Old English Syntax

                                                                                                2.2.2. The Complex Sentence

In treating complex sentences, we shall give our main attention to separate types of subordinate clauses, and then briefly indicate possibilities of several subordinate clauses of different types and degrees occurring within the same complex sentence. 

As to the separate types of subordinate clauses, we will classify them as parallel to parts of a simple sentence.

Subject Clauses

These are not often found in OE texts. We can quote an example from King Alfred's preface to his translation of Pope Gregory I's Pastoral Care: me com swiðe oft on ʒemynd, hwylce wiotan iu wæron ʒiond Anʒelcynn 'it often came to my mind what scholars there formerly were in England’. Another example is from the same text: uncuð, hu lonʒe ðær swæʒelærede biscepas sien '(it is) unknown, how long there will be such learned bishops'. 

Predicative clauses do not seem to occur in OE texts.

 Object Clauses 

These are mainly found in indirect speech, that is, in connection with verbs meaning 'say', 'announce', 'ask', 'think', and the like. They may be introduced by the conjunction pæt or ʒif, by an interrogative pronoun or adverb, or, occasionally, be joined on asyndetically. Here are some examples of each variety: Ohthere sæde his hlaforde, AElfrede cyninʒe, pæt he ealra Norpmonna norpmest bude. He sæde pæt he bude, on pæm lande norpweardum wip pa Westsæ 'Ohthere told his lord, king Alfred, that he lived northernmost of all Northmen. He said that he lived in the land northward along the Atlantic Ocean'; axode ʒif him wære niht ʒetæse 'asked if the night had been quiet for him (i.e. if he had spent a quiet night)'; men ne cunnon secʒan to soðe, sele-rædende, hæleð under heofonum; hwa pæm hlæste onfenʒ men cannot say for sooth, counsellors in hall, heroes under heaven, who received the load'. 

Attributive Clauses

These are introduced either by the relative pronoun pe or by the pronoun se, which from a demonstrative acquired a relative meaning, or by the compound pronoun sepe. Here are examples of each variety: swiðe feawa wæron behionan Humbre, ðe hiora ðeninʒa cuðen understondan on enʒlisc 'very few were on this side of the Humber who could understand their service in English'; ða wæs on pa tid AEðelbyrht cyninʒ haten on Centrice and mihtiʒ, se hæfde rice oð ʒemæro Humbro streames 'there was at this time a king called Athelbyrht in Kent and a mighty one, who had his kingdom as far as the river Humber'; he ʒewunade ʒerisen-lice leoð wyrcan pa de to æfestnisse ond to arfæstnisse belumpon 'he was wont to compose proper songs which belonged to religion and to piety'. 

Adverbial Clauses

These cover a wide variety of meanings, such as place, time, cause, purpose, concession, comparison, etc. Accordingly the number of conjunctions introducing such clauses is considerable. Here we find pær 'where', pa 'when', ponne 'when', oppæt 'until', for 'because', peahpe 'though', and others.

Clauses of Place

Such clauses are rather rare. They are usually introduced by the adverb pær, e.g. Hwearf pa hrædlice, pær Hropʒar sæt 'he turned quickly to where Hrothgar sat’.

Temporal Clauses

These  are  introduced by various conjunctions: pa, ponne, panne 'when', sippan 'since', ær, ærpæmpe 'before', penden 'while', oppæt 'until'.

E. g.: pa he pa pas andsware onfenʒ, pa, onʒan he sona sinʒan 'when he had received this answer, he soon began to sing'; ponne he ʒeseah pa hearpan him nealæcan, ponne asras he for sceome fram pæm symble 'when he saw the harp approach him, he rose for shame from the feast'; heold, penden lifde, ʒatnol ond ʒup-reow, ʒ læde Scyldinʒas 'ruled, while he lived, old and battle-famous, the Scildings so that they were glad'; næfre him deap scepep on pam willwonʒe penden woruld stondep 'never will death harm in the wonder garden while the world stands'; pær se eadʒa mot .. . wunian in wonʒe, oppæt wintra bip pusend urnen 'there the blessed one can ... live in the garden, until a thousand years have elapsed'; ʒewat pa neosian sippan niht becom, hean huses 'started then, when night fell, to approach the high house'.

Clauses of Cause

Clauses of cause are introduced by the conjunctions forpæm (pe), for, e. g. pa cirdon hieup-ip on pa ea, for-pæm hie ne dorston forp bi pære ea siʒlan for unfripe; for-pæm pæt land wæs eall ʒebun on opre healfe pære eas 'then they turned into the river, because they did not dare to sail on past the river, for unrest, as the land was all inhabited on the other side of the river'; wæs. seo hwil micel, twelf wintra fid torn ʒepolode wine Scyldinʒa, weanna ʒehwylcne, sidra sorʒa, forðam syððan wearð ylda bearnum undyrne cuð, ʒyddum ʒeomore, pætte ʒrendel wan hwlle wip Hropʒar 'the time was long, twelve years did the Scildings' friend suffer rage, every woe, great sorrows, because later it became known to children of men, sadly in songs, that Grendel had long made war on Hrothgar'. 

Clauses of Purpose

These are introduced by the conjunction pæt and contain a verb in the subjunctive mood. E. g. swa sceal ʒeonʒ ʒuma gode ʒewyrcean, fromum feoh-ʒiftum on fæder ærne, pæt hine on ylde eft ʒewunien wil-ʒesiðas, ponne wiʒ cume, leode ʒelæstetn, 'thus shall a young warrior well achieve, by generous gifts in his father's house, that willing companions should be with him in his old age, when a war comes, people should follow him'.

If the clause of purpose expresses an action to be avoided it is introduced by the conjunctional locution py læs (pe), e. g. forpon ic leof werud læran wille æ-fremmende, pæt ʒe eower hus ʒefæstiʒen py læs hit ferblædum windas toweorpan 'therefore I want to teach my dear people, law-abiding, that you should fortify your house, lest winds should destroy it by sudden gusts'.

Clauses of Result

These clauses are introduced by the conjunction pæt, which may be preceded by the adverb swa 'so' in the main clause.

E.g.: swa clæne hlo wæs opfeallenu on Anʒelcynne, ðæt swipe 
feawa wæron behionan Humbre, ðe hiora ðeninʒa cuðen understondan 
on enʒlisc. oppe furdum an ærendʒewrit of lædene on enʒlisc 
awendan 'so cleanly was it (learning) decayed in England, that very 
few were on this side of the Humber — those who could understand 
their service in English or even translate one message from Latin 
Into English'; eode ellen-rof, pæt he for eaxlum ʒestod Deniʒa freʒan 
'stepped the glorious one, so that he stood near the Danes' lord'. 
This latter clause can also be interpreted as a temporal clause: 
'. . . until he stood'.  

Conditional Clauses

These are introduced by a conjunction ʒif ‘if’ or sometimes næfne ‘unless’: he me habban wille dreore fahne, ʒif mec deað nime 'he will have me bloody if death takes me'; nis pæt seld-ʒuma wæpnum ʒ eweorðad, næfne his wille leoʒe, ænlie ansyn 'this is not a lower man, worthy of weapons, unless his face lies; his unique countenance'.

Clauses of Concession

These  are  introduced  by the conjunction peah (pe), e. g. pone sið fæt him snotere ceorlas lyt-hwon loʒon, peah he him leof wære  'this voyage  clever  men somewhat blamed on him, though he was liked by them'.

Clauses of    Manner and Comparison

These are introduced by the conjunctions swa and ponne: wearde heoldon in pam fæstenne, swa pam folce ær ʒeomormodum ludip behead 'they kept watch in the fortress, as Judith had ordered the people, before sad'; nalæs hi hine Iæssan lacum teodan, peodʒestreonum, ponne pa dydon, pe hine set frumsceafte forð onsendon ænne ofer yðe umbor-wesende 'they did not adorn him with lesser treasures, with folk-gifts, than those did who_at his birth sent him forth alone over the sea, being a baby'; næfre ic maran ʒeseah eorla ofer eorðan, ponne is eower sum cecʒ on searwum 'never did I see a greater of earls on the earth, than is one of you, warrior in arms'.

We also find in OE texts some clauses of a generalizing character, introduced by generalizing pronouns or adverbs. Thus, the object clause in the following example has a generalizing character: …swa pætte, swa hwæt swa he of ʒodeundum stafum purh boceras ʒeleornode, pæt he æfter medmiclum fæce ... in enʒliscʒereord wel ʒeworht forp brohte ' ... so that he, whatever he had learnt from divine books through books, in a_ short time ... in English well told pronounced'; hy ʒedop pæt æʒper bip oferfroren, sam hit sy sumor sam winter 'they do it (so) that both are frozen, whether it be summer or winter'.

 
 Parenthetical Clauses

These are sometimes found in OE texts, e. g. pa wæs him eallum ʒeseʒen, swa-swa hit wæs, pæt him were from drihtne sylfum heofonlic ʒiofu forʒifen 'then it became clear to all of them, as it was, that a heavenly gift had been granted him from God himself. 

 Combined Clauses 

Of course different types of clauses can combine with one 
another in various ways, and the number of such variations is prob- 
ably unlimited. Here we give a few examples illustrating these possi -  
bilities: forðy me ðyncð betre, ʒif iow swæ ðyncð, ðæt we eac sumæ bec, ða ðe niedbeðearfosta sien eallum monnum to wiotonne, ðæt we ða on ðæt ʒeðeode wenden, ðe we ealle ʒecnawan mæen (ond ʒedon swæ we swiðe eaðe maʒon mid ʒodes fultume, ʒif we ða stilnesse habbað), ðætte eal sio ʒioʒud, ðe nu is on Anʒelcynne, friora monna, ðdra ðe ða speda hæbben, ðæt hie ðæm befeolan mæʒen, sien to liornunʒe oðfæste, ða hwile ðe hie to nanre oðerre note ne mæsʒen, oð ðone first, ðe hie wel cunnen enʒlisc ʒewrit arædan 'therefore it seems better to me (if it seems so to you) that we should also translate some books, which it is most necessary for all men to know, that we should translate them into the language that we all can know (and do so we very easily can with God's help, if we have peace), that all the youth that is now in England, of free men, who have property, that they may apply to it, that they may be firm in learning, while they are not eligible to any other useful work, until the time when they can easily read an English writing'.

                                                          2.2.3. Mixed Sentences

A sentence may contain both co-ordination and subordination, and this again in different combinations.

We will only consider here one example of a sentence of this mixed type: ond ic bebiode on ʒodes naman, ðæt nan mon ðone æstel from ðære bec ne do ne ða hoc from ðæm mynstre: uncuð, hu lonʒe ðær ðwæ ʒelærede biscepas sien, swaæ nu (ʒode ðonc!) wel hwær siendon, forðy ic wolde, ðætte hie ealneʒ æt ðære stowe wære, biiton se biscep hie mid him habban wille oððe hio hwær to læne sle oððe hwa oðre bl write 'and I order in God's name that nobody should take the bookmark away from the book nor the book from the monastery: it is unknown, how long there will be such learned bishops as now (thank God!) there are everywhere because I want them (the books) to be always on the spot, unless the bishop wants it to be with him or it may be somewhere lent, or somebody may make a copy of it'. 

In the sphere of syntax there is a great difference between various documents of the OE period. Thus, while the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle has hardly any complex sentences, limiting itself to simple and compound ones, in other texts, such as, for example, king Alfred's preface to his translation of Cura Pastoralis, we find an elaborate system of complex sentences, with different types of subordinate

clauses and many subordinating conjunctions to introduce them. Thus, it would be completely mistaken to argue due to the almost complete absence of subordinate clauses in the Chronicle, that there were no complex sentences in OE. This absence is due not to the non-existence of subordination in OE but to a certain stylistic tradition preserved by the chroniclers. From this point of view it is most instructive to compare passages from the Chronicle with those from king Alfred's preface. In the Chronicle we read: Anno 851. Her Ceorl aldormon ʒefeaht wip hæfiene men mid Defenascire æt Wicʒanbeorʒe

ond pær micel wæl ʒesloʒon ond siʒe namon. On py ilcan ʒeare AEpelstan cyninʒ ond Ealchere dux micelne here ofsloʒon æt Sondwic on Kent, ond IX scipu ʒefenʒun ond pa opre ʒefliemdon, ond hæpne men ærest ofer winter sæton 'In this year Ceorl the alderman fought with the heathen men in Devonshire at Wembury, and they killed many enemies and obtained victory. And in the same year King Ethelstan and alderman Ealchere killed many enemies at Sandwich in Kent, and captured nine ships, and put the other ones to flight, and heathen men for the first time spent the winter there'. At about the same time king Alfred wrote in his Preface to his translation of Gregory I's Pastoral Care: AElfred cyninʒ hateð ʒretan Wærferð biscep his wordum luflice ond freondlice ond ðe cyðan hate, ðæt me com swiðe oft on ʒemynd, hwylce wiotan iu wæron ʒiond Anʒelcynn æʒðer ʒe ʒodcundra hada ʒe woruldcundra, and hu ʒesæliʒlica tida ða wæron ʒiond Anʒelcynn, ond hu ða cyninʒas, ðe ðone onwald hæfdon ðæs folces, ʒode ond his ærendwrecum hiersumedon, and hie æʒðer ʒe hiora sibbe ʒe hiora siodo ʒe hiora onweald innanbordes ʒehioldon and eac ut hiora eðel rymdon, ond hu him ða speow æʒðer ʒe mid wiʒe ʒe mid wisdome; ond eac ða ʒodcundan hadas, hu ʒiorne hie wæron æʒðer ʒe ymb lare ʒe ymb liornunʒa ʒe ymb ealle ða ðiowotdomas, ðe hie ʒode scoldon, ond hu man utanbordes wisdom ond lare hieder on load sohte, ond hu we hie nu scoldon ute beʒietan, ʒif we hie habban sceoldon 'Alfred king sends his greetings to Warferth the bishop with his words in a friendly and loving way and I tell you that it very often came on my mind what scholars there were formerly in England, both of the religious and the lay orders, and what blessed times were then in England, and how the kings, who had power over the people, served God and his apostles, and they kept both their peace and their morals and their power inside the country, and enlarged their possessions, and how they succeeded then both in war and in culture, and also the religious orders, how eager they were both about teaching and about learning and about all the duties which they owed to God, and how people from abroad sought culture and learning here in this country, and how we now have to get them from outside if we are to have them'. This sentence contains a number of subordinate clauses of different degrees both subject, object, attributive and conditional ones.