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Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

for a ritualized boast, vow, threat, or promise. Clark Hall, John R. ''A Concise Anglo-Saxon Dictionary''. Cambridge University Press, 1960, p. 42. The principle of a ''bēot'' is to proclaim one's acceptance of a seemingly impossible challenge in order to gain tremendous glory for actually accomplishing it.

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

warriors would usually deliver ''bēot''s in the

mead hall Among the early Germanic peoples, a mead hall or feasting hall was a large building with a single room intended to receive guests and serve as a center of community social life. From the fifth century to the Early Middle Ages such a building was t ...

the night before a military engagement or during the battle itself. For example, a typical warrior may boast that he will be the first to strike a blow in a battle, that he would claim a renowned sword from an enemy warrior as spoil of battle, that he will slay a particular monster that has been wreaking havoc on a town or village, and so on. ''Bēot''s were usually accompanied by grand stories of one's past glorious deeds. Although other cultures and times might disdain boasting as a sign of arrogance, or sinful pride, the

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

Anglo-Saxons highly regarded such behaviour as a positive sign of one's determination, bravery, and character. Examples of the ''bēot'' can be seen throughout the epic poem ''

Beowulf ''Beowulf'' (; ang, Bēowulf ) is an Old English epic poem in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and most often translated works of Old English literature. The ...

'', such as when Beowulf vows to fight

Grendel Grendel is a character in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem '' Beowulf'' (700–1000). He is one of the poem's three antagonists (along with his mother and the dragon), all aligned in opposition against the protagonist Beowulf. Grendel is feared by a ...

without using any weapons or armour.

Etymology

The

word ''bēot'' comes from earlier ''bíhát'' meaning 'promise'. The original noun-form of ''bēot'' corresponds to the verb ''bi-'', ''be-ˈhátan''. A shifting of the stress from ''bíhát'' to ''bi-ˈhát'', on analogy of the verb, gave the late

''beˈhát'', from which the

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English p ...

word ''behote'' derives.

Structure of a ''bēot''

# Pledge - The individual pledges to endeavour a specific challengeEinarsson, 1934, p. 975-976, "In both instances we have to do with a solemn promise to carry out a feat—a fight—under very difficult circumstances, partly self-imposed to add glory" # Speculation of outcomes - The individual predicts two possible outcomes—success or failure—and elaborates the effects of either outcome. # Commissioning to a higher power - The individual commissions the outcome of the challenge to a higher power (e.g. ''God'', ''fate'').Beowulf, lines 2526-2527

References

{{Anglo-SaxonPaganism Anglo-Saxon law Germanic paganism

Etymology

Structure of a ''bēot''

See also

References