Anglo-Saxon

/ˌˈæŋgloʊ ˌˈsæksən/

The Anglo-Saxons were people who lived in and ruled part of what is now the British Isles for about 600 years, before and during the early Middle Ages. Old English was spoken by the Anglo-Saxons.

Anglo-Saxon comes from the names of the two largest Germanic tribes that settled in Britain around 410 CE: the Angles and the Saxons. The Anglo-Saxons were farmers — and fierce warriors — who left a cultural legacy, including the name England, which derives from the Anglo-Saxon Angle-Land.

Definitions of Anglo-Saxon

1. noun

   the earliest known form of the English language, prominent in the early Middle Ages until the mid-12th century
   synonyms: Old English

   types:

   West Saxon

   a literary dialect of Old English

   Anglian

   one of the major dialects of Old English

   Jutish, Kentish

   one of the major dialects of Old English

   type of:

   English, English language

   an Indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries
2. noun

   a native or inhabitant of England in a period lasting more than 600 years prior to the Norman Conquest in 1066 CE
   type of:

   English person

   a native or inhabitant of England
3. adjective

   of or relating to the Anglo-Saxons or their language
   “Anglo-Saxon poetry”

   “The Anglo-Saxon population of Scotland”
4. noun

   a person of Anglo-Saxon (especially British) descent whose native tongue is English and whose culture is strongly influenced by English culture as in WASP for White Anglo-Saxon Protestant
   type of:

   English person

   a native or inhabitant of England