Word-Hoard: An Introduction to Old English Vocabulary

By Stephen A. Barney

Book Overview

Designed for introductory courses in Old English, Word-Hoard offers a vocabulary of some 2000 words drawn from the poems that beginning students normally read. Exploiting the natural curiosity we feel about our own language, Stephen Barney draws etymological connections, provides mnemonic aids, and introduces the student to cultural and literary concepts as well as words. This second edition of his valuable book has been completely reset in a format that improves its clarity and conciseness. Reviews of the earlier edition: "An excellent piece of work. . . . It makes learning the basic vocabulary of Old English, especially of the poetry, an adventure in ideas, adding in short compass the fascination of etymology and even semantics to the otherwise laborious and at first crude efforts to understand the texts."--John C. Pope "It obviously reflects enthusiasm and a great deal of hard work, and it will serve very well the students for whom it is intended."--Thomas D. Hill, Speculum "There is nothing quite like it in the literature. . . . Such a book would have been enthusiastically greeted years ago. It is doubly welcome today."-- Choice Stephen A. Barney is professor of English at the University of California at Irvine.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0300035063
• ISBN13: 9780300035063
• Release Date: September 1985
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Length: 86 Pages
• Weight: 0.36 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 6.0" x 9.2"
• Grade Range: Grades 10 to 12

Customer Reviews

New Student of Anglo-Saxon

A small, but useful book in Old English language, it provides the new student a supplement while under the teachings of a OE tutor. A good reference work for all students of Old English.

Fantastic

This book is *extremely* helpful. It's a high-frequency word list, meaning that it includes the most common words in Old English literature, and it's organized in an intuitive fashion: by roots. The author suggests in the foreword that you start from the back of the book, by learning the first word in each root group, and then work through the rest of the book. I wish I had done that at the beginning of the semester. I just worked my way through that list (about 200 terms), and it made my course reading so much easier that I would pay $13.50 for that list alone. Buy the book and put the words on flash cards. It's a lot of time invested up front, but it's saving me a tremendous amount of time because I'm using my glossary sooo much less.

Pure pleasure

This slim work goes deep rather than broad, taking a close look at a few hundred of the OE words most frequently encountered in the extant literature. Each word's entry will include some modern and ancient language cognates, as well as shades of meaning and "philology nerd" points of interest. It's a marvelous book to dip into when brushing your teeth or waiting for your toast to pop up--every time you open it you'll come away with a deeper understanding than you had before, not only of OE, but of modern English as well. It's worth the price just for the discussion of the Anglo-Saxons' unfamiliar apprehension of the nature of colors.

Nice little book

This book is a good book if you already know Old English. It is not alphabetical and difficult to find words. I am positive this will shall be a wonderful book to have around, once one knows Old English in full! But for the moment [for most beginners] it is not wholly ideal.If you know some [even a fragment], large portions or all of Old English, I recomend it.I do not mean to sound negative, but I am most duly trying to give my honest thoughts to the best of my ability.

Thank You, Professor Barney

Full disclosure: Professor Barney taught me Old English. His tools were a collection of notes, Mitchell and Robinson's Guide to Old English, Campbell's Old English Grammar, and his own Word Hoard. Of the three books, now that I can read Old English, Word Hoard is the one that is still fascinating to read. Barney took the most common words in Old English and discussed their meanings, where they came from, and what happened to them later (as with Old English gar, "spear"). If you are interested in Old English, this book is a must-have. If you are have ever been curious about how English has changed over the last 1,000 years, buy this book.