Among the German epic poems of the Middle Ages the Nibelungenlied [4]
enjoyed an exceptional popularity, as is evident from the large number of
manuscripts--some thirty, either complete or fragmentary--that have been
preserved from the centuries immediately following its appearance. Three
are of prime importance as texts, namely, those preserved now in Munich,
St. Gall, and Donaueschingen, and cited as A, B, and C respectively.
Since the time when Lachmann, about a century ago, made the first
scientific study of the poem, a whole flood of writings has been poured
forth discussing the relative merits of these texts. Each in turn has had
its claims advocated with warmth and even acrimony. None of these three
principal manuscripts, however, offers the poem in its earliest form;
they all point to a still earlier version. It is now generally admitted
that the St. Gall manuscript (B), according to which the present
translation has been made, contains the best and most nearly original
text.
[4] The closing strophe of MS. C calls the poem der _Nibelunge liet_, or
Nibelungenlied, i.e. the lay of the Nibelungen, and this is the title
by which it is commonly known. MSS. A and B have in the corresponding
strophe _der Nibelunge not_, i.e. the 'need', 'distress',
'downfall' of the Nibelungen. In the title of the poem 'Nibelungen'
is simply equivalent to 'Burgundians': the poem relates the downfall
of the Burgundian kings and their people. Originally the Nibelungen
were, as their name, which is connected with _nebel_, 'mist',
'gloom', signifies, the powers of darkness to whom the light-hero
Siegfried fell a prey. After Siegfried obtains possession of the
treasure the name Nibelungen is still applied to Alberich and the
dwarfs who guard it and who are now Siegfried's vassals. Then after
Siegfried's death the name is given to the Burgundians. It is a
mistake to suppose that the name was applied in each case to those
who became possessors of the hoard, for Siegfried himself is never so
designated.