various countries and with the names and lineage of all important personages. Thus in the Hildebrandslied Hildebrand asks Hadubrand to tell him his father’s name, and adds: “If thou tellest me the one, I shall know the other.”
Page 13. Note 1. Schilbung and Nibelung, here spoken of as the sons of a mighty king, were originally dwarfs, and, according to some authorities, the original owners of the treasure. Boer, II, 199, thinks, however, that the name Nibelungs was transferred from Hagen to these dwarfs at a late stage in the formation of the saga.
Page 13. Note 1. angry of mood. The reason of this anger is apparent from the more detailed account in Biterolf, 7801. The quarrel arose from the fact that, according to ancient law, Siegfried acquired with the sword the rights of the first born, which the brothers, however, refused to accord to him.
Note 2. Balmung. In the older Norse version and in the Thidreksaga Siegfried’s sword bore the name of Gram.
Note 3. Alberich is a dwarf king who appears in a number of legends, e. g.,in the Ortnit saga and in Biterolf. Under the Romance form of his name, Oberon, he plays an important rôle in modern literature.
Note 4. Cloak of Darkness. This translates the M. H. G. tarnkappe, a word often retained by translators. It is formed from O. H. G. tarni, ‘secret’ (cf. O. E. dyrne), and kappe from late Latin cappa, ‘cloak.’ It rendered the wearer invisible and gave him the strength of twelve men.
Page 20. Note 1. Saxons. This war with the Saxons does not appear in the poetic Edda, but was probably introduced into the story later to provide the heroes with a suitable activity in the period elapsing between Siegfried’s marriage and the journey to Brunhild’s land. (In our poem it is placed before the marriage.) It reflects the ancient feuds between the Franks on the one hand and the Saxons and Danes on the other. Originally Siegfried probably did not take part in it, but was later introduced and made the leader of the expedition in place of the king, in accordance with the tendency to idealize him and to give him everywhere the most important rôle. The two opposing leaders are Liudeger, lord of the Saxons, and Liudegast, king of Denmark. In Biterolf Liudeger rules over both Saxons and Danes, and Liudegast is his brother.
