Meli, Marcello. Rune e magia nella saga di Egill

• Author: Meli, Marcello
• Title: Rune e magia nella saga di Egill
• Published in: Proceedings of the Seminar Religion and Magic in the Norse Sagas
• Place, Publisher: Rome: Morcelliana
• Year: 2012
• Pages: 324–34
• E-text:
• Reference: Meli, Marcello. "Rune e magia nella saga di Egill." Proceedings of the Seminar Religion and Magic in the Norse Sagas, pp. 324–34. (Studies and Materials on the History of Religion 78/2). Rome: Morcelliana, 2012.

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• Key words: runes, law, religion (rúnir, lög, trúarbrögð)

Annotation

After discussing how the relation between pagan worship and the Christianisation of Iceland can be endowed more with juridical rather than religious value, Egils saga is presented as a precious source in the definition of the usage of the terms Gmc. *rūnō and ON rún. Three passages in which magic is combined with the theoretical and practical knowledge of runes are examined, namely Egil’s drinking contest with Bard (ch. 44), the stick of infamy (ch. 59) and Egil’s healing of Helga (ch. 74). Parallels of the rites are drawn both within the Norse tradition and the broader continental Germanic area.

Lýsing

Ásamt því að lýsa því hvernig sambandið milli heiðni og kristnitökunnar á Íslandi sé fremur gætt lagalegum eiginleikum en trúarlegum, er Egils saga mikilvæg heimild um skilgreiningar á germanska hugtakinu *rūnō og norræna hugtakinu rún. Í greininni eru könnuð þrjú dæmi þar sem hagnýt og fræðileg þekking á rúnum fer saman við galdur. Þetta eru drykkjukeppni Egils og Bárðar (k. 44), níðstöng Egils (k. 59) og þegar Egill læknar Helgu (k. 74). Höfundur dregur upp hliðstæður bæði innan norrænu hefðarinnar og í víðara samhengi á germanska svæðinu.

References

Chapter 44: Signdi Bárður fullið: "The verb signa is a borrowing from the Latin signare [...] which was used in both pagan and Christian practices. To the Christians the signum was the sign of the cross, while for the pagans it was the act of consecrating an object or person to a certain god […]. It is here hard to say if Bard marked or carved the symbol of the cross or of Thor’s hammer." (Italian text: “Il verbo signa è un prestito dal latino signare [...] impiegato per pratiche sia pagane che cristiane. Per i cristiani il signum era il segno della croce, per i pagani l’atto di consacrare un oggetto o una persona a qualche divinità [...]. È qui difficile dire se Bárðr abbia tracciato o inciso il segno della croce, oppure il segno del martello di Þórr” (p. 328).)

Chapter 59: veitti hann formála: "It is therefore evident that the formáli is Egil’s text carved on the stick, namely the inscription, and that the words are then repeated by the present people, while allowing to suppose this is a sheer solemn declaration." (Italian text: “È evidente che con formáli si designi il testo graffito da Egill sul bastone, l’iscrizione dunque, e che le parole incise vengano poi ripetute dai presenti, lasciando supporre che si tratti di una vera e propria dichiarazione solenne” (p. 331).)

Chapter 74: um myrkvan staf villist: "The motif of the incorrect carving, due to ignorance or purposefully crafted, is present in the Atlamál as well [9-12], where it does not have any magical connotation though, since here the runic inscription ultimately conveys a message." (Italian text: “L’incisione scorretta, per ignoranza dell’arte o artatamente, è motivo presente negli Atlamál [9-12], dove tuttavia non si avverte alcuna connotazione magica poiché qui l’incisione delle rune ha per fine la comunicazione di un messaggio” (p. 333).)

Links

• Written by: Martina Ceolin
• Icelandic translation: Þórdís Edda Jóhannesdóttir