Wes Hal!
- Old English is a member of the Indo-European family of languages and is part of the Germanic branch of that family. There are four dialects — Northumbrian, Mercian, Kentish, and West-Saxon, distinguished by variations in spelling.
- Old English was the vernacular Germanic language of Great Britain as it is recorded in manuscripts and inscriptions dating from before about 1100, and the surviving corpus of prose and verse amounts to about six times the collected works of Shakespeare.
- Those who learn Old English can read the earliest monuments of the language in the original, including Caedmon’s Hymn, the first recorded poem in English, and Beowulf, the earliest English epic.
- The survival of Old English literature is the result of the development of literary in England from the 7th century onward, following the conversion of the English to Christianity.
- The texts which survive therefore more or less bear the imprint of Christian influence, and many secular values such as loyalty to one’s ‘lord’ are easily appropriated by Christians.
- Old English formed the basis for the development of Modern English, and even though the Norman Conquest of 1066 effectively put an end to the production of Old English literature, later Middle English owes much of its linguistic heritage to Old English. Many Modern English words, such as ‘house’ (hūs), ‘man’ (mann), and ‘wife’ (wīf) have a basis in Old English.
- Old English has a simple system of grammar, and students will soon appreciate why it is that some verbs change from ‘sing’ to ‘sang,’ while others change from ‘spill’ to ‘spilled.’ Students will also learn why ‘goose’ becomes ‘geese.’
- Visit the Department of English for more information.
- Consult the A&S calendar for specific course offerings.
- Is learning Old English difficult?
It is true that reading Old English is a skill that requires some training, but the introductory course is directed at those with no previous knowledge of the language. The spelling and diction of Old English will seem foreign at first, but once students have learned the alphabet and acquired some basic grammar, the initial strangeness of the language will pass and be replaced by a motivation to explore the language and literature of this fascinating period. In the end, students will read whole texts in Old English with only the help of a dictionary. - Is Old English a dead language?
No one speaks Old English today, but the roots of Modern English are set firmly in the literature of the Old English period. Old English survives in the words we use every day, and in this way it lives on. We can also reproduce with some accuracy what Old English may have sounded like, and in class we will read Old English out loud. This is how the Anglo-Saxons themselves enjoyed poetry. - What is the real value of learning Old English?
Learning Old English helps students to understand the reasons behind many of the apparent irregularities in Modern English. Students will learn to understand why it is we speak and write the way we do today. Students will also be able to apply their experience in learning Old English to learning other languages, such as Modern German. But above all, students will develop a greater sensitivity to the meanings of Modern English words, and their use of Modern English will be more informed and accurate as a result. In short, learning Old English will make students better readers and writers of Modern English.
