Re:Learn to read Middle English
by combatentropy on Tuesday June 09, 2020 @04:27PM
(#23470531)
> What's "schuleth" then? . . . This is a form of "shall, should" but in this context it has its old meaning, now lost, of "owe"
I would not say it is lost. What else does "you should" mean but "you owe"? You can exchange "You should..." for "You ought to..." (ought is a past tense of owe).
While the sense evolution from owing to obligation is clear, it would definitely sound weird now to say “you should a tribute”.
Funnily, if you read your sentence aloud, it sounds perfectly reasonable:
"You should attribute..."
It's still "schulden" (to owe) in German, and "trybut" is still "tribut", and "alle" is still "alle", and "hoppen" (or "hopfen") is still used in some German dialects as "jump"/"dance", and "alwey" (or "alleweil" / "ällweil") is still used in southern Germany for "always" - my grandfather still uses it. "Ȝelde" is very close to the modern German "vergelten" (repay) or "abgelten" (compensate), and even to "Geld" (money).
The only word that seems strangely out of context is "dettes", and as it turns out, this word is French.
As a German, when I read Middle English, I always have the strange feeling that someone tried to "correct" or clarify a Modern English text, but only partly succeeded.