How did the Anglo-Saxons think about history?
Hostages in Old English Literature
August 2, 2015 By
Hostages in Old English Literature examines the various roles that hostages have played in Anglo-Saxon texts, specifically focusing on the characterization of Æscferth in The Battle of Maldon.
Book Review: Drout’s Quick and Easy Old English
June 17, 2015 By
It may seem a little incredible that anyone would need a textbook to learn an older version of his or her mother tongue, but learning Old English (Anglo-Saxon) takes some time and effort – and a good textbook.
Riddles in the Dark Ages
April 30, 2015 By
Latin riddles depended on knowledge of a specific subject in order to be deciphered, while English riddles were often about common things like the weather.
The Old English Translation of Bede’s Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum in its Historical and Cultural Context
February 14, 2015 By
Bede’s Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum (HE), written c. 731, enjoyed a great popularity among the Anglo-Saxons and Carolingians and was one of the most popular texts in medieval Europe.
The Anglo-Saxon War-Culture and The Lord of the Rings: Legacy and Reappraisal
January 18, 2015 By
The literature of war in English claims its origin from the Homeric epics, and the medieval accounts of chivalry and the crusades.
The Anglo-Saxon runic poem: a critical reassessment
November 30, 2014 By
I consider the runic poem in its most basic form, as a runic alphabet, and compare its runes and rune-names with the other Anglo-Saxon runic material collected in the Thesaurus.
The Hero’s Journey: Beowulf, Film, and Masculinity
November 2, 2014 By
Beowulf is one of many examples of a story that employs the rhetoric of the hero. The plight of the main character Beowulf is the focus of the tale, and the tasks that he must overcome throughout the course of the poem provide insight into the development of the character of the hero.
Judith in Late Anglo-Saxon England
October 20, 2014 By
Judith makes two spectacular appearances in the Old English corpus: she is the brave heroine of a poem which is included in one of the most famous manuscripts of the late Anglo-Saxon period, the Nowell Codex, which also contains the heroic epic, Beowulf.
Ten Great Anglo-Saxon Girls’ Names
October 6, 2014 By
We’ve come up with our ten favourite girls’ names – if you are considering a different type of baby name, perhaps you will pick one of these!
Amending the Ascetic: Community and Character in the Old English Life of St. Mary of Egypt
August 12, 2014 By
Among the most eligible saints for such treatment, Mary of Egypt deserves particular consideration: her popularity is evidenced by over a hundred extant Greek manuscripts of her Life and her uniquely prominent position in the Lenten liturgical cycle in the Eastern Church.
How well do you know the origins of English words? – Part 2
August 8, 2014 By
Can you tell which English words come from Anglo-Saxon or Old Norse?
(Re)casting the Past: The Cloisters and Medievalism
July 22, 2014 By
In this essay, I focus on a variety of texts printed using Anglo-Saxon type between 1566 and 1623 in an effort to explore the use of Anglo-Saxon typeface in the early modern period as the use of the Old English language progressed from polemical truncheon to historiographical instrument.
Making Sacrifices: Beowulf and Film
July 21, 2014 By
This essay reviews opening scenes in some recent film Beowulfs, which, although they have nothing at all to say about Scyld Scefing, suggest a sacrificial reading of the prologue and perhaps even the whole poem.
How well do you know the origins of English words?
July 14, 2014 By
Can you tell which word derives from the English of Anglo-Saxon times, and which word came from French?
Old English Words for Relics of the Saints
June 29, 2014 By
This study begins with a review of some Latin terms and of certain material traits common to early medieval relic-cults, since these profoundly shaped the Old English vocabulary surveyed in the second part of the paper.
Grendel: Boundaries of Flesh and Law
June 14, 2014 By
In Beowulf, Grendel presents itself as a figure of inescapable ambiguity and as an embodiment of paradox that causes consternation in the human community.
The original Frenglish
June 10, 2014 By
When France was speaking English without the prompting of a war or was it England who was speaking French….
Old Norse Influence in Modern English: The Effect of the Viking Invasion
April 12, 2014 By
It is estimated that there are around 400 Old Norse borrowings in Standard English. These borrowings are amongst the most frequently used terms in English and denote objects and actions of the most everyday description.
Writing conquest: traditions of Anglo-Saxon invasion and resistance in the twelfth century
March 2, 2014 By
Writing Conquest examines the ways in which Latin, Old English, and Middle English twelfth-century historical and pseudo-historical texts remembered and reconstructed three formative moments of Anglo-Saxon invasion and resistance…
The Anglo-Saxon Name for the s-Rune: Sigel, a Precious Jewel
February 22, 2014 By
The Anglo-Saxon rune-name sigel has been interpreted as meaning ‘sun’. In some contexts Old English sigel does refer to the sun, in others it means ‘clasp’, ‘brooch’, or ‘jewel’. All these meanings, however, are difficult to reconcile with the maritime imagery of the Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem’s sigel stanza.
Judith’s Necessary Androgyny: Representations of Gender in the Old English Judith
February 11, 2014 By
The Old English poem Judith explores Anglo-Saxon representations of femininity and masculinity by constructing a double-gendered hero who differs from the biblical version of the same woman.
Medieval English for Dummies
January 30, 2014 By
A quick-and-dirty guide for would-be Time-travellers
The Anonymous Old English Legend of the Seven Sleepers and its Latin Source
January 25, 2014 By
The earliest extended treatment of the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus in a
western vernacular language is the anonymous Old English prose version preserved
in British Library MS Cotton Julius E vii…
An Ideal Marriage: Abraham and Sarah in Old English Literature
January 8, 2014 By
Offers a look at how Bible characters Abraham and Sarah are treated in the old English literature. How their marital relationship is portrayed; Neglect in the character of Sarah; Development in the character of Abraham; How the old English literary writers treated Abraham.
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