The Spaewife’s Prophecy: A Verse Translation of the Norse Poem Vǫluspá, with an Introduction and Notes

• Published in: Scandinavian-Canadian Studies
• Main Author: Judith Woolf
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; French
• Published: University of Alberta Library 2017
• Subjects: History of Northern Europe. Scandinavia; DL1-1180; Language and Literature; P; Baldr; Iceland
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.29173/scancan137; https://doaj.org/article/4fb1c5055cd743b1901cccac8db2c065

ABSTRACT: The epic poem Vǫluspá, in which an ancient seeress foretells to Odin the tragic fate awaiting his son Baldr and the eventual destruction of the gods at Ragnarǫk, is an acknowledged masterpiece of medieval literature. However, outside the world of Norse studies it remains surprisingly little known. Vǫluspá was composed in pre-literate Iceland and transmitted through performance for several centuries before being committed to vellum, but none of the available English translations (including W. H. Auden’s less than faithful version) were written to be read aloud, making the poem much less likely to be included in university courses on European or world literature. My verse translation, The Spaewife’s Prophecy, attempts to convey the enigmatic power of the original text, while the notes are intended both to make the poem accessible to readers unfamiliar with Norse mythology and also to situate it in the material and cultural world of the Icelanders.