“A kenning is a metaphorical circumlocution consisting of paired nouns or a noun phrase. For example, in ancient Icelandic verse, a sword is not a sword but an “icicle of blood”; a ship is not a ship but the “horse of the sea”; and eyes are not eyes but the “moons of the forehead.” Similarly, the earth is “the floor of the hall of the winds” or “the sea trodden on by animals,” while fire is “destroyer of timber” or “the sun of houses.”
