Old English Personal Pronouns - Syntax

Syntax

Old English syntax was similar in many ways to that of modern English. However, there were some important differences. Some were simply consequences of the greater level of nominal and verbal inflection – e.g., word order was generally freer. But there are also differences in the default word order, and in the construction of negation, questions, relative clauses and subordinate clauses.

In addition:

• The default word order was verb-second and more like modern German than modern English.
• There was no do-support in questions and negatives.
• Multiple negatives could stack up in a sentence, and intensified each other (negative concord).
• Sentences with subordinate clauses of the type "When X, Y" did not use a wh-type word for the conjunction, but instead a th-type correlative conjunction (e.g. þā X, þā Y in place of "When X, Y").