English Old English An Example Of Flexible Word Order In Old English

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Ana_Drobot Sunday 03rd of June 2007 11:36:21 PM
Old English - With Old English, word order was much more permissive than with present-day English.
For example:

Heo cyste hine. (She kissed him)

This can also be written as follows (and still mean the same thing):

Hine heo cyste.
Hine cyste heo.

BCS Monday 04th of June 2007 07:19:20 AM
- Good example, however this happens not only in Old English, but also in most modern poetry, and in Shakespearean works.

BCS Monday 04th of June 2007 07:24:48 AM
- Though usually the sentence becomes passive.

So:
She kissed him --> He was kissed by her

Not as strong as the active voice, but more lyrical.

As a side note, in Latin, sentence order doesn\'t really matter, as long as prepositions are next to the words that they are connected to. (Although, verbs are usually at the end)

For example,
Vidi viros in villa regis - I saw the men in the king\'s farmhouse
Can become:
Viros vidi regis in villa
Viros in villa regis vidi
Regis in villa viros vidi
In villa viros regis vidi

And it still means the same thing!

Tiger Wednesday 13th of June 2007 12:39:42 PM
- Yes, this is similar to German: Der Hund beiÃŸt den Mann. (The dog bites the man.) or Den Mann beiÃŸt der Hund. So long as you keep your cases right, then the sentence is flexible. I suppose that your Old English example is another reminder of how German and English once were quite similar.

Tiger

Phrasebase Archive
	Ana_Drobot	Sunday 03rd of June 2007 11:36:21 PM
	Old English - With Old English, word order was much more permissive than with present-day English. For example: Heo cyste hine. (She kissed him) This can also be written as follows (and still mean the same thing): Hine heo cyste. Hine cyste heo.
	BCS	Monday 04th of June 2007 07:19:20 AM
	- Good example, however this happens not only in Old English, but also in most modern poetry, and in Shakespearean works.
	BCS	Monday 04th of June 2007 07:24:48 AM
	- Though usually the sentence becomes passive. So: She kissed him --> He was kissed by her Not as strong as the active voice, but more lyrical. As a side note, in Latin, sentence order doesn\'t really matter, as long as prepositions are next to the words that they are connected to. (Although, verbs are usually at the end) For example, Vidi viros in villa regis - I saw the men in the king\'s farmhouse Can become: Viros vidi regis in villa Viros in villa regis vidi Regis in villa viros vidi In villa viros regis vidi And it still means the same thing!
	Tiger	Wednesday 13th of June 2007 12:39:42 PM
	- Yes, this is similar to German: Der Hund beiÃŸt den Mann. (The dog bites the man.) or Den Mann beiÃŸt der Hund. So long as you keep your cases right, then the sentence is flexible. I suppose that your Old English example is another reminder of how German and English once were quite similar. Tiger