the first time

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1) time; eptir tíma liðinn, after a little time; í þann tíma, at that time; fyrstan tíma, er ek var hér, the first time that I was here;

2) time, fit time (þeim þótti t. til at ganga á fund konungs); á hœfiligum tíma, in due time; í tíma, betimes;

3) good luck, prosperity (gangi þér allt til tírs ok tíma).

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a, m. [A. S. tîma; Engl. time; Dan. time; it is strange that Ulf. uses no word analogous either to ‘tíð’ or ‘tími’]:—time; langr tími, Fms. vi. 92; eptir tíma liðinn, after a little time, Bs. i. 857; eigi langan tíma upp frá þessu, Fs. 61; í þann tíma, at that time, Eg. 15, Stj. 50; í þenna tíma, at the time, then, Fms. x. 27, Sd. 138; einn tíma, once, a time, H. E. i. 516; tvá tíma, twice, Fms. xi. 159; um tíma, for a time, Mar.; hann sat þar um tíma, Ann. 1363; í annan tíma, the second time, again, Stj. 50, Fb. i. 145, 211; þriðja tíma, the third time, D. N. i. 263; fyrstan tíma er ek var hér, the first time that I was here, Fb. i. 512: gramm., Skálda 159, 175; a time, season, allir ársins tímar, Stj. 148.

2. time, fit time (= Gr. καιρός); er þeim þótti tími til at ganga á fund konungs, Eg. 28; þeir héldu vörð á nær tími mundi vera at hitta konung, 421; eigi hittu þér nú í tíma til, Fms. vii. 197; ú-tími, the wrong time; í ótíma, too late; ákveðinn tími, a fixed time, Grett. 161; á hæfiligum tíma, in due time, Fms. vi. 133; í tíma, betimes, Karl. 12; hón fór at mólka kýr eptir tíma, Grett. 80 new Ed.

II. metaph. a good time, prosperity; en sá tími fylgði ferð þeirra, at …, Edda 152 (pref.); gefi Guð ykkr góðan tíma, Stj. 426; hann skyldi þar vel kominn ok með tíma á þenna enn nýja bólstað, Ld. 98; halda tíma sínum öllum, Al. 59; gangi þér allt til tírs ok tíma, Fb. i. 566; en upp frá þessu gékk Eyjólfi hvárki (til) tírs né tíma, E. had henceforth bad times, Bs. i. 286; meðan ríki stóð með beztum tíma ok siðum, Sks. 526; með betra tíma, with better times, Al. 100.

COMPDS: tímadagr, tímahald, tímaland, tímalauss, tímaleysi, tímaliga, tímaligr, tímasamliga, tímaskipti.

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

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

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

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

5) embroidered figure (hekla saumuð öll brögðum).

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n. [cp. bregða].

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

(sín, sitt), poss. pron. his, her, its, their;

1) referring to the subj. in a sentence, Hallgerðr fastnaði dóttur sína, H. betrothed her daughter;

Hrútr var harðráðr við úvini sína, H. was stern towards his foes;

2) referring to the object;

hvat vill Haraldr bjóða Nóregs konungi fyrir sitt starf, what will H. offer to the king of Norway for his (viz. the latter’s) trouble? Sigurðr jarl gaf upp Orkneyingum óðul sín, their odals;

hann þakkar honum sitt sinni, he thanks him for his help;

3) neut. as subst.;

kostaði hann einn allt fyrir, en bœndr ekki af sínu, nothing of their own;

allt mun þat sínu fran fara um aldr manna, it will all go its own course to a man’s life;

4) with sjálfr both words are declined;

þeir báðu hana taka sjálfrar sinnar ráð, they bade her take her own counsel;

5) with hvárr and hverr in a distributive sense;

tók sitt langskip hvárr þeira, each of the two took a long ship;

sinn vetr þá hvárr heimboð at öðrum, they visited each other, winter about;

sínu sinni at hvárs búum, alternately on each other’s estates;

sinn veg hvárr, one each way;

þykkir nökkut sinn veg hváru, each took his own view of the matter;

ferr sinn veg hverr um skóginn, they (all) went each his own way in the wood;

skulu vaka sinn þriðjung nætr hverir tveir, two and two in turn.

n. time;

eitt sinn, einu sinni, one time, once (þat var eitt sinn, at Egill gekk til elda at verma sik);

eitthvert sinn, einhverju sinni = eitt sinn, einu sinni;

einhverju sinni bar svá til, at, one time it happened that;

ekki sinn, engu sinni, never;

aldri sinn, never more (aldri skaltu koma í mína rekkju sinn síðan);

þat sinn, that time;

þessu sinni, this time;

(í) annat sinn, öðru sinni, a second time, again;

hit fyrra sinn, the first time;

hit þriðja sinn, for the third time;

at sinni, for the present (þeir skilja tal sitt at sinni);

um sinn, once (veg þú aldri meirr í inn sama knérunn en um sinn);

for this one time (ek mun leysa þik ór vandræði þessu um sinn);

um sinns sakir, for this once (eigi vil ek synja þér um sinns sakir þessa);

dat. pl., sjau sinnum, seven times;

endr ok sinnum, now and then, from time to time;

nökkurum sinnum, several times.

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sín, sitt, pron. possess. reflex.; the better and true form is sínn, sín, sítt, with í throughout, see the remarks on minn; [Ulf. seins, etc.]:—his, hers, its, theirs = Lat. suus, usually placed after, but also, if emphatic, before; þar sitr Sigyn um sínum ver, Vsp. 39; síns um freista frama, Hm. 2; mál síns maga, 20; síns ins heila hugar, síns ins svára sofa, 105: properly referring to the subject in a sentence, Hallgerðr fastnaði dóttur sína, H. gave away her daughter. Nj. 51; Hrútr var hagráðr við vini sína, 2; hann skipaði sínum mónnum, 50; þeir leiða hesta sína, 265; hann kvaddi Ólaf stjúpson sinn til at söðla sér hest, Ó. H. 15; síðan vóru honum öll ráð sín þungrærð ok torsótt, 195; var honum sjálfum hugr sinn bæði fyrir skjöld ok brynju, Fbr. 56 new Ed. The pronoun may also refer to the object, or, in a complex sentence, to a second person in the predicate of the sentence, hvat vill Haraldr bjóða Noregs konungi fyrir sitt starf, what will H. offer to the king of Norway for his (i. e. the Norse king’s) trouble? Fms. vi. 415; Sigurðr jarl gaf upp Orkneyingum óðul sín (their odals), Orkn. 20, cp. the Lat. ‘Syracusanis res suas restituit;’ sagði Dufþakr at Ormr skyldi hafa byrði sína, i. e. as much as O. could carry, Fb. i. 523; eigi þér at bæta prestinum rétt sinn, to the priest his due, Bs. i. 709; Eyjólfr þakkar konungi gjafir sínar ok vinmæli for his (the king’s) gifts, Lv. 112; hann þakkar honum sitt sinni, he thanks him for his help, Fas. ii. 542: so also in mod. writers, og hann gaf hann aptr sinni móður, Luke vii. 15 (Vídal.); ræn ei Guð Sínum rétti, rob thou not God of his right, Pass. 7. 11, and passim.

II. neut. as subst.; allt mun þat sínu fram fara ( go its own course) um aldr manna, Nj. 259; ryðik hann um sitt, = Lat. pro virili, i. e. for his own part, with might and main, Fms. xi. 132: ellipt., hann segir sínar (viz. farar) eigi sléttar, Korm. 158; kom hann svá sinni (viz. ár) fyrir borð, Fas. i. 524.

III. with sjálfr, both words are declined; skaða sjálfs síns, one’s own self’s scathe, Sks. 228 B; minni sjálfs síns, one’s own recollection, D. N. ii. 110; þeir báðu hana taka sjálfrar sinnar ráð. ‘take her own self’s rede,’ act for herself, Fms. x. 103; með höndum sjálfra sinna, Barl. 25; leggr hón í veð sjálfra sinna eignir, D. N. ii. 82; sakir óforsjó sálfra sinna, i. 107: in mod. usage both the possessive and the indeclinable forms are used, thus, sjálfs síns eignum, but if placed after, eignum sjálfs sín; the possessive however is more freq., as it also is the better form of the two.

IV. with hvárr (dual), hverr (plur.), in a distributive sense:

α. sinn-hverr in n purely distributive sense; tók sitt langskip ‘hvárr þeirra, they took a long ship, each of the two, Eg. 74; England ok Skotland er ein ey, ok er þó sitt hvárt konungs-ríki, England and Scotland are one island, and yet each is a separate kingdom, Symb. 14: lét sitt naut hvárr fram leiða, Eg. 506; sinn vetr þá hvúrr heimboð at öðrum, each his winter, alternately, Nj. 51; ef sinn lögsögu-mann vilja hvárir, Grág. i. 1; þeirra manna er tví-tyngðir eru ok hafa í sínum hváptinum hvára tunguna, Al. 4; hón hélt sinni hendi um háls hvárum þeirra, … liggi til sinnar handar mér hvárr ykkar, Fms. i. 9.

β. sinn hverr (plur.), ferr sinn veg hverr um skóginn, they went each his own way in the wood, i. e. dispersed, Glúm. 329; skulu vaka sinn þriðjung nætr hverir tveir, two and two in turn, Fms. iv. 299; hann selr sína bolöxi í hendr hverjum þeirra, v. 288; hann sá þrjú hásæti ok sátu þrír menn, sinn í hverju, Edda 2; hann kastaði um öxl hverja sínum sauðum tveimr, Grett. 134 new Ed.; fór sinn veg hverr, they went each his own way, i. e. they parted; but, fór hverr sinn veg, each his (appointed) way: rarely with the possessive placed after, fóru hvárir leið sína, Nj. 34; fara hvárir til síns heima, Korm. 222. In mod. usage, when sinn is placed after hverr, it gives emphasis with the notion of one’s due, one’s own, thus, gefa hverjum sitt, to give every one his due, Lat. suum cuique; whereas ‘sitt hverjum,’ with the order reversed, is merely distributive; thus hver fékk sinn penning, Matth. xx. 9 (of wages due to each); whereas ‘fékk sinn pening hverr’ would be said of alms distributed.

B. COMPDS: sinn-veg, sinn-eg, sinn-ig, adv. one each way; þykkir nokkut sinnveg hváru, they disagreed, Ld. 90; talaði annarr at öðrum, ok hóf sinneg; hverr, they all spoke in turn, and each began his speech differently, Fms. vii. 222. Also, sinns-ig, adv.; flýði sinnsig hverr, Fms. viii. 413, v. l.; sinnsiginn var litr hvers steins, Konr.; skildu þeir svá sínu tali, at sinnsiginn líkaði hverjum, Bs. (Laur.); segir svá Gregorius papa, at sinnsig á hvern á at minna, each has to be admonished in his own way, one this way, another that, 655 xi. 2.

1) great-grandmother;

2) the name of the book Edda, written by Snorri Sturluson, c. 1220.

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u, f. a great-grandmother, Rm. 2. 4; móðir ( mother) heitir ok amma (grandmother), þriðja edda (the third is edda), Edda 108: this sense is obsolete.

II. metaph. the name of the book Edda, written by Snorri Sturluson, and containing old mythological lore and the old artificial rules for verse making. The ancients only applied this name to the work of Snorri; it is uncertain whether he himself called it so; it occurs for the first time in the inscription to one of the MSS. of Edda, viz. the Ub., written about fifty or sixty years after Snorri’s death: Bók þessi heitir Edda, hann hefir saman setta Snorri Sturlusonr eptir þeim hætti sem hér er skipat (viz. consisting of three parts, Gylfagynning, Skáldskaparmál, and Háttatal), Edda ii. 250 (Ed. Arna-Magn.); sva segir í bók þeirri er Edda heitir, at sá maðr sem Ægir hét spurði Braga …, 532 (MS. of the 14th century); hann (viz. Snorri) samansetti Eddu, he put together the Edda, Ann. 1241 (in a paper MS., but probably genuine). As the Skáldskaparmál ( Ars Poëtica) forms the chief part of the Edda, teaching the old artificial poetical circumlocutions (kenningar), poetical terms and diction, and the mythical tales on which they were founded, the Edda became a sort of handbook of poets, and therefore came gradually to mean the ancient artificial poetry as opposed to the modern plain poetry contained in hymns and sacred poems; it, however, never applies to alliteration or other principles of Icel. poetry: reglur Eddu, the rules of Edda, Gd. (by Arngrim) verse 2, Lil. 96, Nikulas d. 4; Eddu list, the art of Edda, Gd. (by Arni) 79;—all poems of the 14th century. The poets of the 15th century frequently mention the Edda in the introduction to their Rímur or Rhapsodies, a favourite kind of poetry of this and the following time, Reinalds R. I. 1, Áns R. 7. 2, Sturlaugs R., Sigurðar þögla R. 5. 4, Rimur af Ill Verra og Vest, 4, 3, Jarlmanns R. 7. 1, 5, II. 3, Dímis R. 2. 4, Konraðs R. 7. 5;—all these in vellum and the greater part of them belonging to the 15th century. Poets of the 16th century (before 1612), Rollants R. 9. 6, 12. 1, Pontus R. (by Magnus Gamli, died 1591), Valdimars R., Ester R. 2. 2, 6. 3, Sýraks R. 1. 2, 6. 2, Tobias R. I. 2; from the first half of the 17th century, Grett. R., Flores R. 6. 3, 9. 2, Króka Refs R. 1. 7, Lykla Pétrs R. 4. 2, 12. 1, Apollonius R. 1. 5, Flovents R. 6. 3, Sjö Meistara R. 1. 7, 2. 1, 3. 8;—all in MS. In these and many other references, the poets speak of the art, skill, rules, or, if they are in that mood, the obscure puerilities and empty phrases of the Edda, the artificial phraseology as taught and expounded by Snorri; and wherever the name occurs (previous to the year 1643) it only refers to Snorri’s book, and such is still the use of the word in Icel.; hence compd words such as Eddu-lauss, adj. void of Eddic art; Eddu-borinn, part. poetry full of Eddic phrases; Eddu-kenningar, f. pl. Eddic circumlocutions, Kötlu Draumr 85, e. g. when the head is called the ‘sword of Heimdal,’ the sword the ‘fire or torch of Odin,’ etc.; Eddu-kendr = Edduborinn; Eddu-bagr, adj. a bungler in the Eddic art, etc. The Icel. bishop Brynjolf Sveinsson in the year 1643 discovered the old mythological poems, and, led by a fanciful and erroneous suggestion, he gave to that book the name of Sæmundar Edda, the Edda of Sæmund; hence originate the modern terms the Old or Poetical and New or Prose Edda; in foreign writers Eddic has been ever since used in the sense of plain and artless poetry, such as is contained in these poems, opposed to the artificial, which they call Scaldic (Skald being Icel. for a poet); but this has no foundation in old writers or tradition. Further explanation of this subject may be seen in Ersch and Gruber’s Encyclopedia, s. v. Graagaas.

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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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n. letter, witten deed.

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n. [for. word, from Lat. brĕve, like Engl. and Germ. brief; Dan. brev], in Icel. proncd. with a long e, bréf

a letter, written deed, rescript, etc. Letter-writing is never mentioned in the true Icel. Sagas before the end of the old Saga time, about A. D. 1015. Bréf occurs for the first time as a sort of dispatch in the negotiation between Norway and Sweden A. D. 1018; lét þau fara aptr með bréfum þeim er Ingigerðr konungs dóttir ok þau Hjalti sendu jarli ok Ingibjörgu, Ó. H. ch. 71; bréf ok innsigli Engla konungs (viz. king Canute, A. D. 1024), ch. 120: a royal letter is also mentioned Bjarn. 13 (of St. Olave, A. D. 1014–1030). The earliest Icel. deeds on record are of the end of the 11th century; in the D. I., Sturl., and Bs. (12th and 13th centuries) letters of every kind, public and private, are freq. mentioned, vide D. I. by Jon Sigurdsson, Bs. i. 478–481, etc., Fms. vii–x, Sturl. freq. [In the Saga time, ‘orð ok jartegnir,’ words and tokens, is a standing phrase; the ‘token’ commonly was a ring; the instances are many, e. g. Ld. ch. 41, 42, Bjarn. 7, Gunnl. S.; cp. the interesting passage in the mythical Akv. verse 8, where the sister ties one hair of a wolf in the ring—hár fann ek heiðingja riðit í hring rauðan—as a warning token; cp. also the story of the coin used as a token in Gísl. ch. 8. In the old Sagas even runes are hardly mentioned as a medium of writing; but v. rune.]

COMPDS: bréfabók, bréfabrot, bréfagörð, bréfamaðr, bréfasveinn.

1) poetry, = skáldskapr;

2) the best, foremost (Ása bragr = Thor; bragr kvenna); most eloquent.

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ar, m. [akin to bragð, braga, bragi, etc.]

I. best, foremost; b. kvenna, best of women, Skv. 2. 15; Ása b., best of Ases, Skm. 34; b. karla eðr kvenna, Edda 17: only used in poetry or poët. language, cp. the A. S. brego ( princeps) Egypta, Norðmanna, Israelita, Gumena, Engla, etc.:—hence the compd bragar-full or braga-full, n. a toasting cup, to be drunk esp. at funeral feasts; it seems properly to mean the king’s toast (cp. Bragi = princeps), i. e. the toast in the memory of the deceased king or earl, which was to be drunk first; the heir to the throne rose to drink this toast, and while doing so put his feet on the footstool of his seat and made a solemn vow (stíga á stokk ok strengja heit); he then for the first time took his father’s seat, and the other guests in their turn made similar vows. For a graphic description of this heathen sacred custom, vide Yngl. S. Hkr. i. 49, Hervar. S. Fas. i. 417 and 515, Hkv. Hjörv. 32, Ragn. S. Fas. i. 345. It is likely that the b. was mostly used at funeral banquets, though the passages in the Ragn. and Hervar. S. (cp. also Hænsaþ. S. ch. 12) seem to imply its use at other festivals, as weddings; cp. also the description of the funeral banquet, Hkr. i. 231, where ‘minni hans’ ( the toast of the dead king) answers to bragarfull; cp. also the funeral banquet recorded in Jómsvik. S., where the Danish king Sweyn made the vow ‘at bragarfulli’ to conquer England within three winters. This is said to have been the prelude to the great Danish invasion A. D. 994, Fagrsk. 44, and Hkr. to l. c. The best MSS. prefer the reading bragar- (from bragr, princeps), not braga-.

II. nearly like Lat. mos, a fashion, habit of life, in compds as, bæjar-bragr, heimilis-bragr, híbýla-bragr, house life; sveitar-bragr, country life; bónda-bragr, yeoman life; héraðs-bragr, lands-bragr, etc. Icel. say good or bad bæjarbragr, Bb. I. 15.

III. poetry; gefr hann (viz. Odin) brag skáldum, Hdl. 5, Edda 17: in mod. usage chiefly melody or metre.

COMPDS: bragarbót, bragarfræði, bragarlaun, bragarmál.

f. wild goose.

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f. a ‘grey goose,’ a wild goose, Edda (Gl.), Þiðr. 347.

II. metaph. the name of a Norse code of laws in Drontheim (Frostaþingslög), prob. from the grey binding or from being written with a goose quill, Fms. viii. 277 (Sverr. S.), Hkr. iii. 23; cp. Gullfjöðr, gold feather, gold quill, name of an eccl. code; or Hryggjar-stykki, a kind of duck, but also the name of a book.

2. in later times (in the 16th century) the name Grágás was misapplied to an old MS. of Icel. laws of the Commonwealth time, the present Cod. Arna-Magn. 134 folio, or Sb., and has since been made to serve as a collective name for all Icel. laws framed before the union with Norway, sometimes including, sometimes excluding the eccl. law (Kristinna-laga þáttr = K. Þ. K.); the whole matter is fully treated by Maurer, s. v. ‘Graagaas,’ in Ersch and Gruber’s Encyclopedia; he makes out that the Icel. of the Commonwealth, although they had written laws, had no code, and that the passage in Íb. ch. 10 does not refer to codification, but to the committal of oral laws to writing; the two vellum MSS., the Kb. and Sb., are merely private collections of the 13th century, and differ very much one from the other. Upon the union with Norway, Iceland was for the first time blessed with a code, which they called Ironside (Js.); and a second code, the Jon’s Book, was introduced A. D. 1281.

m. bastard.

* * *

m. bastard, appears for the first time as the cognom. of William the Conqueror. The etymon is dubious; Grimm suggests a Scandinavian origin; but this is very doubtful; the word never occurs in Scandinavian writers before the time of William, sounds very like a foreign word, is rarely used, and hardly understood by common people in Icel.; neither does it occur in A. S. nor O. H. G.; so that Adam of Bremen says, iste Willelmus quem Franci bastardum vocant; whence the word seems to come from some southern source; cp. the Játv. S. (Ed. 1852), and Fl. iii. 463 sqq.; the MS. Holm, spells bastarðr, the Fb. basthardr.

2. name of a sword, Fms. vii. 297, referring to A. D. 1163.

3. a kind of cloth, in deeds of the 14th and 15th centuries, Vm. 46, 136, D. N. ii. 165; cp. the remarks on bæsingr, p. 92, col. 1 at bottom.

u, f. orbis terrarum, Sks. 606, Trist. 7: the name of the work of Snorri, given it by Thormod Torfæus (died 1719), from the first words in one of the vellum MSS., ‘Kringla heimsins,’ etc., whence Heimskringla; as the old name of the Aeneid was ‘Arma.’ This name was for the first time used in the Edit. of Peringsköld 1697.

(heit; hét, hétum; heitinn), v.

1) to call give a name to;

Grímni mik hétu, they called me G.;

heitinn eptir e-m, called (named) after one;

2) to call on one;

heita e-n á brott, to call on one to be gone, bid one go (heitit mik héðan);

heita á e-n, to exhort one (in battle);

to invoke (heita á hinn heilaga Ólaf);

heita á e-n til e-s, to invoke (appeal to) one for a thing (hann hét á Þór til fulltings);

3) intrans., the pres. ‘heiti’ (not ‘heit’), to be hight, be called;

Óðinn ek, nú heiti, now I am called Odin;

Ólafr heiti ek, my name is O.;

Úlfr hét maðr, there was a man, whose name was U.;

bœr heitir á Bakka (at búrfelli), there is a farm called B.;

heita (to be reckoned) frjáls maðr, hvers manns níðingr;

4) with dat. to promise (heita e-m e-u);

mantu, hverju þú hézt mér, do you remember what you promised me?

heita e-m hörðu, to threaten one;

Bárði var heitit meyjunni, the maid was promised to B.;

5) refl., heitast, to vow, plight one’s faith (þeir hétust reka Hákon ór landi);

heitast e-m, to vow one’s person to one (heitast hinum heilaga Ólafi konungi);

to be betrothed to one.

(heitta, heittr), v.

1) to heat (heita spjót í eldi);

2) to brew (heita mungát, heita öl).

f. brewing (cf. ölheita).

* * *

pres. heit, heitr, and in A. II. heiti, heitir (bisyllabic), in mod. usage heiti through all significations; pret. hét, hétu, 2nd pers. hézt; part. heitinn.

A. [Ulf. haitan = καλειν; A. S. hâtan; Old Engl. hight, pret. hot; O. H. G. haizan; Germ. heissen; Swed. heta; Dan. hede]:

I. trans. with acc. to call, give name to; hve þik hétu hjú? Fsm. 47; Urð hétu eina, Vsp. 20; Heiði hana hétu, 25; Grímni mik hétu, Gm. 49; hve þik heitir halr, Hkv. Hjörv. 14; Hnikar hétu mik, Skv. 2. 18; hétu Þræl, Rm. 8; hétu Erna (Ernu?), 36: the naming of infants was in the heathen age accompanied by a kind of baptism (ausa vatni), vide ausa, p. 35.

2. metaph. to call on one; in the phrase, heita e-n á brott, to turn one out, call on one to be gone; þá er maðr á brott heitinn ef honum er eigi deildr matr at málum, Grág. i. 149; Vermundr hét hann á brott ok kvað hann eigi þar lengr vera skyldu, Sturl. ii. 230; so also, ef bóndi heitr griðmann sinn af vist foráttalaust, Grág. i. 157; eða heitið mik héðan, Ls. 7; ek var heitinn út ( turned out) fjórum sinnum, Sighvat:—with prep., heita á e-n, to call upon one (for help); hón hét á konur at skilja þá, Landn. 49: to exhort one (in battle), hét á Hólmrygi, Hkm. 2; Úlfr hét á oss, Hkr. iii. (in a verse); Gísli spratt upp skjótt ok heitr á menn sína, at skýli, Gísl. 22: to invoke one (a god, saint), hann trúði á Krist, en hét á Þór til sjófara ok harðræða, Landn. 206; hann heitr nú á fulltrúa sína Þorgerði ok Irpu, Fb. i. 213; ef ek heit á guð minn, Mar.; á Guð skal heita til góðra hluta, Sól. 4.

3. part. pass. hight, called; sú gjöf var heitin gulli betri, Ad. 9; löskr mun hann æ heitinn, Am. 57, Fms. vi. 39 (in a verse); sá maðr mun eigi ílla heitinn ( will not get a bad report) í atferð sinni, Sks. 55 new Ed.

β. heitinn, the late, of one dead; eptir Odd heitinn föður sinn, Dipl. iv. 13; Salgerðr h., the late S., Vm. 37: very freq. in mod. usage, hann Jón heitinn, hún Guðrún heitin, etc.

II. absol. or intrans., in which case pres. bisyllabic heiti (not heit), to be hight, be called, as in Goth. the pass. of haitan; Andvari ek heiti, A. am í hight, Skv. 2. 2; Ólafr heiti ek, Fms. x. 226; ek heiti Ari, Íb. (fine); Jósu vatni, Jarl létu heita, Rm. 31; Óðinn ek nú heiti, Yggr ek áðan hét, Gm. 54; Gangráðr ek heiti, Vþm. 8; Ask veit ek standa, heitir Yggdrasill, Vsp. 19: esp. freq. in an hist. style in introducing a person for the first time, Mörðr hét maðr, hann átti dóttur eina er Unnr hét, móðir hennar hét Þorgerðr, Rútr hét bróðir hans, Nj. 1, 2; þau áttu eptir dóttur er Þuríðr hét, hinn elzti son Bjarnar hét Grímkell, Ísl. ii. 4; Oddr hét maðr, son Önundar breiðskeggs, hann átti þá konu er Jórunn hét; annarr son þeirra hét Þóroddr en annarr Þorvaldr, Þuriðr hét dóttir Odds en önnur Jófriðr, 121, 122; Þorsteinn hét maðr, hann var Egilsson, en Ásgerðr hét móðir Þorsteins, 189; þau gátu son, ok var vatni ausinn ok hét Þórólfr, 146, etc.; and in endless instances answering to Engl. there was a man, and his name was ( he was hight) so and so. The ancients said, hve (or hversu) heitir þú, ‘how’ art thou named? Germ. wie heisst du? thus, hve þú heitir? hve þik kalla konir? answer, Atli ek heiti, and hve þú heitir, hála nágráðug? Hrímgerðr ek heiti, Hkv. Hjörv. 14–17; hve sú jörð heitir, hve sá himinn heitir, hversu máni heitir, hve sjá sól heitir, etc., Alm. 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, Vþm. 11, 13, 15, 17; the northern Icelanders still say, hvers’ (i. e. hversu) heitir maðrinn, sælir verið þér, hvörs’ heitir maðrinn? answer, Hrólfr heitir hann, Asgrímsson að norðan, Sig. Pétr. in Hrólfr (a play), p. 4: in mod. usage, hvat ( what) heitir þú? hvað heitir þú? Eg heiti Jón, Stef. Ól.: the same phrase occurs now and then in old writers, hvat heitir bær sjá? Ld. 234; hvat heitir hón? Helga heitir hón, Ísl. ii. 201 (Cod. Holm. hvart = hversu?): as also in the poem Fsm. (but only preserved in paper MSS.) 9, 11, 13, 19, 23, 31, 35, 37; but hve, 46, 47.

β. of places, often with dat. and prep. of the place; á þeim bæ er á Brjámslæk heitir, Bs. i. 379; land pat er í Hvammi heitir, Gísl. 121; bær hans hét á Stokkum, Fb. iii. 324; á þeim bæ er at Hóli heitir, Hrafn. 5; ok því heitir þat síðan í Geitdal, 3; bær heitir á Bakka, á Meðalhúsum, at Búrfelli, á Auðúlfsstöðum, at Svínavatni, í Vestrhópi, í Sléttadal, Ísl. ii. 322–325.

2. to be called, reckoned so and so; þá heitir hón sönn at sök, then she stands convicted, N. G. L. i. 351; þú skalt frá þessum degi frjáls maðr heita, Ld. 50; heit hvers manns níðingr ella, Nj. 176; heldr en h. kotkarl, eigi er þat nafn fyrir-lítanda, at heita húskarlar konungs, Sks. 270; sá er vill heitinn horskr, Hm. 61.

3. reflex., hétomc, to name oneself or to be called; hétomc Grímnir, hétomc Gangleri, einu nafni hétomc aldregi, hétomc Þundr fyrir þat, Gm. 46, 48, 54.

B. With dat., [cp. Goth. fauraga heitan; A. S. hâtan, pret. het; Germ. verheissen]:—to promise, with dat. both of the person and thing, or the thing in infin., or absol.; heita hörðu, to threaten, Am. 78; h. góðu, Sól.; h. bölvi, Hdl. 49; afarkostum, Fms. i. 75; hann heitr þeim þar í mót fornum lögum, Ó. H. 35; engu heit ek um þat, 167; mantú nokkut hverju þú hézt mér í fyrra, Anal. 190; at lítið mark sé at, hverju þú heitr, Fms. vii. 120; fyrir þau hin fögru fyrirheit er þú hézt þeim manni, er bana-maðr hans yrði—þat skal ek efna sem ek hét þar um, i. 217; kom Þorsteinn þar, sem hann hafði heitið, as he had promised, 72; þú munt göra okkr slíka sæmd sem þú hefir heitið, Nj. 5; Njáll hét at fara, 49.

II. to make a vow, the vow in dat., the god or person invoked with prep. and acc. (h. á e-n), cp. A. above; þat sýndisk mönnum ráð á samkomunni, at h. til verðr-bata, en um þat urðu menn varla ásáttir hverju heita skyldi, vill Ljótr því láta h. at gefa til hofs, en bera út börn en drepa gamal-menni, Rd. 248; þá heitr Ingimundr prestr at bóka-kista hans skyldi á land koma ok bækr, Bs. i. 424; ok skyldu menn taka at heita, þeir hétu at gefa …, 483; hét Haraldr því til sigrs sér, at hann skyldi taka skírn, Fms. i. 107; eptir þat hét hón miklum fégjöfum á hinn helga Jón biskup, Bs. i. 201 and passim, esp. in the Miracle-books.

III. reflex. and pass. to plight oneself, be betrothed; þá sá hón þat at ráði ok með henni vinir hennar at heitask Þórólfi, Eg. 36; þeim hétumk þá þjóðkonungi, Skv. 3. 36: to betroth, varkat ek heima þá er (hón) þér heitin var, when she (the bride) was given to thee, Alm. 4; kom svá, at Bárði var heitið meyjunni, that the maid was betrothed to B., Eg. 26.

2. to vow, plight one’s faith; þeir hétusk reka Hákon ór landi, Jd.: to vow one’s person to one, at hann heitisk hinum heilaga Ólafi konungi, Hkr. iii. 288: to bind oneself, þá menn er honum höfðu heitisk til föruneytis, Fms. vii. 204.

(-ar, -ar), m.

1) author, originator;

2) judge (rare).

* * *

m., gen. ar; the masc. inflex. - undr reminds one of the Gothic (Gramm. p. xxxii. B. V); in old writers the word is found only four times, always in the sense of a judge, and referring chiefly to Gothland in Sweden; Höfundr (a mythol. pr. name) var manna vitrastr, ok svá réttdæmr, at hann hallaði aldri réttum dómi, … ok af hans nafni skyldi sá höfundr heita í hverju ríki er mál manna dæmdi, Fas. (Hervar. S.) i. 523, cp. 513: as also in Hrólfs S. Kraka (referring to Gothland), höfundr einn var þar til settr at skora þetta mál með sannindum, settusk margir í þetta sæti, ok kallaði höfundr öngum sæma, Þórir gengr seinastr ok sezk hann þegar í stólinn; höfundr mælti, þér er sætið hæfiligast, ok muntu dæmdr til þessarar stjórnar, Fas. i. 58: sigr-höfundr, the judge of victory, the Lord of battle, a name given to Odin by Egil, Stor. 21: lastly in Thorodd, skáld eru höfundar allrar rýnni eða máls-greina, sem smiðir málmgripa (?), eðr lögmenn laga, the poets are judges in all matters of grammar and syntax, as smiths in workmanship, and lawyers in law, Skálda (Thorodd) 164; this passage as well as the preceding is erroneously rendered in the earlier translations, as also in Lex. Poët.

II. an author, originator; the revival of this ancient word, in quite a different sense, is curious; it does not occur in any of the earliest glossaries of the 17th century nor in the Bible nor in Vídalín, but, as it seems for the first time, in the Lexidion Islandico-Latinum, published at Copenhagen A. D. 1734, as a rendering of the Latin auctor, and was probably inserted by some learned philologer (Jon Ólafsson?) from the passage in Skálda, by a mistake.

2. by the end of the century it came to be used = a writer, and is now freq. in that sense, either rit-höfundr or singly; but still in 1781, in the preface to Fél. of that year, ritsmiðr ( writ-smith) and höfundr are both used, shewing that the latter was not yet settled, though at present the use of this word is quite fixed.

a mythical pr. name, Fas. iii. 706. Njörva-sund, n. the narrow strait (?), was the name given by the old Norsemen to the Straits of Gibraltar, Orkn. passim, which were for the first time passed by a Norse ship in 1099 A. D., see Fms. vii. 66—þat er sögn manna at Skopti hafi fyrstr Norðmanna siglt Njörvasund. The ancient route of the Scandinavians to the East in former ages was by Russia, along the rivers down to the Black Sea, cp. the remarks s. v. fors.

(-s; pl. -ar and -ir), m. smith, wright, worker in metal or wood.

* * *

m., gen. smiðs, old plur. smiðar, acc. smiða; thus goll-smiðar, goll-smiða, smiðarnir, Mar. (xxxvi, xxxvii, in an old vellum fragment); but smiðir, 733 sqq. l. c.; smiðar, Hkr. i. 293; acc. smiða, 185, Grág. i. 149: the mod. usage is smiðir, smiði: the acc. smiðu, Stj. 362, l. 3, Fms. ix. 377, is less correct: [Ulf. smiþa; A. S. smið; Engl. smith; Dan.-Swed. smed; Germ. schmied]:—a smith, craftsman, wright, of workers in metals and wood, ship or house-building; járn-s., tré-s., stein-s., gull-s., skip-s., knarrar-s., skó-s., skepti-s., höfuð-s., frum-s., q. v.; himna-s., the artificer of the heavens, Fbr.; þá kom þar s. nokkurr ok bauð at göra þeim borg, Edda 25, 26, Fms. ix. 55; hann var stafna-s. at skipinu, Hkr. i. 293; vóru þá smiðar þar áðr komnir, id., Fms. v. 74; ens hæsta smiðs, Greg. 20, Eluc. 7; ú skulu smiðir fé taka, Gþl. 80; smiðar þeir er hús göra, Grág. i. 149; fá smiða til at skíra silfrit, Hkr. i. 185: the saying, fár er smiðr í fyrsta sinni, none is ‘smith’ (master) the first time; and leggja smiðs-höggið á e-ð, to give the smith’s stroke, the master’s stroke, i. e. the finish to a thing; smiðir hafa spánu versta, smiths have the worst spoons (speaking of ornamental spoons), i. e. smiths keep the worst for their own use.

II. Smiðr, a nickname and pr. name, Landn. (cp. Rm. 21, Ann. 1362, Engl. Smith); Smið-kell, Smið-Skeggi, Landn.

f. girl, lass.

* * *

u, f. [Dan. pige; Swed. piga], a girl, lass, virgin; a for. word, of which the origin is uncertain, for it occurs for the first time in Norway about the end of the 14th century, and in Icel. in the 15th; píkan Margreta, the spinster M., D. N. iii. 420 (in a deed of 1378); unga píku, Skáld H. 5. 31; sveinninn nefndist Herrauðr, en píkan Herríðr, Fas. ii. 447 (a romance and ballad of the 15th century); píku-brot, Stef. Ól. (Snót 184); píku-skrækr, Snót 136. In Icel. the word is rare and rather low; it can hardly be used of a gentlewoman.

mod. dansa, að, to dance, Sks. 705, not in Sturl. and Bs., who use the phrase slá danz; the verb danza occurs for the first time in the ballads and rímur—Ekki er dagr enn, vel d. vifin, Fkv. ii. 102.

a. n., only in the phrase, e-m verðr bilt, one is startled, alarmed;

Þór (dat.) varð bilt einu sinni (for once Thor’s heart failed him) at slá hann með hamrinum.

* * *

prob. an old n. part. from bila; only used in the phrase, e-m verðr bilt, to be amazed, astonished; en þá er sagt, at Þór (dat.) varð bilt einu sinni at slá hann, the first time that Thor’s heart failed him, Edda 29; varð þeim bilt, Korm. 40, Nj. 169.

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.

2. since, because; ek færi yðr (hann), at þér eruð í einum hrepp allir, because of your being all of the same Rape, Grág. i. 260; eigi er kynlegt at ( though) Skarphéðinn sé hraustr, at þat er mælt at…, because (since) it is a saying that…, Nj. 64.

V. in mod. writers it is also freq. superfluously joined to the conjunctions, ef að = ef, si, (Lv. 45 is from a paper MS.), meðan að = meðan, dum; nema að, nisi; fyrst að = fyrst, quoniam; eptir að, síðan að, postquam; hvárt að = hvárt, Lat. an. In the law we find passages such as, þá er um er dæmt eina sök, at þá eigu þeir aptr at ganga í dóminn, Grág. i. 79; ef þing ber á hina helgu viku, at þat á eigi fyrir þeim málum at standa, 106; þat er ok, at þeir skulu reifa mál manna, 64; at þeir skulu með váttorð þá sök sækja, 65: in all these cases ‘at’ is either superfluous or, which is more likely, of an ellipt. nature, ‘the law decrees’ or ‘it is decreed’ being understood. The passages Sks. 551, 552, 568, 718 B, at lokit (= at ek hefi lokit), at hugleitt (= at ek hefi h.), at sent (= at ek hefi sent) are quite exceptional.

and að, an indecl. relat. pronoun [Ulf. þatei = ος, ος αν, οστις, οσπερ, οιος, etc.; Engl. that, Ormul. at], with the initial letter dropped, as in the conj. at, (cp. also the Old Engl. at, which is both a conj. and a pronoun, e. g. Barbour vi. 24 in Jamieson: ‘I drede that his gret wassalage, | And his travail may bring till end, | That at men quhilc full litil wend.’ | ‘His mestyr speryt quhat tithings a t he saw.’—Wyntoun v. 3. 89.) In Icel. ‘er’ (the relat. pronoun) and ‘at’ are used indifferently, so that where one MS. reads ‘er,’ another reads ‘at,’ and vice versâ; this may easily be seen by looking at the MSS.; yet as a rule ‘er’ is much more freq. used. In mod. writers ‘at’ is freq. turned into ‘eð,’ esp. as a superfluous particle after the relative pron. hverr (hver eð, hvað eð, hverir eð, etc.), or the demonstr. sá (sá eð, þeir eð, hinir eð, etc.):—who, which, that, enn bezta grip at ( which) hafði til Íslands komið, Ld. 202; en engi mun sá at ( cui) minnisamara mun vera, 242; sem blótnaut at ( quae) stærst verða, Fms. iii. 214; þau tiðendi, at mér þætti verri, Nj. 64, etc. etc.

n. collision (poët.); odda at, crossing of spears, crash of spears, Höfuðl. 8.

β. a fight or bait of wild animals, esp. of horses, v. hesta-at and etja.

the negative verbal suffix, v. -a.

m. heathen priest; chief (in Iceland during the republic).

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a, m. [Ulf, renders ἱερεύς by gudja (ufar-gudja, ahumista-gudja, etc.), ἱερατεία by gudjinassus, ἱερατεύειν by gudjinôn; an Icel. gyði, gen. gyðja, would answer better to the Goth. form, but it never occurs, except that the fem. gyðja = goddess and priestess points not to goði, but to a masc. with a suppressed final i, gyði; a word coting occurs in O. H. G. glossaries, prob. meaning the same; and the form guþi twice occurs on Danish-Runic stones in Nura-guþi and Saulva-guþi, explained as goði by P. G. Thorsen, Danske Runem.; (Rafn’s explanation and reading of Nura-guþi qs. norðr á Gauði, is scarcely right): with this exception this word is nowhere recorded till it appears in Icel., where it got a wide historical bearing]:—prop. a priest, sacerdos, and hence a liege-lord or chief of the Icel. Commonwealth.

A. HISTORICAL REMARKS.—The Norse chiefs who settled in Icel., finding the country uninhabited, solemnly took possession of the land (land-nám, q. v.); and in order to found a community they built a temple, and called themselves by the name of goði or hof-goði, ‘temple-priest;’ and thus the temple became the nucleus of the new community, which was called goðorð, n.:—hence hof-goði, temple-priest, and höfðingi, chief, became synonymous, vide Eb. passim. Many independent goðar and goðorð sprang up all through the country, until about the year 930 the alþingi (q. v.) was erected, where all the petty sovereign chiefs (goðar) entered into a kind of league, and laid the foundation of a general government for the whole island. In 964 A. D. the constitution was finally settled, the number of goðorð being fixed at three in each þing ( shire), and three þing in each of the three other quarters, (but four in the north); thus the number of goðar came to be nominally thirty-nine, really thirty-six, as the four in the north were only reckoned as three, vide Íb. ch. 5. On the introduction of Christianity the goðar lost their priestly character, but kept the name; and the new bishops obtained seats in the Lögrétta (vide biskup). About the year 1004 there were created new goðar (and goðorð), who had to elect judges to the Fifth Court, but they had no seats in the Lögrétta, and since that time the law distinguishes between forn ( old) and ný ( new) goðorð;—in Glúm. ch. 1 the word forn is an anachronism. It is curious that, especially in the 12th century, the goðar used to take the lesser Orders from political reasons, in order to resist the Romish clergy, who claimed the right of forbidding laymen to be lords of churches or to deal with church matters; thus the great chief Jón Loptsson was a sub-deacon; at last, about 1185, the archbishop of Norway forbade the bishops of Icel. to ordain any holder of a goðorð, unless they first gave up the goðorð, fyrir því bjóðum vér biskupum at vígja eigi þá menn er goðorð hafa, D. I. i. 291. In the middle of the 13th century the king of Norway induced the goðar to hand their power over to him, and thus the union with Norway was finally brought about in the year 1262; since that time, by the introduction of new codes (1272 and 1281), the name and dignity of goðar and goðorð disappeared altogether, so that the name begins and ends with the Commonwealth.

B. DUTIES.—In the alþingi the goðar were invested with the Lögrettu-skipan (q. v.), that is to say, they composed the Lögrétta (the Legislative consisting of forty-eight members—on the irregularity of the number vide Íb. ch. 5), and were the lawgivers of the country; secondly, they had the dómnefna (q. v.), or right of naming the men who were to sit in the courts, vide dómr:—as to their duties in the quarter-parliaments (vár-þing) vide Grág. Þ. Þ. and the Sagas. The authority of the goðar over their liegemen at home was in olden times somewhat patriarchal, vide e. g. the curious passage in Hænsaþ. S. ch. 2; though no section of law relating to this interesting part of the old history is on record, we can glean much information from the Sagas. It is to be borne in mind that the goðar of the Saga time (10th century) and those of the Grágás and Sturlunga time (12th and 13th centuries) were very different; the former were a kind of sovereign chiefs, who of free will entered into a league; the latter had become officials, who for neglecting their duties in parliament might be fined, and even forfeit the goðorð to their liegemen, vide Grág. Þ. Þ. Neither þing (q. v.) nor goðorð was ever strictly geographical (such is the opinion of Konrad Maurer), but changed from time to time; the very word goðorð is defined as ‘power’ (veldi), and was not subject to the payment of tithe, K. Þ. K. 142. The goðorð could be parcelled out by inheritance or by sale; or they might, as was the case in the latter years of the Commonwealth, accumulate in one hand, vide esp. Sturl. passim, and Grág. The liegemen (þingmenn) were fully free to change their lords (ganga í lög með goða, ganga ór lögum); every franklin (þingmaðr) had in parliament to declare his þingfesti, i. e. to name his liegeship, and say to what goði and þing he belonged, and the goði had to acknowledge him; so that a powerful or skilful chief might have liegemen scattered all over the country. But the nomination to the courts and the right of sitting in the legislative body were always bound to the old names, as fixed by the settlement of the year 964; and any one who sought the name or influence of a goði had first (by purchase, inheritance, or otherwise) to become possessor of a share of one of the old traditionary goðorð; see the interesting chapter in Nj. The three goðar in one þing ( shire) were called sam-goða, joint-goðar; for the sense of allsherjar-goði vide p. 17.

C. NAMES.—Sometimes a chief’s name referred to the god whom he especially worshipped, as Freys-Goði, Hrafn., Gísl., whence Freys-gyðlingar, q. v.; (the ör-goði is dubious); more frequently the name referred to the liegemen or county, e. g. Ljósvetninga-Goði, Tungu-Goði, etc.; but in the Saga time, goði was often added to the name almost as a cognomen, and with some, as Snorri, it became a part of their name (as Cato Censor in Latin); hann varðveitti þá hof, var hann þá kallaðr Snorri Goði, Eb. 42; seg, at sá sendi, er meiri vin var húsfreyjunnar at Fróðá en Goðans at Helgafelli, 332. Names on record in the Sagas:—men living from A. D. 874 to 964, Hallsteinn Goði, Landn., Eb.; Sturla Goði, Landn. 65; Jörundr Goði and Hróarr Tungu-Goði, id.; Ljótólfr Goði, Sd.; Hrafnkell Freys-Goði, Hrafn.; Oddr Tungu-Goði, Landn.; Þormóðr Karnár-Goði, Vd.; Áskell Goði, Rd.; Úlfr Ör-goði, Landn.; Grímkell Goði, Harð. S.; Þorgrímr Freys-goði, Gísl. 100, 110:—964 to 1030, Arnkell Goði, Landn., Eb.; Þorgrímr Goði, Eb.; Geirr Goði, Landn., Nj.; Runólfr Goði, id.; Þóroddr Goði, Kristni S.; Þormóðr Allsherjar-Goði, Landn.; Þorgeirr Goði, or Ljósvetninga-Goði, Nj., Landn.; (Þorkell Krafla) Vatnsdæla-Goði, Vd.; Helgi Hofgarða-Goði, Landn., Eb.; Snorri Hlíðarmanna-Goði, Lv.; Þórarinn Langdæla-Goði, Heiðarv. S.; and last, not least, Snorri Goði:—in the following period goði appears, though very rarely, as an appellative, e. g. Þormóðr Skeiðar-Goði (about 1100):—of the new goðar of 1004, Höskuldr Hvítaness-Goði, Nj.:—used ironically, Ingjaldr Sauðeyja-Goði, Ld.

2. goðorð mentioned by name,—in the south, Allsherjar-goðorð, Landn. (App.) 336; Dalverja-goðorð, Sturl. ii. 48; Lundarmanna-goðorð, i. 223; Reykhyltinga-goðorð, 104, iii. 166, 169; Bryndæla-goðorð, Kjaln. S. 402: in the north, Ljósvetninga-goðorð, Lv. ch. 30; Möðruvellinga-goðorð, Bs. i. 488; Vatnsdæla-goðorð, Fs. 68; Fljótamanna-goðorð, Sturl. i. 138: in the west, Snorrunga-goðorð, 55; Jöklamanna-goðorð, iii. 166; Rauðmelinga-goðorð, Eb. 288; Reyknesinga-goðorð, Sturl. i. 9, 19; Þórsnesinga-goðorð, 198: the new godords of the Fifth Court, Laufæsinga-goðorð, Nj. 151; Melamanna-goðorð, id., Band., Sturl. i. 227. Passages in the Sagas and Laws referring to goðar and goðorð are very numerous, e. g. Íb. ch. 5, Nj. ch. 98, Grág., Lögréttu-þáttr, and Þ. Þ. passim, esp. ch. 1–5, 17, 35, 37, 39, 44, 58, 60, 61, Lv. ch. 4 (interesting), Vd. ch. 27, 41 (in fine), and 42, Vápn., Hrafn. ch. 2, Eb. ch. 10, 56, Sturl. iii. 98, 104, passim; for the accumulation of godords, see i. 227 (3, 22), Bs. i. 54; for the handing over the godords to the king of Norway, D. I. i; and esp. article 3 of the Sáttmáli, D. I. i. 631, 632. The godords were tithe-free, ef maðr á goðorð, ok þarf eigi þat til tíundar at telja, vald er þat en eigi fé:, K. Þ. K. 142.

COMPDS: goðakviðr, goðalýrittr, goðaþáttr.

II. = goð, i. e. good genius, in the Icel. game at dice called goða-tafl, with the formula, heima ræð eg goða minn bæði vel og lengi, … og kasta eg svo fyrir þig, cp. also ást-goði.

* * *

prep. with gen.

1) to (ríða til skips, koma t. Noregs); leiða, stefna t. e-s, to lead, tend towards;

2) of; tala vel, illa t e-s, to speak well, ill of one; vita t. e-s, to know of, be conscious of; spyrja t. e-s, to hear tidings of; segja t. e-s, to tell of; ljúga t. e-s, to tell a falsehood about;

3) on; t. annarrar handar, on the other hand or side; t. vinstri, hœgri handar, on the left, right hand;

4) denoting reason, purpose, respect (svelta sik t. fjár; berjast t. ríkis; blóta t. árs; sverð ørugt t. vápns); liggja t. byrjar, to wait for a favourable wind; hross t. reiðar, a horse for riding;

5) e-m verðr gott, illt t. e-s, one is well or ill off for a thing, has much or little of it; þeim varð gott t. manna, they got together many men; land illt t. hafna, a land ill off for havens; henni féll þungt t. fjár, she was pressed for money;

6) with verbs, gera e-t t. skaps e-m, to do a thing to please one; jafna e-u t. e-s, to compare it with; gera vel, illa t. e-s, to treat one well, badly;

7) of time; t. elli, to old age; t. dauðadags, till one’s death day; liðr á sumarit t. átta vikna, the summer passed till eight weeks were left; t. þess er, þar t. er, until; allt t., all the time till;

8) ellipt. and adverbial usages; vera t., to exist; fala hey ok mat, ef t. væri, if there were any left; hvárttveggja er t., there is a stock of both; eiga t., hafa t., to possess; þat áð, sem helzt var t., ready to hand; vera t. neyddr, to be forced; skilja t., to reserve; verða fyrstr t., to be the first to do a thing;

9) too (t. ungr, t. gamall, eigi t. víðlendr); eigi t. mikit, not too much, not very much; æva t. snotr, not too wise; helzt t. (helzti), mikils t. (mikilsti), by far too much.

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prep. with gen. As to this particle, the two branches of the Teutonic family vary: all the South Teut., including the Goth., present the form without the final l; Goth. du (qs. tu) = πρός, εἰς; A. S., Hel., Old Fris. te, to; North. E. te; Engl. to; Dutch te, toe; O. H. G. zi, za, zuo; Germ. zu; Old Frank. to, te, ti; while the Northerners add the l, as Dan., Swed., North. E. and Scot. til; the Swedes double the l, till. That til is the truer form is seen from rhymes, til vilja, Vígl.: on the other hand, mod. provinc. Norse and Swedish drop the l, thus te, Ivar Aasen, Rietz. The Engl. uses both forms, to, of place, till, of time, of which the latter is no doubt borrowed from the Norse or Danish: til = to is quite common still in Cumberland and other North. E. counties, ‘to gang til Carlisle,’ etc.; a single instance of the form til is said to exist in an old Northumbrian vellum. Both forms, to and til, are, we believe, identical, the latter being a compound particle, ti-l, although the origin of the l has not as vet been made out. The uncompounded particle ti- is not entirely unknown in the Scandinavian, for it has been preserved in the compds mikils-ti, hölz-ti, unz-t, qq. v. ☞ Particles, even brief monosyllabic ones, often turn out to be compds, as e. g. ok(conj.), or the suffixed verbal negative; the prep. ‘til’ therefore is no more akin to the Germ. noun ziel than is ‘ok’ ( and) to ok ( a yoke); the apparent similarity in sense is in both cases merely accidental.

A. To, with gen., also used elliptically or as an adverb; bjóða e-m til sín, Eg. 140; til kirkju, Nj. 209; koma til boðs, 50; ganga til búðar, Grág. i. 31; ríða til skips, Ísl. ii. 192; leiða til skips, Ld. 74; til Íslands, Nj. 10; ríða til Norðrárdals, ok svá til Hrúta-fjarðar ok til Laxárdals, 32; koma til Noregs, 121; hann fór til Ólafs á Dröngum, til Gests í Haga, Landn. 154; sækja giptu til e-s, Fms. v. 154: adding direction, austr, vestr, suðr … út, inn, upp, fram, norðr til Þrandheims, austr til Danmerkr, vestr til England:, suðr til Björgynjar, etc., passim; út til, inn til, Landn. 140; heim til, Fms. xi. 382; upp til borgar; neðan til knjá, Nj. 209.

2. with verbs, to, towards; leiða, stefna … til, to lead, tend towards, Eg. 230, Nj. 4, 102; tala vel, ílla til e-s, to speak well or ill ‘towards,’ i. e. of; vita til e-s, to know of, be conscious of, Fms. i. 142, x. 377; íllorðr til e-s, Nj. 142; minna til e-s, to remember; minnask til e-s, to kiss, 282; drekka til e-s, to ‘drink towards’ (vulg. Engl.), i. e. drink to one, Eg. 552 (also ellipt. drekka e-m til); vísa til e-s (til-vísan), Landn. 192, Nj. 209; taka til e-s, 196, Fms. i. 151: with verbs denoting to look, see, hear, turn, sjá, gæta, hlýða, heyra, hugsa … til e-s, to look, listen, think, speak … to one, Eg. 380, Nj. 2, 10, 87, 91; þeir sá eyjar í haf til útsuðrs, Landn. 35; hann sá opt ljós til leiðis konungsins, Fms. xi. 286; þeir sá eld til Úlfars-fells, Eb. 156; heyra gný ok glam til hersins, Fms. vi. 156, viii. 125; til norðr-ættar, xi. 230; sá menn elda brenna til hafs, x. 157; vissi til lands, Eg. 389; þann veg er veit til Hlaða, Fms. x. 265; horfa aptr til hala; í þeim hlut húss er til vetfangs horfir, Grág. ii. 125; spyrja til e-s, to speer after, hear tidings of one, þetta spyrsk til skipa, Fas. i. 241, Nj. 7; spyrja gott til e-s, Hkr. i. 140: segja til e-s, to tell of(see segja), Nj. 46, Ld. 40, Hrafn. 5; ljúga til e-s, to tell a falsehood of, Finnb. 318.

3. til annarrar handar, on the other hand or side, Nj. 50, 97; til vinstri, hægri handar, til beggja handa, Hkr. i. 158, Eg. 65.

II. denoting business, reason, purpose, capacity, respect; leggjask til svefns, ÓH.; ganga til svefns, Eb. 156; halda barni til skirnar, K. Á. 146; ríða til dagverðar, Nj. 219; fara til vistar, 40; dómar fara út til sóknar, Eg. 725; falda sér til vélar við konu, Grág. i. 338; skipa mönnum til umráða, i. 5; svelta sik til fjár, Nj. 18; drepa e-n til fjár, göra e-t til fjár, Ld. 264; gefin ( married) til fjár, 26, Nj. 257; skora á e-n til landa, Landn. 80; Eg. 498; sækja til trausts, Ld. 26; sækja til landa, Nj. 103; sækja til faðernis, Grág. i. 140; leggja fé til höfuðs e-m, taka fé til höfuðs e-m, Ld. 50, Eg. 375; berjask til ríkis, Fms. vii. 283; blóta til árs, Hkr. i. 13; sverð öruggt til vápns, Ld. 244; hafa eðli til e-s, Skálda 171; selja e-t til silfrs, to convert it into silver, Landn. 293 (Hb.); ætla e-n til dráps, Nj. 163; hlaðinn til hafs, ready for use, Fms. x. 157; liggja til byrjar, i. 135, Eg. 183; taka til konungs, Fms. i. 21; taka til lögsögu-manns, Nj. 164; kjósa til veganda, 100; vinna til e-s (see vinna); gefa til bóta, 101; göra til saka, 80; taka til ráða, 75; hvat er til ráðs, 76; þat er til jartegna, Eg. 768; til merkja (til marks), 766; til gagns, til lítils, Nj. 52; til meins, 106; til sæmdar, 79; til tíðenda, Eg. 201; til næringar, til viðrværis, til fæðu, til matar, Stj. 87, Fms. i. 126, Eg. 221; hross til reiðar, Hrafn. 7; til skjóls, Grett. 169; til sóma, til eptirlætis, Nj. 89; til spotts, Korm. 232; til gamans, til hvárs, for what purpose; as also, til einskis, til góðs, til ílls, til nokkurs.

2. kaupa til tuttugu hundraða, to the amount of, Landn. 145; til fulls eyris, Grág.; fé til tveggja aura gulls, Fms. vii. 218; til fulls, fully; til jafns við, Nj. 46; til hálfs, Eg. 379; til loks, finally, to the end (see lok); vaxa meirr en til dæma, beyond example, unexampled, Stj. 87; draga til dæmis, to produce for the sake of example, Mar.; hence, til dæmis (as adverb), for instance (written abbreviated in mod. books, t.d. = e. g.)

3. e-m verðr gott, íllt til e-s, to be well or ill off for a thing, have little of it; þeim varð gott til manna, Nj. 20; land íllt til hafna, a land ill off for havens, Eg. 332; þar var íllt til vað-mála, short of, Bárð. 5 new Ed.; henni féll þungt til fjár, Nj. 31; góðr til ( open-handed as to) fjár ok metnaðar, Eg. 17; færr til e-s, able to do a thing, Nj. 97, Fms. ix. 530; vænn til framkvæmdar, 480; líkligr til e-s, likely to, Nj. 132; hafa verðleika til e-s, to deserve of, Eg. 226.

4. with verbs; göra e-t til skaps e-m, Nj. 198; göra til skaps vina minna, 80; jafna e-u til e-s, to compare it with, Ld. 60; vera til eptirmáls, Nj. 166; göra vel, ílla til e-s, Eg. 542, Ld. 62; vinna til e-s, 50, Ísl. ii. 253, Nj. 101, Eg. 519; hlutask til e-s, Nj. 101; beina til, búa til, afla til, efna til, fá til, göra til, hjálpa til, inna til, leggja til, reyna til, ráða til, segja til, skipa til, stilla til, stoða til, stofna til, taka til, vinna til, vísa til, vána til, e-s, all verbs of providing, doing, helping, disposing, and the like; as also kalla til.

5. vera til vers, to be fishing, Korm. 142, rare, but cp. the Dan. phrase, til sös = at sea.

III. temp., til miðs aptans, Hrafn. 7; til elli, Ld. 12; til dauða-dags, Nj. 109; allt til dauða-dags, Fms. i. 17, etc.

2. til skamrar stundar, i. e. till within a short time, a short time ago, Hom. 107; líðr á sumarit til átta vikna, the summer passed till eight weeks (were left), Nj. 93; vika til þings, a week to (i. e. before) the season of the þing, Grág.; þrír dagar til sumars, Edda 26; tíu vikur til vetrar, Ld. 106; stund til hádegis, stund til miðs morguns, dagmála, in measuring time, used in Icel. exactly as in Engl., ten minutes to eight, a quarter to eleven, (but mod. Dan. follows the Germ. mode of reckoning, for there ‘ti minutter til tolv’, ten minutes towards twelve, is = Engl. ‘ten minutes past eleven’); til þess, until, Nj. 153; allt til, all the time till, 272, Hrafn. 7; þar til er, until, Nj. 4.

IV. ellipt. and adverbial usages; vera til, to be ‘toward’ to exist; eiga til, hafa til, to possess; fala hey ok mat ef til væri … hvárt-tveggja er til, Nj. 73; ef þú kemr eigi til, if thou comest not to hand, 4; ef nökkut var til, Eg. 267; þat ráð sem helzt var til, ready on hand, 42; munu eigi tveir til, Nj. 261; kómu þeir þangat til, 80; ætla svá til, 86; vera til neyddr, to be forced, 98; þat er þú þarft til at taka, 105; gefa fé til, 75; væri mikit gefanda til, at, 98; telr hann þat til, at …, Fms. xi. 137; skilja til, to reserve, Nj. 54; spara til, 3, Hkr. i. 196; mæla til, 99; tala til, 216; eiga ætt til, Edda 7; hafa aldr til, Eg. 190; skorta til, Nj. 73; íllt þótti mér til móti at mæla, Fms. xi. 242; verða fyrstr til, to be the first to do a thing, v. 103; sem lög stóðu til, Ld. 32; hljótask af mér til, Nj. 113; sækja mál til laga, 86.

2. of direction; sunnan til, Sks. 216; norðan til, e. g. sunnan til við ána, on the south side of the river, Sks. 216.

B. Too, Lat. nimis; eigi til víðlendr, Fms. vi. 94; eigi til görla, 205; til ungr, til gamall, Grág. i. 192; verða til seinn, Bær. 15; honum þótti sinn hluti til lágr, Lv. 97; engi hefir til djarfligar risit, Mar.; helz til, mikils til, by far too much, as in mod. usage; but the ancients said hölzti (helzti) and mikilsti, thus mikilsti ( too much), Hm. 66, Bs. i. 775; hölzti, Nj. 191, Ld. 188, 216, Al. 37, 41, Fms. viii. 91, 133, Hkr. iii. 376; helzti, Eb. 154, etc., see heldr, B. III; unzt, see that word.