Baugh and Cable による英語史の古典的名著を，Voicy heldio にて1節ずつ精読していくシリーズ（有料）が，ゆっくりと継続中です．目下，第4章の "Foreign Influences on Old English" （古英語への他言語からの影響）に入っています．第54節と第55節は，英語史では一般に地味な扱いを受けてきたケルト語からの影響が話題とされています．今回はアングロサクソン人とケルト人の接触がいかなるものだったかを解説している第54節 "The Celtic Influence" について，その英文を掲げます．テキストをお持ちでない方も，関心があれば，この英文を参照しつつ，ぜひ「英語史の古典的名著 Baugh and Cable を読む (54) The Celtic Influence」をお聴きください（第1チャプターは無料で試聴できます）．
54. The Celtic Influence. Nothing would seem more reasonable than to expect that the conquest of the Celtic population of Britain by the Anglo-Saxons and the subsequent mixture of the two peoples should have resulted in a corresponding mixture of their languages, that consequently we should find in the Old English vocabulary numerous instances of words that the Anglo-Saxons heard in the speech of the native population and adopted. For it is apparent that the Celts were by no means exterminated except in certain areas, and that in most of England large numbers of them were gradually assimilated into the new culture. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that at Andredesceaster or Pevensey a deadly struggle occurred between the native population and the newcomers and that not a single Briton was left alive. The evidence of the place-names in this region lends support to the statement. But this was probably an exceptional case. In the east and southeast, where the Germanic conquest was fully accomplished at a fairly early date, it is probable that there were fewer survivals of a Celtic population than elsewhere. Large numbers of the defeated fled to the west. Here it is apparent that a considerable Celtic-speaking population survived until fairly late times. Some such situation is suggested by a whole cluster of Celtic place-names in the northeastern corner of Dorsetshire. It is altogether likely that many Celts were held as slaves by the conquerors and that many of the Anglo-Saxons chose Celtic mates. In parts of the island, contact between the two peoples must have been constant and in some districts intimate for several generations.
一般には，アングロサクソン人はケルト人を根絶やしにした，完全制圧したなどと言われることが多いのですが，実際には征服の貫徹度は地域によっても異なっていたし，上下関係はあったとしても意外と長く共存していたのではないかということです．
一方，古英語とケルト語の言語的関係はどのようなものだったのでしょうか．それは次の第55節 "Celtic Place-Names and Other Loanwords" （ケルト語の地名と他の借用語）で取り上げられています．「英語史の古典的名著 Baugh and Cable を読む (55) Celtic Place-Names and Other Loanwords」よりどうぞ．
heldio のシリーズのバックナンバー一覧は「#5291. heldio の「英語史の古典的名著 Baugh and Cable を読む」シリーズが順調に進んでいます」 ([2023-10-22-1]) に掲載しています．
・ Baugh, Albert C. and Thomas Cable. A History of the English Language. 6th ed. London: Routledge, 2013.