In the course of time, Old English underwent various changes such as the loss of final syllables, which also led to simplification of the morphology. West Saxon was the language of Alfred the Great (871-901) and therefore achieved the greatest prominence accordingly, the chief Old English texts have survived in this dialect. Old English itself has three dialects: West Saxon, Kentish, and Anglian. The settlement regions correspond roughly to later dialect divisions of Old English. The early migrations of Germanic peoples from coastal regions of northern Europe to areas of modern-day England. The Germanic parent language of these three families, referred to as Proto-Germanic, is not attested but may be reconstructed from evidence within the families, such as provided by Old English texts. Old Icelandic) as its chief dialect, and East Germanic, with Gothic as its chief (and only attested) dialect. Sister families to West Germanic are North Germanic, with Old Norse (a.k.a. It is also referred to as Anglo-Saxon, a name given in contrast with the Old Saxon of the inhabitants of northern Germany these are two of the dialects of West Germanic, along with Old Frisian, Old Franconian, and Old High German. Old English is the language of the Germanic inhabitants of England, dated from the time of their settlement in the 5th century to the end of the 11th century. Cable, Professor Emeritus of the University of Texas at Austin. Old English Online Series Introduction Jonathan Slocum and Winfred P. Linguistics Research Center Social Mediaįor comments and inquiries, or to report issues, please contact the Web Master at Menu.
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