Old English: Historical Background

of Britain

the Picts. The first reference to them is made in

us modern Scotland, Scottish, etc.
If the term is taken

of Scotland, the Their language survived.
But in the ninth century

migrations and expansion. Traces of their civilization can be found

expanded to Scotland as Scotch-Gaelic of the Highlands and is

Modern Wales and by Breton or Armorican spoken in modern

Status
Welsh (Cymric) Wales

been through the names of places and rivers. Places such

and 54 B.C.
Caesar attacked Britain for economic reasons: to obtain

the following year was not a great success.
The resistance

much more elaborate preparations. This time he succeeded in establishing

under In 43 A.D. Britain was invaded by Roman legions

under Boudicca (Boadicea), the widow of one of the Celtic

than 300 years. Britain was made a province of Roman

their floors were paved in mosaic. Roman dress, Roman ornaments

were Romanized, but rural areas were less Romanized.
Population in

inscriptions have been found, all of them in Latin. The

Britain who habitually spoke Latin or upon occasion could use

400 years.
It ended in the early 5th century.
In

increased Germanic expansion.
About the middle of the century several

Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum” (Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation). He

British to help them fight against their enemies from the

country.
The Saxons settled all of Southern England except Kent

Hampshire were settled by the Jutes, though the dialect of

was possible to recognize several distinct regions which lead their

most dialect study of this period, though written remains are

indiscriminately. The land was called Saxonia.
But soon the terms

Englisc (English).
The word is derived from the name of

begins to take its place.
It is impossible to say

the 5th and 6th c. spoke closely related dialects belonging

remained disunited.
OE dialects acquired certain common features that distinguished

known as Kent and Surrey and in the Isle of

Thames and the Bristol Channel, except Wales and Cornwall. There

from the Thames to the Humber).

Northumbrian, spoken from the Humber

be movable. None of the dialect was dominant, they enjoyed

to Wessex and the West Saxon dialect is preserved in

material made in runes.
The word “rune” originally meant “secret”,

fixed order making a sort of alphabet. It was called

on a box called the “Franks Casket”
2) a short text

the size of the plates, parts of the jaw have

Franks Casket

go round
Front Side

...
Left Side (a ride) seems easy to every warrior while

the winner takes it all
Back Side
Having procured his client divine

heroic death
Right Side
Erilaz has come up with emblematic pictures and

fight in vain ...
The Lid
The rune master has provided a

it was pulled down and smashed on the instructions of

faces are carved with a series of panels, each one

behind the altar and below the floor level.

cross and He is dressed in the traditional post resurrection

Anglo-Saxons are exceptional in their early use of writing and

in English even if they were written down and survived

down.
Certain traditional features of Anglo-Saxon life, such as the

purchase, agreements, proceedings of church councils, laws.

They are known

the 8th c. but it contains an English fragment of

journey that awaits us all,

No man

8th c.).
It was originally composed in the Mercian or

These are brief account of the year’s happenings made at

a flourishing of learning and literature during King Alfred’s reign.