Boating metaphors

Since I have mostly mentioned here English metaphors that don´t have Icelandic equivalences, I guess it is also fair to mention Icelandic metaphors that don´t have good English equivalences. Most of these are in fact nautical, something us Viking ship enthusiasts like to point out. Mikið í húfi is one, referring to the piece of wood that bears the brunt of the force of the waves; if it is not strong, everything else collapses. Another one is staðið sig vel, a peculiar phenomena wherein a ship seems to know where it is going, stays on a straight course, hold its position I guess one could say, no matter what, as if miraculously.

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