Table of Contents
WEEK 1, 3 FEBRUARY 2025 ..............................................................................................................................4
WHAT IS OLD ENGLISH? ....................................................................................................................................4
WHY STUDY OLD ENGLISH? ..............................................................................................................................4
INHABITANTS OF BRITAIN...................................................................................................................................5
First migration/invasion: Bronze Age farmers ...............................................................................................5
Second invasion: Celtic tribes ........................................................................................................................5
Third invasion: Romans ..................................................................................................................................5
Arrival of Anglo-Saxons, c. 449 AD ...............................................................................................................6
WEEK 2, 10 FEBRUARY 2025 ............................................................................................................................7
CONQUEST ..........................................................................................................................................................7
According to Bede (731) .................................................................................................................................7
Heptarchy .......................................................................................................................................................7
Why does it take them 250 years to settle and conquer? ................................................................................8
‘Adventus Saxonum’ ................................................................................................................................................... 8
TRACES OF PAGANISM........................................................................................................................................8
Evidence for the type of paganism..................................................................................................................8
Traces of paganism in archeology ..................................................................................................................8
CONVERSION .......................................................................................................................................................9
Irish Mission ...................................................................................................................................................9
Roman Mission ...............................................................................................................................................9
Pope Gregory the Great ............................................................................................................................................... 9
Libellus responsionum ................................................................................................................................................. 9
CONFLICT .........................................................................................................................................................10
Synod of Whitby (664) ..................................................................................................................................10
After Whitby ..................................................................................................................................................10
WEEK 3, 17 FEBRUARY 2025 .......................................................................................................................... 11
VIKINGS AND OUR SOURCES OF THEM ............................................................................................................. 11
Source one: writing from themselves ............................................................................................................ 11
Source two: narrative writings by non-vikings............................................................................................. 11
Source three: Icelandic sagas written by descendants ................................................................................. 11
Source four: Archeology ............................................................................................................................... 11
VIKING ACTIVITIES ...........................................................................................................................................12
Why did they go out and raid and plunder? .................................................................................................13
Why were they so effective? ..........................................................................................................................13
VIKINGS IN ENGLAND .......................................................................................................................................13
First Phase (793 – 851) ................................................................................................................................14
Second Phase (851 – 865) ............................................................................................................................14
Third Phase (865 – 878) ...............................................................................................................................14
WEEK 4, 24 FEBRUARY 2025 ..........................................................................................................................15
ALFRED THE GREAT (849 – 899) ......................................................................................................................15
Innovations of King Alfred............................................................................................................................15
Treaty of Wedmore (878) ..............................................................................................................................16
Books ............................................................................................................................................................16
The Alfred Jewel ...........................................................................................................................................17
AFTER ALFRED .................................................................................................................................................17
Reform under AEthelstan .............................................................................................................................17
LEGACY OF THE VIKINGS IN ENGLAND ...........................................................................................................17
Economic ......................................................................................................................................................18
Cultural.........................................................................................................................................................18
Linguistic ......................................................................................................................................................18
Political ........................................................................................................................................................18
,WEEK 5, 3 MARCH 2025 ...................................................................................................................................19
AETHELRED THE UNREADY .............................................................................................................................19
Sweyn Forkbeard ..........................................................................................................................................20
CNUT THE GREAT .............................................................................................................................................20
NORMAN CONQUEST ........................................................................................................................................21
Three battles .................................................................................................................................................22
WEEK 6, 10 MARCH 2025 .................................................................................................................................24
SOCIETAL STRUCTURE ......................................................................................................................................24
Early Germanic warrior culture...................................................................................................................24
The King .......................................................................................................................................................24
Three estates .................................................................................................................................................24
WOMEN .............................................................................................................................................................24
CHURCH AND CHRISTIANITY ...........................................................................................................................26
Lindisfarne Gospels ......................................................................................................................................26
Lindisfarne Priory ...................................................................................................................................................... 26
WEEK 7, 17 MARCH 2025 .................................................................................................................................27
CONTEMPORARY CONCERNS ............................................................................................................................27
Anglo-Saxon penitentials ..............................................................................................................................27
They serve as a guidebook for sins related to magic. ...................................................................................27
- E.g. If a woman practices magic and incantations and sorcery and the like, she is to fast twelve
months or the three 40-day fasting periods or forty days; ascertain how great the sin is; ..........................27
- These handbooks even distinguish between lay people and clergy (and its ranks) ............................27
MAGIC ...............................................................................................................................................................28
Prognostication.............................................................................................................................................28
Mediterranean tradition of prognostication ............................................................................................................... 28
Sunshine prognostics ................................................................................................................................................. 28
Dreams ....................................................................................................................................................................... 28
Charms .........................................................................................................................................................28
MEDICINE .........................................................................................................................................................29
WEEK 9, 31 MARCH 2025 .................................................................................................................................31
CHARACTERISTICS OF OLD ENGLISH POETRY ...............................................................................................31
Characteristics that these poems are derived from oral poetry ...................................................................31
Grammar of Old English poetry ...................................................................................................................32
Corpus of Old English Poetry ......................................................................................................................32
GENRES OF OLD ENGLISH POETRY .................................................................................................................32
MODERN OLD ENGLISH POETRY .....................................................................................................................33
WEEK 10, 7 APRIL 2025 ....................................................................................................................................34
BEOWULF: BASIC FACTS ...................................................................................................................................34
The opening lines ..........................................................................................................................................34
The structure of Beowulf...............................................................................................................................34
Synopsis of the first part ...............................................................................................................................35
Grendel .........................................................................................................................................................35
Beowulf .........................................................................................................................................................36
SCHOLARLY DEBATES ABOUT BEOWULF..........................................................................................................37
One: Should we approach Beowulf as a historical source or a piece of literature? ....................................37
Two: When was Beowulf composed? 8th century? 11th century?................................................................37
Three: Christian or Pagan? .........................................................................................................................37
Four: What is the purpose of Beowulf? .......................................................................................................37
The didactic nature of Beowulf.................................................................................................................................. 37
MATERIAL CONTEXT OF BEOWULF: SUTTON HOO (1939)..............................................................................38
WEEK 11, 14 APRIL 2025...................................................................................................................................40
THE MEDIEVAL MANUSCRIPT ...........................................................................................................................40
St. Augustine’s Gospels ................................................................................................................................41
Benedictional of St. Aethelwold ....................................................................................................................41
Dangers to manuscripts ................................................................................................................................41
, ANGLO-SAXON MANUSCRIPTS .........................................................................................................................41
Cambridge, Corpus Christi College .............................................................................................................41
London, British Library ................................................................................................................................42
Oxford, Bodleian Library .............................................................................................................................42
FOUR ANGLO-SAXON POETIC MANUSCRIPTS ..................................................................................................42
1. Beowulf manuscript ............................................................................................................................42
2. Vercelli Book .......................................................................................................................................43
3. Exeter Book .........................................................................................................................................43
4. Junius Manuscript...............................................................................................................................43
WEEK 13, 28 APRIL 2025 ..................................................................................................................................44
TRANSLATING THE ANGLO-SAXON WAY ..........................................................................................................44
Old English dialects .....................................................................................................................................45
LATE OLD NORTHUMBRIAN SOURCES .............................................................................................................45
LINDISFARNE GLOSSES .....................................................................................................................................45
MULTIPLE GLOSSES ..........................................................................................................................................46
Double grammatical glosses: negation ........................................................................................................46
Multiple grammatical glosses: subjunctive ..................................................................................................47
Dot glosses....................................................................................................................................................47
WEEK 15, 12 MAY 2025 .....................................................................................................................................48
RIDDLES ............................................................................................................................................................48
Anglo-Latin Tradition ...................................................................................................................................48
Runic riddles .................................................................................................................................................48
RUNES................................................................................................................................................................49
Runic Riddles ................................................................................................................................................49
ANGLO-SAXON ART ..........................................................................................................................................50
Ruthwell Cross ..............................................................................................................................................50
Franks Casket ...............................................................................................................................................50
Staffordshire Hoard ......................................................................................................................................51
, Week 1, 3 February 2025
Outline of the lecture
What is Old English?
Why study Old English?
History of Britain until arrival of the Anglo-Saxons
What is Old English?
‘Rīċe’ /rike/ = Dutch ‘rijk’.
‘Ālys’ /ɑlys/= Dutch ‘verlos’
Green = grammatical cases.
Some OE words resemble PDE → OE is a direct ancestor of PDE, most of basic words today
are derived from OE.
There are differences in spelling, symbols, pronunciation, vocabulary, and different ways of
spelling the same word → because of grammatical cases (nominative, accusative, genitive,
dative).
Old English is a Germanic language. It comes from the same language family as German,
Dutch, Gothic (no longer spoken).
OE is very similar and closely related to (Old) Frisian.
Speakers of OE: The Anglo-Saxons (450-1100).
Why study Old English?
1. Knowing more about OE will help you understand PDE better.
- Foot – feet, goose – geese ‘o’ changes to ‘e’,
- Strong – strength, old – elder, food – feed, brother – brethren same sound change
- Knee, knight, comb
many peculiarities of
PDE originate from
OE
WEEK 1, 3 FEBRUARY 2025 ..............................................................................................................................4
WHAT IS OLD ENGLISH? ....................................................................................................................................4
WHY STUDY OLD ENGLISH? ..............................................................................................................................4
INHABITANTS OF BRITAIN...................................................................................................................................5
First migration/invasion: Bronze Age farmers ...............................................................................................5
Second invasion: Celtic tribes ........................................................................................................................5
Third invasion: Romans ..................................................................................................................................5
Arrival of Anglo-Saxons, c. 449 AD ...............................................................................................................6
WEEK 2, 10 FEBRUARY 2025 ............................................................................................................................7
CONQUEST ..........................................................................................................................................................7
According to Bede (731) .................................................................................................................................7
Heptarchy .......................................................................................................................................................7
Why does it take them 250 years to settle and conquer? ................................................................................8
‘Adventus Saxonum’ ................................................................................................................................................... 8
TRACES OF PAGANISM........................................................................................................................................8
Evidence for the type of paganism..................................................................................................................8
Traces of paganism in archeology ..................................................................................................................8
CONVERSION .......................................................................................................................................................9
Irish Mission ...................................................................................................................................................9
Roman Mission ...............................................................................................................................................9
Pope Gregory the Great ............................................................................................................................................... 9
Libellus responsionum ................................................................................................................................................. 9
CONFLICT .........................................................................................................................................................10
Synod of Whitby (664) ..................................................................................................................................10
After Whitby ..................................................................................................................................................10
WEEK 3, 17 FEBRUARY 2025 .......................................................................................................................... 11
VIKINGS AND OUR SOURCES OF THEM ............................................................................................................. 11
Source one: writing from themselves ............................................................................................................ 11
Source two: narrative writings by non-vikings............................................................................................. 11
Source three: Icelandic sagas written by descendants ................................................................................. 11
Source four: Archeology ............................................................................................................................... 11
VIKING ACTIVITIES ...........................................................................................................................................12
Why did they go out and raid and plunder? .................................................................................................13
Why were they so effective? ..........................................................................................................................13
VIKINGS IN ENGLAND .......................................................................................................................................13
First Phase (793 – 851) ................................................................................................................................14
Second Phase (851 – 865) ............................................................................................................................14
Third Phase (865 – 878) ...............................................................................................................................14
WEEK 4, 24 FEBRUARY 2025 ..........................................................................................................................15
ALFRED THE GREAT (849 – 899) ......................................................................................................................15
Innovations of King Alfred............................................................................................................................15
Treaty of Wedmore (878) ..............................................................................................................................16
Books ............................................................................................................................................................16
The Alfred Jewel ...........................................................................................................................................17
AFTER ALFRED .................................................................................................................................................17
Reform under AEthelstan .............................................................................................................................17
LEGACY OF THE VIKINGS IN ENGLAND ...........................................................................................................17
Economic ......................................................................................................................................................18
Cultural.........................................................................................................................................................18
Linguistic ......................................................................................................................................................18
Political ........................................................................................................................................................18
,WEEK 5, 3 MARCH 2025 ...................................................................................................................................19
AETHELRED THE UNREADY .............................................................................................................................19
Sweyn Forkbeard ..........................................................................................................................................20
CNUT THE GREAT .............................................................................................................................................20
NORMAN CONQUEST ........................................................................................................................................21
Three battles .................................................................................................................................................22
WEEK 6, 10 MARCH 2025 .................................................................................................................................24
SOCIETAL STRUCTURE ......................................................................................................................................24
Early Germanic warrior culture...................................................................................................................24
The King .......................................................................................................................................................24
Three estates .................................................................................................................................................24
WOMEN .............................................................................................................................................................24
CHURCH AND CHRISTIANITY ...........................................................................................................................26
Lindisfarne Gospels ......................................................................................................................................26
Lindisfarne Priory ...................................................................................................................................................... 26
WEEK 7, 17 MARCH 2025 .................................................................................................................................27
CONTEMPORARY CONCERNS ............................................................................................................................27
Anglo-Saxon penitentials ..............................................................................................................................27
They serve as a guidebook for sins related to magic. ...................................................................................27
- E.g. If a woman practices magic and incantations and sorcery and the like, she is to fast twelve
months or the three 40-day fasting periods or forty days; ascertain how great the sin is; ..........................27
- These handbooks even distinguish between lay people and clergy (and its ranks) ............................27
MAGIC ...............................................................................................................................................................28
Prognostication.............................................................................................................................................28
Mediterranean tradition of prognostication ............................................................................................................... 28
Sunshine prognostics ................................................................................................................................................. 28
Dreams ....................................................................................................................................................................... 28
Charms .........................................................................................................................................................28
MEDICINE .........................................................................................................................................................29
WEEK 9, 31 MARCH 2025 .................................................................................................................................31
CHARACTERISTICS OF OLD ENGLISH POETRY ...............................................................................................31
Characteristics that these poems are derived from oral poetry ...................................................................31
Grammar of Old English poetry ...................................................................................................................32
Corpus of Old English Poetry ......................................................................................................................32
GENRES OF OLD ENGLISH POETRY .................................................................................................................32
MODERN OLD ENGLISH POETRY .....................................................................................................................33
WEEK 10, 7 APRIL 2025 ....................................................................................................................................34
BEOWULF: BASIC FACTS ...................................................................................................................................34
The opening lines ..........................................................................................................................................34
The structure of Beowulf...............................................................................................................................34
Synopsis of the first part ...............................................................................................................................35
Grendel .........................................................................................................................................................35
Beowulf .........................................................................................................................................................36
SCHOLARLY DEBATES ABOUT BEOWULF..........................................................................................................37
One: Should we approach Beowulf as a historical source or a piece of literature? ....................................37
Two: When was Beowulf composed? 8th century? 11th century?................................................................37
Three: Christian or Pagan? .........................................................................................................................37
Four: What is the purpose of Beowulf? .......................................................................................................37
The didactic nature of Beowulf.................................................................................................................................. 37
MATERIAL CONTEXT OF BEOWULF: SUTTON HOO (1939)..............................................................................38
WEEK 11, 14 APRIL 2025...................................................................................................................................40
THE MEDIEVAL MANUSCRIPT ...........................................................................................................................40
St. Augustine’s Gospels ................................................................................................................................41
Benedictional of St. Aethelwold ....................................................................................................................41
Dangers to manuscripts ................................................................................................................................41
, ANGLO-SAXON MANUSCRIPTS .........................................................................................................................41
Cambridge, Corpus Christi College .............................................................................................................41
London, British Library ................................................................................................................................42
Oxford, Bodleian Library .............................................................................................................................42
FOUR ANGLO-SAXON POETIC MANUSCRIPTS ..................................................................................................42
1. Beowulf manuscript ............................................................................................................................42
2. Vercelli Book .......................................................................................................................................43
3. Exeter Book .........................................................................................................................................43
4. Junius Manuscript...............................................................................................................................43
WEEK 13, 28 APRIL 2025 ..................................................................................................................................44
TRANSLATING THE ANGLO-SAXON WAY ..........................................................................................................44
Old English dialects .....................................................................................................................................45
LATE OLD NORTHUMBRIAN SOURCES .............................................................................................................45
LINDISFARNE GLOSSES .....................................................................................................................................45
MULTIPLE GLOSSES ..........................................................................................................................................46
Double grammatical glosses: negation ........................................................................................................46
Multiple grammatical glosses: subjunctive ..................................................................................................47
Dot glosses....................................................................................................................................................47
WEEK 15, 12 MAY 2025 .....................................................................................................................................48
RIDDLES ............................................................................................................................................................48
Anglo-Latin Tradition ...................................................................................................................................48
Runic riddles .................................................................................................................................................48
RUNES................................................................................................................................................................49
Runic Riddles ................................................................................................................................................49
ANGLO-SAXON ART ..........................................................................................................................................50
Ruthwell Cross ..............................................................................................................................................50
Franks Casket ...............................................................................................................................................50
Staffordshire Hoard ......................................................................................................................................51
, Week 1, 3 February 2025
Outline of the lecture
What is Old English?
Why study Old English?
History of Britain until arrival of the Anglo-Saxons
What is Old English?
‘Rīċe’ /rike/ = Dutch ‘rijk’.
‘Ālys’ /ɑlys/= Dutch ‘verlos’
Green = grammatical cases.
Some OE words resemble PDE → OE is a direct ancestor of PDE, most of basic words today
are derived from OE.
There are differences in spelling, symbols, pronunciation, vocabulary, and different ways of
spelling the same word → because of grammatical cases (nominative, accusative, genitive,
dative).
Old English is a Germanic language. It comes from the same language family as German,
Dutch, Gothic (no longer spoken).
OE is very similar and closely related to (Old) Frisian.
Speakers of OE: The Anglo-Saxons (450-1100).
Why study Old English?
1. Knowing more about OE will help you understand PDE better.
- Foot – feet, goose – geese ‘o’ changes to ‘e’,
- Strong – strength, old – elder, food – feed, brother – brethren same sound change
- Knee, knight, comb
many peculiarities of
PDE originate from
OE
