The complete text
Dráp Niflunga
The Fall of the Niflungs
About these two editions
These are complete reading editions of the poem and its accompanying prose, rather than a facsimile of Codex Regius. Bellows sometimes orders, divides, or supplements stanzas differently, so the two editions do not always share stanza numbers. Editorial introductions and footnotes are omitted; follow the source links for that commentary.
Original wording is retained. Obvious transcription errors in stanza numbering have been corrected. Spelling and names differ from the modern retelling.
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Old Norse
Normalized Old Norse · Guðni Jónsson edition · Source ↗
ok tóku þá gullit allt, arf. Ófriðr var þá í milli Gjúkunga ok . Kenndi hann Gjúkungum völd um andlát . Þat var til sætta, at þeir skyldu gifta hánum , ok gáfu henni óminnisveig at drekka, áðr hon játti at giftast . Synir váru þeir ok , en var dóttir ok . konungr bauð heim ok ok sendi eða Knéfröð.
vissi vélar ok sendi með rúnum orð, at þeir skyldu eigi koma, ok til jartegna sendi hon hringinn ok knýtti í vargshár. hafði beðit , systur , ok gat eigi. Þá fekk hann Glaumvarar, en átti . Þeira synir váru þeir ok ok . En er kómu til , þá bað sonu sína, at þeir bæði Gjúkungum lífs, en þeir vildu eigi. Hjarta var skorit ór , en settr í ormgarð.
Hann sló hörpu ok svæfði ormana, en naðra stakk hann til lifrar.
English translation
Henry Adams Bellows · First published 1923 · Source & commentary ↗
and then took all the gold that had had. There was strife between the and , for he held the guilty of 's death. It was agreed that they should give him as wife, and they gave her a draught of forgetfulness to drink before she would consent to be wedded to . The sons of were and , and was the daughter of and . King invited and to come to him, and sent as messenger or .
was aware of treachery, and sent with him a message in that they should not come, and as a token she sent to the ring and tied a wolf's hair in it. had sought , 's sister, for his wife, but had her not; then he married , and 's wife was ; their sons were and and . And when the came to , then be sought her sons to plead for the lives of both the , but they would not do it. 's heart was cut out, and was cast into the serpent's den. He smote on the harp and put the serpents to sleep, but an adder stung him in the liver.