Word Study
anglo-saxon
CIDE DICTIONARY
anglo-saxon, adj.
of or pertaining to the Anglo-Saxons or their language; as, Anglo-Saxon poetry; The Anglo-Saxon population of Scotland. [WordNet 1.5]
anglo-saxon, n. [L. Angli-Saxones English Saxons.].
- A Saxon of Britain, that is, an English Saxon, or one the Saxons who settled in England, as distinguished from a continental (or “Old”) Saxon. [1913 Webster]
- The Teutonic people (Angles, Saxons, Jutes) of England, or the English people, collectively, before the Norman Conquest. [1913 Webster]"It is quite correct to call Æthelstan “King of the Anglo-Saxons,” but to call this or that subject of Æthelstan “an Anglo-Saxon” is simply nonsense." [1913 Webster]
- The language of the English people before the Norman conquest in 1066 (sometimes called
Old English ). See Saxon. [1913 Webster] - One of the race or people who claim descent from the Saxons, Angles, or other Teutonic tribes who settled in England; a person of English descent in its broadest sense. [1913 Webster]
- a person of Anglo-Saxon (esp British) descent whose native tongue is English and whose culture is strongly influenced by English culture as in "WASP for `White Anglo-Saxon Protestant'"; "this Anglo-Saxon view of things". [WordNet 1.5]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
anglo-saxon, adj. & n.
--adj.
1 of the English Saxons (as distinct from the Old Saxons of the continent, and from the Angles) before the Norman Conquest.
2 of the Old English people as a whole before the Norman Conquest.
3 of English descent.
--n.
1 an Anglo-Saxon person.
2 the Old English language.
3 a colloq. plain (esp. crude) English. b US the modern English language.
--adj.
1 of the English Saxons (as distinct from the Old Saxons of the continent, and from the Angles) before the Norman Conquest.
2 of the Old English people as a whole before the Norman Conquest.
3 of English descent.
--n.
1 an Anglo-Saxon person.
2 the Old English language.
3 a colloq. plain (esp. crude) English. b US the modern English language.
Etymology
mod.L Anglo-Saxones, med.L Angli Saxones after OE Angulseaxe, -an
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