Cædmon’s Hymn

Cædmon’s Hymn is a short Old English poem originally composed by Cædmon, in honour of God the Creator. It survives in a Latin translation by Bede in his Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum and in vernacular versions written down in several manuscripts of Bede’s Historia.

 

Now [we] must honour the guardian of heaven,

the might of the architect, and his purpose,

the work of the father of glory

as he, the eternal lord, established the beginning of wonders;

he first created for the children of men

heaven as a roof, the holy creator

Then the guardian of mankind,

the eternal lord, afterwards

appointed the middle earth,

the lands for men, the Lord almighty.

 

 

Old English Latin (Bede) Modern English Translation[1]
nu scylun hergan     hefaenricaes uard Nunc laudare debemus auctorem regni caelestis, Now [we] must honour the guardian of heaven,
metudæs maecti     end his modgidanc potentiam creatoris, et consilium illius the might of the architect, and his purpose,
uerc uuldurfadur     swe he uundra gihwaes facta Patris gloriae: quomodo ille,cum sit aeternus Deus, omnium the work of the father of glory[2] as he, the eternal lord, established
eci dryctin     or astelidæ miraculorum auctor exstitit; the beginning of wonders;
he aerist scop     aelda barnum qui primo filiis hominum he first created for the children of men[3]
heben til hrofe     haleg scepen. caelum pro culmine tecti heaven as a roof, the holy creator
tha middungeard     moncynnæs uard dehinc terram custos humani generis Then the guardian of mankind,the eternal lord, afterwards
eci dryctin     æfter tiadæfirum foldu     frea allmectig generis creavit. omnipotens appointed the middle earth,the lands for men,[4] the Lord almighty.

 

 

  1. Compare the recensional identifications for witnesses to the Old English Hymn in Dobbie (1937), The Manuscripts of Cæadmon’s Hymn and Bede’s Death Song, New York with those for manuscripts of the Latin Historia in Colgrave, B; Mynors, RAB, eds. (1969), Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Oxford, pp. xxxix–lxx. ↵
  2. This is the traditional translation of these lines, in agreement with Bede's Latin version. An alternative translation of the eorðanand aelda texts, however, understands weorc as the subject: "Now the works of the father of glory must honour the guardian of heaven, the might of the architect, and his mind's purpose." ↵
  3. This is the reading of the West-Saxon ylda and Northumbrian aelda recensions. The West-Saxon eorðan, Northumbrian eordu, and with some corruption, the West-Saxon eorðe recensions would be translated "for the children of earth". ↵
  4. The Northumbrian eordu and West-Saxon ylda and eorðe recensions would be translated "for men among the lands" at this point. ↵