Blaney, Benjamin. The Berserkr: His Origin and Development in Old Norse Literature

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  • Author: Blaney, Benjamin
  • Title: The Berserkr: His Origin and Development in Old Norse literature. Ph.D. Dissertation
  • Place, Publisher: Boulder: s.n.
  • Year: 1972
  • E-text:
  • Reference: Blaney, Benjamin. The Berserkr: His Origin and Development in Old Norse literature. Ph.D. Dis. University of Colorado. Boulder: s.n., 1972.

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Annotation

Blaney explores the etymology and meaning of berserkr and ulfhéðinn using previous studies, Old Norse literature and archaeological finds. He observes the terms hamramr, eigi einhamr and hamask, which originally indicated berserkers’ frenzy and physical change of shape, but in the later sagas the meaning and intensity of these terms weakened to portray excessive strength and rage. This weakening of the terms is also reflected in the families of shape-shifters, since berserksgangr was hereditary, but with ever-decreasing abilities. Blaney takes Egils saga as a prime example of this, as it is the only saga of Icelanders in which all three terms appear. An analysis of the werewolf/berserk motif in this saga reveals the gradual change of meaning in these terms. Kveldulf was a werewolf, he was hamramr and could run berserk (hamask). His son Grim could also run berserk (hamask) and possessed supernatural strength after dark, but he could not actually become an animal. Egil, on the other hand, could only be reiðr, and although he showed several traits of a shape-shifter and berserk, the author carefully avoided calling him either one.

Lýsing

Blaney rannsakar orðsifjafræði og merkingu fyrirbæranna berserkr og ulfhéðinn í norrænum heimildum, fornleifum, og einnig fyrri rannsóknum. Hann skoðar einnig hugtökin hamramr, eigi einhamr og hamask sem upphaflega bentu á berserksgang og hamhleypur. Í yngri sögunum veikst hins vegar upprunaleg merking þessara hugtaka og þau fara að merkja bara óhóflegan styrk og reiði. Þessi veiking hugtakanna endurspeglast einnig í fjölskyldum hamhleypnanna, þar sem berserkseðlið var arfgengt en það dregur úr því með hverri nýrri kynslóð. Blaney tekur Egils sögu sem fullkomið dæmi þessa. Egla er eina Íslendingasagan þar sem öll þrjú hugtökin birtast. Greining á varúlfs/berserks-minninu í þessari sögu leiðir í ljós hvernig merkingin breytist smátt saman. Kveld-Úlfur var beinlínis varúlfur, hann var hamramr og gekk berserksgang (hamaðist). Skalla-Grímur sonur hans gat einnig gengið berserksgang og fékk yfirnáttúrulega krafta á kvöldin en hann gat ekki breyst í dýr. Egill hins vegar gat bara orðið reiðr, og þó í ljós komi að sjálfur er hann einhvers konar berserkur, er ekki sagt beinum orðum að Egill hamist eða gangi berserksgang.

See also

References

Kafli 1: Hallberu, dóttur Úlfs hins óarga. Hún var systir Hallbjarnar hálftrölls

	„In chapter one we learn that Egil’s grandfather Ulf lied in Norway and was the son of Bjalfi, whose name means wolf’s hide, and Hallbera. She was the sister of Hallbjörn hálftröll and the daughter of Ulf enn óargi („the fearless“). It is most interesting that names of both brother and sister contain the same word elements, differing only in the masuline and feminine forms for „bear“. The name hálftröll would seem to indicate that one of his parents was a troll or giant. Both trolls and giants were known to be apable shape-shifters.“ (bls. 58)

Kafli 27: og svo er sagt að þá hamaðist hann og fleiri voru þeir förunautar hans er þá hömuðust

	„But the key passage in this saga for the understanding of hamramr is in chapter 27 […] where Kveldulf, Skallagrim and their men go into a murderous rage in attacking and killing the crew of one of King Harald‘s ships. Here the hamramir men are equated with those affected by berserksgangr. […] It is perfectly clear that there is no physical shape-shifting going on here. Hamramr simply describes the mental state of the berserk fury.” (bls. 42)

Kafli 40: Brák mælti: „Hamast þú nú Skalla-Grímur að syni þínum.“

	„A very interesting use of hamask is contained in chapter forty of Eigla. [...] even in a game, in competition with his own son, Skallagrim went into a berserk fury, just as though he were in a battle. That his strength increased greatly after sunset is a warewolf trait inherited from his father Kveldulf.” (bls. 57)

Kafli 67: Kenndi þá aflsmunar og féll Atli á bak aftur en Egill greyfðist að niður og beit í sundur í honum barkann.

	„One other passage indicates the wolf in Egil. In chapter 67 during a holmgang, Atli remained impervious to blows from Egil’s sword. Like a berserkr he either had the power to dull blades with his evil eye or he could not be harmed by iron. [...] The motif of biting through an opponent’s throat has been previously discussed. There only remains to be said that this is also the method of attack for warewolves.“ (bls.62-63)

Kafli 69: (ath! vist í kafla 67 í verkefninu hans Blaney, en um kafla 69 i wikisöguútgáfunni að ræða) Eigi var um það einmælt að hann væri eigi hamrammur „In chapter 67 of Eigla (p.222) eigi einhamr appears in one manuscript, where all other manuscripts have hamramr. Önund, the man being decribed, is the son of one among those called hamramir in chapter 27. Here the two terms are clearly synonymous and refer to the berserk fury.“ (bls.51)


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