Anglo-Saxon Language

and Literature
Introduction

• The Anglo-Saxon conquest had far-reaching consequences.

• Established their own state and other institutions.
• It led to the development of Anglo-Saxon language and literature
• The Anglo-Saxon language → ancestor to modern English
• aka Old English – belongs to the Indo-European family of languages.
• Old English → progressed through numerous changes to become Modern
English
• To moderns, Old English will be incomprehensible
Old English - Dialects

• The Old English language had four major dialects.

• Northumbrian – first to produce a literature.
• Mercian – Language of the midlands
• Kentish – Language of south-east
• West Saxon – standard form of Old English (during King Alfred)
 The tradition of poetry begins with Anglo-Saxons
(singing folks)

Thus, Anglo-Saxon verse preceded their prose

Old
English Oldest extant poem in Old English → Beowulf

Poetry Beowulf
• Epic poem – more than 3000 lines
• Subject matter – Scandinavian story
• After settling in Britain, some Northumbrian poet changed the
story into an epic poem.
First page of
Beowulf
(contained in the
damaged
Nowell Codex)
 OLD ENGLISH POETRY

• Young man of royal blood from south Sweden.

• Purpose/job – to help the king of Danes
Who was Beowulf ? • Fights fearsome creatures (like the fire-breathing
dragons)
• Died of a mortal wound suffered in one such fights.

According to What Achilles is to the Greek,

Romulus to the Roman,
Compton Rickett Charlemagne to the French,
(A History of Beowulf is to the English men.
English Literature) Beside him, King Arthur is but a shadowy figure.
 OLD ENGLISH POETRY
• provides interesting insights on to the contemporary Anglo-
Beowulf (the poem) Saxon life.
• Represents a primitive social life
• Title means ‘Wide Wanderer’
Another major Old • Portrays the journeys of a bard
English poem → Widsith • Address a feudal audience – therefore, extols wars and the
ideal of chivalry.

First known English poet • Legendary origins

→ Caedmon of Whitby
Another famous poet – • Works: Juliana, Christ, The Fate of the Apostles
Cynewulf (8th C CE) etc.

Other imp. Old English • Christ and Satan, Daniel, Genesis, Exodus etc.
poems
Old English Prose

• The Anglo-Saxon prose was held inferior to the Anglo-Saxon poetry.

• Initially, Northumbria was the original seat of both forms of literature.
• With the entry of Danes, the dominance of the north ended
• Now, Wessex became the centre of learning and literature
• Purpose:
• Old English prose was employed for didactic/educational purpose
• While verse was used as an emotional stimulant.
• Patrons → Two key figures who patronized prose were:
• King Alfred
• Elfric (an Arch-Bishop of Canterbury) – wrote Homilies – reg.d as the best
example of A-S Prose
 An important type of prose → Anglo-Saxon Chronicles
• Covers the history of Anglo-Saxons
• Chronicles of different cities/regions – written by monks
• Under King Alfred, these were codified and ordered
• They are remarkable because they form the first continuous history of a western
Old English Prose

nation/people.

Major Prose Writers:

• Venerable Bede (673-735 CE)
• Benedictine monk – wrote in Latin – “first English historian”
• Works: Scriptural Commentaries ; Ecclesiastical History of the
English People (in Latin) – provides info about the Anglo-Saxon
period.
• Gildas
• Celtic Cleric
• Work – Ruin of Britain – written around 6th C CE
• The work describes the destruction wrought by the “Anglo-Saxon
barbarians”
 Anglo-Saxon Language and literature
Lecture
Language
Outline • Old English
• Indo-European Language
• Four Dialects

Literature

• Poetry
• Verse before Prose
• Beowulf & Widsith
• Other Works
• Prose
• Inferior to verse
• Patronage
• A-S Chronicles
• Prose Writers → Bede and Gildas