Oldest English Poem Discovered

Memorial to Caedmon at St. Mary's Churchyard. The inscription reads,
"To the glory of God and in memory of Caedmon, the father of English Sacred Song.
Fell asleep hard by, 680" Photo: Rich Tea, CC BY-SA 2.0

Researchers leafing through a ninth-century manuscript have discovered a copy of the earliest surviving English poem, according to a recently published study. Known as “Caedmon’s Hymn,” the short verse is considered to be a foundational text in English literature. 

Purportedly composed by an illiterate cowherd after experiencing a religious vision, the nine-line verse references heaven and praises God for creation. The poem is known for its inclusion in some versions of the medieval “Ecclesiastical History of the English People,” written by the monk Bede the Venerable, which was reproduced about 200 times. 

Now let us praise Heaven-Kingdom's guardian,

the Maker's might and his mind's thoughts,

the work of the glory-father—of every wonder,

eternal Lord. He established a beginning.

He first shaped for men's sons

Heaven as a roof, the holy Creator;

then middle-earth mankind's guardian,

eternal Lord, afterwards prepared

the earth for men, the Lord almighty.

The Old English version reads:

Nu scilun herga hefenricæs uard

metudæs mehti and his modgithanc

uerc uuldurfadur sue he uundra gihuæs

eci dryctin or astelidæ.

he ærist scop ældu barnum

hefen to hrofæ halig sceppend

tha middingard moncynnæs uard

eci dryctin æfter tiadæ

firum foldu frea allmehtig

Cædmon (657–684) is the earliest English poet whose name is known. This Northumbrian cowherd cared for the animals at the double monastery of Streonæshalch (now known as Whitby Abbey) during the abbacy of Hilda. He was originally ignorant of "the art of song" but, according to the 8th-century Christian historian and saint Bede, learned to compose one night in a dream. He later became a zealous monk and an accomplished and inspirational Christian poet.

While two older copies of the poem have surfaced, they were both written in Latin. The recent discovery was written in Old English and embedded in the main Latin text, suggesting English poetry was valued by Latin readers much earlier than previously thought.

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