a as in father; [ɑ] in the international phonetic alphabet æ as in cat [æ] e as in fate [e] i as in feet [i] o as in boat [o] u as in tool [u] y as in the German über or French tu [y]. Move your lips as though you were saying “oo,” but make an “ee” sound instead.
The letters Ð ð (“eth”) and Þ þ (“thorn”) are used for “th. " These are interchangable; replacing an ð with þ does not change the meaning, and either can be pronounced as in “that” or “thin,” depending on the word. h is pronounced with a throaty rasp, as in Scottish “loch. " c is pronounced sometime as a k, and sometimes as a ch as in chin. Some texts write the “ch” pronunciation as ċ, a c with a dot over it. g is pronounced sometimes as the g in goal, and sometimes as the y in yes. The y pronunciation is sometimes written with a dot over it, ġ.
If this is too difficult for you, you can use a less accurate pronunciation that follows a more Modern English style of short and long vowels. For example, pronounce a short e as in “bet” and a long ē as in “fate. " If your text does not mark vowel length, you can look up the word in an Old English dictionary to find a pronunciation guide.
hām (khaawm): home læn (lan): loan (short ae) nædre (naad-rey): snake (long ae) pipor (pee-poar): pepper slīm (sleeem): slime snoru (snoa-roo): daughter-in-law rūh (roookh): shaggy mys (mös): mouse (long y)
fēdan (feey–dan): to feed lufu (loo–voo): love slīdan (sleee–dan): to slide mēsan (meey–zan): a dining table pæð (paath): path (pronounce th as in path) leðer (ley–theyr): leather (pronounce th as in leather)
C is usually a “k” sound before a consonant, or when next to a back vowel (a, æ, o, u, y): clif (kleef) = cliff; staca (sta-ka) = stake; cū (kooo) = cow C is usually a “ch” sound when next to a front vowel (i or e): brēc (breeych) = breeches; ceris (chey–rees) = cherry. G is usually a hard “g” sound before a consonant, before a back vowel (a, æ, o, u, y), and after n: grund (groond) = ground; gāt (gaat) = goat; þing (theeng) = thing. G is usually a “y” next to a front vowel (i or e): bodig (boa–dee-y) = body; segel (sey-yeyl) = sail; gingra (yeen–gra) = younger. G following a back vowel or consonant (besides n) is pronounced as [ɣ], a sound that no longer exists in English. Just use the sound “wa” for now, or practice raising your tongue in a “k” position while saying “ch” as in “loch. "
CG is pronounced as the dg in edge: hrycg (khrödg) = ridge SC is pronounced as the sh in show: scinu (shee-noo) = shin
Hwæt! We Gar-Dena in gear-dagum / þeod-cyninga, þrym gefrunon / hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon! “Yo! We have heard tell of the majesty of the Speardanes, of the Folk-kings, how the princes did valorous deeds. “[7] X Research source Search for Beowulf recitations online to see whether you have the right pronunciation.
You can also use online dictionaries, such as the Bosworth-Toller Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, or the John R. Clark Hall dictionary. Due to copyright reasons, almost all of these are from the 19th and early 20th century. These will work fine, but they may not always agree with a more modern dictionary that benefits from another hundred years of scholarship.
Many videos will not perfectly match what you learned here. Different scholars and linguists have different ideas about how Old English would have been spoken. There is also variation between different regions or time periods of Old English, and usually some hints of the reader’s original accent.
Here’s one basic difference between Old and Modern English: Old English uses “declensions” instead of word order. [10] X Research source This means the ending of every noun changes to show where it belongs in the meaning of the sentence. If you can’t find a word in the dictionary, look for a word that looks similar, but has a different ending.
There are also Old English communities on social media and video-sharing sites. Join them and ask for help finding resources.
