Sure, I'll allow untrained checks. You won't get as much as if you were trained, but I'll still use the same DCs.
With a 12, Noran is able to answer a "Really Easy Question". He doesn't know anything about Finn, Syric or Rachel, but he does know the name Velgrynd from several ballads sung by bards in Farlstead, as well as among the Amostivans.
She is a renowned heroine, opposing evil and protecting the weak for the last 200 years. The story goes that she was first seen in a human kingdom called Fora, geographically located north of Gavstor. At the time, the ancient green dragon Mendax had overthrown the monarchy and became the head of a new draconic empire that threatened to conquer all of Etharia. However, her reign lasted for only ten years, when a band of local heroes led a rebellion and slew her. Velgrynd was one of those heroes.
Noran is unaware of any other information about her, but she is one whose reputation absolutely precedes her.
As for the Dirges or the Dead Strait, he has no clue what those are without subsequent rolls (History and Geography, respectively).