After the Romans departed England, came a series of invasions from continental Europe. Which left the local population of Celts exposed to attacks from the Picts and Scots. The Celtic warlord Vortigern, in about 430AD sent an invitation for the Jutish brothers Hengest and Horsa, who were from Denmark, to help fortify the east coast of Britain against the Picts. As a token of gratitude they were permitted to settle in the southern areas of England, which were Kent, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
During this time other newcomers from Germanic tribes began the journey over to England, these included the Angles, who were from a stretch of land that connects Denmark to Germany. These settlers came over in great numbers and made their homes on the east coast of Britain, especially up in the north and East Anglia. From 450AD onwards the Frisian people from the marshes and islands of north Holland and western Germany began to infringe on the British mainland coast. Around 470AD the Saxons invaded the southern part of Britain. All of these Germanic newcomers began to displace the native Celts as they established a permanent residence in the land.
The newcomers spoke a variation of the Germanic tongue, not unlike the Frisian's who spoke in a language that was close enough to their own to understand. In today's world the language of Angeln is similar to English and closer to that of the English spoken 1,000 years ago.
Here are some of the words that were incorporated into English:
- fjouwer - four
- trije - three
- blau - blue
- sliepe - sleep
- mist - mist
- tsiis - cheese
- snie - snow
The invasion of Germanic people felt more like an intrusion than a full-on invasion, but would gradually begin to colonize most of the island of Britain. With the exception of the isolated areas that were still strongholds for the Celtic Britains. The Germanic settlers, who were originally seafarers, would eventually start farming. Whereas the Celtic natives retained Roman culture, which left little integration between the two peoples. The Celts saw the European invaders as "barbarians", and the Germanic people referred to the Celts as "weales", which would eventually become Wales.
The Celts continued to revolt until they were eventually pushed back further to Scotland, Wales, Cornwall and Ireland. With the Celtic language surviving in Scotland, Ireland and Wales. Germanic tribes settled in seven smaller kingdoms, the Angles in East Anglia, the Saxons in Sussex, Wessex and Essex, Mercia in Northumberland and Jutes in Kent.
Out of all of the kingdoms, it was the Saxons that became the predominant group, and went by the name of "Anglaland" which would later be called "England". With its language of Englisc (Old English or Anglo Saxon), slowly developing away from continental Germany by 600AD. With separate dialects emerging in south east Kentish, West Saxon in south and west, Mercian in the Midlands and Northumbrian in the north of England.
Christianity Brought Literacy
In 597AD Christianity began to spread via St Augustine and his 40 missionaries from Rome. And the conversion of King Ethelbert of Kent spreading Christianity and literacy in its path. Establishing a number of monasteries and centres of learning, particularly in the north east of England, in Jarrow and Lindisfarne.
With the introduction of Christianity in the country, churches grew and blossomed, and so did the influence of Latin language and culture.
Old English vs. Modern English
Compared to modern English, old English was complicated, nouns having three genders (male, female and neuter). With seven classes of strong verbs, and three classes of weak verbs, with endings changing for mood, tense and person. To the modern ear, this all sounds quite foreign, but many of the Old English words are quite familiar.
Words that have their roots in Old English: not, no, he, she, of, be, a, the, strong, night, sing, sleep, drink, food, house, earth and water.
In the 7th century a vowel shift took place, and people started pronouncing more in the front of their mouth. These changes were sometimes reflected in revised spelling:
- whole/hale/heal/health
- old/elder
- long/length
- broad/breadth
- foul/filth
- blood/bleed
- mouse/mice
- goose/geese
The Viking Invasions
The 8th century saw the Vikings invade the east coast of England, coming from Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Pillaging and plundering the monasteries and towns of north east England. The onslaught of the Vikings resulted in 85% of 30,000 Anglo Saxon words gradually dying out. With one hundred of the most commonly used words in modern English being of Anglo Saxon origin.
Gradually old Norse began to seep into the English language, these being some of the most common words used today: cake, skirt, band, band, bank, birth, fellow, wing, bull, score, seat, root, kid, dirt, knife, to name a few.
What Happened to Old English After the Vikings?
By 871, under the rule of Alfred the Great, many of the monasteries of Northumbria and Mercia were in ruins. Fortunately Alfred set about rebuilding and reviving, religion, law and learning. He wanted to educate people in the vernacular English language, instead of Latin. He single handedly saved the English language from the Vikings, making him revered by many for doing so. With West Saxon dialect being the standard language of the day.
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