Gambara (Longobards)

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Gambara is a female literary figure from the tribal legend ( Origo gentis ) of the Germanic people of the Longobards . According to the Origo Gentis Langobardorum and the Historia gentis Langobardorum (I 3, 7, 8) of Paul Deacon , Gambara is described as the mother of the mythical Dioscuric tribal chiefs Ybor (Ibor) and Agio (Ajo). In the Gesta Danorum (VII, 28) of the Saxo Grammaticus , Gambara appears in a named variant as Gambaruc and as the mother of Aggo and Ebbo. Gambara saves the Langobarden by its use in the goddess Frea from the attack of the Odin venerating vandals and obtained by the victory of their sons.

Lore

The Longobard origin, still under the name "Winniler", was drawn by drawing lots to determine which part of the people emigrated from the Scandinavian-South Swedish ancestral land under the leadership of Ybor and Agio. Diaconus gives the topos of a predicament caused by overpopulation as the cause (Historia Lang. I 1, 2).

"Igitur ea pars, cui dederat gentile solum excedere exteraque arva sectari, ordinatis super se duobus ducibus, Ibor scilicet et Aione, qui et germani erant et iuvenili aetate floridi et ceteris praestantoris ad exquirendas quaseis posses incolere terras sedesque etu iter arripiunt.
Horum erat ducum mater nomine Gambara, mulier quantum inter suos et ingenio acris et consiliis provida; de cuius in rebus dubiis prudentia non minimum confidebant "

“So the part that had struck the lot to move away from their ancestral homeland and to look for land in the foreign country, gave itself two leaders, Ibor and Agio. They were brothers, in their prime, and better than anyone else, they were able to explore land for settlement and establish homes. Then they said goodbye to their family members and their homeland and set off.
The mother of these leaders was called Gambara, a very clever woman of pioneering advice given the circumstances of her surroundings. Their cleverness allowed them to be significantly guided in difficult situations "

- Paulus Diakonus, Historia Langobardorum I 3rd edition and translation, Wolfgang F. Schwarz, Darmstadt 2009

The Lombards / Winniler, under the permanent leadership of Ybor and Agio and the contributing Gambara, got into the conflict situation with the Vandals in the wider narrative context. When it comes to locating the events, the tradition is separated. In the Origo Lang, the situation is located in Skåne (Scadanan), but with Diaconus, in the Historia, with the place Scoringa, which has not been clarified in research .

"Quod accedentes Wandali ad Godan victoriam de Winilis postulaverint, illegal responderit, se illis victoriam daturum quos primum oriente sole conspexisset."

"The Vandals had come before Godan and begged him for victory over the Winnilians: he replied that he wanted to give victory to those whom he first saw at sunrise."

Gambara now acts immediately and seeks divine help:

"Tunc accessisse Gambaram ad Fream, uxorem Godan, et Winilis victoriam postulasse, Freamque consilium dedisse, ut Winilorum mulieres solutos crines erga faciem ad barbae similitudinem componerent maneque primo cum viris adessent seseque a Godan Ilse videndas pariter e per region, solitus aspicere, collocarent. atque ita factum fuisse. quas cum Godan oriente sole conspiceret, dixisse: 'qui sunt isti longibarbi?'. tunc Fream subiunxisse, ut quibus nomen tribuerat victoriam condonaret. sicque Winilis Godan victoriam concessisse. "

“Gambara then stepped in front of Frea, Godan's wife, and pleaded with her to win for the Winniler. Frea had advised that the Winnil women should let their hair hang down like a beard on their faces, then be in the square with their husbands early in the morning and stand together where Godan should see them when he came out of the as usual Windows looking towards tomorrow. And that's how it happened. When she saw Godan at sunrise, he asked: "Who are these long beards?" It occurred to Frea that he should give victory to those whom he himself has now named. And so Godan gave the Winnilern the victory. "

- Paulus Diakonus, Historia Langobardorum I 7. Translation after Roland Schuhmann, Geographischer Raum und Lebensform der Germanen , Jena 2009 p. 243f.

Through Gambara's actions and work to implement the divine advice, not only was the Vinniler's existence secured through the victory, but identification was also established through the new names Lombards derived from the events. In the most recent tradition of the Historia from the 9th century, the so-called Historia Langobardorum Codicis Gothani , Gambara (to I, 3) is referred to as a seer ( Pythia , Sibylle ).

Name and interpretation

Various theses are put forward in research on the etymology of the name of Gambara. Karl Hauck , following Dag Strömbeck, combined the name with Old Norse gand-bera = staff bearer . Simek follows Hauck with reservations in terms of etymology. Wolfgang Haubrichs and others place Gambara in Old High German gambar as a gloss in Latin strennus = powerful . Haubrichs emphasizes that this form is also available in the inventory of Lombard toponyms (place names) in northern Italy.

Hauck interpreted Gambara as a priestess and earthly representative of the Frea and thus suspects a reference to a formerly Vanish Vinniler. Simek provides the etymological connection to gandbera, staff bearer as the functional name of the Germanic seers . The staff is considered an attribute of the seers as in the Nordic Völva from the Eiríks saga rauða (Erik's saga ). Rudolf Simek notes, however, that Gambara - apart from Strömbeck's and Hauck's etymology and the text insert from the Historia Langobardorum Codicis Gothani - does not describe any activities as a seer.

See also

swell

literature