Thinking About – The Old English Language

If you’ve read my previous article here, you will know that for some years now I’ve been drawn to explore the Gods, Goddesses, and Spirits of my early English ancestors. It has been an incredibly powerful journey so far, with so many jaw-dropping aha moments I can barely keep up. I’ve obviously been reading historical books, listening to podcasts and watching experts on YouTube, and I’ve also been doing a course in Old English. Once again, I need to thank my good friend Kristoffer Hughes, because it was witnessing his love of the Welsh language and culture that really opened my eyes to how much I’d taken my language for granted, and how very little I knew about early English culture and its history.

When I was at school, I learned about Roman Britain, and also learned about England from 1066, but I was neither told nor taught anything about what was then the Dark Ages – a time also referred to as the Anglo-Saxon period, or more recently the Early Medieval. From 410AD with the final breakdown of Roman rule, to the coming of the Normans in 1066, there was a huge gap that nobody seemed to want to talk about. So there I was, in the back of Kristoffer’s car, listening to his enthusiasm, his love of the land and language, and there was this massive gap in the understanding of the roots of my own country and language.

So let’s address the Elephant in the room right away. There are two extreme ways to respond to a discussion of the Anglo-Saxon period. One is from the right that makes it all about a Nationalistic, white-supremacist, us-and-them point of view filled with hate. The other is from the left that comes from a ‘we don’t touch an idea of England and the English because it encourages the views of the far right’. But there is a centre ground that comes from an honest interest in the dawn of a country and a culture. From wanting to understand the roots of those early peoples from whose language our own language developed, and without that, people can feel, as I did, somewhat lost, and also, I have to say, encouraged to feel shame when even suggesting it might be a good idea to develop a deeper understanding of those roots. The thing is, as each decade passes, I find myself less and less worried about what other people think, and far more comfortable in my own skin. So if you don’t want to talk about, think about, or explore that period of history with me because of the reasons above, please feel free to stop reading now. But if you’re like me and wish to approach this in a calm and enquisitive manner, then welcome to the journey!

The Seasons in Old English

So maybe a good place to start is with the approaching Spring and the Winter now coming to an end. I had always wondered why we called the Winter and Summer Solstices Midwinter and Midsummer, when they are times when the Sun moves into a particular point in the sky, and to many, they signify not the midpoint of the seasons but their beginning. Then, as I explored that ancient period of early English history, I discovered that they had no words for Spring or Autumn. There were only two seasons, Winter and Summer. Winter covered the time from Winterfylleth (or Winterfylleð), which was the Old English name for October and means Winter Full Moon, and the end of February (Sol-monaþ), which can either mean Sun Month, or Soil Month. The Summer then began, and that was known as the ‘Ger’, the ‘G’ being pronounced as a ‘Y’, and that is the root of the English word ‘Year’ – it is also one of the Anglo-Saxon Runes, which looks different but corresponds with the Elder Futhark Rune ‘Jera’. The year spanned from planting to harvest, and Winter was not considered part of Ger. Winter was almost seen as a prison, with bars of ice, something to survive and injure. Once more, I find myself having something in common with my English ancestors! So Summer ran from sometime in February to Winterfylleð, and thus Winter began again with the last Full Moon of October. If you follow those times for Summer and Winter, then the Solstices land at the midpoint, hence Midwinter and Midsummer.

There are so many magical links to those ‘missing years’ that are still in our language to this day.

I’m sure many of you know this already, but our days of the week –

Monday (Mōnandæg (Mona’s day – The Old English God Mona – literally the root of our word Moon)

Tuesday (Tīwesdæg (Tiw’s day – the Old English God Tiw)

Wednesday Wōdnesdæg (Woden’s day – the Old English God Woden)

Thursday Þunresdæg  (Thunor’s day – the Old English God Thunor)

Friday Frīgedæg (Frig or Friga’s day – the Old English Goddess Frīg or Frīga)

Saturday Sæturnesdæg (Saturn’s day – the one day whose name is Roman in origin)

Sunday Sunnandæg (Sunna’s day – The Old English Goddess Sunna – literally the root of our word Sun)

I love Sunna and Mona. To our ancient English ancestors, the Sun and Moon were a Goddess (the Sun) and a God (the Moon). I was always brought up to say ‘the Man in the Moon’ – that’s another link directly back to this age. In Old English, the Moon was male and the Sun female. Since I discovered Paganism, I’ve always followed the common view that the Sun is male and the Moon female, but it’s been an interesting journey to swap that around and see how it feels. Each was pulled across the sky in a horse-drawn chariot, and they were also being chased by a ravenous wolf. So when we look to the skies and say the words ‘Sun’ and ‘Moon,’ we are already invoking the modern names for ancient English Gods. We are not saying ‘the Goddess of the Sun’ when we say Sun, we are calling the Goddess’ name – Sunna.

There will be so many of you Heathens reading this, wondering how I didn’t know that already. But my wand and attention have been pointing towards other myths and legends for decades. I’m about 3 years into this journey, and my love of the Brythonic Gods and myths is still there. What is happening, though, is that, as I explore Old English and Norse myths, as an Animistic Druid, I’m meeting Gods I’ve known for decades. Their names and stories are different, but when I engage the Bardic way of exploring myth, and see these myths as alegory, as tales that lead to Occult wisdom, then I meet the same Spirits of Nature, but with different names.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this article and will come with me for more adventures!

Wesaþ hāle!