Eyvindr skáldaspillir

Eyvindr Finnsson Skáldaspillir was a 10th-century Norwegian skald. He was the court poet of king Hákon the Good and earl Hákon of Hlaðir. His son Hárekr later became a prominent chieftain in Norway.

His preserved works are:

• Hákonarmál - Composed in memory of king Hákon and tells of his reception in Valhalla. The poem is similar to the earlier Eiríksmál.
• Háleygjatal - Recounts the ancestors of earl Hákon back up to Odin and tells of their deaths. The poem is similar to the earlier Ynglingatal.
• Some 14 disjoint stanzas on historical events.

Eyvindr drew heavily on earlier poetry in his works. The cognomen skáldaspillir means literally "spoiler of poets" and is sometimes translated as "plagiarist", though it might also mean that he was better than any other poet.

He is mentioned in the second verse of the Norwegian national anthem.

References

• Skáldatal
• An index of Eyvindr's poetry

Pagan (or once-pagan) Skalds Skalds Auðunn illskælda Bragi Boddason (Ragnarsdrápa) Egill Skalla-Grímsson (Arinbjarnarkviða, Höfuðlausn , Sonatorrek) Eilífr Guðrúnarson (Þórsdrápa) Einarr skálaglamm Erpr lútandi Eyjólfr dáðaskáld Eysteinn Valdason Eyvindr skáldaspillir (Hákonarmál, Háleygjatal) Gamli gnævaðarskáld Glúmr Geirason Gunnlaugr ormstunga Guthormr sindri (Hákonardrápa) Hallar-Steinn Halldórr ókristni Hallfreðr vandræðaskáld Hrafn Önundarson Jórunn skáldmær Kormákr Ögmundarson Skafti Þóroddsson Skúli Þórsteinsson Steinn Herdísarson Steinunn Refsdóttir Þjóðólfr of Hvinir (Haustlöng, Ynglingatal) Tindr Hallkelsson Úlfr Sebbason Úlfr Uggason (Húsdrápa) Vetrliði Sumarliðason Vigfúss Víga-Glúmsson See also Alliterative verse Bragi Heiti Kenning (List of kennings) Málaháttr Mead of poetry Odin Old Norse poetry Skaldic poetry