TEUTONIC MYTHOLOGY. - Centrostudirpinia.it

372 HEROES.
whom Apollo overcame, and as Python guarded the Delphic oracle,
the dying Fafnir prophesies. 1 We must take into account Lofffdfnir
Seem. 24, 30. Sinfiotli, who, when a boy, kneads snakes into the
dough, is comparable to the infant Hercules tested by serpents.
Through Siegfried the Frankish Welisungs get linked to the
Burgundian Gibichungs, and then both are called Nibelungs.
Among Gothic heroes we are attracted by the Ovida and
Cnivida in Jornandes cap. 22, perhaps the same as Offa and
Cnebba in the Mercian line. But of far more consequence is the
great Gothic family of Amals or Amalungs, many of whose names
in the Jornandean genealogy seem corrupt. The head of them all
was Gapt, which I emend to Gaut (Gauts), and so obtain an allusion
to the divine office of casting [giessen, ein-guss, in-got] and meting
(pp. 22. 142) ; he was a god, or son of a god (p. 164), and is even
imported into the Saxon lines as Gedt, Wodelgeat, Sigegeat (p. 367).
In this Gothic genealogy the weak forms Amala, Isarna, Ostro-
gotha, Ansila, confirm what we have observed in Tuisco, Inguio,
Iscio, Irmino ; but those best worth noting are Amala, after
whom the most powerful branch of the nation is named, Ermana-
ricus and Thcodericus. Ermanaricus must be linked with Irmino
and the Herminones, as there is altogether a closer tie between
Goths and Saxons (Iiigaevones and Herminones) as opposed to the
Franks (Iscaevones), and this shows itself even in the later epics.
Amongst the Amalungs occur many names compounded with
vidf, which reminds us of their side-branch, the Wulfings ; if it be
not too bold, I would even connect Isarna (Goth. Eisarna) with
Isangrim. To me the four sons of Achiulf seem worthy of
particular notice : Ansila, Ediulf, Vuldulf, and Hermenrich. Of
the last we have just spoken, and Ansila means the divine ; our
present concern is with Ediulf and Vuldulf.
I find that Jornandes,
cap. 54, ascribes to the Scyrians also two heroes Edica and Vulf;
the Eugian Odoacer has a father Eiicho and a brother Aonulf; and
1 The epithet sveinn (Sw. sven, Dan. svend) given to the Norse Sigurfrr
appears already in Fafnir s address sveinn ok sveinn / and in the headings to
ch. 142-4 of the Vilk. saga. The same hero then is meant by the tiiiard
snaresvtnd (fortis puer) of the Danish folk-song, who, liding on (Irani,
accompanies to Askereia (see ch. XXXI), and by Svend Felding or Falling of
the Danish folk-tale (Thiele 2, 64-7. Muller s sagabibl. 2, 417-9). He drank
out of a horn handed to him by elvish beings, and thereby acquired the strength
of twelve men. Swedish songs call him Sven Furling or Foiling ; Arvulsson