Prose Edda — Old Norse facing a living language
Þá mælti Gangleri: "Hvat hafa einherjar at drykk, þat er þeim endist jafngnógliga sem vistin, eða er þar vatn drukkit?" Þá segir Hárr: "Undarliga spyrr þú nú, at Alföðr mun bjóða til sín konungum eða jörlum eða öðrum ríkismönnum ok myni gefa þeim vatn at drekka.
Then Gangleri asked: "What do the champions drink, that lasts them as generously as the food? Is water served there?" High said: "That's an odd thing to ask — as if Allfather would invite kings and earls and other great men to his table and give them water to drink.
Ok þat veit trúa mín, at margr kemr sá til Valhallar, er dýrt mundi þykkjast kaupa vatnsdrykkinn, ef eigi væri betra fagnaðar þangat at vitja, sá er áðr þolir sár ok sviða til banans. Annat kann ek þér þaðan segja.
I promise you, plenty of men reach Valhalla who'd think they'd paid dearly for a drink of water, if there weren't better welcome waiting there for someone who's endured wounds and burning pain right up to death. Let me tell you something else about it.
Geit sú, er Heiðrún heitir, stendr uppi á Valhöll ok bítr barr af limum trés þess, er mjök er nafnfrægt, er Læraðr heitir, en ór spenum hennar rennr mjöðr sá, er hon fyllir skapker hvern dag. Þat er svá mikit, at allir Einherjar verða fulldrukknir af." Þá mælti Gangleri: "Þat er þeim geysihaglig geit. Forkunnargóðr viðr mun þat vera, er hon bítr af."
A goat called Heidrun stands on top of Valhalla and browses the needles from a very famous tree called Laerad, and from her udder flows mead — enough to fill a vat every day, and it's so much that all the Einherjar get thoroughly drunk on it." Then Gangleri said: "That's a remarkably useful goat for them — that must be an extraordinary tree, whatever she's eating from."
Þá mælti Hárr: "Enn er meira mark at of hjörtinn Eikþyrni, er stendr á Valhöll ok bítr af limum þess trés, en af hornum hans verðr svá mikill dropi, at niðr kemr í Hvergelmi, ok þaðan af falla þær ár, er svá heita: Síð, Víð, Sækin, Ekin, Svöl, Gunnþró, Fjörm, Fimbulþul, Gípul, Göpul, Gömul, Geirvimul. Þessar falla um ása byggðir.
High said: "There's something even more remarkable: the stag Eikthyrnir, which stands on Valhalla and browses the same tree's branches, and so much liquid drips from his antlers that it falls down into Hvergelmir, and from there flow the rivers named: Sid, Vid, Saekin, Ekin, Svol, Gunnthro, Fjorm, Fimbulthul, Gipul, Gopul, Gomul, Geirvimul. These flow through the Aesir's lands.
Þessar eru enn nefndar: Þyn, Vín, Þöll, Höll, Gráð, Gunnþráin, Nyt, Nöt, Nönn, Hrönn, Vína, Vegsvinn, Þjóðnuma."
And these are also named: Thyn, Vin, Thol, Holl, Grad, Gunnthrain, Nyt, Not, Nonn, Hronn, Vina, Vegsvinn, Thjodnuma."