Who is Beowulf?

Beowulf is a fictional character. In the Beowulf poem, he is a young warrior from the Geats who travels to Denmark to defeat the monster Grendel, purely for glory and the chance to help another king. He later becomes king of the Geats himself and rules for fifty years before (spoiler) dying in battle against a dragon. He is often considered the first hero in English literature, though he isn't English at all.

When was Beowulf written?

Scholars believe the poem was written somewhere between the 8th and 11th centuries AD, though nobody knows exactly when. The only surviving manuscript is kept in the British Library in London.

How was the story told?

During medieval times, stories were told by a poet and storyteller called a scop (pronounced "shop"). Scops performed poems like Beowulf aloud in mead-halls, often accompanied by a harp, and were responsible for keeping stories, histories, and genealogies alive in a largely oral culture. Beowulf itself was likely passed down by scops for generations before it was ever written down.

What is a kenning?

A kenning is a compact, poetic way of describing something without naming it directly, usually by joining two words together. Instead of "the sea," an Anglo-Saxon poet might say "the whale-road," because whales travel through it. Beowulf is full of kennings, and they are one of the most distinctive features of Old English poetry.

What happened to the original manuscript?

The single surviving copy of Beowulf came dangerously close to being lost forever. In 1731, a fire tore through the library where the manuscript was being stored, and although it survived, the edges of the pages were badly burned, and some text has been lost or is still disputed today. It is now kept safely in the British Library.

Is Beowulf based on a true story?

Probably not, at least not directly, though it isn't pure invention either. Grendel, his mother, and the dragon are fantasy, but some of the kings and tribes mentioned in the poem, including certain Geatish and Swedish rulers, were real historical figures and events from the 6th century. Beowulf himself has no confirmed historical counterpart.

Why is Beowulf still taught today?

Beowulf is one of the foundation stones of English literature, and its themes, heroism, mortality, loyalty, and the desire to be remembered, are still relatable more than a thousand years later. It also offers a rare, vivid window into Anglo-Saxon culture and values, written in the very language that would eventually grow into the English we speak today.