< img data-lazyloaded=" 1" src= "https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english.webp" data-pin-media=" https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/pin-viking-words-image.jpg" data-pin-title=" Viking Words" data-pin-description=" The influence of Old Norse on the English language. How the Viking language stays in our day-to-day usage of English.
” alt =” Viking words pin “class= “dpsp-post-pinterest-image-hidden-inner dpsp-post-pinterest-image-hidden-single” loading=” lazy” >< img src =" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english.webp" data-pin-media=" https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/pin-viking-words-image.jpg" data-pin-title= "Viking Words" data-pin-description=" The impact of Old Norse on the English language. How the Viking language stays in our daily use of English." alt= "Viking words pin "class= "dpsp-post-pinterest-image-hidden-inner dpsp-post-pinterest-image-hidden-single" loading= "lazy" > Take a look at how the Viking language of Old Norse played a significant function in the advancement of the English language we utilize and understand today. They may have invested decades invading, however the Vikings and their descendants left their mark on the British Islands in more ways than one. The English language wouldn’t be what it is today without the influence from the Norse people.< img data-lazyloaded=" 1" data-placeholder-resp=" 768x432" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-1.webp "decoding=" async" width=" 768" height=" 432" alt=" Viking language of the sword." class=" wp-image-71496" data-sizes="( max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" srcset=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-1.webp 768w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-6.webp 300w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-7.webp 1536w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/viking-language-sword-icon-2048x1152.jpg.webp 2048w" >< img decoding=" async" width=" 768" height=" 432" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-1.webp" alt=" Viking language of the sword." class=" wp-image-71496" srcset=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-1.webp 768w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-6.webp 300w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-7.webp 1536w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/viking-language-sword-icon-2048x1152.jpg.webp 2048w" sizes="( max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" >
In the 10th and 9th centuries, Scandinavians crossed the North Sea in multitudes. Their legacy is still very much alive in hundreds of place names and personal names, not to point out everyday products and even days of the week.
An article in the research study journal Antiquity recommended that the variety of Scandinavians transferring to the British Islands during the Viking Age might have been bigger than previous DNA studies recommended.
As lots of as 35,000 Scandinavians might have moved to England. Ultimately, these beginners settled throughout the country, marrying into local families.
The majority of the Nordic languages spoken today trace their roots back to Old Norse, which also had its impact on the English language.
Scandinavians lived and farmed alongside the Old English speakers in the time of Danelaw. So, it’s possibly not a surprise that the English language established to consist of many terms previously just used in Old Norse.
Old Norse and Old English
Before we dive into the specifics of Viking words, it’s important for context to have a look at the languages of the time.
< img data-lazyloaded=" 1" data-placeholder-resp =" 768x401" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-2.webp" decoding =" async" width=" 768" height=" 401" alt=" Graphic idea of Viking ships" class =" wp-image-71512" data-sizes ="( max-width: 768px )100vw, 768px" srcset=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-2.webp 768w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-8.webp 300w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/viking-ships-graphic-concept.jpg.webp 1200w" >< img decoding="async" width="768" height=" 401" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-2.webp"
alt=” Graphic principle of Viking ships” class =” wp-image-71512 “srcset=” https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-2.webp 768w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-8.webp 300w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/viking-ships-graphic-concept.jpg.webp 1200w” sizes =”( max-width: 768px )100vw, 768px “> Old English, the language spoken in much of the British Islands at
the time, was quite a various language to the one we understand today. In similar way as Old Norse is extremely challenging to read for a Norwegian today, Old English would be a difficulty to a
native English speaker. English and Old Norse are both members of the Germanic language family. Distantly related today, some 1,200 years ago Old English and Old Norse were more carefully related. It’s difficult to understand for sure since of the mainly spoken nature of language of the time, however it’s possible that the two languages were to some extent
equally intelligible. Learn more: The Languages of Norway This implies that Old English adjusting to consist of some Old Norse words would not have appeared particularly strange at the time
. It’s just by looking back with hindsight that we can see how big an impact the Scandinavians had. Viking name in England I matured simply a few miles from a little village
” 1 “data-placeholder-resp=” 768×513 “src =” https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english.jpg” decoding =” async” width=” 768″ height =” 513″ alt =” Viking place names in England” class=” wp-image-71517″
data-sizes= “( max-width: 768px )100vw, 768px” srcset =” https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english.jpg 768w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-6.jpg 300w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/viking-place-name-map-in-england.jpg 1000w” > Name such as Grimsby, Scunthorpe and Whitby are of Viking origin. In the British Isles today there are numerous place names of Old Norse origin. Much of them remain in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, which fall within the previous limits of the Danelaw. In the- by club there is Grimsby, Whitby, Asgarby and many, many more. Another popular suffix from the Viking Age is- thorpe, which when implied village. There are more than 100- thorpe place names in Yorkshire alone. Other place names with most likely Old Norse impact consist of those with the suffixes- hulme or- holm( from holmr, implying an island or raised ground in marsh), ness( from nes, implying cape) and- kirk( from kirkja, meaning
church ). Pronouns Even if you don’t know the specifics, many individuals have actually heard that there are place names of Viking origin in England. I ‘d bet that far less know about the Old Norse origins of they, their and them.< img data-lazyloaded=" 1" data-placeholder-resp=" 768x432" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-3.webp" decoding=" async" width=" 768" height=
” 432″ alt=” Individual pronoun diagram.” class=” wp-image-71521″ data-sizes=” (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px” srcset =” https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-3.webp 768w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-9.webp 300w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/personal-pronoun-diagram.jpg.webp 1280w” >< img decoding=" async" width =" 768" height= "432 "src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-3.webp "alt=" Personal pronoun diagram.
” class=” wp-image-71521″ srcset=” https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-3.webp 768w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-9.webp 300w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/personal-pronoun-diagram.jpg.webp 1280w” sizes =” (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px” >” They, their, and them are of Scandinavian origin, having gotten in
English in the
wake of the 9th-century Viking settlements of northern England. In spite of having actually amazed and fascinated linguists for a century this phenomenon is still badly comprehended,” said scientistElise Emerson Morse-Gagne. Formerly, Old English utilized a plural pronoun hem, which was often reduced to ’em. That’s still around today
in the type of “go get ’em”, which lots of people presume is a shortening of them. It’s presumed that individuals
chosen to use them as hem sounded too near to him
and might typically have been
misconstrued.
Viking Verbs One of the verbs with Old Norse impact is to be. In particular, are is a merger of the Old English earun/earon with the Old Norse er. It’s simple to see how the sentence they are has Scandinavian roots. Inmodern-day Norwegian, it’s de er .
Other verbs said to originate from or be influenced by Old Norse include to take, to crawl, to guess and to rely on. Battling words Maybe it’s not a surprise given the early Viking raids on the British Isles, but the Norsemen left lots of fighting-relating words on the islands. Without those raids, we would
n’t have words such as massacre, raid,
club and knife.< img data-lazyloaded= "1" data-placeholder-resp= "1000x1500" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-4.webp" decoding=" async" width =" 1000" height=" 1500" alt =" Viking word berserker" class=" wp-image-71606" data-sizes="( max-width: 1000px )100vw, 1000px" srcset =" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-4.webp 1000w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-10.webp 200w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-11.webp 512w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/viking-word-berserker-768x1152.jpg.webp 768w ">
< img decoding=" async" width =" 1000 "height=" 1500" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-4.webp" alt= "Viking word berserker" class =" wp-image-71606" srcset=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-4.webp 1000w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-10.webp 200w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-11.webp 512w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/viking-word-berserker-768x1152.jpg.webp 768w "sizes="( max-width: 1000px )100vw, 1000px" > Another Norse word that made its method into English was berserk . While it’s today used to mean a form of negligent defiance, it was initially utilized to refer to a Norseman who reached a heightened state of focus, almost trance-like , during battle. Viking words in English dialects Differences in dialects are always fascinating no matter the language. In English, you can find Viking-influenced words in numerous dialects, significantly in Scotland and the north and east of England, particularly Yorkshire. Among the very best examples of this is barn or bairn, utilized in Yorkshire, other parts of northern England and parts of Scotland to suggest kids. In modern-day Norwegian, barn remains the word
Its legacy can plainly be seen in location and household names all over the islands. The islands were Scandinavian till the year 1472, after which time the Norse language developed into the Norn language.
< img data-lazyloaded="1" data-placeholder-resp= "1024x684" src =" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-5.webp" decoding =" async" width=" 1024" height =" 684 "alt=" Scalloway harbour in Shetland" class=" wp-image-62441" data-sizes= "( max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px "srcset=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-5.webp 1024w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-12.webp 300w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-13.webp 768w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/scalloway-harbour-shetland.jpg.webp 1200w" >< img decoding=" async" width=" 1024 "height=" 684" src=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-5.webp" alt =" Scalloway harbour in Shetland "class=" wp-image-62441 "srcset=" https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-5.webp 1024w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-12.webp 300w, https://everythingviking.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/viking-history-viking-words-the-old-norse-influence-on-english-13.webp 768w, https://www.lifeinnorway.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/scalloway-harbour-shetland.jpg.webp 1200w" sizes="( max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px "> Numerous words of Old Norse origin are still used in Shetland. Although Norn essentially passed away out over the following centuries, lots of Norn words stay in common daily use on the islands
. NorthLink Ferries offers a good summary. That’s a short explanation as to some of the words we use in English that were imported from Scandinavia during or after the Viking Age. We hope you found it interesting!