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Also known as Atlamal

thumb|right|350px|The bottom of page 43 verso of the Codex Regius contains stanzas 96 and 97 of Atlamál. Atlamál in grǿnlenzku ('The Greenlandic Lay of Atli') is one of the heroic poems of the Poetic Edda. It relates the same basic story as Atlakviða at greater length and in a different style. The poem is believed to have been composed in Greenland, most likely in the 12th century. It has 103 stanzas and is the only Eddic poem written entirely in the metre málaháttr.

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publication date
1200-00-00
number of parts of this work
103
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5 sections
Contents
  • Plot summary
  • Date and provenance
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References

thumb|right|350px|The bottom of page 43 verso of the Codex Regius contains stanzas 96 and 97 of Atlamál. Atlamál in grǿnlenzku ('The Greenlandic Lay of Atli') is one of the heroic poems of the Poetic Edda. It relates the same basic story as Atlakviða at greater length and in a different style. The poem is believed to have been composed in Greenland, most likely in the 12th century. It has 103 stanzas and is the only Eddic poem written entirely in the metre málaháttr.

==Plot summary== Plotting to kill his brothers-in-law, Atli dispatches messengers to Gunnarr and Högni, the sons of Gjúki, with an invitation to his hall. Guðrún daughter of Gjúki, Atli's wife, learns about the plot and sends a runic message to her brothers but the runes are corrupted by one of the messengers, Vingi. Nevertheless, Kostbera, Högni's wife, discerns from the runes that something is wrong and warns Högni. Högni dismisses her fears but she persists and describes dreadful dreams she has had, interpreting them as warnings. Högni remains unmoved and explains the dreams away. Glaumvör, Gunnarr's wife, has also had bad dreams which she describes to her husband, who also attempts to explain them away. Eventually Gunnarr admits that their lives may be short but tells Glaumvör that he cannot evade his doom. The brothers set out to Atli with only three companions. The women follow the brothers to a fjord where their ways must part. Glaumvör reminds Vingi of the sanctity due to a guest and he swears that there is no deception. Kostbera and Högni say farewell to each other and the men row away.

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