but+then

(ræð; réð, réðum; ráðinn), v.

1) to advise, counsel, ráða e-m e-t (réðu vinir hans honum þat, at hann berðist eigi við þik);

ráða e-m ráð, to give one counsel;

2) to consult about, discuss, with dat. (ráða landráðum);

ráða ráðum sínum, to hold a conference;

3) to devise, plan;

þeir ráða atför við Gunnar, thev plan an onslaught on G.;

réð hón þeim bana, she plotted that man’s death;

4) to plot or cause one’s death, = ráða e-m bana (þær atluðu, at konungr mundi hafa ráðit hann);

Reginn mik réð, R. betrayed me;

5) to agree on;

réðu þeir þat þá með sér, they settled this among themselves;

6) to fix, decide, resolve, with acc.;

ek hefi áðr ráðit brúðlaup mitt, I have fixed my wedding day;

réðu þeir þá þat at fara ofan til Rangár, then they resolved to ride down to Rang river;

ráða e-t til staðar, to settle, fix definitively, = staðráða e-t (vil ek finna konung áðr en ek ráða þetta til staðar);

7) to hire, take into service (ráða skipverja, ráða sér hjón);

bóndi sagði húsfreyju, at hann hafði Hrapp ráðit með sér, that he had taken H. into his company;

8) to rule, govern, with dat. (ráða landi, ríki; Einarr jarl ráð þá Orkneyjum);

9) to rule, command, have one’s way, prevail, decide, settle (skal hón sjálf ráða hvárt hón vill hann eða eigi);

skal ráða afl með þeim, the majority shall decide;

Ólafr bað móður sína. eina ráða, to settle the matter alone;

landfall ræðr fyrir sunnan, makes the boundary towards the south;

with dat., hvárt ræðr þú því, er, is it your doing that..?;

ráða engu, to have no authority, be of no avail (orðheill þín skal engu ráða);

ráða landamerkjum, to make the boundary (Hafslœkr réð þar landamerkjum);

ráða búi sínu, to conduct, manage one’s estate;

hann réð sér sjálfr, he was independent;

ertu nökkurs ráðandi hér, have you any authority here?

10) to have, possess, be master of, enjoy;

ráða fé ok fjörvi, to enjoy wealth and life;

11) to explain, read;

ráða gátu, to read a riddle;

ráða draum, to interpret a dream;

ráða e-t at líkindum, to judge from probabilities (engar munu fríðari en þínar dœtr, ef at líkindum skal ráða);

12) to read and understand (ráða rúnar, stafi, rit);

réð ek þær rúnar, er reist þín systir, I have read the runes thy sister engraved;

13) to punish, chastise, with dat. (fóstri hans var harðr við hann ok réð honum mjök);

14) to undertake;

ráða stórt, to aim high, undertake great things;

15) periphrastically with an infin., to do;

ráðumk ganga, we (I) do go;

hón réð vakna (= hón vaknaði), she awoke;

þau lög, er hann réð upp at segja, the laws which he pronounced;

16) with preps.:

ráða e-t af, to resolve, make up one’s mind (réð hann þat af at sigla súðr til Danmerkr);

to discontinue, put a stop to (ek hygg, at Þóroddr ætli nú at af ráða hingatkvámur þínar);

to do away with (þú verðr nú þetta vandræði af at ráða);

ráða e-n af e-u, to make one leave off (af hefir þú mik ráðit brekvísi við þik);

ráða e-u af (e-u), to get off;

Þ. bað menn taka forka ok ráða af skipinu, to get the ship off, set her afloat;

ráða e-n af = ráða e-n af lífi, af dögum, to put out of the way, put to death (hann kvazt mundu af ráða illmenni þessi);

ráða at e-m, to attack (njósnarmenn hlupu upp ok réðu at þeim);

ráða á e-t, to set about a thing (þeir réðu á íshöggit);

ráða á e-n, to attack one (þorðu aldri úvinir hans á hann at ráða);

ráða bót (bœtr) á e-u, to remedy, make good (þóttust menn eigi kunna bœtr á þessu ráða);

ráða eptir e-m, to pursue one;

ráða e-n frá e-u, to deprive one of, exclude one from (ráða e-n frá landi, ríki);

ráða fyrir e-u, to command, have authority over, be master of (ráða fyrir skipi, hofi, fé, eldi);

ráða í e-t, to guess at, find out (Gormr konungr réð ekki í þetta);

ráða móti, í móti e-m, to attack one (í móti Kára réð Mörðr);

ráða e-n ofan, to overthrow;

ráða ór e-u, to find an expedient, solve a difficulty (er nú vant ór at ráða);

ráða til e-s, to rush in upon, attack (hann reiddi upp øxina ok réð til Þórvarðs); to take to (set about) a thing, try, make an attempt;

S. kom fótum undir sik, ok réð til í annat sinn, and tried again the second time;

ok er nú til at ráða, ef þér vilit, now is the time for action, if you are willing;

skal ráða til árinnar eða eigi, shall we try to pass the river or not?;

ráða til orrostu, to go to battle;

ráða til uppgöngu, to make an ascent;

ráða til ferðar, to start on a journey;

ráða skipi til hlunns, to draw a ship on to land;

ráða um e-t, to dispose of (megum vér eigi ráða um hennar gjaforð);

to deliberate on (konungr gaf jarli orlof at ráða um þetta við menn sina);

ráða um at gøra e-t, to be about to do a thing (hann tók um strenginn ok réð um at fara upp í skipit);

ráða um við e-n, to put an end to, finish off (var Alfr þá kominn ok ætlaði skjótt um at ráða við Finnboga);

ráða e-t or e-u undan e-m, to deprive one of (hón vildi eigi giptast, því at hón vildi eigi ráða fé undan dóttur sinni);

ráða e-t undir e-n, to put in the charge of (þá réðu þeir goðorð sitt undir Rafn);

ráða e-t upp, to read up (þessi sömu bréf lét erkibiskup upp ráða í Danmörku);

ráða við e-n, to be able to master one (muntu nú einn við mik ráða);

ráða e-t við sik, to make up one’s mind;

ráða yfir e-u, to rule, govern;

17) refl., ráðast.

* * *

pres. ræð, ræðr, ræð; pl. ráðum, ráðit, ráða; pret. réð, 2nd pers. rétt, réttu, rhymed with hætta, Fms. vi. (in a verse); mod. réðst, pl. réðu; subj. réði; imper. ráð, ráddú; part. ráðinn; a middle form ráðumk, Hom. 113; a weak pret. indic. réði occurs in the poem Jd. 35 (ótrauðr á haf réði), and in prose, Fms. i. 223, and is freq. in mod. usage (eg réði honum að bíða … hann réði því ekki): [a word common to all Teut. languages; A. S. ræðan; Old Engl. rede and read; Germ. rathen; Dan. raade; the Goth. has rêdan, but it is rarely used in Ulf.]

A. To advise, counsel, with dat. of the thing and acc. of the person; ráða e-m e-t, réðu vinir hans honum þat, at hann berðisk eigi við þik, Nj. 33; réðu honum þat allir at samna liði. Eg. 9; ráða e-m ráð, to give one counsel, Vþm. 1; ráðumk þér, Hm. 113 sqq.; þat ræð ek þér, Sdm. 22 sqq., Nj. 61; makligr ertú þeirra, segir Njáll, ok réð honum ráðin, 71; ráð er þér ráðit, Fm. 21; ráða e-m heilræði, Nj. 85.

2. to consult; ráða ráðum sínum, to hold a conference, Edda 26, Fms. vii. 259; vóru opt á tali ok ráða-stefnu ok réðu landráðum, i. 52.

3. to devise; þá menn er konu hafa numit eða þat hafa ráðit, Grág. i. 354, Gullþ. 14.

4. to fix, decide, determine, resolve, with acc.; ek hefi áðr ráðit brúðlaup mitt, Nj. 4; ráða samband, Gullþ. 14; ráða atför við Gunnar, Nj. 1, 7; réðu þeir þat þá með sér, 93; hefi ek ráðit honum kvánfang, 151; siðan réð Gunnarr utanferð sína með honum, 41, cp Sturl. ii. 168; ráða e-m ró, Ls. 55:—ráða e-t af, to form a decision, Eg. 337; en af verðr at ráða nokkut ór hverju vandræði, Lv. 39:—ráða e-t við sik, to make up one’s mind; hvárt hann vildi þar vera eða fara til Íslands, hann kvaðsk eigi þat hafa ráðit við sik, Nj. 123:—ráða um e-t, to deliberate; hann gaf jarli orlof at ráða um þetta kjör við menn sína, Ó. H. 97:—ráða e-t (or e-u) til staðar, to settle, fix definitely, Fms. ii. 78, Ld. 178:—ráða ór, ráða ór e-u, to find an expedient, solve a difficulty, Nj. 177. Ld. 54, 180.

5. to hire, take into service; ráða skipverja, Fms. vi. 238; réð Hallgerðr sér hjón, Nj. 25; ek em kona Njáls, segir hón, ok ræð ek eigi síðr hjón en hann, 54; Njáll réð honum hjón öll, 151; bóndi sagði húsfreyju sinni at hann hafði Hrapp ráðit með sér, 131; hón hafði ráðit mann til at svíkja konung í drykk, Fms. ix. 5; vilda ek at vit færim í hernað ok réðim menn til með okkr, Nj. 41; ráða land undan e-m, Fb. ii. 171.

6. to plan, plot, contrive, or cause one’s death, put to death, betray, Germ. verra’ben; Regin þik réð, hann þik ráða mun, Fm. 22; þú rétt hann, Fas. i. 202; þær ætluðu at konungr mundi hafa rúðit hann, Fms. iv. 312; hann réð Plóg svarta föður-bana sinn, xi. 353; ef kona drepr bónda sinn eða ræðr hann fyrir íllsku sakir, Js. 27; ráða e-m bana, bana-ráð, Nj. 21, 52, Fb. i. 410, Skv. 1. 51:—ráða e-n af, to put out of the way, put to death, Gullþ. 14, Fms. i. 204, Al. 128; sá ótti er nú af ráðinn ok endaðr, Fs. 9; ek hygg at Þóroddr ætli nú af at ráða hingat-kvámur þínar, Eb. 144; ráða e-n frá, to despatch, Ld. 294; ráða e-n af dögum, to put to death; ráða e-n frá ríki, Fms. iii. 18; ráða e-n ofan, to overthrow, Bárð. 164.

II. to rule, govern, with dat.; ráða Þrænda-lögum, Fms. i. 52; ráða landi, ráða ríki, 22, Nj. 41; Einarr jarl réð Orkneyjum, Fms. i. 197; Hákon konungr réð Noregi, x. 4; er réð fyrir Holtseta-landi, xi. 3; þann konung er ræðr Jórsala-landi … þann er Englandi ræðr, Edda 92; ráða landráðum, to have the government, govern, Fms. i. 52.

2. to rule, prevail, have one’s own will, as also to manage, lead, have authority, management, and similar usages; skal ráða afl með þeim, Nj. 150; sá reð er ríkr var, Sól.; hann réð sér ekki fyrir kæti, he was beside himself for joy; skal hón sjálf ráða hvárt hón vill hann eða eigi, Nj. 24; ek skal hér ráða, 52; Ólafr bað móður sína eina ráða, Ld. 70; sögðu þá ráða eiga er fleiri vóru, 74; ætlar þú at þú munir ráða. Fms. vii. 13; konungr svarar ok biðr hann ráða, xi. 29: Lögmaðr skal ráða, he shall have the casting vote, Gþl. 18: the phrase, ef ek má ráða, if I can have it as I like; þú ræðr því, as you like! þvíat þar ræðr eigi frændsemi, Grág. i. 172: to rule, sól skal ráða um sumar en dagr um vetr, Gþl.; landfall ræðr (rules, makes the boundary) fyrir sunnan, Pm. 88; ór ánni ræðr keldan … ok lækr út úr henni til sjáfar, Dipl. ii. 1; ráða landa-merkjum, Eg. 711; ráða boði ok banni, Gþl. 76; ráða búi ok kaupum, 269; ráða giptingum, 211; ráða sessa kostum, Gm. 14; ráða kaupum, fé, skipti, Gþl.; ráða fé til þarfa, to dispose of money to advantage, put it out at interest, Gþl.; sigri vér ráðumk, Orkn. (in a verse); hugr ræðr hálfum sigri, a saving; ráða sínum ferðum, Fms. i. 75; réð Örn leiðsögu, Ld. 74: hvárt ek má nokkuru um þat ráða, Fms. vii. 13; mörgum ræðr litlu hve, ‘tis of small interest, Am. 33; ráða engu, Hdl. 49; ráða veðri. Rb. 388; veðr ræðr akri en vit syni, Hm.; hvar skal ek sitja—Móðir mín skal því ráða, Nj. 7; ek réð ráði hennar fyrr, i. e. gave her away, 23; hvárt hann kunni ráða fé sínu, Grág. i. 176; ráða orði, ii. 309; hvárt ræðr þú því er Steinarr son þinn sækir sökum Þorstein son minn, hast thou caused it, is it thy making? Eg. 727; þú því rétt er ek ríða skyldak, Fm. 26; ek því ræð, er þú ríða sér-at, Ls. 28; en réðu því Nornir, Orkn. (in a verse); ílla réð ek því, that was foolishly done, Fbr. (in a verse); ek hefi því ráðit, at …, Ísl. ii. 322; því þykki mér ráðit, well done, Sks. 100:—various phrases, ráða e-u bót (bætr) or ráða bót (bætr) á e-u, to mend, better, Hom. 159, Ld. 206, Fms. vii. 162, Landn. 8, Eb. 114:—with prep., ráða fyrir e-u (for-ráð), to rule, manage, govern, Fms. i. 288, Hkr. 1. 40; ráða fyrir lögum, Nj. 5, 150, Eg. 34, 239, 754, Ld. 76, 132, Fms. i. 11, Grág. i. 333:—ráða um e-t, to dispose of, (um-ráð); nú megu vit ekki ráða um hennar gjaforð, Fms. iv. 194:—ráða við e-ð, to be able to do, manage, Bárð. 163; eg ræð ekki við hann (þat), I cannot manage him; við-ráðanlegr, manageable:—ráða yfir e-u (yfir-ráð), to rule, govern, Fms. iv. 83.

3. to have, possess, enjoy; hvítum ræðr þú enn hjöltunum, … ráða deigum brandinum, Eb. 238; ráða fé ok fjörvi, to enjoy wealth and life, Fm. 26; ráða arfi, gulli, hringum, Skv. 2. 9, Hkv. Hjörv. 6, 11; ráða nafni, aldri, hjarta, lofi, dýrð, to enjoy a name, life …, Lex. Poët.; ráða eign ok auðsölum. Fsm. 8, 9; ráða rauðum manni, to be red, Fbr. (in a verse):—part. ráðandi, with gen., ertu nokkurs ráðandi hér, hast thou any authority here? Nj. 54; þess verða ek ráðandi við mína menn, I will manage that. Fms. xi. 30; vera mikils ráðandi, of great influence, Fas. ii. 504: ráðandi postula, the ruler of the apostles, Edda 92, Lex. Poët.

III. to explain, read; ráða gátu, to read a riddle, Fas. i. 454; varð engi sú gáta upp borin er hann réði (subj.) eigi, 532; ráða e-t, Am. 22; ráða draum, to read a dream, Nj. 121, Ld. 126, Ísl ii. 194, 197, x. 270, xi. 3, Rb. 394; Pharao dreymdi drauma ok urðu eigi ráðendr til, Ver. 17; veiztú hve rísta skal, veiztú hve ráða skal, of magical characters, Hm. 145:—ráða í e-t, to guess at, find out, Fms. xi. 16; ok væntir mik at eigi mundi í þat ráðit, Ísl. ii. 333; munu þeir ekki í ráða er myrkt er, 378, Fær. 255.

2. to read, prop. to explain, interpret; skal hann láta ráða skrá heima at kirkju, K. Þ. K. 46; ráða rúnar, Am. 12, Hom. (St.); þegar Domitianus hafði rit ráðit, 623. 12, Karl. 16: ráða upp, to read up; þessi sömu bréf lét erkibiskup upp ráða í Danmörku, Fms. viii. 293; á alþingi léc Páll biskup ráða upp jarteinir ens sæla Þórláks, Bs. i. 352; tók ok lét þar upp ráða, 623. 10; ráða skrá, K. Þ. K.

IV. to punish, chastise, with dat.; Guð ræðr oss till batnaðar sem sonum, Greg. 73; fóstri hans var harðr við hann ok réð honum mjök, Bs. i. 416; nú ef sveinn vill eigi nema ok leiðisk bók, þá skal hann færa til annarra verka, ok ráða honum til, svá at hvárki verði af örkuml né ílit, K. Þ. K. 56; honum var ráðit fyrir flestum höfuð-kirkjum, Sturl. ii. 147:—with acc., konu sína skal engi maðr með höggum ráða at öldri né at áti, N. G. L. i. 29; nú ef maðr ræðr konu sína eigna lyklum eða lásum ( beats her with keys or bars), þá er hann sekr, 356 (ráðning).

V. with the notion of action, to undertake; ráða stórt, to aim high, aspire, Lex. Poët.; kann vera at ek finna þann höfðingja at minnr vaxi fyrir augum at ráða stórt ( to undertake great things), en þér konungr, Fms. vi. 399 (stór-ræði); ráða gott, to manage well, Ó. H. (in a verse).

2. with prepp., ráða á e-t, to take to a thing; þeir réðu á íshöggit, Fms. vi. 336; ráða á e-n, to attack one; mun eigi þá á þik ráðit, Nj. 93, 253 (á-ræði):—ráða at e-m, to attack, invade, passim:—ráða af, to get off, clear; hann bað þá taka forka ok ráða at skipinu, and get the ship off, set her afloat, Ld. 56; aðilinn ræðr sik af baugbrotum, ef …, Grág. ii. 173; at hefir þú mik ráðit brekvísi, thou hast cured me of complaining, Ld. 134:—þá réðu þeir goðorð sitt undir Rafn fyrir sakir vinsælda hans, they put their ‘godord’ in the charge of R., Bs. i. 642:—ráða móti e-m, to go against in a fight, withstand; í móti Kára réð Mörðr Sigfússon, Nj. 253:—ráða til e-s, to rush in upon; hann reiddi upp öxina ok réð til Þorvarðar, Sturl. ii. 37, (til-ræði, an assault): to take to a thing, try, í vár réðu vér til ok hljópum í brott, Eg. 235; ok er þeim þótti sér færi til at ráða leyndusk þeir á brott, when they saw an opportunity they stole away, 572; ok er nú til at ráða ef þér vilit, now is the time for action, Nj. 154; Skarphéðinn kom fótum undir sik, ok réð þegar til í annat sinn, 202:—to start, make for, attempt, ráða til orrostu, to go to battle, Eg. 530; ráða til uppgöngu, 229; en þó ekki svá at til hans væri ráðanda (gerund.), Fms. vi. 352; réð hann þá til ok hjó sundr orminn, id.; þat var ekki annarra manna hlaup, enda réð ok engi til, Eg.; þeir ráða til ok hlaupa í munn drekanum, Fb. ii. 317; skal ráða til árinnar eðr eigi, shall we try to pass the river or not? Ld. 46; hann bauð út miklum her ok réð til skipa, Fms. i. 22; ráða til ferðar, to start on a journey, Landn.:—ráða skipi til hlunns, to put the ship in a shed, Eg. 515, Nj. 10; ráða sik frá e-u, to disengage oneself from, Hom. 147, MS. 655 xxvi. 1; ráða um, hann tók um strenginn, ok réð um at fara upp í skipit, and was just about to go up into the ship, Fms. ix. 24.

3. periphrastically, with an infin. mostly without the particle ‘at;’ ráðumk ganga, we do go, Am. 77; ráðum yppa, spyrja segja, leyna, Lex. Poët.; hverr er segja ræðr, does tell, Hm. 125; hón réð vakna, she awoke, Am. 10; annan réð hón höggva, 48; ekki réttu leifa, 80; allt þats réð heita, 102; réð ek at ganga, Fas. ii. (in a verse); ef ek ræð á vág at vaða, Hbl. 47: with the particle ‘at,’ réð at stökkva, Eb. (in a verse): also reflex., réðsk at sofna, Rm. 5; but réð at sofna, went to sleep, 17: in prose, þau lög sem hann réði upp at segja, Íb. 12; ráðask geyja, Am. 24.

B. Reflex. ráðask, referring to the person himself; ráðask um við e-n, to consult; Gunnarr görði görðina ok réðsk við öngan mann um, Nj. 80; hvárigum þótti ráð ráðit nema við aðra réðisk um, 167; ef hann hefði nokkut við mik um ráðisk, Ld. 306; þá réðsk hann um við vini sína, Eg. 9.

2. to be resolved, fixed, settled; þá er kaupit réðsk, Nj. 17; eigi mun þat svá skjótt ráðask, Ísl. ii. 213; þetta mál er miklu meira en þat megi skjótt ráðask, Fms. vi. 18; af þeim tiðendum ræðsk þat, at …, ix. 433; eigi mun þetta ráðask þessu sinni, xi. 4; þá var ráðin sættin, Ld. 308; en ráðit kalla ek kaupit, Sd. 179; réðsk hann þá þar at hjóni, he hired himself out, entered service, Nj. 57. 3 (answering to and identical with A. V above), ráðask frá, to leave; þóat ek ráðumk frá, Fms. i. 225: ráðask í e-t, to undertake; ráðask í hernað, passim; hann réðsk í flokk með þeim, Nj. 94, Fb. ii. 172:—ráðask til e-s, to venture on a thing; þá ráðsk (imper.) þú til ok far í hauginn, Fms. iv. 28:—to move one’s abode, Hákon spurði Gunnar ef hann vildi ráðask til Hákonar jarls, Nj. 41; bið Una selja jörð sína ok ráðask hingat til mín, Orkn.; hann réðsk þangat bygðum, Þorf. Karl. 364; ráðask til ferðar (= Germ. sich begeben), Eg. 4; víkingar ok herkonungar er réðusk til liðs með Eiríki, Fms. i. 24; réðsk hann þá þangat um várit at fardögum ok móðir hans, Bs. i. 455: ráðask ór hernaði, to give up, leave off freebooting, Fg. 2:—at þeim hafði óheppilega um ráðisk, they had formed an unhappy plan, Knytl. S. ch. 69 (Lex. Poët.); cp. miðráðit.

4. to turn out; ok réðsk til allgiptusamliga, Fms. x. 53; and in the mod. phrase, það réðsk vel, ended well; sjá hvernig það ræðst, see how it will turn out; of a dream, to prove true (see A. III), ok vilda ek at hvergi réðisk, Gísl. 24 (hvárngi réði, impers., 108, l. c.):—réðsk mikit mannfall, there came to be a great slaughter, Odd, 28.

II. recipr., ráðask á, to attack one another; þeir spruttu upp með íllyrðum, ok svá kom at þeir ráðask á, Nj. 128.

III. part. ráðinn, resolved, determined, Ölk. 36, Bárð. 173; hann mælti fátt eðr ekki við frá, … ef hann var ráðinn til at drepa þá, Fms. vii. 319:—likely, eigi er ráðit at oss fari svá, Nj. 89; þat er þó eigi ráðit hvárt svá berr til, Ld. 24; eigi er þat ráðit, at honum þætti allt sem hann talaði, Band. 12: compar., er engi ráðnari hlutr, more certain, Hom. (St.); at ráðnu, for certain, id.: valid, nýmæli ekki skal vera lengr ráðit en þrjú sumur, K. Þ. K. 56.

2. clever; ríkr ok ráðinn, Grett. 90; vitr maðr ok ráðinn, Fb. ii. 357; roskinn ok ráðinn.

3. betrayed, Germ. verrathen, Akv. 15, Fm. 37.

(gen. ragna), n. pl. the ruling powers, the gods, = rögn.

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n. pl., only in nom. and acc., for ragna, rögnum are formed from rögn (q. v.), analogously to magn and megin; [Ulf. ragin = γνώμη, δόγμα, and raginon = ἡγεμονεύειν, ragineis = σύμβουλος, βουλευτής; Hel. reginu-gescapu = mighty weird]:— the gods as the makers and rulers of the universe, the word being peculiar to the ancient poems; regin heita goð heiðin, bönd ok rögn, Edda ii. 430: freq. in the Vsp., þá gengu r. öll á rökstóla, ginnheilög goð, 6, 9, 27, 29; nýt regin, Vþm. 25; fróð regin, 26; vís regin, 39; fjöld ek fór fjöld ek reynda regin, 44, 46, 48, 50, 54; blíð regin, Gm. 6, 37, 41, Ls, 32; holl regin, 4; þá er regin deyja, Vþm. 47; urðu heldr hamljó: regin, Haustl. 10; ráð öll ok regin, Hkm. 18; Hrímfaxi heitir er hverja dregr nótt of nýt regin, Vþm. 13, 14:—regin is a pantheistic word, including the world, in such phrases as, unz rjúfask regin, 40; þá er rjúfask regin, 52, Gm. 4, Ls. 41; þá er í ráði at regn (i. e. regin, acc.) um þrjóti, then is the end of the world nigh, Hdl. 41; cp. ragna rök, the world-doom, answering to Saxon muspilli; as also ragna-rökr, for the explanation of which word see rök and rökr: ginn-regin, q. v.; upp-reginn, the heavenly powers, Haustl.; þrym-regin, q. v.; ragna sjöt, the seat of the gods = the heavens, Vsp. 33: in prose only in the phrase, enda mælir rán ok regin (acc.) við oss á sogurt ofan, he speaks to us rán and regin, i. e. he scolds and curses, Ölk. 36; hann var Baldr með Ásum, er öll regin grétu, Fas. i. 473, in a paraphrase from a lost poem.

II. in pr. names, Reginn, a mythical name, Edda, Völs. S: esp. in compds, Regin-leif, a fem. name, Landn., but mostly contr. Ragn- or Rögn-: of women, Ragna, Ragn-heiðr, Ragn-hildr; of men, Ragnarr, Rögn-valdr, Landn.; cp. old Germ. and Saxon names beginning with Ragin-, mod. Rain-, Rayn-, Ran-, as Reginald, Reynolds. In COMPDS, [cp. Hel. regini-blind, regin-scatho, regin-thiof], mighty, great: regin-djúp, n. the deep sea. regin-djúpr, adj. mighty deep, Vísna bók 1612. regin-dómr, m. pl. the mighty doom, the last judgment, Vsp. 64; rúnar ok regindóma, mighty spells, Hm. 112 (but not in Cod. Reg.) regin-fjall, n. a wild fell, mountain wilderness, Gsp., and in mod. usage. regin-gaddi, a, m. = reginnagli, Edda ii. 494. regin-grjót, n. the holy stones, altars (hörgr), Gs. 19 regin-haf, n. the main, freq. in mod. usage. regin-hylr, m. = regindjúp, Stef. Ól. regin-kungr, adj. = Gr. διογενής, epithet of a king, Hðm. 26. regin-kunnr, adj. world-known, Hm. 112. regin-nagli, a, m. a sacred peg in the ancient high-seats was called so, Eb. 10 new Ed. regin-spönn, f. a kind of axe, Edda (Gl.) regin-þing, n. the great council, Hkv. 1. 50.

f., pl. rúnar: [rún, raun, reyna are all kindred words, and a lost strong verb, rúna, raun, meaning to enquire, may be presumed; the original notion is scrutiny, mystery, secret conversation; Gotb. runa, by which Ulf. several times renders the Gr. μυστήριον and συμβούλιον (once, Matth. xxvii. 1), βουλή (twice, Luke vii. 30, 1 Cor. iv. 5); A. S. rún = a ‘rowning’ mystery, but also = writing, charter; Hel. rûna = colloquium, and geruni = loquela (Schmeller); cp. Old Engl. to rown, Germ. raunen; Gr. ἐ-ρευνάω is also supposed to be a kindred word (Bugge). In Scandin. writers and poets rún is chiefly used of magical characters, then of writing, whereas the derivative word raun means trial, enquiry, and rúni and rúna = a friend or counsellor.]

B. A secret, hidden lore, mystery; frá jötna rúnum ok allra goða segðú it sannasta, Vþm. 42, 43; kenna rúnar, to teach wisdom, Rm. 33; dæma um rúnar ok regin-dóma, Hm. 112; minnask á fornar rúnar, Vsp. 59: saws, segja sannar rúnir, to tell true saws, Fas. ii. 302 (in a verse): a ‘rowning’ speech, vifs rúnir, a woman’s whispering, Bm.; heita e-n at rúnum, to consult one, Gh. 12, Skv. 3. 14, 43; hniga at rúnum, Gkv. 3. 4.

II. a Rune or written character; the earliest Runes were not writing in proper sense, but fanciful signs possessing a magical power; such Runes have, through vulgar superstition, been handed down even to the present time, for a specimen of them see Ísl. Þjóðs. i.435, 436, and Arna-Magn. Nos. 687. 4 to, and 434. 12 mo (Ísl. Þjóðs.pref. ix); the classical passages for these spell-Runes are, Hm. 133 sqq., Sdm. 5 sqq., Skm. 29, 36, Eg. ch. 44, 61, 75, Yngl. S. ch. 7, Grett. ch. 85, N. G. L. iii. 286, 300, Vsp. 59; cp. also the phrase, rísta trénið, Grág., Fs. 56. The phrase in the old Danish Ballads, kaste runer, to throw Rúnes, i. e. chips (see hlaut, hlautviðr), may be compared to the Lat. sortes, Mommsen’s Hist, of Rome, vol. i. p. 187, foot-note (Engl. Ed.), or the Sibylline leaves in the Aeneid.

2. Runes as writing;the word was first applied to the original Northern alphabet, which at an early time was derived from the common Phœnician, probably through Greek or Roman coins in the first centuries of our era. From these Runes were subsequently formed two alphabets, the old Scandinavian (whence again the Anglo-Saxon), as found on the Golden horn and the stone in Tune, and the later Scandinavian, in which the inscriptions in the greater number of the Swedish and Danish stone monuments are written, most being of the 10th (9th?) and following centuries.—A curious instance of the employment of Runes is their being written on a kefli (a round piece of wood) as messages (cp. the Gr. σκυτάλη), as is freq. recorded in the Sagas, e. g. Gísl. 45, 67, Fms. ix. 390, 490, Grett. 154 new Ed., Fb. i. 251 (of the deaf and dumb Oddny). It is doubtful whether poems were ever written in this way, for almost the only authority for such a statement is Eg. 605, where we read that the Sonatorrek was taken down on a Runic stick, the other instances being mostly from romances or fabulous Sagas, Grett. 144, Örvar Odds S.(fine). This writing on a kefli is mentioned in the Latin line, Barbara ‘fraxineis’ sculpatur runa ‘tabellis,’ Capella (5th century). In later times (from the 13th century) Runic writing was practised as a sort of curiosity; thus calendars used to be written on sticks, of which there is a specimen in the Bodl. Library in Oxford; they were also used for inscriptions on tombstones, spoons, chairs, and the like: there even exists in the Arna-Magn. Library a Runic MS. of an old Danish law, and there is a Runic letter in Sturl. (of the year 1241); Runes carved on an oar occur in Fs. 177: a hidden treasure in a chest is labelled with Runes, Fms. vi. 271, Sd. 146, cp. also the interesting record in Bs. i. 435 (sex manna bein vóru þar hjá honum ok vax ok rúnar þær er sögðu atburð lifláts þeirra).

3. the word rún is also, though rarely, applied to the Latin alphabet; ef hann er á þingi þá skal hann rísta nafn hans ef hann kann rúnar, N. G. L. i. 171; or generally, ræki ek eigi hvárt þú rítr ø þitt eðr o,  eða a, ę eða e, y eða u, en ek svara svá, eigi er þat rúnanna kostr þó at þú lesir vel eða ráðir vel at líkindum, þar sem rúnar visa óskírt, heldr er þat þinn kostr, Thorodd 162; þessi er upphaf allra hátta svá sem málrúnar eru fyrir öðrum minum, Edda (Ht.) 121.

III. in pr. names, Rún-ólfr: as the latter part in pr. names of women, Guð-rún, Sig-rún, Öl-rún, Landn., Nj., Bs., Sturl., Sæm.

COMPDS: rúnakefli, rúnamál, Rúnameistari, rúnastafr.

(gen. sigrs), m. victory; hafa, fá, vinna s., to gain a victory; bera s. af e-m, vega (vinna, fá) s. á e-m, to defeat one; auðna mun ráða sigri, fortune will decide the victory; Magnús konungr réð þá sigri miklum, then king M. gained a great victory.

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m., the r is radical, gen. sigrs, dat. sigri, plur. not used; a gen. sing. sigrar occurs in sigrar-merki, Karl. 356, 365, 366; and sigrar-óp, 365, 368; sig without the r is used in poets and in pr. names: [Ulf. sigis = νικος; Hel. sigi; O. H. G. sigu; Germ. sieg; Dutch zege; all without the r; A. S. sige, but usually sigor (see Grein), answering to the double form sig and sigr in the Scandin.]

A. Victory; hafa, fá, vinna sigr, to win a victory; hann átti þar hina þriðju orrostu ok hafði sigr, Hkr. i. 80; Haraldr konungr fékk sigr, 79; bera sigr af öðrum, to gain the day, Ó. H. 109; ráða sigri, Fb. ii. 337; mun auðna ráða sigri, fate will decide the victory, Ó. H. 209, Nj. 43, Fms. v. 273, Hkr. iii. 400, Barl. 163, in countless instances; þar með hamingju at vega sigrinn, Hkr. i. 254, Al. 83; ráða sigri, Fb. ii. 428; drekka Óðins full til sigrs ok ríkis konungi sínum, Hkr. i. 140; gaf hann sumum sigr, 10; þá nótt ina sömu gekk Eirekr í hof Óðins ok gafsk honum til sigrs sér, ok kvað á tíu vetra frest síns dauða, Fb. ii. 72; fagna sigri, to rejoice over a victory gained, to triumph (but not in the technical Roman sense, which is not Teutonic); hrósa sigri, id.; sverði hælir þú þar en eigi sigri, Edda 89.

B. COMPDS: sigrauðigr, sigrbákn, sigrblástr, sigrblómi, sigrblót, sigrbyrr, sigrfórn, sigrför, sigrgjald, sigrgjöf, sigrgoð, sigrheimr, sigrhelgi, sigrhnoða, sigrkufl, sigrlauss, sigrleysi, sigrlúðr, sigrmark, sigrmál, sigrmerki, sigrminning, sigróp, sigrsamligr, sigrsteinn, sigrstrangligr, sigrsæli, sigrsæll, sigrvegari, sigrvegning, sigrverk, sigrvænligr, sigrþjóð, sigrör.

1) so, thus;

ertu Íslenzkr maðr? — hann sagði, at svá var, he said it was so;

svá er sagt, at, it is told that;

2) joined with another particle, svá … ok, both … and;

svá starf ok torveldi, both toil and trouble;

svá ráns-maðrinn ok okrkarlinn, the robber as well as the usurer;

ok svá, and also, as also;

sumarit ok svá um vetrinn, the summer, as also the winter;

fögr augu ok svá snarlig, fair eyes and also sharp;

3) so, denoting degree (œrit mun hann stórvirkr, en eigi veit ek, hvárt hann er svá góðvirkr);

Gunnarr spyrr, hví Njáli þœtti þetta svá úráðligt, why he thought this so unwise;

ekki meirr en svá, not more than so, so and no more;

4) followed by an adjective and ‘at’, svá ríkr, góðr, mikill, margir, fáir … at, so mighty, good, great, many, few … that;

svá at, so that;

kaldr (sjúkr) svá, at, so cold (sick) that;

contracted ‘svát’, svát ek muna, that (so far as) I remember;

with a gen., Hallfreðr er svá manna, at ek skil sízt, H. is such a man as I never can make out;

hón er svá kvenna (= hón er svá af konum), at mér er mest um at eiga, she is just such a woman as I most want;

5) svá … sem, as … as;

hárit var svá fagrt sem silki, as fair (soft) as silk;

svá vel sem þér ferr, well as thou behavest;

6) so, then (gengu þeir norðr yfir hálsinn ok svá fram á Rastarkálf);

7) joined to an a. or adv., about, pretty much;

slíkar svá fortölur, somewhat such persuasion;

þat mun þó svá nær fara, yet it will be just on the verge of that;

nakkvat svá, somewhat so;

fegnir nakkvat (nökkut) svá, rather glad;

mjök svá, almost, very nearly, all but (mjök svá kominn at bana).

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adv., so in old rhymes in the 13th century, e. g. svá and gá, Mkv. 20; svá and á, Ht. 82; later form svó (freq. in the 14th and 15th centuries); whence svo, and lastly so: [a common Teut. particle; Ulf. swê; A. S. swâ; Engl. and Germ. so; Dan. saa.]

B. So, thus; ertú Íslenzkr maðr?—Hann sagði at svá var, he said it was so, Nj. 6; beiddi Þorsteinn Atla at … Hann görði svá, he did so, Ísl. ii. 193; nú görðu þeir svá, so they did, Fms. x. 238; eigi görr enn svá, ‘not farther than so,’ only so far, Grág. i. 136; þeir heita svá, thus, Edda, Hom. 141; ef þú vill eigi segja mér, ok farir þú svá (thus, i. e. without letting me know) héðan, Fms. vii. 30; þeir segja svá Ólafi konungi, at …, iii. 181; svá er sagt, at …, it is told, that …, vi. 3.

2. joined with another particle; svá ok, so also, also; svá skal ok ætla þeim er þá kömr við, Grág. i. 235; svá ráns-maðrinn ok okrkarlinn, the robber as well as the usurer, Mar.; öll landráð, svá lögmál ok sættar-görðir, the law as well as the s., Sks. 13 B; svá starf ok torveldi, both toil and trouble, Fms. vii. 221; ok svá, and also, as also; höfuð hans ok svá marga dýrgripi, Eg. 86; sumarit ok svá um vetrinn, the summer, as also the winter, Fms. xi. 51; fögr augu ok svá snarlig, fair eyes and also sharp, i. 102; ekki líkr yfirlits föður sínum ok svá í skaplyndi (here ok svá is adversative = né), x. 266; í Suðrlöndum ok svá norðr, Þiðr.; þeir minntu konung opt á þat, ok svá þat með, at…, Eg. 85; ok hlaða svá veggi, and also make the walls, Grág. ii. 336; austr undir Eyjafjöll ok svá austr í Holt, and so also east of H., Nj. 261.

II. so, denoting degree; ærit man hann stórvirkr, en eigi veit ok hvárt hann er svá ( equally) góðvirkr, Nj. 55: with a compar., eigi getr nær enn svá, it is not to be got nearer than so, Clem. 46; ekki meirr enn svá, not more than so, so and not more, with an adverse notion; ekki þótta ek nú dæll meirr enn svá, Fms. xi. 91; eigi fengiligri enn svá, Sturl. i. 159.

2. svá followed by an adjective and ‘at;’ svá ríkr, góðr, mikill, margr, fáir … at, so mighty, good, great, many, few … that, Nj. 1, Fms. i. 3, passim; svá at, so that, contracted svát (as þótt for þó at), see ‘at’ III. γ (p. 29, col. 2): the svá put after the adjective, kaldr svá at, so cold that, Edda (pref.); ástblindir svá, Mkv.; sjúkr svá, at ( so sick that) hann sé kominn at bana, Fms. xi. 158: with a gen., Hallfreðr er svá manna, at ek skil sízt hvat manna at er, H. is such a man as I never can make out, Fs. 98; hón er svá kvenna, at mér er mest um at eiga just such a woman as I like best, Ld. 302; hón er svá meyja í Noregi, at ek vilda helzt eiga, Fms. v. 310.

3. svá sem, so as, as; þjóna honum svá sem börn föður, Edda 13; ok svá sem hón er sterk, þá mon hón brotna, er …, strong as it(the bridge) is, it will break when …, 8 (see sem); hárit var svá fagrt sem silki, fair as silk, Nj. 2; þeim konungi sem svá er góðr ok rétt víss sem Ingi, i. e. so very good and just a king, Fms. vii. 263; svá vel sem þér ferr, well as thou behavest, Nj. 225.

4. the phrase, gör svá vel, be so good as to, I pray thee! Nj. 111, Fms. vii. 157; göri guðin þá svá vel, láti mik eigi bíða, Al. 106.

5. in greeting; heill svá! 623. 17; heilir svá, Stj. 124, 475, Karl. 507; ek svá heill! Fms. v. 230; svá vil ek heil! Grett. 170 new Ed; farit ér í svá gramendr allir! Dropl. 23.

III. slíkr svá, nokkur svá, því-líkr svá, mjök svá, somewhat so, much in that way, about so; slíkum svá fortölum, such a persuasion, Al. 33; ekki meira enn slíkt svá, not more than so, Fms. v. 308; þvílíkum svá mönnum, sem þit erut, Eg. 739; þiggja gjafar at slíkum svá mönnum, Fms. vi. 99; nakkvat svá, somewhat so, xi. 11; fegnir nokkut svá, i. e. rather glad, quite glad, viii. 27 (v. l. mjök svá, very); mjök svá, almost, very nearly, all but; hafa lokit mjök svá heyverkum, Ísl. ii. 329; mjök svá kominn at landi, Fms. i. 212; mjök svá kominn at bana, 158; mjök svá feginn, viii. 27, v. l.; allmjök svá, v. 320.

2. the phrases, svá-gurt, see soguru and göra (F. III); svá-búit, see búa (B. II. 2. δ): svá-nær, so near, i. e. quite near; þat mun þó svá nær fara, it will be quite on the verge of that, Nj. 49; ef barn elsk svá-nær Páskum, just before Easter, K. Þ. K. 7 new Ed.; lagði þá svá nær, at…, Nj. 163; hafði svá nær, at, 160.

m. [this word is derived from þreskja and völlr, and prop. means a threshing-floor, because in ancient times the floor at the entrance was used for threshing, but it then came to mean the block of wood or stone beneath the door, doorsill or threshold; and that in ancient times it was so, is borne out by phrases as, Gríma sat á þreskeldi, Fbr.; or, stíga yfir þresköldinn, Eb. l. c.; or, þresköldrinn var hár fyrir durunum, O. H. L. 85; see the references. The latter part of the compd, -öldr, is from a time when the older ld had not as yet become assimilated into ll. The word is declined like völlr; nom. þreskjöldr, or, dropping the j, þresköldr: acc. þreskjöld or þresköld, Bs. i. 44, Fms. v. 140, Fbr. 14, Korm. 10, Eb. 220, Fs. 68, Edda ii. 122, Hkr. iii. 116, N. G. L. i. 18, 431: dat. þreskeldi, Fms. ii. 149, Fbr. 98 new Ed., N. G. L. i. 18, 431; in rhymes eldhúss þresk eldi, Kormak: nom. plur. þreskeldir, Bs. i. 736; acc. þresköldu, Stj. 436 (spelt þrescavlldo): examples are wanting of gen. sing. and plur.

2. but as the etymology was forgotten, the forms soon got confused, e. g. the curious various readings to N. G. L. ii. 110, þreskilldi, þreskjalda, þreskalda, þreskalla, þreskaldi, þreskolli, þreskæli, all dat.: acc. sing. changing ö into e, þreskelld, Stj. 436 (Cod. A): dat. changing e into i, þreskildi (as if from skjöldr), H. E. i. 496, N. G. L. ii. l. c. The form þrepskjöldr, found in mod. Icel. books, is a bad attempt at an etymology, as if it were derived from þrep and skjöldr. The form tréskjöldrinn, O. H. L. 85. l. 21, is prob. merely a scribe’s error,

3. at last came the mod. form þröskuldr, declined as a regular substantive (like Höskulldr), Sturl. iii. 33; [A. S. þerscwold or þerscold; Engl. threshold; Dan. tærskel; O. H. G. dirscuwili.]

B. A threshold, passim, see above.

2. metaph. an isthmus or ridge flooded at high water, between the mainland and an island; þeir réru inn til Arneyjar-sunds …; var þar svá, til farit at þröskuldr lá á sundinu, en djúpt at tvá vega, var þar riðit at fjörum, en eigi flóðum, Sturl. iii. 33 (the ridges leading to the island Langey, in Skarðströnd in western Icel., are still locally called ‘Þröskuldar’).

II. metaph. as a gramm. term, a figure of speech, when one word ends and the next begins with the same consonant; þenna löst köllu vér þresklld, Skálda (Edda ii. 122; þræsklld, 412, l. c.)

f. chief defendantship or prosecutorship.

* * *

older form aðilð, pl. ir, f. [root aðal], v. the following word aðili. It doubtless originally meant chiefdom, headship, but it only occurs in the limited legal sense of chief-prosecutorship or defendantship, and this only, as it seems, in Icel. not in Norse law. It is a standing word in the Icel. codes and histories of the Commonwealth. It became obsolete after the year 1272, and does not occur in the codes Jb. or Js. In early times there were no public prosecutions or lawsuits; the aðild devolved together with the erfð ( heirship) on the principal male heir, if of age; erfð and aðild go together, the first as a right, the last as an incumbent duty, like an English trusteeship; til erfðar ok aðiðar, Eb. ch. 38. In the year 993 a law was passed to the effect that male heirs under sixteen years of age should be exempted from aðild, neither should heiresses ever be aðili. In such cases the aðild devolved on the next male heir above sixteen years of age, who then got a fee for executing this duty, Bs. i. 675. The aðild also could be undertaken by a delegate, called at fara með handselda sök, sök handseld, vörn handseld, fara með sök, carry on a suit, etc., v. Grágás Vs. ch. 35, (of aðild in a case of manslaughter,) and in many other places ; Eb. ch. 38, Bs. i. 675 (Rs. in fine), Bjarn. (in fine), Njála, and many others: v. Dasent, Introd. to Burnt Njal.

COMPD: aðilðarmaðr.

f., Lat. absolutio.

1. some small release, ransom, compensation, Sturl. iii. 142, 239; gjöra a. urn e-t, to relieve, release oneself in regard to a thing: Ólafr konungr mælti, ‘Framar hefir þú þá gert urn vígin á Grænlandi, en fiskimaðrinn kallar a. vera fiskinnar; því at hann kallast leysa sik, ef hann dregr fisk fyrir sik, enn annan fyrir skip sitt, þriðja fyrir öngul, fjórða fyrir vað,’ king Olaf said, ‘Thou hast done more then in the matter of manslayings in Greenland, than what the fisherman calls the ransom of his fishing; for he says that he has freed himself (of his fishing), if he draws (up) a fish for himself, but another for his boat, a third for his angle, a fourth for his line,’ (this way of reckoning their catch is still common with fishermen in many parts of England and Scotland), Fbr. 154: cp. a stanza in a Scottish ballad, ‘I launched my boat in Largo Bay, | And fishes caught I three; | One for wad and one for hook, | And one was left for me.’

2. eccles. = absolution, K. Á. 226, Hom. 137, Grett. 162, Fms. x. 18.

u, f. encumbrance, due, fees, outgoings, = afskyld. Freq. in deeds of gift. e. g. D. I. i. 203, 266; þá lágu öngar gjafir til staðarins, en a. varð öngu minni, then no gifts came in to the see, but the outlay was in nothing less, Bs. i. 84; þá görðust fjárhagir úhægir í Skálaholti, urðu afvinnur miklar ( great outgoings) en tillög ( incomings) eingin, Bs. i. 99.

(gen. sing. alnar or álnar; pl. alnar or álnir), f. = öln;

1) the old Icelandic ell (about half a yard);

2) unit of value, an ell of woollen stuff (alin vaðmáls), = one sixth of an ounce(eyrir).

* * *

f. A dissyllabic form alun appears in old poetry, v. Lex. Poët. In early prose writers a monosyllabic form öln prevails in nom. dat. acc. sing., D. I. i. 310. l. 22 (MS. of the year 1275), 314. l. 16 (MS. year 1250), 311, 312. l. 16, 313. l. 7, 89. l. 1. Nom. pl., α. the old, alnar; β. the later, alnir: the former in -ar, in D. I. i. 309 (a MS. of the year 1275), 310–312 (MS. year 1370), 313, 316. l. 19, 318. 1. 15. The pl. in -ir, D. I. i. 89 sqq., in MSS. of the 13th and 14th centuries. In the contracted form aln- the simple radical vowel soon became a diphthongal á, viz. álnar, álnir, álnum, álna, and is at present so spelt and pronounced. We find an acute accent indeed in álna (gen pl.), D. I. i. 313. l. 25 (MS. year 1375), and dinar, id. l, 7; álnom, 1. 28; ölnum with changed vowel, N. G. L. i. 323 (in an Icel. transcript). The present declension is, nom. acc. alin, gen. álnar; pl. nom. acc. álnir, gen. álna, dat. alnum.

I. properly the arm from the elbow to the end of the middle finger [Gr. ώλένη, Lat. ulna, cp. A. S. el-boga, Engl. el-bow, etc.]; almost obsolete, but still found in the words ölbogi qs. öln-bogi, ‘elbow,’ and úlf-liðr, prop. uln- or óln-liðr, wrist, commonly pronounced unl-liðr [false etymol., v. Edda, p. 17]; cp. Ísl. Þjóðs. ii. 19, where tungl (luna) and unl- rhyme. Freq. in poetry in such compounds as alun-leygr, -brandr, ölun-grjót, alnar-gim, alin-leygr, the standing poët, name of gold and gems being ignis or lapis cubiti.

II. mostly metaph.:

1. an ell, [Ulf. aleina; A. S. eln; Engl. ell; O. H. G. elina; Dan. alen; Lat. ulna, cp. cubitum] ; the finger, arm, foot were the original standards for measure. The primitive ell measured the length from the elbow to the point of the second finger, and answered to about half a yard Engl. = 18 inches. The Icel. ell before the year 12OO measured just half a yard. About this year, by a law of bishop Paul, the ell was doubled into a stika, a stika being precisely = two ells = an Engl. ell of that time. To prevent the use of bad measure, a just and lawful stika (yard) was marked on the walls of the churches, esp. that at Thingvellir, as an authorised standard, Páls S. ch. 9, Bs. i. 135, D. I. i. 309, 316, Jb. Kb. 26; ensk lérept tveggja álna, English linen of two ells measure, id.; þat er mælt, at at graftar kirkju hverri skal mæla stiku lengd, þá er rétt sé at hafa til álna máls, ok megi menn þar til ganga ef á skilr um alnar, 309. During the whole of the 15th century the Icel. trade was mainly in British hands; thus the Engl. double ell probably prevailed till the end of the 15th or beginning of the 16th century. The Hanse Towns ell = 21 1/11 inches was then introduced, and abolished in the year 1776, when the Dan. ell = 24 inches came into use. At present the Hanse Towns ell is called Íslenzk alin (Icel. ell), and the original half-yard ell is quite obsolete; cp. Jón Sigurðsson in D. I. i. 306–308, and Pál Vidal. s. v. alin.

2. a unit of value, viz. an ell (half-yard measure) of woollen stuff (vaðmál); the vaðmál (Halliwell wadmal, Engl. woadmal, Orkn. and Shell, wadmaal and vadmel) was in Icel. the common medium of payment, whence an ell became the standard unit of value or property, whether in land or chattels; 120 ells make a hundred, v. that word. In D. I. i. 316 we are told that, about the year 1200, three ells were equal in value to one ounce of ordinary silver, whence the expression þriggja álna eyrir (a common phrase during the 13th century). The value of the ell of vaðmal, however, varied greatly; during the 11th and 12th centuries six ells made an ounce, D. I. i. 88. In Norway we find mentioned níu, ellifu álna aurar (nine, eleven ells to an ounce). In Grág. (Kb.) ii. 192, § 245, it is said that, about the year 1000, four ells in Icel. made an ounce, and so on; vide Dasent, Essay in 2nd vol. of Burnt Njal., and Pal Vidal. s. v. alin.

COMPDS: álnarborð, álnarbreiðr, alnarkefli, álnartíund, álnarvirði, álnasök.

adj. part. spoken by all, what all say; esp. in the phrase, almælt tíðindi, news; spyrjast almæltra tíðinda, what news? Nj. 227, Ld. 80, Fms. xi. 118 (a standing phrase).

β. of a child that has learnt to talk; en þá er sveinninn var tvævetr, þá rann hann einn saman ok var a. sem fjögra vetra gömul börn, but when the boy was two years old, then he ran alone and could say everything as well as bairns of four years, Ld. 34, (altalandi is the word now used.)

n. ‘eke-name,’ a nickname:

α. a defamatory name, punishable with the lesser outlawry, Grág. ii. 146.

β. in a less strong sense; hann var svartr á hár ok hörund, ok því þótti honum a. gefit er hann var Birtingr kallaðr, he was swarth of hair and skin, and for that it seemed a nickname was given him when he was called ‘Brighting,’ Fms. vii. 157: Helgi átti kenningar nafn, ok var kallaðr hvíti; ok var þat eigi a., því at hann var vænn maðr ok vel hærðr, hvítr á hár, Helgi had a surname (in a good sense), and was called ‘White;’ and that was no nickname, for he was a handsome man and well-haired, white of hair, Fbr. 80: þú hyggr at ek muna vilja giptast einum bastarði,—eigi em ek bastarðr nema at a., of William the Conqueror, Fb. iii. 464. In old times, esp. at the time of the colonisation of Iceland, such nicknames were in freq. use, as may be seen from the index in the Landnama; they gradually went out of use, but still occur now and then throughout the whole of the Saga period in Icel. down to the 14th century.

m. child’s friend, nickname of an old pirate; hann var víkingr mikill, hann lét eigi henda börn á spjótsoddum sem þá var víkingum títt, því var hann b. kallaðr, he was a great pirate, but he did not spit babies as pirates then used to do, wherefore he was called b., Landn. 308; in mod. usage, one who has many children, mesti b.

* * *

a. compar., better;

þeim þótti betra at, they thought it better to.

* * *

betra, compar., and BEZTR, baztr, batztr, the superl. to ‘góðr,’ which serves as the posit.:—in the compar. the primitive a becomes e; thus old poets of the beginning of the 11th century, as Sighvat, rhyme betri—setrs; the old form batri however occurs, 655 xx. 4: in the superl. the a was kept till the end of the 12th century. Sighvat rhymes, last—bazti; old vellum MSS. now and then still spell with a (bazt, baztr …), Glúm. 371, Heið. S. Ísl. ii. 324, Grág. ii. 165, 252, Fms. xi. 214, 220, Hm. 13, 26, 47, Hkv. Hjörv. 39, Lb. 12, Pd. 11, Ýt. 27, 625. 42, Fms. x. (Ágrip) 418; baþztra (baztra), gen. pl., 398, 401 (but betþt, 385); bazta (acc.), Eluc. 36: sing. fem. and neut. pl. bözt, with a changed vowel, bözt heill, n. pl., Skv. 2. 19; böztu (böþtu), pl., Fms. x. 401, 403, 415: it is spelt with z, tz (in Ágrip even þt), or zt, in mod. spelling often s, as in mod. Engl., and pronounced at present as an s, [Goth. batizo, superl. batisto; A. S. batra and betsta, besta; Engl. better and best; Germ. besser and beste]:—better, best; meira ok betra, Nj. 45, 193; betri, Dipl. v. 18; beztr kostr, Nj. 1, Eg. 25; beztr bóndi, Ld. 22.

β. kind, friendly towards one; with dat., er honum hafði baztr verit, 625. 42; er mér hefir beztr verit, Fms. vii. 274: er þér fyrir því bezt …, it is best for thee, thou doest best to accept it, Nj. 225; því at þinn hlutr má eigi verða betri en góðr, 256; betra byr ok blíðara, 625. 4: with gen., meðan bezt er sumars, during the best part of the summer, Sks. 29, etc. etc., v. góðr.

* * *

(brest; brast, brustum; brostinn), v.

1) to burst, to be rent (steinninn brast);

þá brast í sundr jörðin (the earth burst) undir hesti hans;

2) to break, snap, with a noise (brast í sundr boginn);

3) to crash, of the sound alone;

þá brast strengr, they twanged the bowstring;

4) to burst forth (skriða brast);

eldr brestr upp, fire breaks out;

blóð brestr út, blood bursts out;

5) to rise, begin; flótti brestr, the ranks break in flight;

bardagi brestr, the battle breaks out, begins;

6) impers., e-n brestr e-t, one lacks, falls short of (eigi brestr mik áræði);

ef oss brestr á borði, if we fall short, get the worst of it;

þat mun aldri bresta (it will never fail), at.

* * *

pret. brast, pl. brustu; part. brostinn; pres. brest, [A. S. berstan, per metath.; Engl. to burst; Germ. bersten; Swed. brista; Dan. briste]:—to burst, be rent; jörðin brast ( the earth burst) undir hesti hans, Nj. 158; steinninn brast, the rock was rent, Bs. i. 5.

β. to break with a crash; brast þú boginn í tvá hluti, Hkr. i. 342, Gísl. 81; brestr röng, the rib of a barrel creaks, Jb. 398: the hoops of a vessel bresta ( burst), Fs. 132; skulfu lönd, en brustu bönd (of a tub), Jón Þorl.

2. to crash, of the sound alone; hófarnir brustu í veggjunum, the hoofs dashed against the wall, Grett. 25 new Ed.; hvat brast þar svá hátt, Hkr. i. 342; þá brast strengr á skipi, then twanged the bowstring on the ship, Fms. i. 182; brestandi bogi, the twanging bow, Hm. 84.

β. to burst forth, of a stream, avalanche, or the like; brestr flóð, of an avalanche, Gísl. 33; skriða brast, id., Fms. v. 250; blóð brestr út, the blood bursts out, from a blow, N. G. L. i. 342.

γ. a milit. term, flótti brestr, the ranks break in flight, when the host is seized by panic; þá brast flótti í liði Flosa, Nj. 246; er meginflóttinn brast, Fms. viii. 229; brast þá flótti á Vindum, xi. 233; bardagi brestr, the battle bursts out, begins, (rare and as it seems απ. λεγ.), Fas. i. 34.

δ. b. or b. á, to burst or break out, a storm, gale, cp. Bs. i. 78 (vide however s. v. bera C. IV): b. or b. út, to ebb, but only of the first turning of the tide, Bb. 2. 15; augu b., the eyes break in death, v. auga; hence helbrostið auga.

II. impers., e-n (acc.) brestr e-t (acc.), one lacks, falls short of; brast Sigríði (acc.) fimm tigi hundraða, Dipl. v. 3; ef oss brestr á borði, if we fall short, get the worst of it, Fms. ix. 507; eigi brestr mik árædi, Fs. 62; á mið þau er aldri mun fisk (Ed. wrongly fiskr) b., Bárð. 169; ef eitt orð (acc.) brysti, Fms. iv. 71; hann vissi þessa sína ætlan brostna ( frustrated), Bs. i. 289; þat mun aldri b., that will never fail, Grett. 24 new Ed.: hamingjuna brestr, Fms. vi. 155 (Ed. hamingjan).

að, [cp. Lat. Frūgi, frux, fructus, frui; A. S. brucan; Germ. brauchen; Dan. bruge; Swed. bruke, borrowed from Germ.]:—to use, with acc., borrowed from Germ. through Dan.; it seems not to have come into use before the 17th century; it never occurs in the Icel. N. T., and even not in Pass.; in Vídalín (died A. D. 1720) it is used now and then; and at present, although used in common talk, it is avoided in writing. It is curious that the language has no special expression for to use, Lat. uti (hafa, beita neyta, or other words indirectly bearing that sense are used); derived forms—as brúkandi, brúkanligr, adj., óbrúkanligr, adj. unfit, useless—are used, but sound ill. brúkan, f. use, is preferred for brúk, n., Dan. brug = use, etc.

1) household, farming;

þat er bú, er maðr hefir málnytan smala, it is ‘bú’, if a man has a milking stock;

gøra, setja, reisa bú, to set up a home for oneself;

bregða búi, to give up farming;

eiga bú við e-n, to share a household with one;

fara búi, to remove one’s household;

vera fyrir búi, to manage a household;

búa búi sínu, to have one’s own household;

búa úmegðarbúi, to have many dependants (unable to work);

2) the stock of a farmstead (sumir lágu úti á fjöllum með bú sín);

drepa niðr bú, höggva bú, to kill or destroy one’s stock;

3) housekeeping;

fá til búsins, to procure necessaries for the maintenance of the household;

einskis þurfti í bú at biðja, there was plenty of everything;

4) farm, estate;

fara milli búa sinna, to go from one estate to another;

eiga bú, to own an estate;

5) home, house (reið Hrútr heim til bús síns);

vera at or á búi með e-m, to live at one’s house.

* * *

n. [Hel. bû = domicilium; O. H. G. bû; mod. Germ. bau = tillage, cultivation; Hel. also uses beo or beu, = seges, cp. also Teut. bouwt = messis, in Schmeller Heliand Glossary:—the root of this word will be traced more closely under the radical form búa; here it is sufficient to remark that ‘bú’ is an apocopate form, qs. ‘bug’ or ‘bugg;’ the root remains unaltered in the branch to which Icel. bygg, byggja, and other words belong]

1. a house; bú and bæ (býr) are twins from the same root (bua); bær is the house, bú the household; the Gr. οικος (Ϝοικος) embraces both; þeir eta upp bú mitt, Od. i. 251; biðla til móður minnar og eyða búi hennar, 248; bú mitt er á förum, iv. 318; gott bú, ix. 35; etr þú upp bú hans bótalaust, xvi. 431; svo hann er fær uni að veita búinu forstöðu, xix. 161; hús og bújörð, og góðan kvennkost, xiv. 64; the Prose Translation by Egilsson. In the Northern countries ‘bú’ implies the notion of living upon the produce of the earth; in Norway and esp. in Icel. that of living on the ‘milk’ (málnyta) of kine, ewes, or she-goats; þat er bú, er maðr hefir málnytan smala, it is ‘bú’ if a man has a milking stock, Grág. i. 158; the old Hm. says, a ‘bú,’ however small it be, is better to have than not to have; and then explains, ‘though thou hast but two she-goats and a cottage thatched with shingle, yet it is better than begging;’ Icel. saying, sveltr sauðlaust bú, i. e. a sheepless household starves: ‘bú’ also means the stores and stock of a household; göra, setja, reisa bú, to set up in life, have one’s own hearth, Bs. i. 127, Bb. 1. 219, Sturl. i. 197, Eb. 40; bregða búi, to give up farming or household; taka við búi, to take to a farm, Sturl. i. 198; eiga bú við e-n, to share a household with one, 200; ráðask til bús, id.; fara búi, to remove one’s household, flit, 225; hafa bú, hafa rausnar-bú, 226; eiga bú, iii. 79, Eg. 137: allit. phrases, börn og bú, Bs. ii. 498; bóndi er bú-stólpi, bú er landstólpi, the ‘bóndi’ is the stay of the ‘bú,’ the ‘bú’ is the stay of the land; búa búi sínu, Fas. iii. 312; búa umegðar-búi, to have a heavy household (many children), K. Þ. K. 90; hafa kýr ok ær á búi, Nj. 236: housekeeping, in the phrase, eiga einkis í bú at biðja, to have plenty of everything, Bs. i. 131, 132; bæði þarf í búit mjöl ok skreið, Nj. 18: home, house, reið Hrútr heim til bús síns, 4; á búi, adv. at home, Fms. iv. 256, Hm. 82.

2. estates; konungs-bú, royal demesnes; þar er bú hans vóru, Eg. 42, 43, Landn. 124, fara milli búa sinna, to go from one estate to another, id.; eiga bú, to own an estate.

3. the stock in a farmstead; sumir lágu úti á fjöllum með bú sín, Sturl. iii. 75; drepa niðr bú, höggva bú, taka upp bú, to kill or destroy one’s stock, Fms. ix. 473, Stj. 90.

COMPDS: búsafleifar, búsbúhlutir, búsefni, búsfar, búsforráð, búsgagn, búshagr, búshlutir, búshægindi, búskerfi, bústilskipan, búsumsvif, búsumsýsla.

(-s, -ar), m. dream; eigi er mark at draumum, dreams are not worth noticing; segja em draum, to tell one’s dream to another; ráða draum, to read (interpret) a dream; draumr rætist, a dream proves true; vakna eigi við góðan draum, to awake from a bad dream; em er draums, one dreams, is in a trance.

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m. [A. S. dreâm; Hel. drôm; Engl. dream; Swed.-Dan. dröm; Germ. traum; Matth. i. and ii, and by a singular mishap Matth. xxvii. 19, are lost in Ulf., so that we are unable to say how he rendered the Gr. οναρ:—the A. S. uses dreâm only in the sense of joy, music, and dreamer = a harper, musician, and expresses draumr, Engl. dream, by sveofnas,—even the Ormul. has dræm = a sound; so that the Engl. dream seems to have got its present sense from the Scandin. On the other hand, the Scandin. have dream in the proper sense in their earliest poems of the heathen age, ballir draumar, Vtkv. I; Hvat er þat draurna, Em. I; it is used so by Bragi Gamli (9th century), Edda 78 (in a verse); cp. draum-þing, Hkv. 2. 48, whilst the A. S. sense of song is entirely strange to Icel.: it is true that svefnar (pl.) now and then occurs in old poets = Lat. somnium, but this may be either from A. S. influence or only as a poetical synonyme. Which of the two senses is the primitive and which the metaph.?]:—a dream. Many old sayings refer to draumr,—vakandi d., a day dream, waking dream, like the Gr. υπαρ; von er vakandi draumr, hope is a waking dream, or von er vakanda manns d.; ekki er mark at draumum, dreams are not worth noticing, Sturl. ii. 217; opt er ljotr d. fyrir litlu, Bs. ii. 225. Icel. say, marka drauma, to believe in dreams, Sturl. ii. 131; segja e-m draum, to tell one’s dream to another, Nj. 35; ráða draum, to read (interpret) a dream, Fms. iv. 381, x. 270, xi. 3; draumr rætisk, the dream proves true, or (rarely) draum (acc.) ræsir, id., Bret.; vakna við vándan (eigi góðan) draum, to wake from a bad dream, of a sudden, violent awakening, Fms. iii. 125, ix. 339, Stj. 394, Judg. viii. 21, 22; vakna af draumi, to waken from a dream; dreyma draum, to dream a dream; láta e-n njóta draums, to let one enjoy his dream, not wake him: gen. draums is used adverb. in the phrase, e-m er draums, one is benumbed, dreamy: stóð hann upp ok fylgði englinum, ok hugði sér draums vera, Post. 656 C; draums kveð ek þér vera, Hkv. Hjörv. 19; þótti honum sjálfum sem draums hefði honum verit, O. H. L. 81; hence comes the mod. e-m er drums, of stupid insensibility. Passages referring to dreams—Hkr. Hálfd. S. ch. 7, Am. 14. 25, Edda 36, Íb. ch. 4, Nj. ch. 134, Ld. ch. 33, Gunnl. S. ch. 2, 13, Harð. S. ch. 6, Lv. ch. 21 (very interesting), Gísl. ch. 13, 24 sqq., Glúm. ch. 9, 21, Þorst. Síðu H., Vápn. 21, Bjarn. 49, Fbr. ch. 16, 37, Þorl. S. ch. 7, Sturl. i. 200, 225, ii. 9, 99, 190, 206–216, iii. 251–254, 272, Rafns S. ch. 7, 14, Laur. S. ch. 2, 65, Sverr. S. ch. 1, 2, 5, 42, Fms. vi. 199, 225, 312, 403, 404, vii. 162, Jómsv. S. ch. 2, etc. etc.

COMPDS: draumamaðr, draumaráðning, draumaskrimsl, draumavetr.

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d or ð, [dómr; Ulf. dômian; A. S. dêman; Engl. deem (as in demster); O. H. G. tomjan; lost in mod. Germ.; Swed. dömma; Dan. dömme]:—a law term, to give judgment, pass sentence; d. mál, to give judgment in a case, Nj. 56, Eg. 417; hvat sem at dæma er, Þorst. St. 55; lét dæma vörnina, caused judgment to be given on the part of the defence (in relerence to a curious Norse custom, by which both plaintiff and defendant pleaded before different courts, which had finally to adjust the sentence according to rules varying with the circumstances), Nj. 240; d. dóm, to pass sentence, Fms. xi. 246; d. rangan dóm, Sks. 109 B: the fines etc. in acc., d. fé, útlegðir, sekð, to pass sentence to a fine, outlawry, payment, etc., Grág. i. 320; útlegðir þær er á alþingi eru dæmðar, 3; fé þat á dæmask á heimili þess er sóttr er, 320; á þá at dæmask féit þannug, then the money is to pass (by sentence) to them, 378; dæma eindaga á fé, to fix a term for payment, 3; d. lög, to pass a lawful sentence, Fms. xi. 224; d. af, to make void, Sks. 11: d. um e-t, to judge of a thing, 625. 60: with acc. of the person, d. e-n skógarmann, to proclaim one an outlaw, Nj. 240; d. sýknan, sekan, etc.: adding dat. of the person, d. e-m e-t, to adjudge a thing to one; d. e-m fé, or the like; even, dæma e-m dóm, to deal a sentence out to one, Fms. xi. l. c.: adding prep. af, d. fé af e-m, to give judgment against his claim, Bs. ii. 91; but more usually, d. e-n af e-u, to declare one to have forfeited; the instances in Grág., N. G. L., and the Sagas are almost endless.

β. to ‘deem,’ give an opinion, judge.

II. to chatter, talk, mostly in poetry; esp. in the allit. phrase, drekka ok d., vide Lex. Poët. and drekka; en er þeir áttu of þessa hluti at d., when they were talking of those things, 623. 55.

1) ever, = ey, æ;

ei ok ei, forever and ever;

2) not, = eigi( as aldri for aldrigi).

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and ey (cp. also æ), adv. [cp. Gr. αἰών; Lat. aevum; Goth. aivs = eternity, everlasting time: hence are derived the O. H. G. eva, A. S. æ, Hel. êo, in the metaph. sense of law (the law being symbolical of what is everlasting), which word still remains in the mod. Germ. ehe = marriage; whence the mod. Germ. echt = genuine, mod. Dan. ægte, mod. Icel. ekta, q. v. (Grimm)]:—ever; the phrase, ei ok ei, or ey ok ey, for ever and ever; gott ey gömlum mönnum, gott ey ungum mönnum, Landn. 45; öllungis muntu hafa þau ei ok ei, Hom. 15, Al. 120; hans ríki stendr ei ok ei, 160; Guðs ei lifanda, Blas. 43: the proverbs, ey sér til gyldis gjöf, Hm. 146; ey getr kvikr kú, 69; ey lýsir mön af mari, Vþm. 12; ey bað hon halda, Hkv. 1. 4; ey var mér týja, Akv. 27; lifa ey, Hm. 15, 34; er ok ey eða ei þat er aldregi þrýtr, Skálda 172; ei at vera, 677. 3; til hins sama var ey at ætla, Bs. i. 108.

II. [Dan. ei, Swed. ej], not ever, not, properly a contraction from ei-gi, in the MSS. freq. spelt é or e̅g̅; ei is often used in mod. writers, but not in speech; it is also used now and then in Edd. of old writers, though it is doubtful whether it is there genuine.

2. ey in a negative sense; ey manni, no man, Vþm. 55; vide eyvit.