Learn Old English

Late Update

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 18 Mar 2016 03:29:00 +0000

Ic besārgie for þes, ic eom swīþe sārig.

A little translating should cheer some of the masochists up. First I was busy, then, I had surgery, now, some not fun complications from surgery. I hope you will all forgive my being carleās. I do have plans to get back to the show soon, but for right now my health is my main concern. I hope you understand that and forgiefaþ mē mīne gyltas.

Again, I'm very sorry for letting anyone down.

Episode 5: Reading Work

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 17 Oct 2015 22:50:00 +0000

In this episode we cover the basics of how to listen to and read Old English in larger chunks. We dive right into the deep end and cover an excerpt of Ælfric's colloquy.

Check out this episode!

I am not going to provide a transcript of the excerpt, because it is better if you try to understand it without looking at a translation or even a transcribed version. However, below is link to Henry Sweet's book containing the Old English text. You'll notice that I have not given you all of the words in the text as vocabulary, and you really do need a dictionary. There are several online ones listed in the resources page and if you have hard copies of any grammar books then in the back of them is a limited dictionary.
Henry Sweet's First Steps in Anglo Saxon

Here is a link that takes you to the Memrise study group that listener Chas started.
Memories Study Group

Vocabulary

Available under tag 5 in the anki deck and at the Memrise page.

Swelċ - such,;adj.
Sēo nǣdre - snake, serpent; wk. noun
Wyrċan - make, form, produce; I str. verb
Sēo eorþe - earth; wk. noun
Þæt wīf - woman, wife; wk. noun
Sēo trēow - faith, trust; wk. noun
Andwyrdan - answer; I str. verb
Se wæstm - fruit, result;wk. noun
Se neorxenawang - Paradise; wk. noun
Bebēodan - command, commend; II str. verb
Witan -know; preterite present verb
Þæt sōþ - truth; str. noun
Se engel - angel; str. noun
Æġþer - each, both; pronoun
Þæt yfel - evil, harm; wk. noun
Sēon - look, see; V str. verb
Se wer - man, husband; str. noun
Þā bēġen - both (pl.)
Wearþan- become, happen; III str. verb
Eft - again, afterwards, back; adv.

Episode 4: Declensions

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 07 Oct 2015 01:31:00 +0000

No, not a New Hope, that's not the correct order Mr. Lucas; but at least we have new grammar. Join me as we go over the basics of the Old English case system and learn why you can't just say "the" in Old English.

Check out this episode!

As promised, TABLES:

To help ingrain the case system I highly recommend going across as apposed to down. What does that mean? If your going to just rote memorize them by repeating and/or writing them, which really does work better if you do both, then I would follow the rows across as in:

Se stān, þæt scip, þæt word, sēo ġiefu; þā stānas, þā scipu, þā word, þā ġiefa

Þone stān, þæt scip, þæt word, þā ġiefe; þā stānas, þā scipu, þā word, þā ġiefa

Þæs stānes, þæs scipes, þæs wordes, þǣre ġiefe; þā stāna, þā scipa, þā worda, þā ġiefena

Þǣm stāne, þǣm scipe, þǣm worde, þǣre ġiefe; þā stānum, þā scipum, þā wordum, þā ġiefum

Vocabulary

These are tagged with 4 in the Anki deck. I know it looks like a lot, but think of how similar some of them are to Modern English, also rest assured that there will not be new vocal until the next episode (around 2 week from now). Try creating your own sentences and adding more to your conversation. Don't worry too much about the different classes of strong verb yet, just know that that means they change their vowel in the preterite/past tense; along the same lines don't worry about the fact that adjectives have special endings, just put some sentences together and try it out.

Beswīcan - to ensnare, deceive Str. V. 1

Flēogan - to fly, take flight Str. V. 2

Breġdan - to braid, weave or knit Str. V. 3

Cweþan - to say, declare, or proclaim Str. V. 5

Ofslēan - to slay, destroy Str. V. 6

Slēan - to strike, beat, attack Str. V. 6

Bycgan - to buy Wk. V. 1

Ēhtan - to chase, pursue Wk. V. 1

Fēdan - to feed, sustain Wk. V. 1

Læċċan - to capture, sieze Wk. V. 1

Sellan - to give, trade, or sell Wk. V. 1

Temman - to tame Wk. V. 1

Wyrċan - to preform, work, or produce Wk. V. 1

Clipping - to call, summon, or cry out Wk. V. 2

Fandian - to tempt, test, or examine Wk. V. 2

Fremman - to make, accomplish, do Wk. V. 2

Ġeocian - to yoke Wk. V. 2

Lufian - to love, cherish Wk. V. 2

Lūtian - to lurk, sulk Wk. V. 2

Magan - to be able to, or competent Pret. Pres. V.

Witan - to know of, understand Pret. Pres. V.

Cwic - alive, living, quick Adj.

Dēore - dear, precious, beloved Adj.

Dēorwierþe - valuable, costly Adj.

Eald - old, ancient Adj.

Ġedyrtiġ - daring, bold Adj.

Ġehæp - happy Adj.

Ilca - same, the same as Adj. or Pron.

Lēas - devoid of, without Adj.

Māra - more, larger, bigger Adj.

Ōþer - other, another Adj. or Pron.

Til - good, apt, suitable Adj.

Se bāt - boat, ship Str. Masc. Noun

Se bēag - ring of precious metal either ornamental or valuable Str. Masc. Noun

Se Eald - elder, leader, prince Str. Masc. Noun

Se heofon - heaven, sky irreg. Masc. Noun

Se leax - lox, salmon Str. Masc. Noun

Se lenċten - spring (time of year), Lent Str. Masc. Noun

Se rǣd - advice Str. Mac. Noun

Se sleġe - a blow, strike, slaughter Str. Masc. Noun

Se feld - field u-stem Masc. Noun

Se sunu - son u-stem Masc. Noun

Se winter - winter (when counting years you count winters) u-stem Masc. Noun

Se angel - (fishing) hook Irreg. Masc. Noun

Se God - God, or god (mostly the Christian God) irreg. Masc. Noun

Sēo ċeasterwaru - a city dweller Str. Fem. Noun

Sēo ġiefu - gift Str. Fem. Noun

Sēo miht - power, strength, might Str. Fem. Noun

Sēo sunne - sun Wk. Fem. Noun

Þæt dēor - wild animal Str. Neut. Noun

Þæt folc - people, nation, folk Str. Neut. Noun

Þæt ġēar - year Str. Neut. Noun

Þæt land - land, soil, realm Str. Neut. Noun

Þæt nett - net Str. Neut. Noun

Þæt pleoh - danger, risk irreg. Neut. Noun

Būtan - without, except Prep.

Wiþ - against, from, in return for, with Prep.

Onġēan - back, again Adv.

Þearle - exceedingly, severely Adv.

Þā - then, when Adv.

Status Report and Miscellaneous

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 28 Sep 2015 22:46:00 +0000

It's rather hard finding time to record when your worried about background noise like a kid, or the rain (and I live in Florida, so yeah . . . RAIN). I should have the next episode up by next week. In the meantime, I want to thank those who have contacted me about the show; it means the world to me that you find it interesting/useful.

If you have not checked out the video, or watched the version without sound, I have put up a version with sound. There is not enough time to pronounce the phrases afterwards, but that is on purpose: just try to understand it, and get the flow of the language.

Here's another link in case you need it.

And while we are on the issue of flow, it has been brought to my attention that the varying vowel lengths sound awkward. I am accentuating them a little more than I normally would so that you remember them as longer, but it does sound rather strange if your not used to vowel length contrast in a language. So, I give you a link to a video showcasing a modern language that has vowel length contrast. Pay attention to how the different lengths pronounced have different meanings, and the general difference is somewhere between 1.5 and 2 times as long. So a long vowel or consonant is 'held' about 1.5 to 2 times longer than a short vowel or consonant.

Finnish Short and Long Sounds

Also, you may have noticed that I am listed on TuneIn Radio and Stitcher, as well as iTunes. If you'd like me on another directory, please let me know and I will add the show to it.

I'll leave you with a plea: please review the show on iTunes so that people who are interested in Old English can find it.

Episode 3: The Things We Do and Did

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 02:28:00 +0000

In this, the last installment of the "intro" segment we go over the basics of the Old English verbs forms, and we listen to an actual excerpt of an Old English text.

Check out this episode!

In case you missed it, here is the Intro Presentation one last time.

Ælfric's Colloquy Excerpt

Hwæt seġst þū, scēaphierde? Hæfst þū ǣniġ ġedeorf?

Ġiese lēof, iċ hæbbe miċel ġedeorf! On ǣrnemergen iċ drīfe mīn scēap tō lǣswe. Siþþan stande iċ ofer hīe mid hundum, þȳ lǣs þe wulfas hīe forswelgen. Þonne lǣde iċ hīe on ǣfen onġēan tō hira locum. Iċ hīe melce tuwa on dæġe. Iċ macie buteran and ċīese. And iċ eom mīnum hlāforde ġetrīewe.

Ēalā oxanhierde, hwæt dēst þū?

Lā lēof, iċ swince þearle! Þonne se ierþling þā oxan onġeocaþ, þonne lǣde iċ hīe tō lǣswe; and ealle niht iċ stande ofer hīe waciende for þēofum; and þæs on morgenne iċ hīe betǣċe eft þǣm ierþlinge, wel ġefylde and ġewæterode.

Yay! Verb conjugation tables!

Vocabulary

Please, please, please try a spaced repetition software such as Anki or Memrise, they really do make memorization much easier, and it saves you a lot of time not going over already learned cards before you really need to.
I have created an Anki deck that goes with this podcast and will be updated whenever we add to our vocabulary list for the show. You can find it here.

Ac - but, however

And - and

Āsettan - to set up, set

Ǣniġ - any
Ǣr - before, previously
Se cræft - trade or skill

Cuman - to come

Cunnan - to know how to,

Se cyning - king

Se dæġ - day

Dōn - to do, make or take

Drīfan - to drive

Sēo ēa - river

Ēac - also

Ēalā - hello, alas

Eall - all, every

Fōn - to catch or acquire

Gān - to go or walk

Ġēa - yes, yeah

Þæt ġedeorf - toil, hardship

Se ġefēra - companion, comrade

Ġiese - yes (emphatic)

Habban - to have or hold

Hāl - whole, unhurt

Se hām - home

Hwæt - what

Hwelċ - which

Sēo hwīl - time, while, sometimes

Hīeran - to obey, harken to, hear

Hū - how

Se hund - hound, dog

Libban - to live

Lā - lo! oh!

Lēof - love, beloved

Mid - with

Miċel - large, many, big

Se munuc - munk

Nese - no (adamant)

Niht - night

Ofer - over

Oþ - up to, until

Oþþe - or

Sēo sæ - sea

Sculan - to have to, must, or ought to

Secgan - to say or tell
Siþþan - afterwards, later
Standan - to stand
Stearc - stark
Sēo stōw - place
Sum - some, a certain
Swincan - to labor, toil, or perform
Swā - so, thus
Swīþe - very, exceedingly
Weorpan - to throw or cast
Willan - to wish, want, or desire
Wrītan - to write, inscribe
Ymb - concerning, with regard to
Þus - thus
Sēo ċeaster - city, town, village

I know it seems like a long list of vocal words, but if you take another look you'll see that quite a few are very familiar. This list correspond to words tagged with "3" in the anki deck provided above.

Episode 2: Who We Are and What We Do

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 02:09:00 +0000

In this second part of the "Intro" segment, we go over some different regions and ethnicities in Old English, as well as a few occupations. We also take a look at pronouns in Old English.

Check out this episode!

And here's the Intro Presentation again.

Our "conversation with Alfred"

Alfred

“wes þū hāl”

“wes hāl”

“hū hātest þū?”

“Iċ hātte Alfred, and þū?”

“Iċ hātte Bob. Hū gǣþ?”

“Iċ eom gōd, and þū?”

“Iċ eom gōd eac, þancie þē.”

“Þū eart Englisc, ac iċ neom. Iċ eom of ofer þære sǣ. Iċ eom wealh.”

This next part is taken from the text in First Steps in Anglo Saxon by Henry Sweet.

“Hwelċne cræft canst þū?”

“Iċ eom hunta”

“Hwæs hunta eart þū?”

“Iċ eom þæs cyninges hunta”

“Hwelċne cræft canst þū?”

“Iċ eom fiscere.”

“Hwæt beġietst þū of þīnum cræfte?”

“Bīleofan iċ mē beġiete, and scrūd, and feoh.”

“Hū ġefēhst þū þā fiscas?”

“Iċ gā on mīnne bāt, and rōwe ūt on þā ēa, and weorpe mīn nett on þā ēa.”

My summary in Old English (it's not poetry)

Ælfric wæs Englisc munuc, and hē wrāt þæt “colloquy”. In ūre colloquy, wē spræcon mid Alfred. Wē sæġdedon ēalā. Þā, hē spræce meċ, and him spræc iċ. Hē is hunta, se hunta þone cyninges. Iċ sæġdede þæt iċ wæs fiscere.

Some Locations Around the World (known at the time)

Region Name People Adjective

Englaland Angelcynn Englisc

Ēast Angla Rīċe

Miercna Rīċe

Norþymbra Rīċe

Westseaxna Rīċe Westseaxe

Ēast Seaxna Rīċe Ēastseaxe

Cantaware Rīċe

Sūþseaxna Rīċe

Rōm Rōmane Rōmanisc

Denemearc Dene Denisc

Grēcland

Swēoland Swēon

Ispānia Ispānisc

Itālia

Ēgypte   Ēgypte

(France)       Frencisc

         Gallisc

(Germany)                                  þēodisc

Some Occupations

On ċiriċe

Munuc - Monk

Biscop, bisceop, biscep - Bishop

Pāpa - Pope

On þæt land

Æcermann - Farmer

Ierþling - Farmer, plowman

On þæm sǣ

Flotmann - Sailor

Fiscere - Fisherman

Mid dēor

Scēaphierd - Shepard

Oxanhierd, Nīþerhierd - Ox herder

Hunta - Huntsman

Fuglere - Fowler

On þonne tūn

Ċīepemann - Merchant

Mangere - Merchant

Scōwyrhta - Shoe maker.

Sealtere - Salter

On þæt hūs

Bæcere - Baker

Cōc - Cook

Pronouns

Episode 1: Pronunciation and Context

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 01:57:00 +0000

In this episode we introduce the language and learn how different, yet similar, Old English sounds. This is part one of a 3 part "Intro" section designed to get you used to the sound and basic features of the language.

Check out this episode!

Here is a link to the Introductory Presentation mentioned in this episode.

Extras

I didn't feel like wasting this space by throwing up my show script, so instead, this bit of random anglo-saxon and germanic language information is here to further our understanding of the people we're talking about, as well as where Old English sits in the greater Germanic Language Family.

Anglo Saxon Kingdoms

Northumbria comprises the former kingdoms of Bernicia and Deira, and was the center for early Old English literary creativity.
Mercia spoke an Anglian dialect (as did Northumbria) that was very common up until the Viking establishment of the Dane law region in the 9th century.
West Saxon is the main dialect that is read both due to it's numerous serving works, and the high culture that was established in the region after the unification of King Alfred.
Very little of the Kentish dialect survives, mostly pieces of legal documents, and lists of names.

Practice Sentences for Pronunciation

Alfred is dēad.
Hē went to Rōme late in līfe.
Se horn sang hlūde on þæt scip.
Hwæt is þis? And þæt?
Þēos is sēo cwēne.
Ælfrīc munuc grēt Æðelwærd ealdormann ēadmōdlīce.
Wē libbe in Ængla Lande.
Hwæt selþ hē þē?

For a guide to the pronunciation in written form, see the Pronunciation Guide above.

Comparisons

One of the best ways to learn about a language is to compare it to other closely related languages. Here I've included several translations of The Lord's Prayer for a comparison.

The standard Modern English version is:

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth, as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

If you pay attention, you can almost make out the meanings of most of these from comparing the Old English and Modern English.