731年，ビード (あるいはベーダ；Bede [673--735]) によりラテン語で著わされた『英国民教会史』 (Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum [= Ecclesiastical History of the English People]) は，古代イングランド史を記した貴重なテキストである．後にアルフレッド大王 (849--99) の指示のもとで古英語に翻訳されている．
597年，ローマの修道士で，後にカンタベリの初代大司教となる St. Augustine (?--604) が，イングランドに布教にやってきた．イングランド史上きわめて重大なこの年に起こった出来事について，Bede の古英語版より読んでみたい．以下，英語史の古典的名著 Baugh and Cable (pp. 58--60) に掲載されている古英語原文を再現する．
Ða wæs on þā tīd Æþelbeorht cyning hāten on Centrīce, and mihtig: hē hæfde rīce oð gemǣru Humbre strēames, sē tōscādeþ sūðfolc Angelþēode and norðfolc. Þonne is on ēasteweardre Cent micel ēaland, Tenet, þæt is siex hund hīda micel æfter Angelcynnes eahte. . . . On þyssum ēalande cōm ūp sē Godes þēow Augustinus and his gefēran; wæs hē fēowertiga sum. Nāmon hīe ēac swelce him wealhstodas of Franclande mid, swā him Sanctus Gregorius bebēad. And þā sende to Æþelbeorhte ǣrendwrecan and onbēad þæt hē of Rōme cōme and þæt betste ǣrende lǣdde; and sē þe him hīersum bēon wolde, būton twēon he gehēt ēcne gefēan on heofonum and tōweard rīce būton ende mid þone sōþan God and þone lifigendan. Ðā hē þā sē cyning þās word gehīerde, þa hēt hē hīe bīdan on þæm ēalande þe hīe ūp cōmon; and him þider hiera þearfe forgēaf, oð þæt hē gesāwe hwæt hē him dōn wolde. Swelce ēac ǣr þǣm becōm hlīsa tō him þǣre crīstenan ǣfæstnesse, forþon hē crīsten wīf hæfde, him gegiefen of Francena cyningcynne, Beorhte wæs hāten. Þæt wīf hē onfēng fram hiere ieldrum þǣre ārǣdnesse þæt hēo his lēafnesse hæfde þæt hēo þone þēaw þæs crīstenan gelēafan and hiere ǣfæstnesse ungewemmedne healdan mōste mid þȳ bischope, þone þe hīe hiere tō fultume þæs gelēafan sealdon, þæs nama wæs Lēodheard.
Ðā wæs æfter manigum dagum þæt sē cyning cōm tō þǣm ēalande, and hēt him ūte setl gewyrcean; and hēt Augustinum mid his gefērum þider tō his sprǣce cuman. Warnode hē him þȳ lǣs hīe on hwelc hūs tō him inēoden; brēac ealdre hēalsunga, gif hīe hwelcne drȳcræft hæfden þæt hīe hine oferswīðan and beswīcan sceolden. . . . Þā hēt sē cyning hīe sittan, and hīe swā dydon; and hīe sōna him līfes word ætgædere mid eallum his gefērum þe þǣr æt wǣron, bodedon and lǣrdon. Þā andswarode sē cyning and þus cwæð: "Fæger word þis sindon and gehāt þe gē brōhton and ūs secgað. Ac forðon hīe nīwe sindon and uncūðe, ne magon wē nū gēn þæt þafian þæt wē forlǣten þā wīsan þe wē langre tīde mid ealle Angelþēode hēoldon. Ac forðon þe gē hider feorran elþēodige cōmon and, þæs þe mē geþūht is and gesewen, þā þing, ðā ðe [gē] sōð and betst gelīefdon, þæt ēac swelce wilnodon ūs þā gemǣnsumian, nellað wē forðon ēow hefige bēon. Ac wē willað ēow ēac fremsumlīce on giestlīðnesse onfōn and ēow andleofne sellan and ēowre þearfe forgiefan. Ne wē ēow beweriað þæt gē ealle, ðā þe gē mægen, þurh ēowre lāre tō ēowres gelēafan ǣfæstnesse geðīeden and gecierren."
目下，Baugh and Cable の英語史書 A History of the English Language を1節ずつ丁寧に読んでいくオンライン読書会シリーズを Voicy heldio で展開中です（有料配信ですが第1チャプターは試聴可）．上に引用した古英語原文が含まれているのは第47節で，これを扱った回は「英語史の古典的名著 Baugh and Cable を読む (47) The Language Illustrated」です．ただし，そこでは上記の古英語原文は，かなり長いために解説するのを割愛していました．
これを補うべく，明後日3月25日（月）の午後1時30分より heldio の生放送による解説を配信します．小河舜さん（フェリス女学院大学ほか）および「まさにゃん」こと森田真登さん（武蔵野学院大学）とともに，「はじめての古英語」シリーズの一環としての特別企画です．上記の古英語原文は，その予習用として掲げた次第です．お楽しみに！
Bede の古英語訳の原文としては，ほかにも「#2900. 449年，アングロサクソン人によるブリテン島侵略」 ([2017-04-05-1]) を参照．
・ Baugh, Albert C. and Thomas Cable. A History of the English Language. 6th ed. London: Routledge, 2013.