Reading Strategy
Old English Reading 1
Chapter 1 · Reading Strategy
🔍 Reading Strategy
From Chapter 2 on, every chapter reads one real text. Before that, you need a routine. This chapter gives one, and practises it on short sentences. It assumes Old English Grammar 1; each step names the chapter of that course it comes from.
Why not left to right?
In Modern English the order of the words tells you who did what. In Old English the endings do that, and the order is freer. Old English Grammar 1 (Chapter 10) gives the defaults: the verb is second in a main clause and last in a subordinate clause. So a line that looks scrambled to an English reader is usually following a pattern. Find the pattern first.
The routine, step by step
| Step | Ask | Look back at |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Verb | Where is the finite verb? Main clause (verb second) or subordinate clause (verb last)? | Old English Grammar 1, Chapter 10 |
| 2. Verb type | Weak, strong, preterite-present or one of the odd verbs? Which person, number, tense and mood? | Old English Grammar 1, Chapters 8 and 9 |
| 3. Subject | Which nominative noun or pronoun agrees with the verb? | Old English Grammar 1, Chapters 3 and 7 |
| 4. Cases | What case is each remaining noun? Genitive "of", dative "to/for", accusative object. | Old English Grammar 1, Chapters 2 to 4 |
| 5. Agreement | Does each article and adjective match its noun in gender, number and case? | Old English Grammar 1, Chapters 5 and 6 |
| 6. Small words | Prepositions (which case do they take?), ne, þā, þe. | Old English Grammar 1, Chapter 10 |
| 7. Read it again | Now put it into English, and check that it makes sense. |
Worked example 1: a sentence from the grammar article
Þā ic hām ēode, þā slēp ic.
then I home went, then slept I
"When I went home, I slept."
Source: Wikipedia, Old English grammar, Syntax section (read in Old English Grammar 1, Chapter 10). Gloss and layout as given there.
- Verbs: ēode ends the first clause, so that clause is subordinate. slēp comes right after the second þā, so the second clause is the main one and the verb is second.
- Verb types: ēode is the past of gān (Old English Grammar 1, Chapter 9). slēp is a past with no ending and first person singular.
- Subject: ic both times. In the main clause it follows the verb, because the clause begins with þā.
- Small words: the two þā are a pair: "when ... then". The article states that this is how "when X, Y" is built.
Worked example 2: a sentence with cases (mine)
Iċ sealde hire þone beall.
I gave her(dative) the(accusative) ball(accusative)
"I gave her the ball."
Mine: a sentence built from forms taught in Old English Grammar 1, Chapters 3 and 7. Not a quotation from a text.
- Verb: sealde, a past singular, first person.
- Subject: iċ.
- Cases: hire is the dative, the person who receives. þone beall is the accusative, the thing that was given.
The order here happens to match English. Try reordering it: þone beall sealde iċ hire still means the same, because the endings, not the positions, give the roles. (This reordering is my own illustration of the principle in the Old English article, not a line from a text.)
Worked example 3: a question (mine)
Ġesāwe þū þæs hundes bān?
saw you the(genitive) dog's(genitive) bone(accusative)
"Did you see the dog's bone?"
Mine: built from forms taught in Old English Grammar 1, Chapters 3 and 10. Not a quotation from a text.
- The verb comes first and the subject þū follows it: a question made by inversion, with no helper verb.
- þæs hundes is genitive, "of the dog". It stands in front of bān, the thing seen.
Practical notes for real texts
- Look up the base form. A dictionary lists verbs by the infinitive and nouns by the nominative singular, so strip or change the ending before you look a word up.
- Marks. The macrons (ā, ē) and the dots on ġ, ċ are modern editors' marks (Old English Grammar 1, Chapter 1). Many editions of a text leave them out, so a word may look unfamiliar until you add them back in your head.
- Spelling varies. Manuscripts differ in how they spell the same word. Each chapter's Watch out box points out the differences in its text.
📋 Quick Reference
| Do this | Because |
|---|---|
| Find the verb first | Verb second in main clauses, last in subordinate clauses |
| Find the subject next | Nominative, agrees with the verb |
| Read the endings | Cases show roles; word order is freer |
| Treat þā ... þā as a pair | "When X, then Y" |
| Expect inversion in questions | No do-support |
✏️ Try It Yourself
Say the answer first, then click to check.
1. In Þā ic hām ēode, þā slēp ic. which clause is the main clause, and how can you tell?
Show answer
The second one: its verb slēp is second, whereas ēode ends the first clause.
2. In Iċ sealde hire þone beall, what case is hire, and what is its job?
Show answer
Dative: the person who receives the ball ("to her").
3. What case is þone beall?
Show answer
Accusative: the direct object.
4. Translate (mine): þæt mæġden rann. Hints: mæġden "girl", rann the past of rinnan "run".
Show answer
"The girl ran." þæt mæġden is the subject; rann is the verb, second in the clause.
5. In Ġesāwe þū þæs hundes bān? why does the verb come before the subject?
Show answer
It is a question, and questions invert the subject and the verb.
6. What case is hundes in that question, and what does the ending mean?
Show answer
Genitive: "of the dog", "the dog's".
7. Translate (mine): hē ne wolde gān.
Show answer
"He did not want to go." ne stands before the finite verb wolde (past of willan); gān is the infinitive.
8. What does the pair þā ... þā mean?
Show answer
"When ..., then ...".
9. Reorder (mine): can þone beall sealde iċ hire mean "She gave me the ball"? Why or why not?
Show answer
No. iċ is nominative, so it is the giver, and hire is dative, so she is the receiver. The endings fix the roles whatever the order.
10. What is the first step of the routine?
Show answer
Find the finite verb and decide whether the clause is main (verb second) or subordinate (verb last).