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 GARDNER AND SUTHERLAND’S
CHROMOSOME ABNORMALITIES
AND GENETIC COUNSELING

2
OXFORD MONOGRAPHS ON MEDICAL GENETICS
General Editors:
JUDITH G. HALL PETER S. HARPER LOUANNE HUDGKINS EVAN EICHLER CHARLES J.
EPSTEIN (DECEASED 2011) ARNO G. MOTULSKY (RESIGNED 2011)

1. R. B. McConnell: The genetics of gastrointestinal disorders

2. A. C. Kopéc: The distribution of the blood groups in the United Kingdom
3. E. Slater and V. A. Cowie: The genetics of mental disorders
4. C. O. Carter and T. J. Fairbank: The genetics of locomotor disorders
5. A. E. Mourant, A. C. Kopéc, and K. Domaniewska-Sobezak: The distribution
of the human blood groups and other polymorphisms
6. A. E. Mourant, A. C. Kopéc, and K. Domaniewska-Sobezak: Blood groups and
diseases
7. A. G. Steinbert and C. E. Cook: The distribution of the human immunoglobulin
allotypes
8. D. Tills, A. C. Kopéc, and R. E. Tills: The distribution of the human blood
groups and other polymorphisms: Supplement I
10. D. Z. Loesch: Quantitative dermatoglyphics: Classification, genetics, and
pathology
11. D. J. Bond and A. C. Chandley: Aneuploidy
12. P. F. Benson and A. H. Fensom: Genetic biochemical disorders
13. G. R. Sutherland and F. Hecht: Fragile sites on human chromosomes
14. M. d’A Crawfurd: The genetics of renal tract disorders
16. C. R. Scriver and B. Child: Garrod’s inborn factors in disease
18. M. Baraitser: The genetics of neurological disorders
19. R. J. Gorlin, M. M. Cohen, Jr., and L. S. Levin: Syndromes of the head and
neck, third edition
21. D. Warburton, J. Byrne, and N. Canki: Chromosome anomalies and prenatal
development: An atlas
22. J. J. Nora, K. Berg, and A. H. Nora: Cardiovascular disease: Genetics,
epidemiology, and prevention
24. A. E. H. Emery: Duchenne muscular dystrophy, second edition
25. E. G. D. Tuddenham and D. N. Cooper: The molecular genetics of haemostasis
and its inherited disorders
26. A. Boué: Foetal medicine
27. R. E. Stevenson, J. G. Hall, and R. M. Goodman: Human malformations
28. R. J. Gorlin, H. V. Toriello, and M. M. Cohen, Jr.: Hereditary hearing loss and
its syndromes
29. R. J. M. Gardner and G. R. Sutherland: Chromosomes abnormalities and
genetic counseling, second edition
30. A. S. Teebi and T. I. Farag: Genetic disorders among Arab populations
31. M. M. Cohen, Jr.: The child with multiple birth defects
32. W. W. Weber: Pharmacogenetics

3
33. V. P. Sybert: Genetic skin disorders
34. M. Baraitser: Genetics of neurological disorders, third edition
35. H. Ostrer: Non- Mendelian genetics in humans
36. E. Traboulsi: Genetic factors in human disease
37. G. L. Semenza: Transcription factors and human disease
38. L. Pinsky, R. P. Erickson, and R. N. Schimke: Genetic disorders of human
sexual development
39. R. E. Stevenson, C. E. Schwartz, and R. J. Schroer: X- linked mental
retardation
40. M. J. Khoury, W. Burke, and E. Thomson: Genetics and public health in the
21st century
41. J. Weil: Psychosocial genetic counseling
42. R. J. Gorlin, M. M. Cohen, Jr., and R. C. M. Hennekam: Syndromes of the head
and neck, fourth edition
43. M. M. Cohen, Jr., G. Neri, and R. Weksberg: Overgrowth syndromes
44. R. A. King, J. I. Rotter, and A. G. Motulsky: Genetic basis of common
diseases, second edition
45. G. P. Bates, P. S. Harper, and L. Jones: Huntington’s disease, third edition
46. R. J. M. Gardner and G. R. Sutherland: Chromosome abnormalities and genetic
counseling, third edition
47. I. J. Holt: Genetics of mitochondrial disease
48. F. Flinter, E. Maher, and A. Saggar- Malik: Genetics of renal disease
49. C. J. Epstein, R. P. Erickson, and A. Wynshaw-Boris: Inborn errors of
development: The molecular basis of clinical disorders of morphogenesis
50. H. V. Toriello, W. Reardon, and R. J. Gorlin: Hereditary hearing loss and its
syndromes, second edition
51. P. S. Harper: Landmarks in medical genetics
52. R. E. Stevenson and J. G. Hall: Human malformations and related anomalies,
second edition
53. D. Kumar and S. D. Weatherall: Genomics and clinical medicine
54. C. J. Epstein, R. P. Erickson, and A. Wynshaw-Boris: Inborn errors of
development: The molecular basis of clinical disorders of morphogenesis,
second edition
55. W. Weber: Pharmacogenetics, second edition
56. P. L. Beales, I. S. Farooqi, and S. O’Rahilly: The genetics of obesity syndromes
57. P. S. Harper: A short history of medical genetics
58. R. C. M. Hennekam, I. D. Krantz, and J. E. Allanson: Gorlin’s syndromes of
the head and neck, fifth edition
59. D. Kumar and P. Elliot: Principles and practices of cardiovascular genetics
60. V. P. Sybert: Genetic skin disorders, second edition
61. R. J. M. Gardner, G. R. Sutherland, and L. C. Shaffer: Chromosome
abnormalities and genetic counseling, fourth edition
62. D. Kumar: Genomics and health in the developing world
63. G. Bates, S. Tabrizi, and L. Jones: Huntington’s disease, fourth edition

4
64. B. Lee and F. Scaglia: Inborn errors of metabolism: From neonatal screening
to metabolic pathways
65. D. Kumar and C. Eng: Genomic medicine, second edition
66. R. Stevenson, J. Hall, D. Everman, and B. Solomon: Human malformations
and related anomalies, third edition
67. R. Erickson and A. Wynshaw-Boris: Epstein’s inborn errors of development:
The molecular basis of clinical disorders of morphogenesis, third edition
68. C. Hollak and R. Lachmann: Inherited metabolic disease in adults: A clinical
guide
69. V. P. Sybert: Genetic skin disorders, third edition
70. R. J. M. Gardner and D. J. Amor: Gardner and Sutherland’s chromosome
abnormalities and genetic counseling, fifth edition

5
 GARDNER AND SUTHERLAND’S

Chromosome Abnormalities and

Genetic Counseling
FIFTH EDITION

R. J. McKinlay GARDNER
ADJUNCT PROFESSOR
CLINICAL GENETICS GROUP
UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO, DUNEDIN, NEW ZEALAND

David J. AMOR
LORENZO AND PAMELA GALLI CHAIR
UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
VICTORIAN CLINICAL GENETICS SERVICES
MURDOCH CHILDREN’S RESEARCH INSTITUTE
ROYAL CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

6
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© Oxford University Press 2018

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acquirer.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Gardner, R. J. M., author. | Amor, David J., author.
Title: Gardner and Sutherland’s chromosome abnormalities and genetic counseling / R. J. McKinlay
Gardner, David J. Amor.
Other titles: Chromosome abnormalities and genetic counseling | Oxford monographs on medical
genetics ; no. 70.
Description: Fifth edition. | Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, [2018] |
Series: Oxford monographs on medical genetics ; no. 70 | Preceded by Chromosome abnormalities
and genetic counseling / R.J. McKinlay Gardner, Grant R. Sutherland, Lisa G. Shaffer. c2012. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017034126 | ISBN 9780199329007 (hardcover : alk. paper) | ISBN
9780199329021 (epub)
Subjects: | MESH: Chromosome Aberrations | Genetic Counseling
Classification: LCC RB155.7 | NLM QS 677 | DDC 616/.042—dc23 LC record available at
https://lccn.loc.gov/2017034126

This material is not intended to be, and should not be considered, a substitute for medical or other
professional advice. Treatment for the conditions described in this material is highly dependent on
the individual circumstances. And, while this material is designed to offer accurate information with
respect to the subject matter covered and to be current as of the time it was written, research and
knowledge about medical and health issues is constantly evolving and dose schedules for
medications are being revised continually, with new side effects recognized and accounted for
regularly. Readers must therefore always check the product information and clinical procedures
with the most up-to-date published product information and data sheets provided by the
manufacturers and the most recent codes of conduct and safety regulation. The publisher and the
authors make no representations or warranties to readers, express or implied, as to the accuracy or
completeness of this material. Without limiting the foregoing, the publisher and the authors make
no representations or warranties as to the accuracy or efficacy of the drug dosages mentioned in the
material. The authors and the publisher do not accept, and expressly disclaim, any responsibility for
any liability, loss or risk that may be claimed or incurred as a consequence of the use and/or
application of any of the contents of this material.

7
 This book is dedicated to Jocelyn, Geoffrey, and Craig, their
parents, and all other families who seek our “chromosomal
advice.”

Jocelyn and Geoffrey (with lamb) have a partial trisomy for

chromosome 4 long arm, and Craig, the youngest, had a 46,XY
result on amniocentesis. Their father is a translocation carrier (see
Fig. 5–1, lower). Craig, since married, came to the genetic clinic

8
for confirmatory advice about his low genetic risk.

9
Heredity
Inescapably, this is me—the diagnosis
is cause for anger at those
who brightly say we choose our destinies.
There is no store
of courage, wit or will
can save me from myself and I must face
my children, feeling like
that wicked fairy, uninvited
at the christening, bestowing on my own,
amidst murmurs of apprehension, a most
unwanted gift—that
of a blighted mind. No one
could tell me of this curse when I
was young and dreamt of children
and the graces they would bear. Later,
it seemed that a chill morning
revealed deeper layers
of truth. For my romancing
there is a price to pay—
perhaps my children’s children
will pass this tollgate after me.
My grandmothers gaze down from their frames
on my wall, sadly wondering.
—Meg Campbell

Dear DNA
In real life you’re just
a tangle of white filaments
captured in a test-tube,
and your first photo is not flattering:
grey smudges like tractor tracks,
or a rusty screw. Yet
many say you are beautiful.
Online for a night
with a hundred fantastic portraits

10
and I’m head over heels
In love with you, DNA,
bewitched by your billions
coiled in my cells, transcribing,
replicating, mutating.
I see your never-ending dance.
A length of twisted ladder
briefly unwinds,
both strands duplicate,
each copy drifts away
on its secret mission
to make a thought, feel sunshine,
or digest this morning’s porridge.
Two winding parallel threads,
a tiny tangle of gossamer
designing my life.
DNA, you are astonishing
and I am yours truly.
—Winifred Kavalieris

Genes pass on our kind

But our selves are transmitted
In words left behind.
—J. Patrick Gookin

Curiosity is a virtue, perhaps an unsung and undervalued virtue, which

should be the energizing fuel to the thinking geneticist.
—Willie Reardon

Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?

Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?
—T. S. Eliot

11
 PREFACE TO THE FIFTH EDITION

Chromosomal disorders have been, and will always be, with us; that is a
given. What is changing is our ability to recognize and detect them:
detection both in terms of the subtlety of abnormalities and of the means
we can use to find them. Classical cytogenetics has now well and truly
given way to “molecular karyotyping,” and this has been the extraordinary
development of the early twenty-first century. Readers will now be as
accustomed to molecular nomenclature in defining a segment, such as
chr5:1-18,500,000, as they had been to the classical description,
5p14.1→pter.
The very small deletions and duplications which molecular karyotyping
can now reveal have become familiar to the clinicians and counselors who
see patients and families in the clinic. A large number of these are now on
record, many attracting the nomenclature “copy number variant”: Some
are very well understood, others becoming so, and yet quite a few—
variants of uncertain significance, the acronym “VOUS” in daily parlance
—whose roles in human pathology are imperfectly appreciated. Many are
not in the same mold as the deletions and duplications of classical
cytogenetics, in which the single defect sufficed to cause a particular
phenotype, and always did so: We now need to take account of the concept
of incomplete penetrance, with some microdeletions or duplications not, of
themselves, always leading to an abnormal phenotype. Apparently
clinically normal parents may carry the same alteration as their child with
an abnormal phenotype. Digenic, or “two-hit,” mechanisms may now
require consideration. These were not formerly notions much entering into
the assessment of chromosomal disorders; discussion apropos in the clinic
presents a new challenge.
The number of “new” del/dup syndromes increases almost with each
issue of the clinical genetic journals. We include a mention of a
considerable number of these here (Chapter 14), not intending to create an
encyclopedic resource per se but believing that such a record may provide
a useful first point of contact when these cases are encountered in the
clinic. Copy number variants of uncertain significance, on the other hand,
we mostly take only a broad rather than a detailed view (Chapter 17); the

12
reader will need to consult other repositories for fuller information, as their
interpretations evolve.
The new (or now, established) laboratory methodologies blur the
boundaries between what might have been regarded as the classic
chromosomal abnormalities and Mendelian conditions. Some disorders
recorded as being due not only to segmental deletion/duplication affecting
a single locus but also to point mutation at that locus we continue to treat
as “chromosomal”; and for most, their place in this book is secure. But one
major category, the fragile X syndromes, are now seen as essentially
Mendelian disorders, their historic cytogenetic-based nomenclature
notwithstanding, and they no longer claim their chapter.
Peripheral blood and skin have been the tissues in common usage for
chromosome analysis, with an increasing role for cells got from the
convenient and painless “spit sample.” Prenatal diagnosis has been based
on amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling, but latterly blastomeres
from early embryos, and fetal DNA in the maternal circulation, have
become targets for testing. Now we can anticipate the potential for whole
genome analysis to be applied to the prenatal diagnosis of the classic
aneuploidies, from a simple maternal blood sample, and this would widen
such testing very considerably. Questions such as these raise ethical issues,
and a literature on “chromosomal ethics” is accumulating.
As we have previously written, however marvelous may be these new
ways to test for chromosomes, the concerns of families remain essentially
the same. We may reproduce here the final paragraph of the Preface of the
first edition of this book, from 1989, as valid now as then:
Families pursue genetic counseling in an effort to demystify the mysterious.
If they did not want to “hear it all,” they would not bother with genetic
counseling. Families want an honest evaluation of what is known and what is
unknown, a clear explanation of all possibilities, both good and bad, and a
sensitive exploration of all available information with which they can make
knowledgeable decisions about future family planning. Thus, Bloch et al.
(1979) succinctly convey the essence of why people go to the genetic
counselor. We hope this book will assist counselors in their task.

Dunedin R.J.M.G.
Melbourne D.J.A.
February 2018

13
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We thank John Barber, Rachel Beddow, Amber Boys, Cyril Chapman,

Jane Halliday, Jan Hodgson, Caroline Lintott, Nicole Martin, Belinda
McLaren, Fiona Norris, Mamoru Ozaki, Mark Pertile, Jenny Rhodes,
Sharyn Stock-Myer, and Jane Watt for their critical advice. We
acknowledge Lisa Shaffer, who was a co-author of the previous edition,
and much of whose work has flowed over into this edition. We have made
much use of the ideograms created by Nicole Chia. The length of the
Reference list, and the frequency with which we acknowledge, in legends
to figures, the courtesy of colleagues whose work we use, speaks for the
debt we owe to our colleagues in clinical cytogenetics worldwide.
Belatedly, R.J.M.G. thanks Ngaire Adams and Dianne Grimaldi, whose
need for chromosomal teaching at Dunedin Hospital in the 1980s provided
the germination for writing this book. We have appreciated the wise
guidance, and the patience and forbearance of Oxford University Press,
from Jeff House when this book made its first appearance, through to Chad
Zimmerman and Chloe Layman in this fifth edition. R.J.M.G. thanks his
wife Kelley for her patient help, once again, in document management;
and the front cover art, and most of the new illustrations in this edition,
have been drawn, or redrawn, by her.

14
 CONTENTS

PART ONE: BASIC CONCEPTS

1. Elements of Medical Cytogenetics
2. Chromosome Analysis
3. The Origins and Consequences of Chromosome Pathology
4. Deriving and Using a Risk Figure

PART TWO: PARENT OR CHILD WITH A CHROMOSOMAL

ABNORMALITY
5. Autosomal Reciprocal Translocations
6. Sex Chromosome Translocations
7. Robertsonian Translocations
8. Insertions
9. Inversions
10. Complex Chromosomal Rearrangements
11. Autosomal Ring Chromosomes
12. Centromere Fissions, Complementary Isochromosomes,
Telomeric Fusions, Balancing Supernumerary Chromosomes,
Neocentromeres, Jumping Translocations, and Chromothripsis
13. Down Syndrome, Other Full Aneuploidies, Polyploidy, and the
Influence of Parental Age
14. Autosomal Structural Rearrangements: Deletions and
Duplications
15. Sex Chromosome Aneuploidy and Structural Rearrangement
16. Chromosome Instability Syndromes

PART THREE: CHROMOSOME VARIANTS

15
17. Normal Chromosomal Variation

PART FOUR: DISORDERS ASSOCIATED WITH ABERRANT

GENOMIC IMPRINTING
18. Uniparental Disomy and Disorders of Imprinting

PART FIVE: REPRODUCTIVE CYTOGENETICS

19. Reproductive Failure
20. Prenatal Testing Procedures
21. Chromosome Abnormalities Detected at Prenatal Diagnosis
22. Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis

PART SIX: DISORDERS OF SEX DEVELOPMENT

23. Chromosomal Disorders of Sex Development

PART SEVEN: NOXIOUS AGENTS

24. Gonadal Cytogenetic Damage from Exposure to Extrinsic Agents

APPENDICES
A. Ideograms of Human Chromosomes, and Haploid Autosomal
Lengths
B. Cytogenetic Abbreviations and Nomenclature
C. Determining 95 Percent Confidence Limits, and the Standard
Error

References
Index

16
 PART ONE
BASIC CONCEPTS

17
 1
ELEMENTS OF MEDICAL
CYTOGENETICS

CHROMOSOMES WERE first seen and named in the late nineteenth

century. Chromosome is a combination of Greek words meaning colored
(chrom) body (soma); the word was coined by the illustrious German
anatomist Heinrich Wilhelm Gottfried von Waldeyer-Hartz. It was early
appreciated that these brightly staining objects appearing in the cell
nucleus must be the “stuff of heredity,” the very vessels of our genetic
inheritance. Most observers had concluded, in the earlier part of the
twentieth century, that the human chromosome count was 48. It was not
until the 1950s, due to technical advances, and in particular the use of a
hypotonic solution to swell the cells, giving an uncluttered view of the
chromosomes, that Joe Hin Tjio and Albert Levan could recognize that 46
was the correct number. This discovery spurred research into conditions in
which a chromosomal cause had hitherto been suspected, and in 1959 (“the
wonderful year of human cytogenetics”) came the first demonstrations of a
medical application of the new knowledge, with practically simultaneous
discoveries of the chromosomal basis of Down syndrome, Klinefelter
syndrome, and Turner syndrome (Lejeune et al.1 1959; Jacobs and Strong
1959; Ford et al. 1959); these were followed soon thereafter by the
recognition of the other major aneuploidy syndromes. Harper (2006)
records the history, and the personalities behind the history, in his book
First Years of Human Chromosomes—a book that should be read by every
student of medical cytogenetics with an interest in how their discipline
came to be. Harper points out that the practice of genetic counseling came
into its own essentially upon the basis of these chromosomal discoveries:
So to speak, geneticists now had “their organ.”
“Colored bodies” became an especially apt derivation with the
development of various different staining techniques in the 1980s and
1990s, showing different parts of chromosomes in many different colors,

18
whether true or computer-generated false colors. The images produced by
this kaleidoscopic karyotyping could be rather beautiful. Black-and-white
photographs were less splendid but often sufficed (Figure 1–1). Albeit that
molecular methodologies have substantially taken over from classical
cytogenetics, and providing a different view of the genetic material, the
word chromosome will surely last forever.

FIGURE 1–1 The appearance of banded chromosomes, from a classical

cytogenetic study.

Chromosomal Morphology
Chromosomes have a linear appearance: two arms that are continuous at
the centromere. Reflecting the French influence in the establishment of the
cytogenetic nomenclature, the shorter arm is designated p (for petit), and
the longer is q (variously explained as being the next letter in the alphabet,
a mistyping of g (for grand), for queue, or as the other letter in the formula

19
p + q = 1). In the early part of the cell cycle, each chromosome is present
as a single structure, a chromatid, a single DNA molecule. During the cell
cycle, the chromosomes replicate, and two sister chromatids form. Now
the chromosome exists as a double-chromatid entity. Each chromatid
contains exactly the same genetic material. This replication is in
preparation for cell division so that, after the chromosome has separated
into its two component chromatids, each daughter cell receives the full
amount of genetic material. It is during mitosis that the chromosomes
contract and become readily distinguishable on light microscopy.
Blood and buccal mucosal cells are the tissues from which DNA is
extracted in routine chromosome analysis. From blood, the nucleated
white cell is the tested component for microarray analysis, and in classical
cytogenetic analysis, it is the lymphocyte. Buccal mucosal cells and white
blood cells2 are obtained from a saliva sample. The chromosomal status of
each small sample is taken as representative of the constitution of
(essentially) every other cell of the body. In the case of invasive prenatal
diagnosis, the cells from amniotic fluid or chorionic villi are the source
material; these tissues are assumed (with certain caveats) to represent the
fetal chromosomal constitution. Noninvasive prenatal diagnosis exploits
the presence of fetal blood cells and DNA in the maternal circulation.
The 46 chromosomes come in 23 matching pairs and constitute the
genome. One of each pair came from the mother, and one from the father.
For 22 of the chromosome pairs, each member (each homolog) has the
same morphology in each sex: These are the autosomes. The sex
chromosome (or gonosome) constitution differs: The female has a pair of
X chromosomes, and the male has an X and a Y chromosome. The single
set of homologs—one of each autosome plus one sex chromosome—is the
haploid set. The haploid number (n) is 23. The haploid complement exists,
as such, only in the gametocytes (ovum and sperm). All other cells in the
body—the soma—have a double set: the diploid complement (2n) of 46. If
there is a difference between a pair of homologs, in the sense of one being
structurally rearranged, the person is described as a heterozygote.
The chromosomes are classically distinguishable on the basis of their
size, centromere position, and banding pattern. The centromere may be in
the middle, off-center, or close to one end—metacentric, submetacentric,
and acrocentric, respectively. The chromosomes are numbered 1 through
22, and X and Y, and are also assigned to groups A through G, according
to their general size and the position of the centromere. The diagrammatic
representation of the banding pattern is the ideogram (Appendix A). The
numbering is based on size, largest to smallest (to split hairs, this order is

20
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
Hobrok of hawks, | and Garm of hounds.

45. To the race of the gods | my face have I raised,

And the wished-for aid have I waked;
For to all the gods | has the message gone
That sit in Ægir’s seats,
That drink within Ægir’s doors.

[103]

46. Grim is my name, | Gangleri am I,

Herjan and Hjalmberi,
Thekk and Thrithi, | Thuth and Uth,
Helblindi and Hor;

47. Sath and Svipal | and Sanngetal,

Herteit and Hnikar,
Bileyg, Baleyg, | Bolverk, Fjolnir,
Grim and Grimnir, | Glapsvith, Fjolsvith.

48. Sithhott, Sithskegg, | Sigfather, Hnikuth, [104]

Allfather, Valfather, | Atrith, Farmatyr:
A single name | have I never had
Since first among men I fared.

49. Grimnir they call me | in Geirröth’s hall,

With Asmund Jalk am I;
Kjalar I was | when I went in a sledge,
 At the council Thror am I called,
As Vithur I fare to the fight;
Oski, Biflindi, | Jafnhor and Omi,
Gondlir and Harbarth midst gods.

50. I deceived the giant | Sokkmimir old

As Svithur and Svithrir of yore;
Of Mithvitnir’s son | the slayer I was
When the famed one found his doom.

[105]

51. Drunk art thou, Geirröth, | too much didst thou

drink,
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Much hast thou lost, | for help no more
From me or my heroes thou hast.

52. Small heed didst thou take | to all that I told,

And false were the words of thy friends;
For now the sword | of my friend I see,
That waits all wet with blood.

53. Thy sword-pierced body | shall Ygg have soon,

For thy life is ended at last;
The maids are hostile; | now Othin behold!
Now come to me if thou canst!
54. Now am I Othin, | Ygg was I once,
Ere that did they call me Thund;
Vak and Skilfing, | Vofuth and Hroptatyr,
Gaut and Jalk midst the gods;
Ofnir and Svafnir, | and all, methinks,
Are names for none but me.

[106]

King Geirröth sat and had his sword on his knee, half
drawn from its sheath. But when he heard that Othin
was come thither, then he rose up and sought to take
Othin from the fire. The sword slipped from his hand,
and fell with the hilt down. The king stumbled and fell
forward, and the sword pierced him through, and
slew him. Then Othin vanished, but Agnar long ruled
there as king. [84]

[Contents]

NOTES
Prose. The texts of the two manuscripts differ in many minor details.
Hrauthung: this mythical king is not mentioned elsewhere. Geirröth:
the manuscripts spell his name in various ways. [86]Frigg: Othin’s
wife. She and Othin nearly always disagreed in some such way as
the one outlined in this story. Hlithskjolf (“Gate-Shelf”): Othin’s watch-
tower in heaven, whence he can overlook all the nine worlds; cf.
Skirnismol, introductory prose. Grimnir: “the Hooded One.” [87]

2. In the original lines 2 and 4 are both too long for the meter, and
thus the true form of the stanza is doubtful. For line 4 both
manuscripts have “the land of the Goths” instead of simply “the
Goths.” The word “Goths” apparently was applied indiscriminately to
any South-Germanic people, including the Burgundians as well as
the actual Goths, and thus here has no specific application; cf.
Gripisspo, 35 and note. [88]

3. Veratyr (“Lord of Men”): Othin. The “gift” which Agnar receives is

Othin’s mythological lore.

4. Thruthheim (“the Place of Might”): the place where Thor, the

strongest of the gods, has his hall, Bilskirnir, described in stanza 24.

5. Ydalir (“Yew-Dales”): the home of Ull, the archer among the gods,
a son of Thor’s wife, Sif, by another marriage. The wood of the yew-
tree was used for bows in the North just as it was long afterwards in
England. Alfheim: the home of the elves. Freyr: cf. Skirnismol,
introductory prose and note. Tooth-gift: the custom of making a
present to a child when it cuts its first tooth is, according to
Vigfusson, still in vogue in Iceland.

6. Valaskjolf (“the Shelf of the Slain”): Othin’s home, in which is his

watch-tower, Hlithskjolf. Gering identifies this with Valhall, and as
that is mentioned in stanza 8, he believes stanza 6 to be an
interpolation. [89]

7. Sökkvabekk (“the Sinking Stream”): of this spot and of Saga, who

is said to live there, little is known. Saga may be an hypostasis of
Frigg, but Snorri calls her a distinct goddess, and the name suggests
some relation to history or story-telling.
8. Glathsheim (“the Place of Joy”): Othin’s home, the greatest and
most beautiful hall in the world. Valhall (“Hall of the Slain”): cf.
Voluspo, 31 and note. Valhall is not only the hall whither the slain
heroes are brought by the Valkyries, but also a favorite home of
Othin.

10. The opening formula is abbreviated in both manuscripts. A wolf:

probably the wolf and the eagle were carved figures above the door.
[90]

11. Thrymheim (“the Home of Clamor”): on this mountain the giant

Thjazi built his home. The god, or rather Wane, Njorth (cf. Voluspo,
21, note) married Thjazi’s daughter, Skathi. She wished to live in her
father’s hall among the mountains, while Njorth loved his home,
Noatun, by the sea. They agreed to compromise by spending nine
nights at Thrymheim and then three at Noatun, but neither could
endure the surroundings of the other’s home, so Skathi returned to
Thrymheim, while Njorth stayed at Noatun. Snorri quotes stanzas
11–15.

12. Breithablik (“Wide-Shining”): the house in heaven, free from

everything unclean, in which Baldr (cf. Voluspo, 32, note), the fairest
and best of the gods, lived.

13. Himinbjorg (“Heaven’s Cliffs”): the dwelling at the end of the

bridge Bifrost (the rainbow), where Heimdall (cf. Voluspo, 27) keeps
watch against the coming of the giants. In this stanza the two
functions of Heimdall—as father of mankind (cf. Voluspo, 1 and note,
and Rigsthula, introductory prose and note) and as warder of the
gods—seem both to be mentioned, but the second line in the
manuscripts is apparently in bad shape, and in the editions is more
or less conjectural.

14. Folkvang (“Field of the Folk”): here is situated Freyja’s [91]hall,

Sessrymnir (“Rich in Seats”). Freyja, the sister of Freyr, is the fairest
of the goddesses, and the most kindly disposed to mankind,
especially to lovers. Half of the dead: Mogk has made it clear that
Freyja represents a confusion between two originally distinct
divinities: the wife of Othin (Frigg) and the northern goddess of love.
This passage appears to have in mind her attributes as Othin’s wife.
Snorri has this same confusion, but there is no reason why the
Freyja who was Freyr’s sister should share the slain with Othin.

15. Glitnir (“the Shining”): the home of Forseti, a god of whom we

know nothing beyond what Snorri tells us: “Forseti is the son of Baldr
and Nanna, daughter of Nep. All those who come to him with hard
cases to settle go away satisfied; he is the best judge among gods
and men.”

16. Noatun (“Ships’-Haven”): the home of Njorth, who calms the

waves; cf. stanza 11 and Voluspo, 21.

17. Vithi: this land is not mentioned elsewhere. Vithar avenged his
father, Othin, by slaying the wolf Fenrir. [92]

18. Stanzas 18–20 appear also in Snorri’s Edda. Very possibly they
are an interpolation here. Eldhrimnir (“Sooty with Fire”): the great
kettle in Valhall, wherein the gods’ cook, Andhrimnir (“The Sooty-
Faced”) daily cooks the flesh of the boar Sæhrimnir (“The
Blackened”). His flesh suffices for all the heroes there gathered, and
each evening he becomes whole again, to be cooked the next
morning.

19. Freki (“The Greedy”) and Geri (“The Ravenous”): the two wolves
who sit by Othin’s side at the feast, and to whom he gives all the
food set before him, since wine is food and drink alike for him.
Heerfather: Othin.

20. Mithgarth (“The Middle Home”): the earth. Hugin (“Thought”) and
Munin (“Memory”): the two ravens who sit on Othin’s shoulders, and
fly forth daily to bring him news of the world. [93]
21. Thund (“The Swollen” or “The Roaring”): the river surrounding
Valhall. Thjothvitnir’s fish: presumably the sun, which was caught by
the wolf Skoll (cf. Voluspo, 40), Thjothvitnir meaning “the mighty
wolf.” Such a phrase, characteristic of all Skaldic poetry, is rather
rare in the Edda. The last two lines refer to the attack on Valhall by
the people of Hel; cf. Voluspo, 51.

22. Valgrind (“The Death-Gate”): the outer gate of Valhall; cf.

Sigurtharkvitha en skamma, 68 and note.

23. This and the following stanza stand in reversed order in Regius.
Snorri quotes stanza 23 as a proof of the vast size of Valhall. The
last two lines refer to the final battle with Fenrir and the other
enemies.

24. This stanza is almost certainly an interpolation, brought in

through a confusion of the first two lines with those of stanza 23. Its
description of Thor’s house, Bilskirnir (cf. stanza 4 and [94]note) has
nothing to do with that of Valhall. Snorri quotes the stanza in his
account of Thor.

25. The first line in the original is, as indicated in the translation, too
long, and various attempts to amend it have been made. Heithrun:
the she-goat who lives on the twigs of the tree Lærath (presumably
the ash Yggdrasil), and daily gives mead which, like the boar’s flesh,
suffices for all the heroes in Valhall. In Snorri’s Edda Gangleri
foolishly asks whether the heroes drink water, whereto Har replies,
“Do you imagine that Othin invites kings and earls and other noble
men, and then gives them water to drink?”

26. Eikthyrnir (“The Oak-Thorned,” i.e., with antlers, “thorns,” like an

oak): this animal presumably represents the clouds. The first line,
like that of stanza 25, is too long in the original. Lærath: cf. stanza
25, note. Hvergelmir: according to Snorri, this spring, “the Cauldron-
Roaring,” was in the midst of Niflheim, the world of darkness and the
dead, beneath the third root of the ash Yggdrasil. Snorri gives a list
of the rivers flowing thence nearly identical with the one in the poem.
[95]

27. The entire passage from stanza 27 through stanza 35 is

confused. The whole thing may well be an interpolation. Bugge calls
stanzas 27–30 an interpolation, and editors who have accepted the
passage as a whole have rejected various lines. The spelling of the
names of the rivers varies greatly in the manuscripts and editions. It
is needless here to point out the many attempted emendations of
this list. For a passage presenting similar problems, cf. Voluspo, 10–
16. Snorri virtually quotes stanzas 27–28 in his prose, though not
consecutively. The name Rin, in line 3, is identical with that for the
River Rhine which appears frequently in the hero poems, but the
similarity is doubtless purely accidental.

28. Slith may possibly be the same river as that mentioned in

Voluspo, 36, as flowing through the giants’ land. Leipt: in Helgakvitha
Hundingsbana II, 29, this river is mentioned as one by which a
solemn oath is sworn, and Gering points the parallel to the
significance of the Styx among the Greeks. The other rivers here
named are not mentioned elsewhere in the poems. [96]

29. This stanza looks as though it originally had had nothing to do

with the two preceding it. Snorri quotes it in his description of the
three roots of Yggdrasil, and the three springs beneath them. “The
third root of the ash stands in heaven and beneath this root is a
spring which is very holy, and is called Urth’s well.” (Cf. Voluspo, 19)
“There the gods have their judgment-seat, and thither they ride each
day over Bifrost, which is also called the Gods’ Bridge.” Thor has to
go on foot in the last days of the destruction, when the bridge is
burning. Another interpretation, however, is that when Thor leaves
the heavens (i.e., when a thunder-storm is over) the rainbow-bridge
becomes hot in the sun. Nothing more is known of the rivers named
in this stanza. Lines 3–4 are almost certainly interpolated from
stanza 30.
30. This stanza, again possibly an interpolation, is closely
paraphrased by Snorri following the passage quoted in the previous
note. Glath (“Joyous”): identified in the Skaldskaparmal with Skinfaxi,
the horse of day; cf. Vafthruthnismol, 12. Gyllir: “Golden.” Gler:
“Shining.” Skeithbrimir: “Swift-Going.” Silfrintopp: “Silver-Topped.”
Sinir: “Sinewy.” Gisl: the meaning is doubtful; Gering suggests
“Gleaming.” Falhofnir: [97]“Hollow-Hoofed.” Golltopp (“Gold-Topped”):
this horse belonged to Heimdall (cf. Voluspo, 1 and 46). It is
noteworthy that gold was one of the attributes of Heimdall’s
belongings, and, because his teeth were of gold, he was also called
Gullintanni (“Gold-Toothed”). Lettfeti: “Light-Feet.” Othin’s eight-
footed horse, Sleipnir, is not mentioned in this list.

31. The first of these roots is the one referred to in stanza 26; the
second in stanza 29 (cf. notes). Of the third root there is nothing
noteworthy recorded. After this stanza it is more than possible that
one has been lost, paraphrased in the prose of Snorri’s Edda thus:
“An eagle sits in the branches of the ash-tree, and he is very wise;
and between his eyes sits the hawk who is called Vethrfolnir.”

32. Ratatosk (“The Swift-Tusked”): concerning this squirrel, the

Prose Edda has to add only that he runs up and down the tree
conveying the abusive language of the eagle (see note on stanza
31) and the dragon Nithhogg (cf. Voluspo, 39 and note) to each
other. The hypothesis that Ratatosk “represents the undying hatred
between the sustaining and the destroying elements—the gods and
the giants,” seems a trifle far-fetched.

33. Stanzas 33–34 may well be interpolated, and are certainly in bad
shape in the Mss. Bugge points out that they are probably of later
origin than those surrounding them. Snorri [98]closely paraphrases
stanza 33, but without elaboration, and nothing further is known of
the four harts. It may be guessed, however, that they are a late
multiplication of the single hart mentioned in stanza 26, just as the
list of dragons in stanza 34 seems to have been expanded out of
Nithhogg, the only authentic dragon under the root of the ash.
Highest twigs: a guess; the Mss. words are baffling. Something has
apparently been lost from lines 3–4, but there is no clue as to its
nature.

34. Cf. note on previous stanza. Nothing further is known of any of

the serpents here listed, and the meanings of many of the names are
conjectural. Snorri quotes this stanza. Editors have altered it in
various ways in an attempt to regularize the meter. Goin and Moin:
meaning obscure. Grafvitnir: “The Gnawing Wolf.” Grabak: “Gray-
Back.” Grafvolluth: “The Field-Gnawer.” Ofnir and Svafnir (“The
Bewilderer” and “The Sleep-Bringer”): it is noteworthy that in stanza
54 Othin gives himself these two names.

35. Snorri quotes this stanza, which concludes the passage,

beginning with stanza 25, describing Yggdrasil. If we assume that
stanzas 27–34 are later interpolations—possibly excepting 32—this
section of the poem reads clearly enough. [99]

36. Snorri quotes this list of the Valkyries, concerning whom cf.
Voluspo, 31 and note, where a different list of names is given. Hrist:
“Shaker.” Mist: “Mist.” Skeggjold: “Ax-Time.” Skogul: “Raging” (?).
Hild: “Warrior.” Thruth: “Might.” Hlokk: “Shrieking.” Herfjotur: “Host-
Fetter.” Gol: “Screaming.” Geironul: “Spear-Bearer.” Randgrith:
“Shield-Bearer.” Rathgrith: Gering guesses “Plan-Destroyer.”
Reginleif: “Gods’-Kin.” Manuscripts and editions vary greatly in the
spelling of these names, and hence in their significance.

37. Müllenhoff suspects stanzas 37–41 to have been interpolated,

and Edzardi thinks they may have come from the Vafthruthnismol.
Snorri closely paraphrases stanzas 37–39, and quotes 40–41. Arvak
(“Early Waker”) and Alsvith (“All-Swift”): the horses of the sun,
named also in Sigrdrifumol, 15. According to Snorri: “There was a
man called Mundilfari, who had two children; they were so fair and
lovely that he called his son Mani and his daughter Sol. The gods
were angry at this presumption, and took the children and set them
up in heaven; and they bade Sol drive the horses that drew the car
of the sun [100]which the gods had made to light the world from the
sparks which flew out of Muspellsheim. The horses were called
Alsvith and Arvak, and under their yokes the gods set two bellows to
cool them, and in some songs these are called ‘the cold iron.’ ”

38. Svalin (“The Cooling”): the only other reference to this shield is in
Sigrdrifumol, 15.

39. Skoll and Hati: the wolves that devour respectively the sun and
moon. The latter is the son of Hrothvitnir (“The Mighty Wolf,” i.e.
Fenrir); cf. Voluspo, 40, and Vafthruthnismol, 46–47, in which Fenrir
appears as the thief. Ironwood: a conjectural emendation of an
obscure phrase; cf. Voluspo, 40.

40. This and the following stanza are quoted by Snorri. They seem to
have come from a different source from the others of this poem;
Edzardi suggests an older version of the Vafthruthnismol. This
stanza is closely parallel to Vafthruthnismol, 21, which see, as also
Voluspo, 3. Snorri, following this account, has a few details to add.
The stones were made out of Ymir’s teeth and such of his bones as
were broken. Mithgarth was a mountain-wall made out of Ymir’s
eyebrows, and set around the earth because of the enmity of the
giants. [101]

42. With this stanza Othin gets back to his immediate situation,
bound as he is between two fires. He calls down a blessing on the
man who will reach into the fire and pull aside the great kettle which,
in Icelandic houses, hung directly under the smoke-vent in the roof,
and thus kept any one above from looking down into the interior. On
Ull, the archer-god, cf. stanza 5 and note. He is specified here
apparently for no better reason than that his name fits the initial-
rhyme.

43. This and the following stanza are certainly interpolated, for they
have nothing to do with the context, and stanza 45 continues the
dramatic conclusion of the poem begun in stanza 42. This stanza is
quoted by Snorri. Ivaldi (“The Mighty”): he is known only as the
father of the craftsmen-dwarfs who made not only the ship
Skithblathnir, but also Othin’s spear Gungnir, and the golden hair for
Thor’s wife, Sif, after Loki had maliciously cut her own hair off.
Skithblathnir: this ship (“Wooden-Bladed”) always had a fair wind,
whenever the sail was set; it could be folded up at will and put in the
pocket. Freyr: concerning him and his father, see Voluspo, 21, note,
and Skirnismol, introductory prose and note. [102]

44. Snorri quotes this stanza. Like stanza 43 an almost certain

interpolation, it was probably drawn in by the reference to
Skithblathnir in the stanza interpolated earlier. It is presumably in
faulty condition. One Ms. has after the fifth line half of a sixth,
—“Brimir of swords.” Yggdrasil: cf. stanzas 25–35. Skithblathnir: cf.
stanza 43, note. Sleipnir: Othin’s eight-legged horse, one of Loki’s
numerous progeny, borne by him to the stallion Svathilfari. This
stallion belonged to the giant who built a fortress for the gods, and
came so near to finishing it, with Svathilfari’s aid, as to make the
gods fear he would win his promised reward—Freyja and the sun
and moon. To delay the work, Loki turned himself into a mare,
whereupon the stallion ran away, and the giant failed to complete his
task within the stipulated time. Bilrost: probably another form of
Bifrost (which Snorri has in his version of the stanza), on which cf.
stanza 29. Bragi: the god of poetry. He is one of the later figures
among the gods, and is mentioned only three times in the poems of
the Edda. In Snorri’s Edda, however, he is of great importance. His
wife is Ithun, goddess of youth. Perhaps the Norwegian skald Bragi
Boddason, the oldest recorded skaldic poet, had been traditionally
apotheosized as early as the tenth century. Hobrok: nothing further is
known of him. Garm: cf. Voluspo, 44.

45. With this stanza the narrative current of the poem is resumed.
Ægir: the sea-god; cf. Lokasenna, introductory prose. [103]

46. Concerning the condition of stanzas 46–50, quoted by Snorri,

nothing definite can be said. Lines and entire stanzas of this
“catalogue” sort undoubtedly came and went with great freedom all
through the period of oral transmission. Many of the names are not
mentioned elsewhere, and often their significance is sheer
guesswork. As in nearly every episode Othin appeared in disguise,
the number of his names was necessarily almost limitless. Grim:
“The Hooded.” Gangleri: “The Wanderer.” Herjan: “The Ruler.”
Hjalmberi: “The Helmet-Bearer.” Thekk: “The Much-Loved.” Thrithi:
“The Third” (in Snorri’s Edda the stories are all told in the form of
answers to questions, the speakers being Har, Jafnhar and Thrithi.
Just what this tripartite form of Othin signifies has been the source of
endless debate. Probably this line is late enough to betray the
somewhat muddled influence of early Christianity.) Thuth and Uth:
both names defy guesswork. Helblindi: “Hel-Blinder” (two
manuscripts have Herblindi—“Host-Blinder”). Hor: “The High One.”

47. Sath: “The Truthful.” Svipal: “The Changing.” Sanngetal: “The

Truth-Teller.” Herteit: “Glad of the Host.” Hnikar: “The Overthrower.”
Bileyg: “The Shifty-Eyed.” Baleyg: “The Flaming-Eyed.” Bolverk:
“Doer of Ill” (cf. Hovamol, 104 and note). Fjolnir: “The Many-
Shaped.” Grimnir: “The Hooded.” Glapsvith: “Swift in Deceit.”
Fjolsvith: “Wide of Wisdom.”

48. Sithhott: “With Broad Hat.” Sithskegg: “Long-Bearded.”

[104]Sigfather: “Father of Victory.” Hnikuth: “Overthrower.” Valfather:
“Father of the Slain.” Atrith: “The Rider.” Farmatyr: “Helper of
Cargoes” (i.e., god of sailors).

49. Nothing is known of Asmund, of Othin’s appearance as Jalk, or

of the occasion when he “went in a sledge” as Kjalar (“Ruler of
Keels”?). Thror and Vithur are also of uncertain meaning. Oski: “God
of Wishes.” Biflindi: the manuscripts vary widely in the form of this
name. Jafnhor: “Equally High” (cf. note on stanza 46). Omi: “The
Shouter.” Gondlir: “Wand-Bearer.” Harbarth: “Graybeard” (cf.
Harbarthsljoth, introduction).
50. Nothing further is known of the episode here mentioned.
Sokkmimir is presumably Mithvitnir’s son. Snorri quotes the names
Svithur and Svithrir, but omits all the remainder of the stanza. [105]

51. Again the poem returns to the direct action, Othin addressing the
terrified Geirröth. The manuscripts show no lacuna. Some editors
supply a second line from paper manuscripts: “Greatly by me art
beguiled.”

53. Ygg: Othin (“The Terrible”). The maids: the three Norns.

54. Possibly out of place, and probably more or less corrupt. Thund:
“The Thunderer.” Vak: “The Wakeful.” Skilfing: “The Shaker.” Vofuth:
“The Wanderer.” Hroptatyr: “Crier of the Gods.” Gaut: “Father.” Ofnir
and Svafnir: cf. stanza 34. [107]

[Contents]
SKIRNISMOL
 The Ballad of Skirnir
[Contents]

Introductory Note
The Skirnismol is found complete in the Codex Regius, and through
stanza 27 in the Arnamagnæan Codex. Snorri quotes the concluding
stanza. In Regius the poem is entitled “For Scirnis” (“Skirnir’s
Journey”).

The Skirnismol differs sharply from the poems preceding it, in that it
has a distinctly ballad quality. As a matter of fact, however, its verse
is altogether dialogue, the narrative being supplied in the prose
“links,” concerning which cf. introductory note to the Grimnismol. The
dramatic effectiveness and vivid characterization of the poem seem
to connect it with the Thrymskvitha, and the two may possibly have
been put into their present form by the same man. Bugge’s guess
that the Skirnismol was the work of the author of the Lokasenna is
also possible, though it has less to support it.

Critics have generally agreed in dating the poem as we now have it

as early as the first half of the tenth century; Finnur Jonsson puts it
as early as 900, and claims it, as usual, for Norway. Doubtless it was
current in Norway, in one form or another, before the first Icelandic
settlements, but his argument that the thistle (stanza 31) is not an
Icelandic plant has little weight, for such curse-formulas must have
traveled freely from place to place. In view of the evidence pointing
to a western origin for many or all of the Eddic poems, Jonsson’s
reiterated “Digtet er sikkert norsk og ikke islandsk” is somewhat
exasperating. Wherever the Skirnismol was composed, it has been
preserved in exceptionally good condition, and seems to be
practically devoid of interpolations or lacunæ.

[Contents]

Freyr, the son of Njorth, had sat one day in

Hlithskjolf, and looked over all the worlds. He looked
into Jotunheim, and saw there a fair maiden, as she
went from her father’s house to her bower. Forthwith
he felt a mighty [108]love-sickness. Skirnir was the
name of Freyr’s servant; Njorth bade him ask speech
of Freyr. He said:

1. “Go now, Skirnir! | and seek to gain

Speech from my son;
And answer to win, | for whom the wise one
Is mightily moved.”

Skirnir spake:

2. “Ill words do I now | await from thy son,

If I seek to get speech with him,
And answer to win, | for whom the wise one
Is mightily moved.”

[109]
Skirnir spake:

3. “Speak prithee, Freyr, | foremost of the gods,

For now I fain would know;
Why sittest thou here | in the wide halls,
Days long, my prince, alone?”

Freyr spake:

4. “How shall I tell thee, | thou hero young,

Of all my grief so great?
Though every day | the elfbeam dawns,
It lights my longing never.”

Skirnir spake:

5. “Thy longings, methinks, | are not so large

That thou mayst not tell them to me;
Since in days of yore | we were young together,
We two might each other trust.”

Freyr spake:

6. “From Gymir’s house | I beheld go forth

A maiden dear to me;
Her arms glittered, | and from their gleam
Shone all the sea and sky.

[110]
7. “To me more dear | than in days of old
Was ever maiden to man;
But no one of gods | or elves will grant
That we both together should be.”

Skirnir spake:

8. “Then give me the horse | that goes through the

dark
And magic flickering flames;
And the sword as well | that fights of itself
Against the giants grim.”

Freyr spake:

9. “The horse will I give thee | that goes through

the dark
And magic flickering flames,
And the sword as well | that will fight of itself
If a worthy hero wields it.”

[111]

Skirnir spake to the horse:

10. “Dark is it without, | and I deem it time

To fare through the wild fells,
(To fare through the giants’ fastness;)
We shall both come back, | or us both together
 The terrible giant will take.”

Skirnir rode into Jotunheim to Gymir’s house. There

were fierce dogs bound before the gate of the fence
which was around Gerth’s hall. He rode to where a
herdsman sat on a hill, and said:

11. “Tell me, herdsman, | sitting on the hill,

And watching all the ways,
How may I win | a word with the maid
Past the hounds of Gymir here?”

The herdsman spake:

12. “Art thou doomed to die | or already dead,

Thou horseman that ridest hither?
Barred from speech | shalt thou ever be
With Gymir’s daughter good.”

Skirnir spake:

13. “Boldness is better | than plaints can be

For him whose feet must fare; [112]
To a destined day | has mine age been doomed,
And my life’s span thereto laid.”

Gerth spake:

14. “What noise is that | which now so loud