Carole P. Biggam

Knowledge of whelk dyes and pigments in Anglo-Saxon England

Abstract This article aims to evaluate the likelihood that whelk dye was known in Anglo-Saxon England, either in the form of imported cloth and textile products, and/or as an activity carried out in England. The nature of whelk dye and the likely processing options available to early societies are considered in the light of extant records and modern experimentation in Israel and Britain. The currently available ‘hard’ evidence is then presented from archaeology, manuscript studies, and the chemical analysis of textiles. Finally, the semantic and literary evidence is considered, including three passages from texts by Bede and Aldhelm, and a new interpretation of OE cornwurma.

Grund to hrof: aspects of the Old English semantics of building and architecture

The paper ‘builds’ two Anglo-Saxon virtual buildings, a stone church and a timber house or small hall, using Old English vocabulary. At each phase of the construction, certain of the vocabulary is discussed, drawing on evidence from archaeology and surviving buildings, from etymology, and from contemporary translation from Latin. The aim is to investigate the potential of interdisciplinary studies in the field of Anglo-Saxon architecture and building processes. On first consideration, it would seem highly productive to combine the forces of archaeological and semantic research to elucidate the subject of Anglo-Saxon buildings. More detailed investigation, however, often leads to disappointment, as Old English lexemes, usually occurring without elaborate explanation, are difficult to link to excavated structural remains which are not, of course, conveniently labelled with Old English technical building terms. Nevertheless, it has been found profitable to link evidence from the two disciplines in certain cases, and the aim of this article is to explore the possibilities for interdisciplinary research in this area.

Bibliography for 2010

This bibliography is meant to include all signifi cant books, articles and reviews published in any branch of Anglo-Saxon studies during 2010, as well as entries omitted from previous bibliographies. It excludes reprints unless they contain new material. The year of publication of a book or article is 2010 unless otherwise stated. The arrangement and the pages on which the sections begin are as follows:

Bibliography for 2001

This bibliography is meant to include all books, articles and significant reviews published in any branch of Anglo-Saxon studies during 2001. It excludes reprints unless they contain new material. It will be continued annually. The year of publication of a book or article is 2001 unless otherwise stated. The arrangement and the pages on which the sections begin are as follows: 1.    page 278 2.    284 Lexicon and glosses, 284; Syntax, phonology and other aspects, 288 3.    295 General, 295; Poetry, 297 (General, 297; ‘Beowulf ’, 299; Other poems, 300); Prose, 303 4. -,       306 5. ,    314 6.  320 7.  331 8.  332 9.  334 General, 334; Towns and other major settlements, 337; Rural settlements, agriculture and the countryside, 340; Pagan cemeteries and Sutton Hoo, 344; Churches, monastic sites and Christian cemeteries, 346; Ships and seafaring, 348; Miscellaneous artifacts, 348; Bone, stone and wood, 349; Metal-work, 351; Pottery and glass, 353; Textiles and leather, 355; Inscriptions, 355 10.  356

Bibliography for 2002

This bibliography is meant to include all books, articles and significant reviews published in any branch of Anglo-Saxon studies during 2002. It excludes reprints unless they contain new material. It will be continued annually. The year of publication of a book or article is 2002 unless otherwise stated. The arrangement and the pages on which the sections begin are as follows: 1.    page 310 2.    314 Lexicon and glosses, 314; Syntax, phonology and other aspects, 321 3.    330 General, 330; Poetry, 333 (General, 333; ‘Beowulf ’, 334; Other poems, 337); Prose, 340 4. -,       346 5. ,    358 6.  362 7.  369 8.  370 9.  373 General, 373; Towns and other major settlements, 378; Rural settlements, agriculture and the countryside, 382; Pagan cemeteries and Sutton Hoo, 385; Churches, monastic sites and Christian cemeteries, 388; Ships and seafaring, 391; Miscellaneous artifacts, 391; Bone, stone and wood, 391; Metal-work, 392; Pottery and glass, 394; Textiles and leather, 396; Inscriptions, 396 10.  398

Bibliography for 2000

This bibliography is meant to include all books, articles and significant reviews published in any branch of Anglo-Saxon studies during 2000. It excludes reprints unless they contain new material. It will be continued annually. The year of publication of a book or article is 2000 unless otherwise stated. The arrangement and the pages on which the sections begin are as follows: 1.    page 250 2.    255 Lexicon and glosses, 255; Syntax, phonology and other aspects, 257 3.    260 General, 260; Poetry, 261 (General, 261; ‘Beowulf ’, 263; Other poems, 265); Prose, 267 4. -,       270 5. ,    273 6.  277 7.  284 8.  285 9.  288 General, 288; Towns and other major settlements, 290; Rural settlements, agriculture and the countryside, 293; Pagan cemeteries and Sutton Hoo, 296; Churches, monastic sites and Christian cemeteries, 298; Ships and seafaring, 300; Miscellaneous artifacts, 300; Bone, stone and wood, 301; Metal-work, 302; Pottery and glass, 304; Textiles and leather, 306; Inscriptions, 306 10.  307

Sociolinguistic aspects of Old English colour lexemes

This paper presents an experimental attempt to investigate the social contexts of certain Old English vocabulary belonging to a particular semantic field, namely that of colour. Sociolinguistic studies are concerned with language variations between social classes, age groups, the sexes and other social groupings, so it is obvious from the outset that this sort of evidence will be difficult to retrieve from a dead language. However, in the case of this particular semantic field, textual information can often be augmented by comparative evidence from the colour semantics of living languages, and by the theories about colour term acquisition and usage developed by linguists and anthropologists.

Hæwenhnydele: an Anglo-Saxon Medicinal Plant

The Old English plant-name, haewenhnydele, occurs in herbal and medical texts and in glossaries containing translated Latin plant-names. Where it is linked with a Latin name, that name is always Herba Britannica, a cure for scurvy. Some scholars, rather naively assuming that the two names must refer to the same plant, have thought the identity of haewenhnydele almost obvious, whereas others, knowing the frequently garbled accounts of herbal cures inherited by the Anglo-Saxons, have despaired of ever identifying it. An Anglo-Saxon translator, working on the Old English version of the Latin Pseudo-Apuleius, inherited an account of Herba Britannica which was a confusion of two different plants, compiled from several sources. The information available to him is discussed, in an effort to understand how he made an identification. Evidence such as the synonyms attached to the plant entry, the etymology of haewenhnydele, and the illustration of the plant is presented. There is also a brief discussion of the two recorded occurrences of the rural plant-name, hawdod, from the 16th and 18th centuries, and whether this name could be cognate with haewenhnydele. In the Durham Glossary, another name, vihtmeresvyrt, is linked with Herba Britannica and haewenhnydele. This name is discussed, and found to denote a well-known source of Vitamin C, the cure for scurvy. This paper demonstrates that the attempts of the Anglo-Saxons to identify Herba Britannica, and to link their guesses with real herbal cures, are an impressive rationalisation of an almost nonsensical Latin plant record.