The oldest Norse verse metre used in mythological Eddic poems.
Fornyrðislag is the foundational verse metre of the Poetic Edda, built from four long lines per stanza where each line is divided by a caesura. Alliteration binds the half-lines together and is governed by strict rules.
The metre is considered an inheritance from Proto-Norse and Common Germanic versification and is related to the Old English long-line format. It is used in key poems such as Völuspá and Lokasenna.
Attestations
- Völuspá 1
- Exemplifies fornyrðislag in one of the Edda's most important works.