AN ETYMOLOGICAL EXAMINATION OF AELFRIC'S

"PASSION OF SAINT SEBASTIAN, MARTYR"

APPROVED!

Miajor Professor

or^jrofessor /f Minors;

e-s-Director of tn<S Department of English

Dean 6f the Graduate School

AN ETYMOLOGICAL EXAMINATION OF AELFRIC'S

"PASSION OF SAINT SEBASTIAN, MARTYR"

THESIS

Presented to the Graduate Council of the

North Texas State University in Partial

Fulfillment of the Requirements

For the Degree of

MASTER OF ARTS

By

Robert A. Henderson, B. A*

Denton, Texas

June, 1966

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter Page

I. INTRODUCTION 1

The Problem and Its Purpose Method of Procedure Limitations

II. WORDS IN CURRENT USAGE 7

Examples of Generalization Examples of Specialization Examples of Degradation Special Examples of Semantic Change

III. ARCHAIC, PROVINCIAL, AND HISTORICAL WORDS . . . 26

Archaic Words Provincial Words Historical Words

IV. OBSOLETE WORDS 40

V. CONCLUSION 48

Suggestions for Further Study

Appendix

I. "PASSION OF SAINT SEBASTIAN, MARTY# 51

II. WORDS IN CURRENT USAGE , 91

III. ARCHAIC, PROVINCIAL, AND HISTORICAL WORDS . . . 100

IV. WORDS WHOSE COGNATES APPEAR NOWHERE IN . . . . 104 MODERN ENGLISH

BIBLIOGRAPHY 106

iii

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

The Problem and Its Purpose

A great deal is known about the word-stock of Mod-

ern English, or the English language since about 1500.

It is no problem, for example, to trace nearly any given

word's etymology or to ascertain significant morpholog-

ical or phonological changes. Even variations in temporal

status, from current to archaic to obsolete, may be found

in any of several excellent unabridged dictionaries of the

language. All of these investigations, however, have one

element in common: they all begin with the modern word

and trace it backwards into the past. If this type of study

has value, as it must for any student of the language, then

to reverse the process, to examine a representative body of

words from Anglo-Saxon, for example, must also have value

and contain a high degree of interest. By tracing these

selected words up through Modern English and denoting any

significant changes in temporal, stylistic, or regional

status, or whether the particular words appear directly in

Modern English with the only changes being those in phonol-

ogy and morphology, one should be able to come to some

significant generalizations.

Method of Procedure

In order to sectore a representative body of words

from Anglo-Saxon which would be sufficiently random and

yet broad enough in scope to permit the drawing of con-

clusions, one of Aelfrlc"s Homilies, the "Passion of

Saint Sebastian, Martyr," was chosen.*" This choice was

fortunate in several ways. The writing itself is short

enough (sixteen pages) to permit a thorough study of each

word contained in it, but Aelfrlc himself was the major

reason for this choice. Writing around the year 1000,

during the beginning of the Monastic Revival, this Bene-

dictine monk is the greatest Old English source for what

is known of the tenth century. He considered himself

chiefly a translator, but White states that he was more

than one who simply replaces words in one language for i

2 / those in another. He was, above all else, a teacher. /

His zeal in his fight against heathenism and against

3

"coarse and subtle superstitions" led him to word his j

sermons on the lives of the saints and his translations

^Aelfrlc, "Passion of Saint Sebastian, Martyr," Aelfric's Lives of Saints, edited by the Reverend Walter W. Skeat for the Early English Text Society (London, 1881), pp. 116-147. For the complete homily and the Mh.E. trans-lation as found in this edition, see Appendix 1.

2 Caroline Louisa White, Aelfrlc: A New Study of His

Life and Writings» edited by Albert S.~CooSc (Boston, TS98), p. 84.

3Ibid. ,

of foreign works in terminology which would be immediately ^ i

xanderstandable to the masses of people for whom he was writ- \ \

ing. This selection, then, was chosen because it is not the ] /

intellectually elite production of a man using pretentious,

uncommon phraseology; it is instead a collection of ordin-

ary, standard Anglo-Saxon words.

This homily or sermon was, then broken down into in-

dividual words so that each one might be studied as a

separate unit. However, the frequency of occurrence of «

each particular word was carefully noted for purposes of

studying possible changes in status. These words, approx-

imately 740 in all, were studied with particular emphasis

in the following areas; temporal status, whether the word

is archaic, obsolete, or current, and if it is archaic,

whether it is found currently in certain works for literary

effect; stylistic status, whether the word is slang or

colloquial; and regional status, whether the word is found

only in certain English provincial dialects, Scottish dia-

lects, or others.

Concerning source materials, several excellent dic-

tionaries were used. First, Holthausen's Altengllsches

Etymologisches Wdrterbuch^ was used for its excellent cross-

references from Old English to Modern English. Those words

4 F. Holthausen* Altenglisches Etymologlsches WiJrter-

buch (Heidelberg, 1934).

not covered in Holthausen were then checked in Hall's

5

Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, which proved to be excellent

for its italicized Modern English equivalents of the

Anglo-Saxon words. Finally, with varying degrees of sue-6

cess, Bosworth's dictionary, Joseph Wright's The English 7

Dialect Dictionary, and Skeat's An Etymological Diction-8

ary of the English Language were consulted for the words

not found in previous investigations. Strangely enough,

it was found that by doing some judicious guessing of

what a word might have become in Modern English through

normal sound changes many of the words were found in Web-9

ster's Third New International Dictionary. When nearly

all of the words had been traced forward to their Modern

English cognates or to their provincial cognates, The Oxford

English Dictionary served as a sole and invaluable guide "*John R. Clark Hall, A Concise Anglo-Saxon Dictionary

for the Use of Students (New York, 1916).

Joseph Bosworth, Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, edited by T. Northcote Toller (LondSn, 189^.

^Joseph Wright- editor, The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols. (London, 1896).

8 Rev. Walter W. Skeat, An Etymological Dictionary of

The English Language (Oxford, 1910)". g Philip B. Gove, chief editor, Webster's Third New

Internationa1 Dictionary (Springfield, 1961).

^^Henry Bradley, W. A. Craigie, James A. H. Murray, and C. T. Onions, editors. The Oxford English Dictionary, 12 vols. (Oxford, 1961).

in ascertaining more specific information about each

individual word.

From this wealth of information, finally, this study

has been formulated. Three major divisions have been

drawn: (1) Archaic, Provincial, and Historical, (2) Obsolete,

and (3) Modern. A representative body of words from each

group will be analyzed, and conclusions will be made at

the terminus of each chapter; these conclusions shall be

then re-examined and re-analyzed at the end of this study.

Of course, it must be understood that not all of the 740

words would fit nicely into one of three categories.

Several were found to appear nowhere in Modern English,

either as current, archaic, or obsolete; nor could they

be found in any provincial dialects. Therefore, these

words have not been examined in detail but have instead

been included in Appendix IV.

Limitations

Of course, to have any far-reaching significance, an

etymological investigation must have a broader and more

diverse background than that from which this study is drawn.

The limitations of studying one short work by one author,

however representative his vocabulary may be, are obvious.

Also, the fact that only one specific expanse of time is

considered places certain restrictions upon the value of

such a study. Nevertheless, it is felt that, beyond a

6

certain interest which this investigation may hold for

linguists, several worthy conclusions may be reached,

and more specific direction may be imparted to other,

more expansive, studies of this type to follow.

Finally, in pursuing a study of linguistics rather

than attempting to answer a purely literary question or

to prove a purely literary point, one is open to the

charge of turning out "hack work," or research for the

sake of research. It appears, however, that a basic love

of the language and a strong curiosity to see where our

modern vocabulary comes from and why it is in its present

state, linguistically speaking, are reasons enough for

any close examination of language as language and not

merely as a vehicle for thought.

CHAPTER II

WORDS IN CURRENT USAGE

In any discussion of the vocabulary of Modern Eng-

lish, it must be noted that the word-stock is composed

of three distinct types of wordsj those derived from Old

English, those borrowed from any other language, and those

which have been made up at any given time from materials

already in the language. These types, however, are not

separate and distinct, because even in Old English words

were borrowed from other languages or were formed by

combination. Since this study is concerned with the ele-

ment of Old English in Modern English, therefore, any

word appearing in Aelfric's sermon will be treated as a

part of the Old English word-stock, no matter what the

original source may have been.

Of the approximately 740 words studied, regardless

of frequency of occurrence, those which are found in cur-

rent use in Modern English number 425, or 60 per cent of

the total. At first glance, this figure might appear to

be reversible; in other words, one might suspect the

Modern English vocabulary to be 60 per cent Old English.

This assumption is, however, incorrect because of the tre-

mendous borrowing that has taken place in English. Up

8

until the Norman Conquest, Old English had remained rel-

atively stable. As Stuart Robertson puts it*

In short, the native vocabulary was generally adequate to the life of the times, and it took a social cataclysm, the Norman Conquest, to open it after more than a century to any large number of foreign words.1

Once this process had begun, he goes on, the vocabulary

acquired more and more foreign words, and the native stock o

dwindled. To determine approximately what percentage of

the Modern English word-stock is composed of Old English,

R. G. Kent counted a part of the dictionary that is in

active use: A count of this kind, based on 20,000 words in com-mon, present use, makes the Anglo-Saxon element less than one fifth, and the Greco-Latin (including the French) element more than three fifths. The larger the number of words counted, the greater would be the proportion of borrowed words, especially those from Latin and Greek.3

To repeat, then, the preponderance of borrowing explains

the surprising difference between the great number of

Anglo-Saxon words which appear in Modern English and the

relatively small percentage of the total which they com-

prise. This is not to say, however, that the Anglo-Saxon

element is not without great significance.

If, instead of counting different words only, but

rather counting the frequency of occurrence of words in

''"Stuart Robertson, The Development of Modern English, revised by Frederic G. Cassidy (New York, 1954), p. 149.

2Ibid. 3Ibid., p. 173.

writing or conversation,

the proportions just cited are reversed. . . . The words most often repeated . . . are of native origin. . . . Of the 500 words most frequently used in present-day English . . . the native words are 72 per cent, the borrowed 28 per cent.

One may assume, then, that the native words are still at

the core of the language.

Since those Anglo-Saxon words which are in current

use, disregarding for the moment those which have become

archaic, provincial, obsolete, or historical, are still

of such significant value, it should prove profitable to

examine these words closely to see what changes they have

undergone. But since a complete study of even such a

restricted body of words as that upon which this examina-

tion is based would produce a many-volumed work, narrowing

the discussion becomes of primary importance.

The choice of specialization is, obviously, quite

dependent upon one's interest and upon the purpose for

which the given body of words is studied. With such areas

as orthography, or spelling; phonology, or changes in sound;

morphology, or the forms of words; syntax; and semantics

from which to choose, it was felt that a thorough-going

analysis of the semantics of the Old English words as com-

pared to the meanings of their Modern English cognates

would be of most value. At this point, a more thorough

4Ibid.. p. 174.

10

discussion of what is meant by semantics would be profit-

able for the reader and as a base of reference for future

organization.

The study of meaning in language is called Semasiology or Semantics. The latter term, however, has recently been used widely to refer to what is prooerly called General Semantics, a study allied more closely tOcthe field of philosophy than to that of linguistics."

The term semantics does, however, have application in the

field of linguistics; it is limited in that field to a

description of the meanings of words or to the meaning-

changes that occur in words examined historically, as is

the case in this study. For purposes of unity, then, 6

General Semantics will not be a topic for discussion.

Of course the word meaning itself creates difficulties.

What a word means will vary among users of that word at

any given time; what an infatuated teen-ager and a mature,

middle-aged adult would define as "love" would probably

not be recognizable as the same emotion. Yet even more

than this relatively insignificant example, language is

in constant change. Words die out, become archaic, or

even remain in the language with completely different

definitions. However, "change of meaning . . . though

5Ibid., p. 232.

^Margaret M. Bryant gives a brief but valuable discussion of General Semantics in Modern English and Its Heritage (New York, 1962), pp. 3U9-313.

11

usually unpredictable, is not utterly arbitrary. . . .

7

It often proceeds along familiar paths."

It is with these "familiar paths" that this study is

more intensely concerned, for they will provide the basis

of organization in dealing with specific words taken from

Aelfric. Although Thomas pyles lists several interesting

and unusual directions of word change such as "Changes Due

To Social Class," "The Vogue For Words Of Learned Origin,"

"Association Of Ideas," "Sound Associations," and "The O

Fate Of Intensifying Words," the four most commonly cited

semantic divisions, generalization, specialization, eleva-

tion (amelioration), and degradation (pejoration), will be

most useful for this examination.

Generalization may be defined as a change in which the

area or scope or a word is altered. In this case, a word

which has normally referred to a narrow, specialized sub-

ject becomes "generalized" or broadens its scope. Special-

ization is exactly the opposite; a word that has referred

broadly or inclusively begins to narrow its range.

Elevation and degradation "involve the rising or fall-9

ing of meaning in a scale of values." One must not, however,

^Robertson, p. 235.

^Several major divisions found in Pyle's chapter, MWords and Meanings." Thomas Pyles, The Origins and Development

:he English Language (New York, 19d4), pp. 309-320.

of the

9 Robertson, p. 241.

12

confuse the word with the thing it stands for. Robertson

states that the words themselves are not good or bad; only

the meanings they possess may be considered to have had a

value judgment imposed upon them.^

This leads finally into a discussion of the actual

words included in this chapter--those Old English words

taken from Aelfric's sermon which are found to have direct

cognates in Modern English. When these words were studied

with a view to semantic change, however, it was found that

only a very small portion of them underwent any change in

meaning whatsoever, beyond those nuances too subtle to be

catalogued here. Therefore, only those twenty-eight words

which underwent a significant change in meaning were studied,

and they are listed below.^ It is to be especially noted

in the following listing that the definition given for

each word is that as used by Aelfric; in cases of an unusual

sense of a word, the most common definition as found in

Bosworth's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary has been included,

Sdela "filth, sewer" dwelian "err"

aegber "either" faran "go"

boc "book" feoh "money"

cweban "say, speak" f5t-laest "foot-step"

d5m "judgment" fyrst "respite"

i0ibid.

^For a complete list of current words, see Appendix II.

13

ftehaeftan

ftehlwian

gelaeccan

gemetan

gesa*elig

gescead

gesiht

had

hraebe

"detain"

"form"

"apprehend"

"find"

"blessed"

"discernment"

"presence"

"order, person"

"speedily"

Idelnes

leas

lust

ofstingan

swin^ell

tld

tihtan

"vanity"

"falsehood"

"pleasure"

"stab"

"stripe"

"season, time"

"charge with offense"

"custom" fceaw

wifrer-winna "adversary"

Examples of Generalization

There were found to be only three examples of gen-

eralization in the grouping: dom, geslht, and idelnes.

Pom followed normal sound changes to become doom in Modern

English, and it still retains the meaning "judgment."

However, other meanings which are current and which did not

exist in Aelfric's time are "Last Judgment," "fate," "ruin,"

and "death." The definition "justice, righteousness" has

become obsolete, and there exists a historical use of doom

to mean "statute" or "law."

The noun gesiht is found in Modern English as sights

but, like so many other Anglo-Saxon words with cognates

in Modern English, its fundamental meaning, "presence,

vision, aspect," is obsolete. Currently, the word is found

to have generalized into such varied definitions as "the

power of seeing," "range of vision," "something striking

14

or remarkable," and several others. Some of the more

interesting definitions which are colloquial or provincial

are "a great deal," "spectacles" in the plural, and "the

pupil of the eye."

Idelnes, Mn.E. idleness, is an excellent example of

generalization. While the Modern English term retains the

meaning "vanity" as in the adjective phrase "idle pleasures,"

the word also has come to mean "emptiness, vacancy, base-

lessness," and even "futility." There also exists a use

of the word, probably the most common, "inactiveness."

Examples of Specialization

The tendency for words to specialize, it was found,

had more numerous examples than did any other direction

of semantic change. In fact, of the twenty-eight words

listed, nineteen exhibited a specialization of meaning in

the change from Old to Modern English. Sdela, originally

used in the generic sense of "filth" or occasionally

"sewer," is used only in a figurative sense in Modern English

and is found in compounds such as addle-cap, addle-headed,

or addle-pated. Although the etymology is uncertain, there

was an adl, meaning "disease," in Old English. It would

appear that adela and adl are related; this relationship

would explain the sense of "diseased" in a statement such

as the following: "He was addled by the force of the blow."

How addle gained its present meaning of "weak in intellect"

15

is also uncertain. The word does still exist in its orig-

12

inal sense, however, in Scotland and in English dialects,

Aegfoer» "either," originally had the meaning "each of two,"

but in the fourteenth century, the word assumed a dis-

junctive sense of "one or the other of two." This sense

has so far prevailed in Modern English that such expres-

sions as "on either side" meaning "on both sides" are felt

to be archaic and ambiguous. The verb cwefran, while it 13

exists in an archaic sense as quoth, has another deriv-

ative in Modern English, bequeath, from which is formed the

noun bequest. Bequeath has lost all of its meanings save

that "to give or leave by will," but it is interesting to

note that the word once meant "to say," a direct link with

the Old English use of the verb. Other meanings which are

now obsolete are "to assign or transfer" and "to commit,

commend, or devote."

Dwelian is a later form of O.E. dwellan and, of course,

it comes into Modern English as dwell, but the semantic

change is very curious. Aelfric uses the word to mean "to

err" or "to be led into error." Other meanings were "mis-

lead," "hinder," and "tarry." It appears that this last

intransitive "tarry" has formed the basis for the present

use of the word; however, instead of the transitory denotations 12See Chapter III.

13 See Chapter III.

16

associated with that definition, the present dwell has

adopted a sense of "permanence." When one "dwells," he

"abides," and the assumption is that he has little in-

tention of leaving. Also, in a figurative sense, when

one "dwells upon a topic" he "tarries."

Faran becomes fare in Modern English, and the mean-

ing of the word has changed very little. The current

uses of the verb are "to go," "to be in any state," "to

happen or turn out," and "to partake of fare, be enter-

tained." However, it is interesting to note that almost

all of the substantive forms of the word are obsolete;

"a going," "a journey," "a voyage," "a company of persons

making a journey" and other definitions have become ob-

solete. Aside from the meaning "provisions for the table,"

the only other two current uses of the noun form are as-

sociated with public conveyances. When a cab driver, for

example, speaks of his "fare," he may mean either the

price of the ride or the person whom he is carrying.

Fot-laest meant "foot-step" or "foot-trace," but the

only use found in Modern English of the second element

of the compound, respelied in Mh.E. last, denotes the

wooden or metal block shaped like a human foot over which

a shoe-maker forms the shoe uppers. Fyrst is directly

related to Mn.E. first, but the etymology is so confusing

as to leave considerable room for doubt. Aelfric uses the

word to mean "respite," and another definition for the O.E.

17

word is "space of time.n However, in Modern English

first has a much more specific meaning than simply an

indefinite space of time. It means "that which is before

all others." Somehow this "space of time" or "respite"

must have come to refer to some specific period of such

importance that it was deemed of ultimate significance.

The adjectival and adverbial uses of first would then

follow.

Gehaeftan comes into Modern English as haft, "to

furnish with a haft or handle," "set in a haft." Orig-

inally meaning "to detain, take, or bind," the Modern

English derivative is used most often in a substantive

sense, "a handle, especially of a cutting instrument."

Gehlwian has no direct cognate verb in Modern English,

but the root form hlw becomes Mn.E. hue, a noun meaning

"color" or "quality of color." An archaic use of hue

is "complexion," but the meaning most akin to the orig-

inal sense of the verb, "to form, fashion, make," is an

obsolete definition "form, figure, appearance." This word

is not to be confused with hew, which derives from heawan

and which means "to shape with cutting blows." Gelaeccan

went into Middle English as i-lacchen; from this M. E.

verb derive the Mn.E. noun latch, "a device for holding a

door, gate, or the like fastened," and the verb latch, "to

close or fasten with a latch." These definitions are

obviously specializations from the original meaning "to

18

take" or "apprehend." However, there does exist a use of

latch in provincial English which retains the original

sense of the verb; and in Shakespeare's Macbeth, a line

appears in which latch is used in the sense "to apprehend":

"I have words/That would be howl'd out in the desert air,/ 14

Where hearing should not latch them." Gemetan becomes

meet in Modern English; the semantic change is subtle but

easily observable. Aelfric uses the word to mean "to find,

find out, discover." The connotation of deliberate search-

ing is evident. In Modern English, however, meet has a

specific sense of "coming together," usually with a de-

liberate plan. When two people are involved, they do not

"discover" one another; they simply encounter. Gescead,

"discernment," "distinction," or "separation," becomes

Mn.E. shed, but again the specialization of meaning is very

striking. The substantive shed in Modern English has only

two meanings; a "water-shed" and, in weaving, "the opening

between the sets of warp-threads for the passage of the

shuttle and the weft-thread." It is observable that in

both these meanings the idea of separation still exists.

Also, in provincial England and Scotland, a shed is a part-

ing in the hair. Of course, there is a verb-form of this

word in Modem English, spelled the same as the noun, but

it too has lost the original meaning, the sense "to separate

14Act IV, scene iii, line 195.

19

or divide" existing only in a verb-form found in provincial

England or Scotland.

Had, meaning "a person," "class," or even "sex," now

exists only as the suffix -hood or -head, as in maidenhood

or Godhead. Leas, like had, is found in Modern English only

as the suffix -less, meaning "free from," "without," and

"destitute of." The original sense, "falsehood," is largely

lost, but it is suggested by the negative quality of the

suffix. A less closely related Hn.E. cognate is loose;

and there exists a word leasing, "lying speech" or "a lie,"

in archaic English or Scottish and northern English dialects.

Ofstlngan, Hn.E. sting, also has become specialized.

In Aelfric's time it meant "to stab" or "wound." A sting

in modern usage is usually not of such grave consequence.

Swinge11, which comes into Modern English with no spelling

change, meant "a stripe" or a "stroke with a rod." In

current use, it means a definite kind of stroke—that of a

swingell beating flax.

The definition of tlhtan, "to charge a person with an

offense," would make one hesitant to equate the word with

Mn.E. tighten, "to stretch, draw, or pull," but the two

words do appear to be cognates. Although the etymology is

uncertain, one would suspect that the usual transition from

literal to figurative has been reversed in this case and

that a general meaning of accusation or "tightening" the

bonds of the law, perhaps, has specialized.

20

Wifrer-winna meant "an adversary" or "one who con-

tends against another." Winna has no Mn.E. cognate

except a remote relation to the rare Mn.E. substantive

win, meaning "a victory;" but wiber, meaning "against,"

15

becomes, strangely enough, withers. Another example

of specialization, withers means "that which is against

the strain of the collar--the highest part of a horse•s

back." Finally, freaw, Mn.E, thew, is a curious specimen

of unusual semantic change. Aelfric uses the word to

mean "custom, habit.11 From this definition, the plural

form of the noun came to mean "physical qualities," or

"features.» From this point, through specialization,

only those qualities or bodily powers of a man were

designated by thews, and it is this last definition which

exists today. Even the sense "bodily powers" has been

specialized to mean "muscles" or "sinews." Teddy Roose-

velt in his Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail uses thews

in this sense: "The long walks and our work as cragsmen 1 g

hardened our thews."

Examples of Degradation

While no striking examples of the elevation of any

words were found, two interesting instances of degradation

or pejoration did occur. Robertson says that "the usual

^See Appendix III.

IS H. G. Emery and K. G. Brewster, editors, The New

Century Dictionary. 2 vols. (New York, 1948).

21

view of degradation and elevation has been that the down-

17

ward path is far the more common«" While the infor-

mation in this essay is far from conclusive, it is of

interest that a generalization may be formed which cor-

responds with the "usual view." Another humorous, but

telling, point which Robertson makes regarding degradation

is that "it is hard to escape the conclusion that there 18

is a disagreeable commentary on human nature here."

One may see, he adds, in any number of words which have

pejorated "the workings of human motives like suspicion, 19

contempt, and general pessimism."

Aelfric uses gesaelig to mean "blessed." In the

year 1000 A.D. it could also mean "happy" or "fortunate,"

depending upon the presence or absence of a religious

significance. Strange as it may seem, the Modern English

equivalent of this adjective is silly} Somehow in the

past, the sense of "goodness," "innocence," or "harmless-

ness" associated with gesaelig was equated with "help-

lessness," "weakness," or "frailty." In fact, silly

exists in Scottish and northern dialects at the present

with the meanings "feeble," "sickly," and "deserving of

pity." There are also archaic uses of silly as "simple-

minded," "ignorant," and "homely." From all this jumble ^Robertson, p. 244. ^Ibid. 19lbid., p. 245.

22

of meanings, silly has come to mean in Modern English

"deficient in strength of intellect," quite a long drop

from the original "blessed." A direct cognate of Resaelis

which retains the original meaning is Modern German selig,

"blessed, happy, blissful, blest." It is amusing, however,

to note that the Germans have a colloquial use for the word:

"fuddled" or "tipsy." It makes one wonder.

The second example of pejoration is lust, and al-

though it does not have so fascinating an etymological

history as does gesaelig, its semantic change is Just as

striking. Originally meaning "pleasure" or "desire," it

now means "sensuous, passionate, usually sexual, appetite

or passion."

Special Examples of Semantic Change

There are four words, boc, feoh, hraebe» and tid,

which while they may or may not fit in one of the four

previously listed directions of semantic change are

unusual enough to have been given a more specific sec-

tion in this chapter.

Boc, for example, underwent no semantic change from

Old English to Modern English. It meant "book" in Aelfric's

time, and its present definition is "book." However, it

did undergo a highly interesting change before Aelfric's

time. The smooth, gray bark of the beech tree (O.E. bece)

was once used as writing material; hence, the two words

23

bece and boc, especially its plural, bee, came to be used

in the same sense, or "that which contains written material."

When one examines feoh, Mn.E. fee, and sees that it

meant simultaneously "money" and "cattle or living animals"

in Anglo-Saxon, he may become confused until he remembers

that, for ancient peoples, the barter of goods, especially

livestock, far preceded the representation of those goods

by tokens such as what modern people call "money."

Hraebe, Mn.E. rather, has lost the sense of "speedily"

or "more quickly" but has retained the adverbial meaning

"more readily" or "willingly" in such a sentence as "I

would rather fight than switch." Also, the comparative

degree survives, signified by the final r; this is the rea-

son why such a definition as "more quickly" exists instead

of simply "quickly." Another definition for rather is "on

the other hand." The adverbial phrase the rather meaning

"all the more" is in current use, while a definition of that

phrase, "the more quickly," has become obsolete. Finally,

a subtle observation but one which has considerable sig-

nificance is that when one says something like "I'd rather

do it myself," he is actually saying, "lid just as soon do

it myself." The persisting connotation of time, a hold-

over from the original definition "more quickly," is very

definite.

24

The last word, tid, becomes Mn.E. tide through normal

sotand change, and again, following an established pattern,

has lost its definition "time" upon entering Modern English.

It does appear with the meaning of "time" in certain com-

pounds such as wintertide, noontide, Christmastide, and

yuletide, although its users are probably not aware of its

meaning. There are some archaic uses of tide: "a particular

point in time," "suitable moment or occasion," and "indefinite

time." The major current definitions of tide are concerned

with the rise and fall of waters, especially that of the

sea; in this word, even more than in rather, the sense of

time may be seen. When fishing people, especially, speak

of the "tides" they are unconsciously telling a kind of

time. Poetically, even the waters of the sea are referred

to by tide, and, of course, the figurative sense of a "tide

of opposition" is in very common use.

From the information presented, three conclusions may

be drawn. First, the most common direction in semantic

change is obviously, for this study, that of specialization.

More often than not, a word will lose its generic meaning

and begin to refer to a more narrow field or area. Also,

it appears to be a pattern that words often lose their orig-

inal meanings entirely when they come into Modern English, .

if they undergo any semantic change at all. If the meaning

is retained, it may be only in a subtle suggestion or con-

notation in the modern word. Finally, it may be observed,

25

without sufficient evidence for proof, that words tinder-

going a change in moral values often experience degradation

rather than elevation. Any observations on human nature will

be left to the philosopher or psychologist.

CHAPTER III

ARCHAIC, PROVINCIAL, AND HISTORICAL WORDS

Excluding the previously discussed body of words

which have definite cognates in Modern English, the re-

maining compilation, amounting to 35 per cent of the

total 740 words, must be further divided. Of this 35 per

cent, nearly 12 per cent are in occasional use and may be

loosely grouped into three categories: archaic, provincial,

and historical.

The words which are considered archaic, while they do

not appear in current, everyday use in Modern English, have

been retained in the English word-stock. The reason is

largely due to their occasional use by major writers for

the purpose of achieving the pleasingly odd effect gained

by the utilization of such an antiquated vocabulary. For

example, Shelley in his "Stanzas--April 1814" uses ere,

"before," for poetic expediency: "But thy soul or this

world must fade in the frost/that binds the dead,/Ere mid-

night's frown and morning's smile, ere/thou and peace may

meet." (line 16)

In many cases, words which were once used in broad,

widely scattered areas have since become obsolete except

in scattered provincial dialects, especially northern.

26

27

In assigning provincial words to certain geographical areas

such as Northumberland, Cheshire, Westmoreland, Scotland,

Ireland, and others, Joseph Wright's The English Dialect

Dictionary proved to be an indispensable, though limited,

aid. It is limited in that Wright will often not spec-

ify in which dialects a word may be found, usually simply

saying that & given word has a "dialectal" use. Although

regrettable, this lack of information is probably due to

the use of certain words in such scattered dialects as to

make pinpointing those dialects impossible. However,

enough information was gained about the areas in which

these provincial words may be found to make some interest-

ing generalizations possible. Of thirty-nine words studied,

for example, it was observed that fifteen different geo-

graphical areas were represented, with some noticeable

overlapping. Of course, it must be noted that in almost

every case a word will appear in at least two dialects or

as many as seven. Finally, the fifteen areas were narrowed

to the five most frequently occurring among the words exam-

ined; all five areas were found to be either in Scotland

or in northern England. It is of considerable interest

that the instances in which Wright lists Scotland as the

provincial region amount to 60 per cent of the total and

that over 30 per cent of the other listings occur in north-

ern England. It appears, then, that the people of northern

28

England and, Scotland, for one reason or another, cling

very tenaciously to the ancient forms of their language.

The third major category, historical, is self-

explanatory. To permit them to talk about the history

of the Anglo-Saxons, historians have retained a consider-

able number of Old English words which refer to concepts

or institutions not easily definable in modern termin-

ology. For example, wltan refers to the members of the

Anglo-Saxon tribal or national council, or witenagemot.

There also exists, however, a verb wltan, meaning "know,

behold, see," and a wltega is a "wise man" or "prophet."

These words are so closely related that an attempt to

discuss the national council, for example, would be nearly

impossible without the understanding and use of these

various terms.

At first glance, these three categories appear to be

well-defined, separate, and distinct. In actuality, how-

ever, they are woefully inadequate. Any given word may

fit one, or two, or all three of the groupings. It may

have also undergone noticeable morphological, phonological,

or semantic changes. An excellent example of a word ex-

tremely difficult to categorize is aefrele, an O.E. adjective

meaning "noble" or "nobly born." It became the substantive

athel in Middle English and meant "prince" or "noble."

However, the word is now obsolete in all meanings in Modern

English but is found with its original substantive form

29

and sense in Scotland. To add to the confusion, there is

an historical term, atheling, which stands for an "Anglo-

Saxon prince or nobleman" and which is in limited current

use. Obviously, depending upon usage, this word would fall

into any of the three groups.

Regardless of the obvious limitations of the class-

ifications, those words which will be analyzed in this

study and which are representative of the total ninety-

five have been grouped into the previously discussed

categories for purposes of general reference. For a com-

plete list of all ninety-five words, their definitions,

and cognates, see Appendix 111.

Archaic Words

Of many of the words classified as archaic, little

may be said except that they followed normal sound change

and have often retained a meaning closely akin to that of

their Old English cognates. As far as their effect upon

Modern English is concerned, anyone who is familiar with

English literature, especially with the works of such

Romantic poets as Coleridge, Shelley, Keats, or Byron,

will have experienced the enchanting, dream-like thoughts

of another world which a sensitive use of an antiquated

vocabulary may create. No lover of language would suggest,

if he could, that Coleridge have the ancient Mariner re-

lease the Wedding-Guest immediately, instead of "eftsoons."

30

Some of the words, then, which would be roost recognizable

as having been used in literature for an archaic effect

are Mn.E. ere "early" derived from O.E. aer; betwixt,

a colloquial and poetic way of saying "between" which is

a cognate of O.E. betwux; ye, respelled from O.E. ge and

defined "you"; an archaic form of often, O.E. oft; and

sooth, surviving in such terms as forsooth and soothfast

to mean "truth, reality, or fact." Sooth is also found

in an adverbial sense; all forms, however, derive from

O.E. sob.

Other archaisms are not so frequently found in

literature but are still not devoid of significance,

Acwellan, for example, enters Modern English as quell.^

In this sense, the word has a non-violent meaning, "to

overpower, quiet, or pacify." However, as late as 1817,

Lord Byron in Manfred used quell in its original sense,

"to kill": "I never quell'd an enemy, save in my just

2

defense." O.E. bodian "to preach" is currently found

in Mn.E. bode in an intransitive sense "to give presage"

or "promise." While good or evil may be promised, Mn.E.

bode also has an archaic, transitive meaning synonymous

with "portend." The ominous connotations of "portend"

*"See Appendix II.

2 The Oxford English Dictionary. Hereafter all

quotations or specific literary references, unless otherwise specified, will be from this work.

31

may give some hint as to the kind of preaching the Anglo-

Saxons had to listen to. While O.E. cweban has the cognate

bequeath in Modern English, there is an archaic use of

cweban, quoth, in the first and third persons, past tense.

In this use, it means "said" or "spoke," but there is an

obsolete use of quoth with you or jre in interrogation;

here it meant "forsooth" or "indeed" and was meant to be

taken ironically. The substantive form of the O.E. verb

gearcian "prepare" is found in Mn.E. gear with the meaning,

among others, "apparatus" or "appliances generally." It

seems unusual, therefore, that a substantive with a meaning

so close to the original sense of the O.E. verb would not

have a verb form in Modern English. The verb gear "to equip"

has, however, become archaic--merely another example of

the tendency of English toward change and toward the

luxuriance of substituting foreign synonyms for the native

terms.

The O.E. verb hatan "to be called or named" has under-

gone unusual temporal change. Like cweban, which has become

obsolete in all forms and tenses except quoth and which

has a Mn.E. cognate bequeath» hatan is obsolete in all forms

and meanings, except hight, past tense and past participle

as used archaically and poetically. Here it retains the

original meaning of "to be called or named"; there is also

a Scottish use of hight» "to promise, to assure.11

3 See Chapter II,

32

Mis-laeran, root form laeran, meant "to teach wrongly,"

laeran, of course, signifying "to impart or acquire know-

ledge." In this sense, laeran is obsolete. However, in

archaic Scottish is found the word lere, which is a direct

cognate of laeran and which means "to learn." In the Scot-

tish songs "Whistle-Binkie" dating from around 1850, a use

of lere (or leir) appears with the meaning "learn"; "•Twas

4

then we sat on ae laigh bink,/To leir ilk ither lear."

Orgellxce is another archaic term which may be found

in a more well-known literary context. Originally meaning,

in an adverbial form, "haughtily, proudly, arrogantly," it

appears in Shakespeare with the adjectival meaning "proud"

or "arrogant": "In T£oy there lies the scene. From isles

of Greece/the princes orgulous, their high blood chafed,/

Have to the port of Athens sent their ships,/Fraught with

the ministers and instruments/Of cruel war.

Pxnlan is similar to aewe1lan in that it has a definite

cognate in Modern English, but the original meaning of pin-

ian "to torment, torture" has, like that of Icwellan, become

archaic or provincial. Mn.E. pine comes from pxnian and

demonstrates an obvious weakening from the original tran-

sitive sense of the O.E. verb.

"The Oxford English Dictionary.

^William Shakespeare, "Troilus and Cressida," Shakespeare, The Complete Works, edited by G. £• Harrison (New York, l f ~ ~ "Prologue," lines 1-5.

33

An interesting conclusion to be drawn from observation

of certain words which are archaic in any or all of their

meanings, exemplified by Mn.E. pine and quelle is that an

O.E. transitive verb with a violent meaning, if it survives

at all, will often have a cognate which has become intran-

sitive and which has lost its original violent sense. Of

course, exceptions will be found, but the change does appear

to be of significant frequency.

Provincial Words

The following selection of terms is broadly repre-

sentative of most of the words in this study which are

provincial or dialectal. The first, addle, is a Scottish

word derived from O.E. adela "filth, sewer.11 While addle

6

is found in Modern English in certain compounds, the

original literal meaning has been largely lost. Scottish

addle, however, has retained the sense of the O.E. word.

It is defined variously as "putrid or stagnant water,"

"urine of black cattle," "tumor," or "rotten, putrid."

O.E. afllgan "put to flight" survives in Scottish afley

in a generalized sense "to dismay, discomfit." It is

largely obsolete except in the past participle, afleyed.

The O.E. substantive ahte "possessions" is related to agan

"to own, possess." The noun form is found in Scottish and

Irish dialects as aught and means "property, possessions."

^See Chapter II.

34

It is interesting to note, however, that when applied to

persons aught is used in a contemptuous Sense; an obstin-

ate, ill-conditioned child may be spoken of as a "bad aught."

Beniman "to deprive" is similar to afligan in that the only

current use found of the O.E. verb is in the past parti-

ciple form. In North Riding of Yorkshire, a specialized

meaning of beniman is found in benimmed "taken hastily on

the sly."

A striking example of specialization is cothe, found

widely in a dialectal use. Derived from O.E. cobu "disease,"

cothe now signifies only "disease of cattle, sheep." In

this sense it may be compared to addle in the latter's

definition of "urine of black cattle."

O.E. fordon "destroy" has a possible cognate in Scot-

tish fordone, meaning "exhausted, tired out, worn out."

Although no etymology was found on either word, it is a

reasonable supposition that they are related and that the

change followed the now familiar pattern of from transitive

and violent to intransitive with a loss of the violent

meaning. Another word for which there is little etymolog-

ical information is foregleaw, an O.E. adjective used by

Aelfric to mean "having prescience of" or "foreseeing."

Wright lists a word glow as a possible cognate of the Old

English term. If his information is correct, then the

provincial term glow is an unusual example of a change

in meaning from figurative to literal; from "seeing into

35

the future," the word now signifies the actual use of the

eyes. In the same connection, a Mn.E. word glower "to look

angrily" or "scowl" may be assumed to have a definite re-

lation with the provincial glow; although again no specific

etymology could be found on glower, the two words are simi-

lar enough to make one believe they are cognates, the only

semantic change being that of specialization.

0.E. gedreccan "to vex, afflict" interestingly enough

went into Middle English as drecchen "to delay, tarry,

linger." A further weakening of meaning is evident in

the Scottish term dretch "to go heavily and reluctantly" or

"to dawdle, linger." While having undergone the familiar

shift to an intransitive sense, the word's semantic change

is remarkable, O.E. hwene, an adjective meaning "little,

few," is found relatively unchanged in Scot, wheen "a few,

number, or quantity." A use of this term is found in the

7

sentence "He has a wheen stout lads at his back."

Wunian "to inhabit, dwell, abide" is found to have

cognate in the Scottish verb won "to dwell, abide, stay."

Robert Burns speaks of "auld Rob Morris that wons in yon O

glen." Another example of the use of won (in this case,

worming) is found in Thomas Hardy's short poem "On an

Invitation to the United States" and is an excellent 7 The Hew Century Dictionary 8 The Oxford English Dictionary

36

instance of the use of an archaic or provincial word for

poetic effect:

For, wonning in these ancient lands, Enchased and lettered as a tomb, And scored with prints of perished hands, And chronicled with dates of doom, Though my own Being bear no bloom I trace the lives such scenes enshrine, Give past exemplars present room, „ And their experience count as mine.

Hardy could as easily have said, "For, dwelling in these

ancient lands." But as the editors of the volume containing

this poem have so excellently pointed out,

That would have expressed at the literal level exactly what he says in the line as it stands now; but the line would have lost a very rich part of its connotative meaning. The use of wonning connects by implication the poem to the Anglo-Saxon past of England; it gives an added meaning to ancient in the same line.10

Other cognates of O.E. wunian are Modern German wohnen

"to live, dwell" and a Hn.E. verb wont "accustomed." Also,

although used most frequently in a poetic sense, the sub-

stantive wont may be used as signifying "custom, habit,

practice."

The final word of this group to be discussed is O.E.

ylca or ilea "the same." This word becomes ilk and appears

now chiefly in the originally Scottish phrase "of that ilk."

Because it was often used to mean "of the same family,"

9 Thomas Hardy, "On an Invitation to the United

States," lines 9-16.

^Cleanth Brooks, John Thibaut Purser and Robert Perm Warren, editors, An Approach to Literature (New York, 1964), p. 337.

37

ilk is often erroneously used as a noun to mean "family,"

"class," or "kind" in such a phrase as "men of that ilk"

or "he and all his ilk."

Historical Words

Of the ninety-five words examined for this chapter,

only eight may be classified as having been retained in

the language for historical purposes: byrne» cynehelm,

drill ten, mundbora, sceatt, freow» wer, and witega.

Byrne has been respelled byrnie and of course re-

tains its original meaning "coat of linked mail, chain-

11

mail body armour of early Scandinavians and others."

Cynehelm, with no spelling change, designates "crown."

Its literal definition is "royal helmet." Drihten once

meant "a ruler" but has specialized to mean "The Lord"

in reference to Christ. O.E. mundbora appears most fre-

quently simply as mund; originally "protector, guardian,"

mund historically refers to an Early English law concerning

the right of protection or guardianship (as over the per-

son and property of a wife, widow, or members of one's

household or dependents).

Sceatt meant in Old English "property, goods, wealth,

treasure" and came into Middle English as schat "money,

treasure." It also, however, designates a crown tax in

the Shetland and Orkney Islands which was levied for

The Oxford English Dictionary.

38

pasturage on the commons. An interesting Mn.E. derivation

from sceatt, respelled scot, is found in the compound scot-

free, meaning "free from payment of scot; hence, exempt from

injury or punishment." An example is found in W. De Mor-

gan's "Joseph Vance": "Another always got off scot-free

12

whatever mischief he did." The NIP lists theow, a re-

spelling of O.E. beow, as a "British slave of Anglo-Saxon

times." Except for the replacement of the thorn by th,

no change occurred in this word.

Wer, "man, husband," is of particular interest here;

existing in its original sense in the Mn.E. compound

werewolf "man-wolf," wer has a very unusual Mn.E. cognate

in weir, meaning "dam" or "fish-trap"; this seemingly un-

related word may be explained by noting that wer is in

itself a form of the O.E. verb werian "to defend." A

dam is a "defense against the waters," and the definitions

"fish-trap" and "fish-dam" are simply specifications of

the generic term. However, the term of most concern in

a historical sense is wergild, directly related to wer.

In Anglo-Saxon and German law, the wergild was a very

elaborate system of fines "for manslaughter and other 13

crimes against the person." Under this law, the

offender could pay a fine to the relatives of the 12

The New Century Dictionary

13Ibid.

39

deceased or to the injured person and be free from any

further obligation or punishment. What this definition

does not say, however, and what is felt to be of most

interest is that each man's life was assessed a value

according to the various stations in life from the

lowest peasant to a king; even the various parts of the

body had a monetary value placed upon them. For a dis-

cussion of wxtega and related words, see page 28.

Any conclusions which may be drawn from the material

presented already have been stated or intimated. To re-

state the most significant, then, it may be said that the

great majority of provincial cognates of Anglo-Saxon words

are in use in Scotland, or in the northern areas of Eng-

land. Also, as seen in several archaic forms of O.E.

verbs, an O.E. transitive verb with a violent meaning,

if it survives at all, will often lose its more severe

connotations and become intransitive. Finally, similar

to the change from transitive to intransitive, is the ob-

servation that many words will have adopted a figurative

meaning to replace the original literal sense of the Anglo-

Saxon.

CHAPTER IV

OBSOLETE WORDS

If the total number of words examined by this study

which are in current use in Modern English is added to

the sum of those words found in archaic, provincial, or

historical contexts, the amount comes to approximately

550, or 73 per cent. Of the remaining 27 per cent, then,

the generalization may be made that, except in literary

works where a word is used for an archaic effect or in

dictionaries of Anglo-Saxon, none of the words is found

anywhere in current use.

However, it was found that many of the words in this

group have cognates in Modern German and that several of

them have simply disappeared without leaving any recog-

nizable traces. Another group was found by reference to

Holthausen's Altenglisches Etymologisches Wdrterbuch to i miimilMfiiiii mmmmmmmmmmmmm • m i I ' - "

have cognates only in such ancient languages as Gothic,

Old French, and Old Icelandic. It seemed necessary, there-

fore, that further division be made. Finally, it was

decided that only those words whose cognates can be found

in The Oxford English Dictionary and which are labeled

by that dictionary to be obsolete would be included in this

chapter. All the rest form a heterogeneous group; this

40

41

group, as was mentioned previously, is not of sufficient

significance to merit a separate chapter. Therefore, they

have been included in Appendix IV.

Departing from the usual practice in preceding

chapters of listing only representative words and placing

the entire group in an appendix, the following list in-

cludes all the words examined which are considered obsolete.

As added information, an asterisk has been placed beside

the cognates which are listed in Webster's Third New Inter-

national Dictionary. As stated in the preface to this

work, the lexicographers have omitted

many obsolete and comparatively useless or obscure words. . . . These include in general words that had become obsolete before 1755 (the date of John-son's dictionary) unless found in well-known major works of a few major writers.3*

Therefore, any word which the OSD lists as obsolete or

as obsolete in a particular definition and which such a

recent (1961) work as the NIP considers significant

enough at the present time to be included has great im-

portance for any student of etymology. As a further aid

in drawing conclusions about these obsolete words, the

date from The Oxford English Dictionary of the last cur-

rent use of each word, when given, has been included in

the list.

" Philip B. Gove, Preface to Webster's Third New International Dictionary, p. <5iu

OBSOLETE WORDS

42

O.E. Word Definition Cognate Last Current

abelgan "anger" abelgen c. 1315

ac "but" ac 1535

aetbredan "take away" atbraid a. 1250

aeteowian "show" atew c. 1160

akenned "born" akenned 1230

alecgan "lay aside" *allay c. 1160

alysan "release" alese c. 1400

andettan "confess" indebted not given

anweald "empire" onwald ' c. 1275

arwurb "honourable" arworthly c. 1175

aspendan "spend" aspend c. 1175

astlgan "rise" astye c • 1380

atelic "terrible" atelich c. 1275

bebeodan "command" bibede c. 1430

bedxglian "hide" dighel (adj.) c. 1275

bellfan "remain" bileven c. 1250

ben "prayer" bene 1881

bepaecan "deceive" bipeche a. 1300

blgeng "worship" bigeng c. 1175

bilewit "simple" bilewhit a. 1225

binnan "within, in" bin c. 1400

botl "palace" bottle c • 1200

^Listed in NID as obsolete in the above definition.

43

bysxnor " infamy" bismer c. 1460

caflice "quickly" cofe c. 1340

cwide "command" quide c. 1275

daegred "dawn" dayred c. 1275

daeru "harm" dere 1674

deorwyrfcie "precious" dearworth c. 1422

eadig "happy, rich" eadi c. 1315

earming "miserable thing" arming 1605

earmlic "miserable" armlich c. 1230

eces "eternal" eche a. 1250

ecnes "eternity" echeness c. 1225

edstab©lung "renewing" stathel (vb.) a. 1300

emb "about, round" embe c. 1315

eode "went" yede, yode c. 1560

est "delight, bounty" est c. 1440

facen "deceit" falcen c. 1200

fela "many" fele 1598

"seize" feng a. 1250

forbeornan "burn up" for-bum c • 1380

forbugan "avoid" for-bugen c. 1230

forla*etan "let go, permit" forlet a. 1300

forbam "cons equently" *forthon 1674

forbl "therefore" *forthy 1674

forwundian "wound badly" forwound 1496

frymfr "beginning" frumth a. 1225

fulluht "baptism" £ullought 0 • 1450

44

fulluht-baeb "baptismal font" fullought-bath c. 1450

fulfcum "help, aid" fultum c • 1250

s i i "wanton" gole C t 1275

galnes "lust" goleness c. 1275

gebaedan "compel" i~bod c. 1205

gebed "command" bead c. 1205

gebedda "bed-fellow, wife" i-bedde a. 1250

gebeorgan "save, pres erve" bergh c. 1250

gebeot "threat" beot c. 1205

gedwyld "error, heresy" dwild c. 1200

gefullian "baptize" fulling 1483

gehadian "ordain" hade c. 1200

geherian "praise" •*hery 1622

gehynan "hurt, oppress" hean c • 1410

geliafful "faithful" leafful a. 1250

geleafleas "unbelief" leve c. 1330

gelimpan "happen" *limp c. 1420

gemiltsian "show mercy" mi Ice a. 1330

gerecednys "narration" recche (vb.) c. 1430

gesettnys "cons titution" i-setnesse 1258

getucian "torment, vex" *tuck c. 1230

gebafian . "grant, consent" i-thave a. 1240

gebanc "mind, thought" i-thank a. 1200

geuntrumian "make weak or sick" trume (noun) c# 1380

gewissian "instruct" i-wisien a. 1450

gewltendlic "transitory" i-wite (vb.) c. 1205

45

gewurfran "to be, become" i-worth a. 1665

gewinne "conflict" i-win c« 1205

haelend "healer. Saviour" healend a. 1225

hraebe "quickly" ^rather 1649

hrepian "touch, treat" repe c. 1290

hyhtan "hope, rejoice" hight a. 1250

lareow "teacher" larew c. 1200

lareowdom "instruction" larewdom c • 1200

leod "man" lede c» 1740

lutian "lurk, skulk" *lout 1483

mis lie "diversely" mislich a. 1240

oftorfian "stone" torve a. 1250

fill "nail, spike" *pile c. 1290

recels "incense" r eke Is 1483

rebe "fierce, cruel" rethe c. 1425

sagol "club, stake" sowel c. 1205

sceandlic "shameful, vile" shandlich c. 1330

Scieppend "The Creator" sheppend c. 1275

sideful "modest" sedeful c. 1200

slfjian "journey, go" sithe c. 1220

snotor "prudent, wise" snoter c. 1200

todraefan "drive asunder" todreve c. 1400

toforan "before" *tofore 1600

toraiddes "amidst" tomids c. 1000

t>aes "afterwards" thes c. 1000

fjentmg "service" theining a. 1175

46

beostru "dark, gloomy" thester a. 1425

browian "endure, suffer" throw a. 1175

unstaebbig "unstable, weak" tins ta the 1 a. 1300

weorban "to be, become" worth a. 1665

weorbian "esteem, honour" wurthi c. 1205

werod "throng, cohort" *were c • 1250

From an examination of the obsolete or obsolescent

words and the information about them, two interesting

observations may be made. The first concerns the ap-

proximate date at which the words became obsolete and

was derived by grouping all the dates of obsolescence

into centuries, noting carefully how many words became

obsolete in any given year. The second observation is

related to the kinds of words, or parts of speech, which

became obsolete.

Of the 106 words examined, nearly one-half, or 48

per cent to be exact, became obsolete in the thirteenth

century. Even more striking is the fact that 78 per cent

of those words becoming obsolete in the thirteenth cen-

tury disappeared by 1250. It may be further noted that

85 of the 107, or 80 per cent, had become obsolete before

the beginning of the sixteenth century. The reason why

such a preponderance of Anglo-Saxon words disappeared in

the span of time covered from the beginning of the thir-

teenth century to the end of the fifteenth is, of course,

47

speculative. However, it may be reasonably assumed that

the Norman Conquest of 1066 was the cause. Of course,

one may argue correctly that the Normans did not impose

their language upon Britain. But conquest causes changes

in language, no matter whether the conquering nation ac-

cepts the tongue of the conquered, as did the Normans in

exchanging their French dialect for the Teutonic speech

of Britain after the Norman Conquest, or whether a defeated

tribe or nation has a foreign tongue imposed upon it. Some

modifications are bound to occur; in the English language

they are most noticeable in the period of time sufficient-

ly distant from 1066 to have permitted natural, evolutionary

changes in the word-stock. The fact that, from the words

examined, only a very few have become obsolete since the

sixteenth century would attest to a general leveling-off

of the tendency toward change.

The second observation is important in assessing

directions of obsolescence. For example, no particular

part of speech, i.e. noun, pronoun, verb, or adjective,

showed a marked tendency to become obsolete. A virtually

equal number of nouns and verbs became obsolete, and the

proportions of the other parts of speech appear to follow

normal patterns. In other words, those elements of the

vocabulary which have been lost entirely to Modern English

form a generally broad cross-section of types of words.

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSION

From a total of 740 words taken from Aelfric's

"Passion of Saint Sebastian, Martyr," 425, or 60 per

cent, are still in current use in Modern English. This

surprisingly large percentage is not indicative, however,

of the proportion of the Anglo-Saxon element in Modern

English, because of the tremendous borrowing from foreign

languages that has taken place since the Norman Conquest.

The actual percentage of native words in the current word-

stock is closer to 20 per cent. Those words which are

now archaic, provincial, or historical number 125, or

12 per cent of the total. The remaining 190 Anglo-Saxon

words are not in current use, but The Oxford English Dic-

tionary considers 106 of them significant enough to label

them as obsolete. The remaining 84, or 13 per cent, do

not have cognates in Modern English, in any status. They

may, however, have cognates in such languages as Modern

German, Old Icelandic, Old French, or Gothic.

This study is limited to an examination of one short

work by one author and is therefore confined to one specif-

ic expanse of time. Although Aelfric*s vocabulary is greatly

representative of Anglo-Saxon in the year 1000 A.D., any

48

49

conclusive statements in this study about the nature of

the words, about semantic changes, or about dialectal

uses, must be taken for what they are--statements made

only upon the basis of the specific material at hand,

a sixteen-page sermon in Old English and information

gathered about the words in that sermon.

Of those words found in current Modern English, ex-

amined only for semantic change, the most common change

is from generalization to specialization. Also, quite

frequently Old English words will have lost their original

meanings by the time their cognates appear in Modern English.

Finally, concerning changes in moral values, of elevation

or degradation, words more often become degraded in the

values placed upon their meanings than they are elevated.

The words classified as provincial, archaic, or

historical exemplify three changes; these changes, of

course, are not each representative of all three groups,

nor does each word examined undergo a definite change.

However, the great majority of provincial cognates of

Anglo-Saxon words are in use in Scotland or in northern

England. Also, several-transitive O.E. verbs with violent

meanings appear in Modern English in an archaic sense

and with the violent sense largely obsolete; frequently

in these same instances, the verb has become intransitive.

A third observation is that many words have adopted a

figurative meaning, replacing the literal, Anglo-Saxon sense.

50

Although little is known about words which have be-

come obsolete, an interesting conclusion can be drawn

through the tabulation of the dates of the last current

uses of all obsolete words, as, found in The Oxford Eng-

lish Dictionary. For instance, 48 per cent of the 107

obsolete words died out in the thirteenth century, only

two centuries after the Norman Conquest, and 78 per cent

of those words becoming obsolete in the thirteenth cen-

tury disappeared by 1250. Finally, in noting whether

any particular type of word became obsolete more frequent-

ly than others, it can be stated that, proportionately,

those elements of the vocabulary which have have become

obsolete form a broad cross-section of all types of words.

Suggestions for Further Study

For anyone for whom these conclusions hold more than

a casual interest, it is suggested that a similar study,

more broad in scope, be instituted. For instance, it

would be of considerable value to take longer selections

from several authors of the Old English period, ranging

over a broad chronological area, and examine the various

vocabularies for obsolescence within this time period.

Also, it would be interesting to note which of the words

that appear with reasonable frequency in Old English are

archaic or obsolete in Modern English. Finally, an

examination of subtle semantic changes from one author's

use of a word to another writer's use should prove worthy.

APPENDIX I

XIII. KALENDAS FEBRUARII . PASS10 SANCTI

SEBASTIANI MARTYRIS .

SEBASTIANUS HATTE SUM HALIG GODES »EGN"'.

se waes iange on lare on mediolana byrig .

and wear£> on criste gefullod . mid fullum ge lea fan .

He waes swi|?e snotor wer • and sojsaest on spraece • 4

rihtwis on dome . and on raede fore-gleaw

getreowe on neode . and Strang fore-i>ingere

on godnysse scinende . and on eallum fceawum arwur^ful .

Daeghwamlice he gefylde his drihtnes £>enunge geornlice. 8

ac he bediglode swa £>eah . his daeda i>am casere •

dioclitianae se waes deofles big-gencga .

He lufode swa |>eah |>one halgan waer .

nyste jpaet he gelyfde . on £one lifigendan god . 12

He ge-sette hine to ealdre . ofer an werod .

and het hine symble beon aetforan his gesihjje .

and ealle J>a hyred-menn hine haefdon for faeder •

and mid lufe wur^odon . for£>on i>e god hine lufode . 16

He folgode |>am kasere uncu{> him swa peah .

na swylce he ne dorste for his drihtne Jjrowian .

ac he wolde gehyrtan . |>a {>e se hae|>ena casere .

daeghwamlice aeweaide . for cristes geleafen . 20

51

APPENDIX I

JAN. 20. PASSION OF SAINT SEBASTIAN, MARTYR

There was a holy servant of God, called Sebastian,

who was a long time in the city of Milan for education,

and was baptized into Christ with full faith.

He was a very prudent man, truthful in word, 4

righteous in judgment, in counsel foreseeing,

trusty in need, a prevailing intercessor,

shining in goodness, and in all his ways honourable.

Daily he fulfilled his Lord's service zealously, 8

but he concealed, nevertheless, his deeds from the emperor

Diocletian, who was the devil's worshipper.: f!

He loved the holy man, notwithstanding,

and knew not that he believed in the living God. 12

He set him as prefect over a cohort,

and bade that he should always be in his presence;

and all the household held him as a father,

and honoured him with love, because God loved him. 16

He followed the emperor, unknown to him, however,

not as if he durst not suffer for his Lord,

but he desired to encourage those whom the heathen emperor

daily killed for their faith in Christ. 20

52

53

geseah sebastianus hu sume fca cristenan .

woldon awacian . for J>am ormaetum witum .

and gehyrte heora mod . to J>aes haelendes geleafan .

and |>a gode gebrohte . £>e se deofol aet-bredan wolde • 24

Ba waeron twegen gebro^ra ae|>elborene for worulde .

xnarcus . and marcellianus . mycclum geswencte .

on bendum and on swingelum . for i>am so]?an geleafan .

Hi sceoldon £>a under-hnigan . nacodum swurde . 28

ac heora frynd abaedon fyrst . aet £>am gerefan

|>rittigra nihta |>aet hi hi gebigdon

to f>am hae^en-gylde . $>e hi sylfe wur|>odon .

&a be-taehte chromatius . se heah-gerefa |>a cnihtas . 32

sumum f>egne to ge-healdenne . se hatte nicostratus •

Tranqui 1 linus hatte f>yssera halgena faeder .

and heora modor waes martia gecyged .

haejsena $>a gyt . and hi i>yder comon 36

mid mycelre sarnyssa . paer heora suna waeron gehaefte .

and mid mycclum heofungum heora geleafan

woldon awendan . and J>a wita gestillan .

Baer comon eac heora magas . and mid manegum tihtingum 40

|>aera cnihta mod fram cristes geleafan .

woldon awecgan * swylce hi wis lice dydon .

heora wlf eac baeron . heora beam him on handum .

*In the original text, the capital thorn is formed but in this work it has been regularized to &.

54

Then Sebastian perceived how some of the Christians

were ready to lapse because of the exceeding tortures;

and strengthened their minds in the faith of Jesus,

and brought those to God whom the Devil desired to seduce.24

There were two brothers, nobly born as to this world,

Marcus and Marcellianus, greatly afflicted

with bonds and stripes for the true faith.

They were to undergo the naked sword, 28

but their friends begged of the prefect a respite

of thirty nights, that they might turn them again

to- the heathenism, which they themselves honoured.

Then the prefect Chromatius delivered the youths 32

to a certain officer to keep, who was hight Nicostratus.

The father of these saints was named Tranquillinus,

and their mother was called Martia,

heathens as yet, and they came thither, 36

with great sorrow, where their sons were detained,

and, with grievous lamentations,

sought to pervert their faith, and stay the tortures. 39

There came also their kinsfolk, and, with many persuasions

endeavored to shake the fortitude of the youths

from faith in Christ; as if they were acting wisely.

Their wives also brought their children to them in their hands,

55

and axodon mid wope . hwi hi swa waelhreowlice dydon . 44

|>aet hi freonda ne rohton . ne faeder oJ>|>e meder .

and heora wxf awurpon . and wi|>socon heora bearn .

and heora swuran gearcodon sylfwilles to siege .

Hwaet $>a la ongunnon |>a godes cempan hnexian 48

and heora mod awendon to hyre maga sarnysse .

0a geseah sona sebastianus |>aet .

hu {>a godes cempan . ongunnon hnexian .

for |>am mycclan gewynne . and wear|> him pa tomiddes . 52

and cwaej? to J>am cnihtura . mid cenum geleafan .

Eala ge godes cempan . ge be-comon to sige .

and nu ge awurpaj* eowerne cyne-helm .

for |>am earmlican swaesnyssum . |>issera heofiendra 56

Ne awurpe ge ic bidde eowerne beorhtan sige .

for wifa swaesnyssum . oJ>i>e for cyldra tearum .

Araera|> eower sige-becn . fram eor|>-licum ge-wilnungum .

and onginnaJ> eower gefeoht . ongean £>a unge-sewenlican fynd .

Bas |>e her nu wepa|> . woldon mid eow bliss ian . 61

gif hi geare wis ton . |>aet |>aet ge nu witon .

hi wenafj to sojpum . |>aet i>is lif ana sy .

and ne cunnon |>aet oj?er . |>e aefre endeleas bifc . 64

©is lif is swa swicol |>aet hit symble bepaec|> .

|>a £>e hit swi|>ost lufia$> . and geleafan him to habba|> .

&ises lifes gewilnung . ge-laet |>a unstae|>|>ian

to manegum leahtrum . and to mislicum freced nyssum. 68

He cwae|> pa to i>am magum . $>e jfc>a martyras mis-tihton •

56

and asked with weeping, why they acted so cruelly, 44

that they recked neither of friends nor father nor mother,

and cast off their wives, and forsook their children,

and obstinately prepared their necks for slaughter.

Well then, behold! God's champions began to yield, 48

and to turn their thought on their kinsmen's anguish.

Then Sebastian soon perceived that,

how God's champions began to yield

by reason of the great conflict, and he was soon in their midst,

and said to the youths with courageous faith, 53

•0 ye, God's soldiers, ye are come to the victory,

and now do ye cast aside your crown from you,

for the miserable blandishments of these wailers. 56

Cast not away, I entreat you, your glorious victory <

for wives' caresses, or for children's tears.

Raise your standard of victory above earthly desires,

and begin your fight against the invisible fiend. 60

Those who here now weep, would rejoice with you,

if they assuredly knew that which ye now know;

of a truth they think that there is this life alone,

and know not that other.which will be everlasting; 64

this life is so false that it ever deceiveth

those that most love it, and have trust in it.

This life's desire leadeth the unstable (or innocent)

into many sins, and divers perils.* 68

Then said he to the kinsfolk who were seducing the martyrs,

57

Gif nu £>as gebro|>ra . be eowrum benum gebugajs .

fram heora haelende to eowrum haejbenscype .

|>onne beo|j hi mid eow on sceortere blysse . 72

and beon si^an ascyred© . swa fcaet ge hi naefre ne geseo{> .

but on on return witum . on ]>am widgyllan fyre .

|>aer dracon and naeddran . mid deofollicum toi>um .

fciaera hae|>enra breost . biter lice ceowa{> . 76

Saer is wop . and warning . and J>aes ne wurj> nan ende .

Ge£af ia|> ic bidde |>isum gebroJ>rum nu .

|>aet hi |>as witu for-bugan . and beo ge embe J>aet ylce .

laetaj? hi nu faran . to jt>am forestihtan kynehelme . 80

and ne beo ge ofdraedde . ne beo|) hi fram eow ascyrede .

ac hi faraj? to heofonum . to haelende criste .

and rodorlice wununga witodlice under-fo]? .

on }?am ge sylfa rooton mid him aefre wunian . 84

aelces yfeles orsorge on ecere blysse .

AEfter fcissere lare . and ojarum langsumum spraecum .

com leoht of heofonum . to |>am halgan waere .

and mid f>am leohte aet-eowde . an engel wi£ hine . 88

Ba wurdon hi ealle . |>urh |>aet wundor ablicgede .

and |>aes Jbaegnes ge-bedda . |>e ]?a ge-bro^ra heold .

waes for six gearum . for swiplicre untrumnysse .

hire spraece be-naemed . and heo hnah adune 92

to sebastianes fotum mid fullum geleafan •

58

'If now these brothers, at your prayers,

turn back from their Saviour to your heathenism,

then they shall be with you in a short bliss, 72

and afterwards will be parted, so that ye shall never see

them

except in fierce torments in the vast fire,

where dragons and adders with devilish teeth

horribly chew the breasts of the heathen; 76

there is weeping and wailing, and of this will be no end.

Grant, I pray you, now to these brothers

that they may avoid these torments, and endeavor ye to do

the same.

Let them now go to the predestined crown, 80

and be ye not afraid; they shall not be divided from you,

but they shall go to heaven to Jesus Christ, <

and receive verily celestial dwellings,

in which ye yourselves may ever abide with them, 84

secure from every evil in eternal bliss.1

After this exhortation, and other lengthy counsels,

came a light from heaven to the holy man,

and with that light appeared an angel opposite him. 88

Then they were all astonished at that miracle;

and the wife of the officer, who had charge of the brothers,

for six years, through a severe sickness, »

had been deprived of her speech, and she fell down 92

at Sebastian's feet, with full faith.

59

&a cwae$> sebastianus . gif ic sof> godes £eow eom .

and gif jpaet is soJ> |>aet ic eow saede .

ge-openie |>onne se aelmihtiga haelend 96

|>ises wifes mu|> . |>aet heo maege spraecan

se]?e Zachajrian mu$ his maeran witegan .

mid witegunge geopenade f>a $>a he awrat lohannes .

&a spraec |>aet dumbe wif . hire nama waes Zoe . 100

and cwae|> |>aet heo gesawe . £>one scindendan aencgel .

cumende of heofonum . to |>am halgan waere .

and heoId ane boc . aet-foran his eagum .

and be |>aere bee . saede sebastianus £>a lare . 104

&a cwaejj Zoe to sebastiane eft .

Eadige synd jaa £e jpinum wordum gelyfaj) .

and 'pa beo|> awyrigde |>e jsises twyniaj? .

swa swa daegred to-draef|> i>a dimlican |>ystra . 108

and manna cagan onlyht |>e blinde waeron on niht .

Swa adraefde |>in lar |>a geleaf-leaste fram me,..

and minne mu|> geopenode . and min mod onlihte .

Hwaet i>a nicostratus wear£ swijse afyrht . 112

|>a |>a he |>aet wundor ge-seah . on his wife gedon .

and feol adune sona . to sebastianes fotum .

biddende forgifennysse . £aet he j?a bro|>ra heold .

and unband heora handa . and baed {>aet hi awaeg eoden . 116

ac hi £>urh-wunodon swa ]?eah on £>am gewinne o$> dea£ .

'pa ongtinnon heora ma gas mycclum be-hreowsian .

|>aet hi aefre f>a martyras mis-laeran woldon .

60

Then said Sebastian, 'If I am God's true servant,

and if that is true which I have said to you,

then may the Almighty Savior open 96

this woman's mouth, that she may speak,

He (I mean) who opened His great prophet Zechariah's mouth

by a prophecy, when he wrote "John."'

Then spake the dumb woman, her name was Zoe, 100

and said that she had seen the radiant angel

coming from Heaven to the holy man;

and that he held a book before his eyes,

and from that book Sebastian taught the lore. 104

Then again said Zoe to Sebastian,

'Blessed are those that believe thy word,

and those are accursed that doubt this.

Even as the dawn driveth away the dim dusk, 108

and enlighteneth men's eyes that were blind in the night,

so did thy teaching drive away the unbelief from me,

and opened my mouth and enlightened my mind.'

Then Nicostratus was greatly afraid, 112

when he saw the miracle wrought on his wife,

and straightway fell down at Sebastian's feet,

praying forgiveness, that he had detained the brothers; 115

and unbound their hands, and begged that they would escape,

but they nevertheless continued in that warfare till death.

Then began their kinsmen sorely to repent,

that they had ever wished to misteach the martyrs,

61

and ge-lyfdon pa ealle . endemes on crist . 120

©a het sebastianus ]?one haejpenan }?egn .

i>aet he f>a haeftlingas . |>e he heold on J>am cwearterne

gebrohte to his spraece . wolde hi gebigan to criste .

Ferde £>a si|>|>an . and ge-fette aenne maesse-preost . 124

policarpus gehaten . halig waer and snotor .

|>aet he £a nige-hwyrfedan mid fulluhte afjwoge .

©a wearf? gefullod se fore-saeda nicostratus .

mid his wife . Zoe . and |>rym and Jjrittigum mannum 128

£>e him aer folgodon . and mid him gefullode waeron .

AEfter Jsisum wearj) gefullod |>aera martyra faeder

tranquillinus mid blysse . and his gebedda martia .

mid heora hiwum . and heora suna wifum . 132

AEfter £ysum |>a haeft-lingas sebastianus

het laedan of f>am haeftum ealles sixtyne .

Daera martyra faeder marcellianes . and marces .

waes endlyfan gear aer. his fulluhte ge-untrumed 136

|>urh |>a mycclan fot-adle . and nahte his faeces geweaId

ne furjpon ne mihte his mete him araecan .

for |>am aegeslican wearrum . |>e on his limum weoxon .

ac sona swa he andette mid ealre heortan 140

•jpa halgan prynnysse on f>am fulluht-ba£>e .

pa wearf> he ge-haeled . fram eallum his sarnyssum .

and herede |>one haelend . J>e him his haele forgeaf .

9aer waeron eac untrume . o£re twaegen cnapan . 144

o£er waes waeter-seoc . oJ>er all on wundum .

62

and in the end they all believed in Christ. 120

Then Sebastian bade the heathen officer

bring the captives whom he held in the prison,

to his instructions, desiring to convert them to Christ.

Afterwards he went and fetched a mass-priest, 124

hight Polycarp, a holy man and wise,

that he might wash the new converts by baptism.

There were baptized the aforesaid Nicostratus,

with his wife Zoe, and three and thirty men, 128

who had followed them before, and were baptized with them.

After this were baptized, with joy, the martyr's father

Tranquillinus, and his wife Martia,

with their household, and their son's wives; 132

next the captives whom Sebastian

had bidden to bring out of the prison, sixteen in all.

The father of the martyrs Harcellianus and Marcus,

was afflicted for eleven years before his baptism 136

with a grievous foot-disease, and had no power of walking,

nor even could he lay hold of his food for himself,

by reason of the horrible knots which grew on his members;

but as soon as he confessed with all his heart 140

the Holy Trinity, in the baptismal font,

then was he healed of all his pains,

and praised the Saviour who had granted him his health.

There were likewise two other afflicted youths, 144

one was dropsical, the other all over sores,

63

ac hi wurdon gehaelede . fram heora untrum-nysse

mid £>am pe se maesse-preost . hi mid pam fulluhte a|>woh .

Hi wurdon pa ealle . |>urh f>a wundra onbryrde . 148

and on godes herungum hi sylfe gebysgodon .

and gearcodon heora mod . to £am martyr-dome •

caflice to campienne . for cristes geleafan .

Hwaet pa chromatius se mihtiga gerefa . 152

|>e romana byrig , under j?am casere geweold,.

het tranquillinum . J>aet he him to come

wolde witan aet him . hwaet his suna hraeddon .

binnan |>am jprittigum nihtum . |>e he him let fyrste . 156

hwae^er hi gebugan wo Id on . to i>am bysmor-fullum godum .

o*p£e |>urh-wunian on £am witum . for criste •

He com |>a gehaten to £am heah-gerefan .

and eac ne be-diglode . |>aet he on drihten gelyfde . 160

Da cwae£ se heah-gerefa . {>e pa git haejpen waes .

and eall swa yfele ge-tucod . swa tranquillinus waes aer .

He £inc]? £>aet J>u baede J>inum bearnum fyrstes .

to |>I jpaet |>u gelyfdest . heora leasum gedwyldum . 164

&a cwae£ tranquillinus . to chromatiae |>us .

&a godas J>e ge wur£ia£ . waeron arlease menn .

yfele geborene . and bysmor-fulle on life .

mid facne afyllede . and for|>ferdon earmlice . 168

Cwyst ]?u la |>aet naere nan lyfigende god .

aer jban e saturnus his suna abite .

64

but they were healed of their disease

at the moment when the mass-priest washed them with the

baptismal water.

Then all were encouraged by these miracles, 148

and occupied themselves in God's praises,

and prepared their minds for martyrdom,

boldly to contend for the faith of Christ,

Then Chromatius, the powerful prefect, 152

who governed the Roman city under the emperor,

bade Tranquillinus to come to him,

desiring to know of him what his sons had decided on

during the thirty nights that he had allowed them for respite;

whether they would bow to the infamous gods, 157

or remain in the tortures for Christ's sake.

He came thus summoned to the prefect,

and moreover concealed not that he believed in the Lord. 160

Then said the prefect, who was yet a heathen,

and quite as badly tormented as Tranquillinus was before,

'Methinketh that thou askedst the respite for thy children

to the end that thou mightest believe their lying heresies.'

Then spake Tranquillinus. to Chromatius thus,

'The gods whom ye worship were wicked men,

evilly born, and infamous in life,

filled with crime, and died miserably. 168

Lo! thou sayest that there was no god living

before Saturn devoured his sons,

65

and heora flaesc aete on f)am Ig-lande creta .

Eft his sunu louis . |>e ge wurj>ia}> for god . 172

se wolde aewe1lan his unclaenan faeder .

|>e abat his gebro|>ra i>a hi geborene waeron .

se iouis waes afylled . mid fulre galnysse .

and nam his agene swystor . to his fulum synscype . 176

swa swa ge raeda£ on eowrum gerecednys sum .

La hu ne dwaelast £u . |?e on |>ysum gedwylde gelyfst .

and £as arleasan menn arwur|>ast for godas .

f>u for-laetst |>one aelmihtigan god . £e earda{> on heofonum .

and cwaejbst to j?am stane . j?u eart min god . 181

©a ge-wende tranquillinus . awaeg aefter J>ysum .

ac se heah-ge-refa . het hine gefeccan

dearnunga on niht . and him digellice bead 184

anne gyldene wecg • wi|> J>am f>e he him taehte

f>one maeran laece-craeft . ]?e hine swa mihte-lice gehealde .

Ba cwae|> tranquillinus . |>aet mann cristes gife .

ne moste syllan wifc> sceattum . oJ>J?e swa ge-bicgan . 188

ac gelyf on |>one haelend and j?u bist swa hal swa ic .

Chromatius £a baed |>aet he him gebrohte f>one mann •

|>e hine gefullode . and fram.Jjaere co|>e gehaelde .

Tranquillinus £>a eode to |>am arwur]?an preoste . 192

saede hu hi spraecon . and hine sona gelaedde .

to j?am heah-ge-refan . and he cwaeb him to •

&eah $>e J>aes kaseres ehtnys £>a cristenan gedrecce .

|>eah for minre haele . ic sylle eow healfne dael 196

66

and ate their flesh in the Island of Crete.

Again, his son Jove, whom ye worship as a god, 172

who desired to kill his unclean father

that devoured his brothers as soon as they were born,

this Jove was filled with foul lust,

and took his own sister to his unclean wedlock, 176

even as ye read in your histories.

Look whether or no thou errest, who believest in this deceit,

and honourest these wicked men as gods;

thou forsakest the Almighty God who dwelleth in Heaven, 180

and sayest to the stone, 'Thou art my god.'

Then turned Tranquillinus away after this,

but the prefect bade men fetch him

privily by night, and offered him in secret 184

a golden wedge, if only he would teach him

the great leech-craft which had so mightily healed him.

Then said Tranquillinus, 'that Christ's gift

might not be given in exchange for money, nor thus bought;

but believe in Jesus, and thou shalt be as whole as I.' 189

Chromatius then begged him to bring him the man

who had baptized him and healed him from the disease.

So Tranquillinus went to the venerable priest, 192

told how they had conversed, and brought him at once

to the prefect, and he [Chromatius] said to him Jpolycarg] :

•Though the emperor's persecution vexeth the Christians,

yet for my healing I will give you half 196

67

ealra minre aehte . gif ge mine atelican lima .

£>urh aenig jping gehaelen magon . fram |>ysum heardum

wearrum .

9a hloh policarpus . and cwae|> to i>am untruman .

crist maeg ]?ine nytennysse . |>urh his miltsunge onlihtan 200

and eapelice aet-eowian . J>aet he is £>in ed-stajseligend .

Se |>e sceattas under- feh$> . and sylj> godes gife .

se for-deJ> his sawle . and se seoca ne bi{> gehaeled .

ac gelyf on |>one haelend . and laet $>e fullian . 204

and ]DU bist swa gesund . swa £>aes tranquillinus .

&a bead policarpus him preora daga faesten .

and |>is sona saede sebastiane .

hi |>a began baedon binnon f>am fyrste god . 208

f>aet he his geleafan geswutelode |>am seocan to haele .

Coman him sij?|>an to and hine swaes-lice gretton .

0a cwaej) sebastianus betwux o|>rum spraecon .

ne scealt |DU for f>inre hael}?e anre . to |>am haelende gebugan .

ne for |>inum licaman anum £e laetan fullian • 213

ac swijjor for hihte J>aere ecan hael|>e .

and for jpam ece life . |>u scealt gelyf an on god .

Do j?In mod hluttor jpaet bu leornian maege 216

Jmrh so|j-faest ge-scead hwa £in scyppend sy .

ne miht ]?u elles habban |>a haele £e £>u secst.

Chromatius pa cwaef> . surne cristene synd .

to £am bilewite menn . |>aet pu ne miht afindan 220

of anum jsusende anne Jje maege

68

of all my possessions, if ye can by any means

cure my deformed limbs of these hard knots.*

Then laughed Polycarp, and said to the sick man,

•Christ can enlighten thy ignorance through His mercy, 200

and easily manifest that He is thy Restorer.

He that receiveth money, and selleth God's gift,

he destroyeth his own soul, and the sick is not healed;

but believe in Jesus, and let thyself be baptized, 204

and thou shalt be as sound as this Tranquillinus.'

Then Polycarp enjoined on him a three days' fast

and he straightway told the same to Sebastian.

Then they both prayed to God during that space, 208

that He would make manifest His truth in the sick man's

healing.

Afterwards they came to him, and kindly greeted him;

and Sebastian said amongst othe?: words,

'Thou must not for thy health's sake alone turn to the Lord,

nor for thy body only let thyself be baptized; 213

but rather for hope of the eternal health,

and for everlasting life, thou must believe on God.

Make thy mind pure, that thou mayest learn 216

through true discernment who is thy Creator;

else thou canst not have the healing that thou seekst.'

Then said Chromatius, "Some Christians there are,

men simple to that degree, that thou canst not find 220

one in a thousand who is able

69

f>e eawfaest-lice spraece sprecan oJ>£e leornian •

hu mihton £as becuman to cristes geleafan ?

Sebastianus cwaej) . crist geceas . fram frymfse 224

hyrdas , and yrj?lingas. . and an-fealde fisceras •

and hi si^an gelaerde and to lareowum gesette •

Bu wur|>ast manega godas . and manega gydenan .

butan pu hi awurpe . ealle fram {>inre heortan . 228

and i>one sojpan god . |>e |>e gesceop . oncnaewst •

ne miht |>u haele habban . ne |>aet heofonlice lif .

ac laet us nu secan $>ine sceandlican godas . 231

and to-brecon p& staenenan . and for-bernan |>a treowenan .

amyltan j?a sylfrenan . and eac swilce i>a gyldenan .

daelan sijjjsan waedligum . pa amoltenan waecgas .

Chromatius cwaej? ne cume ge to i>am teonan .

ac ic bebeode minum {>eowum . paet hi hi ealle to-bryton .236

Sebastianus cwaej? . hi ne cunnon |>one geleafan .

ne eac hi gebletsian . and bij> se deofol geare •

hu he him derige . for sumum dyrnum gylte .

and cwaejaaj? £a hae^enan . t>aet hi wurdon gehynde 240

for£>an pe hi £a anlicynssa aefre to-brecan dorston .

Ba i>e habbaj) geleafan . and leornodon to campienne .

ongean {>one swicolan feond . unforhte i>urh god .

and habbaja cristes byrnan . hi magon to-brecan pa godas .244

Chromatius pa. cwae£ . to fcam cenum godes |>egnum .

70

fittingly to speak their speech or to learn.

How should these come to the faith of Christ?'

Sebastian said, 'Christ chose, from the beginning, 224

shepherds and husbandmen, and simple fishers,

and afterward taught them, and set them for teachers.

Thou worshippest many gods, and many goddesses;

unless thou cast them all out of thy heart, 228

and acknowledge the true God who created thee,

thou canst not have healing, or the heavenly life.

But let us now seek thy shameful gods,

and break in pieces the stone ones, and burn up the wooden

ones,

and melt down those of silver, and likewise the golden, 233

and afterwards deal to the poor the molten masses.1

Chromatius said, 'Go ye not into harm,

But I will command my servants that they break them all in

pieces.'

Sebastian said, 'They know not the faith, 0 237

nor even how to sign themselves; and the devil will be ready

(seeking) how he may injure them, for some secret guilt;

and the heathen will say that they were hurt 240

because they durst ever break in pieces the images.

Those that have faith, and have learned to fight

fearlessly against the treacherous fiend by God's help,

and have Christ's armour, they may break in pieces the gods.'

Then said Chromatius to the brave servant of God, 245

71

gewurjpe godes wille and eower eac aet |>ysum .

Hi i>a sona begen be-byrndon (sic) hi caflice .

and to gode gebaedon . and to-braecon jsa anlicnyssa 248

ma |>one twa hund . micclum gode J>anciende .

Chromatius haefde behydd . on his digolnysse .

an wuri>-lic weorc . on mechanise . geworc 251

of glaese . and of golde . and of glitiniendum cristallan .

Se craeft sceolde wissian . gewisslice be steorrum .

hwaet ge-hwilcum menn gelumpe on his lifes endebyrdnysse .

ac hit waes swa gehiwod . aefter hae|>enum gedwylde .

Be com sebastianus . and se sacerd policarpus . 256

aeft to chromatiae . and ge-metton hine untrumne •

and cwaedon |>aet he sum i>ing haefde untobrocen .

i>e his haele hremde J>urh rej>e wiglunga .

He cwaej) |>a ic haebbe on minum hord-cleofan . 260

an wundorlic weorc me to ge-wissunge .

aefter steorrena gesetnyssum . swa swa hi standaj> on heofonum .

on £am craefte aspende tranquillinus min faeder .

of readum golde anum . ma £>onne twa hund punda . 264

©a cwaej? sebastianus . se ge-saeliga martyr .

Gif |>u jpisne craeft healst • |>u bist |>e sylf un-hal .

Chromatius cwaef> . hwaet dera|> £is aenigum .

ne we hit ne wurj>ia|> . mid ge-wunelicum offrungum . 268

ac hit gewissa]> us . |>urh wisne lareow-dom .

72

'God's will, and yours also, be done in this.1

Then forthwith they both begirt [begyrdonj themselves vigorously,

and prayed to God, and brake in pieces the images,

more than two hundred, greatly thanking God.

Chromatius had hidden in his secret chamber

an excellent work of mechanical contrivance, ,

of glass, and of gold, and of glistening crystal. 252

This instrument was designed to show with certainty by

the stars

what should happen to every man in the course of his life;

but it was so formed according to heathen error.

Then came Sebastian and the priest Polycarp 256

again to Chromatius, and found him sick,

and said that he had something unbroken

which hindered his healing through cruel spells.

He said then, '1 have in my treasure-chest 260

a wonderful instrument, for my information,

according to the position of the stars as they stand in

the heavens.

On that instrument Tranquillinus my father

spent, of red gold alone, more than two hundred pounds.' 264

Then quoth Sebastian, the blessed martyr,

'If thou keep back this instrument, thou shalt thyself be diseased.'

Chromatius said, 'How doth this hurt any one?

We worship it not with the accustomed offerings, 268

but it teacheth us, by wise instruction,

73

to gearlicum tidiom . and tunglena ymbrynum .

Policarpus saede |>is we for~seo£> . 271

on i>am is so|>fest-nysse gelicnys . ac hit is leas swa |>eah .

Sebastianus cwae|> . |>is is swutol ge-dwyld .

and leas ydelnyss . swa swa we leornodon aet criste .

Manega menn adrincaj? . on anum daege togaedere .

|>e on mislicum tidum to middan-earde comon . 276

Oft on anum gefeohte feallap for wel manige .

|>e under anum ttingle . naeron aer akennede .

Eft on anre tide twa maeden-cild cumaj) .

and bij? |>aet an syde-full . and |>aet oJ>er sceandlic . 280

Nis |>aet claene herigendlic . ne Jjaet gale tallic .

gif him steorran forgefon . |>aet hi swa lyfedon .

Forjpi synd laga gesaette . i>aet menn rihtlice libban .

and |>aet pa riht-wisan beon ge-herode . and |>a unriht-wisan

ge-hynde . 284

£a wundrode chromatius . heora wis era worda . and cwae{> •

se is so|> god . |>e swa gesceadwise biggengan haef|> .

He ge-3?afode |>a jpaet hi J>aet weorc to-wurpon .

ac his sunu tiburtius sona mid gebeote • 288

cwae£ paet he nolde nates hwon ge|>afian .

|>aet man swa deorwurjpne craeft aefre to-cwysan sceolde .

butan man i>a halgan wurpe . on twaegen hate ofnas .

gif his faeder naere gehaeled . aefter |>aere braece . 292

9a for-bead se faeder pone frecen-fullan cwyde .

ac pa halgan tihton J>aet man j?a ofnas ontende .

74

as to the yearly reasons, and the circuits of the planets.'

Polycarp said, 'This we contemn;

therein is a likeness of truth, but is is false nevertheless.'

Sebastian said, 'This is manifest error,

and lying vanity, even as we learned of Christ.

Many men are drowned in one day together,

who at divers seasons came into the world. 276

Often in one fight fall very many men,

who erst were not born under one planet.

Again at one time two maiden-children come,

and the one will be modest and the other will be shameless;

the pure is not laudable nor the wanton blameable 281

if the stars assigned them so to live.

Therefore laws are fixed that men may live rightly,

and that the righteous be praised and the unrighteous shamed.*

Then wondered Chromatius at their wise words, and said, 285

•He is the true God who has such discerning worshippers.'

Then he consented that they should destroy the instrument.

But his son Tiburtius immediately with a threat 288

said that he would not in anywise suffer them

ever to break up so costly a work,

unless the saints were thrown into two hot ovens,

if his father were not healed after the breaking. 292

Then the father forbade the wicked command;

but the saints begged that the ovens might be kindled,

75

and ge-baedon hi to gode . and to-braecon jsaet weorc •

Hwaet $>a faerlice com faeger godes engel 296

and cwaej) to chromatiae . crist me asende to |>e .

on Jpone |?e |>u gelyfst . |>aet J>ine lima beon ge-haelede .

AEfter |>ysum worde . he wear]? ©all gehaeled .

and arm to |>am engle . wolde his fet gecyssan . 300

Se engel him cwae|> to . Ne cys |>u mine fet .

nu ]?u me ne hrepa . forjian j?e J>u ne eart gyt gefullod .

&a ]?a se sunu |>aet ge-seah . |>a ge-sohte he |>aes preostes fet .

and se faeder feoll to sebastianus fotum . 304

baegen clypigende . crist is so|> god .

and aelmihtig godes sunu . J>e git |>egnas gode bodia|> .

9a wear]? gefullod faeder . and sunu .

mid heora inn-hyrede . and heora aehta mannum 308

aegjsres hades mann . ma Jponne an jpusend .

pa cwaeja chromatius . se cristena jpegn .

J>aet he eallum gemiltsode . j?e him aefre abulgon .

and |>am eallum forgeafe |>e him aht sceoldon . 312

and gif he hwaene berypte . £aet he him J>aet forgulde .

He freode ealle his menn . and him feoh daelde .

and cwae|> |>aet he wi£ soce J>am geswaesum lustum .

f>issere worulde . |>e is gewitendlic . 316

Kis sunu tiburtius . se snotera cniht cwae£ .

Ic awende minne willan . fram eallum woruld-J>ingum .

to gastlicum weorcum . nu ic godes mann eom .

76

and commended themselves to God, and brake the instrument,

Lo then came suddenly a fair angel of God, 296

and said to Chromatius, *Christ sent me to thee,

in whom thou believest that thy limbs may be healed.1

After this word he was entirely cured,

and ran to the angel, desiring to kiss his feet. 300

The angel said to him, 'Kiss not thou my feet,

neither do thou touch me, for that thou art not yet baptized,'

When the son saw that, he sought the priest's feet,

and the father fell at Sebastian's feet, 304

both crying, 'Christ is true God,

and the son of Almighty God, whom ye two servants of God

preach.'

Then were baptized father and son,

with their household servants, and men on their estates, 308

persons of either sex, more than a thousand.

Then said Chromatius, the Christian thane,

that he pardoned all who had ever angered him,

and forgave all who owed him aught; 312

and if he had plundered any one, that he would repay it him.

He freed all his slaves, and distributed money to them,

and said that he renounced all the alluring pleasures

of this world, which is transitory. 316

His son Tiburtius, the prudent youth, said,

'I have turned my will from all worldly things

to ghostly works, now that I am God's man,

77

an of ]?am ge-tele . |>e |>aet ece llf under-fof> . 320

On |>am dagum waes sum wis papa on rome .

gaius gehaten . haliges lifes mann .

wij? i>one raedde chroxnatius and be his raede under-feng

ealle |>a cristenan into his cafertune .

and him big-lyfan fore-sceawode . for |>aere swi|>lican eht-nysse

J>e |>a niwan asprang . aefter carines siege .

Sam casere naes £a gyt cu|> . £aet chromatius cristen waes .

and he be-geat £>a leafe |>aet he of |>am lande moste . 328

Ba bebead se papa |>am preoste policarpe .

|>aet he ge-wende of rome mid $>am rum-gyfolan |>egne .

and; clypode to £am cristenum . |>e mid chromatiae waeron .

Ure haelend lyfde |>aet mann his life gebeorge . 332

fara nu se £e wille . for|> mid chromatiae .

and wunige se £e wille . mid me on J>yssere byrig .

0a baed tiburtius . J>aet he beon moste . mid i>am papan .

cwaej? |>aet him wynsum waere |>aet he wurde ofs lagan . 336

gif he mihte {>usend sifcton . .for £am so|>an geleafan .

and i>aet ece lxf ge-earnian |>e naenne ende naef]? .

Ba be-laf sebastianus on £>aere byrig mid f>am papan .

and se geonga tiburtius . and |>a twaegen gebro|>ra . 340

mareus . and marcellianus . mid heora faeder tranquilline .

Nicostratus mid his brewer . and his gebeddan Zoe .

Uictorinus mid his brefser . and his broker., suna. ,

Sas belifon on rome . on i>aere rej>an eht-nysse . 344

, :78

one of the tale that shall receive the everlasting life.'320

In those days there was a certain wise pope in Rome,

Caius by name, a man of holy life;

with him Chromatius took counsel, and by his advice received

all the Christians into his residence, 324

and provided them with victuals, because of the fierce persecution

which sprang up anew after the murder of Carinus.

It was not yet known to the Emperor that Chromatius was a

Christian,

and he obtained leave to go out of the country. 328

Then the pope bade the priest Polycarp

to depart from Rome with the munificent thane,

and proclaimed to the Christians who were with Chromatius,

'Our Saviour permitted that a man should preserve his life;

go now, he who will, forth with Chromatius, 333

and remain, he who will, with me in this city.1

Then prayed Tiburtius that he might be with the pope,

saying, that it would be sweet to him to be slain, 336

if he might, a thousand times, for the true faith,

and earn the everlasting life which -never endeth.

There remained in the city, with the pope, Sebastian,

and the young Tiburtius, and the two brothers 340

Marcus and Marcellianus, with their father Tranquillinus,

Nicostratus, with his brother and his wife Zoe,

Victorinus, with his brother, and his brother's son;

these remained in Rome in the fierce persecution, 344

79

and |>a o|>re ealle endemes ferdon awaeg .

mid chromatiae . swa swa him crist gewissode .

©a gehadode se papa tranquillinum to preoste . 347

his twaegen suna to diaconum . and |>a ojare to subdiaconum

sebastianum he ge-sette . him eallurn to mund-boran .

Hi wurdon |>a gebysgode on heora ge-bedum ealle .

daeges and nihtes . heora drihten herigende .

biddende mid wope . £>aet hi wurjbe waeron . 352

for criste to jprowigenne . and be-curoan to his halgum .

Hi ge-haeldon untrume mid halgum gebedum .

and blinde on-lihton . |>urh heora geleafan .

and of wodum mannum . |>a awyrigedon deoflu afligdon . 356

Tiburtius gemette aenne mann afeallene .

|>aet he his heafod to-braec . and eac his ban to-cwysde .

©a sang he him ofer . pater noster . and credan .

and se mann sona ge-sund-ful aras . 360

and beah to fulluhte mid his faeder and meder .

AEfter |>ysum wearfc ge-laeht seo eadige Zoe .

and for criste acweald . and becom to his halgum .

0a opre wurdon eac ealle ge-martyrode . - 364

tranquillinus wear{> of-torfod. mid stanum .

Nicostratus se aej>ela wear|> aeft gelaeht .

mid feower his ge-ferum . and toforan |>am deman gebroht •

fabianus gehaten . jpe fend to Jjaere scire « 368

aefter chromatiae . se waes fcam cristenan onwerd .

80

and all the others at last went'away

with Chromatius, even as Christ instructed them.

Then the pope ordained Tranquillinus priest,

his two sons deacons, and the others subdeacons. 348

Sebastian he constituted protector of them all.

Then were they all engaged in prayer,

day and night, praising their Lord,

praying with weeping, that they might be worthy 352

to suffer for Christ and to come to his saints.

They healed the sick by holy prayers,

and enlightened the blind by their faith,

and out of possessed men cast the unclean devils. 356

Tiburtius found a man fallen down,

so that he had fractured his skull, and moreover crushed

the bone.

Then he sang over him the Pater-noster, and the Credo,

and the man immediately arose sound, 360

and submitted to baptism with his father and mother.

After this was apprehended the blessed Zoe,

and slain for Christ, and she departed to his saints.

The others were all likewise martyred; 364

Tranquillinus was stoned with stones;

the noble Nicostratus was afterwards seized,

with four of his companions, and brought before the judge

called Fabianus, who succeeded to the province 368

after Chromatius, and was hostile to the Christians.

81

He axode pone casere hu he erabe hi sceolde .

j?a het se arleasa hi ealle flf pinian .

Fabianus |>a se feondlica dema 372

|>a £>a he ne mihte jpa menn gebigan fram criste .

J>urh |>a retail wita . £>a hit he hi wurpan ut on sae .

AEfter |>ysuin wear|> ge-laeht se geleaffulla tiburtius •

J>a het fabianus f>aet he |>am fulan loue . 376

recels ge-offrode . o|>i>e eode him sylf

ofer byrnede gleda mid his barum fotum .

Hwaet |>a tiburtius . bealdlice eode .

ofer |>a byrnendan gleda . unfor-baernedum fotum . 380

and cwae]? |>aet him J>uhte . swylce he eode ofer blostman .

Fabianus f>a |>aes feondes pen ,

het beheafdian bone halgan tiburtium .

and si|>]?an acwealde jaone halgan castolum . 384

£e haefde ge-innod ealle |>as halgan . /

He gehaefte eft si£>|>an tranquillines suna .

marcellianus and rnarcus . on anum micclura stocce .

and mid isenum pilum . heora ilas gefaestnode . 388

and cwae|> £>a&t hi sceoldon swa standan . on |>am pilum .

o|>£>aet hi geoffrodon heora lac |>am godum .

Hi sungon J>a sona i>isne sealm him betwynan .

Ecce quam bonum et quam iocundum habitare fratres in unum .

et cetera . 392

Eala hu mycel god is . and hwylc wynsumnys

i>aer i>aer gebrojsru beo|> on annysse .

82

He asked the emperor how he should deal with them;

then that wicked man commanded to torture them all five.

Fabianus then, the fiendlike judge, 372

when he could not turn the men from Christ

through the cruel tortures, bade them be cast into the sea.

After this the faithful Tiburtius was taken;

then Fabianus ordered that he should offer incense 376

to the foul Jove, or himself walk

over burning coals with bare feet.

And loJ Tibertius [sic] went boldly

over the burning coals with unburnt feet, 380

and said that it seemed to him as if he were walking over flowers,

Wherefore Fabianus, the servant of the devil,

commanded the holy Tiburtius to be beheaded,

and afterwards killed the holy Castulus, 384

who had hospitably entertained all these saints.

Again thereafter he put the sons of Tranquillinus,

Marcellianus and Marcus, in a great pillory,

and made fast the soles of their feet with iron nails, 388

saying that they should stand thus, upon the nails,

until they offered their sacrifice to the gods.

They sang then immediately this psalm between them,

1Ecce quam bonum et quam iocundum habitare fratres in unum,

et cetera.• ' 392

'Behold how great good it is, and how great pleasure,

wherever brethren dwell in unity!1

83

&a cwaej) se gerefa f>e him swa re£e waes .

Eala ge ungesaeligan . and so|>lice earmingas . 396

alecgaj) eowre ge-wit-leaste . and alysaj? eow fram witum •

©a gebrojpra cwaedon . paet hi on cristcs lufe

|>a waeron gefaestnode . mid fulre blysse .

and on swilcum estum aer naeron on life . 400

wiscton |>aet hi moston swa wunian oJ> ende .

Hi stodon J>a stille on ]?am stocce gefaestnode

ofer daeg . and ofer niht . heora drihten herigende .

©a het fabianus mid fullum graman 404

3?aet hi man begen ofstunge f>aer paer hi on ge-bedum stodon •

and hi swa mid wuldre gewendon to criste .

Hwaet |>a fabianus . mid facne gewregde

Jsone aej>elan Sebastianum . to J>am arleasan casere 408

dioclitiane . ]?e on J>am dagura waes .

|>a het se kasere hine gefaeccan hra|>e . /

and cwae$> him sona to . mid swicolum gejaance . 411

Ic haefde £e mid i>am fyrmestan . ]?e minum hyrede folgodon .

and £11 lutodest oj? J)is on £am lafcum cristen-dome.

|>am godum to teonan . and me to un-£>earfe -.

Sebastianus cwae$> . Crist ic wurjpode symle .

and for £e J>ingode . and for |>inum folce . 416

Ic me gebidde to £>am gode . f>e bif> eardigende

on heofonum . mid healicum maegen-|>ryrame .

Wod bit> s e t>© bit a©t blindum stanum .

84

Then said the prefect, who was so bitter against them,

•0 ye unhappy and truly miserable beings, 396

lay aside your madness, and release yourself from torments,*

The brothers said, that they for the love of Christ

were fastened there, with full happiness, 399

and were never before in their lives among such delights,

and wished that they might so remain until the end.

So they stood still, fast in the pillory,

all day and all night, praising their Lord.

Then bade Fabianus, in exceeding fury, 404

that they should both be thrust through, where they stood

in prayer,

and they thus gloriously departed to Christ.

Then Fabianus wickedly accused

the noble Sebastian to the impious emperor 408

Diocletian, who ruled in those days.

Then bade the emperor fetch him speedily,

and said to him straightway with treacherous mind,

•I held thee amongst the foremost of my household servants,

and thou has lurked until now in that hateful Christianity,

to the dishonour of the gods, and to my disadvantage.1

Sebastian said, 'Christ I worshipped ever,

and interceded for thee, and for thy people; 416

I pray to the God who dwelleth ever

in the heavens in excellent glory.

He is mad who asketh of blind stones

85

AEnigne fultum . on his frecednyssum . 420

Ba wear£ dioclitanus deoflice gram

and het hine laedan on heardum bendum .

ut to anum felda and hine {>aer gefaestnian

and hentan his mid flanum . o|> |>aet he his feorh ageafe .424

&a laeddan |>a cempan |>one cristes ]?egn .

and setton hine to myrcelse . swa swa se manfulla het •

and heora flan him on afaestnodon . foran . and hindan •

swa ]?icce on aelce healfne hwylce iles byrsta . 428

and for-leton hine swa licgan for deadne .

]b>a com sum wudewe . pe waes anes martyres laf .

on ]?aere ylcan nihte . j aer he laeg forwundod .

wolde his lie bebyrigan . and gemette hine libbendne • 432

heo laedde hine J>a to hire huse eucenne .

and binnan feawum dagum • hine fullice ge-haelde .

©a comon f>a cristenan . and jpone cempan tihton

£aet he faran sceolde feor fram |>aere byrig . 436

Ac sebastianus ge-baed hine to gode .

astah £>a up to |>aere staegre . £e stod wi£ $>aes caseres botl •

and j a |>a se casere com clypode him J>us to .

Eowre haej>en-gyldan |>e healdaj) eowre templa . 440

cwy]?a]p fela leasunga eow be J>am cristenan .

secgajs |>aet hi syndon swutol-lice wijper-winnan .

eowrum cyne-dome . and eac eowrum folce .

ac eower kyne-dom goda|> |>urh heora godan ge-earnunga . 444

86

any assistance amidst his dangers.' 420

Then became Diocletian fiendishly angry,

and commanded him to be led out, in hard bonds,

into a field, and there to be bound,

and assailed with arrows until he gave up his life. 424

Then the soldiers led away the servant of Christ,

and set him for a mark, even as the wicked man commanded,

and fastened their arrows into him before and behind,

as thickly on every side as a hedgehog's bristles, 428

and so left him alone, lying for dead.

Then came a certain widow, who was a martyr's relict,

in the same night, where he lay sorely wounded,

desiring to bury his body, and found him living. 432

Then she brought him to her house alive,

and within a few days entirely healed him.

Then came the Christians, and urged the[phristian]warrior,

that he ought to depart far away from the city. 436

But Sebastian commended himself to God,

and went up to the staircase, which stood against the

emperor's palace,

and when the emperor came, thus cried to him;

'Your idol-priests who dwell in your temples 440

tell you many lies concerning the Christians,

saying that they are verily adversaries

to your kingdom, and also to your people;

but your kingdom prospereth through their good merits, 444

87

forjpan j?e hi gebidda|> . for romaniscre leode .

and for eowrum anwealde . unablinnendlice .

Ba beseah dioclitianus se deofollica cwellere

to fcam halgan were . fce £aer swa heage stod . 448

and cwae|> orgaellice . ne eart |>u la sebastianus ,

|>one ]?e ic gefyrn het mid flanum acwellan .

Sebastianus cwaef> . crist me araerde aeft .

to £>i ]?aet ic cy£e eow . aetforan eallum folce . 452 C!

eower unriht-wisan ehtnysse ofer J>a cristenan .

Ba het se casere |>one godes cempan

mid saglum ofbeatan . binnan his agenre byrig .

Ba dydon pa cwelleras swa swa se casere het . 456

and on niht behyddon his halgan licaman

on anuxn adel-seaj>e . secgende him betwynan .

$>aet huru |>a cristenan ne becuman to his lice .

and him to martyre macion si|>f>an . 460

&a aeteowde sebastianus on swaefne anre wudewan .

lucina geciged . swi|>e aewfaest man .

and saede hwaer his licama laeg . on |>am adelan .

het hi faran to . and hine f erian jjanon . • 464

to catacumbas . J>aer cristes apostolas .

PETRVS and PAVLVS aerest bebyrgede waeron .

and lecgan his lie . aet heora fot-laestum

Lucina |>a ferde to i>am fore-seadan sea|>e . 468

on middere nihte mid hire mannum .

and his lie funde . and ferede mid wurj>-mynte

88

because they pray for the Roman people

and for your dominion, without ceasing.'

Then looked Diocletian, the fiendish murderer,

towards the holy man, who stood there so loftily, 448

and said haughtily, 'Art not thou that Sebastian,

whom I before commanded to be slain with arrows?*

Sebastian said, 'Christ raised me up again 451

to the end that I might declare to thee before all the people

your unrighteous persecution against the Christians.'

Then bade the emperor that the soldier of God

should be beaten to death with clubs within his own city.

Then the murderers did even as the commander commanded, 456

and by night hid his holy corpse

in a foul sewer, saying amongst themselves,

that at least the Christians should not get at his body,

and make him into a martyr afterwards. 460

Then appeared Sebastian in a dream to a widow,

named Lucina, a very pious person,

and told her where his body lay in the sewer,

bade her go thither, and bear him thence, 464

even to the catacombs, where Christ's apostles

Peter and Paul were first buried,

and lay his body close at their feet.

Lucina then went to the aforesaid sewer 468

at midnight, together with her servants,

and found his body, and carried it reverently

89

to |>aere ylcan stowe . |>e he sylf bebead .

and mid geornfulnysse hine paer bebyrigde . 472

|>am aelmihtigan to wuldre . se £>e ge-wylt ealle £>ing .

rixiende a on ecnysse . eces wuldres cyning .

90

to the very place which he had himself ordered,

and with great carefulness there buried him, 472

to the glory of the Almighty, who ruleth over all things,

reigning for ever, King of eternal glory.

APPENDIX II

WORDS IN CURRENT USAGE

abltan •bite" afyllan "fill"

acsian 'ask" agen "own"

aewe1Ian III* •quell" agiefan "give"

adela •addle" alecgan "allay"

adraefan •drive" amolten "molten"

adrincan •drink" an "on"

adun •down" an "one"

aefre •ever" and "and"

aefter 'after" anlic "alike"

aege •awe" annys "oneness"

a~egber •either" apostol "apostle"

a"elc •each" ara'ecan ' "reach"

aell-mihtig 'almighty" ara~eran "rear"

aengel 'angel" arlsan "arise"

aenig •any" asendan "send"

aet 'at" awaeg "away"

afaestnian •fasten" aweccan "awake"

afeallan 'fallen" awendan "wend"

afindan •find" aweorpan III "warp"

* A Roman III beside a word signifies a reference to Appendix III for an archaic, provincial, or historical use of the word.

91

92

awrltan "write" boc "book"

awyrgan III "worry" braec "break"

ba"egen "both" breost "breast"

ban "bone" brofcor "brother"

beaIdlie "boldly" bugan "bow"

bebyrgan "bury" burg "burg"

becuman "become" butan "about"

begietan "beget" Casere "caesar, kaiser"

begyrdon "begird" catacumbas "catacombs"

beheafdian "behead" cempa "champion"

behreows ian "rue" cene "keen"

behydan "hide" ceowan "chew"

bend "bend" claene "clean"

beniman III "numb" cnapa "knave"

beon "be" cniht "knight"

beorht "bright" craeft "craft"

beornan "burn" creda "creed"

beran "bear" Crxst "Christ"

beseon "see" crxstendom "Christendom"

betaecan "teach" cuc "quick"

betwynan "between" " cuman "come"

bl "by" cunnan "can"

biddan III "bid" cweban III "quoth, bequeath"

biterlice "bitterly" cyld "child"

blind "blind" cynedom "kingdom"

blSstm "blossom" cyning "king"

93

SI± "kiss" eom "am"

da "doe" eow "you"

daed "deed" faeder "father"

da eg "day" faeger "fair"

daeghwamlxce "daily" faer »fear"

da~elan "deal, dole" faestan "fast"

de~ab "death" faebm "fathom"

deman "deem" faran "fare"

deofol "devil" feallan "fall"

dlacon "deacon" feawe "few"

dimlic "dimly" feld "field"

d5m "doom" f eoh "fee"

d5n "do" feond "fiend"

dorste "durst" feorr "far"

draca "dragon" feower "four"

dumb "dumb" ferian "ferry"

dwelian "dwell" flf "five"

eaS© "eye" f indan "find"

ealdor "alder" fiscere "fisher"

eall "all" flaesc • "flesh"

elles "else" folc "folk"

ende "end" folgere "follower"

endeleas "endless" for "for"

endleofan "eleven" forbeodan III"forbid"

endemaest "endmost" foreseadan "foresaid"

94

forgiefan

forgieldan

forgifnes

forseon

fort)

fot

fot-laest

fram

freode

freond

ful

ful

fullic

fynd

fyr

fyrmest

fyrst

gas t lie

gearlic

gebed

gebletsian

geboren

gebringan

geceosan

gecyssan

gedon

"forgive"

"yield"

"forgiveness"

"foresee"

"forth"

"foot"

"foot-last"

"from"

"freed"

"friend"

"full"

"foul"

"fully"

"fiend"

"fire"

"foremost"

"first"

"ghostly"

"yearly"

"bead"

"bless"

"born"

"bring"

"choose"

"kiss"

"do"

"earn" ge-earnian

gefeccan "fetch"

gefaestnian "fasten"

gefeoht "fight"

gefyllan

gehaelan

gehealdan

gehlertan

gehlwian

gehwyle

"fill"

"heal"

"hold"

"hearten"

"hue"

"v/hich"

gelaeccan III"latch"

gelaedan "lead"

gelaetan W . i . u, I ll.i mmirtu

gelxcnes

gemartyrian "martyr"

gemetan "meet"

"let"

"likeness"

geoffrian

geong

geopenian

georn

gerefa

' gesaelig

gesawan

gescead

gescieppan

gesecan

"offer"

"young"

"open"

"yearn"

"reeve"

"silly"

"sow"

"shed"

"shape"

"seek"

95

geseon "see" had "-hood, -head"

gesettan "set" haeft "haft"

gesiht III "sight" ha~elb "health"

gestillan "still" ha"eben "heathen"

gesund "sound" hal "hale, whole"

getellan "tell" halga "hallow"

getreowe "true" halig "holy"

gewendan "wend" hand ."hand"

geweorc "work" hat "hot"

gewilnung "will" he "he"

gewls "wise" heafod "head"

gewitleas "witless" heage "high"

gewrecan III "wreak" heah-gerefa "high reeve"

gewyldan "wield" healdan "hold"

giefan "give" healf "half"

"if" healic "highly"

glaes "glass" heard "hard"

glitenian "glitter" hentan "hunt"

"good" heofon "heaven"

gSdnes "goodness" heofonlic ['heavenly"

£ o l d "gold" heorte "heart"

gretan "greet" her "here"

gyldan "gild" hindan "behind"

$ylt: "guilt" hlredman "hired-man"

gyt "yet" hlehhan "laugh"

habban "have" hraebe III "rather"

96

"how" lab "loath"

hund "hundred" llaf "leave"

bus "house" leas "less"

hwa "who" lecgan "lay"

hwaer "where" leoht "light"

hwaet "what" leornian "learn"

hwaeber "whether" libban "live"

hwy "why" licgan "lie"

hwylc "which" llf "life"

£2* "hire" lifian "live"

hyrdan "harden" lim "limb"

ic "I" luf ian "love"

Idelnes "idleness" lust "lust"

iernan "run" mara "more"

Igland "island" macian "make"

into "into" maegen "main"

is "is " magan "may"

Is en "iron" manig "many"

la! "lol" mann "man"

lac "wedlock" martyr "martyr"

la"etan "let" martyrdom "martyrdom"

laf III "leave" maessepreost "mass-priest

iaga "law" "me"

land "land" mechanise "mechanical"

l a nS long" med III "meed"

lar "lore" mete "meat"

97

micel "much" oncnawan "know"

midd "mid" ongean "against"

mihte "might" onginnan "begin"

min "mine" onllhtan "enlighten"

mircels "mark" orsorg "sorrow"

mod "mood" ober "other"

modor "mother" obb© "or"

mo tan "must" P5Pa. "pope"

mub "mouth" pinian III "pine"

na "no" preost "priest"

nacod "naked" pund "pound"

naedre "adder" raedan "read"

naefre "never" rihtwls "righteous"

nan "none" Romanise "Roman"

neod "need" sacerd "sacred"

niht "night" sae "sea"

nlwe "new" sarness "soreness"

nu "now" sawol "soul"

of "of" sceatt III "scot-free)1*

ofbeatan "beat" sceoldan "should"

ofdra'edan "dread" scinan "shine"

ofer "over" sclr "shire"

offrung "offering" scort "short"

ofen "oven" "the"

ofslean "slain" sealm "psalm"

ofstingan "sting" secan "seek"

98

secgan "say" ta*ecan "teach"

self "self" tear "tear"

selfwill "selfwill" ternpel "temple"

sellan "sell" tld H I "tide"

seoc "side" to "to, too"

seolfor "silver" tobrecan "break"

settan "set" togaedere "together1

s ingan "sing" "tooth"

s ibban "since" treowen "treen"

sixtyne "sixteen" twegen "twain"

sona "soon" tyhtan "tighten"

spra~ec "speech" baer "there"

staeger "stair" baet "that"

stan "stone" bancian "thank"

s tandan "stand" banon "thence"

steorra "star" bas "those"

stillan "still" beah "though"

stocc "stock" beaw "thew"

Strang "strong" foes "these"

sum "some" & "thee"

sunu "son" bicce "thick"

swa "so" bider "thither"

sweord "sword" bin * M M M M I » » H I W I

"thine"

sweostor "sister" "thing"

swilce "such" bone "then"

sv7ingell "swingle" bonne "than"

99

PF.ie. "three" weorfr "worth"

frrltig "thirty" wepan "weep"

feH "thou" wer III "weir, werewolf"

buht "thought" wif "wife"

burh "through" willan "will"

"thus" T

WIS "wise"

fjusend "thousand" wis lie "wisely"

unbindan "unbind" witan III "wit"

unclaene "unclean" wife "with"

uncub "uncouth" wifrer III "withers"

untobrocen "unbroken" word "word"

ut "out" wuduwe "widow"

waeron "were" wund "wound"

waes "was" wundor "wonder"

we "we" wundrian "wonder"

weaxan "wax" wunian III "wont, wonted"

wecg "wedge" wynsum "winsome"

wel "well" wyscan "wish"

weorc "work" yfel "evil"

weoroId "world" yrf>ling " "earthling"

APPENDIX III

ARCHAIC, PROVINCIAL, AND HISTORICAL WORDS

O.E. Word Definition Cognate

abaedan "restrain, repel" bade

abllcan "astonish" bleck

acwellan II* "kill" quell

adela II "filth, sewer" addle

aeft "again, back" eft

aer "before, early" ere

aetforan "before" afore

aebele "noble" athel, atheling

afllgan "put to flight" o afley

afyrhtan "frighten, terrify" afeard

aht "possessions, goods" aught

anfeald "simple" aefald

aweorpan II- "throw" warp

awyrgan II "worry" worry

baed (biddan) II "prayed" bade

beam "child, offspring" bairn

ben "prayer" bene

beniman II "deprive" benimmed (past part.)

*A Roman II beside a word signifies a reference to Appendix II for a current use of the word.

100

101

berypan

betwux

bist

bodian

byrne

byrs t

campian

clypian

cobu

cumafc (cuman)

cub

cweban II

cynehelm

cyban

derian

drihten

dyrne

eac

eardian

eart (beon)

eabelic

Scan

flan

foran

forbeodan II

fordon

"plunder"

"between, among"

"art, shalt be"

"preach"

"coat of mail"

"bristle"

"to contend"

"speak, proclaim"

"disease"

"cometh"

"known, evident"

"say, speak"

"crown"

"make known, tell"

"injure, hurt"

"ruler, The Lord"

"close, hidden"

"also, likewise"

"dwell, live"

"are"

"easy, possible"

"prolong, add"

"arrow"

"before"

"forbid"

"destroy"

ripe

betwixt

bist

bode

byrnie

burstie

camp

clepe

co the

cometh

couth

quoth

cynehelm

kithe, kythe

dere

drightin

dern

eke

erd

art

eathly

eke

flane, flain

fore

forboden (past part.)

foredone

102

foregleaw

si

gearcian

gedreccan

fiefera

gelaeccan II

gelaeran

gesa"*elig II

gescead II

gesiht II

gewrecan II

gewyldan II

gled

haefb (habban)

ha'elend

ha tan

hirde

hlwan

hnescian

hraebe II

hwene

laf II

llcharna

maeran

mid II

mis la'eran

"foreseeing"

"you"

"prepare, make ready"

"vex, afflict"

"companion, comrade"

"apprehend"

"teach, instruct"

"happy, blessed"

"discernment"

"presence, aspect"

"wreak, avenge"

"rule, govern"

"coal, ember"

"has"

"a healer, Saviour"

"be called or named" /

"herd, shepherd"

"members of a household"

"make soft"

"quickly, speedily"

"little, few"

"remainder, remnant"

"body, corpse"

"make known, proclaim"

"reward"

"teach wrongly"

foreglew

ye

gear

dretch

fere

latch

lear, lere

silly

shed

sight

wreak

wield

gleed

hath

healend

hight

herd

hind

nesh

rather

wheen

lave

lich

mere, mear

meed

lere

103

mundbora

ne

oft

ontendan

orgelllce

plnian II

reccan

sagol

sceatt

sob

stow

swefan

teona

tld II

££ beow

wearr

wenan

wer

witan II.

witega

wiber II

wod

wunian II

ylca

"protector, guardian"

"not, no (adv.)"

"often"

"kindle, set fire to"

"proudly, haughtily"

"torment, torture"

"care, reck"

"club, staff"

"property, goods"

"truth"

"place"

"sleep"

"damage, harm"

"tide, time, hour"

"then, when"

"servant, slave" /

"knot, wart"

"imagine, believe"

"man, husband"

"know, behold"

"wis e man, prophet"

"against"

"mad, raging"

"inhabit, dwell, abide"

"the same"

mund

ne

oft

tander

orgulous

pine

reck

sowel

scat, sceat

sooth

stow

sweven

teen

tide

tho

theow

warnel

ween

wergild

wit

witan

withershins

wood

won

ilk

APPENDIX IV

WORDS WHOSE COGNATES APPEAR NOWHERE

IN MODERN ENGLISH

arleas "dishonourable" geswaes "dear, alluring"

ascyran "separate" "honour, rank"

afc>v7ean "wash" gewunelxce "accustomed"

awacian "grow weak" haeftling "captive"

bigleofa "food" haebengild "heathen worship"

cweartern "prison" haebenscipe "heathenism"

dearnunga "secretly" heofian "lament, wail"

eawfaest "pious" heofung "mourning"

ehtnes "persecution" hlutor "clear, pure"

cndebyrdnes "course, way" hnxgan "bend down"

feorh "life, soul" hradian ' "quicken"

forestihtian "fore-ordain" hremman "hinder"

fore£>ingere "intercessor" huru "at least"

forbferan "die, depart" ile "sole of the foot"

fotadl "foot disease" leahter "crime, sin"

frlcednys "danger, peril" maedencild "maiden-child"

frecenful "harmful" man "one, anyone"

gearwe "assuredly" manful "evil, wicked"

geblegan "bow, convert" mid "with"

gecygan "call, name" naeron "were not"

104

105

naes "was not" synd "are"

nxgehwyrfed "newly converted" tallic "blameable"

nis "is not" tungol "planet"

nyllan "be unwilling" tweon "doubt"

nytan "be ignorant" Brines "trinity"

nytennes "ignorance" unab1innendlie "unceasing"

onweard "opposed to" underfon "receive"

ormaete "exceeding" underhnxgan "submit to"

rlcsian "rule, govern" unforht "fearless"

rodorlic "celestial" ungesewenlic "invisible"

rum^iful "bountiful" unhal "sick, ill"

sacan "fight, contend" waedlig "the poor"

sige "victory" waelhreowlic "cruelly"

sige-beacn "sign of victory" waeterseoc "dropsical"

sirnble • "for ever, always" wanung "howling"

sinscipe "marriage" weorb-mynt "honour"

swaeslie "kindly" wldgill "wide-sprea<

swa"esness "blandishment" "witchcraft

sweora "neck" wlte "torture"

sweotol "manifest" witodlic "verily"

swicol "false, crafty" wibsacan "forsake"

swlbe "very, much" wop •11 man m*m

"weeping"

wuldor "glory"

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Aelfric, Aelfric's Lives of Saints, edited by the Reverend Walter W. Skeat for the Early English Text Society, London, N. Trubner & Co., 1881.

Bosworth, Joseph, Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, edited by T. Northcote Toller, London, Oxford University Press, 1898. '

Bradley, Henry and others, editors, The Oxford English Dictionary, 12 vols., Oxford, The Clarendon Press, 1961.

Brook, G. L., A History of The English Language, New York. The Norton Library,"T931Jr

Brooks, Cleanth, John Thibaut Purser and Robert Penn Warren, An Approach to Literature, 4th ed., New York, AppletonrceHt^^o?ts7'TgB2r:

Bryant, Margaret M., Modern English and Its Heritage, 2nd ed., New York, The MacmaXlan Company, 1962.

Carhart, Paul W., Thomas A. Knott and William Allan Neil-son, editors, Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language,"IZnd ed. revised. Massachu-setts, G. & C. Merriam Company, 1960.

Emery, H. G. and K. G. Brewster, editors, The New Century Dictionary, 2 vols., New York, D. AppletorPSentury Company, 1948.

Gove, Philip B., chief editor, Webster's Third New Inter-national Dictionary, Massachusetts, G. & C. Merriam Company, l96l. w

Hall, John R. Clark, A Concise Anglo-Saxon Dictionary for the Use of Students, New York, The Macmillan Company, m 6 :

Holthausen, F., Altenglisches Etymologisches Wfirterbuch, Heidelberg, Carl Winters tjniversi t&t sbuchhandlung, 1934. o

Pyles, Thomas, The Origins and Development of the English Language, New York, Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 19§4.

106

107

Robertson, Stuart, The Development of Modern English, revised by Frederic G. Cassidy, New York, Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1954.

Shakespeare, William, Shakespeare, The Complete Works, edited by G. B. Harrxson, New York, Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1952.

Skeat, Rev. Walter W., An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language* new ed., Oxford,the ClarenHon Press, 1§T07

Wright, Joseph, editor, The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., London, Henry Frowde, Amen Corner, 1896.