Mansöngr
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A ''mansǫngr'' (literally 'maiden-song'; plural ''mansǫngvar''; modern Icelandic ''mansöngur'', plural ''mansöngvar'') is a form of Norse poetry. In scholarly usage the term has often been applied to medieval
skaldic A skald, or skáld (Old Norse: , later ; , meaning "poet"), is one of the often named poets who composed skaldic poetry, one of the two kinds of Old Norse poetry, the other being Eddic poetry, which is anonymous. Skaldic poems were traditionally ...
love-poetry; and it is used of lyric openings to ''
rímur In Icelandic literature, a ''ríma'' (, literally "a rhyme", pl. ''rímur'', ) is an epic poem written in any of the so-called ''rímnahættir'' (, "rímur meters"). They are rhymed, they alliterate and consist of two to four lines per stanza. T ...
'' throughout the Icelandic literary tradition.


In high-medieval Iceland

Skaldic love-poetry and erotic poems in Old Norse-Icelandic are often characterised in modern scholarship as ''mansöngvar''. However,
Edith Marold Edith Marold (born 2 July 1942) is an Austrian philologist who specializes in Germanic studies. Biography Edith Marold was born in Salzburg, Austria on 2 July 1942. He received her Ph.D. in Germanic studies at the University of Vienna in 1967 wit ...
and Bjarni Einarsson have argued that the term ''mansöngr'' has been over-used in medieval scholarship, being applied to love-poems which we have no evidence were actually viewed as ''mansöngvar''. Many medieval references to ''mansöngvar'' are not accompanied by the poem in question, and the boundaries of the genre are thus disputed. The Icelandic Homily Book (from c. 1200) mentions ''mansöngr'' in connection with the music of
David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
and
Solomon Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...
.


In Icelandic sagas

In ''
Egils saga ''Egill's Saga'' or ''Egil's saga'' ( non, Egils saga ; ) is an Icelandic saga (family saga) on the lives of the clan of Egill Skallagrímsson (Anglicised as Egill Skallagrimsson), an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald. The saga spans the years ...
'', the poet
Egill Skallagrímsson Egil Skallagrímsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ; 904 995) was a Viking Age war poet, sorcerer, berserker, and farmer.Thorsson, 3 He is known mainly as the anti-hero of ''Egils saga, Egil's Saga''. ''Egil's Saga'' historically narrates a p ...
recites a poem about a woman to his friend Arinbjörn. Arinbjörn asks Egill for whom he has composed this ''mansöngr'' and Egill recites another poem before revealing that the subject of both is Arinbjörn's kinswoman Ásgerðr, the widow of Egill's brother Þórólfr (Thorolf). Egill requests Arinbjörn's help in arranging his marriage with Ásgerðr, and the ''mansöngvar'' are thus a prelude to an open declaration of love and a marriage petition.
Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld Hallfreðr Óttarsson or Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld (''Troublesome Poet'') (c. 965 – c. 1007) was an Icelandic skald. He is the protagonist of ''Hallfreðar saga'' according to which he was the court poet first of Hákon Sigurðarson, then of Ól ...
's poems to Kolfinna Ávaldadóttir are also described as ''mansöngvar'' in ''
Hallfreðar saga ''Hallfreðar saga vandræðaskálds'' (, Old Norse pronunciation: ) is one of the Icelanders' sagas. The saga is preserved in several 14th century manuscripts, including Möðruvallabók and Flateyjarbók, with significant difference between the v ...
'', but the saga depicts Hallfreðr as resisting attempts to organise Kolfinna's marriage to both himself and other men. The saga portrays Hallfreðr's erotic poetry about Kolfinna and his libellous verses on Kolfinna's husband, Grís, as destructive in nature—objectifying Kolfinna while inciting her family to violence. Only through his relationship with his King Ólafr Tryggvason (his eventual godfather) and his spiritual poems does Hallfreðr find redemption and maturity and eventually express regret for the sorrow he has caused Kolfinna. One of the oldest saga manuscripts to preserve a reference to the genre is DG 8 from c. 1225–1250 in the hagiographical saga ''
Óláfs saga helga ''Óláfs saga helga'' or the ''Saga of St. Olaf'', written in several versions, is one of kings' sagas (''konunga sǫgur'') on the subject of King Olaf Haraldsson the Saint. List of saga versions *'' Oldest Saga of St. Olaf'', ca. 1190, mostly ...
''. According to the saga, the Icelandic skald
Óttarr svarti Óttarr svarti (“Óttarr the Black”) was an 11th-century Icelandic skald. He was the court poet first of Olof Skötkonung, Óláfr skautkonungr of Sweden, then of Olaf II of Norway, Óláfr Haraldsson of Norway, the Swedish king Anund Jacob and ...
composed a ''mansǫngsdrápa'' about Queen Ástríðr of
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
when they were both in the court of her father, the King of Sweden. This
drápa A skald, or skáld (Old Norse: , later ; , meaning "poet"), is one of the often named poets who composed skaldic poetry, one of the two kinds of Old Norse poetry, the other being Eddic poetry, which is anonymous. Skaldic poems were traditionally ...
provoked the wrath of her husband, King Ólafr Helgason, but when Óttarr travelled to Norway he prudently enlisted the help of his uncle and skald
Sigvatr Þórðarson Sigvatr Þórðarson or Sighvatr Þórðarson or Sigvat the Skald (995–1045) was an Icelandic skald. He was a court poet to King Olaf II of Norway, as well as Canute the Great, Magnus the Good and Anund Jacob, by whose reigns his floruit ca ...
to gain an audience with the Norwegian king and redeem himself with the poem '' Hǫfuðlausn'', which praises the merits of King Ólafr rather than the beauty of his wife.


In Icelandic law

The composing of ''mansöngvar'' for or about women is explicitly prohibited by the medieval Icelandic law-code ''
Grágás The Gray (Grey) Goose Laws ( is, Grágás {{IPA-is, ˈkrauːˌkauːs}) are a collection of laws from the Icelandic Commonwealth period. The term ''Grágás'' was originally used in a medieval source to refer to a collection of Norwegian laws an ...
'', 'in the younger additions to ''Konungsbók'' (GKS 1157 fol) and ''Staðarhólsbók'' (AM 334 fol), where it is inserted into a passage bearing the title 'vm scaldscap' ('on poetry'), an exhaustive treatment of the different kinds of poetry and the various punishments for them'. But there is no clear explanation of what a ''mansöngr'' is. In the Konungsbók version, §238, the text reads
Ef maðr yrkir mansöng vm cono oc varðar scog gang. Kona a söc ef hon er xx. eða ellre. ef hon vill eigi søkia láta. oc a lavg raðande hennar sökena.
If a man composes ''mansǫngr'' about a woman he suffers full outlawry. The woman has to bring the case if she is twenty or older. If she will not have it prosecuted, then her legal administrator has to bring the case.


In ''rímur''

In Icelandic ''
rímur In Icelandic literature, a ''ríma'' (, literally "a rhyme", pl. ''rímur'', ) is an epic poem written in any of the so-called ''rímnahættir'' (, "rímur meters"). They are rhymed, they alliterate and consist of two to four lines per stanza. T ...
'', ''mansöngur'' is the term used for the (optional) opening section of each ''ríma'' poem within the larger epic. The ''mansöngur'' typically shares a metre with the ''ríma'' it prefaces but is
lyric poetry Modern lyric poetry is a formal type of poetry which expresses personal emotions or feelings, typically spoken in the first person. It is not equivalent to song lyrics, though song lyrics are often in the lyric mode, and it is also ''not'' equi ...
rather than narrative and the poet often speaks in the first person, addressing the audience directly. The ''mansöngur'' is often addressed to a woman but known as ''mansöngr'' even when it isn't. The ''mansöngur'' may or may not relate to the main narrative of the ''rímur'': some poets use the ''mansöngur'' to comment on the events of the story as they unfold or explore specific narrative themes, but others treat the ''mansöngur'' as a 'break from the action'. The earliest ''rímur'' lack ''mansöngvar''. In later ''rímur'', the author (usually male) would compose poetry about a woman he had fallen in love with (but who generally is not depicted as reciprocating his feelings). Accordingly, ''mansöngvar'' are often sorrowful. Later, they started to feature other topics, such as love for one's ancestral estate or complaints at how few people appreciate poetry. One example of the content of a ''mansöngur'' is afforded by Craigie's summary of stanzas 1-17 of the third ''ríma'' of '' Skotlands rímur'' by Einar Guðmundsson, a 17th-century poet. It includes many of the classical features of the ''mansöngur'' in ''rímur'': a fair woman is addressed, while the poet laments his inadequacy as a poet and the sorrowful state of the world. The ''mansöngur'' is also a platform for personal expression—here, probably, a (veiled) complaint over losing his position as the minister for Staður in Reykjanes in 1635 after accusing two parishioners of sorcery:
Though the ring-decked maiden might wish for a love-song, I have but little poetry from
Odin Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered Æsir, god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, v ...
. Only a little scent of the fruit of song he gave me once: I have no need to be grateful for his generosity. Let those rejoice who have been more successful. Friendship is not shown to every man, and I was never good at winning favour of the great. True friendship is rare over all the land; most men look for some advantage and are envious of all others who get wealth or fame. Seek not, then, to be praised by the world: disgrace and loss may follow. He that sees in secret will reward you, and He will come one day to sit in
judgement Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle s ...
. May I be able to see Him with joy, though my works are not so good as they might be. I have not the ''mansöngs'' to speak about the fair maid, but I must try to give her the third ballad now!''Skotlands rímur: Icelandic Ballads on the Gowrie Conspiracy'', ed. by W. A. Craigie (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1908), p. 6; https://archive.org/details/skotlandsrmuric00craigoog.


In Norway

Among the medieval inscriptions found at Bryggen in the Norwegian city of
Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...
, there are preserved examples of ''mansǫngskvæði'' (mansǫngr poems) written in Skaldic meters such as
dróttkvætt In prosody, alliterative verse is a form of verse that uses alliteration as the principal ornamental device to help indicate the underlying metrical structure, as opposed to other devices such as rhyme. The most commonly studied traditions of a ...
. In particular, N B145 dates to the first half of the thirteenth century and contains a full dróttkvætt stanza, the first half of which translates thusly: : ''The ancient breeze of the cliff-goddesses IANTESSES > DESIREfell to me early with respect to the beautiful, dangerous young pine-tree of the fastened fire of the fish expanse EA > GOLD > (beautiful, dangerous, young) WOMAN'' Simplified, this means: : ''Desire for the beautiful, dangerous young woman overcame me a long time ago.''


See also

*
Old Norse poetry Old Norse poetry encompasses a range of verse forms written in Old Norse, during the period from the 8th century (see Eggjum stone) to as late as the far end of the 13th century. Most of the Old Norse poetry that survives was preserved in Iceland ...


References


Further reading

* Theodor Möbius, 'Vom isl. mansöngr', ''Zeitschrift für deutsche Philologie: Ergänzungsband'' (1874), 42-61. The principal study of ''mansöngvar''. * T. M. Johnstone, 'Nasīb and Mansöngur', ''The Journal of Arabic Literature'', 3 (1972), 90-95. Compares the parallel literary development of the ''mansöngur'' and the Arabic ''
Nasīb (poetry) ''Nasīb'' ( ar, النسيب) is an Arabic literary form, 'usually defined as an erotic or amatory prelude to the type of long poem called a '' qaṣīdah''.' However, although at the beginning of the form's development ''nasīb'' meant 'love-son ...
''. * Ingibjörg Gísladóttir
''„Krist vil ek allrar ástar....“ Um eðli Hallfreðar sögu vandræðaskálds.''
University of Iceland, BA Thesis in Icelandic Literature, 2008. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mansongr Skaldic poetry