How do we know how Old English is pronounced?

With a very few exceptions, the Old English consonant system is essentially identical that of Old English. Hence the sound spelled by the Old English letter b was pronounced more or less as is that spelled by our modern b: Old English bār, Modern English boar (i.e. wild pig).

Did old used to be spelled olde?

is that old is of an object, concept, relationship, etc, having existed for a relatively long period of time while olde is (archaic) old.

How are Old English consonants pronounced?

Most Old English consonants are pronounced the same way as their Modern English equivalents. We give the exceptions below. c can be pronounced either as a hard “c” sound, represented in Modern English by “k,” or as the sound that is represented in Modern English by “ch.”

Is it worth learning to pronounce Old English?

Pronouncing Old English. Old English is a “dead” language. No one, not even the children of the most fanatical Anglo-Saxonists (though some of us are working on it) grows up speaking Anglo-Saxon as a cradle tongue. But it is nevertheless worth learning to pronounce the language, and not only so you can impress people at cocktail parties.

How do you pronounce Old English diphthongs?

Explanations of pronunciation of Old English diphthongs are notoriously confusing, so we will simply rely on demonstrating the pronunciation of representative words. short e + a is pronounced thus healf. long e + a is pronounced thus þeawa. short i + e is pronounced thus ahielde. long i + e is pronounced thus stierde.

What is the correct pronunciation of G in the word yes?

Before front vowel s (“i” and “e”) it is pronounced like the Modern English “y” in the word “yes”: gifu (“yee-fu”) (this pronunciaton is called palatal g ). When g is used before other vowels it is pronounced the same as Modern English “g” in “golden”: goda (“go-da”) (this pronunciation is called velar g ).