In this week’s class, Old English Literature kindle my interest. I wonder the nascence of Old English and the details about language. After searching I gathered some significant information.
Ø The Celts and the early Anglo-Saxons used an alphabet of runes, angular characters originally developed for scratching onto wood or stone. The first known written English sentence, which reads "This she-wolf is a reward to my kinsman", is an Anglo-Saxon runic inscription on a gold medallion found in Suffolk, and has been dated to about 450-480 AD. The early Christian missionaries introduced the more rounded Roman alphabet (much as we use today), which was easier to read and more suited for writing on vellum or parchment. The Anglo-Saxons quite rapidly adopted the new Roman alphabet, but with the addition of letters such as 
("wynn"), ş (“thorn”), ğ (“edh” or “eth”) and 3 (“yogh”) from the old runic alphabet for certain sounds not used in Latin. later became "uu" and, still later, "w"; ş and ğ were used more or less interchangeably to represent the sounds now spelled with “th”; and 3 was used for "y", "j" or "g" sounds. In addition, the diphthong æ (“ash”) was also used; "v" was usually written with an "f"; and the letters "q", "x" and "z" were rarely used at all.
("wynn"), ş (“thorn”), ğ (“edh” or “eth”) and 3 (“yogh”) from the old runic alphabet for certain sounds not used in Latin. later became "uu" and, still later, "w"; ş and ğ were used more or less interchangeably to represent the sounds now spelled with “th”; and 3 was used for "y", "j" or "g" sounds. In addition, the diphthong æ (“ash”) was also used; "v" was usually written with an "f"; and the letters "q", "x" and "z" were rarely used at all. 
Ø Old English literature, or Anglo-Saxon literature, encompasses the surviving literature written in Old English in Anglo-Saxon England, in the period after the settlement of the Saxons and other Germanic tribes in England (Jutes and the Angles) c. 450, after the withdrawal of the Romans, and "ending soon after the Norman Conquest" in 1066. These works include genres such as epic poetry, hagiography, sermons, Bible translations, legal works, chronicles and riddles. In all there are about 400 surviving manuscripts from the period.
Ø Oral tradition was very strong in early English culture and most literary works were written to be performed. Epic poems were very popular, and some, including Beowulf, have survived to the present day. Beowulf is the most famous work in Old English, and has achieved national epic status in England, despite being set in Scandinavia. The only surviving manuscript is the Nowell Codex, the precise date of which is debated, but most estimates place it close to the year 1000. Beowulf is the conventional title, and its composition is dated between the 8th and the early 11th century.
* I took the information from:
-http://www.thehistoryofenglish.com/history_old.html
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_literature
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YanıtlaSilI learned nothing but thanks for the information.
YanıtlaSilYour research is perfect. I got illuminated, thanks!
YanıtlaSilThis is very informative article.I enjoyed while reading :)
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