Interweaving of Anglo Saxon terms

Throughout the story, Anglo-Saxon words are used to flavor the story and add some authenticity to the prose. These are inevitably defined in the process of using them. Examples are 'faeder' – father, 'modor' - mother, 'ealdfaeder' – (literally old father) grandfather, 'ealdmodor' - grandmother, thridafaeder [thirce father] - great-grandfather, and 'cyning' - king. Throughout the series, the narrator uses the more modern words: father, mother, grandmother, etc. but the characters use the Anglo-Saxon names and terms.

'Waelcyrie' is an Anglo-Saxon name for the choosers of the dead. The Norse called them 'Valkyrie'. In the first two chapters, the Anglo-Saxon Wiglaf refers to them as Waelcyrie and Einar, the Norse descendant, called them Valkyrie.

The names for the days of the week we currently use are based on Anglo-Saxon names: Sun day and 'Moon' day are self explanatory. Then there are Tiw 's day, Woden's day, Thor's day. and Frige's day. Saturday or Saetern's [Saturn's] day is the exception and is apparently a Roman hold over. The Anglo- Saxons had their own names for the months, but our modern names are generally based on the Roman names, so the narrator often uses both -- "In the spring, always about the time of Eostremonath, called Aprilis by the Roman-men."

The spelling of some words changed over time and this is reflected in the story. At the beginning of the story, the word for a a land owner who held land for a king or eorl is spelled 'thane' as it would have been in the 9th century. However, for the bulk of the story it is spelled 'thegn' the way it was spelled in the 6-7th century. The same is true for the name of a noble's personal warriors or bodyguard -- in the 9th century they were referred to as 'huscarles.' In the 6th century they were called 'hearthweru', 'hearthwera', or hearthguards. An 'Ealdorman' is an Eorl (both Anglo-Saxon uses) and is later spelled 'Earl'. Such words are also included in an Anglo-Saxon Glossary included at the back of each volume.