Leiden Riddle facts for kids

The Leiden Riddle is a super old poem from Old English times. It's like a puzzle! It's special because it's one of the earliest English poems we know about. It's also one of the few poems written in the Northumbrian dialect of Old English. Plus, it's cool because it shows us how Latin poems were translated into English a long, long time ago.

What the Riddle Says

The Leiden Riddle is a poem that asks you to guess what it is. It describes something that comes from the cold, wet ground. It says it's not made of wool or hair, and no worms weave it. Even though it's not made like normal clothes, people still call it "clothing." It also says it doesn't fear arrows.

Here are the English translations of the riddle's different versions:

Aldhelm's Latin Riddle (Original)

The damp earth produced me from her cold insides. I am not made from the rough wool of sheep. No threads pull me, and no noisy threads bounce. No yellow silk worms from the East weave me. I am not picked apart by shuttles or hit by the hard comb. Yet, people will call me a 'coat.' I don't fear arrows taken from long quivers.

The Leiden Riddle (Old English Translation)

The wet ground, super cold, first made me from its insides. I don't know myself to be made with wool from fleeces, or from hair by great skill. No woven threads are in me, and I have no warps. No thread makes noise in me from pressing, and no whizzing shuttles shake in me. No tool must hit me anywhere. Worms didn't weave me with their special skills, those that decorate expensive yellow cloth. But still, all over the earth, people call me desirable clothing among heroes. I don't fear terror from flying arrows, even if they are taken eagerly from their cases.

Exeter Book Riddle 33/35 (Another Old English Version)

The wet ground, super cold, first made me from its insides. I don't know myself to be made with wool from fleeces, or from hair by great skill. No woven threads are in me, and I have no warps. No thread makes noise in me from pressing, and no whizzing shuttle glides in me. No tool must hit me anywhere. Worms didn't weave me with their special skills, those that decorate expensive yellow cloth. But still, all over the earth, people call me desirable clothing among heroes. You who are clever with ideas, wise with words, tell me truthfully what this clothing might be.

Can you guess what it is? The answer is a corselet or armor, which is like a piece of protective clothing!

Where the Riddle Was Found

The Leiden Riddle is found in a very old book called MS Leiden, Bibliotheek der Rijksuniversiteit, Voccius Lat. 4o 106. This book also has the Latin poem that the riddle is based on.

The book was probably copied in France, maybe at a place called Fleury Abbey. The riddle itself was added to the book later, in the 900s. But the language of the riddle is even older, from the 700s. It was hard to read even in the 1800s, and a librarian accidentally damaged it more by trying to make it clearer.

How the Riddle Was Created

A famous monk and poet named Aldhelm (who lived from about 639 to 709) wrote many works, including 100 riddles. He was inspired by other riddles from a writer named Symphosius. The 33rd riddle he wrote was called Lorica, which means 'corselet' or 'body armor'.

This Latin riddle was then translated into Old English. The Leiden Riddle is the earliest English version we have, written in the Northumbrian dialect. It's from the 7th or 8th century.

What's really cool is that this riddle also appears in another famous Old English book called the Exeter Book. This version is written in the West Saxon dialect and is a bit newer, from the 900s. Even with differences in language and some damage to the Leiden book, the two English versions are almost the same.

People really like how clever and complex this translated riddle is. For example, in the Exeter Book version, it asks the reader to be "clever with cunning thoughts." The Old English word for "cunning thoughts" (searoþoncum gleaw) can also sound like "thoughts of armor," which is a fun hint to the answer!

Old English Dialects and Changes

The Leiden Riddle is a very old example of Old English. It's also one of the few examples we have of the Northumbrian dialect. We can see how different it is by comparing it to the later West Saxon copy found in the Exeter Book.

The differences show how much the language changed over time and in different places. For example, some letters were spelled differently, even if they sounded the same. Other differences show how words were actually pronounced differently in the Northumbrian and West Saxon dialects. Also, older versions of Old English, like the Leiden Riddle, had more different vowel sounds that later merged into fewer sounds. This is like how English has changed over hundreds of years, with words being pronounced differently or new words being added.

Where to Find More About It

You can find the Leiden Riddle, with notes and a picture of its original page, along with a modern translation, in the Old English Poetry in Facsimile Project.