Germanic
Verbal Inflection
Indo-European
Germanic
present
past
future
perfect
aorist
past perfect
present
past
Strong and weak verb forms
Strong verbs
Weak verbs
sing
sang
sung
walk
walked
walked
Adjective Declension
weak adjectives
strong adjectives
sē gōda mann
gōd mann
‘(the) good man’
‘(a) good man’
First Germanic Sound Shift
*p t k

f T x/h
*b d g

ptk
*bh dh gh

bdg
Second Germanic Sound Shift
time
Zeit
tongue
Zunge
ten
zehn
that
das
there
da
through
durch
pan
Pfanne
path
Pfad
pole
Pfahl
hate
eat
let
hassen
essen
lassen
grip
deep
sleep
greifen
tief
schlafen
Old English
Celtic world 1200 B.C:
Roman Empire 1st/2nd century
410
Romans leave Britain
449
Beginning of the
Anglo-Saxon Invasion
Anglo-Saxon Invasion
Bede: Ecclesiastical History of the English
Language (731)
Anglo-Saxon Invasion
AngloSaxon
settlements
Celtic loan words
London
Thames
Duncombe
Holcombe
Winchcombe
cumb ‘deep valley’
Torr
Torcross
Torhill
torr ‘high rock’, ‘peak’
bin
Old English
Kingdoms
King Alfred
the Great
871-899
The christianizing of the
Anglo-Saxons (597)
Saint
Augustine
Early loan words from Latin
wall
street
pit
mile
pepper
butter
onion
plum
win
pea
flasce
chalk
copper
bishop
dragon
churc h
Canterbury Cathedral
Religious loan words from Latin
angel
disciple
noon
offer
priest
rule
temple
anthem
martyr
nun
pope
psalm
relic
shrine
Religious words of Germanic origin
God
Easter
heaven
hell
Latin loans: clothing, household, food
cap
sock
silk
purple
chest
pear
radish
oyster
lobster
cook
Other Latin loan words
school
place
anchor
sponge
plant
box
lily
pine
The Viking Age
Viking attacks on Europe
Battle at Edington 878
Loan words from Old Norse
law
neck
cake
fellow
fog
window
skin
anger
leg
bag
egg
dirt
knife
sky
skirt
sister [sweaster]
Loan words from Old Norse
take [niman]
get
give
raise
call
want
die
cast
cut [sniðan]
smile
drag
lift
Loan words from Old Norse
flat
low
ugly
tight
awkward
loose
odd
wrong
weak
rotten
Loan words from Old Norse
they
their
them
(she)
are [syndon]
though
till
same
both
Loan words from Old Norse
Grimsby
Derby
Thoresby
–by ‘farm’
Althorpe
Bishopsthorpe
Linthorpe
–thorpe ‘village’
[sk]
shirt
shoe
shelf
shine
skirt
skip
scare
scarf
The Battle of
Maldon 991
Svein (King of
Denmark)
Æthelred (King
of England)
Cnut (King of
Denmark and
England 10141042)
The Lord's Prayer
Fæder ure þu þe eart on heofonum;
Si þin nama gehalgod
To becume þin rice
Gewurþe ðin willa
On eorðan swa swa on heofonum.
Urne gedæghwamlican hlaf syle us todæg
And forgyf us ure gyltas
Swa swa we forgyfað urum gyltendum
And ne gelæd þu us on costnunge
Ac alys us of yfele soþlice
Beowulf
Beowulf
Hwæt! We Gardena
þeodcyninga,
hu ða æþelingas
Oft Scyld Scefing
monegum mægþum,
egsode eorlas.
in geardagum,
þrym gefrunon,
ellen fremedon.
sceaþena þreatum,
meodosetla ofteah,
LO, praise of the prowess of people-kings
of spear-armed Danes, in days long sped,
we have heard, and what honor the athelings won!
Oft Scyld the Scefing from squadroned foes,
from many a tribe, the mead-bench tore,
awing the earls.
The Battle of Maldon
Then he ordered each of his warriors his horse to loose
Far off to send it and forth to go,
To be mindful of his hands and of his high heart.
The Battle of Maldon
Then did Offa's Kinsman first know
That the earl would not brook cowardice,
Loosed he from his hands his darling to fly,
His Hawk to the wood, and to the battle strode.
The Battle of Maldon
From that one could tell that the chieftain would never
Weaken in the warfare - when he his weapons seized.
The Battle of Maldon
And after him Edric chose his chief to follow,
His friend in the fight - then 'gan he forth to bear
The spear to the strife - high spirit had he,
So long as he with his hands to hold was able
His buckler and broadsword; his boast he fulfilled
That he by his friend's side should fight.
The Battle of Maldon
Then did Brithnoth begin his men to bestow He rode up and counselled them - his soldiers he taught
How they should stand, and their standing to keep,
And bade them their round shields rightly to hold
Fast to their forearms, that they flinch not at all.
Spelling
þ
ð
æ
Z
S
c
sc
[ð or T]
[ð or T]
[{]
[Z or g]
[s or z]
[k]
[S]
thorn
eth
ash
yogh
Vowels
Short vowels
i
y
u
e
o
æ
a
Long vowels
i:
y:
u:
e:
o:
æ:
a:
Macron
Tense vs. lax vowels
hīe
hū
heat [i]
to [u]
‘they’
‘how’
hit [I]
took [U]
Consonants
Bilabial
Stop
p
Labiodental
Interdental
b
Alveolar
t d
Fricative
f
m
T
s
k
l
Retroflex
r
w
S
n
Lateral
Glide
Velar
tS dZ
Affricate
Nasal
Alveolarpalat.
j
h
g
Allophonic variation
[briÎgan]
[driÎkan]
[lUvU]
[niCt]
love
night
[f{st]
fast
[fi:fta]
fifth
[Offrian] to offer
[mo:na]
[ni:Csta] next
[TUÎgEn]full grown
moon
[Ovnas] oven
[ha:t]
hot
[hlyCan] to laugh
[l@Îgan] to lengthen
[hlo:T]
to bring
to drink
troop
[hr{vn] raven
[n]
[ni:Csta]
[hlyCan]
[niCt]
[mo:na]
[hr{vn]
[kIn]
[Î]
[briÎgan]
[driÎkan]
[TUÎgEn]
[l@Îgan]
kin
[kIÎ]
king
[f]
[v]
[f{st]
[lUvU]
[fi:fta]
[hr{vn]
[Offrian]
[fAst]
[Ovnas]
fast
[vAst]
vast
[h]
[ha:t]
[hlo:T]
[hlyCan]
[C]
[niCt]
[hlyCan]
[ni:Csta]
Umlaut and its development: [u:] > [y:]
Original
SG
Mouse
PL
Mice
[mu:s]
[mu:s-i]
Ablaut
[my:s-i]
Loss of ending
[my:s]
Unrounding
[mi:s]
GEV
[mais]
Umlaut and its development: [o:] > [ï:]
Original
SG
Foot
PL
Feet
[fo:t]
[fo:t-i]
Ablaut
[fï:t-i]
Loss of ending
[fï:t]
Unrounding
[fe:t]
GEV
[fi:t]
Irregular plural
mouse
mice
goose
geese
tooth
teeth
foot
feet
man
men
Related words
blood
doom
full
long
tale
straight
lie
fall
older
bleed
deem
fill
length
tell
stretch
lay
fell
eldest
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 878
Her … Ælfred cyning … gefeaht wið ealne here,
Here … Alfred king … fought against whole army
‘Here King Alfred fought against the whole army,’
and hine geflymde,
and it
put to flight
‘and put it to flight,’
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 878
and him æfter rad
oð
þæt
and it
after rode to
the
‘and rode after it to the fortress,’
geweorc,
fortress
and þær sæt
XIIII niht,
and there camped
14
nights
‘and there he camped for fourteen nights.’
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 878
and þa sealde se here him gislas and myccle aðas,
and then gave the army him hostages and great oaths
‘and then the army gave him hostages and great oaths’
þæt hi
of
his
rice
woldon,
that they from his
kingdom
would
‘that they would depart from his kingdom,’
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 878
and him eac geheton
and him also promised
‘and they also promised him’
þæt heora cyng fulwihte
onfon
That their
king baptism
receive
‘that their king would receive baptism.’
wolde,
would
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 878
and
and
hi
they
þæt
that
gelaston
did
‘and they did these things.’
Modern English inflectional morphology
Category
Example
Plural
tree-s
Genitive
Peter’s car
Past
talk-ed
3SG
talk-s
Progressive
talk-ing
Past Participle
beat-en
OE nouns: Strong declension
SG
PL
NOM
stan
stan-as
GEN
stan-es
stan-a
DAT
stan-e
stan-um
ACC
stan
stan-as
OE nouns: Weak declension
NOM
GEN
DAT
ACC
SG
PL
nam-a
nam-an
nam-an
nam-an
nam-an
nam-ena
nam-um
nam-an
Demonstratives
that/the
NOM
GEN
DAT
ACC
INST
Masc
se
þæs
þæm
þone
þy:
Neut
þæt
þæs
þæ:m
þæt
þy:
Third person pronouns
M
F
N
PL
NOM
hē
hēo
hit
hie
GEN
his
hiere
his
hiera
DAT
him
hiere
him
him
ACC
hine
hīe
hit
hie
First/second person pronouns (SG)
NOM
GEN
DAT
ACC
I
you
ic
mīn
mē
mē, mec
þū
þīn
þē
þē, þec
First/second person pronouns (SG-DU-PL)
ic
wit
wē
I
speaker and addressee
speaker and a group of addressees
þū
git
yē
you
you and I
you PL (excluding the speaker)
Adjective Declension
weak adjectives
strong adjectives
sē gōda mann
gōd mann
‘(the) good man’
‘(a) good man’
Strong – weak verb forms
Strong
Weak
sing sang
write wrote
tell told
walk walked
kiss kissed
ask asked
Regularization
Old English
climb
creep
laugh
yield
step
Modern English
clomb
crope
low
yold
stope
climb
creep
laugh
yield
step
climbed
crept
laughed
yielded
stepped
Analogy
Four-part analogy
A
:
B
C
:
X
Dual mechanism theory
memory (route-learning)
+
rule-based productivity
Steven Pinker 1999. Words and Rules.
Past tense of nonce verbs
What is the past tense form of:
spling
sprim
glick
clid
Past tense of nonce verbs
spling
sprim
glick
clid
Irregular
Regular
splang
spram
gluck
clid
splinged
sprimmed
glicked
clidded
Irregularization
Old English
dive
catch
Modern English
dived
catched
dive
catch
dove
caught
Verbal inflection
Present
Past
Indicative
1. Sg
2. Sg
3. Sg
Pl.
sing-e
sing-est
sing-eð
sing-að
sang
sang-e
sang
sung-on
Subjunctive
Sg.
Pl.
sing-e
sing-en
sung-e
sung-en
Subjunctive in Modern English
(1)
If he were at home, Sally would know.
(2)
The people demanded that he resign.
(3)
I recommend that the article be rejected.
Conjunctions
oththe ... oththe
ge ... ge
tha; ... tha:
na: ... na:
thonne ... thonne
nu: ... nu:
gif ... thonne
thæt ... thæt
‘either ... or’
‘both ... and’
‘when ... then’
‘neither ... nor’
‘when ... then’
‘now that’
‘if ... then’
‘that’ (complement clause)
Complex sentence
þœt gefremede Diulius hiora consul, þœt
Þœt
that arranged Diulius their consul COMP that
angin
wearD tidlice
beginning was in.time
Durthogen
achieved
‘Their consul Diulius arranged (it) that it was
started on time.’
Adverbs
N meaning body/appearance > -lic > -ly
friendly
homely
kindly
Word order
(1)
(2)
God beheaded Abraham-e …
God commanded Abraham …
‘God commanded Abraham’
S-V-O.DAT
Þa eode se biscop into þa oþaere cyrcan
then went the bishop into that other church
‘Then the bishop went into the other church.’
ADV-V-S
Word order
(3)
(4)
Wie hie ondredon.
We them feared
‘We feared them’.
S-O-V
Þa ic þa þis eall gemunde,
when I then this all remembered
þa gemunde
ic eac hu …
then remembered I also how
‘When I remembered all this,
then I also remembered how …
Word order
(5)
Gehyrst
þu, sælida?
Hear
you sailor
‘Do you hear, sailor? ’
Pastoral Care
1. King Alfred bids bishop Wærferth to be
greeted with loving and friendly words; and bids
you to know that it very often comes to my mind
what wise men there formerly were throughout
England, both of sacred and secular orders;
Pastoral Care
2. and how happy the times were then
throughout England; and how the kings who
then had power over the people obeyed
God and his ministers;
Pastoral Care
3. and they maintained their peace, their
morality and their power within their borders,
and also increased their kingdom without;
and how they prospered both with war and
with wisdom;
Pastoral Care
4. and also how eager the sacred orders were
about both teaching and learning, and about all
the services that they ought to do for God;
Pastoral Care
5. and how men from abroad came to this land
in search of wisdom and teaching, and how we
now must get them from abroad if we shall
have them.
Pastoral Care
6. So completely had wisdom fallen off in
England that there were very few on this side
of the Humber who could understand their
rituals in English, or indeed could translate a
letter from Latin into English; and I believe
that there were not many beyond the Humber.