Old Engli.sh

The Portal to the Language of the Anglo-Saxons

About Old-Engli.sh

The website www.Old-Engli.sh is dedicated to the Anglo-Saxon language. It offers study tools, news on current linguistic research and resource development, a link directory, text editions, trivia articles and more.
About the Anglo-Saxon Language

Old English (OE) is the term used collectively for the earliest dialects of the English language, spoken by the Angles, Saxons and Jutes in England from c. 400-1150. The first OE records date from c. 700 and all in all more than 1,000,000 word tokens in over 400 manuscripts have come down to us. OE prose boasts a wide variety of genres, ranging from legal and religious texts over historical, medical or scientific writing to fiction. The surviving OE poems, such as Beowulf or the Battle of Maldon, are among the finest examples of early Germanic legend and heroic poetry.
About Me

I'm a PhD Student at the University of Geneva. I'm maintaining this webpage on the side as a hobby. You can find out more about me by clicking on the My Research tab in the top menu.


Welcome to Old-Engli.sh!


Frēond dēah feor ge nēah. byð near nyttra.
'A friend is good, far or near. Near is better.'
(Durham Proverb No. 2, 11th century)



The latest Old-Engli.sh News

June 2018
Dictionary Old English depiction of Hell
A depiction of Hell from an Anglo-Saxon Manuscript Cotton Claudius B.IV
The Dictionary of Old English presents its report for 2017 - an exceptionally eventful year as the team welcomes their new Chief Editor, completes the letter I, and maximizes efforts with outreach and dissemination.


April 2016
DOE logo red dragon
Dictionary of Old English to publish letter H
2015 was a remarkable year for the Dictionary of Old English (DOE). The annual progress report for 2015 projects completion of the letter H, presents system upgrades, and announces important staff changes.


Old English Trivia of the Day

Article for Friday 25 September 2020
Verners law as allophones of PIE consonants
The development of Indo-European plosives
in Germanic
Verner’s law describes a sound change during the Proto-Germanic era. It explains, among other things, the s/r alternation in "was - were".


Study Anglo-Saxon!

Old English Language
old-english dictionary anglo-saxon lexicon
An Old English dictionary that's easy to use and accurate
Old-Engli.sh offers its own dictionary page. This online Old to Modern English glossary is simple, comprehensive and ideally suited for the translation of original Old English texts.


Old English Documentaries

Produced in 2003
Beowulf and the Anglo-Saxons DVD cover
DVD cover of the 2007 DVD release
A BBC4 documentary about one of the British Library's most valuable gems: the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf. This 60 minute program explores the epic poem, its preservation and re-discovery by Tolkien.


Today's Featured Link

Old English Dictionaries
Bosworth-Toller Anglo-Saxon Dictionary
The digital edition of the bosworth-Toller Anglo-Saxon Dictionary offers an easy-to-use search function for Old English to Moder English word translations. You can also download the dictionary directly to your PC.
http://bosworth.ff.cuni.cz/ (homepage)
http://lexicon.ff.cuni.cz/app/downloads.htm (download page)
Bosworth-Toller Anglo-Saxon Dictionary


Old English Text Editions

Find here a collection of free, downloadable Old English text editions and translations, including Apollonius of Tyre. Ælfric's Catholic Homilies, Biblical Translations, The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and many other texts. Continue...