í skipuin, he dwelt (lived) in ships.

(-ða, -ðr), v.

1) to let out (konungr má byggja almenning hverjum sem hann vill); nú byggir maðr dýrra (lets out at a higher rent) en vandi hefir á verit;

2) to lend money at interest (engi skal byggja dautt fé á leigu); Hrútr bygði allt féit, H. put all the money out at interest;

3) byggja frændsemi, sifjar, to enter into a marriage with a relation or one allied by by marriage (in such or such degree); þat var bannat at byggja svá náit at frændsemi, intermarriage between so near relations was forbidden.

* * *

older form byggva, ð, [for the etymology v. búa], gener. to inhabit, settle, people, always in a transitive sense—not neut. as. búa—but often used absol. or ellipt., land being understood:

α. to settle as a colonist; Hrollaugr bygði austr á Síðu, Ketilbjörn bygði suðr at Mosfelli, Auðr bygði vestr í Breiðafirði, Helgi bygði norðr í Eyjafirði, all these instances referring to the first settlers of Icel., Íb. ch. 1. 2; en þat vas es hann tók byggva landit, id.; sumar þat er þeir Ingólfr fóru at b. Ísland, the summer before Ingolf settled in Iceland, ch. 6; Íngólfr … bygði fyrstr landit, i. e. Ingolf was the first settler, id.; so in numberless instances, esp. of the Íb. and Landn., e. g. Landn. 42, 334, Eb. 8, Hrafn. 4, Eg. 99, 100; eptir Nóa-flóð lifðu átta menn þeir er heiminn bygðu ( peopled), Edda (pref.)

β. to inhabit, live in a country; þesskonar þjóð es Vínland hefir bygt, Íb. ch. 6; þá er landit hafði sex tigi vetra bygt verit, Landn. 321; þeir b. þat hérað á Vindlandi er Ré heitir, Fms. xi. 378, H. E. i. 494, Bret. 100: allit. phrases, á bygðu bóli, i. e. among men, where men live; bygðr bólstaðr, possessed land, Grág. ii. 214: the proverb, með lögum skal land byggja, with laws shall man build land, i. e. law builds (makes) lands and home; and some add, en með ólögum eyða; eyða ( to lay waste) and byggja are thus opposed to one another, Nj. 106; b. bæ, to settle on a farm; segi ek af því fyrst hversu bærinn hefir bygzk í Skálaholti … Ketilbjörn bygði þann bæ fyrstr er í Skálaholti heitir, Bs. i. 60; hann bygði bæ þann er í Eyju heitir, Gísl. 91, where it does not mean to build houses, as in the mod. use of this phrase, but to settle, Lat. inhabitare.

γ. in more special or law phrases, to dwell in, occupy; b. sæng, to keep one’s bed, sleep, Fas. i. 314; b. eina sæng, of married people, Fms. ii. 134; b. með e-m, to cohabit, Stj. 176; b. höll, to occupy a hall, Fms. vi. 147, x. 236; b. á skipum, undir tjöldum, to live aboard ship, in tents, vii. 138; b. hálfrými, a naut. term, viii. 199: metaph., cf Guð byggvir í þeim, Eluc. 52, cp. also the references from the N. T. above under búa, where most of the Icel. Edd. use byggja.

2. to build a house, ship, or the like, [Scot. and North. E. to big; Dan. bygge; Swed. bygga]: this sense, common over all Scandinavia and North Britain, seems not to occur in Icel. writers before the 15th century or the end of the 14th, but is freq. at the present time; it occurs in the Ann. 1401, 1405, etc. Old writers always say, reisa or göra hús, skip …, not byggja.

3. reflex. to be inhabited; Ísland bygðisk fyrst ór Noregi, Íb. ch. 1; Grænland fansk ok bygðisk af Íslandi, ch. 6; hundraði ára fyrr en Ísland bygðisk af Norðmönnum, Landn. (pref.); en áðr Ísland bygðisk, id.; þá er Ísland fansk ok bygðisk af Noregi, id.

II. [Goth. bugjan, by which Ulf. renders αγοράζειν, and once πωλειν, which is elsewhere rendered by frabugjan; A. S. bycgean; Engl. buy; Hel. buggean]:—to let out, esp. land or cottage; konungr má b. almenning hverjum sem hann vill, Gþl. 453; ef umboðsmaðr konungs byggir jarðar (acc.) konungs … því at svá skal konungs jarðir b. sem um aðrar jarðir skill í lögum, 336; nú byggir maðr dýrra ( lets out at a higher rent) en vandi hefir á verit, 337; Ingimundr bygði þeim Hrolleifi bæinn í Ási, Fs. 34; er þeir bygðu lönd sín eðr tóku sér hjú, Grág. i. 445; hann tók mikit af landnámi Una, ok bygði þat ( parcelled it out) frændum sínum, Landn. 244; byggja e-m út, to expel a tenant; b. e-m inn, to settle a tenant on one’s estate.

2. more properly, to lend money at interest; þat er ok ef menn b. dautt fé, eðr krefja framar af þeim hlutum er menn ljá, en innstæða, K. Á. 204; engi skal b. dautt fé á leigu, Bs. i. 684; um okr, er menn b. dautt fé, H. E. i. 459; Rútr … bygði allt féit, R. put all the money out at interest, Nj. 11.

3. the peculiar eccl. law phrase of the forbidden degrees; b. sifjar, frændsemi, to marry into such or such degree; this phrase may refer to buying (cp. brúðkaup), or to cohabitation; þat er nýmæli, at jafn-náit skal b. sifjar ok frændsemi at fimta manni hvárt, i. e. intermarriage in the fifth degree is allowed, according to the decision of the council of Lateran, A. D. 1215, Grág. i. 304; frændsemi er eigi byggjandi, i. e. is forbidden, 307, 308, 321, N. G. L. i. 350; en þat var bannat með Ásum at b. svá náit at frændsemi, Hkr. Yngl. ch. 4.

III. part. as subst.

and dög-urðr, m., gen. ar, pl. ir, [Dan. davre], ‘day-meal,’ the chief meal of the old Scandinavians, taken in the forenoon at the time of dagmál, opp. to nátturðr or náttverðr (mod. Dan. nadver), supper; corresponding as to time with the mod. Engl. breakfast, as to the nature of the meal with the Engl. dinner. The old Scandinavians used to take a hearty meal before going to their work; cp. Tac. Germ. 22. An early and a hearty meal were synonymous words (vide árlegr); the old Hávamál advises men to go to the meeting ‘washed and with full stomach’ (þveginn ok mettr), but never to mind how bad their dress, shoes, or horse may be; and repeats the advice to take ‘an early meal’ even before visiting a friend, 32, cp. Hbl. 3. Several places in Icel. took their name from the settlers taking their first ‘day-meal,’ e. g. Dögurðar-nes, Dögurðar-á, Landn. 110, 111, cp. also Gísl. 12. The Gr. δειπνον is rendered by dagverðr, Greg. 43. Matth. xxii. 4; but in the Icel. N. T. of 1540 sq. δειπνον is constantly rendered by kveld-máltíð; eta dögurð, Landn. l. c., Nj. 175, Gísl. l. c.; sitja yfir dagverði, Eg. 564, 577, Ísl. ii. 336, Fms. iv. 337, ix. 30; dögurðar borð, a day-meal table, in the phrase, sitja at dögurðar borði, to sit at table, Fms. i. 40, vi. 411, Hkr. i. 153, iii. 157; dögurðar-mál and dögurðarmál-skeið, the day-meal time, time of the day-meal, Fms. viii. 330, v. l.; um morguninn at dagverðar máli, 443, Eg. 564, Edda 24, Hom. 91 (in pl.), O. H. L. 19.

COMPD: dagverðardrykkja.