1. Þat er upphaf1 á sǫgu2 þessi, at Hákon konungr Aðalsteinsfóstri3 réð4 fyrir Nóregi; ok var þetta á ofanverðum5 hans dǫgum. 2. Þorkell6 hét maðr; hann var kallaðr skerauki;7 hann bjó8 í Súrnadal9 ok var hersir10 at nafnbót.11 3. Hann átti sér konu, er Ísgerðr hét, ok sonu iij. barna;12 hét einn13 Ari, annarr Gísli, þriði Þorbjǫrn; hann var þeira yngstr, ok óxu14 allir upp heima þar. 4. Maðr er nefndr Ísi; hann bjó í firði15 þeim er Fibuli16 heitir, á Norðmœri; kona hans hét Ingigerðr, en Ingibjǫrg dóttir. Ari, sonr Þorkels súrdœls, biðr17 hennar, ok var hón honum gefin með miklu fé.18 5. Kolr hét þræll,19 er í brott fór með henni.20
6. Maðr hét Bjǫrn enn blakki,21 ok var berserkr;22 hann fór um land ok skoraði23 á menn til hólmgǫngu,24 ef eigi vildu25 hans vilja26 gera. 7. Hann kom um vetrinn27 til Þorkels Súrdœls; Ari, sonr hans, réð28 þá fyrir búi.29 8. Bjǫrn gerir Ara tvá kosti, hvárt hann vill heldr30 berjask31 við hann í hólmi þeim, er þar liggr í Súrnadal ok heitir Stokkahólmr,32 eða vill hann selja33 hánum í hendr konu sína. 9. Hann kaus skjótt,34 at hann vill heldr berjask, en hvártveggja35 yrði at skǫmm,36 hann ok kona hans; skyldi þessi fundr véra á þriggja nátta fresti.37 10. Nú líðr til hólmstefnu framan;38 þá berjask þeir, ok lýkr svá at Ari fellr39 ok lætr líf sitt. 11. Þykkisk40 Bjǫrn hafa vegit41 til landa ok konu; Gísli segir, at hann vill heldr láta42 líf sitt, en þetta gangi fram,43 vill hann ganga á hólm við Bjǫrn. 12. Þá tók Ingibjǫrg til orða: “Eigi var ek af því Ara gipt, at ek vilda þik eigi heldr átt hafa. Kolr, þræll minn á sverð,44 er Grásíða45 heitir, ok skaltu biðja, at hann ljái46 þér; því at þat fylgir47 því sverði, at sá skal sigr hafa, er þat hefir til orrostu.”48
Hann biðr þrælinn sverðsins, ok þótti þrælnum mikit49 fyrir at ljá. 13. Gísli bjóst50 til hólmgǫngu, ok berjask þeir, ok lýkr51 svá, at Bjǫrn fellr. 14. Gísli þóttisk nú hafa unnit52 mikinn sigr; ok þat er sagt, at hann biðr Ingibjargar, ok vildi eigi láta góða konu ór ætt ganga53 ok fær hennar; nú tekr hann allan fjárhlut54 ok gerisk mikill maðr fyrir sér. 15. Því næst andask55 faðir hans, ok tekr Gísli allan fjárhlut eptir hann. 16. Hann lét drepa56 þá alla, sem með Birni hǫfðu fylgt.57
17. Þrællinn heimti58 sverð sitt, ok vill Gísli eigi laust láta59 ok býðr hann fé fyrir,60 en þrællinn vill ekki annat en sverð sitt, ok fær ekki at heldr.61 18. Þetta líkar þrælnum illa, ok veitir Gísla tilræði;62 var þat63 mikit sár. Gísli høggr í móti64 með Grásíðu í hǫfuð þrælnum, svá fast, at sverðit brotnaði,65 en haussinn lamðisk,66 ok fær hvártveggi67 bana.
Hákon konungr Aðalsteinsfóstri, King of Norway 935-61. The second element in his hame means the “fosterling” of the English King Æþelstan. According to some sagas, Hákon spent his childhood at the court of the english king. There is no British record of Hákon’s time in Britain and the name occurs only in later Scandinavian sources. ↩
His last days (ofanverðir dagar) were therefore in the years 950-61. According to the calculation of G. Vigfússon (Safu til sögu Ísl. I, 362) Gísli came to Iceland near the year 955; this year also fits very well if one refers the words, ok var þetta, not to the Norwegian events mentioned below but most likely to the emmigration. ↩
Þorkell, is not known from from any other source. In S (The “long” version of GS.) he carries the nickname Gullhjálmr. ↩
skerauki, this nickname apears to be composed of sker (sea rock) and auki(augmentum) ↩
Súrnadal, today Surnadal, near the Súrnadalsfjǫrðr, a neighboring fjord near Halsfjord in Nordmøe. ↩
hersir, “lord; someone of high rank closely associated with the king.” ↩
Fibuli, a fjord in Nordmøe, somewhat farther north than Halsfjord; the name is preserved in the name of the farm Fevelen, (see Sproglig-hist. stud. tilegnede prof. Unger (1896) p. 44). ↩
í brott–henni, “he went away with her. That is, he was given to her as property. ↩
enn blakki, “the dark,” of the color of the skin. The lexical range also allows for, “the pale,” or “the white,” as a foreboding of death. See the entry in Cleasby-Vigfusson. ↩
berserkr, A berserker; a wild warrior that appears to have had supernatural or ritual powers in combat; a characterization that appears regularly in the medieval sagas. ↩
hólmgǫngu, a duel, sometimes referring to a specific ritual duel that takes place on a small island. ↩
vilja, acc. pl., “wishes,” or his demands. Compare this nominal form with the verb, “vilja” in note 26. ↩
réð, since he was already married and the oldest of the brothers; the father was no longer able to manage the farm due to his age. ↩
at hann vill heldr, is actually pleonastic. The construction of this sentence is rather awkward. See note 36. ↩
berjask, 3rd, pl. pres. mediopassive, “fight,” or do battle. ↩
Stokkahólmr, perhaps one of the small islands in the innermost part of Surnadalsfjord. ↩
kaus skjótt, 3rd. sing. past, kjosa, “chose.” Note the adjectival usage of skjótr. See entry 3 in CV. The scribe writes as if he meant segir instead of kaus. ↩
hvártveggja is ntr. “each of them.” ↩
yrði at skømm, to him through his cowardice, and to her as the berserker’s prize. ↩
á þriggja, gen., note that the first four cardinal numbers decline, the lexical form being, þrir. nátta fresti, “A delay of three nights.” ↩
fellr, inf. falla, means the same as láta líf; this expression literally means, “to fall down,” or, “to be struck down.” ↩
þykkisk, 3rd. sing. pres. mediopassive, “thought to himself,” or considered it to be. ↩
gangi fram, “to pass,” or, “to become reality.” ↩
sverð, a spear is made from this sword later in the saga. The same spear is mentioned as still existing in the 13th century in Sturlunga saga. ↩
Grásiða, “gray blade,” or, “The weapon with the gray blade;” the color of the iron. This is the name of the sword. ↩
þótti–mikit fyrir, “It was difficult for the slave,” or, “he was reluctant,” (to loan the sword.) ↩
eiga lata–ganga, that someone married the widow of their brother occurs often in the literature. For example, Egil marries the widow of Þórólf in Egils saga, and later in our present saga when Børkr marries Þordis. ↩
“…he didn’t wish to let a good woman go.” ↩
andask, 3rd. sing. past. mediopassive., “died.” This is an idiomatic mediopassive usage of the verb meaning, “to breathe.” ↩
létdrepa, lét, 3rd. sing. past. Used here as a common auxiliary verb, “to let,” or to have something done. “He had” it be done that they were killed. ↩
þá alla–fylgt, these people are not mentioned before this; this would not have been necessary either because berserkers usually had a cohort; in the recension S, twelve are specified. ↩
laust, adj., with auxiliary láta, he “didn’t want to let it go.” ↩
fær, 3rd. sing. pres., from fá, to receive. at heldr, but rather, or “all the more.” But rather it was not given back to him, or returned to him. ↩
tilrœði, “attack;” or, “try to kill someone,” from ráða til (manns) “to attack someone.” ↩
var þat, “it grew to be” (the wound), “the wound, which he inflicted, came to be severe.” ↩
høggr, 3rd. sing. pres., from hǫggva; “strikes” with his sword. í moti; “against.” “Strikes into…the head.” ↩
hvártveggi, that is, Gísli and the slave. ↩