Laura J. WilkinsonMar 7
Akshay

This short story, written in older and older English as it goes on, rightly went viral!

How far can you understand it?

https://www.deadlanguagesociety.com/p/how-far-back-in-time-understand-english#_

#English #Language #Bookstodon #Linguistics

How far back in time can you understand English?

An experiment in language change

Dead Language Society
Mar 6 at 5:13pmWeb
Show threadAkshayMar 6

And now, for extra comprehension challenge, there’s Beowulf rendered in Gen Z English

“There was Shield Sheafson, canceler of many tribes,
A high-key shredder of mead benches, flexing all over foes.
This dragger of the hall-troops had come far.
A smol bean to start with, he would glow up hard later on
As his powers got fire af and his rizz went viral.”

https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/gen-z-beowulf

#English #Language #Bookstodon #Linguistics

Gen Z Beowulf

Beowulf, a new prose translation into Gen Z. - - -Fam. The Spear-Danes in, like, pre-Boomer days And the kings who ruled them served courage and gr...

McSweeney's Internet Tendency
Show threadThird spruce tree on the leftMar 6

@Akshay

As someone who really only "got" #Shakespeare after watching #BazLuhrmann 's #Romeoandjuliet I endorse this. (really wish he'd do more).
Whether its keeping the language but juxtaposing it to modern setting or modernizing the lingo like this.
Like the "biting your thumb" - "Ohhhh, I get it. Bro is _calling him OUT_."

Show threadAlexanderVIMar 6

@tezoatlipoca @Akshay

Pro: they actually retained a few examples of front rhyme, showing that whoever wrote this knows the source material, er, fr.

Con: waaaaay too short.

Notable: translating "hwæt!" as "fam", um, took me out?

Show threadThird spruce tree on the leftMar 6
@AlexanderVI @Akshay indeed. I could stan this frood translating a few other choice wurx.
Show threadZenHeathen 🇨🇦Mar 6
@tezoatlipoca @AlexanderVI You're both dead to me now. /s
Show threadZenHeathen 🇨🇦Mar 6
@Akshay 🤮
Show threadEleanorMar 6
@Akshay Just got a 15-year-old to read this out loud and can confirm it absolutely slaps.
Show threadAkshayMar 6

@eleanorrees

Ha! Great idea!

Show threadMatthew DockreyMar 7
@Akshay Honestly, not a terrible translation!
Show threadJuliaRMar 6
@Akshay Fascinating!
Show threadJohnMasheyMar 7
@Akshay
An exercise akin to the 1946 classic
"Meihem in Ce Klasrum"
http://www.ecphorizer.com/EPS/site_page.php?issue=7&page=29
in which the language evolves as essay progresses.
I read this originally many decades ago in Some Astounding collection.
Show threadAkshayMar 7

@JohnMashey

Yes! Because older English was more phonetic and had more sensible (though not standardised) orthography!

Show threadPetra van CronenburgMar 7
@Akshay With English as a foreign language, I was astonished how far back I could come.
I could read even 1400/1300, but read it as a different language, with words coming from other languages ... that's fascinating.
Show threadDavid MonniauxMar 7
@Akshay I start not understanding some sentences at all at 1300..
Show threadAkshayMar 7

@MonniauxD

1300 is still slowly but fully translatable for me. (reading aloud, knowing some Dutch/German words)

At 1200, I too lose word sequences and sentences, but can guess the plot, and 1100 and 1000 I can't even guess without an Old English dictionary (with which you can recognise the Germanic root words!)

On the blog comments, it seems most native speakers sense the same cliff around 1250, as key French-derived words are replaced by archaic German ones with uncertain pronunciation

Show threadKiran RaoMar 8

@Akshay this is fascinating. My understanding dropped sharply from 1500s onwards.

Content like this is what the internet was made for!