Prose Edda — Old Norse facing a living language
Þá mælti Gangleri: "Hví skilr svá mikit, at sumar skal vera heitt, en vetr kaldr?" Hárr segir: "Eigi mundi svá fróðr maðr spyrja, því at þetta vitu allir at segja. En ef þú einn ert orðinn svá fávíss, at eigi hefir þetta heyrt, þá vil ek þó þat vel virða, at heldr spyrir þú eitt sinn ófróðliga en þú gangir lengr duliðr þess, er skylt er at vita.
Then Gangleri asked: "Why is there such a difference — why must summer be hot and winter cold?" High said: "A wise man wouldn't ask that, since everyone knows how to answer it. But if you're the only one who's grown so ignorant as never to have heard it, I'd rather you ask one foolish question than go on any longer not knowing what you ought to know.
Svásuðr heitir sá, er faðir Sumars er, ok er hann svá sællífr, svá at af hans heiti er þat kallat svásligt, er blítt er. En faðir Vetrar er ýmist kallaðr Vindlóni eða Vindsvalr. Hann er Vásaðar son, ok váru þeir áttungar grimmir ok svalbrjóstaðir, ok hefir Vetr þeira skaplyndi."
He who is Summer's father is called Svasud, and he lives so pleasantly that anything mild and sweet is named for him. But Winter's father goes by different names — Vindljoni or Vindsval — and he is the son of Vasad; that whole line was grim and cold-hearted, and Winter takes after them."