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Rigsthula

22.[1] He began to grow,  and to gain in strength,
Oxen he ruled,  and plows made ready,
Houses he built,  and barns he fashioned,
Carts he made,  and the plow he managed.

23.[2] Home did they bring  the bride for Karl,
In goatskins clad,  and keys she bore;
Snör was her name,  'neath the veil she sat;
A home they made ready,  and rings exchanged,
The bed they decked,  and a dwelling made.

24.[3] Sons they had,  they lived and were happy:
Hal and Dreng,  Holth, Thegn and Smith,
Breith and Bondi,  Bundinskeggi,
Bui and Boddi,  Brattskegg and Segg.

    Most editors assume a lacuna, after either line 2 or line 3. Sijmons assumes, on the analogy of stanza 8, that a complete stanza describing Karl ("Yeoman") has been lost between stanzas 21 and 22.

  1. ↑ No line indicated in the manuscript as beginning a stanza. Cart: the word in the original, "kartr," is one of the clear signs of the Celtic influence noted in the introduction.
  2. ↑ Bring: the word literally means "drove in a wagon"—a mark of the bride's social status. Snör: "Daughter-in-Law." Bugge, followed by several editors, maintains that line 4 was wrongly interpolated here from a missing stanza describing the marriage of Kon.
  3. ↑ No line indicated in the manuscript as beginning a stanza. The names mean: Hal, "Man"; Dreng, "The Strong"; Holth, "The Holder of Land"; Thegn, "Freeman"; Smith, "Craftsman"; Breith, "The Broad-Shouldered"; Bondi, "Yeoman"; Bundinskeggi, "With Beard Bound" (i.e., not allowed to hang unkempt); Bui, "Dwelling-Owner"; Boddi, "Farm-Holder"; Brattskegg, "With Beard Carried High"; Segg, "Man."

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