Saturday Rave: The Owl and The Nightingale. Anon.

It's Spring here in England, and the birds are singing.

Well, the ducks aren't singing - nor the crows - nor the owls. But you know what I mean.

Here's a very old poem on that very theme, The Owl and the Nightingale. It might have been written as early as 1189, but even so the language it uses can just about be recognised as English.

The whole thing is very long, and it's basically an argument between the eponymous owl and nightingale, who disagree about...well, everything, pretty much. There are a lot of insults (I'd rather spit than sing about your wretched howling) but in the end...well, I'm afraid there isn't an end. We leave them setting off to take their dispute to a court of law.

Here's the very beginning, with a modern English version after it.

Ich was in one sumere dale,

in one suþe diȝele hale,

iherde ich holde grete tale

an hule and one niȝtingale.

Þat plait was stif & starc & strong,

sum wile softe & lud among;

an aiþer aȝen oþer sval,

& let þat [vue]le mod ut al 

& eiþer seide of oþeres custe

þat alre-worste þat hi wuste:

& hure & hure of oþere[s] songe

hi holde plaiding suþe stronge.

***

I was in a springtime valley

in a very sheltered glade.

I heard a great argument between

an owl and a nightingale.

The debate was stiff and fierce and strong

sometimes soft and sometimes loud

and each of them raged

and burst to curse the other

saying the very worst she could

about the other's character

and especially they quarrelled fiercely

about each other's song.

****

Well, at least they were both did their singing at night.

Imagine how annoying they both were to everyone who 
was trying to get some sleep!

Word To Use Today: owl. The Old English form 

of this word was ūle.