Greetings, my Faithful readers!
And welcome back after my "Pennsic Break". This week's Links List is about Speaking Forsoothly. In my opinion there are two ways to do that if you speak the English Language. One is to incorporate aspects of Elizabethan English into your normal speech. The other is to incorporate aspects of Old English (Anglo Saxon). Either way, you'll find plenty of fodder here with which to work. Just for fun, I've included an Anglo-Saxon for Computer Geeks site, in case you want to stupefy your programming friends. For Certes, speech accomplisht in the tongues of our forefathers is not easily taught. Methinks that t'would be best for one to practice amidst one's own friends, as misery and English accents do thrive in company!
Please note that many folks' concept of Forsooth speech includes lots of SCA slang such as Farspeaker (telephone), or Dragon (Car or truck) or Coin of the Realm (either Cash or Chocolate, depending on your location). Therefore, I have included an SCA slang directory for your use.
As always, this information is meant to be shared. Please use it, forward it, and share it where it will find a ready audience.
Cheers!
Aoife
Dame Aoife Finn of Ynos Mon
Riverouge, Barony of the Endless Hills, Aethelemarc
Speaking Forsoothly
http://www.sca.org.au/politarchopolis/library/speaking.htm
(Site Excerpt) To "SPEAK FORSOOTHLY" is to give a period flavor to our
language. We practice the art of speaking forsoothly to enhance the period
atmosphere of our SCA experience. Hearing colorful period speech around us
enriches the sound texture of an event in much the same way that pavilions,
beautiful court costumes and other period garb add visual atmosphere, all to
further enjoy "The Dream."
To Speak Forsoothly
http://www.mala.bc.ca/~soules/media112/zine2002/konefall/lang.html
(Site Excerpt) As one member, Lord Caius put it, "Tis to speak as would The
Bard in his plays. Thou wouldst use the noble tenses of "Thee" and "Thou",
rather than the 'gutter' usage of only the familiar tense of "you". Gentles
who can speak true "forsooth" are much admired, but rare."
Talking Forsoothly (If you must)
http://flurf.net/flog/archives/000349.xb
(Site Excerpt) If thou followest this rule, which hath the advantage of
being laid out simply for thee here, thou needest no other silliness, and
thou canst speak more "forsoothly" than thou thoughtst was in thy power.
There is more to it than this, and I could go on for hours, but this is the
bulk of what I think people mean when they talk about this, and if thou only
do this much thou art probably most of the way there. Me, I avoid this sort
of silliness like the plague, but if you must do it, I hope you can at least
do it right.
Life in Elizabethan England: Language: Idiomatic Idiosyncrasies
http://renaissance.dm.net/compendium/8.html
(Site Excerpt) When we refer to 'corn', we are referring, mainly, to barley.
If not barley, then it is whatever the major grain crop in the region is
(rye is common). It is never corn-on-the-cob or maize. Englishmen speak of
living in a particular street instead of on it. Shakespeare lived for a time
in a house in Silver Street, or one knows a tailor with a shop in the High
Street.
Forsoothly Speaking--Cecily of Wivanhoe
http://merryrose.atlantia.sca.org/archive/1997-12dec/msg00216.html
(Site Excerpt) "Wanna go for a walk?" can become "Mi'lady, wouldst thou (or even just 'would you') do me the honor of accompanying me to the feast hall?" or "How's your mom?" can become "How fares your lady mother?"
Learn Ye to Speak and Write in All Proper "Forsoothliness"
by Ognyen
http://www.geocities.com/ognyen/learnye.html
(Site Excerpt) O.K. we shall cover possessive pronouns: my, mine, thy, thine
and throw in a and an since they follow the same rules. [highly condensed
and re-worded] My, thy and a precede words which begin with consonants
(except H). Mine, thine and an precede words beginning with vowels and H.
There are many examples which I'll not mention here. Exceptions can be found
to this rule. Quick examples: That horse is an ugly nag; the ugly nag is
thine. Thy locks are like hanging sphagnum moss; wash thou thine hair.
Speaking Forsoothly for Newcomers
By Justinian Clarus of Ealdormere
http://forsooth.ca/
(Site Excerpt) There are two primary influences which influence our
perceptions of what we expect Speaking Forsoothly to sound like.First
consider this wee bit of poetry:
Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than
wine.
Because of the savour of thy good ointments thy name is as ointment poured
forth, therefore do the virgins love thee.
Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers:
we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than
wine: the upright love thee.
West Kingdom College of Heralds on SCA.org: A List of Alternative Wordings
http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/wording.html
(Site Excerpt) These words are listed in random order -- partially because
we wrote them down as we thought of them, and partially because we don't
want you to use this section as a "dictionary". Instead read through it
without trying to memorize it, and use it to inspire and guide you. We know
the list isn't complete -- please send in your ideas for inclusion in later
editions. Feel free to send both "problem" words and other alternates for
the words given here.
The Dictionary of SCA Slang
by Ioseph of Loxley
http://www-cs.canisius.edu/~salley/Articles/slang.html
(Site Excerpt) This is by no means a complete list of slang terms used in
the SCA, nor do I pretend that all of these terms are used everywhere in the
Known Worlde, but these are the ones I have found so far.
Forum on Forsooth Speaking
--HL Goldith D'Arcy
http://www.shittimwoode.org/library/forsooth-speaking.html
(Site Excerpt) I have to admit I have never - not once - run into anyone who
attended an event entirely in persona. I also have to admit this is
something I was hoping for when I joined the SCA. It's hard to do alone, but
in a group it's contagious, and it can indeed transform a campground into a
medieval village where modern thoughts simply do not intrude. Before joining
the SCA, I volunteered several years at a Renaissance fair near Carnation,
Wash., where participants were required to have a persona and attempt
"forsooth" speech. It was a riot. It was relaxing and invigorating. After a
half hour of feeling silly about "thou" and "thee," it was also a lot of
fun. Because everyone was on equal footing and struggling together, we
stopping worrying about how we sounded.
The English Language-Anglos Saxon Glossary
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Column/1122/OEGLOSS.htm
(Site Excerpt)
abandon
anforlætan; forlætan; ofgiefan
abbess
abbudisse, f.
abbot
abbod, m.
abduct
forwgan
abide
anbidian
Circolwyrde Wordhord (English to AngloSaxon Thesaurus for Computer users)
http://www.u.arizona.edu/~ctb/wordhord.html
(Site Excerpt)
- beep
- swegdropa (m)
- bells and whistles
- belle and hwistle (fpl)
- beta release
- unfulfremedbrytnung (f)
- binary
- twirimlic (adj)
- bit
- lytelbita (m)
- bookmark
- æstel (m)
Omniglot: Old English/Anglo Saxon
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/oldenglish.htm
(Site Excerpt) Old English was the Germanic language spoken in the area now
known as England between the 5th and 11th centuries. Old English began to
appear in writing during the early 8th century. Most texts were written in
West Saxon, one of the four main dialects. The other dialects were Mercian,
Northumbrian and Kentish.
Hwæt! Old English in Context
(sample text with sound files)
http://www.georgetown.edu/faculty/ballc/hwaet/hwaet06.html
(Site Excerpt) Hwæt! This is the first word of Beowulf, where translators
render it variously as Lo, Listen, Hear me, and Yes. There is in fact no
translation equivalent in Modern English, and using a dictionary isn't much
help. To understand this word, you must see how it is used in a number of
contexts: i.e., in Old English texts. It is the premise of the present book
that all words in another language ought to be learned in context, and that
they can be learned in this way. Hwæt! (the electronic book) is designed for
those who would like to learn some basic Old English without having to hold
a grammar book in one hand and a dictionary in the other.
Old English Aloud: Readings of Old English Poetry
http://www.kami.demon.co.uk/gesithas/readings/readings.html
(Site Excerpt) Old English poetry was meant to be declaimed aloud before an
audience, the poet, or Scop, being both a creative and a performing artist.
Accompanied by harp he would entertain the guests of his patron with tales
of past deeds, battles of old and the prowess of his lord's ancestors. In
this manner was history kept alive for the Anglo-Saxons.
