The Scandinavian element beyond the Danelaw
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Date
2007
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Adam Mickiewicz University
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Abstract
The Scandinavian element is present in English mainly due to the Viking invasions and later
settlement of the Vikings in the British Isles. Hence, it has been usually assumed that the Scandinavian
loanwords entered the English language in the areas where the number of Scandinavian
settlers was the highest, i.e. the Danelaw, inhabited by the Danes and the northern counties (Cumberland,
Westmorland and Lancashire) settled by the Norwegians. The present paper will present
evidence that the Scandinavian loanwords not only were also common in the non-Scandinavian
parts of England but in some cases occurred exclusively in the west and south of the country.
Additionally, the evidence collected for the present study will be compared to the area of “the
Great Scandinavian Belt” proposed by Samuels (1985), in order to check whether the distribution
of the investigated items agrees with Samuels’ focal area.
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Studia Anglica Posnaniensia, vol. 43 (2007), pp. 167-180