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Ancient Literary Forms from Other Lands (- threads, 32 posts)
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    Norse poetry #3 *Ljothaháttr*
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    Author: * lilja Harfagri - 4 Posts on this thread out of 353 Posts sitewide.
    Date: Mar 8, 2005 - 00:34

    No, those two forms have no rhyme structure as such, but alliteration is encouraged. Love your poem, by the way, Aine-that's a keeper.

    In keeping with the steadily increasing trickiness, the next form is Ljothaháttr, the meter of chants. The meter is made up of pairs of lines, each with two stressed syllables and bound by alliteration, followed by a third line called "the full line" which has its own alliteration and either 2 or 3 stressed syllables. Normally two segments of three lines make up a stanza.
    From Havamal:

    Byrthi betri
    berrat mathr brautu at
    en sé mannvit mikit;
    vegnest verra
    vegra hann velli at
    en sé ofdrykkja ols.

    (Burden better
    bears none abroad with him
    than a cool discretion;
    with worser food
    will fare you never
    than a big load of beer.)

    And this is my try at it:

    Love lingers
    When limbs are limber
    Tender is a young love's timbre
    When gold is grey
    And glory gone
    Lib'ral love fades ever dimmer.


    And now the other version of Ljothaháttr,
    Galdralag "magic spell meter" uses a fourth line which echoes and varies the third line of the stanza.

    From the Eggjum grave stone, Sogn, Noway ca. 700 C.E.:

    Hverr of kom Heráss á
    hí á land gotna?
    Fiskr ór fjanda vim svimandi,
    fogl á fjanda lith galandi.

    (As whom came War-god
    hither to the land of men?
    A fish from the torrent of enemies swimming,
    A bird against troop of enemies screaming.)

    From my head, 2005:
    (to Vinland)

    They flee the eager priest
    adversity unceasing
    To verdant southern reaches
    To virgin southern beaches.
    *******************************













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