by+law

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1) meeting;

mæla mót með sér, to fix a meeting;

2) town-meeting (var blásit til móts í bœnum ok sagt, at konungr vildi tala við bœjarmenn);

3) joint, juncture (cf. ‘liðamót’);

4) in prepositional and adverbial phrases;

á mót, í mót e-m, to meet a person (ganga, ríða á or í mót e-m);

against (mæla, standa á or í mót e-u);

í mót, in return, in exchange;

á móti, í móti, at móti (e-m) = í mót;

snúa í móti e-m, to turn against one;

rísa í móti e-u, to rise against, withstand;

mikit er þat í móti erfðinni minni, that is much when set against what I shall leave behind me;

til móts við e-n, to meet one;

halda til móts við e-n, to march against one;

vera til móts, to be on the opposite side;

miklir kappar eru til móts, there are great champions to contend with;

eiga e-t til móts við e-n, to own a thing in common with another (= til jafns við e-n);

gøra e-t til móts við e-n, to equal one in a thing (engan vissa ek þann, er þat léki til móts við mik).

prep. with dat. to meet, towards, etc. = í mót ( see mót 4).

1) image, stamp (mót á peningi);

2) model (skaltu smíða hús eptir því móti, sem ek mun sýna þér);

3) mark, sign (máttu sjá mót á, er hón hlær við hvert orð) cf. ambáttarmót, mannsmót, ættarmót, œskumót;

4) manner, way;

með kynligu (undarligu) móti, in a strange manner;

mikill fjöldi dýra með öllu móti, of every shape and manner;

með því móti, in that way;

með því móti, at, in such a way that;

með litlu (minna) móti, in a small (less) degree;

með engu móti, by no means;

frá móti, abnormal.

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n. [A. S. gemot; Old Engl. mote or moot, in ward-mote, the Moot-ball at Newcastle; Dan. möde; Swed. mot and möte]:—a meeting; mæla mót með sér, to fix a meeting Eg. 564; þeir mæltu mót með sér ok hittusk í Elfinni, 444; manna-mót, a meeting; vinamót, a meeting of friends.

2. as a Norse law term; in Norway a mót was a town meeting, and is opp. to þing, a county meeting; á þingi en eigi á móti, þvíat sökin veit til lands-laga en eigi til Bjarkeyjar-réttar, Hkr. iii. 257, N. G. L. ii. 190; á þingum ok á móti, Fagrsk. 145; var blásit til móts í bænum, Fms. vi. 202, 238, 270; á móti í kaupangi, vii. 130; móts-fjalir, a meeting-shed, N. G. L. i. 224.

II. a joint, juncture; mót á hring, cp. mótlauss; ár-mót, a meeting of waters, also a local name, cp. Lat. Confluentia, Coblenlz; liða-mót, q. v.: of time, in pl., alda-mót, the end and beginning of two centuries; mánaða-mót, missera-mót, eykta-mót, and so on.

B. As adverb, both in dat. móti, against, on the opposite side, with dat. as also with a prep., á móti, í móti; or in gen. móts or móts við, against, with acc. used as prep. and ellipt. or even as adverb:

I. gen. móts; til móts við e-n, towards, against; fara til móts við e-n, to go to meet one, encounter, visit. Eg. 9; fara á móts við, Fas. i. 450; halda til móts við, to march against, Fms. ii. 217; snúa til móts við, Nj. 125; ganga til móts við e-n (= ganga til fundar við e-n), to go to meet a person, 100; koma til móts við, Eg. 63; eiga e-t til móts við e-n, to own in common with another, 101, Gþl. 506, Fms. ii. 91; vera til móts, to be on the opposite side, opposed, Nj. 274; miklir kappar eru til móts, there are mighty men to meet or contend with, 228; en þar allt er lögin skilr á, þá skulu öll hallask til móts við Uppsala-lög, they shall all lean towards the law of Upsala, i. e. in a controverted case the law of U. is to rule, Ó. H. 65.

II. dat. móti, á móti, í móti, and more rarely at móti e-m (all these forms are used indiscriminately), as also an apocopated mót, qs. móti (á mót, í mót):—against, on the opposite side, towards, and the like; fara móti e-m, Fms. vi. 29; móti sólu, 439; snúa í móti e-m, Nj. 3, 43, 74, 118, 127, 177, Fms. i. 169, iii. 189, v. 181, vi. 3, ix. 348, 511, xi. 121, 126, Eg. 283, 284, 572, Landn. 317, Ld. 214; hann sagði at í móti vóru þeir Grjótgarðr, Nj. 125; rísa í móti, to rise against, withstand, Lv. 79, and so in countless instances:—denoting reception, göra veizlu móti e-m, Eg. 43, Nj. 162, passim:—towards, konungr leit móti honum, looked towards him, Fms. i. 41.

III. metaph. in return, in exchange for; fór með honum sonr Guðbrands í gisling en konungr fékk þeim annan mann í móti, Ó. H. 108; Gunnarr bauð þá at móti Geiri goða at hlýða til eiðspjalls síns, in his turn, Nj. 87; ok mæla jamíllt at móti at ósekju, Grág. ii. 145; skolu trygðir koma hvervetna móti sakbótum, 187; þá kvað hann aðra vísu í móti, Fms. i. 48; hann hló mjök mót atfangi manna, vi. 203; hann gaf drottningu sæmiligar gjafir ok svá drottningin honum á móti, x. 95; sendi hann konungi vingjafir ok góð orð mót vináttu hans, i. 53; mikit er þat í mót (against, as compared with) erfðinni minni, Nj. 4; sagði at hann mundi eigi þiggja nema annat fé kæmi í mót, 133; hvat hefir þú í móti því er hann deildi kappi við Þorgrim goða, what hast thou to set against that as an equivalent? Ísl. ii. 215; engar skulu gagnsakir metask á mót þeim málum, Grág. i. 294.

2. against, contrary to; móti Guðs lögum, Fms. x. 21:—with verbs, göra e-t móti e-m, to act against, Ld. 18; mæla móti, to contradict; standa mót, to withstand; ganga mót, to go against, as also to confess and the like.

3. bera at móti, to happen, Fms. ii. 59 (see bera C. II. 2): whence

4. temp. towards a time; mót Jólum, Páskum, passim; í mót vetri, towards the setting in of winter, Hkr. i. 13; móti sumri, towards the coming in of summer; móti degi, towards day, Fms. i. 71; hann sofnáði móti deginum, vi. 62; móti þingi, towards the opening of parliament, Rb. 530.

n. [cp. Ulf. môta = τελωνιον; O. H. G. mûta]:—a stamp, mark; spurði hann hvers mót eðr mark var á þeim penningi, Th. 50; mót á silfri, 623. 6l; skaltú smíða hús eptir því móti sem nú mun ek sýna þér, Fb. i. 439.

II. metaph. a mark; máttú sjá mót á er hón hlær við hvert orð, Nj. 18; æsku-mót, Fms. xi. 422; ættar-mót, a family likeness; manns-mót, the stamp, mark of a true man, Fb. i. 150; alla þá menn er nokkut manns mót var at, Hkr. i. 13; það er ekkert manns mót að honum, he is a small man, a mannikin; er eigi ambóttar mót á henni, she does not look like a bondwoman, Fas. i. 147.

III. manner way, which may, with Dan. maade, Swed. måte, be borrowed from Lat. modus; með kynligu móti, in a strange manner, Fms. ix. 9; með undarligu móti, Nj. 62; mikill fjöldi dýra með öllu móti, of every shape and manner, Þorf. Karl. 420; með því móti, in that way, Fms. i. 48, Fær. 2; með litlu móti, in a small degree, Finnb. 328; með minna móti, in a less degree, Sturl. i. 214; með því móti at ( in such a way that) þeir sóru eiða, cp. Lat. hoc modo, Fms. vi. 27; með öngu móti, by no means, Lat. nullo modo, i. 9; frá móti, abnormally, Grett. 92 A.

(pl. óðul), n. ancestral property, patrimony, inheritance (in land); family homestead; native place; flýja óðul sín, to abandon one’s home, go into exile.

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n., pl. óðul; in Norse MSS. it is usually contracted before a vowel (whence arose the forms öðli eðli), and owing to a peculiarity in the Norse sound of ð an r is inserted in contracted forms, örðla, orðlom, N. G. L. passim: [akin to aðal, öðli, eðli, = nature; öðlask = adipisci; oðlingr, q. v.; A. S. êðel = patrimony; it is also the parent word of Germ. edel, adel, = noble, nobility, for the nobility of the earliest Teut. communities consisted of the land-owners. From this word also originated mid. Lat. allodium, prob. by inverting the syllables for the sake of euphony (all-od = od-al); oðal or ethel is the vernacular Teut. form, allodium the Latinised form, which is never found in vernacular writers; it may be that the transposition of syllables was due to the th sound in oðal; and hence, again, the word feudal is a compd word, fee-odal, or an odal held as a fee or feif from the king, and answering to heið-launað óðal of the Norse law (heið = fee = king’s pay), N. G. L. i. 91.]

B. Nature, inborn quality, property, = aðal, eðli, öðli, q. v.; this seems to be the original sense, þat er eigi at réttu mannsins óðal, Sks. 326 B; þat er helzt byrjar til farmanns óðals, a seaman’s life, 52; þat er kaupmanna óðal (= mercatorum est), 28; jörlum öllum óðal batni, Gh. 21.

II. a law term, an allodium, property held in allodial tenure, patrimony. The condition which in the Norse law constitutes an oðal was either an unbroken succession from father to son (er afi hefir afa leift) through three or more generations, N. G. L. i. 91, 237, Gþl. 284; or unbroken possession for thirty or more years, N. G. L. i. 249; or sixty years, Gþl. 284; or it might be acquired through brand-erfð (q. v.), through weregild, barn-fóstr (q. v.); and lastly heið-launað óðal, an allodial fief, was granted for services rendered to the king, see N. G. L. i. 91: the oðal descended to the son, and was opp. to útjarðir ( out-lands), and lausa-fé ( movables), which descended to the daughter, Gþl. 233; yet even a woman, e. g. a baugrygr (q. v.), could hold an oðal, in which case she was called óðals-kona, 92, jörð komin undir snúð ok snældu = an estate come under the rule of the spindle, N. G. L. i. 237; the allit. phrase, arfr ok óðal, 31, Gþl. 250: brigða óðal, N. G. L. i. 86; selja óðal, to sell one’s óðal, 237. The oðal was in a certain sense inalienable within a family, so that even when parted with, the possessor still retained a title (land-brigð, máldagi á landi). In the ancient Scandin. communities the inhabited land was possessed by free oðalsmen (allodial holders), and the king was the lord of the people, but not of the soil. At a later time, when the small communities were merged into great kingdoms, through conquest or otherwise, the king laid hold of the land, and all the ancient oðals were to be held as a grant from the king; such an attempt of king Harold Fairhair in Norway and the earls of Orkney in those islands is recorded in Hkr. Har. S. Hárf. ch. 6, Eg. ch. 4, cp. Ld. ch. 2, Orkn. ch. 8, 30, 80 (in Mr. Dasent’s Ed.); cp. also Hák. S. Goða ch. 1. Those attempts are recorded in the Icel. Sagas as acts of tyranny and confiscation, and as one of the chief causes for the great emigration from the Scandinavian kingdoms during the 9th century (the question of free land here playing the same part as that of free religion in Great Britain in the 17th century). The attempt failed in Norway, where the old oðal institution remains in the main to the present day. Even the attempts of king Harold were, according to historians (Konrad Maurer), not quite analogous to what took place in England after the Conquest, but appear to have taken something like the form of a land-tax or rent; but as the Sagas represent it, it was an attempt towards turning the free odal institution into a feudal one, such as had already taken place among the Teutons in Southern Europe.

III. gener. and metaph. usages, one’s native land, homestead, inheritance; the land is called the ‘oðal’ of the reigning king, á Danr ok Danpr dýrar hallir, æðra óðal, en ér hafit, Rm. 45; eignask namtú óðal þegna, allan Noreg, Gauta spjalli, Fms. vi. 26 (in a verse); banna Sveini sín óðul, St. Olave will defend his óðal against Sweyn, 426 (in a verse); flýja óðul sín, to fly one’s óðal, go into exile, Fms. iv. 217; flýja óðul eðr eignir, vii. 25; koma aptr í Noreg til óðala sinna, 196; þeim er þar eru útlendir ok eigi eigu þar óðul, who are strangers and not natives there, Edda 3; öðlask Paradísar óðal, the inheritance of Paradise, 655 viii. 2; himneskt óðal, heavenly inheritance, Greg. 68; njóta þeirra gjafa ok óðala er Adam var útlægr frá rekinn, Sks. 512: allit., jarl ok óðal, earl (or franklin) and odal, Gh. 21.

2. spec. phrase, at alda óðali, for everlasting inheritance, i. e. for ever and ever, D. N. i. 229: contr., at alda öðli, id., Grág. i. 264, D.I. i. 266; til alda óðals, for ever, iii. 88: mod., frá, alda öðli, from time immemorial.

C. COMPDS: óðalsborinn, óðalsbréf, óðalsbrigð, óðalsjörð, óðalskona, óðalsmaðr, óðalsnautr, óðalsneyti, óðalsréttr, óðalsskipti, óðalstuptir, óðalsvitni.

(gen. Sifjar), f. the wife of Thor.

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f., pl. sifjar; [Ulf. sibja. Gal. iv. s. Rom. ix. 4; A. S. and Scot. sib; Engl. gos-sip = god-sib; Hel. sibbia; O. H. G. sibba; Germ. sippe]:—affinity.

2. in sing. the word is only used as a pr. name ot the goddess Sif, gen. sifjar (dat. sifju, Edda i. 340). Sif, the golden-haired goddess, wife of Thor, betokens mother earth with her golden sheaves of grain; she was the goddess of the sanctity of the family and wedlock, whence her name, see Edda and the old poems passim.

3. plur. ‘sib’, affinity, connection, by marriage; the word is used in ancient poems and in the law, and in compds; byggja sifjar, to marry; jafnnáit skal byggja sifjar ok frændsemi, Grág. i. 308; eigi skulu vera skyldri sifjar með þeim enn fimmta manni, i. e. no marriage nearer than the fifth degree, 310; sifjar ( affinity) is opp. to frændsemi ( blood relationship), flest stórmenni var bundit í frændsemi eða sifjum við hann, Fms. vii. 299, v. l.; spilla sifjum, to commit adultery; munu systrungar sifjum spilla, cousins will ‘spoil the sib,’ referring to adulterous intercourse with near relations in law, Vsp.; slíta sifjum = spilla sifjum, Merl. 154: again, þyrma sifjum, to hold the sifjar holy, Skv. 3. 28: hence sifja-slit and sifja-spell, n. pl. violation of the law of affinity, adultery; frændsemis-spell ok sifja-spell, Grág. i. 341, Sks. 338 B; þat eru sifjaslit en meiri, er maðr liggr með systrungum tveim, Grág. i. 358; í manndrápum ok í sifjasliti, Edda. The word sifjar also remains in bú-sifjar (q. v.), Landn. 147, Eg. 750, Fs. 31; guð-sifjar (q. v.), as also guð-sefi, guð-sifja (q. v.), a gossip, sponsor: in karl-sift, kvenn-sift, q. v.; cp. also barna sifjar, the bond or unity arising from having had children together, or = adoption (?), cp. Ulf. suniwe-sibja = υἱοθεσία, Gal. iv. 5, Ls. 16: lastly, the phrase, blanda sifjum, to blend sifjar together, to blend souls together (?), Hm. 125 (akin to sefi, q. v.)

(pres. skal, skulum; pret. skyldu; pret. infin. skyldu), v. shall (denoting fate, law, bidding, necessity, duty, obligation, purpose); þat skal Eyjólfr gøra, E. shall do that; hvat skal ek honum, what shall I do with him? vega skaltu hann, thou shalt kill him; hvat skal tjald þat, what is that tent for?; hón spurði, hvat þat skyldi, she asked what was the meaning of that.

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a verb whose present is in a preterite form, see Gramm. p. xxiii; pres. skal, skalt (skaltú), skal, pl. skulum, skulut, skulu; pret. skyldi and skyldu; subj. pres. skyli, skuli; pret. skyldi and skyldu; pres. infin, skulu; pret. infin. skyldu; skyli as a kind of imperat., Hm. i, 14, 32, 41, 53–55, Og. 22. In the oldest vellums o is used throughout instead of u, skolu, skolom, skolot, skolo: with the pers. pron. suffixed, skal’k = skal ek, skola’g, skyla’g, skylda’g: with neg. suff. skal’k-at, I shall not; skal’k-a, Fms. vi. 417 (in a verse); skal-at, he shall not; skal-a, Hm. 29, 34, 37; skal-at, Ó. H. (in a verse); þú skalt-at, Kormak; skal-at-tu, Hm. 130, Sdm. 29, Skv. 1. 22, Plac. 37 (skala-þu); skulu-t, Sighvat; skyli-t, Hm. 6, 39; skyldo-at, Am. 2, 3, see Bugge (foot-note), and -at, p. 2. In mod. usage and in less correct paper transcripts of vellums or Editions the pret. infin. skulu, skyldu are replaced by the subj. skuli, skyldi; in such cases the infin. is to be restored, as, hann kvaðsk skuli, skyldi koma = skulu, skyldu koma; see munu: [Ulf. skulan = ὀφείλειν and μέλλειν, but not freq.; A. S. sculon; Engl. shall, should; O. H. G. skolan; Germ. sollen, with elided k; Dutch zullen; Dan. skulle; Swed. skola.]

B. Shall, must, denoting fate, law, bidding, need, necessity, duty, obligation, and the like, therefore the use is more positive than that of shall in Engl.; of weird or fate, skyldi, Ýt. 1, 3, 5, 7–9, 11–13, 16; deyja skal hverr um sinn, því ek land um sté’k at ek lifa skylda’k, Gh. 12: in the saying, ungr má en gamall skal, young may, old must (viz. die): of law, menn skyldi eigi hafa höfuð-skip í hafi, en ef hefði, þá skyldi þeir af taka höfuð, … baugr tvíeyringr skyldi liggja í hverju höfuð-hofi á stalla, þann baug skyldi hverr goði hafa á hendi sér til lögþinga allra þeirra er hann skyldi sjáltr heyja, … Hverr sá maðr skyldi áðr eið vinna, nefni ek í þat vætti, skyldi hann segja, hjálpi mér svá Freyr … sem ek man (not skal, which however here might be used),… skyldu vera þrjú þing í fjórðungi, … þeir skyldu nefna dóma … hverr maðr skyldi gefa toll til hofs, Landn. (Hb.) 258, 259; and in the commandments, þú skalt ekki stela, elska skaltú Dróttinn Guð þinn, N. T.: of an oath, til þess legg ek hönd á helga bók, ok þat játtar ek Guði, at ek skal svá ráða, H. E. i. 561: of bidding, ganga skal, skala gestr vera, Hm.; gáttir allar um skoðask skyli, 1; þagalt ok hugalt skyli þjóðans barn ok vígdjarft vera, glaðr ok reifr skyli gumna hverr, 14; vin sínum skal maðr vinr vera, 41; geði skaltú við þann blanda, 43: of a promise, skal ek auka mikit þína sæmd, ef…, Nj. 102: mixed references, nú skulu vér enn við leita, let us try, Ísl. ii. 367; þá er ganga skyldi undir jarðar-men … skyldi endar torfunnar vera fastir, sá maðr er skírsluna skyldi flytja, skyldi ganga þar undir, Ld. 58; prestar skulu eigi fara með sundr-görðir, K. Þ. K.; hann skal fara til þings, … hann skal rétta vættið, Grág. i. 115; nú skal þat göra, Eg. 458; hann strengði heit, at hann skyldi þess manns bani verða, Hrafn. 5; nú skalt þú deyja, Nj. 64; þá skaltú trúa, Fms. ii. 268; mæla, at eigi skyli eiga við Héðin, Nj. 32; skyldi Unnr sitja í festum, … skyldi boð vera eptir mitt sumar, 4; skaltú þiggja af mér, Fms. ii. 246; þá skaltú vera frjáls, 268, etc.

2. special usage, denoting purpose, doubt, etc., often rendered in Engl. by will; skaltú veita mér bæn þá er ek man biðja þik, wilt thou grant the request I am about to ask thee? 26; þeir Egill kröfðu dagverðar, Þorfinnr bóndi lét heimolt skyldu þat, Eg. 564; skaltú, segir Skapti, nefna fimmtar-dóminn … þrennar tylptir í fjórðungi hverjum? Nj. 150; hvat skaltú sveinn í sess minn? Eg. (in a verse); hvat skaltú, Konr ungr, kyrra fugla, Rm.; hvat skal ek hánum?—Drepa skaltú hann, Nj. 53; spurði Gunnarr hvat hann skyldi, what he was for, 57; engi vissi hvat þat skyldi, Fms. viii. 45, Al. 124; hvat skal þér afgamall þræll, of what use will he be to thee? Fms. iii. 158; hvat skal þér klumba sú? xi. 129: periphrast., þat mun íllt til frásagnar, ef ekki skal mega sjá á ykkr, at ( if one shall not be able to see that…) it hafit í bardaga verit, Nj. 97; ílla hefir dóttir mín brotið odd af oflæti sínu, ef þú skalt eigi þora, 94; Sveinn mátti eigi heita gildr konungr, ef hann skyldi eigi ( unless he) erfa föður sinn fyrir enar þriðju vetr-nætr, Fms. xi. 69; skaði mikill er þat er Þórólfr skal eigi vera tryggr mér, Eg. ch. 13; gefsk þú upp, segir Þórðr,—Eigi skal þat, segir Þórðr, I will not, Nj. 64: heill skaltú, ‘hail shalt thou!’ of welcome, Gm. 3, Hkv. i. 55; hón skyli morna, be a curse on her! Og. 32; él eitt mun verða, ok skyldi langt til annars sliks, may it be long ere such another happens, Nj. 200; sem aldri skyldi, which I never should, Fms. vii. 179.

3. so also in phrases like, görðu svo vel að koma á morgun—answer, Eg skal koma, Eg skal göra það, where the Engl. has, I will.

II. in the infin., áttú enskis annars af ván, enn þú munt hér deyja skulu, Eg. 414 A; ok muntú nú deyja skulu, þursinn, and now thou shall die, thy last hour is come, Fas. i. 385; grið man sjá maðr skolu hafa um helgina, Ó. H. 148; at Haraldr myndi skulu hafa hálfan Noreg, Fms. vi. 177; skemta mun þá fleira (dat.) skulu, 366; hafa munu þeir skulu frið um helgina, xi. 290; grunar mik at þetta muni skolu vera njósn, 333; er Guðs götur mundi fyrir skulu búa, at hann mundi leið skulu vísa, 625. 87; ek ætla mik skulu af honum hljóta inn mesta frama, it is fated to me, Eg. 19: poët. infin. skyldu, hann sagði barnit Johannem heita skyldu, 625. 86; hann kveðsk ríða skyldu, Nj. 55, Eg. 257, Ld. 116, passim.

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n. hold, grasp.

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n. [taka], a taking hold, a hold; urðu menn konungi því verri til taks sem hann þurfti meirr, i. e. they slipped out of the king’s hold, forsook him, Fb. ii. 304: a hold, grasp, esp. in wrestling or fighting (cp. Dan. tav, tage et tav), laust hann hestinn af takinu, Rb. 299, Grett. 69 new Ed.; af mæði ok stórum tökum, Bs. i. 634; halda fasta-tökum, with a firm grasp; lausa-tök, q. v.; Grettis-tak, the lift of Grettir the Strong, a name for those boulders which would require Herculean strength to lift them; so also, það er tak, ‘tis a heavy task, as of cleaning an Augean stable.

2. medic. a stitch, also tak-sótt.

II. as a law term, chattels; hann skal færa tak sitt ok hey af landi því, er hann bjó á, Grág. ii. 249 (cp. tak-fæð ‘lack of holding,’ i. e. poverty; fá-tækr, ‘few-holding,’ i. e. with few means, poor); í-tak, q. v.

2. seizure; dæmdum mér Heilagri kirkju fyrir takit þrjár merkr, D. N. iv. 231.

3. bail, security; æsta taks, D. I. i. 66, N. G. L. i. 47, passim; synja taks, to refuse bail, id.; nú æstir maðr taks annan, nú skal engi öðrum taks synja, fá honum tak samdægris, … varðar bú hans taki … þá skal hann vera mánað í því taki ef hann æstir laga-taks, 47; ganga í tak fyrir e-n, segjask ór taki … eigi skal hann lengr í taki vera, … nú ef hann á kaupskip þat er sessum má telja, þá má þat varða taki fyrir hann, l. c. ch. 102; færa tak fyrir ( to bring bail), … fá mann í tak fyrir sik, 154; leiða mann í tak fyrir sik, ii. 264; sækja þat mál með takum sem aðrar fjársóknir, 191; ok færi sá, er taksettr var, tak með fullum vörðslum, id.; sitja í tökum, to sit as bail; þá skal þræll í tökum sitja til hann hefir undan færzk eða hann er sannr at, i. 85; selja, skjóta fé undan tökum, 154; ok fé hans allt í tökum á meðan, 306; laga-tak, legal bail; kyrrsetu-tak, security; brautar-tak, 44; trausta-tak, in the phrase, taka e-ð trausta-taki; taks-æsting, a demanding bail, D.I. i. 66: the word is chiefly a Norse law term, and hardly occurs in the Icel. law, of the Commonwealth.

or -AT or -T, a negative suffix to verbs, peculiar to Iceland and a part, at least, of Norway. Occurs frequently in old Icelandic poetry and laws, so as almost to form a complete negative voice. In the 1st pers. a personal pronoun k (g) = ek is inserted before the negative suffix, in the 2nd pers. a t or tt. As a rule the pron. as thus repeated; má-k-at-ek, non possum; sé-k-at-ek, non video; hef-k-at-ek, non habeo; skal-k-at-ek; vil-k-at-ek, nolo; mon-k-at-ek, non ero, etc.: 2nd pers. skal-t-at-tu; mon-t-at-tu; gaf-t-at-tu, non dabas: and after a long vowel a tt, mátt-at-tu, sátt-at-tu; so almost invariably in all monosyllabic verbal forms; but not so in bisyllabic ones, máttir-a-þú, non poteras: yet in some instances in the 1st pers. a pronominal g is inserted, e. g. bjargi-g-a-k, verbally servem ego non ego; höggvi-g-a-k, non cædam; stöðvi-g-a-k, quin sistam; vildi-g-a-k, nolui; hafði-g-a-k, non babui; mátti-g-a-k, non potui; görði-g-a-k, non feci: if the verb has gg as final radical consonants, they change into kk, e. g. þikk-at-ek = þigg-k-at-ek, nolo accipere. In the 3rd pers. a and at or t are used indifferently, t being particularly suffixed to bisyllabic verbal flexions ending in a vowel, in order to avoid an hiatus,—skal-at or skal-a, non erit; but skolo-t, non sunto: forms with an hiatus, however, occur,—bíti-a, non mordat; renni-a, ne currat; skríði-a, id.; leti-a, ne retardet; væri-a, ne esset; urðu-a, non erant; but bíti-t, renni-t, skríði-t, urðu-t are more current forms: v. Lex. Poët. The negative suffix is almost peculiar to indic., conj., and imperat. moods; the neg. infin. hardly occurs. Nothing analogous to this form is to be found in any South-Teutonic idiom; neither do there remain any traces of its having been used in Sweden or Denmark. A single exception is the Runic verse on a stone monument in Öland, an old Danish province, now Swedish, where however the inscriptions may proceed from a Norse or Icel. hand. The Runic inscriptions run thus, sa’r aigi flo, who did not fly, old Icel. ‘flo-at,’ Baut. 1169. Neither does it occur in any Norse prose monuments (laws): but its use may yet be inferred from its occurrence in Norse poets of the 10th century, e. g. the poets Eyvind and Thiodolf; some of which instances, however, may be due to their being transmitted through Icel. oral tradition. In Bragi Gamli (9th century) it occurs twice or thrice; in the Haustlöng four times, in Ynglingatal four times, in Hákonarmál once (all Norse poems of the 10th century). In Icel. the suffixed negation was in full force through the whole of the 10th century. A slight difference in idioms, however, may be observed: Völuspá, e. g., prefers the negation by né (using vas-at only once, verse 3). In the old Hávamal the suffix abounds (being used thirty-five times), see the verses 6, 10, 11, 18, 26, 29, 30, 34, 37–39, 49, 51, 52, 68, 74, 88, 113–115, 126–128, 130, 134, 136, 147, 149, 151, 153, 159. In Skírnismál, Harbarðsljóð, Lokasenna—all these poems probably composed by the same author, and not before the 10th century—about thirty times, viz. Hbl. 3, 4, 8, 14, 26, 35, 56; Skm. 5, 18, 22; Ls. 15, 16, 18, 25, 28, 30, 36, 42, 47, 49, 56, 60, 62. Egil (born circa 900, died circa 990) abounds in the use of the suffixed neg. (he most commonly avails himself of -at, -gi, or né): so, too, does Hallfred (born circa 968, died 1008), Einar Skálaglam in Vellekla (circa 940–995), and Thorarin in the Máhlíðingavísur (composed in the year 981); and in the few epigrams relating to the introduction of Christianity in Icel. (995–1000) there occur mon-k-að-ek, tek-k-at-ek, vil-k-at-ek, hlífði-t, mon-a, es-a; cp. the Kristni S. and Njala. From this time, however, its use becomes more rare. Sighvat (born circa 995, died 1040) still makes a frequent but not exclusive use of it. Subsequent poets use it now and then as an epic form, until it disappeared almost entirely in poetry at the middle or end of the 13th century. In the Sólarljóð there is not a single instance. The verses of some of our Sagas are probably later than the Sagas themselves; the greatest part of the Völsungakviður are scarcely older than the 11th century. In all these -at and conj. eigi are used indifferently. In prose the laws continued to employ the old forms long after they were abolished in common prose. The suffixed verbal negation was used,

α. in the delivering of the oath in the Icel. Courts, esp. the Fifth Court, instituted about the year 1004; and it seems to have been used through the whole of the Icel. Commonwealth (till the year 1272). The oath of the Fifth (High) Court, as preserved in the Grágás, runs in the 1st pers., hefka ek fé borit í dóm þenna til liðs mér um sök þessa, ok ek monka bjóða, hefka ek fundit, ok monka ek finna, hvárki til laga né ólaga, p. 79; and again p. 81, only different as to ek hefka, ek monka (new Ed.): 3rd pers., hefirat hann fé; borit í dóm þenna ok monat hann bjóða, ok hefirat hann fundit, ok monat hann tinna, 80, 81; cp. also 82, and Nj. l. c. ch. 145, where it is interesting to observe that the author confounds the ist and 3rd persons, a sign of decay in grammatical form.

β. the Speaker (lögsögumaðr), in publicly reciting and explaining the law, and speaking in the name of the law, from the Hill of Laws (lögberg), frequently employed the old form, esp. in the legal words of command es and skal (yet seldom in plur.): erat in the dictatorial phrases, erat skyldr (skylt), non esto obligatus; erat landeigandi skyldr, Grág. (Kb.) i. 17; erat hinn skyldr, 21; yngri maðr era skyldr at fasta, 35; enda erat honum þá skylt at …, 48; erat þat sakar spell, 127; era hinn þá skyldr at lýsa, 154; erat hann framar skyldr sakráða, 216; ok erat hann skyldr at ábyrgjask þat fé, 238; ok erat hann skyldr, id.; ok erat sakar aðili ella skyldr, ii. 74; erat hinn skyldr við at taka, 142; erat manni skylt at taka búfé, 143; enda erat heimting til fjár þess, 169; era hann þá skyldr at taka við í öðru fé nema hann vili, 209; ok erat þeim skylt at tíunda fé sitt, 211; ok erat hann skyldr at gjalda tíund af því, 212; erat kirkjudrottinn þá skyldr, 228; ef hann erat landeigandi, i. 136. Skalat: skalat maðr eiga fó óborit, i. 23; skalat homum þat verða optar en um siun, 55; skalat maðr ryðja við sjálfan sik, 62; skalat hann þat svá dvelja, 68; skalat hann til véfangs ganga, 71; skalat aðilja í stefnuvætti hafa, 127; ok skala hann gjalda fyrir þat, 135; ok skalat hann með sök fara, 171; enda skalat hann fleirum baugum bœta, 199; skalat hann skilja félagit, 240; skalat hann meiri skuld eiga en, ii. 4; skalat þeim meðan á brott skipta, 5; skalat hann lögvillr verða, svá, 34; skalat hon at heldr varðveita þat fé, 59; í skalat enn sami maðr þar lengr vera, 71; ok skala honum bæta þat, 79; skalat fyl telja, 89; skalat hann banna fiskför, 123; skalat hann lóga fé því á engi veg, 158; skalat drepa þá menn, 167; skalat svá skipta manneldi, 173; skalat maðr reiðast við fjórðungi vísu, 183. Plur.: skolut menn andvitni bera ok hér á þingi, i. 68; skolut mál hans standast, 71; skolut þeir færi til vefangs ganga en, 75, etc. etc. Other instances are rare: tekrat þar fé er eigi er til (a proverb), i. 9; ok um telrat þat til sakbóta, ok of telrat þá til sakbóta ( it does not count), 178; ef hann villat ( will not) lýsa sár sitt, 51; ok ræðrat hann öðrum mönnum á hendr þann úmaga, 248; ræðrat sá sínum ómögum á hendr, ii. 18; verðrat honum at sakarspelli and verðrat honum þat at s., i. 63; verðrat honum þat at sakarvörn, 149; kömrat hann öðru við, ii. 141; þarfat hann bíða til þess, i. 70; ok skilrat hann frá aðra aura, ii. 141, i. 136. Reflexive form: kömskat hann til heimtingar um þat fé, he loses the claim to the money, ii. 180, etc. All these instances are taken from the Kb. (Ed. 1853). Remarkable is also the ambiguity in the oath of Glum (see Sir Edm. Head, Viga-Glum, pp. 102, 103, note, I. c.), who, instead of the plain common formal oath—vask-at-ek þar, vák-at-ek þar, rauðk-at-ek þar odd ok egg—said, vask at þar, vák at þar, rauðk at þar. He inverted the sense by dropping the intermediate pronominal ek between the verb and þar, and pronouncing ‒ ‒́ instead of ‒́ ⏑. It further occurs in some few proverbs: varat af vöru, sleikði um þvöru, Fs. 159; veldrat sá er varir, Nj. 61 (now commonly ekki veldr sá er v., so in Grett.); erat héra at borgnara þótt hœna beri skjöld, Fms. vii. 116; era hlums vant kvað refr, dró hörpu á ísi, 19: also in some phrases, referred to as verba ipsissima from the heathen age—erat vinum líft Ingimundar, Fs. 39; erat sjá draumr minni, Ld. 128. Thorodd employs it twice or thrice: því at ek sékk-a þess meiri þörf, because í do not see any more reason for this, Skálda 167; kannka ek til þess meiri ráð en lítil, I do not know, id.; mona ( will not) mín móna ( my mammy) við mik göra verst hjóna, 163. In sacred translations of the 12th century it occurs now and then. In the Homilies and Dialogues of Gregory the Great: monatþu í því flóði verða, thou shalt not; esa þat undarligt þótt, it is not to be wondered at; hann máttia sofna, he could not sleep; moncaþ ek banna, I shall not mind, Greg. 51, 53; vasal kall heyrt á strætum, was not, Post. 645. 84; nú mona fríðir menn hér koma, Niðrst. 623. 7. In later writers as an archaism; a few times in the Al. (MS. A. M. 519), 3, 5, 6, 44, 108; and about as many times in the MS. Eirspennill (A. M. 47, fol.) [Etymon uncertain; that at is the right form may be inferred from the assimilation in at-tu, and the anastrophe in t, though the reason for the frequent dropping of the t is still unexplained. The coincidence with the Scottish dinna, canna is quite accidental.]

f. chief defendantship or prosecutorship.

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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.

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prep. w. dat.

I. Of place:

1) off, from;

G. hljóp af hesti sínum, G. jumped off his horse;

ganga af mótinu, to go away from the meeting;

Flosi kastaði af sér skikkjunni, threw off his cloak;

Gizzur gekk af útsuðri at gerðinu, from the south-west;

hann hafði leyst af sér skúa sína, he had taken off his shoes;

Steinarr vildi slíta hann af sér, throw him off;

tók Gísli þá af sér vápnin, took off his arms;

bréf af Magnúsi konungi, a letter from king Magnus;

land af landi, from one land to the other;

hverr af öðrum, one after another, in succession;

vil ek þú vinnir af þér skuldina, work off the debt;

muntu enga sætt af mér fá, no peace at my hand;

rísa af dauða, to rise from the dead;

vakna af draumi, to awaken from a dream;

lúka upp af hrossi, to open a gate from off a horse;

vindr stóð af landi, the wind blew from the land;

2) out of;

verða tekinn af heimi, to be taken out of the world;

gruflar hón af læknum, she scrambles out of the brook;

Otradalr var mjök af vegi, far out of the way.

Connected with út; föstudaginn fór út herrinn af borginni, marched out of the town.

II. Of time; past, beyond:

af ómagaaldri, able to support oneself, of age;

ek em nú af léttasta skeiði, no longer in the prime of life;

þá er sjau vikur eru af sumri, when seven weeks of summer are past;

var mikit af nótt, much of the night was past.

III. In various other relations:

1) þiggja lið af e-m, to receive help from one;

hafa umboð af e-m, to be another’s deputy;

vera góðs (ills) maklegr af e-m, to deserve good (bad) of one;

féll þar lið mart af Eyvindi, many of Eyvind’s men fell there;

þá eru þeir útlagir ok af goðorði sínu, have forfeited their goðorð;

þá skalt þú af allri fjárheimtunni, forfeit all the claim;

ek skal stefna þér af konunni, summon thee to give up;

2) off, of;

höggva fót, hönd, af e-m, to cut off one’s foot, hand;

vil ek, at þú takir slíkt sem þér líkar af varningi, whatever you like of the stores;

þar lá forkr einn ok brotit af endanum, with the point broken off;

absol., beit hann höndina af, bit the hand off;

fauk af höfuðit, the head flew off;

3) of, among;

hinn efniligasti maðr af ungum mönnum, the most promising of the young men;

4) with;

hláða, (ferma) skip af e-u, to load (freight) a ship with;

fylla heiminn af sínu kyni, to fill the world with his offspring;

5) of (= ór which is more frequent);

húsit var gert af timbr stokkum, was built of trunks of trees;

6) fig., eigi vita menn hvat af honum er orðit, what has become of him;

hvat hefir þú gert af Gunnari, what hast thou done with Gunnar?;

7) denoting parentage, descent, origin;

ok eru af þeim komnir Gilsbekkingar, are descended from them;

kominn af Trójumönnum, descended from the Trojans;

8) by, of (after passive);

ek em sendr hingat af Starkaði, sent hither by;

ástsæll af landsmónnum, beloved of;

9) on account of, by reason of, by;

úbygðr at frosti ok kulda, because of frost and cold;

ómáli af áverkum, speechless from wounds;

af ástæld hans, by his popularity;

af því, therefore;

af hví, wherefor why;

af því at, because;

10) by means of, by;

framfœra e-n af verkum sínum, by means of his own labour;

af sínu fé, by one’s own means;

absol., hann fekk af hina mestu sœmd, derived great honour from it;

11) with adjectives, in regard to;

mildr af fé, liberal of money;

góðr af griðum, merciful;

fastr af drykk, close (stingy) in regard to drink;

12) used absol. with a verb, off away;

hann bað hann þá róa af fjörðinn, to row the firth off;

ok er þeir höfðu af fjörðung, when they had covered one forth of the way;

sofa af nóttina, to sleep the night away.

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prep. often used elliptically by dropping the case, or even merely adverbially, [Ulf. af; A. S. and Engl. of, off; Hel. ab; Germ. ab; Gr. άπό; Lat. a, ab.] With dat. denoting a motion a loco; one of the three prepp. af, ór, frá, corresponding to those in loco—á, í, við, and ad locum—á, í, at. It in general corresponds to the prepp. in loco—á, or in locum— til, whilst ór answers more to í; but it also frequently corresponds to yfir, um or í. It ranges between ór and frá, generally denoting the idea from the surface of, while ór means from the inner part, and frá from the outer part or border. The motion from a hill, plain, open place is thus denoted by af; by ór that from an enclosed space, depth, cavity, thus af fjalli, but ór of a valley, dale; af Englandi, but ór Danmörk, as mörk implies the notion of a deep wood, forest. The wind blows af landi, but a ship sets sail frá landi; frá landi also means a distance from: af hendi, of a glove, ring; ór hendi, of whatever has been kept in the hand (correl. to á hendi and í hendi). On the other hand af is more general, whilst frá and ór are of a more special character; frá denoting a departure, ór an impulse or force; a member goes home af þingi, whereas ór may denote an inmate of a district, or convey the notion of secession or exclusion from, Eb. 105 new Ed.; the traveller goes af landi, the exile ór landi: taka e-t af e-m is to take a thing out of one’s hand, that of taka frá e-m to remove out of one’s sight, etc. In general af answers to Engl. of, off, ór to out of, and frá to from: the Lat. prepp. ab, de, and ex do not exactly correspond to the Icelandic, yet as a rule ór may answer to ex, af sometimes to ab, sometimes to de. Of, off, from among; with, by; on account of by means of, because of concerning, in respect of.

A. Loc.

I. With motion, off, from:

1. prop. corresp. to á,

α. konungr dró gullhring af hendi sér (but á hendi), Ld. 32; Höskuldr lætr bera farm af skipi, unload the ship (but bera farm á skip), id.; var tekit af hestum þeirra, they were unsaddled, Nj. 4; Gunnarr hafði farit heiman af bæ sínum, he was away from home, 82; Gunnarr hljóp af hesti sínum, jumped off his horse (but hl. á hest), 83; hlaupa, stökkva af baki, id., 112, 264 ; Gunnarr skýtr til hans af boganum, from the bow, where af has a slight notion of instrumentality, 96; flýja af fundinum, to fly from off the battle-field, 102; ríða af Þríhyrningshálsum, 206; út af Langaholti, Eg. 744 ; sunnan ór Danmörk ok af Saxlandi, 560; ganga af mótinu, to go from the meeting, Fms. vii. 130; af þeirra fundi reis María upp ok fór, 625. 85 ; Flosi kastaði af ser skikkjunni, threw his cloak off him (but kasta á sik),Nj. 176; taka Hrungnis fót af honum, of a load, burden, Edda 58; land þat er hann fiskði af, from which he set off to fish, Grág. i. 151, is irregular, frá would suit better; slíta af baki e-s, from off one’s back, ii. 9 ; bera af borði, to clear the table, Nj. 75.

β. where it more nearly answers to í; þeir koma af hafi, of sailors coming in (but leggja í haf), Nj. 128 ; fara til Noregs af Orkneyjum (but í or til O.), 131; þeim Agli fórst vel ok komu af hafi i Borgarfjörð, Eg. 392 ; hann var útlagi ( outlawed) af Noregi, where ór would be more regular, 344; af Islandi, of a traveller, Fms. x. 3; búa her af báðum ríkjunum, to take a levy from, 51; hinir beztu bændr ór Norðlendingafjórðungi ok af Sunnlendingafjórðungi, the most eminent Southerners and Northerners, 113; Gizzurr gékk af útsuðri at gerðinu, from south-west, Sturl. ii. 219; prestar af hvárutveggja biskupsdæmi, from either diocess, Dipl. ii. 11; verða tekinn af heimi, to be taken out of the world, 623. 21; gruflar hon af læknum, scrambles out of the brook, Ísl. ii. 340; Egill kneyfði af horninu í einum drykk, drained off the horn at one draught, literally squeezed every drop out of it, Eg. 557; brottuaf herbúðunurn, Fms. x. 343.

γ. of things more or less surrounding the subject, corresp. to yfir or um; láta þeir þegar af sér tjöldin, break off, take down the tents in preparing for battle, Eg. 261; kyrtillinn rifnaði af honum, his coat burst, caused by the swollen body, 602; hann hafði leyst af sér skúa sína, he untied his shoes (but binda á sik), 716; Steinarr vildi slíta hann af sér, throw him off, of one clinging to one’s body, 747; tók Gísli þá af sér vápnin, took off his arms, Fms. vii. 39. Of putting off clothes; fara af kápu, Nj. 143; far þú eigi af brynjunni, Bs. i. 541; þá ætlaði Sigurðr at fara af brynjunni, id.; þá var Skarphéðinn flettr af klæðunum, Nj. 209: now more usually fara or klæðum, fötum, exuere, to undress.

δ. connected with út; föstudaginn for út herrinn af borginni, marched out of the town, Nj. 274; ganga út af kirkjunni, to go out of the church, now út úr, Fms. vii. 107: drekki hann af þeirri jörðunni, of something impregnated with the earth, Laekn. 402.

ε. more closely corresponding to frá, being in such cases a Latinism (now frá); bréf af páfa, a pope’s bull, Fms. x. 6; rit af hánum, letter from him, 623. 52; bréf af Magnúsi konungi, a letter from king Magnus, Bs. i. 712; farið þér á brautu af mér í eilífan eld, Hom. 143; brott af drottins augliti, Stj. 43.

ζ. denoting an uninterrupted continuity, in such phrases as land aflandi, from land to land, Eg. 343, Fas. ii. 539; skip af skipl. from ship to ship, Fms. v. 10; brann hvat af öðru, one after another, of an increasing fire, destroying everything, i. 128; brandr af brandi brenn, funi kveykist af funa, one from another, Hm. 56; hverr af öðrum, one after another, in succession, also hverr at öðrum, Eb. 272, 280 (where at in both passages).

2. metaph., at ganga af e-m dauðum, to go from, leave one dead on the spot, of two combatants; en hann segiz bani hins ef hann gekk af dauðum manni, Grág. ii. 88, Hkr. 1. 327; undr þykir mér er bróðir þinn vildi eigi taka af þér starf þetta, would not take this toil from thee, Nj. 77; þegnar hans glöddust af honum, were fain of him, Fms. x. 380; at koma þeim manni af sér er settr var á fé hans, to get rid of, Ld. 52; vil ek þú vinriir af þér skuldina, work off the debt, Njarð. 366; reka af sér, to repel, Sturl. ii. 219; hann á þá sonu er aldri munu af oss ganga, who will never leave us, whom we shall never get rid of, Fas. i. 280; leysa e-n af e-u, to relieve, 64; taka e-n af lífi, to kill, Eg. 48, 416, Nj. 126; af lífdögum, Fms. vii. 204; ek mun ná lögum af því máli, get the benefit of the law in this case, Eg. 468; muntu enga sætt af mér fá, no peace at my hand, 414; rísa af dauða, to rise from death, Fms. ii. 142; guð bætti honum þó af þessi sótt, healed him of this sickness, ix. 390; vakna af sýn, draumi, svefni, to awaken from a vision, dream, sleep, 655 xxxii. I, Gísl. 24, Eb. 192, Fas. i. 41. Rather with the notion out of, in the phrase af sér etc., e. g. sýna e-t af scr, to shew, exhibit a disposition for or against, Ld. 18; gera mikit af sér, to shew great prowess, Ísl. ii. 368; éf þú gerir eigi meira af þér um aðra leika, unless you make more of thyself, Edda 32; Svipdagr hafði mikit af sér gert, fought bravely, Fas. i. 41; góðr (illr) af sér, good ( bad) of oneself, by nature; mikill af sjálfum sér, proud, bold, stout, Nj. 15; ágætastr maðr af sjálfum sér, the greatest hero, Bret.: góðr af ser, excellent, Hrafn. 7; but, on the contrary, af sér kominn, ruinous, in decay; this phrase is used of old houses or buildings, as in Bs. i. 488 = Sturl. l. c.; af sér kominn af mæði can also be said of a man fallen off from what he used to be; kominn af fotum fram, off his legs from age, Sturl. i. 223, Korm. 154 (in a verse).

II. WITHOUT MOTION:

1. denoting direction from, but at the same time continuous connection with an object from which an act or thing proceeds, from; tengja skip hvárt fram af stafni annars, to tie the ships in a line, stem to stern, Fms. i. 157, xi. 111; svá at þeir tóku út af borðum, jutted out of the boards, of rafters or poles, iv. 49; stjarna ok af sem skaft, of a comet, ix. 482; lúka upp af hrossi, to open a gate from off a horse, Grág. ii. 264; hon svarar af sínu sæti sem álpt af baru, Fás. i. 186; þar er sjá mátti utau af firði, af þjóðleið, that might be seen from the fareway on the sea when sailing in the firth, Hkr. ii. 64; þá mun hringt af (better at) Burakirkju, of bells rung at the church, Fms. xi. 160; gengr þar af Meðalfellsströnd, projects from, juts out, of a promontory, Ld. 10.

2. denoting direction alone; upp af víkinni stóð borg mikil, a burg inland from the inlet, Eg. 161; lokrekkja innar af seti, a shut bed inward from the benches in the hall, Ísl. ii. 262; kapella upp af konungs herbergjum, upwards from, Fms. x. 153; vindr stóð af landi, the wind stood off the land, Bárð. 166.

β. metaph., stauda af e-u, vide VI. 4.

γ. ellipt., hallaði af norðr, of the channel, north of a spot, Boll. 348; also, austr af, suðr af, vestr af, etc.

3. denoting absence; þingheyendr skulu eigi vera um nótt af þingi ( away from the meeting), eðr lengr, þá eru þeir af þingi ( away from (be meeting) ef þeir eru or ( out of) þingmarki, Grág. i. 25; vera um nótt af várþingi, 115; meðan hann er af landi héðan, abroad, 150.

β. metaph., gud hvíldi af öllum verkum sínum á sjaunda degi, rested from his labours, Ver. 3.

4. denoting distance; þat er komit af þjóðleið, out of the high road, remote, Eg. 369; af þjóðbraut, Grág. ii. 264, i. 15; Otradalr (a farm) var mjök af vegi, far out of the way, Háv. 53.

B. TEMP, past, from, out of, beyond:

1. of a person’s age, in the sense of having past a period of life; af ómaga aldri, of age, able to support oneself, Grág. i. 243; af aeskualdri, stricken in years, having past the prime of life, Eg. 202; lítið af barnsaldri, still a child, Ld. 74; ek em nú af léttasia skeiði, no longer in the prime of life, Háv. 40.

2. of a part or period of time, past; eigi síðar en nótt er af þingi, a night of the session past, Grág. i. 101; þá er sjau vikur eru af sumri, seven weeks past of the summer, 182; tíu vikur af sumri, Íb. 10; var mikit af nótt, much of the night was past, Háv. 41; mikið af vetri, much of the winter was past, Fas. ii. 186; þriðjungr af nótt, a third of the night past, Fms. x. 160; stund af degi, etc.; tveir mánoðr af sumri, Gþl. 103.

3. in adverbial phrases such as, af stundu, soon; af bragði, at once; af tómi, at leisure, at ease; af nýju, again; af skyndingu, speedily; af bráðungu, in a hurry, etc.

C. In various other relations:

I. denoting the passage or transition of an object, concrete or abstract, of, from.

1. where a thing is received, derived from, conferred by a person or object; þiggja lið af e-m, to derive help from, Edda 26; taka traust af e-m, to receive support, comfort from, Fms. xi. 243; taka mála af e-m, to be in one’s pay, of a soldier, Eg. 266; halda land af e-m, to hold land of any one, 282; verða viss af e-m, to get information from, 57, Nj. 130; taka við sök af manni (a law term), to undertake a case, suit, Grág. i. 142; hafa umboð af e-m, to be another’s deputy, ii. 374; vera góðs (ills) maklegr af e-m, to deserve good (bad) of, Vd. 88 (old Ed., the new reads frá), Fs. 45; afla matar af eyjum, to derive supplies from, Eb. 12.

2. where an object is taken by force:

α. prop. out of a person’s hand; þú skalt hnykkja smíðit af honum, wrest it out of his hand, Nj. 32; cp. taka, þrífa, svipta e-u (e-t) af e-m, to wrest from.

β. metaph. of a person’s deprival of anything in general; hann tók af þér konuna, carried thy wife off, Nj. 33; tók Gunnarr af þér sáðland þitt, robbed thee of seedland, 103; taka af honum tignina, to depose, degrade him, Eg. 271; vinna e-t af e-m, to carry off by force of arms, conquer, Fms. iii. 29; drepa menn af e-m, for one, slay one’s man, Eg. 417; fell þar lið mart af Eyvindi, many of Eyvind’s people fell there, 261.

γ. in such phrases as, hyggja af e-u (v. afhuga), hugsa af e-u, to forget; hyggja af harmi; sjá af e-u, to lose, miss; var svá ástúðigt með þeim, at livargi þóttist mega af öðrum sjá, neither of them could take his eyes off the other, Sturl. i. 194; svá er mörg við ver sinn vær, at varla um sér hon af hoiuun nær, Skálda 163.

3. denoting forfeiture; þá eru þeir útlagir, ok af goðorði sínu, have forfeited their priesthood, Grág. i. 24; telja hann af ráðunum fjár síns alls, to oust one, on account of idiocy or madness, 176; verða af kaupi, to be off the bargain, Edda 26; þá skalt þú af allri fjárheimtunni, forfeit all the claim, Nj. 15; ek skal stefna þér af konunni, summon thee to forfeit, a case of divorce, id.; ella er hann af rettarfari um hana, has forfeited the suit, Grág. i. 381.

β. ellipt., af ferr eindagi ef, is forfeited, Grág. i. 140.

II. denoting relation of a part to a whole, off, of, Lat. de; höggva hönd, höfuð, fót af e-um, to cut one’s hand, head, foot off, Nj. 97, 92, Bs. i. 674; höggva spjót af skapti, to sever the blade from the shaft, 264; hann lét þá ekki hafa af föðurarfi sínum, nothing of their patrimony, Eg. 25; vil ek at þú takir slíkt sem þér líkar af varningi, take what you like of the stores, Nj. 4; at þú eignist slíkt af fé okkru sem þú vili, 94.

β. ellipt., en nú höfum vér kjörit, en þat er af krossinum, a slice of, Fms. vii. 89; Þórðr gaf Skólm frænda sínum af landnámi sínu, a part of, Landn. 211; hafði hann þat af hans eigu er hann vildi, Sturl. ii. 169; þar lá forkr einn ok brotið af endanum, the point broken off, Háv. 24, Sturl. i. 169.

γ. absol. off; beit hann höndina af, þar sem nú heitir úlfliðr, bit the hand off, Edda 17; fauk af höfuðit, the head flew off, Nj. 97; jafnt er sem þér synist, af er fótrinn, the foot is off, id.; af bæði eyru, both ears off, Vm. 29.

2. with the notion of—among; mestr skörungr af konum á Norðrlöndum, the greatest heroine in the North, Fms. i. 116; hinn efniligasti maðr af ungum mönnum í Austfjörðum, the most hopeful of youths in the Eastfirths, Njarð. 364; af ( among) öllurn hirðmönnuni virði konungr mest skáld sín, Eg. 27; ef hann vildi nokkura kaupa af þessum konum, Ld. 30; ör liggr þar útiá vegginum, ok er sú af þeirra örum, one of their own arrows, Nj. 115.

β. from, among, belonging to; guð kaus hana af ollum konum sér til móður, of the Virgin Mary, Mar. A. i. 27.

γ. metaph., kunna mikit (lítið) af e-u, to know much, little of, Bragi kann mest af skáldskap, is more cunning of poetry than any one else, Edda 17.

δ. absol. out of, before, in preference to all others; Gunnarr bauð þér góð boð, en þú vildir eingi af taka, you would choose none of them, Nj. 77; ráða e-t af, to decide; þó mun faðir minn mestu af ráða, all depends upon him, Ld. 22; konungr kveðst því mundu heldr af trúa, preferred believing that of the two, Eg. 55; var honum ekki vildara af ván, he could expect nothing better, 364.

3. with the additional sense of instrumentality, with; ferma skip af e-u, to freight a ship with, Eg. 364; hlaða mörg skip af korni, load many ships with corn, Fms. xi. 8; klyfja tvá hesta af mat, Nj. 74; var vágrinn skipaðr af herskipum, the bay was covered with war ships, 124; fylla ker af glóðum, fill it with embers, Stj. 319; fylla heiminn af sínu kyni, to fill the world with his offspring, Ver. 3.

III. denoting the substance of which a thing is made, of; used indifferently with ór, though ór be more frequent; þeir gerðu af honum jörðina, af blóði hans sæinn ok vötnin, of the creation of the world from the corpse of the giant Ymir; the poem Gm. 40, 41, constantly uses ór in this sense, just as in modern Icelandic, Edda 5; svá skildu þeir, at allir hlutir væri smíðaðir af nokkru efni, 147 (pref.); húsit var gert af timbrstokkum, built of trunks of timber, Eg. 233; hjöhin vóru af gulli, of gold, golden, Fms. i. 17; af osti, of cheese, but in the verse 1. c. ór osti, Fms. vi. 253; línklæði af lérepti, linen, Sks. 287.

2. metaph. in the phrases, göra e-t af e-n ( to dispose of), verða af ( become of), hvat hefir þú gört af Gunnari, what hast thou done with Gunnar? Njarð. 376; hvat af motrinuni er orðit, what has become of it? of a lost thing, Ld. 208; hverfr Óspakr á burt, svá eigi vita menn hvat af honum er orðit, what has become of him? Band. 5.

IV. denoting parentage, descent, origin, domicile, abode:

1. parentage, of, from, used indifferently with frá; ok eru af þeim komnir Gilsbekkingar, descend from them, but a little below—frá honum eru konmir Sturlungar, Eb. 338, cp. afkvæmi; af ætt Hörðakára, Fms. i. 287; kominn af Trojumönnum, xi. 416; af Ása-ætt (Kb. wrongly at), Edda I.

β. metaph., vera af Guði (theol.), of God, = righteous, 686 B. 9; illr ávöxtr af íllri rót, Fms. ii. 48; Asia er kölluð af nafni nokkurar konu, derives her name from, Stj. 67; af honum er bragr kallaðr skáldskapr, called after his name, Edda 17.

2. of domicile; af danskri tungu, of Danish or Scandinavian origin, speaking the Danish tongue, Grág. ii. 73; hvaðan af löndum, whence, native of what country? Ísl.

β. especially denoting a man’s abode, and answering to á and í, the name of the farm (or country) being added to proper names, (as in Scotland,) to distinguish persons of the same name; Hallr af Síðu, Nj. 189; Erlingr af Straumey, 273; Ástríðr af Djúpárbakka, 39; Gunnarr af Hlíðarenda (more usual frá); þorir haklangr konungr af Ögðum, king of Agdir, Eg. 35, etc.; cp. ór and frá.

V. denoting a person with whom an act, feeling, etc. originates, for the most part with a periphrastic passive:

1. by, the Old Engl. of; as, ek em sendr hingað af Starkaði ok sonum hans, sent hither by, Nj. 94; inna e-t af hendi, to perform, 257; þó at alþýða væri skírð af kennimönnum, baptized of, Fms. ii. 158; meira virðr af mönnum, higher esteemed, Ld. 158; ástsæll af landsmönnum, beloved, íb. 16; vinsæll af mönnum, Nj. 102; í allgóðu yfirlæti af þeim feðgum, hospitably treated by them, Eg. 170; var þá nokkut drukkið af alþjóð, there was somewhat hard drinking of the people, Sturl. iii. 229; mun þat ekki upp tekið af þeim sükudólgum mínum, they will not clutch at that, Nj. 257; ef svá væri í hendr þér búit af mér, if í had so made everything ready to thy hands, Ld. 130; þá varð fárætt um af föður hans, his father said little about it, Fms. ii. 154.

2. it is now also sometimes used as a periphrase of a nom., e. g. ritað, þýtt af e-m, written, translated, edited by, but such phrases scarcely occur in old writers.

VI. denoting cause, ground, reason:

1. originating from, on account of, by reason of; af frændsemis sökum, for kinship’s sake, Grág. ii. 72; ómáli af áverkum, speechless from wounds, 27; af manna völdum, by violence, not by natural accident, of a crime, Nj. 76; af fortölum Halls, through his pleading, 255; af ástsæld hans ok af tölum þeirra Sæmundar, by his popularity and the eloquence of S., Íb. 16; af ráðum Haralds konungs, by his contriving, Landn. 157; úbygðr af frosti ok kulda, because of frost and cold, Hkr. i. 5.

β. adverbially, af því, therefore, Nj. 78; af hví, why? 686 B. 9; þá verðr bóndi heiðinn af barni sínu, viz. if he does not cause his child to be christened, K. Þ. K. 20.

2. denoting instrumentality, by means of; af sinu fé, by one’s own means, Grág. i. 293; framfæra e-n af verkum sinum, by means of one’s own labour, K. Þ. K. 142; draga saman auð af sökum, ok vælum ok kaupum, make money by, 623. I; af sínum kostnaði, at hi s own expense, Hkr. i. 217.

β. absol., hún fellir á mik dropa svá heita at ek brenn af öll, Ld. 328; hann fékk af hina mestu sæmd, derived great honotur from it, Nj. 88; elli sótti á hendr honum svá at hann lagðist í rekkju af, he grew bedridden from age, Ld. 54; komast undan af hlaupi, escape by running, Fms. viii. 58; spinna garn af rokki, spin off a wheel (now, spinna á rokk), from a notion of instrumentality, or because of the thread being spun out (?), Eb. 92.

3. denoting proceeding, originating from; lýsti af höndum hennar, her hands spread beams of light, Edda 22; allir heimar lýstust ( were illuminated) af henni, id.; en er lýsti af degi, when the day broke forth, Fms. ii. 16; lítt var lýst af degi, the day was just beginning to break, Ld. 46; þá tók at myrkja af nótt, the ‘mirk-time’ of night began to set in, Eg. 230; tók þá brátt at myrkva af nótt, the night grew dark, Hkr. ii. 230.

4. metaph., standa, leiða, hljótast af, to be caused by, result from; opt hlýtst íllt af kvenna hjali, great mischief is wrought by women’s gossip (a proverb), Gísl. 15, 98; at af þeim mundi mikit mein ok úhapp standa, be caused by, Edda 18; kenna kulda af ráðum e-s, to feel sore from, Eb. 42; þó mun her hljótast af margs manns bani, Nj, 90.

5. in adverbial phrases, denoting state of mind; af mikilli æði, in fury, Nj. 116; af móð, in great emotion, Fms. xi. 221; af áhyggju, with concern, i. 186; af létta, frankly, iii. 91; af viti, collectedly, Grág. ii. 27; af heilu, sincerely, Eg. 46; áf fári, in rage; af æðru, timidly, Nj. (in a verse); af setning, composedly, in tune, Fms. iii. 187; af mikilli frægð, gallantly, Fas. i. 261; af öllu afli, with all might, Grág. ii. 41; af riki, violently, Fbr. (in a verse); af trúnaði, confidently, Grág. i. 400.

VII. denoting regard to, of, concerning, in respect of, as regards:

1. with verbs, denoting to tell of, be informed, inquire about, Lat. de; Dioscorides segir af grasi því, speaks of, 655 xxx. 5; er menn spurðu af landinu, inquired about it, Landn. 30; halda njósn af e-u, Nj. 104; er þat skjótast þar af at segja, Eg. 546, Band. 8.

β. absol., hann mun spyrja, hvárt þér sé nokkut af kunnigt hversu for með okkr, whether you know anything about, how, Nj. 33; halda skóla af, to hold a school in a science, 656 A. i. 19 (sounds like a Latinism); en ek gerða þik sera mestan mann af öllu, in respect of all, that you should get all the honour of it, Nj. 78.

2. with adjectives such as mildr, illr, góðrafe-u, denoting disposition or character in respect to; alira manna mildastr af fo, very liberal, often-banded, Fms. vii. 197; mildr af gulli, i. 33; góðr af griðum, merciful, Al. 33; íllr af mat en mildr af gulli, Fms. i. 53; fastr af drykk, close, stingy in regard to, Sturl. ii. 125; gat þess Hildigunnr at þú mundir góðr af hestinum, that you would be good about the horse, Nj. 90, cp. auðigr at, v. at, which corresponds to the above phrases; cp. also the phrase af sér above, p. 4, col. I, ll. 50 sqq.

VIII. periphrasis of a genitive (rare); provincialis af öllum Predikaraklaustrum, Fms. x. 76; vera af hinum mesta fjandskap, to breathe deep hatred to, be on bad terms with, ix. 220; af hendi, af hálfu e-s, on one’s behalf, v. those words.

IX. in adverbial phrases; as, af launungu, secretly; af hljóði, silently; v. those words.

β. also used absolutely with a verb, almost adverbially, nearly in the signification off, away; hann bað þá róa af fjörðinn, pass the firth swiftly by rowing, row the firth off, Fms. ix. 502; var pá af farit þat seni skerjóttast var, was past, sailed past, Ld. 142; ok er þeir höfðu af fjórðung, past one fourth of the way, Dropl. 10: skína af, to clear up, of the skv, Eb. 152; hence in common language, skína af sér, when the sun breaks forth: sofa af nóttina, to sleep it away, Fms. ii. 98; leið af nóttin, the night past away, Nj. 53; dvelja af stundir, to kill the time, Band. 8; drepa af, to kill; láta af, to slaughter, kill off;

γ. in exclamations; af tjöldin, off with the awnings, Bs. i. 420, Fins, ix. 49.

δ. in the phrases, þar af, thence; hér af, hence, Fms. ii. 102; af fram, straight on, Nj. 144; now, á fram, on, advance.

X. it often refers to a whole sentence or to an adverb, not only like other prepp. to hér, hvar, þar, but also redundantly to hvaðan, héðan, þaðan, whence, hence, thence.

2. the preposition may sometimes be repeated, once elliptically or adverbially, and once properly, e. g. en er af var borit at borðinu, the cloth was taken off from the table, Nj. 176; Guð þerrir af (off, away) hvert tár af ( from) augum heilagra manna, God wipes off every tear from the eyes of his saints, 655 xx. vii. 17; skal þó fyrst bætr af lúka af fé vegaiula, pay off, from, Gþl. 160, the last af may be omitted—var þá af borið borðinu—and the prep. thus be separated from its case, or it may refer to some of the indecl. relatives er or sem, the prep. hvar, hér, þar being placed behind them without a case, and referring to the preceding relative, e. g. oss er þar mikit af sagt auð þeim, we have been told much about these riches, Band. 24; er þat skjótast þar af at segja, in short, shortly. Eg. 546; þaðan af veit ek, thence í infer, know, Fms. i. 97.

XI. it is moreover connected with a great many verbs besides those mentioned above, e. g. bera af, to excel, whence afbragð, afbrigði; draga af, to detract, deduct, hence afdráttr; veita ekki af, to be hard with; ganga at, to be left, hence afgangr; standast af um e-t, to stand, how matters stand; sem af tekr, at a furious rate; vita af, to be conscious, know about (vide VII).

D. As a prefix to compounds distinction is to be made between:

I. af privativum, denoting diminution, want, deduction, loss, separation, negation of, etc., answering indifferently to Lat. ab-, de-, ex-, dis-, and rarely to re- and se-, v. the following COMPDS, such as segja, dicere, but afsegja, negare; rækja, colere, but afrækja, negligere; aflaga, contra legem; skapligr, normalis, afskapligr, deformis; afvik, recessus; afhús, afhellir, afdalr, etc.

II. af intensivum, etymologically different, and akin to of, afr-, e. g. afdrykkja = ofdrykkja, inebrietas; afbrýði, jealously; afbendi, tenesmus; afglapi, vir fatuus, etc. etc. Both the privative and the intensive af may be contracted into á, esp. before a labial f, m, v, e. g. á fram = af fram; ábrýði = afbrýði; ávöxtr = afvöxtr; áburðr = afburðr; ávíta = afvíta (?). In some cases dubious. With extenuated and changed vowel; auvirðiligr or övirðiligr, depreciated, = afv- etc., v. those words.

and afglöpun, f. [v. the preceding word], used of rioting or brawling in a court or at a meeting, to break the law or the peace; it is also used of any illegal steps to stop the course of law, so that the pleadings are interrupted, and there is a flaw in the procedure, v. þingsafglöpun; frequent in the Grágás and the Sagas; it was liable to the lesser outlawry, v. above: bribery and false witness seem to be counted as þingsafglöpun in Nj. 150, and were to be challenged to the High Court, Lv. 12, 31, Nj., Grág., esp. in the þ. þ. etc.: v. Dasent, Introd. to Burnt Njal.

* * *

I) m. hearth of a forge.

II) n.

1) physical strength (ramr styrkr, at afli);

2) force, violence taka með afli, by force;

3) plurality of votes, majority; ok skal afl ráda, the majority shall decide;

4) virtue, inherent power; afl dauðfœrandi grasa, the virtue of poisonous herbs.

* * *

m. [Grimm mentions an O. H. G. aval; abal is a dub. άπ. λεγ. in A. S. poetry, Ormul. avell]

1. strength, esp. physical force; afreksmaðr at afli ok áræði, Eg. 1; styrkr at afli, Fms. i. 19; ramr at afli, 155; fullkominn at afli ok hyggju, bodily and mental vigour, Ld. 256; stillt þú þó vel aflinu, at þú verðir eigi kendr, Nj. 32; hafa afl til e-s, be a match for, be able to do, Gþl. 411.

β. virtue; afl dauðfærandi grasa, virtue of poisonous herbs, 623. 26.

2. metaph. strength, power, might, Th. 19.

3. a law term, force, validity; dæmdu vér þetta boð Bjarna úlögligt ok ekki afl hafa, void, Dipl. iii. 3.

4. a law term, majority, odds, in the phrase, ok skal afl ráða, plurima vota valeant; ef gerðarmenn ( umpires) verða eigi ásáttir ok skal a ráða, Grág. i. 493; nú verða fjórðungsmenn eigi ásáttir, þá skal afl ráða með þeim, i. l, cp. 44, 531 (where it is used of a jury); en ef þeir verða eigi ásáttir er í lögréttu sitja hvat þeir vilja lofa eðr í lög leiða, þá skolu þeir ryðja lögréttu (viz. divide) ok skal ráða a. með þeim, Nj. 150.

5. force, violence; taka með afli, Stj. 4. 30; bjóða e-m afl, Bs. ii. 106.

COMPDS: aflsmunr, aflsraun.

að, [sifjar], a law term, to cut off from one’s ‘sib,’ alienate from one’s family, renounce; gefa má maðr vingjafir at sér lifanda, hest eða yxn, vápn eða þvílíka grfpi, ok afsifjar (Cod. A reads afsitjar, but doubtless wrongly) hann sér þó at sex skynsömum mönnum þyki eigi arfsvik gör við erfingja, Jb. 163, D. N. i. 141, Pál Vidal. p. 84. The word appears to be a Norse law term, and does not occur in the laws of the Icel. Commonwealth, but came into use with the code Jb.

(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

n. pl. public law, statute law of the land, in the phrase, at alþingis máli ok allsherjar lögum, Nj. 14, 87.

n. a law term.

I. Icel. contradictory testimony, such as was contrary to law. Thus defined: þat er a. er menn bera gegn því sem áðr er borit, vætti í gegn kvið, eðr kviðr í gegn vætti, svá at eigi má hvárttveggja rétt vera, Grág. i. 59, 60; it was liable to the lesser outlawry, skoluð menn a. bera ok hér á þingi, en ef menn bera, ok varðar þat útlegð, enda á þat einskis at meta, id.; en ef menn bera þat a. varðar þat fjörbaugsgarð, ii. 272; bera þeir a. guðunum, false witness against the gods, 655 xiii. B. I.

II. Norse, where it appears to mean contradictory testimony, such as was usually admissible; ok koma eigi a. móti, N. G. L. ii. 89, v. l.; svá er ef einn ber vitni með manni sem engi beri, en tveir sem tíu, ef maðr uggir eigi a. móti, if one bears witness for a man it is as though no man bore witness for him, but two are as good as ten, if a man doth not fear that contradictory evidence will be brought against him, 150.

n. [argr, craven, and fas = flas by dropping the l (?); flas, n. means praecipitatio, and flasa, að, precipitare, which are common words; this etymology is confirmed by the spelling of the word in Gþl. 188, where some of the MSS. have faas or fias, the last is perh. a false reading = flas; fas, n. gait, manner, is a modern word: v. Pál Vídal. in Skýr.; his etymology, however, is doubtless bad], a law term, a feint, a cowardly assault, an aiming at one’s body and drawing deadly weapons without carrying the threat into effect, termed ‘a coward’s assault;’ in Icel. it was punishable by fjörbaugsgarðr, cp. Grág.; ef maðr mundar til manns ok stöðvar sjálfr, ok varðar fjörbaugsgarð, ok á hinn eigi vígt í gegn ( the injured party must not kill the offender on the spot) skal stefna heiman ok kveðja til níu heimilisbúa þess á þingi er sóttr er, Vsl. ch. 90: ef maðr hleypr at manni, ok heldr hann sér sjálfr; þat er a. ok er þat sektalaust (liable to no punishment, only a dishonourable act; so the Norse law), N. G. L. i. 164, Gþl. 188.

* * *

(gen. arins; dat. arni; pl. amar), m.

1) hearth (eldr var á arni); as a law term, fara eldi ok arni, to remove one’s homestead, taking fire and hearth together;

2) an elevated platform.

* * *

s, m., dat. aarni = árni, Fs. 42, Rm. 2, [a word still freq. in Denmark and in Norway; Dan. arne, arnested; Norse aarstad, Ivar Aasen: in Icel. it is very rare]

1. a hearth, Fs. (Vd.) 42; kom maðr um nóttina ok tók glæðr af árni, Sturl. ii. 101; þrjá vissa ek elda ( fires), þrjá vissa ek arna ( hearth-stones), Gh. 10; mæli malts af arni hverjum, viz. three for each farm (cp. arineldar, Gþl. 376), Hkr. ii. 384, Fms. x. 398, v. 101.

2. as a law term, used in the phrase, fara eldi ok arni, to remove one’s homestead, fire and hearth together, Grág. ii. 253, 334 (where iarni is a corrupt reading). Now in Icel. eldstó.

3. metaph. an elevated balcony, pavement, story, scaffold; stafir fjórir stóðu upp ok syllur upp í milli, ok var þar a. á, Fms. viii. 429; í miðju húsinu var a. víðr ( raised floor) … en uppi á arninum var sæng mikil, v. 339, Karl. 190, Stj. 308.

β. of a ship, a hatchway, Edda (Gl.)

COMPDS: arinshorn, arinsjárn.

n. [kveða at orði].

I. a technical phrase, esp. in law; svá skal sækja at öllu um fjártökuna, sem þjófsök fyrir utan a., the proceeding is all the same with the exception of the technical terms, Grág. ii. 190; at þeim atkvæðum er Helgi hafði í stefnu við þik, the expressions used by Helgi in summoning thee, Boll. 354.

β. a word, expression in general; þat er þrífalt a., mannvit, siðgæði ok hæverska, Sks. 431, 303; en þó vér mælim alla þessa hluti með breiðu a., in broad, general terms, Anecd. 21, Þiðr. 1.

γ. now used gramm. for a syllable, and in many compds such as, eins atkvæðis orð, a monosyllable; tveggja, þriggja … atkvæða …, etc., a dissyllable, etc.: ‘kveða at’ also means to collect the letters into syllables, used of children when they begin to spell. Old writers use atkvæði differently in a grammatical sense, viz. = pronunciation, sound, now framburðr; þeir stafir megu hafa tveggja samhljóðenda a., hverr einn, Skálda (Thorodd) 165; eins stafs a.; a. nafns hvers þeirra; þá er þat a. hans í hverju máli sem eptir lifir nafnsins (in the last passage = the name of the letter), 168.

II. a decision, sentence, almost always in plur.; beið hann þinna atkvæða, Nj. 78; var því vikit til atkvæða ( decision) Marðar, 207; bíða atkvæða Magnúss konungs um álög ok pyntingar, Fms. vi. 192: sing., var þat biskups a., his decision, v. 106; hvi gegnir þetta a. ( sentence) jarl, rangliga dæmir þú, 656 B; þínu boði ok a., command and decisive vote, Stj. 203; af atkvæði guðanna, by their decree, Edda 9, Bret. 53.

β. now a law term = vote, and in a great many compds: atkvæða-greiðsla, division; atkvæða-fjöldi, votes; a. munr, majority, etc.

III. a decree of fate, a spell, charm, in a supernatural sense, = ákvæði; af forlogum ok a. ramra hluta, Fs. 23; konungr sagði úhægt at göra við atkvæðum, … to resist charms (MS. akvedni, where it is uncertain whether the reading is ákv- or atkv-); a. Finnunnar, the spell of the Finnish witch, 22; svá mikil a. (pl.) ok ilska fylgði þessum álögum, Fas. i. 404, iii. 239, Fms. x. 172.

COMPDS: atkvæðalauss, atkvæðamaðr, atkvæðamikill.

f. [vesa at], presence, esp. as a law term, opp. to an alibi, the act of being present at a crime: the law distinguishes between ráð (plotting), tilför (partaking), and a. (presence), Grág. ii. 37; vera í atsókn ak a., to be present and a partaker in the onslaught, Nj. 100.

β. transl. of the Lat. assiduitas, 677. 12.

* * *

a negative suffix to verbs, not;

era útmakligt, at it is not unmeet that.

* * *

á, prep., often used elliptically, or even adverbially, [Goth. ana; Engl. on; Germ. an. In the Scandinavian idioms the liquid n is absorbed. In English the same has been supposed to happen in adverbial phrases, e. g. ‘along, away, abroad, afoot, again, agate, ahead, aloft, alone, askew, aside, astray, awry,’ etc. It is indeed true that the Ormulum in its northern dialect freq. uses o, even in common phrases, such as ‘o boke, o land, o life, o slæpe, o strande, o write, o naht, o loft,’ etc., v. the glossary; and we may compare on foot and afoot, on sleep (Engl. Vers. of Bible) and asleep; A. S. a-butan and on-butan (about); agen and ongean (again, against); on bæc, aback; on life, alive; on middan, amid. But it is more than likely that in the expressions quoted above, as well as in numberless others, as well in old as in modern English, the English a- as well as the o- of the Ormulum and the modern Scottish and north of England o- are in reality remains of this very á pronounced au or ow, which was brought by the Scandinavian settlers into the north of England. In the struggle for supremacy between the English dialects after the Conquest, the Scandinavian form á or a won the day in many cases to the exclusion of the Anglo-Saxon on. Some of these adverbs have representatives only in the Scandinavian tongues, not in Anglo-Saxon; see below, with dat. B. II, C. VII; with acc. C. I. and VI. The prep. á denotes the surface or outside; í and ór the inside; at, til, and frá, nearness measured to or from an object: á thus answers to the Gr. επί; the Lat. in includes á and i together.]

With dat. and acc.: in the first case with the notion of remaining on a place, answering to Lat. in with abl.; in the last with the notion of motion to the place, = Lat. in with acc.

WITH DAT.

A. Loc.

I. generally on, upon; á gólfi, on the floor, Nj. 2; á hendi, on the hand (of a ring), 48, 225; á palli, 50; á steini, 108; á vegg, 115; á sjá ok á landi, on sea and land. In some instances the distinction between d and i is loose and wavering, but in most cases common sense and usage decide; thus ‘á bók’ merely denotes the letters, the penmanship, ‘í’ the contents of a book; mod. usage, however, prefers ‘í,’ lesa í bók, but stafr á bók. Old writers on the other hand; á bókum Enskum, in English books, Landn. 24, but í Aldafars bók, 23 (in the book De Mensurâ Temporum, by Bede), cp. Grág. i. 76, where á is a false reading instead of at; á bréfi, the contents of a letter: of clothing or arms, mítr á höfði, sverð á hlið, mitre on head, sword on side, Fms. i. 266, viii. 404; hafa lykil á sér, on one’s person, 655 xxvii. 22; möttull á tyglum, a mantle hanging on (i. e. fastened by) laces, Fms. vii. 201: á þingi means to be present at a meeting; í þingi, to abide within a jurisdiction; á himni, á jörðu, on (Engl. in) heaven and earth, e. g. in the Lord’s Prayer, but í helviti, in hell; á Gimli, Edda (of a heavenly abode); á báti, á skipi denote crew and cargo, ‘í’ the timber or materials of which a ship is built, Eg. 385; vera í stafni á skipi, 177: á skógi, to be abroad in a wood (of a hunter, robber, deer); but to be situated (a house), at work (to fell timber), í skógi, 573, Fs. 5, Fms. iii. 122, viii. 31, xi. 1, Glúm. 330, Landn. 173; á mörkinni, Fms. i. 8, but í mörk, of a farm; á firðinum means lying in a firth, of ships or islands (on the surface of the water), þær eyjar liggja á Breiðafirði, Ld. 36; but í firði, living in a district named Firth; á landi, Nj. 98, Fms. xi. 386.

II. á is commonly used in connection with the pr. names or countries terminating in ‘land,’ Engl. in, á Englandi, Írlandi, Skotlandi, Bretlandi, Saxlandi, Vindlandi, Vínlandi, Grænalandi, Íslandi, Hálogalandi, Rogalandi, Jótlandi, Frakklandi, Hjaltlandi, Jamtalandi, Hvítramannalandi, Norðrlöndum, etc., vide Landn. and the index to Fms. xii. In old writers í is here very rare, in modern authors more frequent; taste and the context in many instances decide. An Icelander would now say, speaking of the queen or king, ‘á Englandi,’ ruling over, but to live ‘í Englandi,’ or ‘á Englandi;’ the rule in the last case not being quite fixed.

2. in connection with other names of countries: á Mæri, Vörs, Ögðum, Fjölum, all districts of Norway, v. Landn.; á Mýrum (in Icel.), á Finnmörk, Landn., á Fjóni (a Danish island); but í Danmörk, Svíþjóð (á Svíþjóðu is poët., Gs. 13).

3. before Icel. farms denoting open and elevated slopes and spaces (not too high, because then ‘at’ must be used), such as ‘staðr, völlr, ból, hjalli, bakki, heimr, eyri,’ etc.; á Veggjum, Landn. 69; á Hólmlátri, id.: those ending in ‘-staðr,’ á Geirmundarstöðum, Þórisstöðum, Jarðlangsstöðum…, Landn.: ‘-völlr,’ á Möðruvöllum: á Fitjum (the farm) í Storð (the island), í Fenhring (the island) á Aski (the farm), Landn., Eg.: ‘-nes’ sometimes takes á, sometimes í (in mod. usage always ‘í’), á Nesi, Eb. 14, or í Krossnesi, 30; in the last case the notion of island, νησος, prevails: so also, ‘fjörðr,’ as, þeir börðust á Vigrafirði (of a fight o n the ice), Landn. 101, but orusta í Hafrsfirði, 122: with ‘-bær,’ á is used in the sense of a farm or estate, hón sa á e-m bæ mikit hús ok fagrt, Edda 22; ‘í bæ’ means within doors, of the buildings: with ‘Bær’ as pr. name Landn. uses ‘í,’ 71, 160, 257, 309, 332.

4. denoting on or just above; of the sun, when the time is fixed by regarding the sun in connection with points in the horizon, a standing phrase in Icel.; sól á gjáhamri, when the sun is on the crag of the Rift, Grág. i. 26, cp. Glúm. 387; so, brú á á, a bridge on a river, Fms. viii. 179, Hrafn. 20; taka hús á e-m, to surprise one, to take the house over his head, Fms. i. 11.

III. á is sometimes used in old writers where we should now expect an acc., esp. in the phrase, leggja sverði (or the like) á e-m, or á e-m miðjum, to stab, Eg. 216, Gísl. 106, Band. 14; þá stakk Starkaðr sprotanum á konungi, then Starkad stabbed the king with the wand, Fas. iii. 34; bíta á kampi (vör), to bite the lips, as a token of pain or emotion, Nj. 209, 68; taka á e-u, to touch a thing, lay hold of it, v. taka; fá á e-u, id. (poët.); leggja hendr á (better at) síðum, in wrestling, Fms. x. 331; koma á úvart á e-m, to come on one unawares, ix. 407 (rare).

B. TEMP. of a particular point or period of time, at, on, in:

I. gener. denoting during, in the course of; á nótt, degi, nætrþeli …, Bs. i. 139; or spec. adding a pron. or an adject., á næsta sumri, the next summer; á því ári, þingi, misseri, hausti, vári, sumri …, during, in that year …, Bs. i. 679, etc.; á þrem sumrum, in the course of three summers, Grág. i. 218; á þrem várum, Fms. ii. 114; á hálfs mánaðar fresti, within half a month’s delay, Nj. 99; á tvítugs, sextugs … aldri, á barns, gamals aldri, etc., at the age of …, v. aldr: á dögum e-s, in the days of, in his reign or time, Landn. 24, Hrafn. 3, Fms. ix. 229.

II. used of a fixed recurrent period or season; á várum, sumrum, haustum, vetrum, á kveldum, every spring, summer …, in the evenings, Eg. 711, Fms. i. 23, 25, vi. 394, Landn. 292: with the numeral adverbs, cp. Lat. ter in anno, um sinn á mánuði, ári, once a month, once a year, where the Engl. a is not the article but the preposition, Grág. i. 89.

III. of duration; á degi, during a whole day, Fms. v. 48; á sjau nóttum, Bárð. 166; á því meli, during that time, in the meantime, Grág. i. 259.

IV. connected with the seasons (á vetri, sumri, vári, hausti), ‘á’ denotes the next preceding season, the last winter, summer, autumn, Eb. 40, 238, Ld. 206: in such instances ‘á’ denotes the past, ‘at’ the future, ‘í’ the present; thus í vetri in old writers means this winter; á vetri, last winter; at vetri, next winter, Eb. 68 (in a verse), etc.

C. In various other relations, more or less metaphorically, on, upon, in, to, with, towards, against:

I. denoting object, in respect of, against, almost periphrastically; dvelja á náðum e-s, under one’s protection, Fms. i. 74; hafa metnað á e-u, to be proud of, to take pride in a thing, 127.

2. denoting a personal relation, in; bæta e-t á e-m, to make amends, i. e. to one personally; misgöra e-t á e-m, to inflict wrong on one; hafa elsku (hatr) á e-m, to bear love ( hatred) to one, Fms. ix. 242; hefna sín á e-m, to take revenge on one’s person, on anyone; rjúfa sætt á e-m, to break truce on the person of any one, to offend against his person, Nj. 103; hafa sár á sér, 101; sjá á e-m, to read on or in one’s face; sér hann á hverjum manni hvárt til þín er vel eðr illa, 106; var þat brátt auðséð á hennar högum, at …, it could soon be seen in all her doings, that …, Ld. 22.

3. also generally to shew signs of a thing; sýna fáleika á sér, to shew marks of displeasure, Nj. 14, Fs. 14; taka vel, illa, lítt, á e-u, to take a thing well, ill, or indifferently, id.; finna á sér, to feel in oneself; fann lítt á honum, hvárt …, it could hardly be seen in his face, whether …, Eb. 42; líkindi eru á, it is likely, Ld. 172; göra kost á e-u, to give a choice, chance of it, 178; eiga vald á e-u, to have power over …, Nj. 10.

II. denoting encumbrance, duty, liability; er fimtardómsmál á þeim, to be subject to …, Nj. 231; the phrase, hafa e-t á hendi, or vera á hendi e-m, on one’s hands, of work or duty to be done; eindagi á fé, term, pay day, Grág. i. 140; ómagi (skylda, afvinna) á fé, of a burden or encumbrance, D. I. and Grág. in several passages.

III. with a personal pronoun, sér, mér, honum …, denoting personal appearance, temper, character, look, or the like; vera þungr, léttr … á sér, to be heavy or light, either bodily or mentally; þungr á sér, corpulent, Sturl. i. 112; kátr ok léttr á sér, of a gay and light temper, Fms. x. 152; þat bragð hafði hann á sér, he looked as if, … the expression of his face was as though …, Ld., cp. the mod. phrase, hafa á sér svip, bragð, æði, sið, of one’s manner or personal appearance, to bear oneself as, or the like; skjótr (seinn) á fæti, speedy ( slow) of foot, Nj. 258.

IV. as a periphrasis of the possessive pronoun connected with the limbs or parts of the body. In common Icel. such phrases as my hands, eyes, head … are hardly ever used, but höfuð, eyru, hár, nef, munnr, hendr, fætr … á mér; so ‘í’ is used of the internal parts, e. g. hjarta, bein … í mér; the eyes are regarded as inside the body, augun í honum: also without the possessive pronoun, or as a periphrasis for a genitive, brjóstið á e-m, one’s breast, Nj. 95, Edda 15; súrnar í augum, it smarts in my eyes, my eyes smart, Nj. 202; kviðinn á sér, its belly, 655 xxx. 5, Fms. vi. 350; hendr á henni, her hands, Gísl. (in a verse); í vörunum á honum, on his lips, Band. 14; ristin á honum, his step, Fms. viii. 141; harðr í tungu, sharp of tongue, Hallfred (Fs. 114); kalt (heitt) á fingrum, höndum, fótum …, cold ( warm) in the fingers, hands, feet …, i. e. with cold fingers, etc.; cp. also the phrase, verða vísa (orð) á munni, of extemporising verses or speeches, freq. in the Sagas; fastr á fótum, fast by the leg, of a bondsman, Nj. 27: of the whole body, díla fundu þeir á honum, 209. The pers. pron. is used only in solemn style (poetry, hymns, the Bible), and perhaps only when influenced by foreign languages, e. g. mitt hjarta hví svo hryggist þú, as a translation of ‘warumb betrübst du dich mein Herz?’ the famous hymn by Hans Sachs; instead of the popular hjartað í mér, Sl. 43, 44: hjartað mitt is only used as a term of endearment, as by a husband to his wife, parents to their child, or the like, in a metaphorical sense; the heart proper is ‘í mér,’ not ‘mitt.’

2. of other things, and as a periphrasis of a genitive, of a part belonging to the whole, e. g. dyrr á husi = húsdyrr, at the house-doors; turn á kirkju = kirkju turn; stafn, skutr, segl, árar … á skipi, the stem, stern, sail … of a ship, Fms. ix. 135; blöð á lauk, á tré …, leaves of a leek, of a tree …, Fas. i. 469; egg á sverði = sverðs egg; stafr á bók; kjölr á bók, and in endless other instances.

V. denoting instrumentality, by, on, or a-, by means of; afla fjár á hólmgöngum, to make money a-duelling, by means of duels, Eg. 498; á verkum sínum, to subsist on one’s own work, Njarð. 366: as a law term, sekjast á e-ju, to be convicted upon …, Grág. i. 123; sekst maðr þar á sínu eigini ( a man is guilty in re sua), ef hann tekr af þeim manni er heimild ( possessio) hefir til, ii. 191; falla á verkum sínum, to be killed flagranti delicto, v. above; fella e-n á bragði, by a sleight in wrestling; komast undan á flótta, to escape by flight, Eg. 11; á hlaupi, by one’s feet, by speed, Hkr. ii. 168; lifa á e-u, to feed on; bergja á e-u, to taste of a thing; svala sér á e-u, to quench the thirst on.

VI. with subst. numerals; á þriðja tigi manna, up to thirty, i. e. from about twenty to thirty, Ld. 194; á öðru hundraði skipa, from one to two hundred sail strong, Fms. x. 126; á níunda tigi, between eighty and ninety years of age, Eg. 764, v. above: used as prep., á hendi, on one’s hand, i. e. bound to do it, v. hönd.

VII. in more or less adverbial phrases it may often be translated in Engl. by a participle and a- prefixed; á lopti, aloft; á floti, afloat; á lífi, alive; á verðgangi, a-begging; á brautu, away; á baki, a-back, behind, past; á milli, a-tween; á laun, alone, secretly; á launungu, id.; á móti, against; á enda, at an end, gone; á huldu, hidden; fara á hæli, to go a-heel, i. e. backwards, Fms. vii. 70;—but in many cases these phrases are transl. by the Engl. partic. with a, which is then perh. a mere prefix, not a prep., á flugi, a-flying in the air, Nj. 79; vera á gangi, a-going; á ferli, to be about; á leiki, a-playing, Fms. i. 78; á sundi, a-swimming, ii. 27; á verði, a-watching, x. 201; á hrakningi, a-wandering; á reiki, a-wavering; á skjálfi, a-shivering; á-hleri, a-listening; á tali, a-talking, Ísl. ii. 200; á hlaupi, a-running, Hkr. ii. 268; á verki, a-working; á veiðum, a-hunting; á fiski, a-fishing; á beit, grazing: and as a law term it even means in flagranti, N. G. L. i. 348.

VIII. used absolutely without a case in reference to the air or the weather, where ‘á’ is almost redundant; þoka var á mikil, a thick fog came on, Nj. 267; niðamyrkr var á, pitch darkness came on, Eg. 210; allhvast á norðan, a very strong breeze from the north, Fms. ix. 20; þá var á norðrænt, a north wind came on, 42, Ld. 56; hvaðan sem á er, from whatever point the wind is; var á hríð veðrs, a snow storm came on, Nj. 282; görði á regn, rain came on, Fms. vi. 394, xi. 35, Ld. 156.

WITH ACC.

A. Loc.

I. denoting simple direction towards, esp. connected with verbs of motion, going, or the like; hann gékk á bergsnös, Eg. 389; á hamar, Fas. ii. 517.

2. in phrases denoting direction; liggja á útborða, lying on the outside of the ship, Eg. 354; á annat borð skipinu, Fms. vii. 260; á bæði borð, on both sides of the ship, Nj. 124, Ld. 56; á tvær hliðar, on both sides, Fms. v. 73. Ísl. ii. 159; á hlið, sidewards; út á hlið, Nj. 262, Edda 44; á aðra hönd henni, Nj. 50, Ld. 46; höggva á tvær hendr, to hew or strike right and left, Ísl. ii. 368, Fas. i. 384, Fms. viii. 363, x. 383.

3. upp á, upon; hann tók augu Þjaza ok kastaði upp á himin, Edda 47: with verbs denoting to look, see, horfa, sjá, líta, etc.; hann rak skygnur á land, he cast glances towards the land, Ld. 154.

II. denoting direction with or without the idea of arriving:

1. with verbs denoting to aim at; of a blow or thrust, stefna á fótinn, Nj. 84; spjótið stefnir á hann miðjan, 205: of the wind, gékk veðrit á vestr, the wind veered to west, Fms. ix. 28; sigla á haf, to stand out to sea, Hkr. i. 146, Fms. i. 39: with ‘út’ added, Eg. 390, Fms. x. 349.

2. conveying the notion of arriving, or the intervening space being traversed; spjótið kom á miðjan skjöldinn, Eg. 379, Nj. 96, 97; langt upp á land, far up inland, Hkr. i. 146: to reach, taka ofan á belti, of the long locks of a woman, to reach down to the belt, Nj. 2; ofan á bringu, 48; á þa ofan, 91.

III. without reference to the space traversed, connected with verbs denoting to go, turn, come, ride, sail, throw, or the like, motion of every kind; hann kastar honum á völlinn, he flings him down, Nj. 91; hlaupa á skip sitt, to leap on board his ship, 43; á hest, to mount quickly, Edda 75; á lend hestinum, Nj. 91; hann gengr á sáðland sitt, he walks on to his fields, 82: on, upon, komast á fætr, to get upon one’s legs, 92; ganga á land, to go a-shore, Fms. i. 40; ganga á þing, vii. 242, Grág. (often); á skóg, á merkr ok skóga, into a wood, Fb. i. 134, 257, Fms. xi. 118, Eg. 577, Nj. 130; fara á Finnmörk, to go travelling in Finmark, Fms. i. 8; koma, fara á bæ, to arrive at the farm-house; koma á veginn, Eg. 578; stíga á bát, skip, to go on board, 158; hann gékk upp á borg, he went up to the burg (castle), 717; en er þeir komu á loptriðið, 236; hrinda skipum á vatn, to float the ships down into the water, Fms. i. 58; reka austr á haf, to drift eastwards on the sea, x. 145; ríða ofan á, to ride down or over, Nj. 82.

IV. in some cases the acc. is used where the dat. would be used, esp. with verbs denoting to see or hear, in such phrases as, þeir sá boða mikinn inn á fjörðinn, they saw great breakers away up in the bight of the firth, the acc. being due perhaps to a motion or direction of the eye or ear towards the object, Nj. 124; sá þeir fólkit á land, they saw the people in the direction of land, Fas. ii. 517: in phrases denoting to be placed, to sit, to be seated, the seat or bench is freq. in the acc. where the dat. would now be used; konungr var þar á land upp, the king was then up the country, the spectator or narrator is conceived as looking from the shore or sea-side, Nj. 46; sitja á miðjan bekk, to be seated on the middle bench, 50; skyldi konungs sæti vera á þann bekk … annat öndvegi var á hinn úæðra pall; hann setti konungs hásæti á miðjan þverpall, Fms. vi. 439, 440, cp. Fagrsk. l. c., Sturl. iii. 182; eru víða fjallbygðir upp á mörkina, in the mark or forest, Eg. 58; var þar mörk mikil á land upp, 229; mannsafnaðr er á land upp (viewed from the sea), Ld. 76; stóll var settr á mótið, Fas. i. 58; beiða fars á skip, to beg a passage, Grág. i. 90.

V. denoting parts of the body; bíta e-n á barka, to bite one in the throat, Ísl. ii. 447; skera á háls, to cut the throat of any one, Nj. 156; brjóta e-n á háls, to break any one’s neck; brjóta e-n á bak, to break any one’s back, Fms. vii. 119; kalinn á kné, frozen to the knees with cold, Hm. 3.

VI. denoting round; láta reipi á háls hesti, round his horse’s neck, 623. 33; leggja söðul á hest, Nj. 83; and ellipt., leggja á, to saddle; breiða feld á hofuð sér, to wrap a cloak over his head, 164; reyta á sik mosa, to gather moss to cover oneself with, 267; spenna hring á hönd, á fingr, Eg. 300.

VII. denoting a burden; stela mat á tvá hesta, hey á fimtán hesta, i. e. a two, a fifteen horse load, Nj. 74: metaph., kjósa feigð á menn, to choose death upon them, i. e. doom them to death, Edda 22.

B. TEMP.

I. of a period of time, at, to; á morgun, to-morrow (í morgun now means the past morning, the morning of to-day), Ísl. ii. 333.

II. if connected with the word day, ‘á’ is now used before a fixed or marked day, a day of the week, a feast day, or the like; á Laugardag, á Sunnudag …, on Saturday, Sunday, the Old Engl. a-Sunday, a-Monday, etc.; á Jóladaginn, Páskadaginn, on Yule and Easter-day; but in old writers more often used ellipt. Sunnudaginn, Jóladaginn …, by dropping the prep. ‘á,’ Fms. viii. 397, Grág. i. 18.

III. connected with ‘dagr’ with the definite article suffixed, ‘á’ denotes a fixed, recurring period or season, in; á daginn, during the day-time, every day in turn, Grett. 91 A.

IV. connected with ‘evening, morning, the seasons,’ with the article; á kveldit, every evening, Ld. 14; á sumarit, every summer, Vd. 128, where the new Ed. Fs. 51 reads sumrum; á haust, every autumn, Eg. 741 (perh. a misprint instead of á haustin or á haustum); á vetrinn, in the winter time, 710; á várit, every spring, Gþl. 347; the sing., however, is very rare in such cases, the old as well as mod. usage prefers the plur.; á nætrnar, by night, Nj. 210; á várin, Eg. 710; á sumrin, haustin, á morgnana, in the morning (á morgin, sing., means to-morrow); á kveldin, in the evening, only ‘dagr’ is used in sing., v. above (á daginn, not á dagana); but elliptically and by dropping the article, Icelanders say, kveld og morgna, nótt og dag, vetr sumar vor og haust, in the same sense as those above mentioned.

V. denoting duration, the article is dropped in the negative phrase, aldri á sinn dag, never during one’s life; aldri á mína daga, never in my life, Bjarn. 8, where a possess. pron. is put between noun and prep., but this phrase is very rare. Such phrases as, á þann dag, that day, and á þenna dag, Stj. 12, 655 xxx. 2. 20, are unclassical.

VI. á dag without article can only be used in a distributive sense, e. g. tvisvar á dag, twice a-day; this use is at present freq. in Icel., yet instances from old writers are not on record.

VII. denoting a movement onward in time, such as, liðið á nótt, dag, kveld, morgun, sumar, vetr, vár, haust (or nóttina, daginn …), jól, páska, föstu, or the like, far on in the night, day …, Edda 33; er á leið vetrinn, when the winter was well on, as the winter wore on, Nj. 126; cp. áliðinn: also in the phrase, hniginn á inn efra aldr, well stricken in years, Ld. 68.

C. Metaph. and in various relations:

I. somewhat metaphorically, denoting an act only (not the place); fara á fund, á vit e-s, to call for one, Eg. 140; koma á ræðu við e-n, to come to a parley with, to speak, 173; ganga á tal, Nj. 103; skora á hólm, to challenge to a duel on an island; koma á grið, to enter into a service, to be domiciled, Grág. i. 151; fara á veiðar, to go a-hunting, Fms. i. 8.

β. generally denoting on, upon, in, to; bjóða vöxtu á féit, to offer interest on the money, Grág. i. 198; ganga á berhögg, to come to blows, v. berhögg; fá á e-n, to make an impression upon one, Nj. 79; ganga á vápn e-s, to throw oneself on an enemy’s weapon, meet him face to face, Rd. 310; ganga á lagið, to press on up the spear-shaft after it has passed through one so as to get near one’s foe, i. e. to avail oneself of the last chance; bera fé á e-n, to bribe, Nj. 62; bera öl á e-n, to make drunk, Fas. i. 13; snúinn á e-t, inclined to, Fms. x. 142; sammælast á e-t, to agree upon, Nj. 86; sættast, verða sáttr á e-t, in the same sense, to come to an agreement, settlement, or atonement, 78, Edda 15, Eb. 288, Ld. 50, Fms. i. 279; ganga á mála, to serve for pay as a soldier, Nj. 121; ganga á vald e-s, to put oneself in his power, 267; ganga á sætt, to break an agreement; vega á veittar trygðir, to break truce, Grág. ii. 169.

II. denoting in regard to, in respect to:

1. of colour, complexion, the hue of the hair, or the like; hvítr, jarpr, dökkr … á hár, having white, brown, or dark … hair, Ísl. ii. 190, Nj. 39; svartr á brún ok brá, dark of brow and eyebrow; dökkr á hörund, id., etc.

2. denoting skill, dexterity; hagr á tré, a good carpenter; hagr á járn, málm, smíðar …, an expert worker in iron, metals …, Eg. 4; fimr á boga, good at the bow: also used of mastership in science or arts, meistari á hörpuslátt, a master in striking the harp, Fas. iii. 220; fræðimaðr á kvæði, knowing many poems by heart, Fms. vi. 391; fræðimaðr á landnámssögur ok forna fræði, a learned scholar in histories and antiquities (of Are Frode), Ísl. ii. 189; mikill á íþrótt, skilful in an art, Edda (pref.) 148; but dat. in the phrase, kunna (vel) á skíðum, to be a cunning skater, Fms. i. 9, vii. 120.

3. denoting dimensions; á hæð, lengd, breidd, dýpt …, in the heighth, length, breadth, depth …, Eg. 277; á hvern veg, on each side, Edda 41 (square miles); á annan veg, on the one side, Grág. i. 89.

β. the phrase, á sik, in regard to oneself, vel (illa) á sik kominn, of a fine ( ugly) appearance, Ld. 100, Fas. iii. 74.

III. denoting instrumentality; bjargast á sínar hendr, to live on the work of one’s own hands, (á sínar spýtur is a mod. phrase in the same sense); (vega) á skálir, pundara, to weigh in scales, Grág. ii. 370; at hann hefði tvá pundara, ok hefði á hinn meira keypt en á hinn minna selt, of a man using two scales, a big one for buying and a little one for selling, Sturl. i. 91; á sinn kostnað, at one’s own expense; nefna e-n á nafn, by name, Grág. i. 17, etc. The Icel. also say, spinna á rokk, snældu, to spin on or with a rock or distaff; mala á kvern, to grind in a ‘querne,’ where Edda 73 uses dat.; esp. of musical instruments, syngja, leika á hljóðfæri, hörpu, gígju …; in the old usage, leika hörpu …, Stj. 458.

IV. denoting the manner or way of doing:

1. á þessa lund, in this wise, Grág. ii. 22; á marga vega, á alla, ymsa vega, in many, all, respects, Fms. i. 114; á sitt hóf, in its turn, respectively, Ld. 136, where the context shews that the expression answers to the Lat. mutatis mutandis; á Þýðersku, after German fashion, Sks. 288.

2. esp. of language; mæla, rita á e-a tungu, to speak, write in a tongue; á Írsku, in Irish, Ld. 76; Norrænu, in Norse, Eb. 330, Vm. 35; a Danska tungu, in Danish, i. e. Scandinavian, Norse, or Icelandic, Grág. i. 18; á Vára tungu, i. e. in Icelandic, 181; rita á Norræna tungu, to write in Norse, Hkr. (pref.), Bs. i. 59:—at present, dat. is sometimes used.

3. in some phrases the acc. is used instead of the dat.; hann sýndi á sik mikit gaman, Fms. x. 329; hann lét ekki á sik finna, he shewed no sign of motion, Nj. 111; skaltú önga fáleika á þik gera (Cod. Kalf.), 14.

V. used in a distributive sense; skal mörk kaupa gæzlu á kú, eðr oxa fim vetra gamlan, a mark for every cow, Grág. i. 147; alin á hvert hross, 442; á mann, per man (now freq.): cp. also á dag above, lit. B.

VI. connected with nouns,

1. prepositional; á hendr (with dat.), against; á hæla, at heel, close behind; á bak, at back, i. e. past, after; á vit (with gen.), towards.

2. adverbially; á braut, away, abroad; á víxl, in turns; á mis, amiss; á víð ok dreif, a-wide and a-drift, i. e. dispersedly.

3. used almost redundantly before the following prep.; á eptir, after, behind; á undan, in front of; á meðal, á milli, among; á mót, against; á við, about, alike; á frá (cp. Swed. ifrån), from (rare); á fyrir = fyrir, Haustl. 1; á hjá, beside (rare); á fram, a-head, forwards; á samt, together; ávalt = of allt, always: following a prep., upp á, upon; niðr á, down upon; ofan á, eptir á, post eventum, (temp.) á eptir is loc., id., etc.

VII. connected with many transitive verbs, answering to the Lat. ad- or in-, in composition, in many cases periphrastically for an objective case. The prep. generally follows after the verb, instead of being prefixed to it as in Lat., and answers to the Engl. on, to; heita kalla, hrópa á, to call on; heyra, hlusta, hlyða á, to hearken to, listen to; hyggja, hugsa á, to think on; minna á, to remind; sjá, líta, horfa, stara, mæna, glápa, koma auga … á, to look on; girnast á, to wish for; trúa á, to believe on; skora á, to call on any one to come out, challenge; kæra á, to accuse; heilsa á, to greet; herja, ganga, ríða, hlaupa, ráða … á, to fall on, attack, cp. ágangr, áreið, áhlaup; ljúga á, to tell lies of, to slander; telja á, to carp at; ausa, tala, hella, kasta, verpa … á, to pour, throw on; ríða, bera, dreifa á, to sprinkle on; vanta, skorta á, to fall short of; ala á, to plead, beg; leggja á, to throw a spell on, lay a saddle on; hætta á, to venture on; gizka á, to guess at; kveða á, to fix on, etc.: in a reciprocal sense, haldast á, of mutual strife; sendast á, to exchange presents; skrifast á, to correspond (mod.); kallast á, to shout mutually; standast á, to coincide, so as to be just opposite one another, etc.

f. [Lat. aqua; Goth. ahva; Hel. aha; A. S. eâ; O. H. G. aha, owa; cp. Germ. ach and aue; Fr. eau, eaux; Engl. Ax-, Ex-, etc., in names of places; Swed.-Dan. å; the Scandinavians absorb the hu, so that only a single vowel or diphthong remains of the whole word]:—a river. The old form in nom. dat. acc. sing. is , v. the introduction to A, page 1, Bs. i. 333 sq., where ́n, ́ (acc.), and ́na; so also Greg. 677; the old fragm. of Grág. ii. 222, 223, new Ed. In the Kb. of the Edda the old form occurs twice, viz. page 75, ́na (acc.), (but two lines below, ána), í ́nni (dat.) The old form also repeatedly occurs in the Kb. and Sb. of the Grág., e. g. ii. 266, 267: gen. sing. ár; nom. pl. ár, gen. á contracted, dat. ám, obsolete form ́m; Edda 43, Eg. 80, 99, 133, 185: proverbs, at ósi skal á stemma, answering to the Lat. principiis obsta, Edda 60; hér kemr á til sæfar, here the river runs into the sea, metaph. = this is the very end, seems to have been a favourite ending of old poems; it is recorded in the Húsdrápa and the Norðsetadrápa, v. Edda 96, Skálda 198; cp. the common saying, oil vötn renna til sævar, ‘all waters run into the sea.’ Rivers with glacier water are in Icel. called Hvítá, White river, or Jökulsá: Hitá, Hot river, from a hot spring, opp. to Kaldá, v. Landn.: others take a name from the fish in them, as Laxá, Lax or Salmon river (freq.); Örriða á, etc.: a tributary river is þverá, etc.: ár in the Njála often means the great rivers Ölfusá and Þjórsá in the south of Iceland. Áin helga, a river in Sweden, Hkr. ii: á is also suffixed to the names of foreign rivers, Tempsá = Thames; Dóná, Danube (Germ. Don-au), (mod.), etc. Vide Edda (Gl.) 116, 117, containing the names of over a hundred North-English and Scottish rivers.

COMPDS: áráll, árbakki, árbrot, ardjúp, árfarvegr, árfors, árgljúfr, árhlutr, ármegin, árminni, ármót, áróss, árreki, árstraumr, árströnd, árvað, árvegr, árvöxtr.

I) prep.

A. with dative.

I. Of motion;

1) towards, against;

Otkell laut at Skamkatli, bowed down to S.;

hann sneri egginni at Ásgrími, turned the edge against A.;

2) close atup to;

Brynjólfr gengr alit at honum, quite up to him;

þeir kómust aldri at honum, they could never get near him, to close quarters with him;

3) to, at;

koma at landi, to come to land;

ganga at dómi, to go into court;

4) along (= eptir);

ganga at stræti, to walk along the street;

dreki er niðr fór at ánni (went down the river) fyrir strauminum;

refr dró hörpu at ísi, on the ice;

5) denoting hostility;

renna (sœkja) at e-m, to rush at, assault;

gerði þá at þeim þoku mikla, they were overtaken by a thick fog;

6) around;

vefja motri at höfði sér, to wrap a veil round one’s head;

bera grjót at e-m, to heap stones upon the body;

7) denoting business, engagement;

ríða at hrossum, at sauðum, to go looking after horses, watching sheep;

fara at landskuldum, to go collecting rents.

II. Of position, &c.;

1) denoting presence at, near, by, upon;

at kirkju, at church;

at dómi, in court;

at lögbergi, at the hill of laws;

2) denoting participation in;

vera at veizlu, brullaupi, to be at a banquet, wedding;

vera at vígi, to be an accessory in man-slaying;

3) ellipt., vera at, to be about, to be busy at;

kvalararnir, er at vóru at pína hann, who were tormenting him;

var þar at kona nökkur at binda (was there busy dressing) sár manna;

4) with proper names of places (farms);

konungr at Danmörku ok Noregi, king of;

biskup at Hólum, bishop of Holar;

at Helgafelli, at Bergþórshváli;

5) used ellipt. with a genitive, at (a person’s) house;

at hans (at his house) gisti fjölmenni mikit;

at Marðar, at Mara’s home;

at hins beilaga Ólafs konungs, at St. Olave’s church;

at Ránar, at Ran’s (abode).

III. Of time;

1) at, in;

at upphafi, at first, in the beginning;

at skilnaði, at parting, when they parted;

at páskum, at Easter;

at kveldi, at eventide;

at þinglausnum, at the close of the Assembly;

at fjöru, at the ebb;

at flœðum, at the floodtide;

2) adding ‘komanda’ or ‘er kemr’;

at ári komanda, next year;

at vári, er kemr, next spring;

generally with ‘komanda’ understood;

at sumri, hausti, vetri, vári, next summer, &c.;

3) used with an absolute dative and present or past part.;

at sér lifanda, duing his lifetime;

at öllum ásjándum, in the sight of all;

at áheyranda höfðingjanum, in the hearing of the chief;

at upprennandi sólu, at sunrise;

at liðnum sex vikum, after six weeks are past;

at honum önduðum, after his death;

4) denoting uninterrupted succession, after;

hverr at öðrum, annarr at öðrum, one after another;

skildu menn at þessu, thereupon, after this;

at því (thereafter) kómu aðrar meyjar.

IV. fig. and in various uses;

1) to, into, with the notion of destruction or change;

brenna (borgina) at ösku, to burn to ashes;

verða at ormi, to become a snake;

2) for, as;

gefa e-t at gjöf, as a present;

eiga e-n at vin, to have one as friend;

3) by;

taka sverð at hjöltum, by the hilt;

draga út björninn at hlustunum, by the ears;

kjósa at afli, álitum, by strength, appearrance;

4) as regards as to;

auðigr at fé, wealthy in goods;

vænn (fagr) at áliti, fair of face;

5) as a law term, on the grounds of, by reason of;

ryðja ( to challenge) dóm at mægðum, kvið at frændsemi;

6) as a paraphrase of a genitive;

faðir, móðir at barni (= barns, of a child);

aðili at sök = aðili sakar;

7) with adjectives denoting colour, size, age, of;

hvítr, svartr, rauðr at lit, while, black, red of colour;

mikill, lítill at stœrð, vexti, tall, small of stature;

tvítugr at aldri, twenty years of age;

kýr at fyrsta, öðrum kálfi, a cow that has calved once, twice;

8) determining the source from which anything comes, of, from;

Ari nam ok marga frœði at Þuríði (from her);

þiggja, kaupa, geta, leigja e-t at e-m, to receive, buy, obtain, borrow a thing from one;

hafa veg (virðing) styrk at e-m, to derive honour, power, from one;

9) according, to, after (heygðr at fornum sið);

at ráði allra vitrustu manna, by the advice of;

at landslögum, by the law of the land;

at vánum, as was to be expected;

at leyfi e-s, by one’s leave;

10) in adverbial phrases;

gróa (vera grœddr) at heilu, to be quite healed;

bíta af allt gras at snøggu, quite bare;

at fullu, fully;

at vísu, surely;

at frjálsu, freely;

at eilífu, for ever and ever;

at röngu, at réttu, wrongly, rightly;

at líku, at sömu, equally, all the same;

at mun, at ráði, at marki, to a great extent.

B. with acc., after, upon (= eptir);

sonr á at taka arf at föður sinn, to take the inheritance after his father;

eiga féránsdóm at e-n, to hold a court of execution upon a person;

at þat (= eptir þat), after that, thereafter;

connected with a past part. or a., at Gamla fallinn, after the fall of Gamli;

at Hrungni dauðan, upon the death of Hrungnir.

1) as the simple mark of the infinitive, to;

at ganga, at ríða, at hlaupa, to walk, to ride, to run;

2) in an objective sense;

hann bauð þeim at fara, sitja, he bade (ordered) them to go, sit;

gefa e-m at eta, at drekka, to give one to eat, to drink;

3) denoting design or purpose, in order to (hann gekk í borg at kaupa silfr).

1) demonstrative particle before a comparative, the, all the, so much the;

hón grét at meir, she wept the more;

þykkir oss at líkara, all the more likely;

þú ert maðr at verri (so much the worse), er þú hefir þetta mælt;

2) rel. pron., who, which, that (= er);

þeir allir, at þau tíðindi heyrðu, all those who heard;

sem þeim er títt, at ( as is the custom of those who) kaupferðir reka.

conj., that;

1) introducing a subjective or objective clause;

þat var einhverju sinni, at Höskuldr hafði vinaboð, it happened once that H.;

vilda ek, at þú réðist austr í fjörðu, I should like you to go;

2) relative to svá, denoting proportion, degree;

svá mikill lagamaðr, at, so great a lawyer, that;

3) with subj., denoting end or purpose, in order that (skáru þeir fyrir þá (viz. hestana) melinn, at þeir dœi eigi af sulti);

4) since, because, as (= því at);

5) connected with þó, því, svá;

þó at (with subj.), though, although;

því at, because, for;

svá at, so that;

6) temp., þá at (= þá er), when;

þegar at (= þegar er), as soon as;

þar til at (= þar til er), until, till;

áðr at (= á. en), before;

7) used superfluously after an int. pron. or adv.;

Ólafr spurði, hvern styrk at hann mundi fá honum, what help he was likely to give him;

in a relative sense; með fullkomnum ávexti, hverr at (which) þekkr ok þægiligr mun verða.

negative verbal suffix, = ata; var-at, was not.

n. an incited conflict or fight ( see etja);

odda at, Yggs at, battle.

* * *

n. [éta, át, edere, A. S. ǽt], the act of eating, in the phrase, at öldri ok at áti, inter bibendum et edendum, Grág. ii. 170, N. G. L. i. 29; át ok drykkja, Fas. ii. 552, Orkn. 200; át ok atvinna, Stj. 143: of beasts, kýr hafnaði átinu, the cow (being sick) would not eat, Bs. i. 194.