Tribes Angles, Saxons and Jutes

The History of English

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Angles

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Angles, member of a Germanic people. The angles invaded the island of Britain in the 5th century ce. The Angles gave their name to England, as well as to the word Englisc, used even by Saxon writers to denote their vernacular tongue. The Angles are first mentioned by Tacitus (1st century ce) as worshippers of the deity Nerthus. According to the Venerable Bede in the Ecclesiastical History of the English People, their Continental homeland was centred in Angulus, traditionally identified as the Angeln district in Schleswig between the Schlei inlet and the Flensburger Förde, which they appear to have abandoned at the time of their invasion of Britain. They settled in large numbers during the 5th and 6th centuries in what became the kingdoms of Mercia, Northumbria, and East and Middle Anglia.

Saxons

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Saxons, member of a Germanic people who in ancient times lived in the area of modern Schleswig and along the Baltic coast. The period of Roman decline in the northwest area of the empire was marked by vigorous Saxon piracy in the North Sea. During the 5th century ce the Saxons spread rapidly through north Germany and along the coasts of Gaul and Britain. The coastal stretch from the Elbe to the Scheldt rivers, however, was held by the Frisians, on whom the Saxons had great influence. The savage Saxon wars lasted 32 years and ended with the incorporation of the Saxons into the Frankish empire.

Jutes

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Jutes,  member of a Germanic people who, invaded Britain in the 5th century ad. The Jutes have no recorded history on the European continent, but there is considerable evidence that their home was in the Scandinavian area (probably Jutland) and that those who did not migrate were later absorbed by the Danes. According to the Venerable Bede, the Jutes settled in Kent, the Isle of Wight, and parts of Hampshire. In Kent their name soon died out, but there is considerable evidence in the social structure of that area that its settlers were of a different race from their neighbours. There is archaeological evidence to confirm Bede’s statement that the Isle of Wight and Kent were settled by the same people, and their presence in Hampshire is confirmed by place-names.