Abutan Engliscgereorde: Everyday Speech

  • Thread starter Thread starter wolram
  • Start date Start date
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the use of Old English in everyday speech, particularly in relation to Bede's Story of Caedmon and its implications for the linguistic landscape of early England. Participants explore the historical context, literary traditions, and the accessibility of Old English to common people.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Historical

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants inquire about the everyday use of Old English and its accessibility to commoners, noting that most were likely illiterate.
  • References to Bede's Story of Caedmon are made, with links provided for translations and discussions about its dialect.
  • One participant questions whether a learned dialect existed that would have sounded foreign to peasants, suggesting that there may not have been a sufficient literary tradition at the time.
  • Another participant argues that the oral Germanic bardic tradition could have influenced a more ornate vocabulary, which might have been distinct from everyday speech.
  • There is a request for scholarly work on the conditions in northern England during Bede's time, indicating a desire for more information on the topic.
  • Participants share links to Wikipedia articles discussing Middle English and its status in relation to Old English and Anglo-Norman, highlighting the evolution of language in England.
  • The Peterborough Chronicle is mentioned as a source that illustrates the transition from Old English to Middle English, noting linguistic innovations such as the introduction of the feminine pronoun "she."

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express uncertainty regarding the extent to which Old English was used in everyday speech, with multiple competing views on the existence of a learned dialect and the influence of literary traditions. The discussion remains unresolved.

Contextual Notes

There are limitations in the discussion regarding the assumptions about literacy rates among commoners and the definitions of dialect and vernacular. The historical context of language evolution is complex and not fully explored.

wolram
Gold Member
Dearly Missed
Messages
4,411
Reaction score
551
Any links to how this was used in every day speech ?
 
Science news on Phys.org
Say what? What is the title of your thread about?
 
It's Old English "about English Language".

Bede's Story of Caedmon here, is a translation from latin into a West Saxon dialect of Old English.

"swetnisse ond inbryrdnisse geglængde ond in Engliscgereorde wel geworht"

http://137.122.151.29/ENG3316B/story_of_caedmon.htm

This is an easier side by side translation

http://www.heorot.dk/bede-caedmon.html

I don't know that this was used in everyday speech by commoners, as most were illiterate. maybe SA knows, I'm going to make some coffee and look it up. Good way to start my day. :smile:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
God dogor mine frond Evo, is there a way to use OE on script on pc?
 
Evo said:
It's Old English "about English Language".

Bede's Story of Caedmon here, is a translation from latin into a West Saxon dialect of Old English.

"swetnisse ond inbryrdnisse geglængde ond in Engliscgereorde wel geworht"

http://137.122.151.29/ENG3316B/story_of_caedmon.htm

This is an easier side by side translation

http://www.heorot.dk/bede-caedmon.html

I don't know that this was used in everyday speech by commoners, as most were illiterate. maybe SA knows, I'm going to make some coffee and look it up. Good way to start my day. :smile:

Well I don't know either, but turn the question around, was there sufficient depth of literary tradition in Bede's and Caedmon's time to have developed a learned dialect that would have sounded alien to the peasants' ears if it were read out to them by a scholar? I don't really think so, though there may have been some purely literary words in Bede's vocabulary.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
selfAdjoint said:
Well I don't know either, but turn the question around, was there sufficient depth of literary tradition in Bede's and Caedmon's time to have developed a learned dialect that would have sounded alien to the peasants' ears if it were read out to them by a scholar?.
Very probably, I'd say!

If you look at the oral Germanic bardic tradition, the vocabulary here is extremely ornate, and far removed from day-to-day speech.
Such court language can perfectly well have been the model for the development of a literary vocabulary.
 
Maybe so, although I don't know enough about the conditions in the north of England (where I believe Bede's monastery lay) to say for sure. Is there any scholary work on this available online?
 
This Wiki article skims the topic.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_English

Middle English was one of the three languages current in England. Though never the language of the Catholic Church, which was always Latin, it lost status as a language of courtly life, literature and documentation, being largely supplanted by Anglo-Norman. It remained, though, the spoken language of the majority, and may be regarded as the only true vernacular language after about the mid-12th century, with Anglo-Norman becoming, like Latin, a learned tongue of the court.
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peterborough_Chronicle

It is also a valuable source of information about the early Middle English language itself. The first continuation, for example, is written in late Old English, but the second continuation begins to show mixed forms, until the conclusion of the second continuation, which switches into an early form of distinctly Middle English. The linguistic novelties recorded in the second continuation are plentiful, including at least one true innovation: the feminine pronoun "she" (as "scæ") is first recorded in the Peterborough Chronicle (Bennett).
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 29 ·
Replies
29
Views
2K
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
1K
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
1K
Replies
98
Views
5K
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
1K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
1K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K
  • · Replies 30 ·
2
Replies
30
Views
6K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
2K