Viking Language 1: Learn Old Norse, Runes, and Icelandic Sagas (Viking Language Old Norse Icelandic Series) Kindle Edition

I am a language teacher (Chinese and Latin) who am teaching myself Old Norse. Dr. Jesse Byock's "Viking Language 1" (VL-1) is a wonderful textbook for learning Old Norse (ON) on your own, though it is completely suitable for classroom use. The textbook is extremely user-friendly and is especially so for those who would like to study ON on their own but do not have a background in foreign languages, old or modern. The book takes the student through carefully thought-out steps with detailed explanations of both grammar and vocabulary. Earlier texts (e.g., Sweet's Primer of Old Icelandic, and even E. V. Gordon's "Old Norse") are often difficult for the modern learner, assuming a knowledge of basic linguistics (which can no longer be assumed) or a familiarity with German or some inflected language. Certainly a knowledge of another language is very helpful (I have a comfortable familiarity with Old English and know Latin well, and have studied a bit of modern German), but Dr. Byock's book is eminently suitable for both the experienced linguist as well for an absolute beginner in the language. With the patience that is needed for the study of any language, the student should make good progress in the study of this beautiful and fascinating language. The selections introduced for reading are interesting (and fun!), and each chapter is interspersed with history, word study, and fascinating facts about Viking culture, including maps. I personally enjoy this sort of holistic approach to language learning where vocabulary, grammar, history and culture are woven together, greatly increasing the high-interest content and presenting the language in its real-world setting. The exercises are good, and there is a fine glossary at the back of the book. This makes for a quality textbook at a very affordable price. As others have mentioned, I highly recommend buying "Viking Language 2" to accompany VL-1, giving the student a solid grounding in ON and providing a wide variety of reading material. I have found that VL-2 makes excellent supplementary reading even while working through VL-1 and provides wonderful opportunities for gauging one's progress and achieving a sense of accomplishment, two things which increase the enjoyment of language study.One thing I especially appreciate is Dr. Byock's use of word-frequency lists such as those found in Mounce's Greek texts. He shows how a relatively small number of words accounts for the lion's share of words one encounters in actual reading. These lists occur in each chapter and are separate from the vocabulary lists given for the reading passages, which are necessarily longer (though the two lists overlap). The introduction of the most frequently used ON words at regular intervals is immensely helpful. In addition, the vocabulary given for the reading sections is very manageable in itself. These lists are not overlong (as vocabulary often tends to be in far too many language textbooks, something which can discourage any learner). Since the reading selections for each chapter are not long, the student really learns the vocabulary in context, by FAR the best way to fix it in the memory. And by learning in small chunks the most frequently used ON words, rapid progress can be made which is so helpful in maintaining the student's interest.A word about ON vocabulary. If your English vocabulary is good (and even better, if you know some German or---however unlikely---Old English [Anglo-Saxon]), the number of cognate words is extremely high (these are, after all, members of the same linguistic family), and the student can make progress even faster. None of that is necessary, of course, to learn and enjoy ON, but it does facilitate mastery of both vocabulary and grammar.As to pronunciation, a guide is given (rather oddly, in an appendix towards the back of the book rather than at the beginning) which enables the student to learn either the reconstructed ON pronunciation or the modern Icelandic pronunciation (for those with an eye to learning the latter as well). There are also accompanying MP3 files for help with this. The pronunciation segments of these are especially helpful for those new to a language such as ON. The readings are good but read by a native Icelandic speaker at natural speed, which can seem very fast to the beginner but which, with exposure, becomes more manageable in time.The Viking Language series is a very attractive and welcome set of textbooks, and from what I have seen, by far the most user-friendly to newcomers to any language. Highly, highly recommended!

John McWhorter uses the phrase "bristling morphology" to label languages like Old Norse. You like ending? O.N. has 'em. (BTW, 'em is the Old English form of the word 'them', borrowed from O.N., not a contraction). Let me just list the features I like - I took a course in O.N. with a buddy and we still talk about what a great course it was having nothing to do with anything else we were studying. We affectionately call it our "Old Norse Course."Nothing is neglected. A good excursion into runes will delight some readers. Most interesting to me whose interest lies in language learning and teaching (SLA) is the approach to vocabulary: to go by word frequency in presenting it. Along with carefully crafted samples of O.N., explanations of how the poetry worked as well as an immense amount of cultural and historical background abound to give it all context. That background is filled out with good illustrations in pen and ink, photos, diagrams, maps, including those that clarify the linguistic background of O.N. in Indo-European linguistic and cultural history. And not just history but contemporary mates of O.N. in Modern Icelandic. The list goes on.Pronunciation is presented which is necessary to appreciate the poetry and the prose because of the many epics represented in O.N. An example of cultural background is that naming practices are explained, a topic that each culture tends to treat uniquely (cf. Spanish, Russian, Korean, etc.). And for those besotted by all this, there are follow up books! Purchase with confidence.

I have had a very solid experience working through this book so far. The text is aimed at a beginner not just to learning Old Norse, but to someone unfamiliar with the time period as well. The pace is a little slower because of this, especially because the author includes a lot of cultural context for the language and readings.Grammar explanations cover not only ON grammar, but also explain grammar for those unfamiliar with English structure. That being said, I think the explanations still might be a little bit difficult to follow for someone with absolutely no prior knowledge of the vocabulary used to talk about grammar (for example, what declensions are and what the role of each case is). I've had a lot of experience with Latin, so it's hard for me to be totally objective on the difficulty. I would say that if you have had prior language experience, the pace might be a little leisurely, but personally I only have a little bit of time to study ON everyday, so it hasn't been an issue at all.The dictionary in the back of the book is only ON to English, so if you want to look up words that haven't been presented yet in a lesson, you'll have a tough time.I do wonder at how thoroughly edited the book is. I've found multiple (though not frequent) typos so far, including one incorrect answer in the answer key posted online. I've found one instance of a word mentioned in a lesson not being included in the dictionary in the back. There are also occasional formatting issues. For example, many exercises are formatted into columns, and occasionally you'll find an instance where you have exercise 1 and 6 at the bottom of the page, and you have to flip to see 2-5 and 7-10. I've seen a reading similarly formatted, requiring you to flip to the next page in the middle of the text. Sometimes the word glosses for readings are also split and pushed onto the next page. None of these have been deal breakers for me, but it is certainly annoying to have to flip back and forth.Overall, as someone with a lot of language experience and not a ton of time for going through exercises everyday, this book has been great.

IMMERSE YOURSELF IN THE WORLD OF THE VIKINGS, BUT BUY THE NEW 'VIKING LANGUAGE 2 - THE OLD NORSE READER' AS WELL! IT'S CHOC FULL OF EXTRACTS FROM THE OLD NORSE SAGAS, EDDAS, SKALDIC POETRY AND RUNIC INSCRIPTIONS - READY FOR YOU TO READ AND TRANSLATE. - VIKING HEAVEN! If you are fascinated by the Vikings and hanker after reading the sagas in the original Old Norse, but don't have any knowledge of Scandinavian languages, don't panic, because you have English as a starting point, and Professor Jesse L. Byock of the UCLA and the Mosfell Project, Iceland, who will teach you from scratch. I have a degree in Scandinavian languages, and was taught Old Icelandic, but because I didn't have Latin and German, which gives you quite a few clues, and a head start with the grammar, and also because I had to use rather dry text-books, I was never able to answer any grammar questions correctly in class. But nearly 30 years later, thanks to Professor Byock's stupendous 'Viking Language 1 - Learn Old Norse, Runes, And Icelandic Sagas,' the scales have literally fallen from my eyes! In his two fabulous books, Professor Byock really brings the Viking language and literature to life, and puts the Vikings into world context. In 'Viking Language 1,' as well as learning the grammar and vocabulary, you will learn runes, and be able to decipher runic inscriptions, be able to read and translate extracts from Old Norse sagas, and learn about Viking history, archaeology, mythology and culture, right across the Viking "empire".'Viking Language 2 -The Old Norse Reader,' concentrates on Old Norse literary texts, and can be used alongside 'Viking Language 1,' or as a stand-alone - particularly useful if you already know Old Norse, but would like a flavour of sagas, runes, eddas and skaldic poetry, which will help you decide the direction of your future studies. I'm particularly thrilled to see that 'Njal's Saga' and 'The Tale of Audun from the West Fjords' ('Audun and the Bear') are included. There is a fantastic variety of texts to gorge on. This book has just come out, but I strongly suggest that you snap it up now, as it's bound to be a hit with students of Old Norse!Both books have useful quick grammar references, there are plenty of exercises/translation practice to increase your knowledge and many illustrations and maps. I'm excited to get the opportunity to learn about Professor Byock's excavations in Iceland. And how amazing and fascinating to be able to read 'Egil's Saga,' when Professor Byock and his team have been excavating the very homestead of the Mosfell chieftains!Don't hesitate! Amaze your friends! Amaze yourself! Go for it! And step back in time with 21st century scholarship and teaching..."Skål!" as they say in Sweden.REVIEW BY JC PENRITH (JULIE'S KINDLE/JULIE'S HDX KINDLE) THE NAME "DEGG"S ALSO APPEARS ON THIS REVIEW, AS MY KINDLES WERE GIFTS FROM DEGGS - LUCKY ME!

I'm from Yorkshire and understand Yorkshire dialect (Which is a rarity these days in Yorkshire) and YD is heavily influenced by Norse so I thought the next step for me would be to learn old Norse and find out what some of the words my grandad used, actually mean? It seems ok so far

Was always looking for a book such as this, as I'm very much interested in Norse& viking history/mythology. The book breaks down nicely and is well displayed. Would recommend to any Viking looking for knowledge.

I know from personal experience how many people buy language-learning books with great enthusiasm that wanes very quickly through the dryness of the material. Not so with this book that has a beautifully engaging approach in mixing up the language-learning process with some historical and cultural background. So far the author's approach has kept me engaged so much that I have bought book 2 as well. Recommended.

I bought this book in good faith understanding it to be the first of many that would take me through all the stages needed to become fluent in Norse. However when I got stuck a few chapters in, I needed to check the correct answers. Absolutely nothing is provided! Astonishing! For someone who is looking for a self learning course, this isn’t it. A waste of my money.