E-Book Overview
The dating of "Beowulf" has been a central question in Anglo-Saxon studies for the past two centuries, since it affects not only the interpretation of "Beowulf", but also the trajectory of early English literary history. By exploring evidence for the poem's date of composition, the essays in this volume contribute to a wide range of pertinent fields, including historical linguistics, Old English metrics, onomastics, and textual criticism. Many aspects of Anglo-Saxon literary culture are likewise examined, as contributors gauge the chronological significance of the monsters, heroes, history, and theology brought together in "Beowulf". Discussions of methodology and the history of the discipline also figure prominently in this collection.
Overall, the dating of "Beowulf" here provides a productive framework for evaluating evidence and drawing informed conclusions about its chronological significance. These conclusions enhance our appreciation of "Beowulf" and improve our understanding of the poem's place in literary history.
E-Book Content
Anglo-Saxon Studies 24
the dAting of beowulf
Anglo-Saxon Studies ISSN 1475-2468
General Editors John Hines Catherine Cubitt ‘Anglo-Saxon Studies’ aims to provide a forum for the best scholarship on the Anglo-Saxon peoples in the period from the end of Roman Britain to the Norman Conquest, including comparative studies involving adjacent populations and periods; both new research and major re-assessments of central topics are welcomed. Books in the series may be based in any one of the principal disciplines of archaeology, art history, history, language and literature, and inter- or multi-disciplinary studies are encouraged. Proposals or enquiries may be sent directly to the editors or the publisher at the addresses given below; all submissions will receive prompt and informed consideration. Professor John Hines, School of History, Archaeology and Religion, Cardiff University, John Percival Building, Colum Drive, Cardiff, Wales, UK CF10 3EU Professor Catherine Cubitt, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York, The King’s Manor, York, England, UK YO1 7EP Boydell & Brewer, PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, UK IP12 3DF Previously published volumes in the series are listed at the back of this book
The Dating of Beowulf a reassessment
Edited by Leonard Neidorf
D.S. Brewer
© Contributors 2014 All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation no part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system, published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted, recorded or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright owner First published 2014 D. S. Brewer, Cambridge ISBN 978-1-84384-387-0 D. S. Brewer is an imprint of Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF, UK and of Boydell & Brewer Inc. 668 Mount Hope Ave, Rochester, NY 14620-2731, USA website: www.boydellandbrewer.com A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library The publisher has no responsibility for the continued existence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. This publication is printed on acid-free paper
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Contents List of Tables List of Illustrations List of Contributors Acknowledgements Introduction Leonard Neidorf 1. Beowulf and Language History R.D. Fulk 2. Germanic Legend, Scribal Errors, and Cultural Change Leonard Neidorf 3. Names in Beowulf and Anglo-Saxon England Tom Shippey 4. The Limits of Conservative Composition in Old English Poetry Megan E. Hartman 5. The Date of Composition of Beowulf