What Are Old English Alphabets?

Old English alphabets can refer to the system of vowels and consonants that came before Middle English and Modern English. There are no native speakers of Old English left. People that know and translate this language have had to study it as they would study any foreign language. Old English alphabets can also refer to a specific font for computers made to resemble old letters but using only the modern English alphabet.

Even though Modern English derives from Old English, the changes over the centuries have made Old English completely undecipherable without advanced study. Many of the sounds and letters of the Old English alphabet have changed over time to the point of not being used or sounding like their original state.

Here is a sample of Beowulf, an old English poem, written in Old English:

Him ða Scyld gewat        to gescæphwile

felahror feran            on frean wære.

Hi hyne þa ætbæron        to brimes faroðe,

swæse gesiþas,        swa he selfa bæd,

þenden wordum weold    wine Scyldinga;

leof landfruma            lange ahte.

(The break in the middle of the line is called a caesura.) You can see the entire Old English alphabet online on websites such as omniglot.com.

Transition from Old English to Middle English

The influence from the invading Angles, Saxons and Jutes over the next century brings us to the time of Middle English where most people begin their literature studies with Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales; often though, this is translated to modern English for students. Furthermore, all the dates presented are somewhat arbitrary because language is always in flux; however, these dates mark the times when distinct changes can be seen and heard.

The shift from Old English to Middle English was the most dramatic for our language. Middle English survives from the 11th – 15th century.  This shift included changes in consonants and vowels, in both sound and usage.

For consonants:

• the [v] did not occur in OE and for a while v and u were interchangeable
• ch replaced c
• sh replaced sc
• wh replaced hw
• c is placed before e, i, y
• qu replaced cw

 For vowels:

• the length of the vowel sound was now indicated by double letters (fode – food)
• short u written as o if m, n, u (v, w) were contiguous (sone – son; sonne – sun)
• ou represents the long u
• w used in final position instead of u
• y used as a semivowel and in final position

Interestingly, short vowels became long and long vowels became short, which explains why child has a long "i" sound and children has a short one. The additional consonant after the second makes the vowel shorten.  A variety of other changes occurred in the language, including a loss of grammatical gender, to mark the end of Old English and the beginning of Middle English.

History of Old English Alphabet and Language

From what linguists have pieced together, Old English dominated from approximately 449-1066. The Celts lived in Britain before Caesar’s failed invasion in 55 B.C. The Roman’s made a more earnest attempt at conquering the island in A.D 43. 

Roman occupation doesn’t last longer than the 5th century, and the year 449 marks the plea from the Romans in Britain for help from the Germanic invaders. Around the year 597, England converted to Christianity and Latin became very influential.  In fact, all scholarly work was done in Latin until the 17th century.

The year 1066 is specifically marked as the end of Old English because that’s when the Normans, lead by William the Conqueror, invaded England. For the most part, Old English is very difficult to read and pronounce without specific knowledge of sounds and the help of a translator. Not many texts of Old English have actually survived but what we have is enough to mark the changes; Beowulf, always read in translation, is written in Old English (written down after being handed down by scops, also known as bards, from the oral tradition).

Old English Alphabet Font

Old English fonts have an ornate and scripty look to them. Many people like to use this font for formal occasions or just so the letters stand out more than others. These fonts can be found free with many software packages and online. Other Old English font styles can be purchased for use.