Edward Pettit
The Poetic Edda: A Dual Language Edition
Open Book Publishers
Published 2023
894 pages
Digital edition freely available online (Creative Commons license)
Translated poems (37):
Codex Regius (31):
Vǫluspá (Codex Regius version), Hávamál, Vafþrúðnismál, Grímnismál, Skírnismál, Hárbarðsljóð, Hymiskviða, Lokasenna, Þrymskviða, Vǫlundarkviða, Alvíssmál, Frá dauða Sinfjǫtla, Grípisspá, Reginsmál, Fáfnismál, Sigrdrífumál, Brot af Sigurðarkviðu, Sigurðarkviða hin skamma, Helreið Brynhildar, Dráp Niflunga, Oddrúnargrátr, Atlakviða, Guðrúnarhvǫt, Hamðismál, Helgakviða Hundingsbana (I, II), Helgakviða Hjǫrvarðssonar, Guðrúnarkviða (I, II, III), Atlamál
Non-Codex Regius (6, Svipdagsmál counted as one):
Vǫluspá (Hauksbók version), Baldrs draumar, Rígsþula, Hyndluljóð, Grottasǫngr, Svipdagsmál (Gróugaldr and Fjǫlsvinnsmál)
Other notable contents: None
Note format: Extensive footnotes
Dual Edition? Yes
Rendering: Jǫtunn = “giant” (p. 103), þurs = “giant” (p. 181) (see discussion on p. 13 & 25)
Censorship: None (cf. p. 299)
Original illustrations? This edition features two illustrations by artist Marleena Barran (“Two Ravens”, p. 27 & 861). While not original to this edition, the translation’s front cover features Arthur Rackham’s illustration “The Two Corbies” (1919), and its back cover consists of an image of the god Heimdallr from manuscript AM 738 4to, fol. 35v.
I. Translation Samples
a. Vǫluspá (Codex Regius version, p. 43)
‘I know a standing ash, it’s called Yggdrasill,
a tall tree doused with white mud;
from there come dews, those that fall in dales;
it always stands, green, above Urðr’s spring.
b. Helgakviða Hundingsbana II (p. 449):
Sigrún went into the mound to Helgi and said:
‘Now I’m as elated at our meeting
as Óðinn’s ravenous hawks,
when they perceive the slain, warm pieces of meat,
or, dew-glistening, they see daybreak!
c. Rígsþula (p. 797):
He disputed about runes with Ríg-Jarl,
teased him with tricks and knew better;
then he obtained [victory] for himself and got the right
to be called Rígr, to comprehend runes.
II. Reviews
None at this time. See discussion below.
III. Observations
Readers may recognize Edward Pettit from his 2001 review of the first edition of Carolyne Larrington’s translation of the Poetic Edda. Pettit has previously published on Old English and Old Norse topics, but to date maintains little online presence, not even appearing on sites where one can typically find information and works from scholars, such as Academia.edu.
It is for this reason that Pettit’s edition of the Poetic Edda is something of a surprise: As the publisher’s press release notes, Pettit’s edition is “the first open-access, single-volume parallel Old Norse edition and English translation of the Poetic Edda”. This is indeed a historic first among eddic editions produced by scholars.
Notable too is Pettit’s decision to produce a dual edition. Only the translation of Olive Bray (1908) and Ursula Dronke (1969, 1997, & 2011) before him feature Old Norse alongside an English translation. Like Larrington’s revised edition (2014), Pettit provides separate translations for the Codex Regius and Hauksbók versions of Vǫluspá.
Pettit’s edition makes for a welcome break from a woeful trend of the two most recent translations of the Poetic Edda—those of Jeramy Dodds (2014) and Jackson Crawford (2015)—that inexplicably feature no supplementary notes whatsoever, making them particularly unfriendly to new readers. Pettit’s edition is exactly the opposite, embracing a maximalist approach in both supplementary notes and item inclusion.
The translator’s decision to release this tome (at nearly 900 pages, it is perhaps the lengthiest edition to date) to the general public means that it is highly likely to be used in a wide variety of contexts, including in class rooms, among enthusiasts, and members of new religious movements such as heathenry. While no reviews have been published to date, it is for this reason alone that Pettit’s edition is likely to become especially influential.
Finally, it’s worth mentioning that this is the first edition of the Poetic Edda produced after the creation of the present project, and Eddic to English receives a few mentions within the text (p. 25 & 62).