Old English Era
Definition
The history of England began with the arrival of humans thousands of years ago. What is now England ,within the United Kingdom ,was inhabited by Neanderthals 230,000 years ago. Also known as the Anglo-Saxon Period ,the time frame this period falls in is debatable ,however broadly speaking it is between the mid-fifth century and mid-twelfth century.
The Anglo-Saxon period is the oldest known period of time that had a complex culture with stable government , art, and a fairly large amount of literature. Many people believe that the culture then was extremely unsophisticated, but it was actually extremely advanced for the time. The Anglo-Saxton period is a time filled with great advancement and discoveries in culture, society, government, religion, literature, and art.
The Angles were a Germanic tribe that occupied the region. With their fellow ethnic groups, they formed the people who came to be known as the English. The Saxons were a Germanic people who first appeared in the beginning of the Christian era. They attacked and raided areas in the North Sea throughout the third and fourth centuries. By the end of the sixth century, the Saxons had taken all of the roman territory. The Angles joined the Saxons in the invasion of Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries.
Literature
Old English (Anglo-Saxon) was the earliest from of English to be written. These date from roughly between 700 and 1100 CE. Much poetry composed in Old English survives, about 30,000 lines in total. It was mostly collected and preserved in four manuscripts, handwritten books. So our perceptions of the poetry are mostly determined by the purposes, interests and taste of the compilers of these manuscripts.
The metrical is the rhythmic phrase(half-line), usually of two stresses linked into pairs by alliteration. End-rhyme is hardly ever used. Although it is theoretically very different from most later poetry , it feels in most respects natural and immediate to a modern ear
The history of England began with the arrival of humans thousands of years ago. What is now England ,within the United Kingdom ,was inhabited by Neanderthals 230,000 years ago. Also known as the Anglo-Saxon Period ,the time frame this period falls in is debatable ,however broadly speaking it is between the mid-fifth century and mid-twelfth century.
The Anglo-Saxon period is the oldest known period of time that had a complex culture with stable government , art, and a fairly large amount of literature. Many people believe that the culture then was extremely unsophisticated, but it was actually extremely advanced for the time. The Anglo-Saxton period is a time filled with great advancement and discoveries in culture, society, government, religion, literature, and art.
The Angles were a Germanic tribe that occupied the region. With their fellow ethnic groups, they formed the people who came to be known as the English. The Saxons were a Germanic people who first appeared in the beginning of the Christian era. They attacked and raided areas in the North Sea throughout the third and fourth centuries. By the end of the sixth century, the Saxons had taken all of the roman territory. The Angles joined the Saxons in the invasion of Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries.
Literature
Old English (Anglo-Saxon) was the earliest from of English to be written. These date from roughly between 700 and 1100 CE. Much poetry composed in Old English survives, about 30,000 lines in total. It was mostly collected and preserved in four manuscripts, handwritten books. So our perceptions of the poetry are mostly determined by the purposes, interests and taste of the compilers of these manuscripts.
The metrical is the rhythmic phrase(half-line), usually of two stresses linked into pairs by alliteration. End-rhyme is hardly ever used. Although it is theoretically very different from most later poetry , it feels in most respects natural and immediate to a modern ear