Poetic Edda

Icelandic literature
Also known as: “Elder Edda”, “Sæmundar Edda”, Eddaic poetry

Learn about this topic in these articles:

Codex Regius

  • In Codex Regius

    …designated by scholars as the Poetic Edda, or Elder Edda (see Edda). It is the oldest such collection, the best-known of all Icelandic books, and an Icelandic national treasure.

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comparison with skaldic poetry

    contribution by Bugge

    • In Sophus Bugge

      …outstanding critical editions of the Poetic Edda, the 13th-century Icelandic collection of heroic and mythological poetry. His edition of Old Norse folk songs appeared in 1858.

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    division of Edda

    • In Edda: The Poetic Edda.

      The Poetic Edda is a later manuscript dating from the second half of the 13th century, but containing older materials (hence its alternative title, the Elder Edda). It is a collection of mythological and heroic poems of unknown authorship, composed over a long…

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    Icelandic literature

    • Hallgrímsson, Jónas
      In Icelandic literature: The classical period

      …designated by scholars as the Poetic Edda, or Elder Edda (see Edda). The poetry is sometimes called Eddaic and falls into two sections: heroic lays, which, broadly speaking, deal with the world of mortals; and mythological lays, which deal with the world of the gods.

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    record of Germanic religion

    Norse:
    Atlakvida

    Lay of Atli, heroic poem in the Norse Poetic Edda (see Edda), an older variant of the tale of slaughter and revenge that is the subject of the German epic Nibelungenlied, from which it differs in several respects. In the Norse poem, Atli (the Hunnish king Attila) is the villain, who is slain by his wife, Gudrun, to avenge her brothers.

    In the Lay of Atli, Gudrun’s brothers Gunnar and Hogni are lured to Atli’s court so that Atli can learn the secret of their treasure. Gunnar and Hogni refuse to tell. Atli has Hogni’s heart cut out while Gunnar laughs in scorn. Gunnar is thrown into a snake pit, then put to death. Gudrun, “the sweet-faced delight of the shield-folk,” takes her revenge by serving the murderers dainties that are actually the roasted hearts of Atli’s sons. Then she stabs the wine-weary Atli and burns down his hall, allowing only the dogs to escape. In the German epic the characters of Atli, Gudrun, Gunnar, and Hogni are represented, respectively, by Etzel, Kriemhild, Gunther, and Hagen.

    This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.