in+one's+own+hands

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(gen. handar, dat. hendi; pl. hendr), f.

1) hand;

taka hendi á e-u, to touch with the hand;

hafa e-t í hendi, to hold in the hand;

drepa hendi við e-u, to refuse;

halda hendi yfir e-m, to protect one;

taka e-n höndum, to seize, capture;

bera hönd fyrir höfuð sér, to defend oneself;

eiga hendr sínar at verja, to act in self defence;

láta e-t hendi firr, to let go out of one’s hands, to lose;

taka í hönd e-m, to join hands with one;

eiga e-t jöfnum höndum, to own in equal shares;

sverja sér af hendi, to forswear;

af hendi e-s, on one’s behalf, on the part of (af hendi landsmanna);

at hendi, as adv. in turn;

hverr at hendi, each in turn;

felast á hendi e-m, to be under one’s protection;

hvat er þér á höndum, what hast thou in hand?;

ef honum væri ekki á höndum, if he had nothing in hand, if his hands were free;

eiga e-t fyrir hendi (höndum), to have in hand (duty, business, engagement);

vera í hendi, to be at hand, at one’s disposal;

hafa vel (illa) í höndum, to behave well (badly);

hafa e-t með höndum, to have in hand, manage, discharge;

hljóta e-t undan hendi e-s, from one, at one’s hand;

á hönd, á hendr, against (lýsa vígi á hönd e-m);

snúa vanda á hendr e-m, to throw the responsibility on one;

fœrast e-t á hendr, to undertake;

ganga (drífa) á hönd e-m, to submit to one;

bjargast á sínar hendr, by one’s own handiwork;

selja, gefa, fá e-t í hönd (hendr) e-m, to give into one’s hands, hand over;

búa e-t í hendr e-m, to make it ready for one;

kalla til e-s í hendr e-m, to lay claim to a thing at the hands of another;

þá sömu nótt, er fór í hönd, the following night;

veðr óx í hönd, the wind rose higher and higher;

vera hœgt um hönd, to be easy in hand;

til handa e-m, into one’s hands;

ganga til handa e-m, to put oneself in another’s hands, submit to him;

ef þat berr þér til handa, if it befalls thee;

þá skömrn kýs ek mér eigi til handa, I will not have that shame at my door;

biðja konu til handa e-m, on one’s behalf, for him;

2) the arm and hand, the arm (höndin gekk af axlarliðnum; hann hefir á hœgri hendi hring fyrir ofan ölnboga);

var eigi djúpara en þeim tók undir hendr, the water just reached to their armpits;

3) hand, side;

á hœgri (vinstri) hönd, on the right (left) hand, side;

á hvára hönd, on either hand;

minnar (yðvarrar) handar, for my (your) part;

4) kind, sort;

allra handa árgœzka, great abundance of all things.

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f., gen. handar, dat. hendi, acc. hönd, pl. hendr, mod. proncd. höndur, gen. handa; [Goth. handus; A. S. and Engl. hand; O. H. G. hant; Germ. hand; Dan. haand; Swed. hand]:—a hand; beit höndina þar er nú heitir úlfliðr, Edda 17; armleggir, handleggir ok hendr, Anecd. 6; kné eðr hendi, Grág. ii. 8; ganga á höndum, Fms. vi. 5; með hendi sinni, K. Þ. K. 5 new Ed.; taka hendi á e-u, to touch with the hand, Fms. x. 110; taka höndum um háls e-m, Nj. 10; hvítri hendi, Hallfred; hafa e-t í hendi, to hold in hand, wield, Eg. 297, Nj. 84, 97, 255; hrjóta ór hendi e-m, Fms. xi. 141; hafa fingrgull á hendi, Nj. 146; handar-högg, Fms. xi. 126, Fas. ii. 459; sjá ekki handa sinna skil (deili), not to be able to see one’s hands, of a dense fog.

2. the arm and hand, the arm, like Gr. χείρ, Nj. 160, 253; á hendi heitir alnbogi, Edda 110; hendr til axla, Fas. i. 160; leggir handa ok fóta, Magn. 532; hönd fyrir ofan úlnlið, Nj. 84; hafa hring á hendi, of an arm-ring, Nj. 131; hring á hægri hendi fyrir ofan ölnboga, Fms. iv. 383:—the arm and arm-pit, ná, taka undir hönd ( arm-pit) e-m, Gþl. 380; var eigi djúpara en þeim tók undir hendr, the water reached to their arm-pits, Ld. 78; taka undir hönd sér, to take hold under one’s arms, Eg. 237, Nj. 200; sjá undir hönd e-m, Fas. ii. 558; renna undir hendr e-m, to backspan one, Háv. 40, 41; þykkr undir hönd, stout, Ld. 272.

3. metaph. handwriting, hand; rita góða hönd, to write a good hand; snar-hönd, running hand, italics.

II. the hand, side; hægri hönd, the right hand; vinstri hönd, the left hand; á hvára hönd, on either hand, each side, Landn. 215; á vinstri hönd, Nj. 196; á hægri hönd; á tvær hendr, on both hands or sides, Ísl. ii. 368, Fas. i. 384; á báðar hendr, Grág.; hvat sem á aðra hönd ber, whatsoever may happen; á aðra hönd … en á aðra, Ld. 46; til hvárigrar handara, Fms. x. 313; til annarrar handar, Nj. 50, 97; til sinnar handar hvárr, 140; til beggja handa, Eg. 65; til ýmsa handa, Bs. i. 750; þver-hönd, a hand’s breadth; örv-hönd.

III. sayings and phrases referring to the hand:

1. sayings; sjálfs hönd er hollust, one’s own hand is best, i. e. if you want to have a thing well done, do it yourself, Glúm. 332, Ó. H. 157; blíð er bætandi hönd, blessed is the mending hand; gjörn er hönd á venju, Grett. 150, Nj. (in a verse), and Edda (Ht. 26); margar hendr vinna létt verk; fiplar hönd á feigu tafli; betri ein kráka í hendi en tvær á skógi, Ld. 96; skamma stund verðr hönd höggvi fegin, see högg.

2. phrases; drepa hendi við, to refuse, Nj. 71; halda hendi yfir e-m, to hold one’s hand over, protect, 266, Fbr. 22, Anecd. 14; taka e-n höndum, to take hold with the hands, seize, capture, Fms. x. 314, Nj. 265, passim; eiga hendr sínar at verja, to act in self-defence, 84, 223; hefja handa, to lift the hands, stir for action, 65, Ld. 262; bera hönd fyrir höfuð sér, to put one’s hand before one’s head, stand on one’s guard, defend oneself; vera í hers höndum, óvina höndum, to be in a state of war, exposed to rapine; vera í góðum höndum, vina-höndum, góðra manna höndum, to be in good hands, among friends.

β. læknis-hendr, ‘leech hands,’ healing hands; pains and sickness were believed to give way to the magical touch of a person gifted with such hands, Sdm. 4, Magn. S. Góða ch. 36 (Fms. vi. 73), cp. Rafns S. ch. 2; hönd full, a handful, Fms. ii. 302, vi. 38, viii. 306; fullar hendr fjár, hands full of gold:—kasta hendinni til e-s, to huddle a thing up; með harðri hendi, with hard hand, harshly, rudely; með hangandi hendi, with drooping hand, slothfully; fegins hendi, with glad hand, joyfully; sitja auðum höndum, to sit with empty hands, sit idle; but með tómar hendr, empty-handed, portionless, Thom.:—láta hendr standa fram úr ermum, to work briskly; víkja hendi til e-s (handar-vik), to move the hand to do a thing; það er ekki í tveim höndum að hafa við e-n, of double handed (i. e. faltering) half measures, when the one hand undoes what the other has done; kann ek þat sjá at ekki má í tveim höndum hafa við slíka menn, Band. 3; láta hönd selja hendi, of a ready bargain; láta e-t ganga hendi firr, to let go out of one’s hands, lose, Ld. 202; ok lét sér eigi hendi firr ganga, and never lost sight of him, 656 ii. 4; e-m fallask hendr, to be discomfited, lose one’s head (see falla); leggja görva hönd á allt, to be a ready hand, adept in everything, Thom. 300 (see göra F. 2); taka í hönd e-m, to join hands, Nj. 3; takask í hendr, to join, shake hands, Grág. ii. 80; leggja hendr saman, id., Gþl. 18,—of shaking hands as symbolical of a bargain, see the compds hand-lag, hand-festi, handa-band; eiga, taka, jöfnum höndum, to own, take with even hands, i. e. in equal shares, Grág. i. 171, ii. 66, Hkr. i. 318; vinna jöfnum höndum, to work even-handed, to help one another; e-m eru mislagðar hendr, one’s hands are amiss, when bad work is done by one from whom better was expected; honum hafa verið mislagðar hendr, etc.

B. Metaph. usages:

I. dat., sverja sér af hendi, to forswear, Fms. vii. 176; færa af höndum sér, to dismiss, Grág. i. 248; hefjask af höndum e-m, Fms. xi. 59:—af hendi e-s, on one’s behalf, part, Landn. 154; af hendi Hákonar, Fms. i. 20, iv. 118; af hendi landsmanna, ix. 359; af sinni hendi, of one’s own hand, for one’s own part, Grág. i. 392; reiða, greiða, gjalda, inna af hendi or höndum, to discharge, pay off, Fms. vii. 230, Nj. 146, 190, 232, 239, 257, 281, Grág. i. 82, ii. 374; selja, láta af hendi (höndum), to part with, dismiss, Nj. 186, 231, Fms. vii. 173, Rb. 12; líða af hendi, to pass, of time, Ísl. ii. 144, Fms. iv. 83: koma, bera at hendi, to happen, Nj. 71, 177: at hendi, as adv. in turn; hvern at hendi, each in turn, Fms. i. 150: þar næst Gunnarr, þá Loðinn, þá hverr at hendi, Nj. 140; hverr segir at hendi þat er frá honum hefir stolit verit, Mar.: felask á hendi e-m, to be under one’s charge, protection, Nj. 201, Bs. i. 167, 173. vera e-m á hendi, id., Fms. vii. 243; vera bundinn á hendi e-m, Sturl. i. 57: hafa e-t á höndum (hendi), to have a thing in hand, of duty, business to be done, Grág. i. 38; eiga ferð á höndum, Ld. 72; hvat er þér á höndum, what hast thou in hand? for what art thou concerned, distressed? Nj. 133, Ld. 270; ella eru þér stórir hlutir á höndum, Fms. vii. 30; ef honum væri ekki á höndum, if he had nothing in hand, if his hands were free, Ld. 42: eiga e-t fyrir hendi (höndum), to have in hand (duty, business, engagement), Fas. ii. 557; farvegr langr fyrir hendi, Fms. xi. 316; tveir kostir fyrir höndum, Nj. 264, Grág. i. 279; hafa sýslu fyrir höndum, Ísl. ii. 344; eiga vandræði fyrir höndum, Ld. 4; eiga gott fyrir höndum, Hkr. iii. 254: vera í hendi, to be at hand, within reach, at one’s disposal, in one’s power; hann er eigi í hendi, Fms. vi. 213; þat er eigi í hendi, ‘tis no easy matter, v. l.; hafa raun ( evidence) í hendi, Bs. i. 708; hafa ráð e-s í hendi sér, Ld. 174, Fas. i. 260; hafa vel, ílla í höndum, to behave well, badly, Ísl. ii. 387, Eg. 158; varð honum þat vel í höndum, 50: hafa e-t með höndum (fé, auðæfi, embætti, etc.), to have in hand, manage, discharge, Grág. ii. 389, Greg. 25, Stj. 248, Hkr. iii. 131; to design, hafa ráð, stórræði með höndum, 623. 51: hljóta undan hendi e-s, from one, at one’s hands, Fas. i. 365: undir höndum, eigi lítill undir höndum, not a small man to handle, Fms. vii. 17; vera undir höndum e-m, to be under or in one’s hands, under one’s protection, in one’s power, Sks. 337, Fms. i. 7, 13; sitja undir hendi e-m, Hkr. i. 166,—um hendr, Fms. iv. 71, is prob. an error = undir hendi.

2. absol., annarri hendi, on the other hand, Fms. vii. 158; en annarri hendi vildu þeir gjarna veita konungi hlýðni, ix. 258.

II. acc., with prepp.; á hönd, á hendr, against; höfða sök, lýsa vígi (etc.) á hönd e-m, to make a suit … against, Grág. i. 19, Nj. 86, 87, 98, 99, 101, 110, 120, 230; hyggja e-t á hendr e-m, to lay a thing to a person’s charge, Hom. 115; reynask á hendr e-m, to have a charge brought home to one, Fms. xi. 76; snúa vanda á hendr e-m, to throw the responsibility upon …, Nj. 215; færa, segja stríð á hendr e-m, to wage, declare war against one; fara geystr á hendr e-m, to rage against, Fms. vii. 230; færask e-t á hendr, to undertake, Nj. 126; ganga á hönd e-m, to vex one, 625. 33; sótt elnar á hendr e-m, Eg. 126; leggja e-t á hendr e-m, to lay ( a burden) on one’s hands, Fms. xi. 98; in a good sense, ganga á hönd, to pay homage to, submit, Ó. H. 184; dreif allt fólk á hönd honum, submitted to him, filled his ranks, Fms. i. 21; bjargask á sínar hendr, by one’s own handwork, Vápn. 28; (for at hönd, Grág. i. 135, read á hönd): selja, fá, gefa e-t í hönd, hendr e-m, to give into one’s hands, hand over; selja sök í hönd e-m (handsöl), Grág. ii. 80, Nj. 4, 98, 112, 186; so, halda e-u í hönd e-m, Ísl. ii. 232, Fms. vii. 274; búa í hendr e-m, to make it ready for one, Ld. 130; veiði berr í hendr e-m, Nj. 252; kalla til e-s í hendr e-m, to lay claim to a thing at the hands of another, Ld. 300, Eg. 350, Fms. iv. 222, ix. 424; þegar í hönd, offhand, immediately, Bs. i; þá sömu nótt er fór í hönd, the following night, Fms. viii. 397, Glúm. 341; gjalda í hönd, to pay in cash, Vm. 16; veðr óx í hönd, the wind rose higher and higher, Fb. i. 432: undir jafna hönd, equally, Sturl. iii. 243; standa óbrigðiliga undir jafna hönd, Dipl. v. 26: væra hægt um hönd, to be easy in hand, Nj. 25; þegar eg vil er hægt um hönd, heima á Fróni að vera, Núm. 1. 10; but mér er e-t um hönd, it is awkward, costs trouble: hafa við hönd sér, to keep at hand, Fms. x. 264; tóku konur manna ok dætr ok höfðu við hönd sér viku, Grett. 97; hafa e-t við höndina, to have it at hand.

III. gen., with prepp.; til handa e-m, into one’s hands; fara Guði til handa, to go into God’s hands, Blas. 51; ganga til handa e-m, to put oneself in another’s hands, submit to him, Rb. 404, Eg. 12, Fms. vii. 234, Fas. ii. 522; ef þat berr þér til handa, if it befalls thee, i. 135; þá skömm kýs ek mér eigi til handa, I will not have that shame at my door, Nj. 191: for one, on one’s behalf, biðja konu til handa e-m, 120, 180, Grág. i. 353; í þeirri bæn er hann orti oss til handa, for its, for our use, our sake, 655 i. 2; hann hélt fénu til handa Þrándi, Landn. 214, Nj. 151; safnar konungr liði (til) handa Oddi, Fas. ii. 553; til handa Þorkatli, Fs.

β. dropping the prep. til; mikit fé handa honum, Rd. 195 (late MSS.): whence, handa has become an adverb with dat., handa e-m, for one, Lat. alicui, which is freq. in mod. usage.

2. adverbial; allra handa, Dan. allehaande, of every kind; allra handa árgæzka, Edda (pref.); allra handa ganganda fé, Þórð. 51 new Ed.; fjögurra handa, of a fourfold kind, H. E. i. 525.

3. absol., minnar handar, for my part, Ísl. ii. 356; yðvarrar handar, for your part, Fms. ix. 498; hvárrar-tveggju handar, on either hand, Skálda 164; innan handar, within one’s hands, easy, Ld. 112; þótti þeim innan handar falla at taka land þetta hjá sér sjálfum, 210.

C. COMPDS:

I. plur., handa-afl, n., Edda, = handafl, p. 237. handa-band, n. a joining or shaking of hands, as a law term = handlag, Dipl. i. 11, iv. 2, Vígl. 23; in plur., Bs. (Laur. S.); heilsa, kveðja með handabandi. handa-festi, f. a hold for the hands, Fms. ii. 276. handa-gangr, m. grasping after a thing with all hands, Fas. iii. 345. handa-görvi, f. ‘hand-gear,’ gloves, Sd. 143, Fbr. 139. handa-hóf, n., in the phrase, af handahófi, at random. handa-kenning, f. hand touching, Eluc. 20. handa-klapp, n. a clapping of hands, Skálda 174. handa-læti, n. pl. gestures with the arms, Sks. 116. handar-mál, n., in the phrase, at handarmáli, in heaps; var þá drepit lið hans at handarmáli, Fas. i. 41. handa-saumr, m. tight gloves, Bs. ii. 10. handa-síðr, adj. = handsíðr. handa-skil, n. pl., in the phrase, sjá ekki h., not to see one’s own hands, as in the dark, in a dense fog. handa-skol, n. pl. maladroitness; það er allt í handaskolum. handa-skömm, f. shameful work, a scandal; það er mesta h.! handa-staðr, m. the print of the hands. Fas. i. 285. handa-tak, n., -tekt, f., -tekja, u, f. a taking of hands, as a bargain, Háv. 42, H. E. ii. 194, D. N. i. 398. handa-tæki, n. pl. a laying hold, a fight, Bs. i. (Laur. S.): a pledging of hands, Dipl. ii. 6, D. N. passim. handa-upphald, n. a lifting the arms, Stj. 296. handa-verk, n. pl. one’s handiwork, doings, N. G. L. i. 76, Fms. vii. 295, Stj. 198; í handaverkum eða bókfræði, 46; handaverk manna, men’s handiwork, Blas. 47; Guðs h.; ek em þín h., Sks. 610; hans h., Fms. viii. 406.

II. sing., handar-bak, n. the back of the hand, Sdm. 7. handar-gagn, n. a being ready to the hand; leggja e-t til handargagns, to lay it so as to be ready at hand, Hkr. ii, 158, 249. handar-grip, n. a measure, = spönn, Karl. 481. handar-hald, proncd. handarald, n. a handle, Fas. ii. 355. handar-jaðarr, m. the hand’s edge; in the phrase, vera undir handar-jaðri e-s, to be in one’s hands, in one’s power, Fær. 201. handar-kriki, a, m. ‘hand’s-creek,’ the arm-pit, Eg. 396, Fms. vi. 348, Sturl. ii. 37. handar-mein, n. a sore in the hand, Bs. i. 115, 187, Sturl. ii. 177. handar-stúfr, m. a ‘hand-stump,’ stump of the arm, the hand being hacked off, Fms. x. 258, xi. 119. handar-vani, a, m. maimed in hand, Hm. 70, Matth. xviii. 8. handar-veif, n., í handarveifi, in a ‘wave of the hand,’ in a moment. handar-vik, n. the hands’ reach, movement, work; lítið handarvik, a small work. handar-væni, a, m. want of hands (?), Hm. 72.

☞ For the compds in hand- see pp. 237, 238.

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(á, átta, áttr), v.

1) to own, possess (Starkaðr átti hest góðan);

2) to have (eiga börn, föður, móður, vin);

eiga konu, to have her for wife;

hann átti Gró, he was married to G.;

hann gekk at eiga Þóru, he took Th. for his wife, he married Th.;

enga vil ek þessa eiga, I will not marry any of these;

eiga heima, to have a home, to live (þeir áttu heima austr í Mörk);

eiga sér e-t = eiga e-t (Höskuldr átti sér dóttur, er Hallgerðr hét);

eiga ván e-s, to have hope of a thing, to reckon upon;

eiga hlut at or í e-u, to have a share in a thing, to be concerned in;

eiga vald á e-u, to have within one’s power;

3) to be under obligation, be obliged, have to do a thing;

tólf menn, þeir er fylgð áttu með konungi, who were bound to attend the king’s person;

á ek þar fyrir at sjá, I am bound (I have) to see to that;

átti Hrútr för í Vestfjorðu, H. had to go to the V.;

4) to have a right (claim) to, be entitled to (eiga högg ok höfn í skóginum);

eiga mál í e-m, to have a charge against one;

eiga rétt á sér, to have a (personal) claim to redress;

5) to keep, hold;

eiga fund, þing, samkvámu, stefnu, to hold a meeting;

eiga kaupstefnu, to hod a market;

eiga orrustu við e-n, to fight a battle with one;

eiga högg við e-n, to exchange blows with one;

eiga illt við e-n, to quarrel with;

eiga tal (or mál) við e-n, to speak, converse with one;

6) as an auxiliary with pp. = hafa (þat er við áttum mælt);

eiga skilit, to have stipulated;

7) to have to (skal Þ. eigi at því eiga at spotta);

eiga hendr sínar it verja, to have to act in self-defence;

eiga um vandræði at halda, to be in a strait;

8) eiga e-m e-t, to owe to one (mun æ, hvat þú átt þeim er veitir);

9) to be the person denoted by a thing;

þat muntu ætla, at ek mun eiga hinn bleika uxann, that the fawn-coloured ox means me;

10) with preps.:

eiga e-t at e-m, to have something due from one, to expect from one (þat vil ek eiga at þér, at þú segir mér frá ferð þinni);

to deserve from one (ok á ek annat at þér);

þeir er mikit þóttust at sér eiga, had much in their power;

eiga e-t eptir, to have to do yet, to have left undone (þat áttu eptir, er erfiðast er, en þat er at deyja);

to leave behind one (andaðist ok átti eptir tvá sonu vaxna);

eiga e-t saman, to own in common;

eiga skap saman, to agree well, be of one mind;

eigi veit ek, hvárt við eigum heill saman, whether we shall live happy together;

eiga saman, to quarrel, = eiga deild saman;

eiga um við e-n, to have to deal with (við brögðótta áttu nú um);

þar sem við vini mína er um at eiga, where my friends are concerned;

eiga e-t undir e-m, to have in another’s hands;

Njáll átti mikit fé undir Starkaði ok í Sandgili, N. had much money out at interest with St. and at Sandgil, er sá eigi vel staddr, er líf sitt á undir þinum trúnaði, whose life depends on thy good faith;

eiga mikit (lítit) undir sér, to have much (little) in one’s power;

far þú við marga menn, svá at þú eigir allt undir þér, that the whole matter rests in thy own hands;

hann sá, at hann átti ekki undir sér, that he had no influence;

eiga við e-n, to have to do with, fight with (brátt fundu þeir, at þeir áttu þar ekki við sinn maka);

ekki á ek þetta við þik, this is no business between thee and me;

eiga gott (illt) við e-n, to be on good (bad) terms with one;

eiga við konu, to have intercourse with, = eiga lag (samræði) við konu;

recipr., eigast við, to deal with one another; fight, quarrel;

eigast við deildir, to be engaged in strife;

áttust þeir höggvaskipti við, they exchanged blows with one another.

1) possession;

kasta sinni eigu, leggja sína eigu, í e-t, to take possession of;

2) property.

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pret. átti; pret. subj. ætti, pres. eigi; pres. ind. á, 2nd pers. átt (irreg. eigr, Dipl. v. 24), pl. eigum, 3rd pers. pl. old form eigu, mod. eiga; imperat. eig and eigðu; sup. átt; with suffixed neg. pres. ind. 1st pers. á’k-at, 2nd pers. átt-attu; pret. subj. ættim-a: [Gr. ἔχω; Goth. aigan; A. S. âgan; Hel. êgan; O. H. G. eigan; Swed. äga; Dan. eje; Engl. to owe and own, of which the former etymologically answers to ‘eiga,’ the latter to ‘eigna’]:—to have, possess.

A. ACT.

I. denoting ownership, to possess:

1. in a proper sense; allt þat góz sem þeir eiga eðr eigandi verða, D. N. i. 80; hann eigr hálfa jörðina, Dipl. v. 24; Björn hljóp þá á skútu er hann átti, Eb. 6; Starkaðr átti hest góðan, Nj. 89; þau áttu gnótt í búi, 257; hón á allan arf eptir mik, 3; átti hón auð fjár, Ld. 20; ef annarr maðr ferr með goðorð en sá er á, Grág. i. 159; annat vápnit, ok á þat Þorbjörn, en Þorgautr á þetta, Ísl. ii. 341; eignir þær er faðir hans hafði átt, Eb. 4; í ríki því er Dana konungar höfðu átt þar lengi, Fms. xi. 301, Rb. 494, Eb. 54, 118, 256, 328, Sturl. ii. 60, Eg. 118; e. saman, to own in common, Grág. i. 199; ef tveir menn eigo bú saman, ii. 44; e. skuld (at e-m), to be in debt, Engl. to owe; en ef hann átti engar skuldir, if he owed no debts, i. 128; þar til átti honum ( owed him) meistari Þorgeirr ok þá mörk, D. N. iv. 288 (Fr.); e. fé undir e-m, to be one’s creditor, Nj. 101; in mod. usage, e. fé hjá e-m, or ellipt., e. hjá e-m.

2. in a special sense;

α. eiga konu, to have her to wife; hann átti Gró, Eb. 16; hann átti Ynghvildi, 3; Þorgerðr er (acc.) átti Vigfúss, … Geirríðr er (acc.) átti Þórólfr, 18; hann gékk at eiga Þóru, he married Thora, id.; Þuríði hafði hann áðr átta, Thorida had been his first wife, 42; enga vil ek þessa e., I will not marry any of these, Nj. 22; Björn átti þá konu er Valgerðr hét, 213, 257; faðir Hróðnýjar er átti Þorsteinn, Landn. 90; Ásdísi átti síðar Skúli, S. was A.’s second husband, 88; Þorgerðr er átti Önundr sjóni, 89; Vigdís er átti Þorbjörn enn digri, 87; Árnþrúðr er átti Þórir hersir, 66; Húngerð er átti Svertingr, 6l, 86, and in numberless passages: old writers hardly ever say that the wife owns her husband—the passages in Edda 109 (vide elja) and Nj. 52 (til lítils kemr mér at eiga hinn vaskasta mann á Íslandi) are extraordinary—owing to the primitive notion of the husband’s ‘jus possessionis’ (cp. brúðkaup); but in mod. usage ‘eiga’ is used indiscriminately of both wife and husband; Icel. even say, in a recipr. sense, eigast, to own one another, to be married: þau áttust, they married; hann vildi ekki at þau ættist, hann bannaði þeim að eigast, he forbade them to marry:—to the ancients such a phrase was almost unknown, and occurs for the first time in K. Á. 114.

β. eiga börn, to have children, of both parents; áttu þau Jófriðr tíu börn, J. and her husband had ten bairns, Eg. 708; hann átti dóttur eina er Unnr hét, Nj. 1; þau Þorsteinn ok Unnr áttu son er Steinn hét, Eb. 10, Nj. 91, 257; áttu þau Þórhildr þrjá sonu, 30; e. móður, föður, to have a mother, father, Eb. 98; vænti ek ok, at þú eigir illan föður, id.

γ. the phrase, e. heima, to have a home; þeir áttu heima austr í Mörk, Nj. 55; því at ek tek eigi heim í kveld, þar sem ek á heima út á Íslandi, 275; in mod. usage = to live, abide, in regard to place, cp. the questions put to a stranger, hvað heitir maðrinn? hvar áttu heima? used in a wider sense than búa.

δ. eiga sér, to have, cp. ‘havde sig’ in Dan. ballads; Höskuldr átti sér dóttur er Hallgerðr hét, Nj. 3; ef hann á sér í vá veru, Hm. 25, (freq. in mod. use.)

3. without strict notion of possession; e. vini, óvini, to have friends, enemies, Nj. 101; hverja liðveizlu skal ek þar e. er þú ert, what help can I reckon upon from thee? 100; e. ván e-s, to have hope of a thing, to reckon upon, 210; e. til, to have left; ekki eigu it annat til ( there is nothing left for you) nema at biðja postulann. Jóh. 623. 22: in mod. usage e. til means to own, to have left; hann á ekkert til, he is void of means, needy; eiga góða kosti fjár, to be in good circumstances, Ísl. ii. 322; e. vald á e-u, to have within one’s power, Nj. 265; the phrase, e. hlut at e-u, or e. hlut í e-u, to have a share, be concerned with; eptir þat átti hann hlut at við mótstöðumenn Gunnars, 101, 120; þar er þú ættir hlut at, where thou wast concerned, 119; mik uggir at hér muni eigi gæfu-menn hlut í e., 179: hence ellipt., e. í e-u, to be engaged in, chiefly of strife, adversity, or the like; thus, e. í stríði, fátaekt, baráttu, to live, be deep in struggle, want, battle, etc.

II. denoting duty, right, due, obligation:

1. to be bound, etc.; þeir menn er fylgð áttu með konungi, the men who owed following to (i. e. were bound to attend) the king’s person, Fms. vii. 240; á ek þar fyrir at sjá, I am bound to see to that, Eg. 318; Tylptar-kviðr átti um at skilja, Eb. 48; þeir spurðu hvárt Njáli þætti nokkut e. at lýsa vígsök Gunnars, Nj. 117; nú áttu, Sigvaldi, now is thy turn, now ought thou, Fms. xi. 109, Fs. 121; menn eigu ( men ought) at spyrja at þingfesti, Grág. i. 19; þá á þann kvið einskis meta, that verdict ought to be void, 59; ef sá maðr á ( owns) fé út hér er ómagann á ( who ought) fram at færa, 270; nú hafa þeir menn jammarga sem þeir eigu, as many as they ought to have, ii. 270; tíunda á maðr fé sitt, … þá á hann þat at tíunda, … þá á hann at gefa sálugjafir, i. 202:—‘eiga’ and ‘skal’ are often in the law used indiscriminately, but properly ‘ought’ states the moral, ‘shall’ the legal obligation,—elska skalt þú föður þinn og móður, þú skalt ekki stela, where ‘átt’ would be misplaced; sometimes it is merely permissive, gefa á maðr vingjafir at sér lifanda, ef hann vill, a man ‘may’ whilst in life bequeath to his friends, if he will, id.; maðr á at gefa barni sínu laungetnu tólf aura, ef hann vill, fyrir ráð skaparfa sinna, en eigi meira nema erfingjar lofi, a man ‘may’ bequeath to the amount of twelve ounces to his illegitimate child without leave of the lawful heir, etc., 203; ef þat á til at vilja, if that is to happen, Fas. i. 11.

2. denoting claim, right, to own, be entitled to, chiefly in law phrases; e. dóm, sakir, to own the case, i. e. be the lawful prosecutor; ok á sá þeirra sakir, er …, Grág. i. 10; eðr eigu þeir eigi at lögum, or if they be not entitled to it, 94; e. mál á e-m, to have a charge against one, Nj. 105; e. rétt á e-u, to own a right; sá sem rétt á á henni, who has a right to her, K. Á. 16; þeir sögðu at þeim þótti slíkr maðr mikinn rétt á sér e., such a man had a strong personal claim to redress, Nj. 105; hence the phrase, eiga öngan rétt á sér, if one cannot claim redress for personal injury; þá eigu þeir eigi rétt á sér, then they have no claim to redress whatever, Grág. i. 261; e. sök, saka-staði á e-u, to have a charge against; þat er hann átti öngva sök á, Nj. 130; saka-staði þá er hann þótti á eiga, 166; kalla Vermund eigi ( not) eiga at selja sik, said V. had no right to sell them, Eb. 116: hence in mod. usage, eiga denotes what is fit and right, þú átt ekki að göra það, you ought not; eg ætti ekki, I ought not: in old writers eiga is seldom strictly used in this sense, but denotes the legal rather than the moral right.

β. eiga fé at e-m (mod. e. hjá e-m), to be one’s creditor, Grág. i. 90, 405, Band. 1 C: metaph. to deserve from one, ok áttu annat at mér, Nj. 113; e. gjafir at e-m, 213; in a bad sense, kváðusk mikit e. at Þráni, they had much against Thrain, 138.

γ. the law phrase, e. útkvæmt, fært, to have the right to return, of a temporary exile, Nj. 251: at hann skyli eigi e. fært út hingat, Grág. i. 119; ok á eigi þingreitt, is not allowed to go to the parliament, ii. 17; e. vígt, Grág., etc.

III. denoting dealings or transactions between men (in a meeting, fight, trade, or the like), to keep, hold; þætti mér ráðliga at vér ættim einn fimtardóm, Nj. 150; e. orrustu við e-n, to fight a battle, Fms. i. 5, Eg. 7; e. högg við e-n, to exchange blows, 297; e. vápna-viðskipti, id., Fms. ii. 17; eiga handsöl at e-u, to shake hands, make a bargain, x. 248; e. ráð við e-n, to consult, hold a conference with, Nj. 127; e. tal við e-n, to speak, converse with one, 129; e. mál við e-n, id., Grág. i. 10; e. fund, to hold a meeting, Nj. 158; e. þing, samkvámu, stefnu, to hold a meeting, Eg. 271; þetta haust áttu menn rétt (a kind of meeting) fjölmenna, Eb. 106; e. kaupstefnu, to hold a market, exchange, 56; e. féránsdóm, Grág. i. 94; e. gott saman, to live well together, in peace and goodwill, Ld. 38; e. illt við e-n, to deal ill with, quarrel with, Nj. 98; e. búisifjar, q. v., of intercourse with neighbours, Njarð. 366; e. drykkju við e-n, to be one’s ‘cup-mate,’ Eg. 253; e. við e-n, to deal with one; ekki á ek þetta við þik, this is no business between thee and me, Nj. 93; gott vilda ek við alla menn e., I would live in goodwill with all, 47; e. við e-n, to fight one; eigum vér ekki við þá elligar (in a hostile sense), else let us not provoke them, 42; eðr hvárt vili it Helgi e. við Lýting einn eðr bræðr hans báða, 154; brátt fundu þeir, at þeir áttu þar eigi við sinn maka, Ld. 64; Glúmr kvað hann ekki þurfa at e. við sik, G. said he had no need to meddle with him, Glúm. 338; e. um að vera, to be concerned; ekki er við menn um at e., Nj. 97; þar sem við vini mína er um at e., where my friends are concerned, 52; við færi er þá um at e., ef Kári er einn, there are fewer to deal with, to fight, if K. be alone, 254; við brögðótta áttu nú um, Fms. v. 263; ætla ek at oss mun léttara falla at e. um við Svein einn, iv. 80; Sveinn svarar, at þeir áttu við ofrefli um at e., that they had to deal with odds, 165.

β. almost as an auxiliary verb; e. skilt (skilit), to have stipulated; hafa gripina svá sem hann átti skill, Fms. vi. 160; þat átta ek skilit við þik, ii. 93; sem Hrani átti skilt, iv. 31; e. mælt, of oral agreement; sem vit áttum mælt með okkr, xi. 40; þá vil ek þat mælt e., 124: in mod. usage e. skilit means to deserve, eg á ekki þetta skilit af hér, etc.

γ. sometimes used much like geta; við því átti Búi eigi gert, B. could not guard against that, Fms. i. 117, cp. xi. 109:—also, e. bágt, to be in a strait, poor, sickly; e. heimilt, to have at one’s disposal, Eb. 254.

IV. to have to do; skal Þorleifr eigi ( not) e. at því at spotta, Eb. 224; e. hendr sínar at verja, to have to defend one’s own hands, to act in self-defence, Nj. 47; e. e-m varlaunað, to stand in debt to one, 181; e. um vandræði at halda, to be in a strait, Eb. 108; e. erindi, to have an errand to run, 250; en er þeir áttu um þetta at tala, when they had to talk, were talking, of this, Stj. 391; e. ríkis at gæta, to have the care of the kingdom, Nj. 126; en þó á ek hverki at telja við þik mægðir né frændsemi, i. e. I am no relation to thee, 213; ok ætti þeir við annan at deila fyrst, 111; e. mikið at vinna, to be much engaged, hard at work, 97; e. e-t eptir, to have left a thing undone, 56; e. för, ferð, to have a journey to take, 11, 12; hann átti þar fé at heimta, 261; e. eptir mikit at mæla, 88.

2. metaph. in the phrases, e. mikit (lítið) ‘at’ ser, or ‘undir’ sér, to have much (or little) in one’s power; margir menn, þeir er mikit þóttusk at sér e., Sturl. i. 64; far þú við marga menn, svá at þú eigir allt undir þér, go with many men, so that thou hast the whole matter in thy hands, Ld. 250; en ávalt átta ek nokkuð undir mér, Vígl. 33; kann vera at hann eigi mikit undir sér, Fas. i. 37; eigum heldr undir oss ( better keep it in our own hands), en ganga í greipar þeim mæðginum, Fs. 37; sem þeir, er ekki eigu undir sér, who are helpless and weak, Þorst. St. 55; e. þykisk hann nokkut undir sér, i. e. he bears himself very proudly, Grett. 122; þetta ráð vil ek undir sonum mínum e., I will leave the matter in my sons’ hands, Valla L. 202; e. líf sitt undir e-m, to have one’s life in another’s hands, Grett. 154; mun ek nú senda eptir mönnum, ok e. eigi undir ójöfnuði hans, and trust him not, 110: hence in mod. usage, e. undir e-u, to risk; eg þori ekki að e. undir því, I dare not risk it: e. saman, to have or own in common; the saying, það á ekki saman nema nafnið, it has nothing but the name in common; rautt gull ok bleikt gull á ekki saman nema nafn eitt, Fms. v. 346: the proverb, þeygi á saman gamalt og ungt, Úlf. 3. 44; e. skap saman, to agree well; kemr þú þér því vel við Hallgerði, at it eigit meir skap saman, you are quite of one mind, Nj. 66; eigi veit ek hvárt við eigum heill saman, I know not whether we shall have luck, i. e. whether we shall live happy, together, 3.

β. to deal with one another (sam-eign); er vér skulum svá miklu úgæfu saman e., that we are to have so much mischief between us, Nj. 201; e. e-t yfir höfði, to have a thing hanging over one’s head, Sks. 742.

V. to agree with, to fit, to suit one:

1. with acc., það á ekki við mig, it suits me not, it agrees not with me.

2. with dat., medic. to agree, heal, the sickness in dat., thus the proverb, margt á við mörgu, cp. ‘similia similibus curantur,’ Vidal. ii. 109.

3. absol. to apply to; at hann skyldi eigi trúa lágum manni rauðskeggjuðum, því at meistarinn átti þetta, the description suited to the master, Fms. xi. 433; þat muntu ætla, at ek muna e. hinn bleika uxann, that the dun ox means me, Vápn. 21.

B. REFLEX., in a reciprocal sense, in the phrase, eigask við, to deal with one another, chiefly to fight; en er þeir höfðu langa hríð við átzk, when they had fought a long time, Eb. 238, 74; eigask við deildir, to be engaged in strife, 246; áttusk þeir höggva-viðskipti við, they came to a close fight, Fms. i. 38; áttusk þeir fá högg við, áðr …, they had a short fight before …, Eg. 297; fátt áttusk þeir við Þjóstólfr ok Þorvaldr, Thostolf and Thorwald had little to do with one another, kept aloof from each other, Nj. 18; var nú kyrt þann dag, svá at þeir áttusk ekki við, tbat day passed quietly, so that they came not to a quarrel, 222.

β. to marry, vide above (A. I. 2).

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a negative suffix to verbs, not;

era útmakligt, at it is not unmeet that.

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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.

* * *

(að), v.

1) to assign, attribute to one (eigna e-m e-t); eigna sér e-t, to declare a thing to be one’s own property, to take to oneself; eigna sér land, to take land into one’s own hands;

refl., eignast, to become the owner of, to get;

2) to dedicate to, name after one (eigna e-m kvæði, eigna Þór hof).

* * *

að; e. e-m e-t, to attribute to one, Stj. 25, Grett. 147 A, Fms. v. 277: to dedicate, name after one, mikit hof ok eignat Þór, i. 294; kirkju ok e. hinum helga Kolumba, Landn. 43; eigna daga vitrum mönnum heiðnum, Bs. i. 237; eigna sér, to declare a thing to be one’s own property; fé minu ok eignir ykkr Helgu, say that you and Helga are the owners, Nj. 257; e. sér land, to take land into one’s own hands, Fms. v. 168: the proverb, sér eignar smalamaðr fé, þó enga eigi hann kindina, the shepherd calls the flock his own, though he owns not a sheep.

2. reflex. to get, become the owner of, Grág. i. 4, Nj. 94, Fms. i. 28, iv. 79, Edda 145 (pref.): part. eignaðr, having possession, Fms. iv. 23, v. l.

* * *

(berg; barg, burgum; borginn), v.

1) to help, save, with dat.;

nema Þ. byrgi honum, unless Th. helped him;

sá er öldum bergr, who saves mankind (viz. against the giants, i. e. Thor);

guðs son er öllum heimi barg, who saved the whole world;

impers., e-m er borgit, one is saved, comes safe and sound out of danger (brutu skip sitt ok týndu fé öllu, en mönnum varð borgit flestum);

bjarga skipshöfn, to rescue the shipwrecked;

bjarga skipi, to haul a ship out of the reach of the tide;

bjarga hval, to secure a dead whale (by dragging it ashore);

bjarga konum, to help labouring women (cf. bjargrúnar);

bjarga kúm, to attend cows calving;

bjarga nám, to render the last service to dead bodies (cf. nábjargir);

bjarga sök, máli, to succeed in winning a case, a suit;

2) refl., bjargast, to keep up the heart, esp. against cold or hunger;

Oddr bargst vel á fjallinu (in a snow storm);

bjargast sjálfr, to gain one’s bread;

bjargast á sínar hendr, to support oneself with one’s own hands;

bjargast úti, to find one’s food (graze) in the field (of cattle);

Snorri góði fann, at nafni hans bargst lítt við ostinn, that he got on slowly with eating the cheese;

verði þér nú at bjargast við slík sem til er, you must now put up with what you can get.

(að), v. (rare), = preceding (bjargat mun málinu verða).

* * *

barg, burgu, borgit; pres. bergr, pl. björgum; imperat. bjarg; pret. subj. byrga: in mod. use after the Reformation this verb is constantly used weak, bjarga, að, pres. bjargar, pret. bjargat; the only remnant of the old is the sup. borgit, etc. In Norway this weak form occurs very early, e. g. bjargar, servat, Hom. 17; in Icel. the weak seldom occurs before the 15th century; bjargaðist, Fs. 143, and bjargat (sup.) = borgit, Lv. 11, are probably due to these passages being left in paper MSS.; the weak bjargaði, however, occurs in a vellum MS. of the 15th century, Þorf. Karl. 388; 1st pers. pres. bjarga, Fms. xi. 150 (MS. 13th century) seems to be a Norse idiom, [Goth. bairgan; Hel. bergan; A. S. beargan; cp. birgr]:—to save, help; with dat., bergr hverjum sem eigi er feigr (a proverb), Sturl. iii. 220; sá er öldum bergr, who saves mankind, viz. against the giants, i. e. Thor, Hým. 22; nema Þorgeirr byrgi honum, Rd. 295: absol., Guð barg (by God’s grace) er konungrinn varð eigi sárr, Fms. v. 268: in theol. sense, vildu þeir eigi snúast til mín at ek byrga þeim, 656 C. 23, Hom. l. c.: impers., e-m er borgit, is saved, comes safe and sound out of danger, Fær. 178, Hkv. Hjörv. 29.

2. a law term; b. sök, máli, to find a point of defence; hann bergr þeim kosti sökinni, at …, Grág. i. 40; bergsk hann við bjargkviðinn, he is free by virtue of the verdict, 36; borgit mun nú verða at lögum, i. e. there will be some means of putting it right, Lv. 11, Nj. 36.

3. special phrases; b. skipshöfn, to pick up the shipwrecked, Þorf. Karl. l. c., Fms. xi. 412; skipi, to haul a ship out of the reach of tides and waves, Grág. ii. 385; hval, to drag a dead whale ashore, Gþl. 461: to help labouring women (v. bjargrúnar), Sdm. 9; b. nám (v. nábjargir), to render the last service to a dead body, 33; b. kúm, to attend cows casting calf, Bjarn. 32; b. búfé, to milk ewes, N. G. L. i. 10; b. brókum, cacare, Fms. xi. 150.

II. recipr. of mutual help; bjargast at allir saman, to be saved all in common, Hkr. ii. 347.

III. reflex., bjargask vel, to behave well, keep the heart up, esp. in cold or hunger; Oddr bargst vel á fjallinu (in snow storm), Sturl. iii. 215, Orkn. 324, of one shipwrecked; b. úti, of cattle, to graze, N. G. L. i. 25; b. sjálfr, to gain one’s bread, Grág. i. 294; b. á sínar hendr (spýtur), to support oneself with one’s own hands, Fms. ii. 159: of food or drink, cp. bergja; Snorri goði fann, at nafni hans bargst lítt við ostinn, that he got on slowly eating the cheese, Eb. 244; hann spurði, hví hann byrgist svá lítt (v. l. mataðist svá seint), … why he ate so slowly, id.; verði þér nú at bjargast við slíkt sem til er, you must put up with what you can get, Germ. für lieb nehmen, Eg. 204; hon bað fyrir þær matar ok burgust þær við þat, Clem. 26; hon bjargaðist (= bargst) lítt við þá fæðu er til var, she could hardly eat the food they had (v. l. hjúkaðist), Fs. 174. Part. borginn, used as adj. and even in compar.; impers., erat héra (héri = hegri = duck) at borgnara þótt hæna beri skjöld, the drake is none the better off though a hen shield him, metaph. of a craven, Fs. 174, Fms. vii. 116: [Early Engl. to borrow = to save, ‘who borrowed Susanna out of wo,’ Sir Guy of Warwick.]

* * *

n. pl.

1) distinction; heyra, nema orða s., to be able to make out words; menn sá varla handa (fingra) sinna s., they could hardly see their own hands (fingers);

2) discernment, knowledge; kunna, vita góð s. á e-u, to be well informed of, have good knowledge of; kunna s. rúna, to know how to read runes;

3) adjustment; fœra mál til skila, to put a case right; gera s. á e-u, to perform, discharge (mér þykkir úsýnt, hver s. ek geri á yðru erendi); verða at litlum skilum, to be of little account, come to nought; koma e-u til skila, to put in order; e-t kemr til skila, is duly delivered, comes to hand (hann sendi konunginum hest, ok kom sá vel til skila); svá at allír hefði góð s., so that all should have their due; hann hafði engan erfingja þann er s. væri at, he had no trusty heir;

4) pleading (öll jögmælt s.).

* * *

n. pl. [skilja; Engl. skill; Dan. skjel; a word borrowed from the Norse]:—a distinction, of eyesight and hearing; menn sá varla handa sinna skil, one could hardly distinguish one’s own hands, Eb. 260; sjá varla fingra sinna skil, Bs. i. 352; nema orða-skil, to catch the distinction of words, Eb. 28; kunna daga-skil, Sks.

2. a weaver’s term, the space between the threads.

II. metaph. discernment, knowledge; kunna góð skil á e-m (e-u), to have favourable knowledge of, to know distinctly, well, Ld. 22; vita skil á e-u, id., K. Á. 108, Gþl. 25; kunna skil e-s, Am. 9; Snorri vissi góð skil á honum, Eb. 142.

2. an adjustment, fair dealings, due, Dan. skjel; segja skil á e-u, to declare, Ld. 234; göra skil á e-u, to give an account of, Grág. i. 440; at skilum ok at lögmáli réttu, Gþl. 306; stefna e-m til skila, to cite a person to answer in court, Grág. i. 175, 179, ii. 227; færa mál til skila, to put a case right, Fms. v. 324; verða at litlum skilum, to be of little account, come to naught, Fms. ix. 297; svara skilum fyrir e-t, vii. 127; sá arfr skal at skilum fara, Jb. 156; koma öllu til skila, Ísl. ii. 131; hann sendi konunginum einn fríðan hest, ok kom sá vel til skila, Bs. i. 710; þar sem þryti silfr skyldi borðbúnaðinn fyrir gefa, svá at allir hefði góð skil, so that all should have their due, Fms. x. 147; hann átti engan erfingja þann er skil væri at, he had no trusty heir, Sturl. i. 45.

3. as a law term, pleading, public speaking; leysa öll lögmælt skil, Grág. i. 28, Nj. 232.

4. a despatch, message.

COMPDS: skilaboð, skiladómr, skiladottir, skilalítill, skilamaðr.

* * *

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.

* * *

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.

* * *

(fer; fór, fórum; farinn), v.

1) to move, pass along, go;

gekk hann hvargi sem hann fór, he walked wherever he went;

fara heim (heiman), to go home (from home);

fara á fund e-s to visit one;

fjöld ek fór, I travelled much;

hann sagði, hversu orð fóru með þeim, what words passed between them;

absol., to go begging (ómagar, er þar eigu at fara í því þingi);

2) with ‘ferð, leið’ or the like added in acc., gen., or dat.;

fara leiðar sinnar, to go one’s way, proceed on one’s journey (= fara ferðar sinnar or ferða sinna, fara ferð sina, fara för sina, förum sínum);

fara þessa ferð, to make this journey;

fara fullum dagleiðum, to travel a full days journeys;

fara stefnuför, to go a-summoning;

fara bónorðsför, to go a-wooing;

fara sigrför, to go on the path of victory, to triumph;

fara góða för, to make a lucky journey;

fig., fara ósigr, to be defeated;

fara mikinn skaða, to suffer great damage;

fara hneykju, skömm, to incur disgrace;

fara erendleysu, to fail in one’s errand;

with the road in acc. (fara fjöll ok dala);

3) fara búðum, bygðum, vistum, to move, change one’s abode;

fara eldi ok arni, to move one’s hearth and fire;

4) fara einn saman, to go alone;

fara eigi ein saman, to go with child (= fara með barni);

5) with infin.;

fara sofa, to go to sleep (allir menn vóru sofa farnir);

fara vega, to go to fight;

fara leita, to go seeking (var leita farit);

6) with an a., etc.;

fara villr, to go astray;

fara haltr, to walk lame;

fara vanstiltr, to go out of one’s mind;

fara duldr e-s, to be unaware of;

fara andvígr e-m, to give battle;

fara leyniliga (leynt), to be kept secret;

eigi má þetta svá fara, this cannot go on in that way;

fjarri ferr þat, far from it, by no means;

fór þat fjarri, at ek vilda, I was far from desiring it;

7) to turn out, end;

fór þat sem líkligt var, it turned out as was likely (viz. ended ill);

svá fór, at, the end was, that;

ef svá ferr sem ek get til, if it turns out as I guess;

á sómu leið fór um aðra sendimenn, it went the same way with the other messengers;

8) to fare well, ill;

biðja e-n vel fara, to bid one farewell;

9) to suit, fit, esp. of clothes, hair (ekki þykkir mér kyrtill þinn fara betr en stakkr minn; hárit fór vel);

impers., fór illa á hestinum, it sat ill on the horse;

10) impers., e-m ferr vel, illa, one behaves or acts well, ill;

honum hafa öll málin verst farit, he has behaved worst in the whole matter;

e-m ferr vinveittliga, one behaves in a friendly way;

11) fara e-t höndum, to touch with the hands, esp. of a healing touch, = fara höndum um e-t (bið hann fara höndum meinit);

fara land herskildi, brandi, to visit a land with ‘warshield’, with fire, to ravage or devastate it (gekk síðan á land upp með liði sínu ok fór alit herskildi);

12) to overtake (Án hrísmagi var þeirra skjótastr ok gat farit sveininn);

tunglit ferr sólina, the moon overtakes the sun;

áðr hana Fenrir fari, before F. overtakes her;

13) to ill-treat, treat cruelly;

menn sá ek þá, er mjök höfðu hungri farit hörund, that had chastened their flesh with much fasting;

14) to put an end to, destroy;

fara sér (sjálfr), to kill oneself;

fara lífi (fjörvi) e-s, to deprive one of life;

þú hefir sigr vegit ok Fáfni (dat.) um farit, killed F.;

15) to forfeit (fara löndum ok lausafé);

16) refl., farast;

17) with preps. and advs.:

fara af klæðum, to take off one’s clothes;

fara at e-m, to make an attack upon, to assault (eigi mundi í annat sinn vænna at fara at jarlinum);

fara at e-u, to mind, pay heed to;

ekki fer ek at, þótt þú hafir svelt þik til fjár (it does not matter to me, I do not care, though);

to deal with a thing, proceed in a certain way;

svá skal at sókn fara, thus is the pleading to be proceeded with;

fara at lögum, úlögum, to proceed lawfully, unlawfully;

fara mjúkliga at, to proceed gently;

hér skulu við fara at með ráðum, act with, deliberation;

impers. with dat., to do, behave;

illa hefir mér at farit, I have done my business badly; to go in pusuit (search) of (víkingar nökkurir þeir sem fóru at féföngum);

fara at fuglaveiðum, to go a-fowling;

fara at fé, to tend sheep;

fara á e-n, to come upon one;

sigu saman augu, þá er dauðinn fór á, when death seized him;

fara á hæl or hæli, to step back, retreat;

fara eptir e-m, to follow one;

fara eptir e-u, to go for, go to fetch (Snorri goði fór eptir líkinu; fara eptir vatni); to accommodate oneself to, conform to (engi vildi eptir öðrum fara);

þau orð er eptir fara, the following words;

fara fram, to go on, take place;

ef eigi ferr gjald fram, if no payment takes place;

veizlan ferr vel fram, the feast went on well;

spyrr, hvat þar fœri fram, he asked, what was going on there;

fara fram ráðum e-s, to follow one’s advice;

allt mun þat sínu fram fara, it will take its own course;

kváðu þat engu gegna ok fóru sínu fram, took their own way;

segir honum, hversu þeir fóru fram, how they acted;

fara e-t fram, to do., perform a thing;

spyrr hann, hvat nú sé fram faranda, what is to be done;

fara fyrir e-t, to pass for, be taken for (fari sá fyrir níðing, er);

fara hjá sér, to be beside oneself;

fara í e-t, to go into (fara í tunnu);

fara í sæng, rekkju, to go to bed;

fara í sess sinn, sæti sitt, to take one’s seat;

fara í klæði, to put on clothes, dress;

fara í vápn, brynju, to put on armour;

fara í lag, to go right or straight again (þá fóru brýnn hans í lag);

fara í vöxt, to increase;

fara í þurð, to wane;

fara í hernað, víking, to go a-freebooting;

nú ferr í úvænt efni, now matters look hopeless;

to happen, occur (alit þat, er í hafði farit um nóttina);

fara með e-t, to wield handle, manage;

fór Hroptr með Gungni, H. wielded (the spear) Gungnir;

fara með goðorð, to hold a goðorð;

fara með sök, to manage a lawsuit;

to practice, deal in;

fara með rán, to deal in robbery;

fara með spott ok háð, to go scoffing and mocking;

fara með galdra ok fjölkyngi, to practice sorcery;

to deal with, treat, handle (þú munt bezt ok hógligast með hann fara);

fara af hljóði með e-t, to keep matters secret;

fara með e-m, to go with one, follow one (ek skal með yðr fara með allan minn styrk);

fara með e-u, to do (so and so) with a thing, to deal with, manage;

hvernig þeir skyldu fara með vápnum sínum, what they were to do with their weapons;

sá maðr, er með arfinum ferr, who manages the inheritance;

fara með málum sínum, to manage one’s case;

fara vel með sínum háttum, to bear oneself well;

undarliga fara munkar þessir með sér, these monks behave strangely;

fara með barni, to go with child;

impers., ferr með þeim heldr fáliga, they are on indifferent terms;

fara ór landi, to leave the country;

fara ór klæðum, fötum, to take off one’s clothes, undress;

fara saman, to go together; to shake, shudder;

fór en forna fold öll saman, shivered all through;

to concur, agree (hversu má þat saman f);

fara til svefns, to go to sleep (= fara at sofa);

fara um e-t, to travel over (fara um fjall);

fara höndum um e-n, to stroke or touch one with the hands (hann fór höndum um þá, er sjúkir vóru);

fara mörgum orðum um e-t, to dilate upon a subject;

fara myrkt um e-t, to keep a matter dark;

fara undan, to excuse oneself (from doing a thing), to decline, refuse (hvat berr til, at þú ferr undan at gera mér veizluna);

borð fara upp, the tables are removed;

fara út, to go from Norway to Iceland; to come to a close, run out (fóru svá út þessir fimm vetr);

fara útan, to go abroad (from Iceland);

fara við e-n, to treat one, deal with one in a certain way;

margs á, ek minnast, hve við mik fóruð, I have many things to remember of your dealings with me;

fara yfir e-t, to go through;

nú er yfir farit um landnám, now an account of the settlements has been given;

skjótt yfir at fara, to be brief.

* * *

pret. fóra, 2nd pers. fórt, mod. fórst, pl. fóru; pres. ferr, 2nd pers. ferr, in mod. pronunciation ferð; pret. subj. færa; imperat. far and farðu (= far þú); sup. farit; part. farinn; with the suffixed neg. fór-a, Am. 45; farið-a ( depart not), Hkr. i. 115 MS. (in a verse). [In the Icel. scarcely any other verb is in so freq. use as fara, as it denotes any motion; not so in other Teut. idioms; in Ulf. faran is only used once, viz. Luke x. 7; Goth. farjan means to sail, and this seems to be the original sense of fara (vide far); A. S. faran; the Germ. fahren and Engl. fare are used in a limited sense; in the Engl. Bible this word never occurs (Cruden); Swed. fara; Dan. fare.]

A. NEUT. to go, fare, travel, in the widest sense; gékk hann hvargi sem hann fór, he walked wherever he went, Hkr. i. 100; né ek flý þó ek ferr, I fly not though I fare, Edda (in a verse); létt er lauss at fara (a proverb), Sl. 37: the saying, verðr hverr með sjálfum sér lengst at fara, Gísl. 25; cp. ‘dass von sich selbst der Mensch nicht scheiden kann’ (Göthe’s Tasso), or the Lat. ‘patriae quis exul se quoque fugit?’ usually in the sense to go, to depart, heill þú farir, heill þú aptr komir, Vþm. 4; but also to come, far þú hingat til mín, come here, Nj. 2.

2. to travel, go forth or through, pass, or the like; þú skalt fara í Kirkjubæ, Nj. 74; fara ór landi, to fare forth from one’s country, Fms. v. 24; kjóll ferr austan, Vsp. 51; Surtr ferr sunnan, 52; snjór var mikill, ok íllt at fara, and ill to pass, Fms. ix. 491; fóru þeir út eptir ánni, Eg. 81; siðan fór Egill fram með skóginum, 531; þeim sem hann vildi at færi … Njáll hét at fara, Nj. 49; fara munu vér, Eg. 579; Egill fór til þess er hann kom til Álfs. 577, Fms. xi. 122; fara þeir nú af melinum á sléttuna. Eg. 747; fara heiman, to fare forth from one’s home, K. Þ. K. 6; alls mik fara tíðir, Vþm. 1; fjölð ek fór, far I fared, i. e. travelled far, 3: the phrase, fara utan, to fare outwards, go abroad (from Iceland), passim; fara vestr um haf, to fare westward over the sea, i. e. to the British Isles, Hkr. i. 101; fara á fund e-s, to visit one, Ld. 62; fara at heimboði, to go to a feast, id.; fara fæti, to fare a-foot, go walking, Hkr.; absol. fara, to travel, beg, hence föru-maðr, a vagrant, beggar; in olden times the poor went their rounds from house to house within a certain district, cp. Grág. i. 85; ómagar er þar eigu at fara í því þingi eðr um þau þing, id.; ómagar skolu fara, 119; omegð þá er þar ferr, 296: in mod. usage, fara um and um-ferð, begging, going round.

β. with prep.: fara at e-m, to make an inroad upon one, Nj. 93, 94, 102 (cp. at-för); fara á e-n, to mount, e. g. fara á bak, to mount on horseback; metaph., dauðinn fór á, death seized him, Fms. xi. 150; f. saman, to go together, Edda 121, Grág. ii. 256; f. saman also means to shudder. Germ. zusammenfahren, Hým. 24: metaph. to concur, agree, hversu má þat saman f., Nj. 192; þeim þótti þat mjök saman f., Fms. iv. 382; fara á hæl, or á hæli, to go a-heel, i. e. step back. retreat, xi. 278, Eg. 296; fara undan, metaph. to excuse oneself, refuse (v. undan), Nj. 23, Fms. x. 227; fara fyrir, to proceed; fara eptir, to follow.

3. with ferð, leið or the like added, in acc. or gen. to go one’s way; fara leiðar sinnar, to proceed on one’s journey, Eg. 81, 477, Fms. i. 10, Grág. ii. 119; fara ferðar sinnar, or ferða sinna, id.. Eg. 180, Fms. iv. 125; fara derð sina, id.. Eg. 568; fara förum sínum, or för sinní, id., K. Þ. K. 80, 90; fara dagfari ok náttfari, to travel day and night, Fms. i. 203; fara fullum dagleiðum, to go full days-journeys, Grág. i. 91; or in a more special sense, fara þessa ferð, to make this journey, Fas. ii. 117; f. stefnu-för, to go a-summoning; f. bónorðs-för, to go a-courting, Nj. 148; f. sigr-för, to go on the way of victory, to triumph, Eg. 21; fara sendi-för, to go on a message, 540.

β. in a metaph. sense; fara hneykju-för, to be shamefully beaten, Hrafn. 19 (MS.); fara ósigr, to be defeated, Eg. 287; fara mikinn skaða, to ‘fare’ (i. e. suffer) great damage, Karl. 43; fara því verrum förum, fara skömm, hneykju, erendleysu, úsæmð, to get the worst of it, Fms. viii. 125.

4. with the road in acc.; hann fór Vánar-skarð, Landn. 226; f. sjó-veg, land-veg, K. Þ. K. 24; fór mörg lönd ok stórar merkr, Fas. ii. 540; fara sömu leið, Fms. i. 70; f. sama veg, Luke x. 31; f. fjöll ok dala, Barl. 104; fara út-leið, þjóð-leið, Fms. iv. 260; also, fara um veg, fara um fjall, to cross a fell, Hm. 3; fara liði, to march, Fms. i. 110.

II. in a more indefinite sense, to go; fara búðum, bygðum, vistum, to move, change one’s abode, Ld. 56, Hkr. ii. 177, Nj. 151, Vigl. 30; fara búferla, to more one’s household, Grág. ii. 409; fara vöflunarförum, to go a-begging, i. 163, 294, ii. 482.

2. the phrases, fara eldi ok arni, a law term, to move one’s hearth and fire. Grág. ii. 253; fara eldi um land, a heathen rite for taking possession of land, defined in Landn. 276. cp. Eb. 8, Landn. 189, 284.

3. fara einn-saman, to be alone. Grág. ii. 9; the phrase, f. eigi einn-saman, to be not alone, i. e. with child, Fms. iii. 109; or, fór hón með svein þann, Bs. i. 437; cp. ganga með barni.

4. adding an adj., to denote gait, pace, or the like; fara snúðigt, to stride haughtily, Nj. 100; fara mikinn, to rush on, 143; fara flatt, to fall flat, tumble, Bárð. 177; fara hægt, to walk slowly.

β. fara til svefns, to go to sleep, Nj. 35; f. í sæti sitt, to go to one’s seat, 129; f. í sess, Vþm. 9; f. á bekk, 19; fara á sæng, to go to bed, N. G. L. i. 30; fara í rúmið, id. (mod.); fara í mannjöfnuð, Ísl. ii. 214; fara í lag, to be put straight, Eg. 306; fara í vöxt, to wax, increase, Fms. ix. 430, Al. 141; fara í þurð, to wane, Ld. 122, l. 1 (MS.); fara í úefni, to go to the wrong side, Sturl. iii. 210; fara at skakka, to be odd ( not even). Sturl. ii. 258; fara at sölum, to be put out for sale, Grág. ii. 204.

5. fara at fuglum, to go a-fowling, Orkn. (in a verse); fara at fugla-veiðum, id., Bb. 3. 36; fara í hernað, í víking, to go a-freebooting, Fms. i. 33, Landn. 31; fara at fé, to watch sheep, Ld. 240; fara at fé-föngum, to go a-fetching booty, Fms. vii. 78.

β. with infin., denoting one’s ‘doing’ or ‘being;’ fara sofa, to go to sleep, Eg. 377; fara vega, to go to fight, Vsp. 54, Gm. 23; fara at róa, Vígl. 22; fara leita, to go seeking, Fms. x. 240; fara að búa, to set up a household, Bb. 2. 6; fara að hátta, to go to bed.

γ. akin to this is the mod. use of fara with an infin. following in the sense to begin, as in the East Angl. counties of Engl. it ‘fares’ to …, i. e. it begins, is likely to be or to do so and so; það fer að birta, það er farit að dimma, it ‘fares’ to grow dark; það fer að hvessa, it ‘fares’ to blow; fer að rigna, it ‘fares’ to rain. etc.:—no instance of this usage is recorded in old Icel., but the Engl. usage shews that it must be old.

δ. with an adj. etc.; fara villr, to go astray, Sks. 565; fara haltr, to go lame, Fms. x. 420; fara vanstiltr, to go out of one’s mind, 264; fara hjá sér, to be beside oneself, Eb. 270; fara apr, to feel chilly, Fms. vi. 237 (in a verse); fara duldr e-s, to be unaware of, Skálda 187 (in a verse); fara andvígr e-m, to give battle, Stor. 8; fara leyniliga, to go secretly, be kept hidden, Nj. 49.

6. to pass; fór sú skipan til Íslands, Fms. x. 23; fara þessi mál til þings, Nj. 100; hversu orð fóru með þeim, how words passed between them, 90; fóru þau orð um, the runner went abroad, Fms. i. 12; ferr orð er um munn líðr (a saying), iv. 279; þá fór ferligt úorðan, a bad report went abroad, Hom. 115.

7. fara fram, to go on, take place; ferr þetta fram, Ld. 258; ef eigi ferr gjald fram, if no payment takes place, K. Þ. K. 64; ferr svá fram, and so things went on without a break, Nj. 11, Eg. 711; veizlan ferr vel fram, the feast went on well, Nj. 11, 51; spyrr hvat þar færi fram, he asked what there was going on. Band. 17; fór allt á sömu leið sem fyrr, it went on all the same as before, Fms. iv. 112; fara fram ráðum e-s, to follow one’s advice, Nj. 5, 66, Fms. vii. 318; allt mun þat sínu fram f., it will take its own course, Nj. 259; nú er því ferr fram um hríð, it went on so for a while, Fms. xi. 108; a law term, to be produced, gögn fara fram til varnar, Grág. i. 65; dómar fara út, the court is set (vide dómr), Grág., Nj., passim.

8. borð fara upp brott, the tables are removed (vide borð), Eg. 247, 551; eigi má þetta svá f., this cannot go on in that way, Nj. 87; fjarri ferr þat, far from it, by no means, 134; fór þat fjarri at ek vilda, Ld. 12; fór þat ok svá til, and so if came to pass, Fms. x. 212.

9. to turn out, end; hversu ætlar þú fara hesta-atið, Nj. 90; fór þat sem likligt var, it turned out as was likely (i. e. ended ill). Eg. 46; svá fór, at …, the end was, that …, Grett. 81 new Ed.; ef svá ferr sem ek get til, if it turns out as I guess, Dropl. 30, Vígl. 21; ef svá ferr sem mín orð horfa til, Fms. v. 24; ef svá ferr sem mik varir, if it comes to pass as it seems to me, vi. 350; svá fór um sjóferð þá, Bjarni 202; á sömu leið fór um aðra sendi-menn, Eg. 537; to depart, die, þar fór nýtr maðr, Fs. 39; fara danða-yrði, to pass the death-weird, to die, Ýt. 8.

10. to fare well, ill, in addressing; fari þér vel, fare ye well, Nj. 7; biðja e-n vel fara, to bid one farewell, Eg. 22, Ld. 62; far heill ok sæll, Fms. vii. 197: in a bad sense, far þú nú þar, ill betide thee! Hbl. 60; far (impers.) manna armastr, Eg. 553; Jökull bað hann fara bræla armastan, Finnb. 306; fari þér í svá gramendr allir, Dropl. 23.

11. fara í fat, í brynju (acc.), etc., to dress, undress; but fara ór fötum (dat.), to undress, Fms. x. 16, xi. 132, vii. 202, Nj. 143, Gh. 16, etc.

III. metaph.,

1. to suit, fit, esp. of clothes, hair, or the like; ekki þykkir mér kyrtill þinn fara betr en stakkr minn, Fas. ii. 343; hárið fór vel, Nj. 30; jarpr á hár ok fór vel hárit, Fms. ii. 7; gult hár sem silki ok fór fagrliga, vi. 438, Fs. 88; klæði sem bezt farandi, Eb. 256; var sú konan bezt f., the most graceful, lady-like, Ísl. ii. 438; fór ílla á hestinum, it sat ill on the horse, Bs. i. 712.

2. impers. it goes so and so with one, i. e. one behaves so and so: e-m ferr vel, ílla, etc., one behaves well, ill, etc.; honum hafa öll málin verst farit, he has behaved worst in the whole matter, Nj. 210; bezta ferr þér, Fms. vii. 33; vel mun þér fara, Nj. 55; at honum fari vel, 64; þer hefir vel farit til mín, Finnb. 238; e-m ferr vinveittliga, one behaves in a friendly way, Nj. 217; ferr þér þá bezt jafnan ok höfðinglegast er mest liggr við, 228; mun honum nokkurn veg vel f., Hrafn. 10; údrengiliga hefir þér farit til vár, Ld. 48; ferr þér illa, Nj. 57; hversu Gunnari fór, how ( well) G. behaved, 119.

3. fara at e-u, to deal with a thing (i. e. proceed) so and so; svá skal at sókn fara, thus is the pleading to be proceeded with, Grág. i. 323; svá skal at því f. at beiða …, 7; fara at lögum, or úlögum at e-u, to proceed lawfully or unlawfully, 126; hversu at skyldi f., how they were to proceed, Nj. 114; fara mjúklega at, to proceed gently, Fms. vii. 18; hér skulu vér f. at með ráðum, to act with deliberation, Eg. 582; Flosi fór at öngu óðara ( took matters calmly), en hann væri heima, Nj. 220.

β. impers. with dat., to do, behave; ílla hefir mér at farit, I have done my business badly, Hrafn. 8; veit Guð hversu hverjum manni mun at f., Fms. x. 212: in mod. phrases, to become, ironically, þér ferr það, or þér ferst það, it becomes thee, i. e. ‘tis too bad of thee.

γ. hví ferr konungrinn nú svá (viz. at), Fms. i. 35; er slíkt úsæmiliga farit, so shamefully done, Nj. 82; hér ferr vænt at, here things go merrily, 232; karlmannliga er farit, manfully done, 144.

δ. to mind, care about; ekki ferr ek at, þótt þú hafir svelt þik til fjár, it does not matter to me, I do not care, though …, Nj. 18; ekki munu vit at því fara ( never mind that), segir Helgi, 133.

ε. fara eptir, to be in proportion; hér eptir fór vöxtr ok afl, his strength and stature were in proportion, Clar.

4. fara með e-t, to wield, handle, manage; fór Hroptr með Gungni, H. wielded Gungni ( the spear), Kormak; f. með Gríðar-völ, to wield the staff G., Þd. 9: as a law term, to wield, possess; fara með goðorð, to keep a goðorð, esp. during the session of parliament, Dropl. 8, Grág. and Nj. passim; fara með sök, to manage a lawsuit, Grág., Nj.; or, fara við sök, id., Nj. 86.

β. metaph. to practise, deal in; fara með rán, to deal in robbing, Nj. 73; fara með spott ok háð, to go sporting and mocking, 66; f. með fals ok dár, Pass. 16. 5; fara með galdra ok fjölkyngi, K. Þ. K. 76; f. með hindr-vitni, Grett. 111; cp. the phrase, farðu ekki með það, don’t talk such nonsense.

γ. to deal with, treat, handle; þú munt bezt ok hógligast með hann fara, thou wilt deal with him most kindly and most gently, Nj. 219; fara af hljóði með e-t, to keep matters secret, id.; Ingimundr fór vel með sögum (better than sögur, acc.), Ing. dealt well with stories, was a good historian. Sturl. i. 9.

δ. with dat.; fara með e-u, to do so and so with a thing, manage it; hversu þeir skyldi fara með vápnum sínum, how they were to do with their weapons, Fms. ix. 509; sá maðr er með arfinum ferr, who manages the arfr, Grág. i. 217; ef þeir fara annan veg með því fé, 216; fara með málum sínum, to manage one’s case, 46; meðan hann ferr svá með sem mælt er, 93; Gunnarr fór með öllu ( acted in all) sem honum var ráð til kennt, Nj. 100; ef svá er með farit, Ld. 152; f. vel með sínum háttum, to bear oneself well, behave well, Eg. 65; Hrafn fór með sér vel, H. bore himself well, Fms. vi. 109; undarliga fara munkar þessir með sér, they behave strangely, 188; við förum kynlega með okkrum málum, Nj. 130; vant þyki mér með slíku at fara, difficult matters to have to do with, 75; f. málum á hendr e-m, to bring an action against one, Ld. 138; fara sókn ( to proceed) sem at þingadómi, Grág. i. 463; fara svá öllu máli um sem …, 40, ii. 348; fara með hlátri ok gapi, to go laughing and scoffing, Nj. 220; cp. β above.

IV. fara um, yfir e-t, to pass over slightly; nú er yfir farit um landnám, shortly told, touched upon, Landn. 320; skjótt yfir at f., to be brief, 656 A. 12; fara myrkt um e-t, to mystify a thing, Ld. 322; fara mörgum orðum um e-t, to dilate upon a subject, Fbr. 124, Nj. 248, Fms. ix. 264.

β. in the phrase, fara höndum um e-t, to go with the hands about a thing, to touch it, Germ. befühlen, esp. medic. of a healing touch; jafnan fengu menn heilsubót af handlögum hans, af því er hann fór höndum um þá er sjúkir vóru, Játv. 24; ok pá fór hann höndum um hann, Bs. i. 644; þá lét Arnoddr fara aðra höndina um hann, ok fann at hann var berfættr ok í línklæðum. Dropl. 30; cp. fóru hendr hvítar hennar um þessar görvar, Fas. i. 248 (in a verse): note the curious mod. phrase, það fer að fara um mig, I began to feel uneasy, as from a cold touch or the like.

γ. impers. with dat.; eigi ferr þér nær Gunnari, en Merði mundi við þik, thou camest not nearer to G. than Mord would to thee, i. e. thou art just as far from being a match for G. as Mord is to thee, Nj. 37; þá ferr honum sem öðrum, it came to pass with him as with others, 172; þá mun mér first um fara, I shall fall much short of that, Fms. vi. 362; því betr er þeim ferr öllum verr at, the worse they fare the better I am pleased, Nj. 217.

V. reflex., esp. of a journey, to fare well; fórsk þeim vel, they fared well, Eg. 392, Fms. xi. 22; honum fersk vel vegrinn, he proceeded well on his journey, ii. 81; hafði allt farizt vel at, all had fared well, they had had a prosperous journey, Íb. 10; fórsk þeim þá seint um daginn, they proceeded slowly, Eg. 544; mönnum fórsk eigi vel um fenit, Fms. vii. 149; hversu þeim hafði farizk, Nj. 90; at þeim færisk vel, Ísl. ii. 343, 208, v. l.: the phrase, hamri fórsk í hægri hönd, he grasped the hammer in his right hand, Bragi; farask lönd undir, to subdue lands, Hkr. i. 134, v. l. (in a verse).

2. recipr., farask hjá, to go beside one another, miss one another, pass without meeting, Nj. 9; farask á mis, id., farask í móti, to march against one another, of two hosts; þat bar svá til at hvárigir vissu til annarra ok fórusk þó í móti, Fms. viii. 63, x. 46, Fas. ii. 515.

VI. part.,

1. act., koma farandi, to come of a sudden or by chance; þá kómu hjarðsveinar þar at farandi, some shepherds just came, Eg. 380; Moses kom farandi til fólksins, Sks. 574; koma inn farandi, 369, Fbr. 25.

2. pass. farinn, in the phrase, á förnum vegi, on ‘wayfaring,’ i. e. in travelling, passing by; finna e-n á förnum vegi, Nj. 258, K. Þ. K. 6; kveðja fjárins á förnum vegi, Grág. i. 403; also, fara um farinn veg, to pass on one’s journey; of the sun. sól var skamt farin, the sun was little advanced, i. e. early in the morning, Fms. xi. 267, viii. 146; þá var dagr alljós ok sól farin, broad day and sun high in the sky, Eg. 219; also impers., sól (dat.) var skamt farit, Úlf. 4. 10: the phrase, aldri farinn, stricken in years, Sturl. i. 212; vel farinn í andliti, well-favoured, Ld. 274; vel at orði farinn, well spoken, eloquent, Fms. xi. 193; mod., vel orði, máli farinn, and so Ld. 122; gone, þar eru baugar farnir, Grág. ii. 172; þó fætrnir sé farnir, Fas. iii. 308.

β. impers. in the phrase, e-m er þannig farit, one is so and so; veðri var þannig farit, at …, the winter was such, that …, Fms. xi. 34; veðri var svá farit at myrkt var um at litask, i. e. the weather was gloomy, Grett. 111; hversu landinu er farit, what is the condition of the country, Sks. 181; henni er þannig farit, at hón er mikil ey, löng …, ( the island) is so shapen, that it is large and long, Hkr. ii. 188; er eigi einn veg farit úgæfu okkari, our ill-luck is not of one piece, Nj. 183: metaph. of state, disposition, character, er hánum vel farit, he is a well-favoured man, 15; undarliga er yðr farit, ye are strange men, 154; honum var svá farit, at hann var vesal-menni, Boll. 352: adding the prepp. at, til, þeim var úlíkt farit at í mörgu, they were at variance in many respects, Hkr. iii. 97; nú er annan veg til farit, now matters are altered, Nj. 226; nú er svá til farit, at ek vil …, now the case is, that I wish …, Eg. 714; hér er þannig til farit, … at leiðin, 582; þar var þannig til farit, Fms. xi. 34. ☞ Hence comes the mod. form varið (v instead of f), which also occurs in MSS. of the 15th century—veðri var svá varit, Sd. 181; ér honum vel varið, Lv. 80, Ld. 266, v. l.; svá er til varið, Sks. 223, 224,—all of them paper MSS. The phrase, e-m er nær farit, one is pressed; svá var honum nær farit af öllu samt, vökum ok föstu, he was nearly overcome from want of sleep and fasting.

B. TRANS.

I. with acc.:

1. to visit; fara land herskildi, brandi, etc., to visit a land with ‘war-shield,’ fire, etc., i. e. devastate it; gékk siðan á land upp með liði sínu, ok fór allt herskildi, Fms. i. 131; land þetta mundi herskildi farit, ok leggjask undir útlenda höfðingja, iv. 357; (hann) lét Halland farit brandi, vii. 4 (in a verse); hann fór lvist eldi, 41 (in a verse); hann hefir farit öll eylönd brandi, 46 (in a verse); fara hungri hörund, to emaciate the body, of an ascetic, Sl. 71.

2. to overtake, with acc.; hann gat ekki farit hann, he could not overtake ( catch) him, 623. 17; tunglit ferr sólina, the moon overtakes the sun, Rb. 116; áðr hana Fenrir fari, before Fenrir overtakes her, Vþm. 46, 47; knegut oss fálur fara, ye witches cannot take us, Hkv. Hjörv. 13; hann gat farit fjóra menn af liði Steinólfs, ok drap þá alla, … hann gat farit þá hjá Steinólfsdal, Gullþ. 29; hann reið eptir þeim, ok gat farit þá út hjá Svelgsá, milli ok Hóla, Eb. 180; Án hrísmagi var þeirra skjótastr ok getr farit sveininn, Ld. 242; viku þeir þá enn undan sem skjótast svá at Danir gátu eigi farit þá, Fms. (Knytl. S.) xi. 377 (MS., in the Ed. wrongly altered to náð þeim); hérinn hljóp undan, ok gátu hundarnir ekki farit hann (Ed. fráit wrongly), Fas. iii. 374; ok renna allir eptir þeim manni er víg vakti, … ok verðr hann farinn, Gþl. 146: cp. the phrase, vera farinn, to dwell, live, to be found here and there; þótt hann sé firr um farinn, Hm. 33.

II. with dat. to destroy, make to perish; f. sér, to make away with oneself; kona hans fór sér í dísar-sal, she killed herself, Fas. i. 527; hón varð stygg ok vildi fara sér, Landn. (Hb.) 55; ef þér gangit fyrir hamra ofan ok farit yðr sjálfir, Fms. viii. 53; hví ætla menn at hann mundi vilja f. sér sjálfr, iii. 59; fara lífi, fjörvi, öndu, id.; skal hann heldr eta, en fara öndu sinni, than starve oneself to death, K. Þ. K. 130; ok verðr þá þínu fjörvi um farit, Lv. 57, Ýt. 20, Fas. i. 426 (in a verse), cp. Hkv. Hjörv. 13; mínu fjörvi at fara, Fm. 5; þú hefir sigr vegit, ok Fáfni (dat.) um farit, 23; farit hafði hann allri ætt Geirmímis, Hkv. 1. 14; ok létu hans fjörvi farit, Sól. 22; hann hafði farit mörgum manni, O. H. L. 11.

β. to forfeit; fara sýknu sinni, Grág. i. 98; fara löndum ok lausafé, ii. 167.

2. reflex. to perish (but esp. freq. in the sense to be drowned, perish in the sea); farask af sulti, to die of hunger, Fms. ii. 226; fellr fjöldi manns í díkit ok farask þar, v. 281; fórusk sex hundruð Vinda skipa, xi. 369; alls fórusk níu menn, Ísl. ii. 385; mun heimr farask, Eluc. 43; þá er himin ok jörð hefir farisk, Edda 12; farask af hita, mæði, Fms. ix. 47; fórsk þar byrðingrinn, 307; hvar þess er menn farask, Grág. i. 219; heldr enn at fólk Guðs farisk af mínum völdum, Sks. 732: of cattle, ef fé hins hefir troðisk eðr farisk á þá lund sem nú var tínt, Grág. ii. 286.

β. metaph., fersk nú vinátta ykkur, your friendship is done with, Band. 12.

γ. the phrase, farask fyrir, to come to naught, Nj. 131; at síðr mun fyrir farask nokkut stórræði, Ísl. ii. 340; en fyrir fórusk málagjöldin af konungi, the payment never took place, Fms. v. 278; lét ek þetta verk fyrir farask, vii. 158; þá mun þat fyrir farask, Fs. 20; en fyrir fórsk þat þó þau misseri, Sd. 150: in mod. usage (N. T.), to perish.

δ. in act. rarely, and perhaps only a misspelling: frá því er féit fór (fórsk better), K. Þ. K. 132; fóru (better fórusk, were drowned) margir Íslenzkir menn, Bs. i. 436.

3. part. farinn, as adj. gone, undone; nú eru vér farnir, nema …, Lv. 83; hans tafl var mjök svá farit, his game was almost lost, Fas. i. 523; þá er farnir vóru forstöðumenn Tróju, when the defenders of Troy were dead and gone, Ver. 36; tungl farit, a ‘dead moon,’ i. e. new moon, Rb. 34; farinn af sulti ok mæði, Fms. viii. 53; farinn at e-u, ruined in a thing, having lost it; farnir at hamingju, luckless, iv. 73; f. at vistum, xi. 33; f. at lausa-fé;. iii. 117: in some cases uncertain whether the participle does not belong to A.

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.

* * *

and að, prep., often used ellipt. dropping the case and even merely as an adverb, [Lat. ad; Ulf. at = πρός and παρά, A. S. ät; Engl. at; Hel. ad = apud; O. H. G. az; lost in mod. Germ., and rare in Swed. and Dan.; in more freq. use in Engl. than any other kindred language, Icel. only excepted]:—the mod. pronunciation and spelling is að (aþ); this form is very old, and is found in Icel. vellum MSS. of the 12th century, e. g. aþ, 623. 60; yet in earlier times it was sounded with a tenuis, as we may infer from rhymes, e. g. jöfurr hyggi at | hve ek yrkja fat, Egill: Sighvat also makes it rhyme with a t. The verse by Thorodd—þar vastu at er fjáðr klæðið þvat (Skálda 162)—is hardly intelligible unless we accept the spelling with an aspirate (að), and say that þvað is = þvá = þváði, lavabat; it may be that by the time of Thorodd and Ari the pure old pronunciation was lost, or is ‘þvat’ simply the A. S. þvât, secuit? The Icelanders still, however, keep the tenuis in compounds before a vowel, or before h, v, or the liquids l, r, thus—atyrða, atorka, athöfn, athugi, athvarf, athlægi; atvinna, atvik; atlaga, atlíðanði ( slope), atriði, atreið, atróðr: but aðdjúpr, aðfinsla (critic), aðferð, aðkoma, aðsókn, aðsúgr (crowding), aðgæzla. In some words the pronunciation is irregular, e. g. atkvæði not aðkv-; atburðr, but aðbúnaðr; aðhjúkran not athjúkran; atgörvi not aðgörfi. At, to, towards; into; against; along, by; in regard to; after.

Mostly with dat.; rarely with acc.; and sometimes ellipt.—by dropping the words ‘home,’ ‘house,’ or the like—with gen.

WITH DAT.

A. LOC.

I. WITH MOTION; gener. the motion to the borders, limits of an object, and thus opp. to frá:

1. towards, against, with or without the notion of arrival, esp. connected with verbs denoting motion (verba movendi et eundi), e. g. fara, ganga, koma, lúta, snúa, rétta at…; Otkell laut at Skamkatli, O. louted (i. e. bowed down) towards S., Nj. 77, Fms. xi. 102; sendimaðrinn sneri ( turned) hjöltum sverðsins at konungi, towards the king, i. 15; hann sneri egginni at Ásgrími, turned the edge towards A., Nj. 220; rétta e-t at e-m, to reach, hand over, Ld. 132; ganga at, to step towards, Ísl. ii. 259.

2. denoting proximity, close up to, up to; Brynjólfr gengr … allt at honum, B. goes quite up to him, Nj. 58; Gunnarr kom þangat at þeim örunum, G. reached them even there with his arrows, 115; þeir kómust aldri at honum, they could never get near him, to close quarters, id.; reið maðr at þeim (up to them), 274; þeir höfðu rakit sporin allt at ( right up to) gammanum, Fms. i. 9; komu þeir at sjó fram, came down to the sea, Bárð. 180.

3. without reference to the space traversed, to or at; koma at landi, to land, Ld. 38, Fms. viii. 358; ríða at dyrum, Boll. 344; hlaupa at e-m, to run up to, run at, Fms. vii. 218, viii. 358; af sjáfarganginum er hann gekk at landinu, of the surf dashing against the shore, xi. 6; vísa ólmum hundi at manni, to set a fierce hound at a man, Grág. ii. 118; leggja e-n at velli, to lay low, Eg. 426, Nj. 117; hníga at jörðu, at grasi, at moldu, to bite the dust, to die, Njarð. 378; ganga at dómi, a law term, to go into court, of a plaintiff, defendant, or bystander, Nj. 87 (freq.)

4. denoting a motion along, into, upon; ganga at stræti, to walk along the street, Korm. 228, Fms. vii. 39; at ísi, on the ice, Skálda 198, Fms. vii. 19, 246, viii. 168, Eb. 112 new Ed. (á is perh. wrong); máttu menn ganga bar yfir at skipum einum, of ships alone used as a bridge, Fas. i. 378; at höfðum, at nám, to trample on the slain on the battle-field, Lex. Poët.; at ám, along the rivers; at merkiósum, at the river’s mouth, Grág. ii. 355; at endilöngu baki, all along its back, Sks. 100.

5. denoting hostility, to rush at, assault; renna at, hlaupa at, ganga, fara, ríða, sækja, at e-m, (v. those words), whence the nouns atrenna, athlaup, atgangr, atför, atreið, atsókn, etc.

β. metaph., kom at þeim svefnhöfgi, deep sleep fell on them, Nj. 104. Esp. of weather, in the impers. phrase, hríð, veðr, vind, storm görir at e-m, to be overtaken by a snow storm, gale, or the like; görði þá at þeim þoku mikla, they were overtaken by a thick fog, Bárð. 171.

6. denoting around, of clothing or the like; bregða skikkju at höfði sér, to wrap his cloak over his head, Ld. 62; vefja motri at höfði sér, to wrap a snood round her head, 188; sauma at, to stick, cling close, as though sewn on; sauma at höndum sér, of tight gloves, Bs. i. 453; kyrtill svá þröngr sem saumaðr væri at honum, as though it were stitched to him, Nj. 214; vafit at vándum dreglum, tight laced with sorry tags, id.; hosa strengd fast at beini, of tight hose, Eg. 602; hann sveipar at sér iðrunum ok skyrtunni, he gathers up the entrails close to him and the skirt too, Gísl. 71; laz at síðu, a lace on the side, to keep the clothes tight, Eg. 602.

β. of burying; bera grjót at einum, to heap stones upon the body, Eg. 719; var gör at þeim dys or grjóti, Ld. 152; gora kistu at líki, to make a coffin for a body, Eb. 264, Landn. 56, Ld. 142.

γ. of summoning troops or followers; stefna at sér mönnum, to summon men to him, Nj. 104; stefna at sér liði, Eg. 270; kippa mönnum at sér, to gather men in haste, Ld. 64.

7. denoting a business, engagement; ríða at hrossum, at sauðum, to go looking after after horses, watching sheep, Glúm. 362, Nj. 75; fara at fé, to go to seek for sheep, Ld. 240; fara at heyi, to go a-haymaking, Dropl. 10; at veiðum, a-hunting; at fuglum, a-fowling; at dýrum, a-sbooting; at fiski, a-fishing; at veiðiskap, Landn. 154, Orkn. 416 (in a verse), Nj. 25; fara at landskuldum, to go a-collecling rents, Eg. 516; at Finnkaupum, a-marketing with Finns, 41; at féföngum, a-plundering, Fms. vii. 78; ganga at beina, to wait on guests, Nj. 50; starfa at matseld, to serve at table, Eb. 266; hitta e-n at nauðsynjum, on matters of business; at máli, to speak with one, etc., Fms. xi. 101; rekast at e-m, to pursue one, ix. 404; ganga at liði sér, to go suing for help, Grág. ii. 384.

β. of festivals; snúa, fá at blóti, veizlu, brullaupi, to prepare for a sacrificial banquet, wedding, or the like, hence at-fangadagr, Eb. 6, Ld. 70; koma at hendi, to happen, befall; ganga at sínu, to come by one’s own, to take it, Ld. 208; Egill drakk hvert full er at honum kom, drained every horn that came to him, Eg. 210; komast at keyptu, to purchase dearly, Húv. 46.

8. denoting imaginary motion, esp. of places, cp. Lat. spectare, vergere ad…, to look or lie towards; horfði botninn at höfðanum, the bight of the bay looked toward the headland, Fms. i. 340, Landn. 35; also, skeiðgata liggr at læknum, leads to the brook, Ísl. ii. 339; á þann arminn er vissi at sjánum, on that wing which looked toward the sea, Fms. viii. 115; sár þau er horft höfðu at Knúti konungi, xi. 309.

β. even connected with verbs denoting motion; Gilsáreyrr gengr austan at Fljótinu, G. extends, projects to F. from the east, Hrafh. 25; hjá sundi því, er at gengr þingstöðinni, Fms. xi. 85.

II. WITHOUT MOTION; denoting presence at, near, by, at the side of, in, upon; connected with verbs like sitja, standa, vera…; at kirkju, at church, Fms. vii. 251, K. f). K. 16, Ld. 328, Ísl. ii. 270, Sks. 36; vera at skála, at húsi, to be in, at home, Landn. 154; at landi, Fms. i. 82; at skipi, on shipboard, Grág. i. 209, 215; at oldri, at a banquet, inter pocula; at áti, at dinner, at a feast, inter edendum, ii. 169, 170; at samförum ok samvistum, at public meetings, id.; at dómi, in a court; standa (to take one’s stand) norðan, sunnan, austan, vestan at dómi, freq. in the proceedings at trials in lawsuits, Nj.; at þingi, present at the parliament, Grág. i. 142; at lögbergi, o n the hill of laws, 17, Nj.; at baki e-m, at the back of.

2. denoting presence, partaking in; sitja at mat, to sit at meat, Fms. i. 241; vera at veizlu, brullaupi, to be at a banquet, nuptials, Nj. 51, Ld. 70: a law term, vera at vígi, to be an accessory in manslaying, Nj. 89, 100; vera at e-u simply means to be about, be busy in, Fms. iv. 237; standa at máli, to stand by one in a case, Grág. ii. 165, Nj. 214; vera at fóstri, to be fostered, Fms. i. 2; sitja at hégóma, to listen to nonsense, Ld. 322; vera at smíð, to be at one’s work, Þórð. 62: now absol., vera at, to go on with, be busy at.

3. the law term vinna eið at e-u has a double meaning:

α. vinna eið at bók, at baugi, to make an oath upon the book by laying the band upon it, Landn. 258, Grág., Nj.; cp. Vkv. 31, Gkv. 3. 3, Hkv. 2. 29, etc.: ‘við’ is now used in this sense.

β. to confirm a fact (or the like) by an oath, to swear to, Grág. i. 9, 327.

γ. the law phrase, nefna vátta at e-u, of summoning witnesses to a deed, fact, or the like; nefna vátta at benjum, to produce evidence, witnesses as to the wounds, Nj., Grág.; at görð, Eg. 738; at svörum, Grág. i. 19: this summoning of witnesses served in old lawsuits the same purpose as modern pleadings and depositions; every step in a suit to be lawful must be followed by such a summoning or declaration.

4. used ellipt., vera at, to be about, to be busy at; kvalararnir er at vóru at pína hann, who were tormenting him; þar varstu at, you were there present, Skálda 162; at várum þar, Gísl. (in a verse): as a law term ‘vera at’ means to be guilty, Glúm. 388; vartattu at þar, Eg. (in a verse); hence the ambiguity of Glum’s oath, vask at þar, I was there present: var þar at kona nokkur ( was there busy) at binda sár manna, Fms. v. 91; hann var at ok smíðaði skot, Rd. 313; voru Varbelgir at ( about) at taka af, þau lög …, Fms. ix. 512; ek var at ok vafk, I was about weaving, xi. 49; þeir höfðu verit at þrjú sumur, they had been busy at it for three summers, x. 186 (now very freq.); koma at, come in, to arrive unexpectedly; Gunnarr kom at í því, G. came in at that moment; hvaðan komtú nú at, whence did you come? Nj. 68, Fms. iii. 200.

5. denoting the kingdom or residence of a king or princely person; konungr at Danmörk ok Noregi, king of…, Fms. i. 119, xi. 281; konungr, jarl, at öllum Noregi, king, earl, over all N., íb. 3, 13, Landn. 25; konungr at Dyflinni, king of Dublin, 25; but í or yfir England!, Eg. 263: cp. the phrase, sitja at landi, to reside, of a king when at home, Hkr. i. 34; at Joini, Fms. xi. 74: used of a bishop; biskup at Hólum, bishop of Hólar, Íb. 18, 19; but biskup í Skálaholti, 19: at Rómi, at Rome, Fbr. 198.

6. in denoting a man’s abode (vide p. 5, col. 1, l. 27), the prep. ‘at’ is used where the local name implies the notion of by the side of, and is therefore esp. applied to words denoting a river, brook, rock, mountain, grove, or the like, and in some other instances, by, at, e. g. at Hofi (a temple), Landn. 198; at Borg ( a castle), 57; at Helgafelli (a mountain), Eb. constantly so; at Mosfelli, Landn. 190; at Hálsi (a hill), Fms. xi. 22; at Bjargi, Grett. 90; Hálsum, Landn. 143; at Á ( river), 296, 268; at Bægisá, 212; Giljá, 332; Myrká, 211; Vatnsá, id.; þverá, Glúm. 323; at Fossi (a ‘force’ or waterfall), Landn. 73; at Lækjamoti (waters-meeting), 332; at Hlíðarenda ( end of the lithe or hill), at Bergþórshváli, Nj.; at Lundi (a grove), at Melum (sandhill), Landn. 70: the prep. ‘á’ is now used in most of these cases, e. g. á Á, á Hofi, Helgafelli, Felli, Hálsi, etc.

β. particularly, and without any regard to etymology, used of the abode of kings or princes, to reside at; at Uppsölum, at Haugi, Alreksstöðum, at Hlöðum, Landn., Fms.

γ. konungr lét kalla at stofudyrum, the king made a call at the hall door, Eg. 88; þeir kölluðu at herberginu, they called at the inn, Fms. ix. 475.

7. used ellipt. with a gen., esp. if connected with such words as gista, to be a guest, lodge, dine, sup (of festivals or the like) at one’s home; at Marðar, Nj. 4; at hans, 74; þingfesti at þess bóanda, Grág. i. 152; at sín, at one’s own home, Eg. 371, K. Þ. K. 62; hafa náttstað at Freyju, at the abode of goddess Freyja, Eg. 603; at Ránar, at Ran’s, i. e. at Ran’s house, of drowned men who belong to the queen of the sea, Ran, Eb. 274; at hins heilaga Ólafs konungs, at St. Olave’s church, Fms. vi. 63: cp. ad Veneris, εις Κίμωνος.

B. TEMP.

I. at, denoting a point or period of time; at upphafi, at first, in the beginning, Ld. 104; at lyktum, at síðustu, at lokum, at last; at lesti, at last, Lex. Poët., more freq. á lesti; at skilnaði, at parting, at last, Band. 3; at fornu, in times of yore, formerly, Eg. 267, D. I. i. 635; at sinni, as yet, at present; at nýju, anew, of present time; at eilífu, for ever and ever; at skömmu, soon, shortly, Ísl. ii. 272, v. l.

II. of the very moment when anything happens, the beginning of a term; denoting the seasons of the year, months, weeks, the hours of the day; at Jólum, at Yule, Nj. 46; at Pálmadegi, on Palm Sunday, 273; at Páskum, at Easter; at Ólafsvöku, on St. Olave’s eve, 29th of July, Fms.; at vetri, at the beginning of the winter, on the day when winter sets in, Grág. 1. 151; at sumarmálum, at vetrnáttum; at Tvímánaði, when the Double month (August) begins, Ld. 256, Grág. i. 152; at kveldi, at eventide, Eg. 3; at því meli, at that time; at eindaga, at the term, 395; at eykð, at 4 o’clock p. m., 198; at öndverðri æfi Abra hams, Ver. II; at sinni, now at once, Fms. vi. 71; at öðruhverju, every now and then.

β. where the point of time is marked by some event; at þingi, at the meeting of parliament (18th to the 24th of June), Ld. 182; at féránsdómi, at the court of execution, Grág. i. 132, 133; at þinglausnum, at the close of the parliament (beginning of July), 140; at festarmálum, eðr at eiginorði, at betrothal or nuptials, 174; at skilnaði, when they parted, Nj. 106 (above); at öllum minnum, at the general drinking of the toasts, Eg. 253; at fjöru, at the ebb; at flæðum, at flood tide, Fms. viii. 306, Orkn. 428; at hrörum, at an inquest, Grág. i. 50 (cp. ii. 141, 389); at sökum, at prosecutions, 30; at sinni, now, as yet, v. that word.

III. ellipt., or adding ‘komanda’ or ‘er kemr,’ of the future time:

1. ellipt., komanda or the like being understood, with reference to the seasons of the year; at sumri, at vetri, at hausti, at vári, next summer, winter…, Ísl. ii. 242; at miðju sumri, at ári, at Midsummer, next year, Fas. i. 516; at miðjum vetri, Fms. iv. 237,

2. adding ‘komanda’ or ‘er kemr;’ at ári komanda, Bárð. 177; at vári er kemr, Dipl. iii. 6.

IV. used with an absolute dat. and with a pres. part.:

1. with pres. part.; at morni komanda, on the coming morrow, Fms. i. 263; at sér lifanda, in vivo, in his life time, Grág. ii. 202; at þeim sofundum, illis dormientibus, Hkr. i. 234; at öllum ásjándum, in the sight of all, Fms. x. 329; at úvitanda konungi, illo nesciente, without his knowledge, 227; at áheyranda höfðingjanum, in the chief’s bearing, 235.

2. of past time with a past part. (Lat. abl. absol.); at hræjum fundnum, on the bodies being found, Grág. ii. 87; at háðum dómum ok föstu þingi, during the session, the courts being set, i. 484; at liðnum sex vikum, after six weeks past, Band. 13; at svá búnu, so goru, svá komnu, svá mæltu (Lat. quibus rebus gestis, dictis, quo facto, dicto, etc.), v. those words; at úreyndu, without trial, without put ting one to the test, Ld. 76; at honum önduðum, illo mortuo.

3. ellipt. without ‘at;’ en þessum hlutum fram komnum, when all this has been done, Eb. 132.

V. in some phrases with a slight temp, notion; at görðum gildum, the fences being strong, Gþl. 387; at vörmu spori, at once, whilst the trail is warm; at úvörum, unawares, suddenly, Nj. 95, Ld. 132; at þessu, at this cost, on that condition, Eb. 38, Nj. 55; at illum leiki, to have a narrow escape, now við illan leik, Fms. ix. 473; at því, that granted, Grág. ii. 33: at því, at pessu, thereafter, thereupon, Nj. 76.

2. denoting succession, without interruption, one after another; hverr at öðrum, annarr maðr at öðrum, aðrir at öðrum; eina konu at annarri, Eg. 91, Fms. ii. 236, vi. 25, Bs. i. 22, 625. 80, H. E. i. 522.

C. METAPH. and in various cases:

I. denoting a transformation or change into, to, with the notion of destruction; brenna at ösku, at köldum kolum, to burn to ashes, to be quite destroyed, Fms. i. 105, Edda 3, Sturl. ii. 51: with the notion of transformation or transfiguration, in such phrases as, verða at e-u, göra e-t at e-u, to turn it into:

α. by a spell; verða at ormi, to become a snake, Fms. xi. 158; at flugdrekum, Gullþ. 7; urðu þau bönd at járni, Edda 40.

β. by a natural process it can often be translated by an acc. or by as; göra e-n at urðarmanni, to make him an outlaw, Eg. 728; græða e-n at orkumlamanni, to heal him so as to maim him for life, of bad treatment by a leech, Eb. 244: in the law terms, sár görist at ben, a wound turning into a ben, proving to be mortal, Grág., Nj.; verða at ljúgvætti, to prove to be a false evidence, Grág. i. 44; verða at sætt, to turn into reconciliation, Fms. i. 13; göra e-t at reiði málum, to take offence at, Fs. 20; at nýjum tíðindum, to tell as news, Nj. 14; verða fátt at orðum, to be sparing of words, 18; kveðr (svá) at orði, to speak, utter, 10; verða at þrifnaði, to geton well, Fms. vii. 196: at liði, at skaða, to be a help or hurt to one; at bana, to cause one’s death, Nj. 223, Eg. 21, Grág. ii. 29: at undrum, at hlátri, to become a wonder, a laughing-stock, 623. 35, Eg. 553.

II. denoting capacity, where it may be translated merely by as or for; gefa at Jólagjöf, to give for a Christmas-box, Eg. 516; at gjöf, for a present; at erfð, at láni, launum, as an inheritance, a loan; at kaupum ok sökum, for buying and selling, Ísl. ii. 223, Grág. i. 423; at solum, ii. 204; at herfangi, as spoil or plunder; at sakbótum, at niðgjöldum, as a compensation, weregeld, i. 339, ii. 171, Hkr. ii. 168; taka at gíslingu, to take as an hostage, Edda 15; eiga e-n at vin, at óvin, to have one as friend or foe, illt er at eiga þræl at eingavin, ‘tis ill to have a thrall for one’s bosom friend (a proverb), Nj. 77; fæða, eiga, at sonum (syni), to beget a son, Edda 8, Bs. i. 60 (but eiga at dóttur cannot be said); hafa möttul at yfirhöfn, Fms. vii. 201; verða nökkut at manni (mönnum), to turn out to be a worthy man; verða ekki at manni, to turn out a worthless person, xi. 79, 268.

2. in such phrases as, verða at orðum, to come towards, Nj. 26; var þat at erindum, Eg. 148; hafa at veizlum, to draw veizlur ( dues) from, Fms. iv. 275, Eg. 647; gora e-t at álitum, to take it into consideration, Nj. 3.

III. denoting belonging to, fitting, of parts of the whole or the like; vóru at honum (viz. the sword) hjölt gullbúin, the sword was ornamented with a hilt of gold, Ld. 330; umgörð at ( belonging to) sverði, Fs. 97 (Hs.) in a verse; en ef mór er eigi at landinu, if there be no turf moor belonging to the land, Grág. ii. 338; svá at eigi brotnaði nokkuð at Orminum, so that no harm happened to the ship Worm, Fms. x. 356; hvatki er meiðir at skipinu eðr at reiðinu eðr at viðum, damage done t o …, Grág. ii. 403; lesta ( to injure) hús at lásum, við eðr torfi, 110; ef land hefir batnað at húsum, if the land has been bettered as to its buildings, 210; cp. the phrase, göra at e-u, to repair: hamlaðr at höndum eðr fótum, maimed as to hands or feet, Eg. 14; heill at höndum en hrumr at fótum, sound in band, palsied in foot, Fms. vii. 12; lykill at skrá, a key belonging, fitting, to the latch; hurð at húsi; a key ‘gengr at’ ( fits) skrá; and many other phrases. 2. denoting the part by which a thing is held or to which it belongs, by; fá, taka at…, to grasp by …; þú tókt við sverði hans at hjöltunum, you took it by the bill, Fms. i. 15; draga út björninn at hlustum, to pull out the bear by the ears, Fas. ii. 237; at fótum, by the feet, Fms. viii. 363; mæla ( to measure) at hrygg ok at jaðri, by the edge or middle of the stuff, Grág. i. 498; kasta e-m at höfði, head foremost, Nj. 84; kjósa e-n at fótum, by the feet alone, Edda 46; hefja frændsemi at bræðrum, eða at systkynum, to reckon kinship by the brother’s or the sister’s side, Grág. i. 28; kjósa at afli, at álitum, by strength, sight, Gs. 8, belongs rather to the following.

IV. in respect of, as regards, in regard to, as to; auðigr at fé, wealthy of goods, Nj. 16, 30, 51; beztir hestar at reið, the best racehorses, 186; spekingr at viti, a man of great intellect, Ld. 124; vænn (fagr) at áliti, fair of face, Nj. 30, Bs. i. 61; kvenna vænst at ásjónu ok vits munum, of surpassing beauty and intellect, Ld. 122; fullkominn at hyggju, 18; um fram aðra menn at vinsældum ok harðfengi, of surpassing popularity and hardihood, Eb. 30.

2. a law term, of challenging jurors, judges, or the like, on account of, by reason of; ryðja ( to challenge) at mægðum, guðsifjum, frændsemi, hrörum …; at leiðarlengd, on account of distance, Grág. i. 30, 50, Nj. (freq.)

3. in arithm. denoting proportion; at helmingi, þriðjungi, fjórðungi, tíunda hluta, cp. Lat. ex asse, quadrante, for the half, third… part; máttr skal at magni (a proverb), might and main go together, Hkr. ii. 236; þú munt vera at því mikill fræðimaðr á kvæði, in the same proportion, as great, Fms. vi. 391, iii. 41; at e-s hluta, at… leiti, for one’s part, in turn, as far as one is con cerned, Grág. i. 322, Eg. 309, Fms. iii. 26 (freq.): at öðrum kosti, in the other case, otherwise (freq.) More gener., at öllu, öngu, in all (no) respects; at sumu, einhverju, nokkru, partly; at flestu, mestu, chiefly.

4. as a paraphrase of a genitive; faðir, móðir at barni (= barns); aðili at sök (= sakar a.); morðingi at barni (= barns), faðerni at barni (barns); illvirki at fé manna (cp. Lat. felo de se), niðrfall at sökum (saka), land gangr at fiskum (fiska), Fms. iv. 274, Grág. i. 277, 416, N. G. L. i. 340, K. Þ. K. 112, Nj. 21.

5. the phrase ‘at sér,’ of himself or in himself, either ellipt. or by adding the participle görr, and with the adverbs vel, ilia, or the like; denoting breeding, bearing, endowments, character …; væn kona, kurteis ok vel at sér, an accomplished, well-bred, gifted lady, Nj. I; vitr maðr ok vel at sér, a wise man and thoroughly good in feeling and bearing, 5; þú ert maðr vaskr ok vel at þér, 49; gerr at sér, accomplished, 51; bezt at sér görr, the finest, best bred man, 39, Ld. 124; en þó er hann svá vel at sér, so generous, Nj. 77; þeir höfðingjar er svá vóru vel at sér, so noble-minded, 198, Fms. i. 160: the phrase ‘at sér’ is now only used of knowledge, thus maðr vel að sér means clever, a man of great knowledge; illa að sér, a blockhead.

6. denoting relations to colour, size, value, age, and the like; hvitr, svartr, grár, rauðr … at lit, white, swarthy, gray, red … of colour, Bjarn. 55, 28, Ísl. ii. 213, etc.; mikill, lítill, at stærð, vexti, tall, small of size, etc.; ungr, gamall, barn, at aldri, young, old, a child of age; tvítugr, þrítugr … at aldri, twenty, thirty … years of age (freq.): of animals; kyr at fyrsta, öðrum … kálfi, a cow having calved once, twice…, Jb. 346: value, amount, currency of money, kaupa e-t at mörk, at a mark, N. G. L. 1. 352; ok er eyririnn at mörk, amounts to a mark, of the value of money, Grág. i. 392; verðr þá at hálfri murk vaðmála eyrir, amounts to a half a mark, 500.

β. metaph. of value, connected with verbs denoting to esteem, hold; meta, hafa, halda at miklu, litlu, vettugi, engu, or the like, to hold in high or low esteem, to care or not to care for (freq.): geta e-s at góðu, illu, öngu, to mention one favourably, unfavourably, indifferently … (freq.), prop. in connection with. In many cases it may be translated by in; ekki er mark at draumum, there is no meaning in dreams, no heed is to be paid to dreams, Sturl. ii. 217; bragð er at þá barnið finnr, it goes too far, when even a child takes offence (a proverb): hvat er at því, what does it mean? Nj. 11; hvert þat skip er vöxtr er at, any ship of mark, i. e. however small, Fms. xi. 20.

V. denoting the source of a thing:

1. source of infor mation, to learn, perceive, get information from; Ari nam ok marga fræði at Þuríði, learnt as her pupil, at her hands, as St. Paul at the feet of Gamaliel, (just as the Scotch say to speer or ask at a person); Ari nam at Þorgeiri afraðskoll, Hkr. (pref.); nema kunnáttu at e-m, used of a pupil, Fms. i. 8; nema fræði at e-m, xi. 396.

2. of receiving, acquiring, buying, from; þiggja e-t at e-m, to receive a thing at his hands, Nj. 51; líf, to be pardoned, Fms. x. 173; kaupa land at e-m, to buy it from, Landn. 72, Íb. II, (now af is more freq. in this sense); geta e-t at e-m, to obtain, procure at one’s hands, impetrare; þeirra manna er þeir megu þat geta at, who are willing to do that, Grág. i. I; heimta e-t at e-m (now af), to call in, demand (a debt, money), 279; fala e-t at e-m (now af), to chaffer for or cheapen anything, Nj. 73; sækja e-t at e-m, to ask, seek for; sækja heilræði ok traust at e-m, 98; leiga e-t at e-m (now af), to borrow, Grág. ii. 334; eiga e-t (fé, skuld) at e-m, to be owed money by any one, i. 399: metaph. to deserve of one, Nj. 113; eiga mikit at e-m, to have much to do with, 138; hafa veg, virðing, styrk, at, to derive honour, power from, Fms. vi. 71, Eg. 44, Bárð. 174; gagn, to be of use, Ld. 216; mein, tálma, mischief, disadvantage, 158, 216, cp. Eg. 546; ótta, awe, Nj. 68.

VI. denoting conformity, according to, Lat. secundum, ex, after; at fornum sið, Fms. i. 112; at sögn Ara prests, as Ari relates, on his authority, 55; at ráði allra vitrustu manna, at the advice of, Ísl. ii. 259, Ld. 62; at lögum, at landslögum, by the law of the land, Grág., Nj.; at líkindum, in all likelihood, Ld. 272; at sköpum, in due course (poet.); at hinum sama hætti, in the very same manner, Grág. i. 90; at vánum, as was to be expected, Nj. 255; at leyfi e-s, by one’s leave, Eg. 35; úlofi, Grág. ii. 215; at ósk, vilja e-s, as one likes…; at mun, id. (poet.); at sólu, happily (following the course of the sun), Bs. i. 70, 137; at því sem …, as to infer from …, Nj. 124: ‘fara, láta, ganga at’ denotes to yield, agree to, to comply with, give in, Ld. 168, Eg. 18, Fms. x. 368.

VII. in phrases nearly or quite adverbial; gróa, vera græddr, at heilu, to be quite healed, Bárð. 167, Eb. 148; bíta at snöggu, to bite it bare, Fms. xi. 6; at þurru, till it becomes dry, Eb. 276; at endilöngu, all along, Fas. ii; vinnast at litlu, to avail little, 655 x. 14; at fullu, fully, Nj. 257, Hkr. i. 171; at vísu, of a surety, surely, Ld. 40; at frjálsu, freely, 308; at líku, at sömu, equally, all the same, Hom. 80, Nj. 267; at röngu, wrongly, 686 B. 2; at hófi, temperately, Lex. Poët.; at mun, at ráði, at marki, to a great extent; at hringum, utterly, all round, (rare), Fms. x. 389; at einu, yet, Orkn. 358; svá at einu, því at einu, allt at einu, yet, however, nevertheless.

VIII. connected with comparatives of adverbs and adjectives, and strengthening the sense, as in Engl. ‘the,’ so much the more, all the more; ‘at’ heldr tveimr, at ek munda gjarna veita yðr öllum, where it may be translated by so much the more to two, as I would willingly grant it to all of you; hon grét at meir, she grat (wept) the more, Eg. 483; þykir oss at líkara, all the more likely, Fms. viii. 6; þess at harðari, all the harder, Sturl. iii. 202 C; svá at hinn sé bana at nær, Grág. ii. 117; at auðnara, at hólpnara, the more happy, Al. 19, Grett. 116 B; þess at meiri, Fms. v. 64; auvirðismaðr at meiri, Sturl. ii. 139; maðr at vaskari, id.; at feigri, any the more fey, Km. 22; maðr at verri, all the worse, Nj. 168; ok er ‘at’ firr…, at ek vil miklu heldr, cp. Lat. tantum abest… ut, Eg. 60.

β. following after a negation; eigi at síðr, no less, Nj. 160, Ld. 146; eigi… at meiri maðr, any better, Eg. 425, 489; erat héra at borgnara, any the better off for that, Fms. vii. 116; eigi at minni, no less for that, Edda (pref.) 146; eigi at minna, Ld. 216, Fms. ix. 50; ekki at verri drengr, not a bit worse for that, Ld. 42; er mér ekki son minn at bættari, þótt…, 216; at eigi vissi at nær, any more, Fas. iii. 74.

IX. following many words:

1. verbs, esp. those denoting, a. to ask, enquire, attend, seek, e. g. spyrja at, to speer (ask) for; leita at, to seek for; gæta, geyma at, to pay attention to; huga, hyggja at; hence atspurn, to enquire, aðgæzla, athugi, attention, etc.

β. verbs denoting laughter, play, joy, game, cp. the Engl. to play at …, to laugh at …; hlæja, brosa at e-u, to laugh, smile at it; leika (sér) at e-u, to play at; þykja gaman at, to enjoy; hæða, göra gys at …, to make sport at …

γ. verbs denoting assistance, help; standa, veita, vinna, hjálpa at; hence atstoð, atvinna, atverk:—mode, proceeding; fara at, to proceed, hence atför and atferli:—compliance; láta, fara at e-u, v. above:— fault; e-t er at e-u, there is some fault in it, Fms. x. 418; skorta at e-u, to fall short of, xi. 98:—care, attendance; hjúkra at, hlýja at, v. these words:—gathering, collecting; draga, reiða, flytja, fá at, congerere:—engagement, arrival, etc.; sækja at, to attack; ganga at, vera at, to be about; koma at, ellipt. to arrive: göra at, to repair: lesta at, to impair (v. above); finna at, to criticise (mod.); telja at, id.: bera at, to happen; kveða at e-m, to address one, 625. 15, (kveða at (ellipt.) now means to pronounce, and of a child to utter (read) whole syllables); falla at, of the flood-tide (ellipt.): metaph. of pains or straits surrounding one; þreyngja, herða at, to press hard: of frost and cold, with regard to the seasons; frjósa at, kólna at, to get really cold (SI. 44), as it were from the cold stiffening all things: also of the seasons themselves; hausta, vetra að, when the season really sets in; esp. the cold seasons, ‘sumra at’ cannot be used, yet we may say ‘vára að’ when the spring sets in, and the air gets mild.

δ. in numberless other cases which may partly be seen below.

2. connected ellipt. with adverbs denoting motion from a place; norðan, austan, sunnan, vestan at, those from the north, east…; utan at, innan at, from the outside or inside.

3. with adjectives (but rarely), e. g. kærr, elskr, virkr (affectionate), vandr (zealous), at e-m; v. these words.

WITH ACC.

TEMP.: Lat. post, after, upon, esp. freq. in poetry, but rare in prose writers, who use eptir; nema reisi niðr at nið (= maðr eptir mann), in succession, of erecting a monument, Hm. 71; in prose, at þat. posthac, deinde, Fms. x. 323, cp. Rm., where it occurs several times, 2, 6, 9, 14, 18, 24, 28, 30, 35; sonr á at taka arf at föður sinn, has to take the inheritance after his father, Grág. i. 170 new Ed.; eiga féránsdóm at e-n, Grág. i. 89; at Gamla fallinn, after the death of G., Fms. x. 382; in Edda (Gl.) 113 ought to be restored, grét ok at Oð, gulli Freyja, she grat (wept) tears of gold for her lost husband Od. It is doubtful if it is ever used in a purely loc. sense; at land, Grág. (Sb.)ii. 211, is probably corrupt; at hönd = á hönd, Grág. (Sb.) i. 135; at mót = at móti, v. this word.

☞ In compounds (v. below) at- or að- answers in turn to Lat. ad- or in- or con-; atdráttr e. g. denotes collecting; atkoma is adventus: it may also answer to Lat. ob-, in atburðr = accidence, but might also be compared with Lat. occurrere.

and að, the mark of the infinitive [cp. Goth. du; A. S. and Engl. to; Germ. zu]. Except in the case of a few verbs ‘at’ is always placed immediately before the infinitive, so as to be almost an inseparable part of the verb.

I. it is used either,

1. as, a simple mark of the infinitive, only denoting an action and independent of the subject, e. g. at ganga, at hlaupa, at vita, to go, to run, to know; or,

2. in an objective sense when following such verbs as bjóða segja…, to invite, command …; hann bauð þeim at ganga, at sitja, be bade, ordered them to go, sit, or the like; or as gefa and fá; gefa e-m at drekka, at eta, to give one to drink or to eat, etc. etc.

β. with the additional notion of intention, esp. when following verba cogitandi; hann ætlaði, hafði í hyggju at fara, he had it in his mind to go (where ‘to go’ is the real object to ætlaði and hafði í hyggju).

3. answering to the Gr. ινα, denoting intention, design, in order to; hann gékk í borg at kaupa silfr, in order to buy, Nj. 280; hann sendi riddara sína með þeim at varðveita þær, 623. 45: in order to make the phrase more plain, ‘svá’ and ‘til’ are frequently added, esp. in mod. writers, ‘svá at’ and contr. ‘svát’ (the last however is rare), ‘til at’ and ‘til þess at,’ etc.

II. in the earlier times the infin., as in Greek and Lat., had no such mark; and some verbs remain that cannot be followed by ‘at;’ these verbs are almost the same in Icel. as in Engl.:

α. the auxiliary verbs vil, mun ( μέλλω), skal; as in Engl. to is never used after the auxiliaries shall, will, must; ek vil ganga, I will go; ek mun fara, (as in North. E.) I mun go; ek skal göra þat, I shall do that, etc.

β. the verbs kunna, mega, as in Engl. I can or may do, I dare say; svá hygginn at hann kunni fyrir sökum ráða, Grág. ii. 75; í öllu er prýða má góðan höfðingja, Nj. 90; vera má, it may be; vera kann þat, id.: kunnu, however, takes ‘at’ whenever it means to know, and esp. in common language in phrases such as, það kann að vera, but vera kann þat, v. above.

γ. lata, biðja, as in Engl. to let, to bid; hann lét (bað) þá fara, he let (bade) them go.

δ. þykkja, þykjast, to seem; hann þykir vera, he is thought to be: reflex., hann þykist vera, sibi videtur: impers., mér þykir vera, mibi videtur, in all cases without ‘at.’ So also freq. the verbs hugsa, hyggja, ætla, halda, to think, when denoting merely the act of thinking; but if there be any notion of intention or purpose, they assume the ‘at;’ thus hann ætlaði, hugði, þá vera góða menn, he thought them to be, acc. c. inf.; but ætlaði at fara, meant to go, etc.

ε. the verbs denoting to see, bear; sjá, líta, horfa á … ( videre); heyra, audire, as in Engl. I saw them come, I heard him tell, ek sá þá koma, ek heyrði hann tala.

ζ. sometimes after the verbs eiga and ganga; hann gékk steikja, be went to roast, Vkv. 9; eiga, esp. when a mere periphrasis instead of skal, móður sína á maðr fyrst fram færa (better at færa), Grág. i. 232; á þann kvið einskis meta, 59; but at meta, id. l. 24; ráða, nema, göra …, freq. in poetry, when they are used as simple auxiliary verbs, e. g. nam hann sér Högna hvetja at rúnum, Skv. 3. 43.

η. hljóta and verða, when used in the sense of must (as in Engl. he must go), and when placed after the infin.of another verb; hér muntu vera hljóta, Nj. 129; but hljóta at vera: fara hlýtr þú, Fms. 1. 159; but þú hlýtr at fara: verða vita, ii. 146; but verða at vita: hann man verða sækja, þó verðr (= skal) maðr eptir mann lifa, Fms. viii. 19, Fas. ii. 552, are exceptional cases.

θ. in poetry, verbs with the verbal neg. suffix ‘-at,’ freq. for the case of euphony, take no mark of the infinitive, where it would be indispensable with the simple verb, vide Lex. Poët. Exceptional cases; hvárt sem hann vill ‘at’ verja þá sök, eða, whatever he chooses, either, Grág. i. 64; fyrr viljum vér enga kórónu at bera, en nokkut ófrelsi á oss at taka, we would rather bear no crown than …, Fms. x. 12; the context is peculiar, and the ‘at’ purposely added. It may be left out ellipt.; e. g. þá er guð gefr oss finnast (= at finnast), Dipl. ii. 14; gef honum drekka (= at drekka), Pr. 470; but mostly in unclassical writers, in deeds, or the like, written nastily and in an abrupt style.

and að, conj. [Goth. þatei = οτι; A. S. þät; Engl. that; Germ, dass; the Ormul. and Scot. at, see the quotations sub voce in Jamieson; in all South-Teutonic idioms with an initial dental: the Scandinavian idioms form an exception, having all dropped this consonant; Swed. åt, Dan. at]. In Icel. the Bible translation (of the 16th century) was chiefly based upon that of Luther; the hymns and the great bulk of theol. translations of that time were also derived from Germany; therefore the germanised form það frequently appears in the Bible, and was often employed by theol. authors in sermons since the time of the Reformation. Jón Vidalin, the greatest modern Icel. preacher, who died in 1720, in spite of his thoroughly classical style, abounds in the use of this form; but it never took root in the language, and has never passed into the spoken dialect. After a relative or demonstr. pronoun, it freq. in mod. writers assumes the form eð, hver eð, hverir eð, hvað eð, þar eð. Before the prep. þú (tu), þ changes into t, and is spelt in a single word attú, which is freq. in some MS.;—now, however, pronounced aððú, aððeir, aððið …, = að þú…, with the soft Engl. th sound. It gener. answers to Lat. ut, or to the relat. pron. qui.

I. that, relative to svá, to denote proportion, degree, so…, that, Lat. tam, tantus, tot…, ut; svá mikill lagamaðr, at…, so great a lawyer, that…, Nj. 1; hárið svá mikit, at þat…, 2; svá kom um síðir því máli, at Sigvaldi, it came so far, that…, Fms. xi. 95, Edda 33. Rarely and unclass., ellipt. without svá; Bæringr var til seinn eptir honum, at hann … (= svá at), Bær. 15; hlífði honum, at hann sakaði ekki, Fas. iii. 441.

II. it is used,

1. with indic, in a narrative sense, answering partly to Gr. οτι, Lat. quod, ut, in such phrases as, it came to pass, happened that …; þat var einhverju sinni, at Höskuldr hafði vinaboð, Nj. 2; þat var á palmdrottinsdag, at Ólafr konungr gékk út um stræti, Fms. ii. 244.

2. with subj. answering to Lat. acc. with infin., to mark the relation of an object to the chief verb, e. g. vilda ek at þú réðist, I wished that you would, Nj. 57.

β. or in an oblique sentence, answering to ita ut…; ef svá kann verða at þeir láti…, if it may be so that they might…, Fms. xi. 94.

γ. with a subj. denoting design, answering to ϊνα or Lat. ut with subj., in order that; at öll veraldar bygðin viti, ut sciat totus orbis, Stj.; þeir skáru fyrir þá melinn, at þeir dæi eigi af sulti, ut ne fame perirent, Nj. 265; fyrsti hlutr bókarinnar er Kristindómsbálkr, at menn skili, in order that men may understand, Gþl. p. viii.

III. used in connection with conjunctions,

1. esp. þó, því, svá; þó at freq. contr. þótt; svát is rare and obsolete.

α. þóat, þótt (North. E. ‘thof’), followed by a subjunctive, though, although, Lat. etsi, quamquam (very freq.); þóat nokkurum mönnum sýnist þetta með freku sett… þá viljum vér, Fms. vi. 21: phrases as, gef þú mér þó at úverðugri, etsi indignae (dat.), Stj. MS. col. 315, are unclass., and influenced by the Latin: sometimes ellipt. without ‘þó,’ eigi mundi hón þá meir hvata göngu sinni, at (= þóat) hon hraeddist bana sinn, Edda 7, Nj. 64: ‘þó’ and ‘at’ separated, svarar hann þó rétt, at hann svari svá, Grág. i. 23; þó er rétt at nýta, at hann sé fyrr skorinn, answering to Engl. yet—though, Lat. attamen —etsi, K. Þ. K.

β. því at, because, Lat. nam, quia, with indic.; því at allir vóru gerfiligir synir hans, Ld. 68; því at af íþróttum verðr maðr fróðr, Sks. 16: separated, því þegi ek, at ek undrumst, Fms. iii. 201; því er þessa getið, at þat þótti, it i s mentioned because …, Ld. 68.

γ. svá at, so that, Lat. ut, ita ut; grátrinn kom upp, svá at eingi mátti öðrum segja, Edda 37: separated, so … that, svá úsvúst at …, so bad weather, that, Bs. i. 339, etc.

2. it is freq. used superfluously, esp. after relatives; hver at = hverr, quis; því at = því, igitur; hverr at þekkr ok þægiligr mun verða, Fms. v. 159; hvern stvrk at hann mundi fá, 44; ek undrumst hvé mikil ógnarraust at liggr í þér, iii. 201; því at ek mátti eigi þar vera elligar, því at þar var kristni vel haldin, Fas. i. 340.

IV. as a relat. conj.:

1. temp, when, Lat. quum; jafnan er ( est) mér þá verra er ( quum) ek fer á braut þaðan, en þá at ( quum) ek kem, Grett. 150 A; þar til at vér vitum, till we know, Fms. v. 52; þá at ek lýsta (= þá er), when, Nj. 233.