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Poetic Edda

41. Her hand they sought,  and home they brought her,Wedded to Jarl  the veil she wore;Together they dwelt,  their joy was great,Children they had,  and happy they lived.
42.[1] Bur was the eldest,  and Barn the next,Joth and Athal,  Arfi, Mog,Nith and Svein,  soon they began—Sun and Nithjung—  to play and swim;Kund was one,  and the youngest Kon.
43. Soon grew up  the sons of Jarl,Beasts they tamed,  and bucklers rounded,Shafts they fashioned,  and spears they shook.
44.[2] But Kon the Young  learned runes to use,Runes everlasting,  the runes of life;

    hence the highest recognized authority. During and after the time of Harald the Fair-Haired the name lost something of its distinction, the hersir coming to take rank below the jarl. Erna: "The Capable."

  1. ↑ The names mean: Bur, "Son"; Barn, "Child"; Joth, "Child"; Athal, "Offspring"; Arfi, "Heir"; Mog, "Son"; Nith, "Descendant"; Svein, "Boy"; Sun, "Son"; Nithjung, "Descendant"; Kund, "Kinsman"; Kon, "Son" (of noble birth). Concerning the use made of this last name, see note on stanza 44. It is curious that there is no list of daughters of Jarl and Erna, and accordingly Vigfusson inserts here the names listed in stanza 25. Grundtvig rearranges the lines of stanzas 42 and 43.
  2. ↑ The manuscript indicates no line as beginning a stanza. Kon the Young: a remarkable bit of fanciful etymology; the

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