Germanic Programme
Slot 2: Old Frisian; Slot 3: Historical Grammar of the Germanic Languages; Slot 4: Old High German. Slot 1 can be used for preparing homework or for following the course on Old Irish (Indo-European programme).
- Slot 2: Old Frisian
- Rolf Bremmer (Leiden)
Course description
The course offers an introduction to the Old Frisian language and culture. We focus on reading and appreciating Old Frisian literature, especially the law texts which can be very vivid. Old Frisian grammar and structure will be discussed, including such problems as dialectology, periodization and the Anglo-Frisian complex. We also pay attention to how Old Frisian literature functioned within the feuding society that Frisia was until the close of the Middle Ages.
The daily homework consists of portions of text to be translated, grammatical and other assignments on the text and reading a number of background articles.
Course materials
Rolf H. Bremmer Jr, An Introduction to Old Frisian. History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary (Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 2009).
Each student should bring a copy of the handbook (EUR 36,- at Benjamins).
- Slot 3: Historical Grammar of the Germanic Languages
- Guus Kroonen
Course description
Proto-Germanic is the predecessor of the Germanic languages. It was spoken in the area that nowadays encompasses Northern Germany and Southern Scandinavia in the first millennium BC. As a result of several waves of migration, Proto-Germanic started to spread to the South, and became fragmented into several medieval sub-dialects. These dialects formed the foundation for the modern Germanic languages, such as Scandinavian, German, English, Frisian and Dutch.
Proto-Germanic has left no written sources; linguists have had to reconstruct the language by comparison of the oldest Germanic dialects, such as Gothic, Old Norse, Old English, Old Frisian, Old Saxon and Old High German. During the course, the student will receive an introduction to Germanic comparative linguistics. The main objective consists of learning how to reconstruct Proto-Germanic on the basis of its daughter-languages.
Requirements
The course is aimed at students of Germanic languages who take an interest in the oldest historical period. It is also recommended to students of comparative Indo-European linguistics who wish to enhance their skills in Germanic reconstruction.
Application is open to students who have obtained ECTS with the study of at least one old Germanic language, e.g. Gothic, Old Norse or Old High German. Students who fail to meet this requirement, and still wish to enroll, are obliged to attend the Old High German and the Old Frisian course offered at the Leiden Summer School.
Course materials
Reading material and exercises will be provided in class. Students who would like to prepare for the course in advance are requested to make use of the following handbooks: W. Streitberg’s Urgermanische Grammatik (1896), Oergermaans Handboek (1924) by R.C. Boer, A Comparative Germanic Grammar (1939) by E. Prokosch, Germanic and its dialects (1977) by T.L. Markey or A Grammar of Proto-Germanic (available online) by W.P. Lehmann.
- Slot 4: Old High German
- Arend Quak
Course description
Old High German is the term for the earliest phase of the German language, which approximately runs from 750 to 1050 AD. It is famous for literary monuments such as the Hildebrandslied, an epic work in alliterative verse, and Muspili, a Christianized version of the pagan Ragnarök. The course consists of an intensive introduction to the Old High German language and literature. The main objective is to acquire enough mastery of the language to be able to study Old High German texts independently.
Course materials
The course makes use of the following two books: Abriss der althochdeutschen Grammatik (1977) and Althochdeutsches Lesebuch (1969) by Braune & Ebbinghaus.
