On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English...
Transcript of On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English...
325
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus*― With a Diplomatic Text of The Physiologus
in the British Library, MS Arundel 292 ―
Koichi Kano
1.Introduction
It is widely accepted that the Physiologus was originated somewhere in the Orient
(perhaps Egypt?) and had been transmitted throughout Europe in its entirety. This
compilation of allegorical animal stories was (and still is) so familiar especially in
mediaeval Europe, which I could easily postulate by looking at a number of extant
manuscripts. At the bare mention of the existing Latin manuscripts alone, we run up a
considerable fi gure. Also there are to be found manuscripts written in vulgar tongues in
various locations.1 The great fourteenth-century poet Chaucer beyond doubt knew this
animal lore, that he mentioned the title ‘Phisiologus’ with a somewhat authoritative
tone in his Nun’s Priest’s Tale of The Canterbury Tales. It seems that the title resonates
* This article is based on the original draft delivered at the 22nd Conference of The Japan Society for Medieval English Studies, 10 December, 2006 at Kyoto Sangyo University. I am most grateful to Emeritus Professor Masa Ikegami of Keio University for her valuable advice. The present topic was briefl y dealt with in my Ph.D thesis, but it was not exhaustive and some of my interpretations on it were incorrect; over which I took an opportunity to rewrite the draft thoroughly here. My thanks also goes out to the staff of the British Library, whose help was invaluable to the present study and the transcription which is put in the Appendix 3.1 Over 250 manuscripts of the Physiologus have been copied in various languages including Latin, Romance and Germanic group of languages during the period 1100 - 1400. The text was also widely transmitted to Ethiopia, Armenia, Syria and the Arabic world (White, 1954: 22 - 3).
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within the Tale in the sense that the fox and Chautecleer are beast and bird (cok):
….. and Chauntecleer so free
Soong murier than the mermayde in the see;
For Phisiologus seith sikerly
How that they syngen wel and myrily
(Chaucer, Nun’s Priest’s Tale, VII. 3269-72)2
English versions of the Physiologus can be found from the Old English period; this is a
translation from one of the Latin versions.3 For the Middle English version, it is based
on the Latin version which was composed by Theobald (or Thetbaldus). (The Latin
version which Theobald composed was different to that of the basis of OE version.)
Though vague is his identity - he was likely to have been an abbot of Monte Cassino
from 1022 to 1035 - and for the date of composition, it is deduced that the Theobald’
s version must have been completed, with a view towards the tenure of his abbacy,
within the early eleventh century. In Theobald’s Physiologus, thirteen creatures appear:
A Lion, Eagle, Snake, Ant, Stag, Fox, Spider, Whale, Siren, Elephant, Turtle Dove,
Panther and Onocentaurus. The ME poet made a change from the Onocentaurus to
the Dove in his version. Each story has both Natura and Signifi cacio: Natura gives us
their quality and habit, for which Signifi cacio inculcates the meaning and symbolic
representation.
The ME Physiologus is preserved in the British Library, MS Arundel 292 (ff. 4r -
10v). This is the unique manuscript that has been transmitted the present work through
2 Chaucer’s works are cited from Benson (ed.), The Riverside Chaucer (1988).3 For the edition(s) of the Old English version, see Squire (1988). There was also an Anglo-Norman version ‘Bestiarius’ written by Philipe de Thaun, which was composed during 1121 - 1135. He also translated Computus in 1113 or 1119, and Lapidarius in the interval between the two aforesaid works.
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On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
until the present day. It is written in East Midland dialect, and copied in one hand.
Laing (1993) allots its provenance to West Norfolk, and suggests the relationship with
The Story of Genesis & Exodus (Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, MS 444 ).4 The
date of MS Arundel 292 is supposed to be the last quarter of the thirteenth century.
This opinion corresponds to that of C & K Sisam (1970) who claim that the date of
the manuscript should be ca. 1275 - 1300. There appears the press-mark of Norwich
Cathedral Priory, and the reference to the fi re that took place in 1272 there.5 The ME
Physiologus is copied from fol. 4r to fol. 10v in MS Arundel 292, and the same hand
is considered to be responsible for the small piece written in fols. 3r-v. Although it
appears at fi rst glance that The ME Physiologus is copied as prose in the manuscript,
it is intended to be read in a verse form which is obviously indicated by the vermilion
punctus that the Arundel scribe inserted. As to the versifi cation, various forms are
employed and changed in parallel with Theobald’s original Latin work. The rhyme
scheme is seen to have largely succeeded (if indeed its aim was so), except for the
irregular ones.6
4 The date of the manuscript is the fi rst quarter of the fourteenth century, written in one hand. The language of the text is W(est) Norfolk (Laing, 1993: 25). 5 See Wirtjes (1991: xi, xl) and Laing (1993: 67 - 8).6 Theobald’s original Latin Physiologus has fi ve different forms in the versifi cation that are shown below. The ME translator had not entirely deviated from the original forms as has been related, indeed may have taken a great deal of effort to imitate the original or elaborate the better versifi cation. For the details of the ME versifi cation, see Wirtjes (1991: lii - lxviii).
(1) Hexameter - the Lion, the Sirens, the Onocentaurus and the Panther(2) Elegiac couplets - the Eagle, the Ant, the Fox, the Stag, the Whale, and the Elephant(3) Sapphic stanzas - the Serpent (the rhyme scheme is irregular)(4) Hypercatalectic dactylic trimeters - the Spider(5) Adonics - the Turtle Dove (end rhyme is irregular)
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Koichi Kano
2.
Wirtjes (1991: 20)
l. 575 & steh to heuene vue[ma]st,
l. 576 Ðer wuneð wið | Fader (& Holi Gast.
MS Arundel 292, f. 10r-v. (Dipolomatic version)
f. 10r27 of heuene blis . 7 steh to heuene vuenest . ðer uneð ið
f. 10v01 fader 7 holi gast . Amonges men a s ete mel . he let her
The present study deals with some of the rhymes in The ME physiologus, which may
engender a little diffi culty in deciding what the quality of the vowel contained in the
rhymes was. We can fi nd the rhyme vuenest [sic] ‘uppermost, highest (adj. sup.)’- gast
‘spirit (n.)’ in ll. 575 - 6 (MS. ff. 10r-v). What kind of pronunciation is required for
the rhyme with the oddly spelt word ‘vuenest’? In respect to the break of the lines, i.e.
which are the rhyming words, no objection can be raised, in because the information is
gleaned from the manuscript. Without any doubt, the former editors considered these
words as rhymed. Wirtjes made a comment on the pronunciation for the relevant part
as follows:
The n in uvenest is a mechanical error (wrong number of minims) for m;
the ending -mest in vue[m]est, from OE mæst, has not undergone early
shortening, but for the sake of the rhyme we need a form that has. Orm has
masst and vue[ma]st is well attested.
(Wirtjes, 1991: xxxvi.)
According to the description cited above, it seems that Wirtjes thinks the rhyme
vue[ma]st - gast rhymes on ME short /a/ (not long /a:/). Meanwhile, the word gast
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On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
which appears in l. 386 rhymes with the different word stedefast ‘steadfast (adj.)’ in l.
385. The pronunciation that latter rhyme requires, however, shall be dealt in the later
chapter and left for the time being. Now judging from numerous evidence found in The
ME Physiologus text and in other contemporary works, I am increasingly convinced
that it is rather rash to assume that it was ME /a/ which Wirtjes suggested, and that
ME /a:/ may be fi t better here for the rhyme. Since this in fact is a self-rhyme, it is
not simple to conclude which pronunciation /a/ or /a:/ would be suitable. Although it
is seemingly a small incident, it is important example to understand the complicated
nature of rhyme theory.
3.
Firstly, the word formation of vue[ma]st will be treated in this section. The lemma
for this word is UVEMEST both in OED and MED, whose etymology is presented as
(Late) OE ufemest. This originally consists of three elements: *uf- + -em + -est. It is
the form that the fi rst element *uf- which signifi es ‘above’ or ‘upper’, that is followed
by two superlative suffi xes -em and -est. The latter superlative suffi x requires no
explanation, however the former one probably does. The fi rst element of the doubled
superlative -e)mest was once an independent superlative suffi x Proto Germanic *-umo,
which mutated to Proto OE -uma. Later, another superlative suffi x -ist was added to it,
which as a result caused i-Umlaut, resulting -ymist > -imest, -emest, -mest.7 Form the
variant spellings of the suffi x -mest recorded in OED, it is possible to postulate that the
7 Ono-Nakao (1980) gives such an account for the formation of the double superlative suffi x. They also report that the fi rst element of the doubled-suffi x remained in the words such as, OE forma ‘fi rst’ / hindema ‘last’ / medema ‘midway in size’. OE forma became spelt forme or fi rme, etc. in ME period. OED records the instances from Owl & Nightingale (c1250), Sir Gawain & the Green Knight (late 14th c.), York Myst. (c1440), etc. It is probable that the works written in Northern and North West Midland dialects were inclined to maintain the word forme in ME.
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Koichi Kano
suffi x in question was regarded as MOST. This was the result of confusion between
the superlative suffi x -mest and independent adjective MOST which was evoked by the
analogy in Late OE, under the infl uence of adjective WS m@ st or Merc māst (including
Northern dialect form).
4.
In what way then was the word uvemest adopted in other dialects? It is interesting
to observe the variant spellings which appear in The Ancrene Wisse written in West
Midland dialect in the early thirteenth century. The Parallel Text of The Ancrene Wisse
edited by Kubouchi and Ikegami, et al. (2003, 2005) facilitate such comparative
study between multiple manuscripts, and the relevant parts are shown below:
A 89v02, V 387rb66A (=Corpus Christi) … & doð on alre uuem/est
C(otton Cleopatra) … & doð on alre uueward .
N(ero) … doð an alre vuemeste on
V(ernon) … and doþ on alre ouemast
Kubouchi & Ikegami, et al. (2005: 57)
MED collects two other variants from MS Cotton Titus D. xviii and MS Caius, and
these are spelt uuemaste and uwemast respectively. As A (=Corpus Cristi) text of the
Ancrene Wisse is thought to be the closest one to the authentic manuscript, the spelling
uuem/est can be explained in that it is the form found in the exemplar of the A-scribe.
Type -mest(e is also found in MS Cotton Nero, while type -mast(e can be observed
in MSS Vernon, Cotton Titus, Caius. It is worthy of special mention that the spelling
found in MS Cotton Cleopatra is with -ward (neither -mest(e nor -mast(e). Brut by
Lahamon, which belongs also to West Midland dialect, has the form which is unusually
spelt as ufen meste in l. 3034 as two separate words.8 As the instances in MS Cotton
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On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
Cleopatra (Ancrene Wisse) and Brut show, the double superlative -mest was already
considered as MOST or another suffi x form derived from MOST; accordingly it is
apparent that the word uvemest was reconstituted as *uve + most. On the other hand,
the type -mest(e represents the form that has developed from WS m@ st and <e> is the
shortened form of ē < WS @ 2.
5.
It is reasonable to assume that the suffi x of uvemest, i.e. -mest, etymologically had
(Proto-) OE e sound. However, as it was mentioned above that the likelihood of
confusion between the original suffi x -mest and the adjectival MOST is extremely
high, the etymological sound for -mest in The ME Physiologus should be educed from
OE @ 2 or OE ā, rather than OE e. The value of the vowel in the rhyming word gast
derives from Early ME or OE gāst / g@ st. Campbell (1959) gives an account for the
development of gast as follows: it was originally WGmc gaisto-z, of which the second
element of ai, i.e. i, had been lost, and later the lengthening affected the fi rst element
a > ā. Here I venture to offer one possible answer to this contingent matter from the
various pieces of evidence, although the pronunciation is dependent on self-rhyme, and
is diffi cult to decide upon.
With a view to the confusion between -mest and MOST, it is worthwhile to trace the
development of the adjective MOST. The Story of Genesis and Exodus, which was
written in apporoxmately the same period as The ME Physiologus, has the words spelt
with <o> such as most. 9 This spelling shows the result of the development Early ME ā >
/ c:/. The development to ME / c:/ is expected from OE (or Early ME) ā , not from OE e.
In the development of (any) language(s), there are numerous reasons for the
8 Brut by Lahamon is preserved in two manuscripts: British Library, MS Cotton Otho C. xiii and MS Cotton Caligula A. ix. For more details, see Laing (1993). UVEMEST only appears in MS Cotton Caligula A. ix. See Brook and Leslie (1963, 1978).9 See Morris (1895: ll, 98, 189, etc.).
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change in pronunciation. We shall confi ne ourselves to the internal change of the
pronunciation in the present paper, and postulate that there is some continuity in
its change and it is supposed to be natural growth with a process of slow gradation.
Given that this is justifi ed, the investigation into the language of the later period -
that of the fourteenth century - in the same dialect as The ME Physiologus leads us
to validate the pronunciation by looking back at the evidence provided. Grimestone’s
Commomplace Book or Preaching Book (hereafter Grimestone’s Lyrics) is a collectin
of religious lyrics and will be here used in the capacity of one of the materials to attest to
our hypothesis. Grimestone’s Lyrics is preserved in the National Library of Scotland,
MS Advocates’ 18. 7. 2, which is written in the late fourteenth century and belongs
to Norfolk provenance.10 According to A Linguistic Atlas of Late Mediaeval English
(LALME hereafter), this manuscript is a holograph whose language should be similar to
that of the author John of Grimestone himself. How did fourteenth-century Grimeston
spell words such as GHOST or MOST, or any other words which contain the sound
derived from OE ā, in his Lyrics? The change in OE ā > ME / c:/ is frequently observed
as in alone (adv.), mone (n.), sore (adv.), ston (n.), non (pron.), most (adj.), wroth (v.),
cloth (n.), holigost (n.), etc. In a lyric titled Dialogue between the B.V and her Child
(No. 56), a self-rhyme most - gost (ll. 89 - 91) is found, which presumably shows ME
/ c:/ by using an <o> spelling in the words currently dealt with.11 In addition to this,
rhymes including OE ā come under observation as follows: ore (adv.) - bore (ppl.) /
10 LALME, Linguistic Profi le 4041, Grid 568 290 (vol. iii: 331 - 2). The place-name ‘Grimestone’ can be found in north western part of Norfolk. The edition for his work that was consulted was Brown (1952: 69-92). In the last part of its index (f. 9b), the date of composition is described as it was in the year of 1372 as follows:
‘Orate pro anima fratis Iohannis de Grimistone qui scripsit istum librum cum magna solicitudine Anno domini 1372 . Aue maria pro anima sua pro amore dei.’ (Brown, 1952: xvi)
11 Cursor Mundi, which was composed in Northern dialect in the early fourteenth century, has as an example of rhyme holi gast - mast in ll. 4041-02. The common spelling found in this work for the word GHOST is gast type.
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On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
lore (n.) - ore (adv.) / for-lore (ppl.) - more (adj.) - er-fore (adv.) / sore (adv.) - fore
(adv.). In the instances listed above, OE ā rhymes on OE a in open syllables, which
attest that the pronunciation required is ME / c:/. The spellings employed by Grimestone
and the attestation of the rhyme evidence also indicates that OE ā consistently changed
to ME / c:/ regardless of its environment.12
The ground of Wirtjes’ theory that <a> of -[ma]st has ME short /a/, rests on the
spelling masst in Ormulum. This Ormulum’s perculiar <-sst> shows that the length
of vowels antecedent to the duplicated consonant is short. Investigation in the entire
text of Ormulum through the electronic corpus of the University of Michigan points
out the following evidence: it is not necessarily the case that masst-type is prevailing.
Masst-type appears only four times, the large portion of the rest is spelt as mast-type
(fi fteen instances), and it is even the case that maste-type, whose <a> is put in the open
syllable as ma-ste, is found four times.13 The complete list of the result of investigation
of MOST is shown in Appendix 1. It should be considered that the pronunciation Orm
intended was /ma:st/ except in special circumstances, with which the present paper
does not concern itself. For the purpose of intelligibleness in the dialectal distribution
of the words that contain V(owel) + -st, some variants including MOST are cited in
Appendix 2.
The word gast, which rhymes with vuenest [sic] (ll. 575-6) in The ME Physiologus,
also rhymes with another word stedefast ‘steadfast’ (adj.) (ll. 385-6).14 Although it
has been assessed that the former rhyme demands ME /a:/ for the vowel before -st, the
12 In The ME Physiologus, the change from OE ā to ME / c:/ is already indicated by the rhymes: ston (56: n. < OE stān) - ðeron (57: adv. < OE þ@ ron) / on (433: adv. < OE on) - gon (434: v. < OE gān)13 The investigation of the words MOST and FAST is based on the following electric resource: Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse, Ormulum: http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=cme;cc=cme;view=toc;idno=AFW5744.0001.00114 The transcription of the text in question is shown in the diplomatic edition in the Appendix 3 (08r26 - 08r27). See also Wirtjes (1991: 14 - 5) for the critical edition.
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latter requires the vowel which has undergone the shortening, i.e. ME /a/, even if <a>
is put in the same environment (before -st). The reason for this is as follows: the suffi x
-fast which was derived from OE fæst, indicates the development OE æ > ME /a/ (+
-st). As was explained by Wirtjes that the vowel before the duplicated consonants in
Ormulum becomes short to his ground for -[ma]st is the shortened form, the fact that
FAST has never failed to have been spelt as fasst with doubled consonants, leads us to
assume that the word was pronounced as /fast/, not /fa:st/, in/around Lincolnshire. To
be pronounced as /fa:st/, at least, placed the vowel in question <a> in the open syllable
as fa-ste, which should be under the infl uence of the Open Syllable Lengthening.
However, as this modifi cation was supposed to have taken place chronologically
sometime after the development of ME /a:/ > / c:/, it is safe to say that the pronunciation
of the word FAST remained /fast/ which had not been under the infl uence of the
lengthening yet, owing to the fact that the date of The ME Physiologus has been placed
in the early or mid - thirteenth century.
6.Final Remarks
Based on the various given evidence shown above, the following conclusions are
drawn: (1) the rhyme vuenest [sic] - gast depends on ME /a:/, not short /a/ as Wirtjes
presumed, (2) note, however, that gast also rhymes with stedefast, which attests ME
/a/. The vowel <a> of the suffi x -fast had not yet been undergone the Open Syllable
Lengthening in respect to the chronological matters, and (3) thusly the word gast
was pronounced in two ways /ga:st ~ gast/ by the ME translator or poet of The ME
Physiologus, and so the both rhymes are regarded to be correct ones. Leaving that
question aside, the consonant cluster -st is something that causes complexity and
irregularity in its antecedent vowels as we have seen in the previous sections. Even
though it is located in the same or rather similar environment, the development of the
pronunciation varies in every word.15
According to the general survey in the language of The ME Phsyologus so far, revealed
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On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
is that the translator of the poem employed skilful versifi cations matching other rhymes
mostly correctly. Poets were inclined to behave quite fl exibly, to some extent, and let the
rhyming words resonate in each end of the lines. It is a well known fact that proper names
were often subject to this phenomenon.16 Also, the investigation into the poetic works
of Late ME, in which two different kinds of output from the OE y (and ý), i.e. ME /i(:) ~
e(:)/ (and sometimes /u(:)/), are used, can be interpreted as showing that the poets knew
these variants in (his) pronunciation and placed them in the rhymes where ‘appropriately’
required.17 These are the fruits of the labour that the poets undertook, and the refl ection
of their habit that allows them to employ the different pronunciations for the same
word(s).18 Notwithstanding the change OE/EME ā > ME / c:/ which had already occured,
it is intriguing that the poet for the sake of rhymes put an older pronunciation to use. It
is also within the bounds of imagination that the poet might have used ME /a:/ and /a/ to
leave the echo a-sound with the rhyme stedefast - gast in mind. In saying this however,
we have not got the bottom of the true reason for such kinds of poets’ behaviour, for
which the further investigation will be required.
15 For the general description of the individual words with -st, see Nakao (185: 144).16 Ikegami (1997) introduces how the proper name ‘Charlemagne’ have been used and deformed in foot rhymes in the late fourteenth romance Sir Ferumbras, with some of the examples: Charlemayn - twayn (adj.) / sayne (inf.) - Charlemayne / Charlemoun - toun (sb.), etc.17 OE y and ý varies according to the pairs of the rhymes. The British Library, MS Sloane 2593, ff. 2r-34v. (see LALME, LP 4279) also belongs to the same Norfolk provenance as The ME Physiologus does. Here both pronunciation ME /i: ~ e:/ < OE y (+ -nd) are attested: ME /i:/ appears in the rhymes such as mynd (n.) - kynd (n.) - onbynd (v. inf.) / wynde (inf.) - fynde (inf.) - mynde (n.). On the other hand, ME /e:/ can be proved by the rhymes as follows: mynde (n.) - mankynde (n.) - ende (n.) / kynde (adj.) - mende (n.) - schenede (inf.). The rhymes are cited from Greene (1935).18 They also used archaic and innovative types of pronunciation, and sometimes borrowed from other dialects for the sake of rhyme matching.
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Appendix 1The Forms of MOST, FAST Found in The Ormulum
(The numbers of lines are shown in the parenthesis)
MOST
Masst-type: closed syllable with short /a/ (4 instances)
All masst forrwarrp to lefenn (8522) / Þatt Issraæle þeod allmasst (9617)
/ Forr þatt tehhh fenn allre masst (15278) / Off þatt himm allre masst wass
ned (17084)
Mast-type: closed syllable (15 instances)
hho wass wiss allre manne mast (2597) / Þatt mann birrþ lokenn allre mast
(3122) / Þatt mann mahh fi ndenn allre mast (3998) / Þatt allre werrst & allre
mast (4250) / Þehhtennde mahht iss allre mast (4928) / & tohh þe birrþ he
allre mast (5114) / Ahh allre mast te sellfenn. (5121) / Þatt mast wrat onn
hiss Goddspellboc (5882) / & tær wass þehhre king ahh mast, (8470) / &
allre mast off þatt itt wass (9815) / & mast off alle mahhtess, (10122) / Þiss
iss þe þridde, & itt iss mast (10734) / Þatt mast iss off hemm alle, (10745)
/ & alle mast forrwurrpenn himm (19135) / Þehh alle mast forrwurrpenn
himm (19145)
Maste-type: open syllable with /a:/ (4 instances)
Þe maste þing forr whatt hho wass (2867) / Þe maste lufe he shæweþþ þær
(5328) / Þe maste lott tatt hehhesst iss (15248) / Hemm addlenn swa þe
maste wa (16102)
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FAST
Fasst-type: closed syllable with short /a/
Gastlike i soþfasst læfe, (1445) / Wiþþ innwarrd heorrte & soþfasst þild,
(1562) / Wiþþ soþfasst þild, all forr þatt fi r (1570) / Þatt soþfasst lufe
follhheþþ (1571) / Forr soþfasst lufe bærneþþ ahh (1572) / & stĕdefasst
o Criste, (1597) / Wiþþ fasst & fi ndih laf & harrd (1602) / Off soþfasst
lufe o Criste (1635) / Soþfasst meocnesse follhhenn. (1637) / & uss comm
soþfasst lihht þurrh Crist (1919) / Shammfasst, & daffte, & sedefull, (2175)
/ & off soþfasst meocnesse, (2522) / Off strenncþe, off mettfasstnesse,
(2524) / Off soþfasst lufe, off soþfasst þild, (2525) / Off soþfasst lufe, off
soþfasst þild, (2525)/ & all wiþþ mettfasstnesse. (2580) / Off soþfasst
lufess mahhte; (2588) / Off soþfasst lufe fi lledd; (2598) / & hho wass full
off soþfasst þild (2603) / & tatt wass wiss soþfasst metlehhc, (2659) / Þurrh
soþfasst anndhætnesse, (2762) / Ahh soþfasst læfe o Criste, (2776) / & soþfasst
hih, & hope onn himm, (2777) / & soþfasst lufe o baþe, (2778) / & soþfasst
lufe & troww[þe] (2874) / & soþfasstlike trowwenn, (2995) / Þatt Godess
Gast iss soþfasst Godd (2996) / & soþfasst lufe nemmnedd; (2999) / Þurrh
soþfasst lufe wass itt don, (3010) / & soþfasstlike trowwenn, (3017) / Forr
Halih Gast iss soþfasst Godd (3030) / Forr Godess Sune iss soþfasst Godd
(3098) / Þurrh soþfasst herrsummnesse, (3137) / Off soþfasst lufe o Criste
(3235) / Þær onnfasst i þatt illke land (3334) / & her onnfasst he borenn iss
(3358) / Inntill þatt soþfasstnessess ham (3550) / Forrdredde swiþe fasste
anan, (3778) / Forr soþfasst lufe o Criste. (4145) / Forr Crist iss strang &
stĕdefasst (4148) / & hiff þatt he þurrh soþfasst þild (4786) / Þurrh soþfasst
þildess wæpenn. (4807) / Þatt tu forr soþfasst lufe o Godd (4932) / Soþfasst
meocnesse follhhe. (4933) / Wiþþ soþfasst millce & are, (5699) / Held
fasste i wilde wesste, (5943) / & haldenn swiþe fasste, (8088) / Onnfasst
338
Koichi Kano
te kingess bure, (8134) / Þatt held himm þa swa fasste. (8152) / & onnfasst
tær abutenn; (8440) / Þurrh soþfasst herrsummnesse, (8961) / & menn
himm sohhtenn fasste to, (9241) / Himm onnfasst i þe wesste. (9256) / Þatt
stodenn þær onnfasst te fl umm (9869) / Þurrh soþfasst herrsummnesse,
(10637) / Wiþþ soþfasst herrsummnesse, (10645) / Heold Crist hiss fasste
þære (11330) / & whanne hiss fasste forþedd wass (11333) / Þurrh soþfasst
hope & trowwþe. (11888) / Off soþfasst lufe fi lledd, (12875) / Forrþi þatt
soþfasst lufess mahht, (12876) / & tiss iss soþfasstnessess hord (12920)
/ Rihht onnfasst efenn wære, (13179) / All harrd, & strang, & stedefasst,
(13326) / Forr Crist iss strang & stedefasst, (13354) / Forr Crist iss strang,
& stedefasst, (15072) / Þatt lede þatt iss sihhhhefasst, (16958) / Soþ sihhþe
off soþfasstnesse, (17105) / Þurrh soþfasst herrsummnesse, (17508) /
Þatt Soþfasstnesse iss nemmnedd, (17850) / Tokenn to sannenn fasste onnhæn
(17930) / Iss Godd soþfasst i spæche. (17983) / Onnfasst tatt illke
kasstelltun (18102) / Tokenn to sannenn fasste onnhæn (18202) / To sannenn
fasste off Crist, & ec (18216) / & soþ bridgume off soþfasst brid, (18450) /
& ec off soþfasstnessess mahht (19273) / & ec off soþfasstnesse. (19298) /
Off soþfasstnesse wass he full, (19305) / Soþ are & soþfasstnesse. (19330)
/ Onnfasst an kasstelltun þatt wass (19499) / Tokenn to sannenn fasste onnhæn
(19509) / & ec i soþfasstnesse. (20043)
Fast-type: closed syllable (1 instance)
Wiþþ soþfast lufe fi lledd. (10455)
Faste-type: open syllable with /a:/ (0 instance)
339
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
Appendix 2Fig. Morphological Variations of the Words
Containing OE ā + -st in Some Early ME Works
Appendix 3A Diplomatic Text of The Physiologus
in the British Library, MS Arundel 292 (ff. 4r-10v)19
― A Trial Version―
MOSTmoste / -nest maste / mast /
mast / mæstmesten / mæst /meste
meste meast (SM) /measte (HM)
ALMOSTallmasst / alle mast
almest al meast N: almest
al meast (HM)
STEDEFAST stedefast stedefasst studeuest studeuest (SJ)
FASTfasst uaste (faste) /
fæstrefeaste faste,
hetelifaste (W)
GHOSTgast / gost gast / gastess gost gast gast (SJ) /
gastes (SW)
LAST (adj.)lattste laste / leste leaste
N: lastelaste (SM-R)
Physiologus Ormulum Lahamon’s Brut. AW* Kth. Grp.**
Abbreviations* Ancrene Wisse: N = MS Cotton Nero A xiv.** Katherine Group: SM = St. Marheret, HM = Hali Meiðhad, SJ = St. Iuliane, W =
Wuhunge of Ure Lauerd, SW = Sawles Warde, SM-R = St. Margeret, MS Royal 17 A.xxvii.
19 The editorial procedure: The ME Physiologus is solely preserved in the British Library, MS Arundel 292, ff. 4r-10v, from which the present text has faithfully been transcribed. The purpose is to reproduce the text by the original scribe of the Arundel manuscript. The abbreviations are expanded, and supplemented with italics; for expample, cªst = crist, hī = him, etc. The letter w in the transcription substitutes for the original w (wynn). 7 represents the amphasard in the manuscript. The Arundel scribe used the two different kinds of "g" which are accordingly distinguished in our text as g and h .
340
Koichi Kano
04r01 Đe leun stant on hille . 7 he man hunten [Natura leonis . ja .
04r02 here . Oðer ðurh his nese smel . smake ðat he nehhe . Bi
04r03 wile weie so he wile . To dele niðer wenden . Alle hise fet step/pes .
04r04 after him he fi lleð . Draheð dust wið his stert . ðer he
04r05 steppeð . Oðer dust oðer deu . ðat he ne cunne is fi nden . dri/ueð
04r06 dun to his den . ðar he him berhen wille . [ija
04r07 An oðer kinde he haueð . wanne he is ikindled . stille lið
04r08 ðe leun . ne stireð he nout of slepe . Til ðe sunne haueð
04r09 sinen ðries him abouten . ðanne reiseð his fader him .
04r10 mit te rem ðan he makeð . [iija
04r11 Đe ðridde lahe haueð ðe leun . ðanne he lieð to slepen .
04r12 sal he neure luken . ðe lides of hise ehen . [sgnifi cacio
04r13 Welle heh is tat hil . ðat is heuen_riche . Vre [prime nature .
04r14 louerd is te leun . ðe liueð ðer_abuuen . wu ðo him like/de .
04r15 to lihten her on erðe . Mihte neure diuel witen . ðoh he
04r16 be der_ne hunte . hu he dun come . Ne wu he dennede him
04r17 in ðat defte meiden . Marie bi name . ðe him bar to man/ne
04r18 frame . Đo ure drihten ded was . 7 do_luen also his [.ija..7 iija
04r19 wille was . In a ston stille he lai . til kam ðe dridde dai .
04r20 His fader him fi lstnede swo . ðat he ros fro dede ðo . Vs to
04r21 lif holden . wakeð so his wille is So hirde for his folde . He
04r22 is hirde . we ben sep . silden he us wille . If we heren to his
04r23 word . ðat we ne gon nowor wille . [Natura aquile
04r24 Kiðen i wille ðe ernes kinde . also ic it o boke rede . wu he
04r25 neweð his huðhede . hu he truneð ut of elde . siðen hise
04r26 limes arn unwelde . siðen his bec is alto wrong . siðen his
341
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
04v01 fl iht is al unstrong . 7 his ehen dimme . hereð wu he ne/weð
04v02 him . A welle he sekeð ðat springeð ai . boðe bi niht 704v03 bi dai . ðer ouer he fl eheð . 7 up he teð . til ðat he ðe haue/ne
04v04 seð . ðurh skies sexe 7 seuene . til he cumeð to heuene .
04v05 so riht so he cunne . he houeð in ðe sunne . ðe sunne swi/deð
04v06 al his fl iht . 7 oc it makeð his ehen briht . hise feðres
04v07 fallen for ðe hete . 7 he dun miðe to ðe wete . falleð in ðat
04v08 welle grund . ðer he wurdeð heil 7 sund . 7 cumeð ut al
04v09 newe . Ne were his bec untrewe . his bec is het biforn wrong .
04v10 ðoh hise limes senden strong . Ne maih he tilen him non
04v11 fode . him self to none gode . ðanne god he to a ston . 704v12 he billeð ðer on . billeð til his bec biforn . haueð ðe wreng
04v13 ðe forloren . siðen wið his rihte bile . takeð mete ðat he wile .
04v14 Al is man so is tis ern . wulde he nu listlen . [signifi cacio .
04v15 old in hise sinnes dern . or he bicumeð cristen . 7 tus he
04v16 neweð him ðis man . danne he nimeð to kirke . or he it bi/ðenken
04v17 can . hise ehen weren mirke . forsaket ðore satanas .
04v18 7 ilk sinful dede . Takeð him to ihesu crist . for he
04v19 sal ben his mede . Leueð on ure loued crist . 7 lereð pres/tes
04v20 lore . of hise ehen wereð ðe mist . wiles he dreccheð
04v21 ðore . his hope is al to gode ward . 7 of his luue
04v22 he lereð . ðis is te sinne sikerlike . ðis his sihte he be/teð .
04v23 Nakeð falleð in ðe funt fat . 7 cumeð ut al newe .
04v24 buten a//litel wat is tat . his muð is het untrewe . his
04v25 muð is het wel unkuð . wið pater noster 7 crede . fare he
04v26 norð . er fare he suð . leren he sal his nede . bidden bone
04v27 to gode . 7 tus his muð rihten . tilen him so ðe sowles fode
342
Koichi Kano
05r01 ðurh grace off ure drihtin . . [Natura serpentis . ja .
05r02 AN//wirm is o werlde . wel man it knoweð . Neddre is te
05r03 name . ðus he him neweð . ðanne he is forbroken 705r04 forbroiden . 7 in his elde al forwurden . Fasteð til his fel
05r05 him slakeð . ten daies fulle . ðat he is lene 7 mainles
05r06 7 iuele mai gangen . he crepeð cripelande forð . his craft
05r07 he ðus kiðeð . sekeð a ston ðat a ðirl is on . Narwe bu/ten
05r08 he nedeð him . Nimeð vnneðes ðurh . for his fel he
05r09 ðer leteð . his fl es forð crepeð . walkeð to ðe water ward .
05r10 wile ðanne drinken . Oc he speweð or al ðe uenim . ðat
05r11 in his brest is bred . fro his birde time . drinkeð siðen [ija .
05r12 inoh . 7 tus he him neweð . Đanne ðe neddre is of his
05r13 hid naked . 7 bare of his brest atter . If he naked man
05r14 se . ne wile he him noht nehhen . oc he fl eð fro him . als
05r15 he fro fi r sulde . If he cloðed man se cof he waxeð . For up
05r16 he rihteð him redi to deren . to deren er to ded maken
05r17 if he it muhe forðen . wat if ðe man war wurðe 7 weren
05r18 him cunne . fi hteð wið ðis wirm . 7 freð on him fi htande .
05r19 ðis neddre siðen he nede sal . makeð seld of his bodi . 705r20 sildeð his heued . litel him is of hise limes . bute he lif holde .
05r21 Knov cristne man . wat tu crist hihtes . atte kirke dure .
05r22 ðar ðu cristned were . ðu hihtes to leuen on him . 7 hise
05r23 lahes luuien . to helden wit herte . ðe bodes of holi krke .
05r24 If ðu hauest is broken . Al ðu forbreðes . forwurðes 7 for
05r25 helues . Eche lif to wolden. Elded art fro eche blis . so ðis
05r26 wirm o werld is . Newe ðe fordi . so ðe neddre doð . It is te ned .
05r27 feste ðe of stedefastnesse . 7 ful of ðewes . 7 help ðe poure
343
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
05v01 men . ðe gangen abuten . Ne deme ðe noh wurdi . ðat
05v02 tu dure loken . up to ðe heueneward . Oc walke wið
05v03 ðe erðe mildelike among men . no mod ðu ne cune .
05v04 mod ne mannes vncost . Oc swic of sinehinge . 7 bo/te
05v05 bid tu ðe ai . boðe bi niht 7 bi dai . ðat tu milce
05v06 mote hauen . of ðine misdedes . ðis lif bitokneð ðe
05v07 sti . ðat te neddre gangeð bi . 7 tis is ðe dirl of ðe ston .
05v08 ðat tu salt ðurh gon . Let ðin fi lðe fro ðe . so ðe wirm
05v09 his fel doð . Go ðu ðan to godes hus . ðe god_spel to heren .
05v10 ðat is soule drink . sinnes quenching . Oc or sei ðu in
05v11 scrifte . to ðe prest sunnes tine . feh ðe ðus of ði brest
05v12 fi lde . 7 feste ðe forðward . fast at tin herte . ðat tu fi r/mest
05v13 hihtes . ðus art tu hing 7 newe . forðward be
05v14 ðu trewe . Nedeð ðe ðe deuel noht . for he ne mai ðe ðe/ren
05v15 noht . Oc he fl eð fro ðe . so neddre fro de nakede .
05v16 On ðe cloðede ðe neddre is cof . 7 te deuel cliuer on
05v17 sinnes . at ðe sinfule bisetten he wile . 7 wið al mankin
05v18 he haueð nið 7 win . wat if he leue haue of ure heuen
05v19 louerd . for to deren us . so he ure eldere or dede . do we ðe
05v20 bodi in ðe bale . 7 berhen ðe soule . ðat is ure heued heue/lic .
05v21 helde we it wurðlic . [ Natura formice
05v22 Đe mire is mahti . mikel he swinkeð . In sumer 7 in softe we/der .
05v23 so we 'ofte' sen hauen . In ðe heruest . hardilike gangeð .
05v24 7 renneð rapelike . 7 resteð hire seldum . 7 fecheð hire fo/de .
05v25 ðer he it mai fi nden . gaddreð ilkines sed . boðen of
05v26 wude 7 of wed . Of corn 7 of gres . ðat ire to hauen es . ha/leð
05v27 to hire 'hole' ðat siðen hire helped . ðar he wile ben winter
344
Koichi Kano
06r01 ahen caue he haueð to crepen in . ðat winter hire ne
06r02 derie . mete in hire hule ðat . ðat he muhe biliuen . ðus
06r03 he tileð ðar wiles he time haueð . so it her telleð . oc
06r04 fi nde he ðe wete . corn ðat hire qwemeð . al he forlereð
06r05 ðis oðer seð ðat ic er seide . Ne bit he nowt ðe barlic beren
06r06 abuten . oc suneð it 7 sakeð forð . so it same were . het is
06r07 wunder of ðis wirm . more ðanne man weneð . ðe corn ðat he
06r08 to caue bereð . al het bit otwinne . ðat it ne forwurðe . ne
06r09 waxe hire fro . er he it eten wille . [ signifi cacio .
06r10 Đe mire muneð us mete to tilen. Lond liuenoðe ðis lit/tle
06r11 wile . ðe we on ðis werld wunen . for ðanne we of wenden .
06r12 ðanne is ure winter . we sulen hunger hauen . 7 harde sures .
06r13 buten we ben war here . do we forði . so doð ðis der . ðanne be
06r14 we ðerue . On ðat dai ðat dom sal ben . ðat it ne us harde
06r15 rewe . seke we ure liues fod . ðat we ben siker ðere . so ðis wirm
06r16 in winter is ðan he ne tileð nummore . ðe mire suneð ðe barlic
06r17 ðanne he fi nt te wete . ðe olde lahe we ohen to sunen . ðe newe
06r18 we hauen moten . ðe corn ðat he to caue bereð . all he it bit
06r19 otwinne . ðe lahe us lereð to don god . 7 forbedeð us sinne . It
06r20 ben us ebriche bodes . 7 bekned euelike . It fet ðe licham 7 te
06r21 gost . oc nowt o heuelike . vre louerd crist it leue us ðat
06r22 his lahe us fede . nu 7 o domesdei . 7 tanne we hauen nede .
06r23 Đe hert haueð kindes two . 7 forbisnes oc also . [Natura cerui .
06r24 ðus it is on boke set . ðat man clepeð fi siologet . He draheð
06r25 ðe neddre of de ston . ðurh his nese up on_on . of ðe stoc er
06r26 of ðe ston . for it wile ðer under gon . 7 sweleð it wet swiðe .
06r27 ðerof him brinneð siðen . of ðat attrie ðing . wiðinnen he
345
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
06v01 haueð brenning . he lepeð ðanne wið mikel list . of swet water
06v02 he haueð ðrist . he drinkeð water gredilike . til he is ful wel
06v03 sikerlike . Ne haueð ðat uenim non miht . to deren him
06v04 siðen non wiht . oc he werpeð er hise hornes . in wude er
06v05 in ðornes . 7 hingid him ðus ðis wilde der . so he hauen
06v06 un lered her . [ signifi cacio . prima .
06v07 Alle we atter drahen off ure eldere . ðe broken drihtin/nes
06v08 word ðurh ðe neddre . ðer ðurh haueð mankin .
06v09 boðen nið 7 win . kolsipe . 7 hiscing . hiuernesse 7 willing .
06v10 pride 7 ouer wene . swilc atter imene . ofte we brennen
06v11 in mod . 7 wurðen so we weren wod . ðanne we ðus bren/nen .
06v12 bihoueð us to rennen . to cristes quike welle . ðat
06v13 we ne gon to helle . drinken his wissing . it quenchet
06v14 ilc sinhing . for werpen pride euril del . so hert doð hise
06v15 hornes . hinhen us tus to godeward . 7 hemen us siðen
06v16 Natura ija] forðward . Đe hertes hauen anoðer kinde . ðat us oh alle
06v17 to ben minde . Alle he arn off one mode for if he fer fecchen
06v18 fode . 7 he ouer water ten . wile non at nede oðer fl en . oc on
06v19 swimmeð bi_forn . 7 alle ðe odre folehen . weðer so he swimmeð
06v20 er he wadeð is non at nede ðat oðer lateð . oc leiheð his skin/bon .
06v21 on oðres lendbon . hef him ðat biforn teð . Bilimpes
06v22 for to tirhen . Alle ðe oðre cumen mide . 7 helpen him for to
06v23 herien . beren him of ðat water grund . up to ðe lond al heil
06v24 7 sund . 7 forðen here nede . ðis wune he hauen hem bitwen
06v25 Signifi cacio ija] ðoh he an hundred to_giddre ben . Đe hertes costes we
06v26 ohen to munen . Ne oh ur non oðer to sunen . oc eurilc
06v27 luuen oðer . also he were his broder . wurðen stedefast his
346
Koichi Kano
07r01 wine . lihten him of his birdene . helpen him at his nede .
07r02 god hiueð ðer fore mede . we sulen hauen heuenriche .
07r03 hef we ben twixen us ben briche . ðus is ure louerdes lahe
07r04 luuelike to fi llen . her of haue we mikel ned . ðat we ðar
07r05 wið ne dillen . [ Natura Wulpis.
07r06 A//wilde der is . ðat is ful of fele wiles . fox is hire to name .
07r07 for hire qweðsipe . husebondes hire haten for hire harm
07r08 dedes . ðe coc 7 te capun . he feccheð ofte in ðe tun . 7
07r09 te gandre 7 te gos . bi ðe necke 7 bi ðe nos . haleð . is . to
07r10 hire hole . for ði man hire hatieð . hatien 7 hulen . boðe
07r11 men 7 fules . Listneð nu a//wunder . ðat tis der doð for hun/ger .
07r12 goð o felde to a furh . 7 falleð ðar inne . In eried
07r13 lond er in erð chine . forto bilirten fuheles . Ne stereð
07r14 he noht of ðe stede a god stund deies . oc dareð so he
07r15 ded were . Ne draheð he non onde . ðe rauen is swiðe redi .
07r16 weneð ðat he rotieð . 7 oðre fules hire fallen bi . for to
07r17 winnen fode . derfl ike wiðuten dred . he wenen ðat he ded
07r18 beð . he wullen on ðis foxes fel . 7 he it wel feleð . lihtlike
07r19 he lepeð up . 7 letteð hem sone . helt hem here billing .
07r20 raðe wið illing . tetoggeð 7 terireð hem . mid hire teð sar/pe .
07r21 Fret hire fi lle . 7 god ðan ðer he wille . [ Signifi cacio .
07r22 Twifold forbisne in ðis der . to frame we muhen fi nden
07r23 her . warsipe . 7 wisedom . wið deuel 7 wið iuel man . ðe
07r24 deuel dereð dernelike . he lat he ne wile us noht biswike .
07r25 He lat he ne wile us ðon non loð . 7 bringeð us in a sinne .
07r26 7 ter he us sloð . he bit us don ure bukes wille . eten 7 drin/ken
07r27 wið unskil . 7 in ure skemting . he doð raðe a foxing .
347
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
07v01 he billeð one ðe foxes fel . wo so telleð idel spel . 7 he ti/reð
07v02 on his ket . wo so him wið sinne fet . 7 deuel held swilk
07v03 billing . wið same 7 wið sending . 7 for his sinfule werk .
07v04 Signifi cacio . ] ledeð man to helle merk . Đe deuel is tus ðe ilik .
07v05 mið iuele bredes 7 wið swik . 7 man also ðe foxes name .
07v06 arn wurði to hauen same . for wo 'so' seieð oðer god . 7 ðen/keð
07v07 iuel on his mod . fox he is 7 fend iwis . ðe boc ne le/heð
07v08 noht of ðis . So was herodes fox 7 fl erd . ðo crist kam
07v09 in_to ðis middel erd . he seide he wulde him leuen on . 7 ðoh/te
07v10 he wulde . him fordon . [Natura [i]ranee
07v11 Seftes sop ure seppande . sene 'is' on werlde . leide 7 loldilke .
07v12 ðus we it leuen mankines ðing . alle manne to wissing .
07v13 ðe spinnere on hire swid he weveð . festeð atte hus rof . hire
07v14 fo dredes . o rof er on ouese . so hire is on elde . werpeð ðus
07v15 hire web . 7 weueð on hire wise . ðanne he it haueð al i/diht .
07v16 ðeðen he driueð . hitt hire in hire hole . oc ai he it
07v17 biholteð . til ðat ðer fl ehes faren . 7 fallen ðer inne . wi/ðeren
07v18 in ðat web . 7 wilen ut wenden . ðanne renneð he
07v19 rapelike for he is ai redi . nimeð anon to ðe net . 7 nimeð
07v20 hem ðere . bitterlike he hem bit . 7 here bane wurðeð .
07v21 drepeð 7 drinkeð here blod . doð he hire non oðer god . bute
07v22 fret hire fi lle . 7 dareð siðen stille . [Signifi cacio .
07v23 Đis wirm bitokneð ðe man . ðat oðer biwikeð an steðe
07v24 er on stalle . Stille er lude . in mot er in market . er oni
07v25 oðer wise . he him bit . ðan he h(i)m bale selleð . 7 he drin/keð
07v26 his blod . wanne he him freueð 7 ðo fr'e'teð hem
07v27 al . ðan he him iuel werkeð . [ Natura cetegrandie .
07v28 Cethegrande is a fi s . ðe moste ðat in water is . ðat tu
348
Koichi Kano
08r01 wuldes seien het . hef ðu it sohe wan it fl et. ðat it
08r02 were á neilond . ðat sete 'one' ðe se_sond . ðis fi s ðat is vn/ride .
08r03 ðanne him him hungreð he gapeð wide . vt of
08r04 his ðrote it smit an onde . ðe swetteste ðing ðat is
08r05 o londe . ðer_fore oðre fi sses to him drahen . wan he it
08r06 felen he aren fahen . he cumen 7 houen in his muð .
08r07 of his swike he arn uncuð . ðis cete ðanne hise chaueles lu/keð .
08r08 ðise fi sses alle in sukeð . ðe smale he wile ðus biswiken .
08r09 ðe grete maih he noht bigripen . ðis fi s wuneð wið ðe se_grund .
08r10 7 liueð ðer eure heil 7 sund . til it cumeð ðe time . ðat storm
08r11 stireð al ðe se . ðanne sumer 7 winter winne . ne mai it wunen
08r12 ðer_inne . so droui is te sees grund . ne mai he wunen ðer ðat
08r13 stund . oc stireð up 7 houeð stille . wiles ðar weder is so ille .
08r14 ðe sipes ðat arn on se fordriuen . loð hem is ded 7 lef to liuen .
08r15 biloken hem 7 sen ðis fi s . a neilond he wenen it is . ðer of
08r16 he aren swiðe fahen . 7 mid here miht ðar to he drahen . Si/pes
08r17 on festen . 7 alle up gangen . of ston mid stel in ðe tun/der .
08r18 wel to brennen one ðis wunder . warmen hem wel
08r19 7 heten 7 drinken . ðe fi r he feleð 7 doð hem sinken . for
08r20 sone he diueð dun to grunde . he drepeð hem alle wið
08r21 uten wunde . Đis deuel is mikel wið wil 7 maht . so [ Signifi cacio .
08r22 wicches hauen in here craft . he doð men hungren 7 ha/uen
08r23 ðrist. 7 mani oðer sinful list . tolleð men to him
08r24 wið his onde . wo so him foleheð he fi ndeð sonde . ðo
08r25 arn ðe little . in leue lahe . ðe mikle ne maih he to him
08r26 drahen . ðe mikle . i mene ðe stedefast . In rihte leue . mid
08r27 fl es 7 gast . wo so listneð deueles lore . on lengðe it sal him
08r28 rewen sore : wo so festeð hope on him . he sal him folhen to / ¶ helle dim .
349
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
08v01 IN ðe se senden sel cuðes manie . [Natura sirene
08v02 ðe mereman is a//meiden ilike . on brest 7 on bodi . oc
08v03 al ðus he is bunden . fro ðe noule niðerward ne is he
08v04 no man like oc fi s to ful//iwis mid sinnes waxen . ðis
08v05 wunder wuneð in wankel stede . ðer ðe water sinkeð .
08v06 sipes he sinkeð . 7 scaðe ðus werkeð . mirie he singeð
08v07 ðis mere . 7 haueð manie stefnes . manie 7 sille . oc it
08v08 ben wel ille . Sipmen here . steringe forheten . for hire stef/ninge .
08v09 slumeren 7 slepen . 7 to late waken . ðe sipes sin/ken
08v10 mitte suk . ne cumen he nummor up . oc wise men
08v11 7 warre . ahen cunen chare . ofte arn atbrosten . mid
08v12 he brest ouel . he hauen herd told of ðis mere . ðat tus
08v13 unie_mete . half man 7 half fi s . sum ðing tokneð bi
08v14 ðis . [Signifi /cacio . ] Fele men hauen ðe tokning . of ðis forbisnede ðing .
08v15 wiðuten weren wulues fel . wiðinnen arn he wulues al . he
08v16 speken godcundhede . 7 wikke is here dede . here dede is al
08v17 vucuð . wið ðat spekeð here muð . twifold arn on mode .
08v18 he sweren bi ðe rode . bi ðe sunne 7 bi ðe mone . 7 he ðe lehen
08v19 sone . mid here sahe 7 mid here song . he ðe swiken ðer_i/mong .
08v20 ðin ahte wið swiking . ði soule wið lesing . [ Natura / elephantis ]
08v21 Elpes arn in Inde riche . on bodi borlic berhes
08v22 ilike . he to_gaddre gon o wolde . so sep ðat cumen ut
08v23 of folde . 7 behind_en . he hem sampnen . ðanne he su/len
08v24 oðre strenen . oc he arn so kolde of kinde . ðat no
08v25 golsipe is hem minde . til he noten of a gres . ðe name
08v26 is mandragores . siðen he biheten on . 7 two her he
08v27 ðer mide gon . ðoh he ðre hundred her . on werlde more ¶ wuneden her .
350
Koichi Kano
09r01 biheten he neuermor non . so kold is hem siðen blod 709r02 bon . ðanne he sal hire kindles beren . In water he sal ston/den .
09r03 In water to mid side . ðat wanne hire harde tide . ðat
09r04 he ne falle niðer noht . ðat is most in hire ðoht . for he
09r05 ne hauen no lið . ðat he muhen risen wið . Hu he resteð
09r06 him ðis der . ðanne he walkeð wide . herkne wu it telleð
09r07 her . for he is al unride . a tre he sekeð to ful ihewis . ðat is
09r08 strong 7 stedefast is . 7 leneð him trostlke ðer_bi . ðanne
09r09 he is of walke weri . ðe hunte haueð biholden ðis . ðe him
09r10 wille swiken . wor his beste wune is to don hise willen .
09r11 saheð ðis tre 7 under set . o ðe wise ðat he mai bet . 709r12 hileð it wel ðat he it nes war . ðanne he makeð ðer_to
09r13 char . him seluen sit olon bihalt . weðer his gin him out
09r14 biwarlt . ðanne cumeð ðis elp unride . 7 leneð him up
09r15 on his side slepeð bi ðe tre in ðe sadue . 7 fallen boden
09r16 so to_gaddre . hef ðer is no//man ðanne he falleð . he re/með
09r17 7 helpe calleð . remeð reufulike on his wise . hopeð
09r18 he sal ðurh helpe 'r'isen . ðanne cumeð ðer on gangande
09r19 hopeð he sal him don ut standen . Fikeð 7 fondeð al his
09r20 miht . ne mai he it forðen no wiht . Ne canne ðan non
09r21 oðer 'oc' remeð mid his broðer . manie 7 mikle cume
09r22 ðer sacande . wenen him on stalle maken . oc for ðe
09r23 helpe of hem alle . ne mai he cumen so on stalle . ðan/ne
09r24 remen he alle a rem . so hornes blast . oðer belles
09r25 drem . for here mikle reming . rennande cumeð a hung/ling .
09r26 raðe to him luteð . his snute him under puteð . 709r27 mitte helpe of hem alle . ðis elp he reisen on stalle . 7 tus
Notes: 01 MS kold: Wirtjes cold, 02 MS hire: W. here
351
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
09v01 atbrested ðis huntes breid . o//ðe wise ðat ic haue hu seid .
09v02 Đus fel adam ðurh a tre . vre fi rste fader [signicacio .
09v03 ðat fele we . Moyses wulde him reisen . mihte it no wiht
09v04 forðen . afterhim prophetes alle . mihte her non him
09v05 maken on stalle . on stalle iseie . ðer he er stod . to ha/uen
09v06 heuenriche god . he suhheden 7 forheden . 7 weren
09v07 in doht . wu he mihten him helpen ovt . ðo remeden he
09v08 alle onder steuene . alle hehe up to ðe heuene . for he/re
09v09 care . 7 here calling . hem cam to crist heuen king .
09v10 he ðe is ai in heuene mikel . wurð her man 7 tus was
09v11 litel . drowing ðolede in ure manhede . 7 tus adam 'him' un/der_hede .
09v12 reisede him up 7 'al' mankin . ðat was fallen to
09v13 helle dim . [Natura turturis .
09v14 IN boke is ðe turtres lif. writen o rime wu lahelike . he
09v15 holdeð luue al hire lif time . hef he ones make haueð .
09v16 fro him ne wile he siðen . muneð wimmen hire lif . ic
09v17 it wile hu reden . bi hire make he fi t o niht . o dei he
09v18 goð 7 fl eheð . wo so seit he sundren ovt . 7 seie ðat he
09v19 leheð . oc if hire make were ded 7 he widue wore . ðanne
09v20 fl eheð he one 7 fareð . non oðer wile he more . buten o/ne
09v21 goð . 7 one sit . 7 hire olde luue abit . In herte haueð him
09v22 niht 7 dai . so he were o//liue ai . [Signifi cacio .
09v23 List ilke lesful man herto . 7 herof ofte reche . Vre sowle
09v24 atte kirke dure . ches hire crist to meche . he is ure soule
09v25 spuse luue we him wið mihte . 7 wende we neure fro him
09v26 ward . be dai ne be nihte . ðoh he be fro ure sihte faren
09v27 be we him alle trewe . non oðer louerd ne leue we . ne non
352
Koichi Kano
10r01 luue newe . leue we ðat he liueð ai up on heuen riche . 7
10r02 ðeðen he sal cumen eft . 7 ben us alle briche . for to demen
10r03 alle men . oc nout on heuelike . hise loðe men sulen to
10r04 helle faren . hise leue to his riche . [Natura pantere .
10r05 Panter is an wilde der . Is non fairere on werlde her . he is
10r06 blac so bro of qual . mið wite spottes sapen al . wit 7
10r07 trendled als a wel . 7 'itt' bicumeð him swiðe wel . wor so he
10r08 wuneð ðis panter . he fedeð him al mid oðer der . of ðo ðe
10r09 he wile he nimeð ðe cul . 7 fet him wel til he is ful . In his
10r10 hole siðen stille . ðre dahes he slepen wille . ðan after ðe
10r11 ðridde dai . he riseð 7 remeð lude so he mai . ut of his
10r12 ðrote cumeð a smel . mið his rem forð oueral . ðat ouer
10r13 cumeð haliweie . wið swetnesse . ic hu seie 7 al ðat eure
10r14 smelleð swete . be it drie be it wete . for ðe swetnesse off
10r15 his onde . wor so be walkeð o londe . wor so he walked . er
10r16 wor so he wuneð . Ilk der ðe him hereð to him to him cu/með .
10r17 7 foleheð him up one ðe wold . for ðe swetnesse ðe
10r18 ic hu haue told . ðe dragunes one ne stiren nout . wiles
10r19 te panter remeð oht . oc daren stille in here pit . als so
10r20 he weren of dede offriht . [ Signifi cacio .
10r21 CRist is tokned ðurh ðis der . wol kinde we hauen told
10r22 hu her . for he is faier ouer alle men . so euen sterre ouer
10r23 erðe fen . ful 'wel' he taunede his luue to man . wan he ðurh holi
10r24 spel him wan . 7 longe he lai her in an hole . wel him dat he
10r25 it wulde ðolen . ðre daies slep he al on on . ðanne he ded
10r26 was in blod 7 bon . vp he ros 7 remede in wis . of helle pine
10r27 of heuene blis . 7 steh to heuene vuenest . ðer wuneð wið
353
On a Few Rhymes in The Middle English Physiologus
10v01 fader 7 holi gast . amonges men a swete mel . he let her
10v02 of his holi spel . wor ðurh we muhen folhen him . in to his
10v03 godcundnesse fi n . 7 ðat wirm ure wiðerwine . wor so of
10v04 godes word is dine . be dar he stiren . ne no man deren . ðer
10v05 wile he lahe 7 luue beren . [Natura columbe . 7 signifi cacio .
10v06 Đe culuer haueð costes gode . alle wes ohen to hauen in
10v07 mode . seuene costes in hire kinde . alle it ohen to ben
10v08 us minde . he ne haueð in hire non galle . simple 7 sefte
10v09 be we alle . he ne liueð noht bilaht . Ilc robbinge do we
10v10 of hac . ðe wirm he leteð 7 liueð bi ðe sed . of cristes lore
10v11 we haue ned . wið oðre briddes he doð as moder . so oh ur
10v12 ilk to don wið oðer . woning 7 groning is lic hire song .
10v13 Bimene we us . we hauen don wrong . In water he is wis
10v14 of heuekes come . 7 we in boke wið deules nome . In
10v15 hole of ston he makeð hire nest . In cristes milce ure ho/pe
10v16 is best .
The End of the Text
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