Editing Mansöngr (section)

==In high-medieval Iceland==
Skaldic love-poetry and erotic poems in Old Norse-Icelandic are often characterised in modern scholarship as ''mansöngvar''. However, [[Edith Marold]] and [[Bjarni Einarsson]] have argued that the term ''mansöngr'' has been over-used in medieval scholarship, being applied to love-poems which we have no evidence were actually viewed as ''mansöngvar''.<ref>Edith Marold, ' ''Mansǫngr'' — a Phantom Genre?', trans. by Kate Heslop, in ''Learning and Understanding in the Old Norse World: Essays in Honour of Margaret Clunies Ross'', ed. by Judy Quinn, Tarrin Wills, and Kate Heslop, Medieval Texts and Cultures of Northern Europe, 18 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2007), pp. 239-62; Bjarni Einarsson,  ‘"Mansöngr" revisited’, ''Opuscula'', 11 (2003) [=Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana, 42].</ref> Many medieval references to ''mansöngvar'' are not accompanied by the poem in question, and the boundaries of the genre are thus disputed. The [[Icelandic Homily Book]] (from c. 1200) mentions ''mansöngr'' in connection with the music of [[David]] and [[Solomon]].

=== In Icelandic sagas ===
In ''[[Egils saga]]'', the poet [[Egill Skallagrímsson]] recites a poem about a woman to his friend Arinbjörn. Arinbjörn asks Egill for whom he has composed this ''mansöngr'' and Egill recites another poem before revealing that the subject of both is Arinbjörn's kinswoman Ásgerðr, the widow of Egill's brother Þórólfr (Thorolf).<ref>The dialogue between Egill and Arinbjörn is first preserved in the 'theta fragment' of ''Egils saga'' (AM 162 A θ fol.) from c. 1250.</ref> Egill requests Arinbjörn's help in arranging his marriage with Ásgerðr, and the ''mansöngvar'' are thus a prelude to an open declaration of love and a marriage petition.

[[Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld]]'s poems to Kolfinna Ávaldadóttir are also described as ''mansöngvar'' in ''[[Hallfreðar saga]]'', but the saga depicts Hallfreðr as resisting attempts to organise Kolfinna's marriage to both himself and other men. The saga portrays Hallfreðr's erotic poetry about Kolfinna and his libellous verses on Kolfinna's husband, Grís, as destructive in nature—objectifying Kolfinna while inciting her family to violence. Only through his relationship with his King [[Ólafr Tryggvason]] (his eventual godfather) and his spiritual poems does Hallfreðr find redemption and maturity and eventually express regret for the sorrow he has caused Kolfinna.<ref>Ingibjörg Gísladóttir, ''„Krist vil ek allrar ástar....“ Um eðli Hallfreðar sögu vandræðaskálds'', University of Iceland, BA Thesis in Icelandic Literature, 2008.</ref>

One of the oldest saga manuscripts to preserve a reference to the genre is DG<ref>The De La Gardie Collection in [[Uppsala University Library]]</ref> 8 from c. 1225–1250 in the hagiographical saga ''[[Óláfs saga helga]]''. According to the saga, the Icelandic skald [[Óttarr svarti]] composed a ''mansǫngsdrápa'' about [[Astrid Olofsdotter of Sweden|Queen Ástríðr]] of [[Norway]] when they were both in the court of [[Olof Skötkonung|her father, the King of Sweden]]. This [[drápa]] provoked the wrath of her husband, [[Olaf II of Norway|King Ólafr Helgason]], but when Óttarr travelled to Norway he prudently enlisted the help of his uncle and skald [[Sigvatr Þórðarson]] to gain an audience with the Norwegian king and redeem himself with the poem ''[[Hǫfuðlausn (Óttarr svarti)|Hǫfuðlausn]]'', which praises the merits of King Ólafr rather than the beauty of his wife.

=== In Icelandic law ===
The composing of ''mansöngvar'' for or about women is explicitly prohibited by the medieval Icelandic law-code ''[[Grey Goose Laws|Grágás]]'', 'in the younger additions to ''Konungsbók'' (GKS 1157 fol) and ''Staðarhólsbók'' (AM 334 fol), where it is inserted into a passage bearing the title 'vm scaldscap' ('on poetry'), an exhaustive treatment of the different kinds of poetry and the various punishments for them'.<ref>Edith Marold, ' ''Mansǫngr'' — a Phantom Genre?', trans. by Kate Heslop, in ''Learning and Understanding in the Old Norse World: Essays in Honour of Margaret Clunies Ross'', ed. by Judy Quinn, Tarrin Wills, and Kate Heslop, Medieval Texts and Cultures of Northern Europe, 18 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2007), pp. 239-62 (pp. 249-50).</ref> But there is no clear explanation of what a ''mansöngr'' is. In the Konungsbók version, §238, the text reads<ref>Text and translation quoted from Edith Marold, ' ''Mansǫngr'' — a Phantom Genre?', trans. by Kate Heslop, in ''Learning and Understanding in the Old Norse World: Essays in Honour of Margaret Clunies Ross'', ed. by Judy Quinn, Tarrin Wills, and Kate Heslop, Medieval Texts and Cultures of Northern Europe, 18 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2007), pp. 239-62 (p. 249); she quotes the text from ''Grágás: Islændernes lovbog i fristatens tid, udg. efter det kongelige Bibliotheks Haanskrift'', ed. and trans. by Vilhjálmur Finsen, 2 vols (Copenhagen: Berling, 1852), Ib, 184. For the Staðarhólsbók version see ''Grágás efter det Arnamagnæanske Haandskrift Nr. 334 fol.'', ed. and trans. by Vilhjálmur Finsen (Copenhagen: Gyldendal, 1879), p. 393 [§377).</ref>

<blockquote>Ef maðr yrkir mansöng vm cono oc varðar scog gang. Kona a söc ef hon er xx. eða ellre. ef hon vill eigi søkia láta. oc a lavg raðande hennar sökena.</blockquote>

<blockquote>If a man composes ''mansǫngr'' about a woman he suffers full outlawry. The woman has to bring the case if she is twenty or older. If she will not have it prosecuted, then her legal administrator has to bring the case.</blockquote>