Old English Names: Cæd, Bæd and Dangerous to Know

What happened in Britain after the Romans left? The names of those who remained – and those who arrived – may hold an answer.

Saint Guthlac being tormented by demons, the Life of Saint Guthlac, Crowland, Lincolnshire, 1175-1215. Guthlac’s name represented a shift away from older naming conventions towards a recognisably English one. British Library. Public Domain.
Saint Guthlac being tormented by demons, the Life of Saint Guthlac, Crowland, Lincolnshire, 1175-1215. Guthlac’s name represented a shift away from older naming conventions towards a recognisably English one. British Library. Public Domain.

In the Life of Saint Guthlac, the author, Felix of Crowland, describes how the early English saint received his name:

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