Rainbow Rumble: Old English Edition ✨ “Battle of Colors, Battle of Words!” ✨

A

1

In what year did the Old English period begin?

Around 449 AD 

2

During whose reign did the first great period of Old English literary activity occur?

King Alfred the Great

3

Who were the first Jutes to arrive in Britain according to the Venerable Bede?

Hengist and Horsa

4

Where did the Jutes settle after arriving in Britain?

Kent, southern Hampshire, and the Isle of Wight

5

What type of language was Old English?

Germanic

B

1

Name the four dialects of Old English and their regions.

Northumbrian (northern England & southeastern Scotland); Mercian (central England); Kentish (southeastern England); West Saxon (southern & southwestern England)

2

Which three Germanic tribes arrived in Britain in 449 AD?

Angles, Saxons, and Jutes

3

Name the four key manuscripts that preserve most Old English poetic works.

Exeter Book; Junius Manuscript; Vercelli Book; Beowulf manuscript

4

Give at least one important work of Old English poetry.

The Wanderer, The Seafarer, The Battle of Maldon, and The Dream of the Rood.

5

Who led the Norman Conquest of England, and on what date was the decisive battle fought?

William, Duke of Normandy; Battle of Hastings on October 14, 1066

C

1

What was the Anglo-Saxon alphabet called?

futhorc

2

Which conquest effectively ended the use of Anglo-Saxon runes in England?  

The Norman Conquest (1066)

3

What important boundary helped divide the Anglian-speaking region into two speech groups?

River Humber

4

Who is considered the first Old English Christian poet?

Caedmon

5

Provide at least 3 examples of Old English words that still exist in Modern English.

Man, wife, child, son, daughter, brother, friend, live, fight, make, use, love, like, look, drink, food, eat, sleep, sing, sun, moon, earth, ground, wood, field, house, home, people, family, horse, fish, farm, water, time, eyes, ears, mouth, nose, strong.

D

1

When was St. Bede the Venerable born?

672–673 AD

2

Which other language became influential in England through 7th-century missionaries from Rome?

Latin

3

State four genres of prose works written in Old English.

Legal writings; medical tracts; religious texts; translations from Latin and other languages

4

In the Old English Period, what are the three grammatical genders for nouns

masculine, feminine, and neuter

5

What was the name of the region under Norse control established by that treaty?

The Danelaw

E

1

Who was the last native speaker of the Cornish language?  

Dolly Pentreath

2

Name the oldest surviving Germanic epic poem and its likely composition dates.

Beowulf; composed between 700 and 750 AD

3

Before what year was Old English spoken and written in England?

before 1100 AD

4

What two dialects are classed together as the Anglian dialects?

Mercian and Northumbrian

5

In which dialect are most extant Old English writings found?

West Saxon