Anglo-Saxons
Pre-Norman Britons
Anglo-Saxons were the Germanic peoples who settled in Britain from the fifth century onward, forming the dominant culture until the Norman Conquest of 1066.
The term now describes anything relating to that period or people: Anglo-Saxon literature, Anglo-Saxon England.
In modern usage, Anglo-Saxon often means English-speaking people of British descent, or serves as a euphemism for plain, blunt language—especially profanity: good old Anglo-Saxon words.
Seven-kingdom era in England
- WessexEarly medieval English kingdom
- MerciaMedieval English kingdom
- NorthumbriaEarly medieval English kingdom
- KentEnglish county near Dover
East Anglia · Alfred the Great · Edgar · Christianization · Vikings · Norman Conquest · Bretwalda · witenagemot
Old English epic's protagonist
- runesOld Germanic script
- GermanicOf Teutonic language stock
- etymologyWord origin study
- lexiconVocabulary of a language
syntax · phonology · morphology · vocabulary · dialects · loanwords · kennings · alliteration
Old English epic's protagonist
- Lindisfarne GospelsDecorated early medieval evangeliary
- illuminationProvision of light
- scriptoriumMonastery manuscript workshop
- vellumPrepared calfskin for writing
Small rural community
- homesteadFamily farm and dwelling
- mead-hallNorse drinking hall
- thatchDried plant roof covering
- wattle-and-daubWoven sticks covered in clay
croft · hearth · farming · arable · livestock · ploughing · open-field · hundred
Non-monotheistic religious practice
- WodenAnglo-Saxon supreme god
- bardPoet of epics
- riddlesPuzzling questions or teasers
- feastingEating sumptuously together
mead · kinship · thane · retainers · comitatus · gift-giving · boasting · elegies
Interlocked defensive formation
Items interred with corpses
- broochesOrnamental clasped jewelry
- bucklesStrap-fastening devices
- helmetProtective head covering
- ship burialInterment within a vessel
barrows · hoards · Staffordshire Hoard · pottery · metalwork · excavation · artifacts
Heptarchy
Seven-kingdom era in England
- WessexEarly medieval English kingdom
- MerciaMedieval English kingdom
- NorthumbriaEarly medieval English kingdom
Kent · East Anglia · Alfred the Great · Edgar · Christianization · Vikings · Norman Conquest · Bretwalda · witenagemot · charters
Beowulf
Old English epic's protagonist
lexicon · syntax · phonology · morphology · vocabulary · dialects · loanwords · kennings · alliteration · riddles
Beowulf
Old English epic's protagonist
- Lindisfarne GospelsDecorated early medieval evangeliary
- illuminationProvision of light
- scriptoriumMonastery manuscript workshop
vellum · uncial · insular script · homilies · hagiography
village
Small rural community
wattle-and-daub · croft · hearth · farming · arable · livestock · ploughing · open-field · hundred · shire
paganism
Non-monotheistic religious practice
feasting · mead · kinship · thane · retainers · comitatus · gift-giving · boasting · elegies
shieldwall
Interlocked defensive formation
grave goods
Items interred with corpses
ship burial · barrows · hoards · Staffordshire Hoard · pottery · metalwork · excavation · artifacts
- British historyWilliam the Conqueror, Victorian era, Elizabethan era, Tudor era, Oliver Cromwell
- peoplesAmericans, British, Chinese, French, Germans
- Medieval Englandking, kings, castle, castles, knight
- Viking AgeVikings, longships, raiders, Odin, Norse settlers
- 600sMuhammad, Islam, Mecca, Medina, Tang Dynasty
- Germanic peoplesGermans, Austrians, Goth, Visigoth, Ostrogoth
Anglo-SaxonsNormans
Viking-descended medieval conquerors
William the Conqueror · Norman French · Vikings · Danes · Norsemen