Bilingual Wordplay in Kainn’s Poetry

Abstract

Icelandic-American poet Kristján Níels Jónsson (1860–1936), whose initials, K. N., turned into the pen name Káinn, lived in North America, and wrote about his immediate reality in the language that he commanded exceptionally well, be it in pure and proper Icelandic, or peppered with English and American-Icelandic borrowings. In Iceland, Káinn’s poetry claimed immediate attention when it first
came out, his playful use of the Icelandic language often casting a new and unexpected light upon common, everyday life, language, ideas, and actions. Due to poor command of English until the late twentieth century, however, Icelandic readers were in general not able to appreciate Káinn’s playful expansion of poetic possibilities by the language contact examined in this article.

Keywords: Kristján Níels Jónsson Julius, Káinn, Kviðlingar, bilingual wordplay, ludic theory