TEUTONIC MYTHOLOGY. - Centrostudirpinia.it

WOOD-WIVES. 431
maids flew from south through murky wood to the seashore, there
they tarried seven years, till they grew
homesick :
meyjar fystoz a myrkvan wcT,
they could resist no longer, and returned to the sombre wood.
Almost all swan-maidens are met with in the
forest. The seven
years agree with those of the Swedish story on 1
p. 42 7.
As Sigrun, Sigrdrifa, Sigrlinn are names of valkyrs, and our
epic still calls one of the wise-women Sigelint, I believe that the
OHG. siguwip, AS. sigewif, ON. sigrvif, was a general designation
of all wise-women, for which I can produce an AS. spell com
municated to me by Kemble :
sitte ge sigewif, sigac5 to eorSan !
nsefre ge wilde (1. wille) td icuda fleogan !
beo ge swa gemyndige mines godes,
swa bi5 manna-gehwylc metes and eSeles. 2
Like norns, they are invited to the house with promise of gifts.
On this point we will consider a passage in Saxo, where he is
unmistakably speaking of valkyrs, though, as his manner is, he
avoids the vernacular term. In his account of Hother and Balder,
which altogether differs so much from that of the Edda, he says,
p. 39 : Hotherus inter venandum errore nebulae perductus in
quoddam silvestrium virginum conclave incidit, a quibus proprio
nomine salutatus, quaenam essent perquirit. Illae suis ductibus
auspiciisque maxime bellorum fortunam gubernari testantur : saepe
enim se nemini conspicuas proeliis interesse, clandestinisque subsidiis
optatos amicis praebere successus: quippe conciliare prospera, adversa
infligere posse pro libitu memorabant. After bestowing their advice
on him, the maidens with their house (aedes, conclave) vanish
before Mother s eyes (see SuppL). Further on, p. 42 : At Hotherus
extrema locorum devia pervagatus, insuetumque mortalibus nemus
emensus, ignotis forte mrginibus habitat-urn : reperit specum easdem
esse constabat, quae eum insecabili veste quondam donaverant.
They now give him more counsel, and are called nymphae?
1 In the Wallachian
crowns taken from them.
marchen 201, three wood-wives bathing have their
2 Sedete bellonae, descendite ad terrain, nolite in silvam volare ! Tarn
meniores estote fortimae meae, quam est hominnm quilibet cibi atque patriae.
3 Three other nymphs appear directly after, and prepare enchanted food for
Balder with the spittle of snakes, p. 43. A i
also mentioned by Saxo p. 125.
femina
silvestris et imniaiiis is