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Bdvar BjarkiBdvar Bjarki is the hero appearing in tales of Hrlf Kraki in the Saga of Hrlf Kraki, in the Latin epitome to the lost Skjldunga saga, and as Biarco in Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum. Some think he and the hero Beowulf in the Old English poem Beowulf were originally the same personage, while others reject this notion. Unlike Beowulf, Bdvar is said to have been Norwegian, which may be explained by the fact that his story was written by Icelandic authors who were mostly of Norwegian descent. However, his brother was the king of Gautland (Geatland) and, like Beowulf, it was from Geatland that Bdvar arrived in Denmark. Moreover, upon arriving at the court of Denmark, he kills a monstrous beast that has been terrorizing the court at Christmas for two years. Like Beowulf, Bdvar also aid the Swedish king Adils (Eadgils) in defeating Adil's uncle li (Onela). The famous poem Bjarkiml (of which only one stanza is preserved but which Saxo Grammaticus presents in the form of a florid Latin paraphrase) is understood as a dialogue between Bdvar Bjarki and his younger companion Hjalti which begins by Hjalti again and again urging Bdvar to awake from his sleep and fight for King Hrlf in this last battle in which they are doomed to defeat. As explained in the prose, this rousing was ill-done, as Bjarki was in a trance and his spirit in the form of a monstrous bear was already aiding Hrlf far more than Bjarki could do with only his mannish strength. See Origins for Beowulf and Hrlf Kraki.
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