Middle Welsh language
Encyclopedia
Middle Welsh is the label attached to the Welsh language
of the 12th to 14th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This form of Welsh developed from Old Welsh
.
Middle Welsh is the language of nearly all surviving early manuscripts of the Mabinogion
, although the tales themselves are certainly much older. It is also the language of most of the manuscripts of Welsh law
. Middle Welsh is reasonably intelligible, albeit with some work, to a modern-day Welsh speaker.
The phonology
of Middle Welsh is quite similar to that of modern Welsh, with only a few differences (Evans 1964). The letter u, which today represents /ɨ/ in North Welsh dialects and /i/ in South Welsh dialects, represented the close central rounded vowel /ʉ/ in Middle Welsh. The diphthong aw is found in unstressed final syllables in Middle Welsh, while in Modern Welsh it has become o (e.g. Middle Welsh = Modern Welsh "horseman"). Similarly, the Middle Welsh diphthongs ei and eu have become ai and au in final syllables, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "seven", Middle Welsh = modern "sun".
The orthography
of Middle Welsh was not standardized, and there is great variation between manuscripts in how certain sounds are spelled. Some generalizations of differences between Middle Welsh spelling and Modern Welsh spelling can be made (Evans 1964). For example, the possessive pronouns "his, her", "their" and the preposition "to" are very commonly spelled in Middle Welsh, and are thus spelled the same as the definite article
and the indirect relative particle
. A phrase such as is therefore ambiguous in Middle Welsh between the meaning "the cat" (spelled the same in Modern Welsh), the meaning "his cat" (modern ), and the meaning "to a cat" (modern ). The voiced
stops /d ɡ/ are represented by the letters t c at the end of a word, e.g. "protection" (modern ), "running" (modern ). The sound /k/ is very often spelled k before the vowels e i y (in Modern Welsh, it is always spelled c, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "third cousin"). The sound /v/ is usually spelled u or v, except at the end of a word, where it is spelled f (in Modern Welsh, it is always spelled f, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "apple tree"). The sound /ð/ is usually spelled d (in Modern Welsh, it is spelled dd, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "day"). The sound /r̥/ is spelled r and is thus not distinguished from /r/ (in Modern Welsh, they are distinguished as rh and r respectively, e.g. Middle Welsh "running" vs. modern ).
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
of the 12th to 14th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This form of Welsh developed from Old Welsh
Old Welsh language
Old Welsh is the label attached to the Welsh language from about 800 AD until the early 12th century when it developed into Middle Welsh. The preceding period, from the time Welsh became distinct from the British language around 550, has been called "Primitive Welsh".Many poems and some prose...
.
Middle Welsh is the language of nearly all surviving early manuscripts of the Mabinogion
Mabinogion
The Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...
, although the tales themselves are certainly much older. It is also the language of most of the manuscripts of Welsh law
Welsh law
Welsh law was the system of law practised in Wales before the 16th century. According to tradition it was first codified by Hywel Dda during the period between 942 and 950 when he was king of most of Wales; as such it is usually called Cyfraith Hywel, the Law of Hywel, in Welsh...
. Middle Welsh is reasonably intelligible, albeit with some work, to a modern-day Welsh speaker.
The phonology
Phonology
Phonology is, broadly speaking, the subdiscipline of linguistics concerned with the sounds of language. That is, it is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning in any spoken human language, or the field of linguistics studying this use...
of Middle Welsh is quite similar to that of modern Welsh, with only a few differences (Evans 1964). The letter u, which today represents /ɨ/ in North Welsh dialects and /i/ in South Welsh dialects, represented the close central rounded vowel /ʉ/ in Middle Welsh. The diphthong aw is found in unstressed final syllables in Middle Welsh, while in Modern Welsh it has become o (e.g. Middle Welsh = Modern Welsh "horseman"). Similarly, the Middle Welsh diphthongs ei and eu have become ai and au in final syllables, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "seven", Middle Welsh = modern "sun".
The orthography
Orthography
The orthography of a language specifies a standardized way of using a specific writing system to write the language. Where more than one writing system is used for a language, for example Kurdish, Uyghur, Serbian or Inuktitut, there can be more than one orthography...
of Middle Welsh was not standardized, and there is great variation between manuscripts in how certain sounds are spelled. Some generalizations of differences between Middle Welsh spelling and Modern Welsh spelling can be made (Evans 1964). For example, the possessive pronouns "his, her", "their" and the preposition "to" are very commonly spelled in Middle Welsh, and are thus spelled the same as the definite article
Definite Article
Definite Article is the title of British comedian Eddie Izzard's 1996 performance released on VHS. It was recorded on different nights at the Shaftesbury Theatre...
and the indirect relative particle
Relative clause
A relative clause is a subordinate clause that modifies a noun phrase, most commonly a noun. For example, the phrase "the man who wasn't there" contains the noun man, which is modified by the relative clause who wasn't there...
. A phrase such as is therefore ambiguous in Middle Welsh between the meaning "the cat" (spelled the same in Modern Welsh), the meaning "his cat" (modern ), and the meaning "to a cat" (modern ). The voiced
Voice (phonetics)
Voice or voicing is a term used in phonetics and phonology to characterize speech sounds, with sounds described as either voiceless or voiced. The term, however, is used to refer to two separate concepts. Voicing can refer to the articulatory process in which the vocal cords vibrate...
stops /d ɡ/ are represented by the letters t c at the end of a word, e.g. "protection" (modern ), "running" (modern ). The sound /k/ is very often spelled k before the vowels e i y (in Modern Welsh, it is always spelled c, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "third cousin"). The sound /v/ is usually spelled u or v, except at the end of a word, where it is spelled f (in Modern Welsh, it is always spelled f, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "apple tree"). The sound /ð/ is usually spelled d (in Modern Welsh, it is spelled dd, e.g. Middle Welsh = modern "day"). The sound /r̥/ is spelled r and is thus not distinguished from /r/ (in Modern Welsh, they are distinguished as rh and r respectively, e.g. Middle Welsh "running" vs. modern ).
Grammar
| Present Indicative Active | |
|---|---|
| caru, "to love" | |
| I | |
| You (s) | |
| He, she, it | |
| We | |
| You (p) | |
| They |
| Present Indicative Active | |
|---|---|
| bot, "to be" | |
| I | |
| You (s) | |
| He, she, it | |
| We | |
| You (p) | |
| They |
See also
- Geiriadur Prifysgol CymruGeiriadur Prifysgol CymruGeiriadur Prifysgol Cymru is the principal historical dictionary of the Welsh language, enjoying a similar status to that of the Oxford English Dictionary in the English language....
, the standard historical Welsh dictionary - Medieval Welsh literatureMedieval Welsh literatureMedieval Welsh literature is the literature written in the Welsh language during the Middle Ages. This includes material from the fifth century, when Welsh was in the process of becoming distinct from the British language, to the works of the 16th century....
, Book of LlandaffBook of LlandaffThe Book of Llandaff is a 12th century compilation of documents relating to the history of the diocese of Llandaff in Wales...
, MabinogionMabinogionThe Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...
, Welsh lawWelsh lawWelsh law was the system of law practised in Wales before the 16th century. According to tradition it was first codified by Hywel Dda during the period between 942 and 950 when he was king of most of Wales; as such it is usually called Cyfraith Hywel, the Law of Hywel, in Welsh... - Welsh alphabetWelsh alphabetWelsh orthography uses 28 letters of the Latin script to write native Welsh words as well as older loanwords.The acute accent, the grave accent, the circumflex and the diaeresis mark are also used on vowels, but accented letters are not regarded as part of the alphabet.The letter j is accepted in...
External links
- Reading Middle Welsh by Gareth Morgan
- Old and Middle Welsh by David Willis, University of Cambridge