Anonymous, Hymiskviða [Hymir’s poem]

Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error
Hymiskviða

[Hymir’s poem] is a mythological eddic poem composed in

fornyrðislag

[old story meter]. The poem is divided into 39 stanzas. The oldest version of

Hymiskviða

survives in a vellum manuscript from c. 1260-1280, Konungsbók eddukvæða (Codex Regius of Eddic Poetry; GKS 2365 4to). A second version of the poem is found in AM 748 I a 4to, a vellum manuscript from c. 1300. In Konungsbók eddukvæða the poem is titled

Þórr dró Miðgarðsorm

[Thor catches Midgard serpent], whereas in AM 748 I a 4to the poem is titled

Hymiskviða

.

Hymiskviða relates the story of one of Þórr’s adventures to the land of the giants. The form is primarily narration with some direct speech interspersed. The narrative structure is that of a double-frame, the exterior frame set in Ásgarðr [Home

2131 words

Citation: McGillivray, Andrew. "Hymiskviða". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 July 2023 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=41002, accessed 06 October 2024.]

41002 Hymiskviða 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.