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Interplay Between Texts in Snorra Edda Manuscripts Interplay between texts in Snorra Edda manuscripts An attempt to apply a new analytical approach to medieval codices Yulia Osovtsova Master's thesis in Viking and Medieval Studies VMS4190 (60 credits) Autumn 2020 Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies (ILN), University of Oslo Summary Snorra Edda belongs to the most famous works of medieval Icelandic literature. The main purpose of this thesis is to analyze five medieval manuscripts produced during the fourteenth century transmitting the whole Snorra Edda or only Skáldskaparmál. All these manuscripts contain various texts in addition to different redactions of Snorri’s work. The sources provide evidence that Snorra Edda functioned in various contexts, which all differed significantly from the way it is usually presented in the modern editions and translations. This thesis intends to analyse the manuscripts from a synchronic perspective and the focus will be on the editorial approach and logic behind each compilation. Nevertheless, the diachronic or stemmatic perspective will provide the access to the following analysis. It will supply the foundation for the understanding of the individual characteristics of the texts transmitted in more than one codex. I will mainly focus on the major changes within different redactions. All this information gained through the diachronic perspective and the focus on the transmission process of the works will be further applied to the analysis of the codices from the synchronic perspective. In the main part of this thesis the effects of the earlier mentioned changes will be in focus. These distinctive features of different texts within individual compilations will be contrasted with each other. The constellation of texts and their function within this specific constellation will be analyzed. I will apply the concept of the ‘abstract redactor’ in order to gain a better understanding of the editorial tendencies behind each compilation without neglecting the dynamics of transmission. This thesis presents a model for approaching medieval manuscripts by combining the diachronic and synchronic perspectives. Foreword First of all, I would like to thank my supervisor Mikael Males for his guidance and support during the whole process. Your knowledge has always been inspiring and your wise advice, your patience and capacity for kindness helped me to complete my work. My parents deserve a big thank you for the understanding of my interest in an obscure subject, which brought me away from them, and for their support on all sides of my life. It is hard to find words to express my gratitude to you, Kusma. You have encouraged me to take this journey and have always reminded me how important it is and how lucky I am to be able to take the risk and live the life of my dreams. My daughter, Elina, who had to move to Norway with me and had to put up with seeing so little of her mom during the last hard period – my heart belongs to you. Table of Contents 1 Introduction..............................................................................................................................1 1.1 Research Background ........................................................................................................3 1.2 Sources ..............................................................................................................................7 1.3 Theory and Method ............................................................................................................8 2 Manuscripts............................................................................................................................ 12 3 Multiply attested works .......................................................................................................... 17 3.1 Prologue .......................................................................................................................... 17 3.2 Gylfaginning .................................................................................................................... 20 3.3 Skáldskaparmál ............................................................................................................... 22 3.4 Háttatal ........................................................................................................................... 28 3.5 Litla Skálda ..................................................................................................................... 30 3.6 Third Grammatical Treatise............................................................................................. 31 3.7 Second Grammatical Treatise .......................................................................................... 35 4 Codex Regius ......................................................................................................................... 38 5 Codex Upsaliensis .................................................................................................................. 46 6 AM 748 Ia 4to ........................................................................................................................ 56 7 AM 757 a 4to ......................................................................................................................... 64 8 Codex Wormianus .................................................................................................................. 74 9 Conclusions............................................................................................................................ 89 10 Bibliography ........................................................................................................................ 98 10.1 Manuscripts ................................................................................................................... 98 10.2 Editions ......................................................................................................................... 98 10.3 Secondary Studies ........................................................................................................ 100 1 Introduction Snorra Edda belongs to the most famous works of medieval Icelandic literature, along with sagas and poetry. It is a poetological work – a textbook in skaldic diction, whose compilation is traditionally dated to the years c. 1221–1225 (Clunies Ross 2005: 157; Snorri died in 1241). Snorra Edda is remarkable in many respects. In contrast to the predominantly anonymous medieval Icelandic literature, it is ascribed to the well-known author Snorri Sturluson, an influential political and intellectual actor of the last part of the Commonwealth period in Iceland. Unlike the majority of medieval Icelandic works, which bear editorial names, the title Edda, whose meaning can not be conclusively determined, has belonged to the work from the Middle Ages (Faulkes 1977a: 32-9). The authority of Snorri and his Edda is evidenced through the amply transmitted references to both the author and the work in other medieval texts,1 which indicate its significance for the medieval Icelandic literary culture. The popularity of the work is further evidenced through its lively history of transmission. Six medieval manuscripts produced during the fourteenth century containing all or part of Snorra Edda are extant, as well as younger copies of other medieval exemplars that have not survived (Nordal 2001: 44). Based on the extant sources, we may conclude that Snorra Edda played a significant role in the learned discourse in the fourteenth century, and it continues to attract scholarly attention. In light of the above, the understanding of the form and content of Snorra Edda is often taken for granted. In modern times, it is understood as a work consisting of four parts: Prologue, Gylfaginning, Skáldskaparmál and Háttatal.2 One of the oldest Snorra Edda manuscripts, U, supplies the most specific and the most detailed internal evidence for the content of the work, its name, and its author. The initial heading provides following information: Bók þessi heitir Edda. Hana hefir saman setta Snorri Sturluson eptir þeim hætti sem hér er skipat. Er fyrst frá ásum ok Ymi, þar næst skáldskapar mál ok heiti margra hluta. Síðast Háttatal er Snorri hefir ort um Hákon konung ok Skúla hertuga. 1 F.ex. in poems Lilja, Guðmundar drápa byskups, Guðmundar drápa; Prologue to the Four Grammatical Treatises, discussed, for instance, by Johansson (2009), Males (2020: 279-295). Third Grammatical Treatise. 2 Modern editions and translations (f.ex. Finnur Jónsson 1931 (ed.); Faulkes 1987 (transl.); Faulkes (ed.) 1982, 1991, 1998). 1 ‘This book is called Edda. Snorri Sturluson has compiled it in the manner in which it is arranged here. First it is about Æsir and Ymir, next Skáldskaparmál (‘poetic diction’) and (poetical) names of many things. Finally Háttatal (‘enumeration of verse forms’) which Snorri has composed about King Hákon and Duke Skúli’ (U 2012: 6-7). The work is described here as consisting of three parts. The first part is dedicated to the mythological topics, Æsir and Ymir, and is generally associated with Gylfaginning. The section on poetic diction and heiti is followed by Háttatal. There has been a heated debate about Snorri’s authorship of the Prologue, but the textual evidence supports its position within the original work (Clunies Ross 2005: 174). Snorra Edda appears in this pure form only in a rather late manuscript T (Codex Trajectinus) from ca. 1600, which is based on a lost medieval exemplar similar to R (Clunies Ross 2005: 151, 161).
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