“Damysell, þat can ʒe best do”
The use of thou and ye in a selection of saints’ lives from the South English Legendary and the Northern Homily Cycle
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 24230925 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Rahel Huwyler (University of Zurich) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Publication date | 2026-10-09 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Historical Pragmatics (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1566-5852 • E-ISSN: 1569-9854 |
| Publisher | John Benjamins Publishing Company (PUBLISHER • NL) |
| DOI | 10.1075/jhp.25043.huw |
| OpenAlex | W7221153743 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 15 |
An examination of early Middle English texts is essential for understanding the emergence and development of the t / v distinction, which refers to the functional distinction between the less formal singular pronoun thou ( t ) and the more polite plural form ye ( v ) to address a single interlocutor. This study investigates t / v forms in four saints’ lives contained in two early Middle English collections, namely the South English Legendary ( sel ) and the Northern Homily Cycle ( nhc ). The results of this study indicate that t forms predominate both in the sel and the nhc . The few v pronouns which appear in the selected texts often signal marked respect for a superior interlocutor and usually occur in contexts where interactionally inferior speakers make requests. These findings show that pronouns of address were highly functional and thus suggest that t / v forms could be employed strategically to characterise the interlocutors and their verbal interaction.
Early Middle English · Hagiography · Politeness · pronouns of address · respect · South English Legendary · verbal interaction · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies · Linguistic Variation and Morphology · Syntax, Semantics, Linguistic Variation
| Highly cited | No |
|---|