Look! Baldric has mastered Modern English!

@rageonyx

4 жыл бұрын

lol right? Don't know why youtube suggested this stuff but now I'm crushin on Baldric. :P

@TheAmubis

4 жыл бұрын

Damn, dude learned so fast

@iainmawhinney8867

4 жыл бұрын

i’m so proud of him

@JungleJargon

4 жыл бұрын

LOL!

@tonykennedy1352

4 жыл бұрын

He was later burned as a witch

Wow, 8 hours ago he couldn't speak a word of modern English. He's fast.

@backlogguru3710

4 жыл бұрын

And his pronunciation is perfect

@thetau4866

4 жыл бұрын

Funnily enough I got this suggested to me very recently

@arthurabramovich2519

4 жыл бұрын

Taucron Heretic same

@Bjowolf2

4 жыл бұрын

ROFLMAO 😅

@petewaterfield746

4 жыл бұрын

D

Knowing a different language: Level 10 intellect Knowing a old language that doesn't exist anymore: Level 100 intellect

@polsick

4 жыл бұрын

Greek and Latin 👍

@heisenberg6758

4 жыл бұрын

@DVN Not Just A bit Ancient Greek Is nothing Like Modern Greek Although You Can Definitely See That it Derives From it (Sorry if My English is Bad its not my First Language)

@polsick

4 жыл бұрын

@@quigglesb9381 Yep My uni professor used to conduct his class in Greek (Greek history of course 🙃)

@polsick

4 жыл бұрын

@Bloop ...? Never had to declaim Greek poetry ? Different styles, different metrums ? "Menin aeide thya" - you saying you don't know how to say it out loud ?

@polsick

4 жыл бұрын

@Bloop kzread.info/dash/bejne/hIKg3LNvhNXYY7Q.html

6:32 Anglo-Saxon man sees an airplane for the first time, c. 1000 AD, colorized.

@catholicracialist776

3 жыл бұрын

Hahaahahahahaha

@thefricking5407

3 жыл бұрын

Cool Bird

@madanmohanmintu

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Rachael

@dotdashdotdash

3 жыл бұрын

colourised

@arandomyorkshireman5647

3 жыл бұрын

*colourised

*Baldric* : _*starts to talk in modern English_ *Anglo-Saxon God* : _0:56_

@bens6n168

4 жыл бұрын

Ян Н. 😂

@duncanwalduck7715

3 жыл бұрын

(Sharpening his lightning bolts.)

This is a super underrated channel. Really interesting, thanks

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you :)

@digitalhunter42

4 жыл бұрын

I agree. Binge watching the channel now.

@MrX-cx2mr

4 жыл бұрын

This is simply fascinating. Well done.

@ramsesclviii2584

4 жыл бұрын

yes it is

@waightforrest1737

4 жыл бұрын

Yeah it's becoming kind of a thing for me. I work manual labor and I'll say phrases over and over while I work. I think about it alot.

Most of what we know of Old Norse religion comes to us through Christian Icelandic sources and can't even be generally applied to Scandinavia as a whole, much less Anglo-Saxons living half a millennium earlier.

@stephen0793

3 жыл бұрын

So there is no Norwegian or Scandinavian equivalent of the Poetic and Prose Eddas?

@philliprobinson129

3 жыл бұрын

@@stephen0793 no they left nothing behind. We only have the Icelandic sources for Norse mythology. And what we can find in some images on stones.

@sonofnike2800

3 жыл бұрын

@@philliprobinson129 They did not record it? Or were the records Purged? TremendousSadness.jpg

@philliprobinson129

3 жыл бұрын

@@sonofnike2800 there wasn't really much of a need for a huge purge. The pre Christian germanic tribes didn't write books. They didnt have the alphabet. They used runes. They didn't write books with Runes.

@Nikelaos_Khristianos

2 жыл бұрын

I would argue that that is a bit reductionist, as we do have archaeological evidence from Scandinavia that corroborates several figures and stories from the Eddas. Needless to say either, Iceland's unique literary tradition is the only reason why we even have these stories at all and even though they come from a Christian Iceland, the intent to preserve their polytheistic past seems genuine and authentic if one reads the Eddas. (One can even observe this in how closely Modern Icelandic represents Old Icelandic).

I’m convinced he’s a time traveler

@I_DONT_LIKE_JEWS

4 жыл бұрын

Acidi Klorhidrik what?

@Bjowolf2

4 жыл бұрын

@@I_DONT_LIKE_JEWS In H. G. Wells' novel "The Time Machine" the time traveller was sitting in a chair in his strange contraption 😊

@I_DONT_LIKE_JEWS

4 жыл бұрын

Bjowolf2 oh, that makes sense haha

Came for Baldric, stayed for reconstructed names

@adventussaxonum448

3 жыл бұрын

@excavtrooper Actually, the original Baldric was Plantagenet, until Henry VII came along.

"it's uncomfortable, but unfortunately it's just one of those things we know uncomfortably little about". Love the turn of phrase.

"I was from early days grieved by the poverty of my own beloved country: it had no stories of its own (bound up with its tongue and soil), not of the quality that I sought, and found (as an ingredient) in legends of other lands. There was Greek, and Celtic, and Romance, Germanic, Scandinavian, and Finnish (which greatly affected me); but nothing English, save impoverished chap-book stuff." -JRR Tolkien I too wish that more of the old mythology had survived.

@sleekoduck

4 жыл бұрын

The original Britons who survived the Roman genocide migrated to Wales.

@bluewhaleking6227

4 жыл бұрын

@@sleekoduck English came from the Anglo-Saxons, not the Britons. Briton legends would fall under Celtic. Most of the myths and legends of the British Isles derive from Celtic and imported French. For various reasons, especially early Christianization, the Norman Conquest displacing the Anglo-Saxon elites, and senseless destruction of manuscripts during the Dissolution of the Monasteries during the English Reformation, the Anglo-Saxon English Mythology is almost entirely lost, which people like Tolkien and myself find very tragic.

@troublewithweebles

4 жыл бұрын

@@bluewhaleking6227 👀👀😳

@faithlesshound5621

4 жыл бұрын

Reform or replacement of religion often extends to banning the old songs and stories. In Europe that may explain loss of knowledge about ancient structures. E.G. Staffordshire has a Hundred named "Totmonslow" (i.e. "dead man's grave") but no-one knows who the dead man was or even where his grave is. Similarly the Abbot's Bromley Horn Dance is performed every year, but there is no story to explain why. The early Christians seem to have modified the local traditions (e.g. the English god Hob became a devil, Yule became Christmas, who-knows-what became Easter) but the Protestant reformers entirely erased them in favour of a cod-Jewish history and mythology. The people who banned Xmas and Easter also banned May Day and Morris Dancing. Christian missionaries are still doing that all over the world. Along with jeans and baseball caps comes the culture of Disney and McDonald's. Mentioning Disney reminds me that popular culture has been taken over by big business, and the local has become global. Somehow all the old stories have become copyrighted and trademarked by giant corporations. However, bards and storytellers live on as fanfiction, which is mostly written by older women.

@peterweeks2066

4 жыл бұрын

Very sad that an introduced middle eastern religion (Christianity) destroyed so much history and culture. Not just in England, but wherever it went.

this dude is from the 70s

@Beastlybeast71

4 жыл бұрын

The 1070's

@EatRawGarlic

4 жыл бұрын

No, just really British, I could always pick them out on holiday, without them saying a single word ;)

@ayoubsbai6339

4 жыл бұрын

@@Beastlybeast71 ACCURATE

@markmatzeder6208

4 жыл бұрын

SaturnBear 70s CE?

@RobMacKendrick

4 жыл бұрын

But in a good way.

Watching your videos is like getting so far in life and then discovering an entire family history of cousins and grandparents and great grandparents and one of them was a painter which explains why you like to paint, and one of them had a red beard so it explains why you have red hairs in your beard, and another had the surname which became your father's surname, and so on. Learning so much from your videos about the history of England and the language and its long process of development and influences is slotting so many things into place that I never knew I should have known. Fancy never realising that the old English equivalent of Thor became our own word for THUNDER!! This stuff needs to be taught to us in primary school!

I grew up speaking Polish in central Poland, at 14 my family settled in Canada. Beginning to watch this channel was a life changing experience, however with the awesome open internet also facilitating independent study: I was able to look up etymologies in different languages, make up my own mind about my own life curiosity. Thanks young man for helping to create this point of stillness.

Love how it's Thundering and Lightning-ing while he is saying that Thursday isn't Thor's-day!

@missnorthumbria3658

4 жыл бұрын

Older geordies still pronounce it like that.

@piperar2014

4 жыл бұрын

Thunor's Day. Was Thunor a thunder god? Probably. Did Thunor have a hammer? Don't know. Did Thunor kill giants? Don't know.

I'm so glad KZread randomly put this Channel in my feed. I would never have considered watching anything like this but find it fascinating. Easy natural presentation makes it effortless to watch and learn.

I'm glad I watched the Old English video first lol.

@RedHair651

4 жыл бұрын

Why?

This man is definitely immortal. That's how he knows all these ancient languages and facts. His style hasn't changed from the 1970s though

You should write a book, would be a great read!

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your confidence! I'm trying to put one together about the Cumbrian dialect at the moment :)

@pineapplehead789

4 жыл бұрын

@@simonroper9218 YES ILL GET IT

@steveneardley7541

3 жыл бұрын

You explain extensive fields of research very clearly. Don't get stuck in the minutiae of academia. You could have a much broader audience.

You look so solidly from the 1970s. There’s even a faint film grain texture in this video that I can’t explain.

@erick-gd7wo

4 жыл бұрын

If the video could be added slight yellow brownish tint, i will think this is an old video

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

How do you know I'm not? 🤔🤔

@antiquebeast

4 жыл бұрын

It’s the hairstyle shirt combo. Rockin those sideburns like a boss, looking like he came straight from a Zeppelin concert

@polydimensionalsphilosophy3456

4 жыл бұрын

@Douglas Sirk Slaves

@davidgould9431

4 жыл бұрын

@Douglas Sirk You're right - I, too, get my hair cut very short (not "I cut" because I don't trust myself with sharp implements). But only about once a year (usually a month or two less: 2020 looks to be a 2-haircut year). Why get it cut short? 1) long hair is a pain, flapping around when you're running. 2) A short haircut lasts longer. ((Sorry about the plethora of parentheses)).

"Do you want to learn?" "Yaeu.." And so he learned!

Whatever the old gods were called , you clearly have a connection with the one responsible water

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

A voice in my ear told me to drink

@bugzyhardrada3168

4 жыл бұрын

Thats what every English person i have met said...... coincidence......i think not

I thoroughly enjoyed this laid back and friendly discussion of language. Despite the rain and the planes, this was a most interesting journey through some old and quite a bit of new (to me) territory. 👏🏽👏🏽

As an Anglo-Saxon Heathen I should say that this is gold! Thanks for posting that. However, I friendly disagree in some points here, and I just want to say what I think, just to contribute to the discussion, not to diminish your work, which is great, of course. The first point is about the "Old Anglicisation" of Ullr and Heimdallr. Ullr seems to be a quite particular Norse deity, and (as far as I'm concerned) some AS Heathens think that Hāma could be the early English counterpart of Heimdallr. I cannot say anything for sure about that because I just don't use any Anglicised form of Heimdallr in my practices. You could've mentioned other very English god-like figures as Wēland and Wada for instance, *Hrēða is a poorly attested but she might count among the English deities. A nice discussion is about Bældæġ and Bealdor as well, and I think this figure can be a bit less doubtlessly linked to a Scandinavian deity (Baldr). Not a deity, but an important aspect of Old English religion seems to be the concept of Wyrd, which you might be quite more familiarised than I am. I would love to see you commenting on that. Finally, there is the "Old Anglicisation" of the concept of Ragnarök. There is in the Old Saxon poem "Heliand" as well as in an Old High German poem a mention to a cognate of the Scandinavian word "Musspell". Musspell, in Old Norse mythology, you certainly know that is the name of a fiery place. In both continental poems the cognate seem to be used in the context of the Christian final judgement, though. This seems to me to point out that the continental concept of "collapse of the world" in a Pre-Christian concept may have existed under the concept of mudspelli/Musspell. I would like to reaffirm that your video was great, and these may just be some ideas for you to work in the future if you want so, thanks for your video!

Aztec archaeologist here, nice work, hope to see more of it.

@lunaps484

4 жыл бұрын

hey uh, kinda out of the blue, but I'm studying mesoamerica as a personal passion, with my current progress being up to preclassic maya, and I was wondering if you knew any sources I can use once I begin my studies of post-classic central mexico, thanks in advance

@saxorex7972

4 жыл бұрын

@@lunaps484 ​ Hard to recomend specific bibliography without a concrete subject in mind: Warfare? Religion? Social political structure? History? etc Assuming you don't know spanish these are a couple of baseline authors you might want to check out for a general look, especially regarding the central mexican nahua people: Michael E. Smith, Peter Gerhard, James Lockhart, Claude Stressers-Pean, Francis Berdan and Mathew Restall, among others. Of course there's also all the primary sources, the "relaciones", etc....

@lunaps484

4 жыл бұрын

@@saxorex7972 I'm interested in every subject, but I must admit that I actually got into mesoamerica studies after I was told about Aztec philosophy being about as developed as Greek philosophy, sourcing Miguel Leon Portilla's Aztec Thought and Culture on the subject. If you know anything similar, I'd be happy to hear all about it. Thanks for the recommendations, by the way.

@saxorex7972

4 жыл бұрын

@Alien Kill Squad I was being broad. A mesoamericanist if you rather.

@Iberianlobo

4 жыл бұрын

@@lunaps484 look up James Maffie.

It's nice to find a channel which is covering this sort of stuff and doesn't include some cringy neo-pagan or right-wing subtext! It seems almost impossible these days to be interested in this kind of stuff, without wanting to praise Woden or make a very questionable comment about what it means to be 'white'...

@Muzikman127

4 жыл бұрын

@steve the cross lol what's dangerous, Neo-nazis? No, villifying neo-nazis, that's the dangerous thing.

@MagnsATK98

4 жыл бұрын

The "right wing" subtext (I'm left but I agree with them on this) about wanting to be allowed to be proud of your people's history and identity is, mostly, just a rightful response to part of the left claiming you're a nazi or something if you do that, and that being English only has nothing to do with history, language or ethnicity. Just recently, people even tried to make Cambridge University ban the term Anglo-Saxon and rename the ASNAC (Anglo-Saxon Norse and Celtic) study because they say it's "racist", they even suggested the study should be removed as it priviliges studying certain cultures over others. Last year they made the "International Society of Anglo-Saxonists" change their name to the "International Society for the Study of Early Medieval England".

@wvnder

4 жыл бұрын

steve the cross coming from a fellow Canadian, you’re either lying or your eyes are shut

@trapd00rspider

4 жыл бұрын

​@steve the cross they get mainstream support by making sure the mainstream don't know what they're really about, or at least give members of the "mainstream" plausible deniability. I can rattle off heaps of examples in my country connected to parliamentary politics that I'm sure lots of people here are unaware of and would insist the same as you, and those people are now surprised that our intelligence agency has declared neo-nazi groups to be the main terrorist threat to us today.

@trapd00rspider

4 жыл бұрын

​@@MagnsATK98 "I'm left but" uh ok sure. A lot of that seems more precise rather than politically correct.

The word Nisse reveals this custom to be derivative of pagan ancestor worship since it comes from Norse niðsi, meaning "dear little relative" - very much equivalent to other indo european "little grandfathers" among slavs for eg. or Matrika in India. I believe the Hob and brownie to be of the same origin and similarly trivialised as the tomte and nisse. Alfar among pagan Germanic people seems to have been a catch all term which included a number of supernatural beings INCLUDING but not limited to the spirits of certain human ancestors

@joshpullman1690

4 жыл бұрын

Ahaha I was watching this thinking of you survive the jive! Just your kind of thing, maybe you guys should do a collab?

@willmosse3684

2 жыл бұрын

So do you think we can derive a bit more about Anglo-Saxon beliefs, or hold that there were more similarities with the Norse, than Simon suggests here Tom? Comparative religion being your wheelhouse and all

@Randy-1967

Жыл бұрын

@@willmosse3684 , he's put out 2 videos on Anglo-Saxon paganism

@willmosse3684

Жыл бұрын

@@Randy-1967 Yeah, I’d seen them before, but couldn’t remember all the details. Went back and watched them again after this comment though, and it seems he demonstrates that quite a lot more can be deduced from across the sources than Simon suggests in this video. No criticism of Simon. He’s great. Just seems like a bit more is possible than he realises

I’m from Wednesbury (wodensbury) in the East Midlands. My local is called “The Woden”

@chriswatson3398

4 жыл бұрын

Not West Midlands?

@Floral_Green

4 жыл бұрын

Nah, East Midlands Gang Gang get all the cool place-names

@chriswatson3398

4 жыл бұрын

@@Floral_Green I know of the wednesbury between Wolverhampton and Walsall. Where's the one in the East Midlands?

@lukefondleberg6784

4 жыл бұрын

@@chriswatson3398 I don't think there is one.

@hoggarththewisesmeagol8362

4 жыл бұрын

Sorry West Midlands!

One of my favorites books on the Old Religion is Evans-Wentz' The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries. It's mostly oral histories, of people who believe in little people, and have even had experiences with them. There's also Yeats' The Celtic Twilight, which is remarkable for the beauty of its language.

I was convince that he only spoke old English.

Very interesting indeed... Hailing from a Himalayan state of India and having read the ancient mythologies and vedic learnings since childhood, then knowing about ancient African, Shaman (Nordic) and some other religious histories, they all feel so similar and related.... They all believed in Nature as their protector and all the elements of Nature were considered either Gods or well defined entities that were respected and had folk lores attached to them to show their importance .... A way of teaching the erstwhile humans how to respect Nature and believe in it's energies.... Here in India even these days rivers, mountains, animals, trees, fire, sun, water, wind, earth etc all are considered sacred and God's like ancient times .... Though I wish these were protected in the same way .... Thank you for this amazing channel

@karamlevi

4 жыл бұрын

Lalita Bhandari 🤘🏽😈🤘🏽

@lalitabhandari3973

4 жыл бұрын

@Wing Commander don't surely know sir but by looking at the ancient Hindu temples and paintings, they guys seem to be having quite an open society in those times as well... However, later the invaders and colonisers from the middle East and west brought with them new ideologies and ways of living, art and culture and we became even more diverse ... Today it is a beautiful amalgamation of both western and eastern arts that we can see in India... Both in painting and architecture... Glad to know people are interested in Indian cultural and art ... Thank you ... This really made me feel amazing

@lalitabhandari3973

4 жыл бұрын

@Wing Commander even I believe people should travel to the indigenous parts or the country sides of the countries that they visit in order to know the culture and heritage better instead of visiting the same concrete jungle brought up by the corporations across the globe ... I Know a little about America through the TV shows/ late night shows and at times news... However, looking at the indigenous side of it and the history of natives always facinates me .... In fact I would prefer to hike the Appalachian trail to know American better instead of roaming in the streets of NY... Even the thought sounds to me like being in the mid of a Himalayan range with a different scent... Amazing to have this amazing conversation with you... Hope you enjoyed the Diwali celebrations last month 😇

@Floral_Green

4 жыл бұрын

Well, there is an observable continuum between ancient European and South Asian spiritual structures, owing to the history of Indo-European migration to our continent.

@nuclearlefthook5008

4 жыл бұрын

fun fact: The Hindu creation myths are extremely similar to the Norse creation myth - both are similar to ancient latin creation myths. Indo-european migration patterns are often believed to be responsible for this.

I love the way you combine your genuine interest in people- which is really what all of your videos are about, language-based or no- with the scientific skepticism you have learned from your archaeology studies. It gives you and your channel a great sense of trustworthiness when you cite sources for your comments, invite discussion, correct/update things you've previously said, define terms to make sure your listeners understand, or dispel assumptions by pointing out what evidence does or does not exist. All while keeping it well-paced and engaging.

Just discovered your channel and started plowing through most of them. Really interesting insight on our old languages and how they evolved. Thank you for putting these videos together!

You're my kind of nerd. Good stuff. The lack of written records of the old religions of the UK and Ireland is definitely frustrating. Even the Norse lack many details about what the actual practice of their religion and various rituals really looked like.

@michaelsrowland

2 жыл бұрын

There are books on this topic in bookstores in glastonbury somerset

Discovered your channel during quarantine and it is fantastic! I love how calm and soothing your voice is the information is so interesting. Thank you for sharing your enormous brain and intellect! ❤

You bring up such interesting topics, and your presentation is so logical, I'm able to follow your progression very easily, and even though I'm hearing new words and off a new Concepts, we are very clear to me. You have a gift! BTW: The thunder in the background was perfect.

I am from Central Appalachia in the U.S, an isolated region that has retained a lot of old dialectal features. I studied Old English for a time and noticed some odd similarities. For instance, as in Anglo-Saxon we say "it" as "hit." There is also an a-prefix before many verbs: "I'm a-goin to town." In Anglo-Saxon I remember a similar sound before verbs. I often wondered if there could be some distant relationship between the two. Little is known for certain about the settlers of our region, and there are conflicting accounts. Some say they are English/Scottish border people by way of Ulster. Others say they were poor English and indentured servants. Love your channel, and your work is impeccable.

@cerdic6305

11 ай бұрын

Well there's certainly a connection because every variant of English is descended from Old English. The similarities you mentioned are actually found in a lot of dialects (particularly rural ones), for instance the 'a-' prefix is common in dialects of the South West of England. They're essentially just features of Old English that remained in these dialects, but disappeared in the standard dialects of English.

Yeah, this is something that's annoyed me. I've tried my best to find out as much as possible about the religion, looking for deeper info on Tu and Woden etc. but it's all Norse stuff. I'd be very keen to find anything on the subject that wasn't "polluted" by what is essentially the post-Christian record of the Norse pantheon and literature. Nice to hear somebody not claiming they are exactly the same!

@dominicyelin

Жыл бұрын

He never mentioned weyland the Smith who is a semi divine figure. Nor sulis, who I always believed was the goddess worshipped in bath before the Roman's built over it. No idea where I heard that. Long time ago. That's why we put coins in fountains though, originally just a piece of metal with our wish carved into it. Its for sulis, the goddess of death and the liminal, the gate between the worlds of the living and the dead. Sulis of the murky mirror. Surely she counts as a pre Christian god we know a little about?

I had no idea a channel existed for this area of study. I’ve watched a few videos and a huge thumbs up to you Simon! Great work! I’ve subscribed.

His astonishment at the airplanes is further prove that he was sent from the past.

I discovered your channel just today, one thing I have to say: I truly, truly, truly appreciate your factual and careful views on the development of English, in particular on the scarcity of knowledge that's left of the pre-Christian mythology. One interesting point: Although there might have been exceptions like _þurisa-_ mostly in Gothic names "Thoris-" (*þauris-), or _ansuz_ (ans-, ansi- > ensi- / ôs-, ês- / ás-, æs-), it's quite notable, unlike _dwerga-_ / _etuna-_ / _nekwuz_ / _antja-_ (ent / *enz, *enzi-) , the frequent use of the root _alƀ_ , _alƀi_ in personal names is prominent. Yet, in the Old English prose the ælf (ylfe) is associated with disease, take the _ylfa_ _gescot_ from the piece Wið færstice in the Lâcnunga MS , next to _hægtessan_ _gescot_ (compare German "Hexenschuss" still part of the common language, probably tracing back to an unattested OHG *hagazissun *[gi]scoz, scuz) and _êsa_ _gescot_ as well. Side note: It's herein the only time, apart from the the rune "ôs" and few names Ôs-, that the OE "êse" resp. plural dative "êsa" were recorded at all!). Thus, the meaning of Elf already diverged during the OE period. A more profane view might suggest, that the now christianized societies inherited the term and transmitted its possible meaning of a "bright/shiny > spectral/transcendental shape", maybe they even associated the concept of angels figuratively. Likewise in German OHG alb (pl. albi > elbi) soon became synonymous with evil spirits of any kind (hobs, goblins/Kobolde, wights/Wichte, Nachtmahr, nightmare = Alptraum etc.). Btw.: We owe Tolkien a lot of thanks, it was him suggesting that translators should use their etymological native counterpart for elves, thus, in German otheriwse known just as the [male] "Alb, Alp" (sing.) often reduced to Alptraum and evil spirit, whereas the English loan rendered male "Elf" and female "Elfe" became the common term since the 17th/18th century, the historical weak plural of Alb with an umlaut was reintroduced as Elben again.

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much, I appreciate the positive feedback :) And the insight, as well - I'd heard the term 'ylfa gescot' before, but I didn't realise it was from a different part of the Lacnunga, or that it was connected to other terms. If 'ēsa gescot' is in reference to the family of Gods (which you've got to assume it is), that raises some very interesting questions. I had read articles that suggested the term 'elf' originally referred to something like what the word 'nymph' refers to in ancient Greek texts, but I didn't look into it and I can't remember whether they were actually journal articles or not. Old Norse texts aren't that much clearer about what elves were considered to be, but the distinction between 'light elves' and 'dark elves' (not necessarily as Tolkeinesque as the translations suggest) raises a few possibilities which I think Dr. Jackson Crawford touched on in a video. However, that distinction is unattested in Old English, and we have no way of knowing if the Anglo-Saxons would have recognised it in the way that Old Norse speakers would have. You've looked a huge amount into the etymology of this, far more than I have - have you ever considered making a video about it yourself?

@thurianwanderer

4 жыл бұрын

​@@simonroper9218 Is there any way, I could write you a message? (No matter how long I search on youtube, I still don't know, if it's possible to write a PM to any user at all).

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

@@thurianwanderer sorry for the late reply - you can get in touch at sjroper@uclan.ac.uk! I only check it every couple of days at the moment.

@thurianwanderer

4 жыл бұрын

@@simonroper9218 Thank you very much, nevermind, somehow it will take me some time.^^

@michaelsrowland

2 жыл бұрын

Do you know how merry Crossmas ended up being changed from the pagan term to what many call it today in England and North America?

I have just begun to watch your media and so far I find them interesting.. .you have a nice calming voice I could listen to you all day..🌺

Thanks for this great channel. A gem of KZread amongst the detritus. You strike the perfect tone with your delivery and content. Accessible, but not dumbed down too far. Cheers

Where has this channel been all my life. Wondrous.

Love your channel and am fascinated by your research ! Thanks.

Simon, I am very grateful to have found your channel. I am interested in everything you speak about, even though I only know one language, I am very interested in history and how the slow changes in language corresponded. Please keep posting. I enjoy the sound of your voice, as well. You are easy to listen to.

You have a fascinating channel. I also enjoy the video work - the odd cuts and surprising bits and pieces. I look forward to returning to your world... thank you!

Is this the same Baldric who had trouble saying _my name is Baldric_

@maximilian6830

4 жыл бұрын

SYN. He’s come a long way

Lord I could listen to him all day ! Interesting and a great speaking voice

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you muchly :)

I found your channel because of Baldric. This was really enjoyable and I hope you expand more on this subject. It is interesting how stories of little people is shared by so many countries. I had someone I work with from Mexico and she sharing folklore about little beings that live in the walls and if you make them mad they will do things to you like pull your hair while sleeping. That was similar to my grandmother’s stories from Scotland.

I’m so very thankful for finding your channel. You would fit right in with us here in Lawrence Kansas. Thanks and take care.

Thank you. You have made my understanding of our history so much richer!!!!

I could sit and talk to you for days.

Just found you on You Tube! I am fascinated by your content. This is just the kind of thing I am interested in. Thank you!

Like an old Oxford don in a young man's body.

@bugzyhardrada3168

4 жыл бұрын

Have you guys heard of Irving Finkel...... check him out! But yeah this young man is an old soul in a young mans body.....

@mikanfarmer

4 жыл бұрын

I think 'young fogey' was the term we used.

@MutantGoblinCaravan

4 жыл бұрын

So you're average Oxford Don, then.

@katherinetutschek4757

3 жыл бұрын

Yes! That's exactly what I was thinking.

a very interesting little video. thank you, Simon Roper! I do appreciare your work and sharing these little talks!

Using Jackson Crawford as a reference... I like this channel more and more by the minute!

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you! If I can ever do anything with half the style of Jackson Crawford, I will be a glad man

@adamroodog1718

4 жыл бұрын

You want to get yourself a hat then.

@wyrdwildman1689

4 жыл бұрын

I can't trust him. Someone dedicating that much to the study of something he doesn't himself believe though teaches it and speaks of himself being of peoples that would never speak to each other. Something rather odd there.

@adamroodog1718

4 жыл бұрын

Dale, so in your world greek scholars have to believe in Zeus? And try as i might i cant tell what the 2nd half of the sentence means.

@cecilyerker

4 жыл бұрын

Dale Chatfield you’re not obligated to trust anyone, this is his scholarly opinion based on the primary sources he was able to find.

Them sideburns. :-3

@lynneceegee8726

4 жыл бұрын

Briseur De Lance straight off a Neil Young album cover! 😅

@sandylan8833

3 жыл бұрын

Why do people say them sideburns instead of those sideburns?

Your videos are just fantastic. Thank you for uploading all of these!

This is a fantastic channel. So glad I fell over it!

Impressive young scholar. Well done!

I love learning about Anglo-Saxons, probably one of the most interesting things in history to me.

An excellent summary of current understanding, Simon. It cleared up some questions. I had read or heard somewhere that, in general, languages are very conservative. Old English still exists, in common words like wife (wif), old (eald). I had assumed that "elf" was an ancient word that always meant a small magical person or creature. Your assessment that "AElfe" may not have meant the same thing 1500 years ago as it does today, is something I hadn't considered. Thanks for the food for thought. I'd guess the process might be similar to how proper words or terms become slang terms with different meanings, especially swear words. In the 21st century, this seems to happen often, and very quickly. This was the first time I've seen your channel. I'm looking forward to looking at more of your videos.

Thank you for posting such informative and well articulated videos. Makes me want to brush the dust off my interest for the languages and mythologies of northern Europe. Think I'll do that. Cheers.

Very interesting. Please do more videos where you are talking Anglo-Saxon - it's quite hard to find gently-voiced and not over-acted readings! I like your cautious approach regarding what we really know, as opposed to guessing, about people living in Britain 1000 years ago. Do you have any views on Stephen Polington's "The Elder Gods"?

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback! That was the aim, to portray it as a living language. The problem is that everything we have written down is naturally quite formal, and you can't really read a formal document or story in a conversational way. I will definitely do more videos where I speak Old English, hopefully a bit more naturalistically next time. I have never read it - would you recommend it? Any new interpretation of the Anglo-Saxon Gods is interesting, even if some might be a bit far-fetched!

@qichina8

4 жыл бұрын

@@simonroper9218 Yes, I would recommend Pollington's book - he's not given to flights of fancy . The book is basically a catalogue of the various beliefs in deities/otherworldly beings in Anglo-Saxon times. Obviously it draws heavily on Old Norse stuff, but he does say at the beginning that "This book is not a rehearsal of the standard Norse myths dressed up in Anglo-Saxon names". Everything is laid out with a what seems to be a good research approach, and he is cautious with his conclusions. He's incredibly knowledgeable, but he hasn't gained prominence via the usual academic route. He has 5 pages on the OE and Old Norse traditions concerning ielfe, ylfe etc. Look forward to your next video! :)

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

@@qichina8 That sounds like exactly my sort of book, thank you for recommending it! From what we have, it must be possible to deduce more - it's just very hard to know when you're using the right methodology, because it's so rare that new texts (or decent new interpretations of old texts) appear! Thanks again, good to meet someone else interested in the topic :)

When I listen to the finer details of these folklore and creatures like elves and giants, I can't help but think about the Dutch tradition of Sinterklaas (from which Santa Claus was derived). There are a lot of theories that Sinterklaas is based on a tradition during Jule (a Germamic feast during a time of year close to christmas) in which Odin/Wodan would praise behaving people/children and punish bad children. The black Pete (zwarte Pieten) could've been elves or - as I've see thrown around as well - Odin/Wodan's black raven. This was later christianized by I guess the Franks, but I think there are a lot of similarities with other (west-) Germanic traditions that are very interesting to dig into!

Simon I think you did a wonderful job on what is a very obscure and little attested subject. I'll be sharing this. Cheers from one of your many fans across the Pond!

I love your voice. Listening to you calms me so much. 💗

This is the most interesting boring channel I can not literally stop watching...

@PockASqueeno

4 жыл бұрын

Why do you call it boring then?

@someguy9571

4 жыл бұрын

@@PockASqueeno Because considering the topics it's expected to be boring

@anomietoponymie2140

4 жыл бұрын

Such a great comment. You could also say “calming” instead of “boring.” And that’s a great quality to be plunged in the long time, the time of centuries and millennia while in the US and across Europe right now people are hysterically watching and commenting on the riots and demonstrations sparked by the killing of George Floyd.

@dotdashdotdash

3 жыл бұрын

@@anomietoponymie2140 isn’t it true that Floyd once pointed a gun at a pregnant lady. sounds like a quality guy.

Thank you, I appreciate your research into what is really known.

Love this format of just some guy in his natural surroundings eruditely yapping about anthropology and whatnot. I really enjoyed your videos on consciousness and I hope you do more.

Thoroughly enjoying your videos, Simon!

So interesting! Thank you for posting these videos. Out of interest, what do you think about the Way of Wyrd book?

I would feel privileged to attend his classes.

Wow... why do you have not a lot more subscriber?! Your content is really great... your pronouncation in german is really good... i saw recently a video of a woman from iceland who was annoyed by the american way of pronouncation of the nordic gods.... which sounds more close to the german pronouncation, even not perfect yet.... the words Elfe and a lot more of your mentioned words are actually correct in german as well...Such an interesting channel (y)

Subscribed. Thankyou for the research! Keep up the good work.

Simon Roper. Thank you. Enjoyed it. I’m a Slavist and etymologist always looking out for cognates between Old Slavonic and Angle and Saxon. There are lots of course, but if you would share with me a few that might come to your mind?

@Tubewander

4 жыл бұрын

The link between Anglo-Saxon(Germanic) and slavic is Iranian tribes. Slavic peoples actually have a closer connection with these Iranians. Because they lived in places like ukraine, which is basically one the epicenters of these people. The popular "witcher" character, is a perfect example of a mythological Iranian figure. Merging with slavic peoples.

@jaif7327

Жыл бұрын

@@Tubewander its iranic not iranian- massive difference. and the proto indo europeans were the forefathers of the iranics not the other way around

I’m happy that you can speak modern English now

So impressive. I'm interested in ancient IE languages and have watched other videos of people speaking them, but they always lacked a certain sense of realism. The words don't flow and it's obvious that's not how people actually spoke. But you have truly mastered Old English and it's incredibly impressive, your speed and pronunciation is wonderful. The language also sounds pretty beautiful in my opinion.

This is my type of scholarship. Not assuming things we just can't be sure of. Very underrated channel, keep up the good work.

wow i just watched the vid yesterday of him speaking old english and he has lost the damn accent and learned new english so well! congrats man good work!

@theephraimite

4 жыл бұрын

M Smith, dude, he was acting in that vid.

@msmith9792

4 жыл бұрын

@@theephraimite really? that makes more sense i guess but how do you know.

@theephraimite

4 жыл бұрын

M Smith, I didn’t read the description, but I am not gullible, so I knew it was fake.It says so in the description, though.

9:30 lol we have an entire dessert company based around it here in the US

Didn't really expect to find a video by you on this topic but what a pleasant surprise

moi! nice to hear about old words from you. i thought i'd write a few similar words from finnish language :) as it seems we have something in common. tonttu is like tomte, Small beings, and nowadays very related to santa claus and Korvatunturi (lapland) in common speech.. I have heard that we used to have also sauna tonttu, the tonttu that lives in sauna.. so it might be like a home's own spirit /being (sauna was the first room to be built when we built a house)… and to add on this, nowadays we use the word tontti when talking about parcel/plot of land. our home's spirit/being can be called kodin haltia. also there is a mountain called Halti in the Köli /skandi. Eoten could be from same root as juutti and jätti.. jätti means a giant, juutti is old word for jute/dane/calcutta hemp (from translator).. there is also a word jatuli, known from jatulin tarha, jatuli's garden, they are (now known as) the old sites with rocks forming a path/labyrinth. (English wikipedia calls them Troy Town).. If you'd like to study stone structures, finnish wiki connects jatuli also to these words: jättiläisentie /jätintie and Kirkonlattia (and^ jatulintarha).. one word i was hoping to hear (in some form) in old anglo saxon would be hiisi.. we have (had) hiisi as a sacred Place, hiidenkivi as a huge stone, hiidenkiuas as a stone rubble/structure site, hiidenkirnu as the round hole in rock, hiidenväki as folk of hiisi (either spirit of dead or elf like beings, no sure stories), and etc… also how about maahinen (or menninkäinen).? here they are related to earth(ground) folk /beings. thank you for a realistic view on this wide subject! :)

I’ve already reconstructed reflexes of the names of 84 Norse gods/etc into Old English and Modern English

@hundwyn7530

4 жыл бұрын

Though mine don’t sound quite this nice

@harley7356

4 жыл бұрын

Good work Hundwyn do you have a link so I can see the names you reconstructed?

@hundwyn7530

4 жыл бұрын

Harley Bunce they’re in WIP indefinitely until I can get someone more experienced with the language (hint hint nudge nudge) to check my homework :P

@Ggdivhjkjl

4 жыл бұрын

Is your list online anywhere?

5:58 Wuldor meaning glory? The way it sounds and looks, i'd be surprised if there's not an etymological link between wuldor and 'valour' and 'wonder'.

Subscribed. I love this kind of knowledge with absolutely no practical application! Although I am off to a pub quiz later. Let's hope there's one about Dobbies!

I thought this guy couldn't speak English

6:23 I've never heard anyone stress the second syllable of "skeletally" before. I needed to use the auto-generated captions to figure out how to spell the word.

@ajp8025

3 жыл бұрын

what would you stress?

@Mr.Nichan

3 жыл бұрын

@@ajp8025 The first syllable: /ˈskɛlɪtəˌli/

I like your conversational style and the absence of conjecture in your analyses. -Wayne Belk

I think this is a very important video on a subject a lot of people take for granted. Most people don't even care much about Old English or Anglish, as would be evident from the comments, but the few that do take many ideas for granted and assume many things in common with Old Norse culture. This was very enlightening.

Tack så mycket :)

You look just like my friend, just with a British accent.

Where have you been all my life q.q so happy I found your channel.

Really glad I found your videos recently, Simon! Is there any suggestion in any of these traditions that the "eotenas" or "jotnar" have a mixture of human and divine ancestry? That seems to be a key element to the Nephilim and other "giant"-type beings like Gilgamesh from the Ancient Near East. I'm curious if there is a connection on that point.

You’re so intelligent!

One interesting thing about old norse/anglo saxon religion was that they were very diverse. There wasn't a central authority to homogenize the religions. Regions had different stories and names for the gods.

@simonroper9218

4 жыл бұрын

That's a very good point that I didn't include in the video - we have enough evidence of the Norse tradition that we can tell a little bit about regional differences. I think each area must have had its own take on the religion, in both cases!

@blacksmith67

4 жыл бұрын

This is the same with Helenistic religion. The pantheon of gods and heroes have a mix of common narratives and local ones, creating clusters of attributes that are seldom in agreement. One of the more famous classisists, Robert Graves, wrote a two part collection called _The Greek Myths_ in which he takes all of the extant sources for the Greek gods and other characters and tries to reconcile them into a single narrative. Each section contains notes where he reveals his sources and explains the variations and contradictions that he had to choose between. Many students of classics (I was one many years ago) and most professors would view his attempted synthesis as rubbish. It would have been better if he simply identified the most common elements up front and then listed the known variations. He essentially did what Simon warns specifically against in this excellent video.

@faithlesshound5621

4 жыл бұрын

@@blacksmith67 You could do the same thing with present-day religions. E.G a devout Catholic might believe in the community of saints, but only venerate a few of them. Similarly a Hindu may worship many gods or a few or just one, which may or may not include a local hero, and may take them more or less seriously. In other words individual believers or half-believers can pick and choose: they may not vote the whole ticket. The same applies to superstitions, newspaper horoscopes, etc.

@blacksmith67

4 жыл бұрын

@@faithlesshound5621 Point well taken. Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, and Coptic Churches all venerate a common set of saints, with each having their own. A local community may hold someone to be a saint by tradition while there is no official recognition from the church. Moreover there is a group of figures common to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (each regarded in their own way, with a mix of shared and unique attributes). I suppose the difference is that every denomination has some authority that attempts to determine/enforce what is canonical and what is not, while the pre Abrahimic religions didn't have this concept.

Simon, I love the lush, natural background to your videos. What part of England are you broadcasting from? I live in dry California where we're always having a water crisis and hardly anything grows. The tiny bit of rain we get only keeps the grass green until the beginning of June. From there, the landscape dies for lack of water and the landscape looks like a dead zone, not quite desert but similar. By August, everything dead save some of the older trees which deep root systems. I'm writing this on June 27th and the fires have already begun. The wild fires run loose over California every year since our governor stopped funding fire prevention (controlled burns.) Your yard looks so lush and bursting with life. :-) Also, we've noticed birds flying by and big, healthy insects in some of your broadcasts. I'm guessing you are in Western England. Curious to see if I guess correctly.

This is marvellous stuff, Simon. I'm not linguistically clever or well-informed, but I do love gathering wat little fragments my mind can hold on these subjects. I usually turn to etymologies, but have no structured understanding of the root languages of English. One of the questions that lingers in my mind, in a modern context, is who are "the English"? It seems such a complex subject and you seem so much more aware than I that there are many different cultures rolled together on this little island; I fear broadcasting has ironed the landscape flatter than it already was from centuries of erosion. So thank you for offering your in-depth thoughts.

I read that Oestra was the Goddess of spring/fertility and that that is where the German word Ostern and the English Easter comes from. Your thoughts? Brilliant video. Thank you for the great research.

@titaniumtiara4573

4 жыл бұрын

It’s older than that. babylonian? astarte>AEster>Ester>Easter

@andrew2715

4 жыл бұрын

Easter is called Pascha or Passover in most languages and has always been the celebration of Christ’s resurrection, though in some cultures of the western rite in later centuries certain incidental cultural traditions from the previous religion were carried over.

@redere4777

4 жыл бұрын

The name Oestra isn't real and looks to be a weird mix of other names. The Anglo-Saxons worshiped a goddess named Ēostre, which gave us the modern word Easter. Meanwhile the ancient Germans worshiped Ostara, whose name survived in words like Osterfest and Ostern. The older Proto-Germanic name for the goddess can be reconstructed as Austrǭ. She was likely a goddess of the dawn as her name is related to other Indo-European dawn goddesses like the Roman Aurora, Greek Eos, Vedic Ushas, and Lithuanian Aušrinė. Being a dawn goddess, the reason why she was honored in the spring was likely because of how the dawn can be associated with rebirth and life. The dawn can be seen as the rebirth of the day after the night and so can spring be seen as the rebirth of the natural world after winter.

@laZOETje

4 жыл бұрын

Andrew Owen The Apostle Paul never adopted pagan practices to make worship more acceptable those he preached to. He was bringing a change and truth in worship, not changing to suit other faiths. The teachings of Christ were clear. He stated in the apostles acted as a restraint to false worship as eyewitnesses to the commands taught by Christ but when they passed apostasy set in and men began to twist scripture to fit the adoption of pagan teachings like the trinity and immortality of the soul, things Jesus never believed or taught as a faithful Hebrew. The Encyclopædia Britannica says the Anglo-Saxon priest Venerable Bede derived Easter from the Anglo-Saxon spring goddess Eostre.

@andrew2715

4 жыл бұрын

laZOETje The Apostle Paul as a faithful second temple Jew believed in two powers in heaven being one in essence and two persons. He taught the divinity of Christ (as Jesus claimed) and the divinity of the Holy Spirit (as the OT confirms). The Ancient Hebrews knew that all souls event to Sheol/hades at death, this was the case until Christ’s Crucifixion. The Roman Catholic Church went into error by adopting certain customs they shouldn’t have and making their Pope the head of the Church rather than Christ and became to innovate. The Orthodox Church remains faithful to the truth given once to apostles. Christ promised that the gates of hell shall not prevail over his Church so good with your mental gymnastics.