Old English / Anglo-Saxon

Old English was the West Germanic language spoken in the area now known as England between the 5th and 11th centuries. Speakers of Old English called their language Englisc, themselves Angle, Angelcynn or Angelfolc and their home Angelcynn or Englaland. Old English began to appear in writing during the early 8th century. Most texts were written in West Saxon, one of the four main dialects. The other dialects were Mercian, Northumbrian and Kentish. The Anglo-Saxons adopted the styles of script used by Irish missionaries, such as Insular half-uncial, which was used for books in Latin. Anglo-Saxon runes (futhorc/fuþorc) Old English / Anglo-Saxon was first written with a version of the Runic alphabet known as Anglo-Saxon or Anglo-Frisian runes, or futhorc/fuþorc. Runic inscriptions are mostly found on jewellery, weapons, stones and other objects, and only about 200 such inscriptions have survived. Old English alphabet Notes Long vowels were marked with macrons. Old English pronunciation Links

Old English Online: Series Introduction Old English is the language of the Germanic inhabitants of England, dated from the time of their settlement in the 5th century to the end of the 11th century. It is also referred to as Anglo-Saxon, a name given in contrast with the Old Saxon of the inhabitants of northern Germany; these are two of the dialects of West Germanic, along with Old Frisian, Old Franconian, and Old High German. Sister families to West Germanic are North Germanic, with Old Norse (a.k.a. Old Icelandic) as its chief dialect, and East Germanic, with Gothic as its chief (and only attested) dialect. The Germanic parent language of these three families, referred to as Proto-Germanic, is not attested but may be reconstructed from evidence within the families, such as provided by Old English texts. Old English itself has three dialects: West Saxon, Kentish, and Anglian. For a reconstruction of the parent language of Old English, called Proto-Germanic, see Winfred Lehmann's book on this subject. Vocabulary Word Forms

Beowulf Translations - The Greatest Literature of All Time Translations of Beowulf A passage from Beowulf in the original Old English and in four modern English translations. Old English: Gewat ða neosian, syþðan niht becom, hean huses, hu hit Hring-Dene æfter beorþege gebun hæfdon. Gummere: Went he forth to find at fall of night that haughty house, and heed wherever the Ring-Danes, outrevelled, to rest had gone. Alexander: With the coming of night came Grendel also, sought the great house and how the Ring-Danes held their hall when the horn had gone round. Rebsamen: Then Grendel prowled, palled in darkness, the sleep-warm hall to see how the Ring-Danes after beer and feasting bedded down for rest. Heaney: So, after nightfall, Grendel set out for the lofty house, to see how the Ring-Danes were settling into it after their drink, and there he came upon them, a company of the best asleep from their feasting, insensible to pain and human sorrow. The monster and its interpreters Earliest known manuscript Good, fun stuff. — Eric

Beowulf Activities - Mr. Arieux's Classroom Graphic Novel Project Part of reading Beowulf will be the planning and creation of a Graphic Novel version of the story. In order to do this, we will analyze the genre and design a plan for group work. ClickHEREfor the Beowulf Graphic Novel Project presentation; this will take us through the analysis, planning, and creation steps in class time. ClickHERE for the Beowulf Graphic Novel Analysis Sheet for your group to fill out as you are exploring the examples. Beowulf Reading and Response As we read the excerpts of Beowulf in class, there are a number of activities you will do individually and in small groups. ClickHEREfor the Beowulf Reading Activities presentation that will lead you through the Before Reading, During Reading, and After Reading activities involved with this section. Here for the link for the Wikipedia page as assigned ClickHERE for the Beowulf Jigsaw Reading Sheet that your groups will need. Click HERE for the Beowulf Part #1 Quiz. Click HERE for the Beowulf Part #2 Quiz.