Changes in Newer Edda Printings (Patreon)

As I mentioned in my last post, there are some changes in newer printings of my Poetic Edda translation. In June 2016, I was asked by my publisher to submit any small changes (nothing that would affect what lines appear on what page, for example) that might improve the book for future printings. We all make mistakes and we all grow, so I was happy for the opportunity to submit about a page of improvements. As far as I know, those changes only started to appear in copies of the Poetic Edda sold more than a year later, beginning in late June 2017.

These changes are of three main types: 1) Corrections of typoes, 2) Rewording some phrases to make them clearer or more correct, and 3) Improvements to translations where I felt that I understood the Old Norse poem better, due to improvements in my own knowledge or feedback from colleagues. The last category affects mostly Voluspa (probably subjected to more research every year than all the other poems in the Poetic Edda combined) and the notoriously difficult Helgakvitha Hjorvarthssonar.

Additionally, in the new printing, I changed the English title of Sigrdrifumal from "The Meeting with Brynhild" to "The Meeting with the Valkyrie." This avoids begging the question; it's not clear that the Sigrdrifa of the poem was understood by the poet to be the same Valkyrie as Brynhild (even though they are understood to be the same person in the Saga of the Volsungs, where she is just called Brynhild).

My bio is also changed on the back cover of newer printings, to reflect what was current about me a year ago: "Jackson Crawford teaches Norse mythology, the Icelandic language, and the history of the Scandinavian languages at the University of California, Berkeley (previously at UCLA)." Of course the Saga of the Volsungs reflects my actual up-to-date position at Colorado, and probably any future printings of the Edda will be updated with that information too.

I list the other changes to the text below, with page and line numbers indicated, in case you have an older copy and would like to note where something was changed (you can tell immediately if you have an older or newer printing by whether my bio mentions Berkeley or not). First I show what the text of the older printings says, then what the newer printing says below that.

p. xx ll. 37-38

(as in Afrikaans today)

(a pronunciation pattern similar to that of w in Afrikaans today)

p. xxiii l. 19

Barnes, Michael.

Barnes, Michael, and Anthony Faulkes.

p. xxiv l. 22

Kellogg, Robert, Jane Smiley, et al. (editors).

Kellogg, Robert (introduction), and various translators.

p. 8 l. 20

in the shining waters

in the famous waters

p. 11 l. 6

are filled with life,

feed their lives to the wolf,

p. 65 l. 18

when the day comes to fight Fafnir.

when the day comes to fight Fenrir.

p. 165 l. 3

he fathered Sleipnir

he produced Sleipnir

p. 182 l. 25

And now you would shout, Atli,

And now you would neigh, Atli,

p. 182 l. 27

now I, Hrimgerth, stretch out my neck.

now I, Hrimgerth, stretch out my tail.

p. 182 l. 36

I’ll hang you by your neck, Hrimgerth.

and you won’t lift your tail, Hrimgerth.

p. 183 l. 28

that sparkling sea

that sparkling girl

p. 183 l. 30

Here the land rises from the sea

She comes to land from the sea

p. 191 ll. 5

and was warlike at a young age; 

and was called prince at a young age; 

p. 223 l. 21

Gripir’s treasure

Fafnir’s treasure

p. 264 l. 14

kept walking sadly on,

kept riding sadly on,

p. 274 l. 6

who showed them the way.

who knew the roads.

p. 353 ll. 19-20

Þ is treated as TH, Ð is treated as D,

Þ and Ð are treated as TH (Ð is treated as D in some well-known names such as Odin),

p. 356 l. 10

Elivagar, unknown location.

Elivagar, mythic rivers associated with Ymir.

p. 358 ll. 35-36

Gunnloth, otherwise unknown giant woman mentioned in Havamal.

Gunnloth, a giant woman, guardian of Othrerir, seduced by Odin in Havamal.

p. 363 l. 30

Samsey, an island.

Samsey, an island, possibly to be identified with modern-dat [sic] Samsø in Denmark.

--In a future printing hopefully the spelling "dat" will be fixed to "day."