Before We Start…

• This video sums up many of the ideas we will be discussing this year as well as demonstrates why we should be aware of the history of the English language

History of English Language in 10 Minutes

Anglo-Saxons449-1066

Anglo-Saxons

• What does “Anglo-Saxon England” mean? Key features of this age of warriors: - Anglo-Saxon society developed from kinship

groups led by a strong chief. - The people also farmed, maintained local

governments, and created fine crafts, especially metalwork.

Anglo-Saxons: Oral Tradition and Old English• Christianity eventually replaced the old

warrior religion (Celtic animism), linking England to Continental Europe.

• Monasteries brought learning and literacy and preserved works from the older oral tradition.– What works have you read that were collected

from the oral tradition?• English – not just the Church’s Latin – gained

respect as a written language (Old English).Can you recognize any of the words?Lord’s Prayer in Old English - modern translation

We Don’t Speak Old English, BUT We Can Still Observe Differences in Our Language

• What are some differences that you have observed?

• Any linguistic differences in your family?• What geographic differences you have observed?

– Linguistic Conflicts in America

Invasion of England: An Overview• English traditions and language owe something to each

of the island’s invaders.A. They were first invaded by Iberians, then by the Celts, by the Romans, by the Anglo-Saxons, by the Vikings, and by the Normans (p. 4)

B. Since the time of the Magna Carta (1215) England has been a democracy in theory.

C. America is what it is today due to the influence of English parliamentary government, English literature, and the English language.

BBC Special

Celtic Britain

• Prior to the development of the Anglo Saxon culture, the country was dominated by 27 tribes. Each tribe was made up of several smaller clans; each clan had its own chieftain

No centralized governmentWarfare was very commonBrutal

Celtic Britain• In the 4th Century B.C., the Celts were the first settlers

of what is now Great Britain.• The Celts did not read or write, so our knowledge of

them comes from encounters with the Roman Empire– The Romans were scared of the Celtic Britons; these Britons

were brutal warriors who often decapitated their victims• Celtic Points of View

- Pagan Religion

- The religion of the Celts was a form of Animism – they saw spirits everywhere; worshipof nature gods

These spirits controlled all aspects of existence.The Lost Gods – The Celts

Celtic Britain• Druids – priests who were intermediaries

between man and spirits. 1. Ritual dances 2. Human sacrifices 3. Stonehenge – used of religious rites having

to do with lunar and solar cycles (some people believe)

**Some of these traditions are evident in Anglo-Saxon culture. We will watch for this in Beowulf.

Bards and Druids Link

Celtic Britain

Celtic legends are full of fabulous adventures and strong women.

- Celtic legends created King Arthur-the embodiment of English values.Real Life Strong Celtic Woman: Boudicca

- she is raped and whipped in public; her children are raped…she leads a revolt against the Romans

Boudicca Clip – Horrible Histories

Roman Invasion

• What is the order of the invaders?• The Romans remained in this area for about 100

years. - Romans provided armies and organization that

prevented further serious invasion for some time. 1. Built a network of roads 2. Built a great defensive wall 73 miles

long. 3. Christianity gradually took hold.

Emergence of Anglo-Saxons

• In 449 the Angles and Saxons (from Germany) and Jutes (from Denmark) attacked from the north. The Roman Empire fell in 476 A.D.

- The Celts put up a strong fight before they retreated to Wales.

- One heroic Celtic leader was a Welsh chieftain called Arthur (ruled 526-537).

*In which tales is Arthur the hero?Celtic Wife Swap

Anglo-Saxons• Anglo-Saxon life was dominated by the need to

protect the clan and home against enemies. A. Anglo-Saxons were not barbarians but they were a

warring people. B. The leader was responsible for law and order. He

protected his people.**In return the people must be loyal to the

leader. (This is the only way fame, success, and even survival could be gained.)

Horrible Histories Link

Anglo-Saxons

• Despite the growth of Christianity, the Anglo-Saxon religion remained strong.

A. The Anglo-Saxon religion was concerned with ethics and earthly virtues such as bravery.

B. Important religious figures for the Anglo-Saxons: 1. Woden (Wednesday – god of death,

poetry, and magic. He helped humans communicate with spirits.)

Woden Clip

Anglo-Saxons

• 2. Thunor- god of thunder and lightening. His sign was the hammer and twisted cross.

– Which day of the week is named after this Anglo-Saxon god?

– Which mythological gods and goddesses are you familiar with from other cultures and sources?

• 3. Dragon – protector of the treasure. It was both a personification of “death and

devourer” and guardian of the grave mound.

Anglo-Saxons• Anglo-Saxon poets (bards) held an honored position in

society because they preserved heroic deeds in collective memory.

A. Poetry was as important as fighting, hunting, farming, or loving.

B. Non-Christian Anglo-Saxons, whose religion offered no hope of an afterlife, could only create a defense against death through poetry.

C. Communal halls were used for shelter, meetings, and entertainment. D. The language of the Anglo-Saxons became the dominant language in this area.

Vikings• Norse of Norway and Danes of Denmark =

VIKINGS!!!– Norse invade Northumbria, Scotland, Wales, and

Ireland– The Danes target eastern and southern England• Plundered monasteries and destroyed manuscripts• Destroyed the communities• By the middle of the 9th century, the majority of England

came under their control

Unification of England• King Alfred of Wessex (ruled 871-899), known as Alfred

the Great, was responsible for truly unifying England into a nation.

1. Led the Anglo-Saxons against the invading Danes (fierce Vikings = pirates)

2. Christianity’s re-emergence helped King Alfred succeed by creating a common set of morals. It also linked England to Europe through the language of Latin.

3. Anglo-Saxons fought to protect their people, their culture and their church.

Anglo-Saxons

• The war between the Anglo-Saxons and the Danes (Vikings) continued until 1066 when both were defeated by William, Duke of Normandy (France).

Anglo-Saxons: Oral and Written Language

• The cultural and spiritual influence of monasteries existed right alongside the heroic ideals and traditions of the older Anglo-Saxon religion.

A. When the monks recorded the works from the older oral tradition, they wrote in the language of the people.- When the monks transcribed the oral pagan stories, what changes do you think they made?

B. The principal works of learning were written in Latin. Latin remained the language of “serious” study until the time of King Alfred.

Anglo-Saxons

• End of the Age A. Edward the Confessor, an Anglo-Saxon king,

dies childless. Two men both claim the throne: Harold of England and William of Normandy.

B. William of Normandy defeats Harold at the Battle of Hastings in October of 1066 earning him the name of William the Conqueror.

C. The Anglo-Saxon age is replaced by a ruling government of Normans.

Anglo-Saxons

• King Alfred started the “Anglo-Saxon Chronicle” which was a running history of England until 1154.

- The “Chronicle” was written in English, not Latin. Because of this, English gained

respect as a language of culture.

Anglo-Saxons Review of the Big Ideas

1. Celtic Britons were pagan; the Romans interacted with them and took over their land. Romans became Christianized and this influenced the people of Brittania.

2. Celts end up in the west (Wales).3. Anglo-Saxon tribes (Germanic) lived in a warlike and brutal

environment; the mead hall was a central hang out for the lord and his men.

4. Anglo-Saxons are pagan and people debate their conversion to Christianity (opposite beliefs: heaven, revenge, boastful etc..)

5. Vikings Invade, which results in the Anglo-Saxons viewing themselves as a nation

6. Old English: similar to German, primitive form of modern English

Anglo-Saxons Review of the Big Ideas

7. King Alfred of Wessex Edgar Aethelred, the Unready…8. Normandy is an area of northern France9. Battle of Hastings- southern England – October 106610. William the Conquerer replaces Anglo-Saxon rulers with French rulers11. Feudalism (Medieval Period)

Horrible Histories: Anglo-Saxon Report