The Battle of Brunanburh: The Lanchester Hypothesis

The location of the battle of Brunanburh in 937 remains a source of disagreement among investigators. In recent years many places have been identified as Brunanburh. This article interrogates the claims of Andrew Breeze, in several works, to have securely located the battle at Lanchester in County D...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neophilologus 2023-09, Vol.107 (3), p.431-449
Main Author: Cavill, Paul
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Comparative Linguistics
Comparative Literature
English literature
Epic poetry
Etymology
Historia de la lengua
Historical Linguistics
Hypotheses
John, of Worcester (12th cent)
Linguistics
Literatura medieval
Medieval literature
Old English
Personal names
Philology
Poesía épica
Poetry
Social Sciences
Syntax
Citations: Items that this one cites
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Summary:The location of the battle of Brunanburh in 937 remains a source of disagreement among investigators. In recent years many places have been identified as Brunanburh. This article interrogates the claims of Andrew Breeze, in several works, to have securely located the battle at Lanchester in County Durham. The methods by which Breeze reaches his conclusion are analyzed, and the arguments he cites for it are examined. Breeze’s main proposals are discussed: that Brunanburh refers to the River Browney in County Durham; that the name We(o)ndun recorded by Symeon of Durham refers to a wen-shaped hill; and that dinges- in the Old English poem on the battle should be emended to dingles- . Alternative interpretations of the material are given, some based on hitherto unexamined evidence, including a new suggestion for the etymology of Dingley in Northamptonshire. It is argued that the Lanchester hypothesis does not stand linguistic and critical analysis.
ISSN:0028-2677
1572-8668
DOI:10.1007/s11061-022-09758-1