The History of English Podcast

King Alfred is the only English monarch to be known as “the Great.” His struggles and ultimate victory over the Danes ensured the survival of the Anglo-Saxon culture and the English language.  In this...

4 Aug 20141h 4min

In this episode, we look at the English terms associated with kings and nobility and explore the concept of Anglo-Saxon kingship. We also look at the poetry of the 9th century poet Cynewulf.  The link...

15 Jul 20141h 1min

At the end of the 8th century, Western Europe saw its most powerful kings to date.  That included Charlemagne in Francia and Offa in Britain.  Those kings shared a close relationship which extended to...

26 Jun 20141h 5min

The modern French language evolved from a Latin dialect spoken in Gaul during the period of the late Roman Empire. That language ultimately became mixed with Old English after the Norman Conquest of 1...

6 Jun 20141h 3min

Many Anglo-Saxons believed in a world inhabited by monsters and mythological creatures. They also believed in the power of sorcery and witchcraft. These ideas are reflected in the literature of the An...

21 Mai 201457min

The Viking-era states of Denmark, Sweden and Norway emerged from several North Germanic tribes in Scandinavia.  These tribes also included the Geats who were prominently featured in Beowulf.  In this ...

7 Mai 201450min

In this bonus episode we explore a few odds and ends which didn’t make into the earlier episodes.   We examine the Old English words related to knowledge and wisdom.  And we also look at the original ...

25 Apr 201418min

The Anglo-Saxons created new words within Old English through the use of compound words, as well as standard prefixes and suffixes.   This process expanded the vocabulary of Old English and enabled th...

8 Apr 201456min