old english, midterm paper 2017 (30%). pk & Þe 2017.pdf · old english, midterm paper 2017...

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1 Old English, Midterm paper 2017 (30%). PK & ÞE Your assignment is to (1) translate the passage into English, French or Icelandic (sorry I can’t accommodate other languages); (2) parse* the underlined words (20 items); and (3) give brief etymological notes on any five of the underlined words, listing a few cognate forms in related languages, including Modern English and/or Icelandic. *parse means to state the parts of speech, from the school question Quae pars orationis? (What part of speech?) Do it this way: For nouns and pronouns, give the case, number and gender. For personal pronouns, give the case, number and person; if 3rd person singular give the gender (the other forms do not show gender) Possessive adjectives only exist in the 1st and 2nd person: treat them like adjectives (mín,, þín, úre, éower) For adjectives, give the case, number and gender, and say whether weak or strong; also whether comparative or superlative. For verbs, give the person, number and tense (present or plural) and state whether indicative, subjunctive or imperative. If infinitive, of course that is all you have to say. Nominal forms of verbs, past or present participles, should be treated like adjectives. Notes on the text to be translated. The Colloquy of Ælfric (c. 955-1020) is a reader composed in fairly simple Latin for schoolchildren. The OE text is a crib, written in smaller letters between the lines. The Glossary following this text is from G. N. Garmondsway, Ælfric’s Colloquy, Methuen 1947 (“Three Shillings and Sixpence”). Note that words in small capitals in the Glossary are the modern English equivalents; when in square brackets they have changed their meaning.

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Old English, Midterm paper 2017 (30%). PK & ÞE

Your assignment is to (1) translate the passage into English, French or Icelandic (sorry I can’t

accommodate other languages); (2) parse* the underlined words (20 items); and (3) give brief

etymological notes on any five of the underlined words, listing a few cognate forms in related

languages, including Modern English and/or Icelandic.

*parse means to state the parts of speech, from the school question Quae pars orationis?

(What part of speech?) Do it this way:

For nouns and pronouns, give the case, number and gender.

For personal pronouns, give the case, number and person; if 3rd person singular give

the gender (the other forms do not show gender)

Possessive adjectives only exist in the 1st and 2nd person: treat them like adjectives

(mín,, þín, úre, éower)

For adjectives, give the case, number and gender, and say whether weak or strong;

also whether comparative or superlative.

For verbs, give the person, number and tense (present or plural) and state whether

indicative, subjunctive or imperative. If infinitive, of course that is all you have to say.

Nominal forms of verbs, past or present participles, should be treated like adjectives.

Notes on the text to be translated.

The Colloquy of Ælfric (c. 955-1020) is a reader composed in fairly simple Latin for

schoolchildren. The OE text is a crib, written in smaller letters between the lines.

The Glossary following this text is from G. N. Garmondsway, Ælfric’s Colloquy, Methuen

1947 (“Three Shillings and Sixpence”). Note that words in small capitals in the Glossary are

the modern English equivalents; when in square brackets they have changed their meaning.

2

(from the frontispiece of Garmondsway 1947)

TEXT

Wé cildra biddaþ þé, éalá láréow, þæt þú tǽce ús sprecan leden rihte, forþám ungelǽrede

wé syndon ond gewæmmodlíce wé sprecaþ.

Hwæt wille1 gé sprecan?

Hwæt réce wé hwæt wé sprecon, búton hit riht sprǽc sý ond behéfe, næs ídel oþþe fracod. 5

Wille gé béon beswungen on leornunge?

Léofre is ús béon beswungen for láre þænne hit ne cunnan. Ac wé witon þé bilewitne

wesan ond nellan2 onbelǽden swincgla ús, búton þú béo tógenydd fram ús.

Ic áxie þé, hwæt sprycst þú? Hwæt hæfst þú weorces?

Ic eom geanwyrde munuc, ond ic sincge ǽlce3 dæg seofon tída mid gebróþrum, ond ic eom 10

bysgod on rǽdinga ond on sange, ac þéahhwæþere ic wolde betwénan leornian sprecan on

ledengereorde.

Hwæt cunnon þás þine geféran?

Sume sint yrþlincgas, sume scéphyrdas, sume oxanhyrdas, sume éac swylce huntan, sume

fisceras, sume fugeleras, sume céapmenn, sume scéowyrhtan, sealteras, bæceras. 15

Hwæt sægest þú, yrþlingc? Hú begǽst þú weorc þín?

Éalá, léof hláford, þearle ic deorfe. Ic gá út on dægræd þýwende oxan tó félda, ond iucie

hí4 tó syl.

1 = willað. Late form

2= ne willan. But look up nellan in the glossary.

3 One would expect ǽlcne, but this form is usual.

4 híe

3

Nis hit swá stearc winter þæt ic durre lútian æt hám for ege hláfordes mínes, ac geiukodan5

oxan, ond gefæstnodon sceare ond cultre mid þǽre syl, ǽlce dæg ic sceal erian fulne æcer 20

oþþe máre.

Hæfst þu ǽnigne geféran?

Ic hæbbe sumne cnapan þýwende oxan mid gádisene, þe éac swilce nú hás is for cylde ond

hréame.

Hwæt máre dést þú on dæg? 25

Gewislíce þænne máre ic dó. Ic sceal fyllan binnan oxan6 mid híg, ond wæterian hig

7, ond

scearn heora beran út.

Hig! hig! Micel gedeorf is hit.

Géa léof, micel gedeorf hit is, forþám ic neom8 fréoh.

5 geiukodan oxan, ond gefæstnodon sceare ond cultre mid þǽre syl” needs explaining. The meaning is

“the oxen (having been) yoked, and the share and coulter (having been) fasted to the plough.” The

share and coulter are parts of the plough (sulh, dat. sg. syl). The words geiukodan and gefæstnodon

and dative past participles, and would be spelled gegeocodum and gefæstnodum in standard spelling:

this shows how the endings are breaking down in late OE. They are modelled on the Latin text which

has so-called ablative absolutes here - sed iunctis bobus [=bouibus] et confirmato uomere cultro et

aratro. But note that the dative plural of oxa should be oxum - see note 6 below. 6 This is obviously plural, “oxen”, because of hig (=híe) and heora later in this sentence. But the

genitive plural should be oxna: this is an example of erosion of inflections in this late text. 7 = híe. But híg earlier in the sentence is a different word, as is hig! in the next line.

8 = ic ne eom

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